Editor's note: another incredible glimpse into a part of the world I'd never have thought to go by Sam Spector, our wandering rabbi. Check out all of his articles here! This is the second half of my writing on Lebanon, a country that I visited and found fascinating. I decided to write about Lebanon in…
Editor's note: After reading Sam's amazing description of Beirut, please follow the link at the end of the article to make a donation to the Lebanese Red Cross if you are inspired to help after the terrible tragedy that befell what seems like an incredible place. To read more of Sam's content here at TRT,…
Editor's note: I am so proud to host another amazing piece from Sam Spector, the traveling rabbi! For more of Sam's writing, visit his index here. If you are like me, you have probably had a trip… or three… canceled by the COVID-19 outbreak. Also, if you are like me, as you have been touring…
Love him or hate him; there seems to be little room for opinions between those extremes when it comes to Antoni Gaudi, the architect who is more closely identified with transforming a single city than anyone perhaps since Sir Christopher Wren and his additions to London's skyline. When visiting Barcelona, it is impossible not to…
It's such a contrast to pretty much everything else I've seen in Spain, a country with so much history. The palaces and monuments of Seville and Granada seem to be a world away here in Valencia; the complex I am currently standing in is so ultra-modern that is seems less European and more Saturnian, like…
Words can't accurately describe my feelings as my small tour group departs the office and walks toward the wall. The morning is chilly, but clear here at the top of a hill in the middle of Granada in southern Spain. Our group, headsets on listening to our guide narrate, shows our tickets and enters. Some…
For Americans visiting Spain, Barcelona and Madrid seem the focal points. Both are amazing destinations, but seeing only those two cities misses my personal favorite city in Spain: Seville. The capital of Andalusia is one of the cultural highlights of all of Europe, a mid-sized city, easy to explore and with more to do than…
Nestled in the foothills of the Andes mountains, the Baha'i Temple of South America is one of the most unusual-looking buildings I've ever laid eyes on. It's at once organic and otherworldly; it reminds me of the papery exterior of a physalis, or an intergalactic ship from a 60s TV show that crash-lands on earth…
Spain is awesome. Let's start with that. Pretty much anywhere you go will be amazing, based on my experience. But for most Americans, a trip to Spain is to Barcelona or Madrid. Both cities are wonderful - check out my Madrid guide here and tune in later for some rad Barcelona content - but they…
When maritime history meets awesome architecture, the birthplace of a famous food, and cool museums, you know that is a place worth visiting. Belém is a neighborhood in western Lisbon along the Tagus, and combines all of these things. Home to some of the city's elite - and the country's president - Belém is a…