Photo of the day – Mediterranean minimalism

by Alex Robertson Textor on

What simple beauty there is in today’s Photo of the Day! It was taken by Genoa-based Flickr user Giovanni Fusco in Provence. The nearly monochromatic paint job, the light, and the battered shutters all create a classic sort of image, something out of a 1960s French film. The aesthetic here is plain and workaday, a kind of Mediterranean minimalism; as such, Fusco’s image depicts a less obviously charming side of Provence.

Looking to share your work with a wider audience? Upload some images to the Flickr Gadling Group pool and one of your photos might end as a future Photo of the Day.

London day trip: Oxford

by Sean McLachlan on


London is one of the most popular destinations in Europe because of its eclectic shopping, crazy nightlife, and world-class museums and galleries. It can get a bit tiring and stressful, though. For those who want to get out of the Smoke and see a bit more of England, Oxford makes an easy and enjoyable day trip.

Getting there
The best way to get to Oxford from London is the Oxford Tube, which has regular bus service from various points in London up to four times an hour. There’s train service from Paddington station too, although it’s more expensive. There are also direct buses from Heathrow and Gatwick airports.

What to see
Oxford is famous for its university, one of the oldest in Europe. The Gothic and Victorian architecture of its more than two dozen colleges give Oxford much of its charm. Most are open to the public and feature beautiful quads with ivy-covered walls, and medieval chapels with stained glass and soaring roofs. Be sure to take a guided tour of the Bodleian Library, one of the largest in the world and home to some ornate medieval interiors. In the photo above courtesy Tejvanphotos, you can see the ornate Radcliffe Camera, one of the library buildings where I do research in the summer. If you see a guy in a Gadling t-shirt buried in a pile of books on medieval history, take him out for a pint.

Being a seat of learning, Oxford also has several good museums. Three of the best are the Pitt-Rivers for its ethnographic collection, the Ashmolean for its ancient artifacts, and the Museum of the History of Science. The River Thames passes through town and is locally called the Isis. There’s a pleasant riverside walk you can do, or you can strike out on the water by going punting. The best way to get orientated to Oxford is to go on one of the many tours. There are regular walking tours, bicycle tours, charity fundraising tours run by Oxfam, and ghost tours.

%Gallery-131760%Eating and Drinking
Oxford is filled with restaurants, many of them rather disappointing. Here are some of the better ones. The Grand Cafe is on the site of England’s first coffeehouse, built in 1650. Today it serves Continental cuisine in a refined atmosphere. The Vaults and Garden Cafe under the Church of St. Mary serves up healthy food and good coffee under the medieval vaults that give it its name. Chiang Mai Kitchen serves excellent Thai food. High tea at the Randolph Hotel is an Oxford tradition. For a more diverse selection, head down Cowley Road for a variety of Arab, Indian, Caribbean, and Slavic restaurants.

If you like English pubs, you’ll feel right at home here. The White Horse on Broad Street is popular with visitors as well as scholars who flee the Bodleian for a mid-afternoon pint. The Turf just off Queen’s Lane is another popular spot and has outside seating. The Eagle and Child on Saint Giles is famous for being the drinking spot of the Inklings, a writers’ group that included J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis.

Hiking
Oxford makes a great base for hikes to nearby villages and ancient monuments. You can walk along the Thames Path to Abingdon, visit the Rollright Stones (a stone circle), see a folly, and hike England’s oldest road–the Ridgeway.

Staying Overnight
With so much to do, you might want to stay overnight. Unfortunately Oxford is filled with mediocre or just plain bad B&Bs and hotels, and they’re all overpriced. I’ve found only two I would recommend. The Ethos Hotel is in a quiet residential neighborhood and an easy walk into town. Some rooms come with a kitchenette so you can stock up food and save a bit of money. The Mercure Oxford Eastgate Hotel is utterly lacking in atmosphere but it’s right in the middle of the action on High Street. Living on a writer’s wages I’ve not tried the luxurious Randolph but I’ve heard it’s pretty good.

When to go
If at all possible avoid going in the summer, when Oxford is crammed with tourists and English-language students. The autumn is nice with the ivy changing color, and the spring is fine too. Winter isn’t as bad as you might think. Yes, it’s gold and gray, but the university hosts a lot of cultural life such as concerts and lectures during term time.

Video: Tromso, Norway

by Elizabeth Seward on

Tromsø from Dave Pinke on Vimeo.

Anyone can go to Tromso, Norway. Anyone can go anywhere, actually–that’s what I like the most about travel. There aren’t restrictions. Get up and go if you want to go. Take pictures and make videos documenting the things you see and experiences that will, undoubtedly, mold you. That’s what Dave Pinke has done. Dave Pinke is a traveler, video-taker, all-around cool guy from New York. He’s spent much of his time over the last few years gallivanting across the globe and putting together splendid little videos in honor of the places he visits. Complete with fun clips and appropriate music, his travel videos are some of my favorite. They dive deep into his personal experiences and by the end of each video, I feel like I’ve walked in his footsteps.

Check out his video above from his trip to Tromso, Norway. His video offers some general glimpses of Tromso. Endless snow, Northern Lights, Lego creations, and plenty of food shots make this video whole. When you’re done enjoying this video, take a look at this other video we published earlier this year featuring the Northern Lights in Tromso specifically here.

Photo of the Day – Bubbles in Bosnia-Herzegovina

by Meg Nesterov on


As children, we are captivated by bubbles. A little soap and water and the reflections can be magical. Outside of the occasional bubble bath (and the delicious bubbles in sparkling wine!), we don’t have many occasions to enjoy bubbles as adults. In today’s photo by Flickr user Marko Musnjak, the little girl and her mother look equally mesmerized by the street seller’s bubble toy. Taken at the Feast of the Assumption of Mary in Posušje, Bosnia-Herzegovina, the photo captures the fun and magic of street festivals and bubbles.

What childhood delights have you rediscovered in your travels? Share your favorite photos in the Gadling Flickr pool and we may use it for a future Photo of the Day.

Museum of Socialist Art to open in Bulgaria

by Sean McLachlan on

A Museum of Socialist Art is opening next month in Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria. The museum exhibits statues of Lenin, paintings of Bulgarian Communist Party leaders, and other artwork from Soviet times.

The former Eastern Bloc country is the last such nation to open a museum to its totalitarian past. The socialist government fell in 1989 and Bulgaria had its first free elections the following year.

Not all vestiges of the past are sitting in museums. Many of Bulgaria’s current ruling elite were members of the old regime, and the last-minute name change from “Museum of Totalitarian Art” to “Museum of Socialist Art” is making some Bulgarians question just what the purpose of the museum is.

I worked in Bulgaria as an archaeologist in 1994, and the country was full of Soviet art. With the economy bottoming out, grannies set up stalls in the streets to sell old medals, uniforms, and busts of Marx for next to nothing. If only I had bought more than a few mementos, I could make a bundle on eBay! Most people were glad the old regime was gone, but the dire state of the economy had many people questioning the value of a free market system. I haven’t been back in more than a decade. Can anybody out there tell me how the majority of Bulgarians feel about the transition more than a decade on?

[Photo courtesy Wikimedia Commons. This Soviet stamp from 1969 commemorates the 25th anniversary of the Socialist Revolution in Bulgaria. The text says, “The friendship between the Soviet and the Bulgarian people- indestructible for eternity.”]