The Vagabond Hiker

Hiking, trekking, and climbing the world

Summer in the Cities

Loyal readers of this blog will know that most of my time is spent in the mountains and deserts of the world, hiking, trekking, and climbing. On occasion, though, I crave some culture, history, and decent vegan cuisine. With bases in Italy and Britain this past summer, I was ideally situated to visit several capital cities in Europe that were new to me. Others cities served as stepping off points for mountain adventures. In all case except one, my main means of exploring each city was by walking, in every instance including a guided tour of the cities’ more historic areas.

I trust you will enjoy this change from my usual mountain and desert photos to mark the milestone of blog post #100. Rather than present the photos in chronological order, I have listed them from my least to most favorite cities visited in 2023.

#9. Islamabad

Staying in Islamabad before and after any trekking or climbing excursion to Pakistan is mandatory. Because of safety reasons we stayed in a mediocre hotel in an area of town with nothing interesting to see, no decent restaurants, and no walking possibilities except once as a group to change money. (Speaking of which, if money is no object, the hotel to stay at is La Serena). And while it was my least favorite city this past summer, there were a couple of highlights worth sharing from our guided bus tour.

At the Faisal Mosque. Named after King Faisal bin Abdulaziz of Saudi Arabia (who funded it), this mosque is a symbol of the friendship between the two countries. Although Friday prayers were is session at the time we visited, the worshipers largely ignored us.
Daman-e-Koh. A park with manicured grounds and sweeping views overlooking the city, lake, and Faisal Mosque. Note a couple monkeys in the lower right. Their antics were amusing, though I am usually not a big fan.
A truck at a paint shop in an industrial area of the city. If you’ve never seen a Pakistani Bedford truck painted like this, they are truly amazing: a rolling work of art.

#8. Belgrade

As far as European capital cities go, Belgrade was one of the least interesting of all that I’ve seen over the decades. While I found a fine vegan cafe a block from my hotel, the city’s architecture was generally boring, the one park I found nearby to visit (around the historic Belgrade Fortress) was crowded and noisy (granted, it was a Saturday), and the botanical garden was closed for a private function. The biggest plus was that by visiting Serbia, there now remain only three countries in Europe that I haven’t seen! I was quite happy to leave at the end of the weekend.

Pioneer Park and the Presidential Palace. My very engaging city tour started here, the cleanest area of the Old Town.
Church of the Holy Trinity (Russian Orthodox). An absolutely gorgeous little church where a wedding reception was just concluding.

#7. Yerevan

My main purpose of traveling to Armenia was for hiking and trekking in the Lesser Caucasus and Geghama Mountains (see my earlier post). Yerevan seemed to me very congested (partly due to a national celebration on the day we returned). Our cultural guide was very knowledgeable, and she was determined to impart as much of her knowledge as humanly possible.

History Museum at the Republic Square, the main square of the city. The turbulent history of Armenia is never far from the surface of any discussion.
The Vagabond Hiker holding onto a Spider sculpture
Mount Ararat from the Cascade Complex, the nicest part of town. I was on my belly to capture this photo with the flowers in the foreground. Although in Turkey, Mt. Ararat is sacred to all Armenians.

#6. Baku

Having some extra time in Tbilisi, Georgia (see below), I took a 40 minute flight to Baku, Azerbaijan for a one night stay. One night and one full day was about the right amount of time to see the more interesting sites of this city, the lowest capital city in the world at 92 ft below sea level.

Sabir garden and monument, named after the famous Azeri satirical poet and philosopher. Our city tour began in this calm place, just outside the walled Old Town (note the wall in the background).
Maiden Tower. An interesting and mysterious history of this famous landmark in Baku.
The Crescent Hotel (still under construction), reflected in the Caspian Sea. The oil slicks that covered much of the water near the shore may not be evident here.

#5. Marrakech

As it was my third time in this amazing city, I didn’t stay long, only for the two nights that book-ended a climb of Mount Toubkal. The Majorelle Gardens and numerous historic sites were outside the scope of my visit. But I got a couple of photos nonetheless. The two that follow were shown in my Toubkal climbing blog from June. Pardon the repeat.

Interior courtyard of the Riad Alida. If you visit Marrakech, for certain stay in a traditional Riad. And if you are on a budget, you could do a lot worse than this family-run establishment just outside the Medina.
Koutoubia mosque at sunset, from the terrace of our restaurant. It’s minaret was damaged three months later during the severe earthquake that struck the Atlas Mountains.

#4. Riga

The fact that I ranked this lovely capital city of Latvia outside of my top 3 gives some idea of the level of gastronomic, cultural, and urban walking experiences I enjoyed last summer.

Nativity of Christ Orthodox Cathedral. For me a standout in a city with many interesting churches.
National Opera and Ballet, neither of which was performing in June.
An Old Town Plaza
Bastejkalna Park, a linear green space along the City Canal. The extensive Vērmane Garden nearby was also enjoyable, and not too crowded even on a warm(ish) Friday in June.

#3. Tbilisi

After my KE trek in Georgia was cancelled I quickly came up with some new plans (see my post from July), and based myself at a fantastic Airbnb in Old Town Tbilisi for 12 days. I was not disappointed. (The only downside was that the nightclubs seemed to go strong until 4 or 5 AM, even during the week. Bring earplugs.)

City view from above the Botanic Garden (behind me). The Old Town and surrounding areas were for the most part very clean and safe. I just wish the Botanic Garden had opened earlier; by late morning in July it was over 80 degrees and humid, so I saved it for a future visit.
Metekhi Virgin Mary Assumption Church at night, on a promontory overlooking the Kura River. This ancient Georgian-style church is the most picturesque in Tbilisi.
Tbilisi_Archive Restaurant entrance
The Restaurant Archive entrance, adjacent to the Wine Museum. This was the only fine dining experience I had in Tbilisi. The standard tourist restaurants were quite fine!
Night view of Tbilisi from my penthouse balcony at 5 Wine Rise.

#2. Luxembourg

My three nights’ stay in the upper town of this capital city of the Duchy of Luxembourg was time (and money!) well spent. With free public transport, several interesting museums, numerous parks and some good vegan cuisine, I found little to not like (other than the prices) about this ancient city. Honestly, it was a toss-up between Luxembourg and my chosen city for the top spot.

A panoramic view (at 0.5x) from the Pétrusse casemates to the lower city
Pont Adolphe over the Pétrusse River
A pathway along Parcs de la Pétrusse. The Alzette River joins this one a bit upstream from here. I didn’t have enough time to see all that I wanted to in the city, though I did visit an art exhibition and a local history museum.
Another view in the Parcs de la Pétrusse. A bit of the upper town, historically home to the burgesses and nobility, is seen on top of these cliffs.

#1. Vilnius

For some reason (most likely ignorance), my expectations for a two night stay in the capital of Lithuania were not high. They should have been! This city was absolutely stunning and more than deserved the European Capital of Culture designation in 2009. And the urban nature is second to none: some 46 percent of Vilnius is designated green space: parks, squares, and forests. To top it off, the fantastic restaurant, Rosehip Vegan Bistro, was a stone’s throw from my Airbnb. Whittling it down to six photos was very difficult. You’ll just have to visit Vilnius yourself!

Old Town Panorama from the Three Crosses Monument
An Old Town street
Office of the President of the Republic of Lithuania
Wooden steps on a path in Kalnų park
Vilnia River view
Gediminas Castle Tower

In less than two weeks I depart California for Jordan. My time there will be divided between hiking in the Wadi Rum area in the south and enjoying some of the many cultural attractions, mostly in the north. Christmas Day will be spent exploring Petra (with about a million others I suppose). I’ll share some of the photos with you in January. Until then,

Happy Holidays!

The Vagabond Hiker

Mount Toubkal, Morocco

In August 2019 I posted photos from a two week trekking trip of the High Atlas Mountains in Morocco, on which our KE group attempted four 4000m (13,130 ft) peaks, including Mount Toubkal, the highest point in North Africa. Although I summitted the other three, Mount Toubkal eluded me due to an untimely gout flare up. Four years later I returned for a weekend (!) of hiking to complete that unfinished business. . .

Friday: Arrival in Marrakech

Flying from Milan via Lisbon required the best part of the day. Having no checked luggage, my biggest worry was having my trekking poles confiscated by the security. However, they – and I – made it to our Riad (traditional inn) located just outside of the Medina (walled city). An oasis in this chaotic city.

Riad Alida courtyard, Marrakech
Dar Marjana terrace, where I had my first Moroccan dinner and a glass of chilled white wine, about a two minute walk from Riad Alida.

Saturday: Approach hike to Mouflons Refuge

Following the path nearly everyone takes who wishes to climb Toubkal, we left the road head at Imlil Village late morning following a two hour drive from Marrakech. Our strong group of four clients and one guide had about 11km and 1500m of ascent to accomplish.

The hillside hamlet of Aroumd, near the start of our trek, heading up the Ait Mizane Valley
Hiking towards the Shrine Sidi Chamharouch (white dome in the middle of the photo). Our cook prepared a traditional Moroccan lunch for us here (the halfway point), with a salad and tagine – vegetable in my case.
Cascade Sidi Chamharouch. There was a lot more water flowing than 4 years ago, due to a relatively wet winter.
Mouflons (left) and Neltner refuges with the start of the Toubkal summit route seen here. The actual summit is far above to the left.
Toubkal as seen from the summit of Ouanoukrim (4089m). The climbing route is not visible here, off to the left. I took this photo in 2019.

Sunday: Summit day and return to Marrakech

Many summiters start at a reasonable hour, say 7 AM. However, this compressed weekend trip meant we had not only to summit – about 1000m of ascent on an often rough, bouldery trail – but trek back all the way to Imlil. A wake up call at 3 AM and departure before 4:30 was the solution.

Dawn on the flanks of Toubkal. By this time we were almost to the top.
Alpenglow on Ouanoukrim at dawn
The Vagabond Hiker on Toubkal summit (4167m). It was a chilly, windy hike in the pre-dawn hours, but probably not below freezing.
Goats and goatherd on descent. My biggest concern was my knees on the 2500m (8000+ ft.) of descent, but that proved unfounded.
Our group back in the shade, approaching Imlil after a long day.
Koutoubia Mosque at sunset from our Marrakech terrace restaurant where we celebrated a 100% success rate.

Monday: return home

After any endeavor of this nature, a let down is natural, and so it was with me as I headed home, a long day of travel back through Lisbon to Milan, followed by a 3 hour drive to my apartment above Riva del Garda. After a couple of days to decompress and wait for the weather to improve, I am back hiking and climbing Via Ferrate for another week before my summer adventures continue from my base near Windsor, England. I may do a short post at the end of my sojourn in Italy as it has been nearly three years since I’ve been in the Lago di Garda region, and then not during the spring flower bloom.

The Vagabond Hiker

Day hikes on Cape Verde

Located just off the coast of Africa, over 1000 miles south of the Canary Islands, the Cape Verde (Cabo Verde in Portuguese) archipelago is a walker’s paradise. Our KE group spent almost two weeks exploring its rugged coastlines and fertile terraced volcanic slopes and immersing ourselves in the islands’ Creole Portuguese-African culture. Our trip started in the largest and most populated island, Santiago. A short flight then took us to the nearby island of Fogo, known for its wine and its eponymous volcano, the high point of the country at 2829m (9280 ft).

Topographic map of the Cape Verde archipelago. Our hikes were on Fogo in the Leeward islands to the south and Santo Antao, the northern most windward island.
Fogo, the highest point in Cape Verde. Our first hike skirted its western slopes.
Lava formations near Cha das Caldeiras, which translates as “Caldera Plain”
A crater near Cha das Caldeiras on Fogo, the high point of our short hike on the first day
Early morning on our hike to the summit of Fogo. We started early to beat the heat.
Unknown yellow flower on Fogo
A bit of scrambling on Fogo’s summit block
The Vagabond Hiker on the summit of Fogo, 2829m
View north from Fogo’s summit
Our third hike on the island of Fogo was through the Monte Velha forest towards the north coast
Trying out the zoom on my new Panasonic Lumix on this Cape Verde sparrow I saw on the Monte Velha forest walk. We also saw lots of Eurasian Kestrels throughout Cape Verde, but they were somewhat more challenging to photograph.
Road building Monte Velha forest. These rugged cobblestone roads were all over Cape Verde, some made originally by slaves

After three hikes in Fogo’s arid landscape, we flew to Sao Vicente and next morning took a short ferry to the most northerly island, Santo Antao. The group spent a week walking amidst the sub-tropical jagged mountains. Santo Antao is the second largest island and an absolute haven for hikers. (Due to the coronavirus, I chose to return to the UK after the first two outstanding walks). I hated to leave Cape Verde, a beautiful and remote walking destination with stunning views of rugged coastlines set in the middle of the turquoise blue ocean.

Our first hike on Santo Antao was from the village of Cha d’Orgueiro down to the coast
Another view of the Cha d’Orgueiro village to sea walk
Apple of Sodom plant. We saw a lot of these, which have some medicinal uses, on this hike
Detail of the flower of the Apple of Sodom
Joe looking out at the landscape on the Cha d’Orgueiro village to sea walk
The Vagabond Hiker on the Cha d’Orgueiro village to sea walk. The water channels reminded me of those on Madeira last year. Photo courtesy of Joe.
The small beach we reached after more than 1000m (3300 ft) descent
Of course, we then had about 400m (1300 ft) to ascend to our vehicle.
Cliffs and sea looking west into the sun
Our second hike on Santo Antao began just above the village we were staying in, Cha de Morte. It’s named for the one cemetery on the island which is nearby.
Some of our group near the start of the 1000-plus meter ascent to a plateau near the Topo da Coroa
We saw several locals getting water with their donkeys from a rare spring. Rainfall has decreased dramatically from when the Portuguese discovered these uninhabited islands in the fifteenth century.
Rock formations at the pass onto the plateau
The plateau and some goats. In the past it was much greener; now it is green only in autumn after the short rainy season.
An unidentified purple flower on the plateau above Cha de Morte
Some cave dwellings along the plateau. The high point of Santo Antao is Topo da Coroa, just visible in the background
A panorama shot looking back down from where we started at Cha de Morte
View back up to the plateau. Much of the trail we hiked this day was built by slaves.

Although I made it back to England without any problems, as I write this the other eleven are still hiking on Santo Antao. I am not certain when my next blog post will come. I have cancelled my next two trips, to Jordan and the Azores, which were to take place in the coming month. Instead, I will spend the next seven weeks here in Hastings, then take a train out to the far west of Cornwall (assuming travel within the country is permitted) where I have rented a cottage near the Southwest Coast Path for five weeks until mid-June. My current plan is to post from that special part of England. In the mean time, stay safe while enjoying the outdoors,

The Vagabond Hiker

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