cities Archives - Page 2 of 2 - concrete and kitsch

How to Shop for Kitsch in Vilnius, Lithuania

September 29, 20152 Comments

While the typical tourist kitsch of shot glasses and refrigerator magnets can be found on every street corner in Vilnius Old Town, shopping for the more discerning tourist proved to be a bit difficult. I should actually say that shopping in Vilnius and Lithuania is great for those not afraid of a little challenge. Because the types of things I shop for (Soviet kitsch, really random religious knick knacks, etc.) took some sleuthing to unearth in Lithuania’s vibrant capital (and surroundings) .

Felt like we were going to get stabbed in the Latgales Tirgus for taking a picture, but well worth the trip to add to my pile of Soviet kitsch. Riga, Latvia.

A post shared by Nick @ concrete and kitsch (@concreteandkitsch) on Sep 1, 2015 at 7:23am PDT

I should start with the Hill of Crosses, which surely deserves its own post, for all its quirkiness. The Hill of Crosses had the best gift shop in all of the Baltics. Hands down, bar none. Read more

An Istanbul to Tbilisi to Kazbegi Odyssey – Christmas 2014, Part 1

August 3, 2015Leave a comment

TurkeyGeorgiaArmenia2-82-4 — There’s always time for postcard hunting.

I like to make travel difficult as possible. While I wouldn’t typically openly admit to this, the behavioral patterns I engage in leading up to and while on trips says otherwise. I like really involved, complicated travel plans that often leave me tired, hungry, whiny, or some combination of the three. I wasn’t thinking about my propensity for tantrums when I made my plans to travel from Istanbul to Tbilisi during Christmas Eve night, followed by another trip leg to Kazbegi on the following Christmas day.

Forget Kyoto, Go to Nagasaki – 4 Reasons to Visit Now

July 22, 2015Leave a comment

Japan is the first place I ever traveled independently, and I devoted a significant portion of my life to the study of the place. I have lived in the country on three non-consecutive occasions, in and around the major tourist meccas of Kyoto, Nara, and Osaka. And while I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve neglected Tokyo in my various Japanese travels, I am fairly well versed of everything South and West of it .

There's more to see than just the Atomic Bomb Memorial — There’s more to see than just the Atomic Bomb Memorial

Soviet Meets Shamanism, or Why I Loved Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

July 9, 2015Leave a comment

I love places that are truly lived in and can provide me with authentic insights into the culture of a place and a people today – not necessarily what that culture was thirty, or a hundred, or a thousand years ago. I get kind of grumbly when I read travel bloggers and journalists rabble rouse about destinations that have lost their authenticity, when what that really means is that they are developing.

Ulaanbaatar is one such place. By the rules of traditional Mongolian pastoral nomadism, Ulaanbaatar is a city that should not exist. Instead, it is one that is home to the majority of a country’s population. Built as a Soviet planned city largely after World War 2 (outside of the newer developments, most of the decaying construction today is from 1960-1985), it was built to accommodate new industry in what remains the most sparsely populated nation on earth. Soviets, and now a crowd of international investors, needed a base from which to explore and prospect the Mongolian countryside, and Ulaanbaatar (UB henceforth) was the result.

Old Tiflis and Modern Tbilisi – A Controversial Metamorphosis

June 30, 20151 Comment

Georgia (the country, not the state) had been on my bucket list of travel destinations for many, many years before I developed the chutzpah to buy a ticket there. When David and I were looking into places to travel this past December and January, we knew we wanted a more “difficult” vacation – that is, one that wasn’t relaxation focused. We had recharged on the idyllic beaches of Little Corn Island the past March, and were ready for a real adventure. So, as I do for every trip, I started obsessively watching plane fares, and when I found a cheap ticket to Istanbul, an easy hop away from the South Caucasus, I knew it was time to check Georgia off my list.