The average person in Türkiye drinks several cups a day, making the country one of the world's highest tea consumers per person.
Most Turkish tea is grown around the city of Rize on Türkiye's eastern Black Sea coast on the steep mountain slopes.
The region's mild, rainy climate is ideal for growing tea, and it produces nearly all of the country's tea.
Traditionally, families would move themselves and their livestock
from the lowlands to the cooler lush mountain pastures for about 3–5 months during
the summer.
They stay in simple wooden or stone houses, graze animals, make products like cheese, butter and yogurt, and then return to the lowlands before winter.
It was founded in the 4th century AD, making it one of the
oldest monasteries in the region.
The monastery was built into the cliff for a combination
of religious, practical and defensive reasons.
Sümela Monastery is dedicated to the Virgin Mary and was an important center of Greek Orthodox Christianity, in primarily a Muslim country, for more than 1,500 years.
It sits at around 2,430 metres (7,970 ft)
above sea level, surrounded by steep green mountains, clouds and valleys,
creating a dramatic landscape.
Historians still debate exactly what it was used for. Perhaps a
royal retreat, or perhaps a religious center, or perhaps a ceremonial place.
The unanswered questions add to its mystery.
The Colca Valley is a green ribbon surrounded by high
volcanic mountains, with villages, farms, and huge agricultural terraces carved
into the hillsides.
Many of these terraces were built by pre-Inca peoples and many are still farmed today.
It sits at about 2,335 metres (7,660 feet) above sea level and is surrounded by 3 volcanoes.
It is often called the “White City” because many of its historic buildings are made from white sillar, a pale volcanic stone created from eruptions of the volcanoes.
The historic centre is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is known for its Spanish colonial architecture, large plazas, and churches.
In Bolivia it can carry a lot of meaning beyond just
appearance.
The traditional clothing worn by many Indigenous women in
Bolivia, especially Aymara and Quechua women, is a visible statement of Bolivian
culture.
The outfit has the traditional basics, and then, each woman adds her own personal touch.
Not all the women wore the traditional clothing, but those that did, wore it with pride.
Originally, Sucre was Bolivia's sole capital and the center
of political power.
However, as the country's economy shifted from the silver
mines around Sucre to the booming tin industry centered near La Paz, La Paz
became more economically and politically influential.
So now, Sucre is the constitutional and official
capital, where the Supreme Court is located.
La Paz is the seat of government (administrative capital), where the executive and legislative branches operate.
The discovery of silver at Cerro Rico in the 1500s helped
make the Spanish Empire enormously wealthy.
It also turned the city of Potosí, Bolivia, into one of the
largest and richest cities in the world.
Many of Bolivia’s mines are located high in the Andes at
elevations above 3,650 m (12,000 feet).
Mining co-operatives are where groups of miners operate mines collectively, sharing costs, equipment and profits among members.
Co-operatives employ a large share of Bolivia's miners.
We toured one of Bolivia’s co-operative mines in Potosí.
It was formed thousands of years ago when several
prehistoric lakes evaporated, leaving behind a huge crust of salt.
During the rainy season, December through May, a thin layer of water transforms the flats into one of the world's largest natural mirrors.
We were there the beginning of April on a perfect sunny day.
It is part of the same Andean high-altitude (altiplano) region as Chile's Atacama Desert, with elevations of roughly 4,000–6,000 meters (13,000–20,000 feet).
The National Reserve, surrounded by volcanoes and deserts, is a protected area in the remote southwest corner of Bolivia near the borders with Chile and Argentina.
The reserve was established in 1973 to protect endangered wildlife such as vicuñas and Andean flamingos.
And then there are those that are nondiscriminatory and like
them all. Or, don’t like any.
Chile is better known for red wine, but, there are also areas where the climate and soil are better suited to grapes for white wines.
The Maipo Valley and the Casablanca Valley are two important wine regions in Chile, but they produce different styles of wine because of their different climates and soils.
Our first village to visit was Besalú, a medieval
center in the lower foothills of the Pyrenees Mountains.
In its heyday, Besalú was a political, religious and commercial hub serving the surrounding countryside.
Its 12th-century Romanesque bridge over the Fluvià River is picturesque.
But it is more than just pretty.
Its history goes back to Roman times.
Followed by centuries of Islamic rule.
Which was then followed by the Christian reconquest.
The natural beauty and turbulent history gives the town a romantic allure and attracted the "Viajeros Románticos".
Looking back at these photos, I do not know how we did
it.
The Caminito del Rey is a walkway in Andalusia, southern
Spain, running through the narrow El Chorro Gorge north of Málaga.
It has wooden boardwalks hugging the cliffs high above the
Guadalhorce River.
Literally translated, “caminito” means “little path.”
The name reflects how narrow and precarious the original walkway was, often no more than a meter wide (39 inches) and clinging
to the cliff face.
When King Alfonso XIII came for a brief inspection and
opening, the full name “Caminito del Rey,” “the King’s Little Path” became the
name that stuck.
It was a boom-and-bust town that rose quickly in the early 1900s and then emptied almost overnight in the 1940’s, leaving behind a haunting collection of stone ruins, crumbling buildings and old miner’s homes.
Today, Terlingua’s Ghost Town has a quirky mix of restored
buildings, art studios and lived-in dwellings sitting beside abandoned ruins.
We describe it as the place that people go to drop out
of society.
Or, it could be the place for people in the Witness Protection Program.
It is a long 10 hour drive from Houston, but, the park is beautiful with mountains and desert.
It is so different than anywhere else in Texas.
So many Texans have never been and say they want to go, but somehow don't.
They don't know what they are missing!
In some ways it is the best kept secret in Texas.
The Blue Ridge Mountains are known for
having one of the longest and most colorful fall seasons in the eastern United
States.
A major reason the colors are so vivid is the biodiversity
of the mountains.
More than a hundred species of deciduous trees grow here, each changing at a different time and producing different shades.
Purely for educational purposes. Obviously.
Turns out that vineyards on Vancouver Island have been
producing wine since the 1970’s.
There are now over 30 wineries, most of them small,
family-run estates.
The majority of the vineyards are located in the Cowichan Valley, just over an hour north of Victoria.
Cyprus’ wine making tradition dates back over 5,000 years.
Vineyards contribute to the island’s landscape, culture and economy.
The Mediterranean climate with long sunny days, cool mountain breezes and fertile soil creates ideal conditions for growing grapes.
Vineyards are mostly concentrated in the central Troodos Mountains area where the altitude and terrain contribute to the unique flavor profiles of Cypriot wines.
