Hemingway...

“The man who has begun to live more seriously within begins to live more simply without.”

“Every man's life ends the same way. It is only the details of how he lived and how he died that distinguish one man from another.”

- Ernest Hemingway

Bahrain and the Tree of Life...

(Photos by Tavarua)

Parked to walk a sandy desert hill to visit a 400 years old mesquite tree.

Bahrain has an arid desert climate - today 35 degree Celsius, it is hot and the temperatures stay high year round.

In the midst of a hot dry desert is a lonely tree named Sharajat-al-Hayat/The Tree of Life.  The source of water for the tree is still unknown.

The local legend tells you that this was the tree of life in the original Garden of Eden.

and later in the shade of a palm tree something cold to drink and good book...

The Art of Life - From the family archives...

(Photo - family archives)

My mother stated : I can close my eyes and still have a perfect score...

She has her own world, style and her own rules...

She is always cheerful and still laughs at the world...

From the days of my childhood - She told me it is nothing in life to worry about and it is nothing you cannot achive...

(Photo - family archives)

She said: It is another world out there called life and freedom - Discover the beautiful side of life...in anything...

The world spinns around you...travel, explore,

observe, achieve and maintain your experiences...

 My destiny was determined...

- Joie de vivre -

Here I am holding on to a ball or is it the world of discovery?.....soon I was bitten by the travel bug - it now runs in my  veins....forever......

“Once you have traveled, the voyage never ends, but is played out over and over again in the quiestest chambers. The mind can never break off from the journey.”

- Pat Conroy

Departure: The Nordic Peninsula...

(Photos by Tavarua)

Magical Istanbul or just another City...

(Photos by Tavarua)

it all depends on you...you decide... to open the gates or not...

 “Open your arms to change, but don't let go of your values.”

- Dalai Lama

Sunrise - Ballooning over Cappadocia ...Part II

(Photos by Tavarua)

A beautiful morning - clear skies and it actually warmed up some...still chilly on the ground below...

  

The pilot has only the burner and his knowledge about the winds - weather conditions to control and navigate its "flight"...

Sometimes the air seems motionless around you ...

We were gliding through the landscape of Love Valley, the Three Sisters and Pigeon Valley...

The shadow from our balloon...

The winds have welcomed you with softness,

The sun has greeted you with it's warm hands,

You have flown so high and so well,

That God has joined you in laughter,

And set you back gently into

The loving arms of Mother Earth.

 - Anon, known as 'The Baloonists Prayer,' believed to have been adapted from an old Irish sailors' prayer.

The flight is over - Still early morning and we have landed for a breakfast consisting of a few glasses of champagne and cake...

If you want to have a memorable flight - Balloon Cappadocia...Part 1...

(Photos by Tavarua)

It is chilly this morning when we are getting ready for a balloon ride over Cappadocia...

The basket...

Best time to be here is between April and October when there are light winds and clear skies...and to rise with the sun in early morning is always a great experience of natures beauty...

The "launching" site...

The burner which directs the flame...

Our balloon pilot...

ready for...

take off...

The Valley of the Balloons...

Ballooning is the oldest way of flying....

Next - From the air - at Sunrise - we will be floating with gentle winds and experience Cappadocia with its unique environment, rock formations, deep canyons and valleys...