Article search results

At the Court of the Fish-eyed Goddess Queen | William Dalrymple | India, Tamil Nadu, Madurai

To the Tamils, this is a sacred landscape, and the origins of every feature are elaborately catalogued in the myths of Madurai.

• Read more

Bali Nights | Bradley Winterton | Indonesia, Nusa Tenggara/ Southeast Islands, Bali

“The witch at Batubulan is only illusion,” said the man in the blue headdress and mauve sarong standing beside me in the temple forecourt. “But here she will be for real”

• Read more

Hagia Sophia: Wisdom of the Ages | Tom Brosnahan | Turkey, Marmara, Istanbul

On a hot Istanbul afternoon, Hagia Sophia is an oasis of cool silence broken only by the spiel and patter of the multilingual guides. Their flocks of curious Europeans, Americans, Japanese and Greeks

• Read more

Happy Birthday, Abu’l-Hajjaj | Anthony Sattin | Egypt, Nile, Luxor

Along the Luxor corniche, the morning light was soft and the wake sparkled behind the Mecca, the old iron-hulled ferry, as it made its short pilgrimage across the Nile

• Read more

In Judea | William Dalrymple | Israel, Israel and the Palestinian Territories, Jerusalem

"Look at it!" said Fr Theopanes waving a hand at the dark rocky gorge beneath us. "There it is: the Valley of Doom. The Valley of Dreadful Judgement." Below us the monastic buildings of Mar Saba fell away

• Read more

Into the heart of Byzantium: A journey to Mt. Athos | Christopher Deliso | Greece, Mainland Greece, Mount Athos

Athos, or the “Holy Mountain,” is the spiritual centre of Orthodox Christianity, where the traditions of a long-vanished world have continued for over 1,000 years

• Read more

Pilgrim Route to the Birthplace of the Incas | Martin Li

The moon’s reflection rippled over the calm lake surface, joining the Islands of the Sun and Moon in a shimmering bridge of light. Occasional flashes of lightning danced over the distant peaks of the Cordillera Real

• Read more

Prophets, Pilgrims, and Profits | Campbell Jefferys | France, Midi-Pyrenees, Lourdes

The city is beautifully located in the heart of the Pyrenees, with jagged peaks visible from almost any part of town. The old centre is a delight to walk around; the streets are narrow and winding, the way they should be in mountian villages.

• Read more

Qufu, China: Beyond Beliefs | Philip Sen

Qufu, the contemporary site of the former State of Lu where in 551 BC Confucius was born, still retains an ancient charm

• Read more

The Camino Portugues | Rob Penn | Spain, Galicia, Santiago de Compostela

To undertake a pilgrimage in the wettest part of Europe in the wettest month of the year is foolhardy. But I was ignoring reason and experience in order to arrive before the tomb of St James in Santiago

• Read more

Voodoo Nights | Norman Miller

The voodoo-inspired candomble is just one African influence in Bahia, northern Brazil

• Read more