Romantic Rewards on St Barths

Keep the Flames Burning on Flamand

Flamand Beach is one of the least crowded bits of seaside delight St Barths has to offer. The beach itself is long and wide, and during the winter, high, rolling waves make this a perfect place to learn how to surf (swimming is rarely treacherous, even in the winter). 

Nearby Hotel St Barth Isle de France and La Langouste make for quick mealtime breaks, and offer equipment rentals for non-guests.

Romantic Rewards on St Barths

Early Morning Swim at Saline Beach

Saline is the most beautiful and the most famous beach in St. Barths.

From the shore, you cannot see any building: no fancy bar, no posh restaurant, nothing. Just the wild beach and you.

Saline Beach never really gets crowded, as the island is too small to have actual crowds. But it is a true luxury, early morning, to come there for a nice swim.

More than once, I've been able to be the only one there. This long, beautiful, renowned beach was just mine!

It is okay to do nude sunbathing in Saline, but it's better if you do it on the far sides of the beach. Indeed, the middle part is where the trail arrives from the parking lot and you do not want to make families feel uncomfortable. Even if nobody really cared.

Again, early morning, it is just a couple of people here and nobody minds if you swim naked in this pure Caribbean blue water.
Vive la liberté !

My tip: Bring a bottle of water if you are planning on staying for long, as there is no store on the beach. Nothing!

Grand Palace, Bangkok, Thailand

The construction of the Grand Palace began on 6 May 1782, at the order of King Buddha Yodfa Chulaloke (Rama I). Having seized the crown from KingTaksin of Thonburi, King Rama I was intent on building a capital city for his new Chakri Dynasty.

He decided to move the seat of power from the city ofThonburi, on the west side of the Chao Phraya river, to the east side at Bangkok. 

The new capital city was turned into an artificial island when canals were dug along the east side. The island was given the name 'Rattanakosin'. The previous royal residence was the Derm Palace, constructed for King Taksin in 1768.

The new palace was built on a rectangular piece of land on the very west side of the island, between Wat Pho to the south, Wat Mahathat to the north and with the Chao Phraya river along the west. This location was previously occupied by a Chinese community, whom King Rama I had ordered to relocate to an area south and outside of the city walls; the area is known today as Yaowarat (Chinatown).

Pahalgam, Kashmir.

Pahalgam is a town and a notified area committee in Anantnag district of the Indian state of Jammu & Kashmir. 

Pahalgam is also associated with the annual Amarnath Yatra. Chandanwari (2,895 m), 16 km from Pahalgam, is the starting point of the yatra that takes place every year in the month of Sawan (July to August).

The road from Pahalgam to Chandanwari is on fairly flat terrain and can be undertaken by car. From Chandanwari onwards the track becomes much steeper, and is accessible on foot or by pony. About 11 km from Chandanwari is the mountain lake of Sheshnag (3,574 m), after which, 13 km away is the last stop, Panchtarni. The Amarnath cave is 6 km from there. During the month of Sawan, an ice stalagmite forms a natural Shivling in the Amarnath cave.

Pahalgam is located at 34.01°N 75.19°E.[3] Pahalgam holds a central position in the Lidder Valley. It has an average elevation of 2740 metres (8989 feet).

Mount Nemrut, Turkey

Nemrut or Nemrud is a 2,134 m (7,001 ft) high mountain in southeastern Turkey, notable for the summit where a number of large statues are erected around what is assumed to be a royal tomb from the 1st century BC. It is referred as the pantheon of the Armenian gods.

When the Seleucid Empire was defeated by the Romans in 190 BCE at the Battle of Magnesia it began to fall apart and new kingdoms were established on its territory by local authorities. Commagene being one of the Seleucid successor states occupied a land between the Taurus mountains and the Euphrates. 

The state of Commagene had a wide range of cultures which left its leader from 62 BC - 38 BC Antiochus I to carry on a peculiar dynastic religious program, which included not only Armenian, Greek and Persian deities but Antiochus and his family as well. 

This religious program was very possibly an attempt by Antiochus to unify his multiethnic kingdom and secure his dynasty's authority^.

Antiochus supported the cult as a propagator of happiness and salvation.Many of the monuments on Mount Nemrud are ruins of the imperial cult of Commagene. The most important area to the cult was the tomb of Antiochus I, in which was decorated with colossal statues made of limestone. Although the Imperial cult did not last long after Antiochus, several of his successors had their own tombs built on Mount Nemrud. For around half of the year, Mount Nemrud is covered in snow,the effect of which increases weathering, which has in part caused the statues to fall in ruin.

Sultan Ahmad Mosque Istanbul, Turky

The Sultan Ahmed Mosque (Turkish: Sultan Ahmet Camii) is a historic mosque in Istanbul. The mosque is popularly known as the Blue Mosque for the blue tiles adorning the walls of its interior.
It was built from 1609 to 1616, during the rule of Ahmed I. 

Its Külliye contains a tomb of the founder, a madrasah and a hospice. The Sultan Ahmed Mosque is still popularly used as a mosque.


After the Peace of Zsitvatorok and the result of the war with Persia, Sultan Ahmet I, decided to build a big mosque in Istanbul to reassert Ottoman power. It would be the first imperial mosque for more than forty years. While his predecessors had paid for their mosques with their spoil of war, Ahmet the First had to remove the funds of the Treasury, because he had not gained remarkable victories. It caused the anger of the ulema, the Muslim jurists. 

The mosque was built on the site of the palace of the Byzantine emperors, in front of the basilica Ayasofya (at that time, the primary imperial mosque in Istanbul) and the hippodrome, a site of significant symbolic meaning as it dominated the city skyline from the south. Big parts of the south shore of the mosque rest on the foundations, the vaults of the old Grand Palace.

Al Raha Beach Hotel Abu-Dhabi

Al Raha Beach Hotel Abu-Dhabi

Perfectly situated, our acclaimed hotel near Abu-Dhabi airport is a mere 10 minutes from the world-class motor sports F1 racetrack. Ferrari Theme Park, Retail Mall, and a new lane access high way providing faster access to down town Abu-Dhabi, with special touches like a full service concierge and complimentary shuttles to the main shopping malls. Al Raha Beach Hotel offers effortless access to the best Abu-Dhabi has to offer. 

Yosemite Falls, USA.

Yosemite Falls, USA.

Yosemite Falls is the highest waterfall in North America. Located in Yosemite National Park in the Sierra Nevada of California, it is a major attraction in the park, especially in late spring when the water flow is at its peak. The total 2,425 feet (739 m) from the top of the upper fall to the base of the lower fall qualifies Yosemite Falls as the sixth highest waterfall in the world, though with the recent discovery of Gocta Cataracts, it appears on some lists as seventh.