Greetings, fellow sojourners!
The fifth edition of Portmanteau! We extend our gratitude and thanks to those of you who have been supporting us from the start.
Our feature story this time is about an ancient library that belongs to a sacred cathederal in Egypt.
Our journey to find places that are improbable has taken us to South America to marvel at one of the world's greatest ancient treasures. If our previous edition's recipe had your senses tingling in pain, this edition will tempt the sweet tooth among you. Lastly, we talk about one of the most unique festivals that takes place in the Kingdom Of Happiness every year. Maybe you can attend!
Our Travel Record this month features a medley of jazz and blues music. The fifth edition of The Reel goes foreign and features 3 of cinema's most celebrated international hits. And our Thinking Owl seems to have returned from a trip to France...
We hope you enjoy the fifth edition of Portmanteau. And we always welcome stories or thoughts from you, our patron.
Sharing the mutual love for travel!
Ashish
A deep dive into a story that's arcane, thoughtful, and sometimes humorous!
The great pyramids capture your awe when in Egypt and rightly so. But this ancient cradle of civilization has its hidden secrets. A 1500-year-old monastery at the foot of the sacred Sinai mountain is one among them. It lays claim to many titles, oldest-continuously-used library, a citadel monastery, Christian bastion in the Islamic heartland and more.
After a glorious couple of centuries of patronage, Saint Catherine’s Monastery fell on hard times with the rise of Islam. Facing isolation and persecution, the monks here had to resort to an austere life, building a fortress around themselves and making do with what little they had, braving an inflicted quarantine that has lasted for centuries.
The Land Of The Thunder Dragon celebrates the spirit of a special bird, every November.
Illustration by Karl Martens
Every year as the winter falls, residents of Bhutan travel from across the country to Phobjikha Valley. They gather in the courtyard of a certain monastery, and wait with bated breath for something to begin. Then, at the sound of a resounding gong, the festivities begin. Dancers decked in black bird suits begin an impressive display, and it is then you realize you are witnessing the Black Necked Crane Festival, one of Bhutan’s most celebrated events.
Our young adult gives us a life lesson about letting precious things in life be.
The fifth edition of the reel goes completely foreign. We discuss 3 of the world's most critically acclaimed foreign films. Spanish, Turkish and Japanese. Don't worry, all of them come with subtitles so you don't miss out on the dialogue!
From the award winning Alfonso Cuaron comes a monochromatic masterpiece that highlights what life in 1970 Mexico was like for the earning class. The story highlights a lot of vital elements of the time, such as class disparity, the clashes between students and their universities, how feminism was rained down upon.
The story revolves around Cleo, the maid of a rich household. Her understanding of the world provides an essential context to the underlying theme of the movie. From the get go, the director’s decision to shoot entirely in monochrome also adds a significant element of nuance to the whole movie. Roma is not a lighthearted movie, but it is an essential watch, and a beautiful one at that thanks to the visionary of Alfonso Cuaron.
If you’re an admirer of felines, there’s a certain middle Eastern city in the world that just might be the place for you. Kedi is a Turkish documentary that tells the story of Istanbul’s camaraderie with cats. The city’s affinity for these furry friends has existed since ancient times. Kedi means cat in Turkish, and this documentary follows the lives of 10 cats in particular, each with their own special story.
The lives of their caretakers play an essential part as well. From the humble fisherman who makes sure his kittens get a portion of his catch every day to the fashion model who is subjected to prejudice and patriarchy and finds solace in her feline companioKedi is about Istanbul’s cats, but it’s also about so much more.
Seven Samurai is one of Japan’s most celebrated films from one of the world’s most revolutionary directors, Akira Kurosawa. A tale of bravery, violence, betrayal and heroism. The film may seem long, but it’s definitely engaging. And divided into 2 parts for those who can’t consume the entire movie at once. The main premise of the story is that a small helpless village employs the help of 7 samurais that do not follow a master (they are known as ronin). The village is also poor, and can only offer food in return for protection.
The village head manages to find an aged ronin, who then enlists the help of his fellow samurais (one of whom may not be who he says he is). From there, the samurais slowly build trust with the villagers. The movie continues into one of the best sagas of the cinematic universe, with Kurosawa’s famed cinematography taking center stage.
Hidden away in the rainforests of South America is a mythical land that was once prosperous and thriving. Read more about Tikal, the famed ancient ruins in Guatemala.
3000 years ago in the midst of the South American rainforests, there was paradise. One of the most powerful kingdoms of the Mayan Empire. The city that was named after its ruler, Yax Ehb Xook. Today, we know it as Yax Mutal, or Tikal: One of the most remote and ancient remnants of Mayan civilization!
"Leave me alone. J'ai d'autres chats a fouetter!"
"I have other cats to whip!", meaning our owl is currently occupied with other things in life.
From the annals of ancient Turkey and Greece there comes a dish for those that prefer the sweeter things in life
If you ever travel to Turkey or Greece, chances are you’ll walk into a pastry shop that sells dozens of sticky sweet squares. You always wonder about biting into one the first time, and there’s no stopping you once you do. There are fewer sweets as addictive as baklava!
Not to be confused with the headgear, baklava is a rich sweet preparation.The main component of baklava is a generous heap of pistachios. These are what give the baklava that signature flavor.
1 (16 ounce) package phyllo dough
1 pound chopped nuts
1 cup butter
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup water
1 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup honey
Some gems from the world of blues and jazz grace our Travel Record this month.
Puzzles to get your neurons firing.
Email us a screenshot when done!
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