The not-so-usual way to seek truth

OK, it is a not-so-usual day in life, fall is my favourite season, I'm feeling refreshed, revived, reborn! Could it be a birthday approaching? In general, no. It's been a long time since birthdays stopped being really exciting and turned into "New Year's Eve" #2. Meaning, I am obliged to laugh, smile, giggle, eat and drink, and be merry. What if I don't feel like that? Everyone seems worried if not angry. They say people like that can spoil everyone's celebration. Huh...

Anyways, it is the Tarot I was going to tell you about. For some reason unknown I feel like looking into the future when the year becomes older. It's like staring at the night sky on Christmas. So, I ask my Tarot.

I have two Tarot decks. The first one is The Truth Seeker tarot (scroll down for images of the cards): http://www.janetboyer.com/Truth_Seekers_Tarot.html ; the second one I bought very recently after I was stricken by few of the images, The Universal Tarot by Giovanni Caselli: http://tarotwench.com/sharmancaselli.jpg .

When I bought the first one, I was truly amazed by the art. As important as this is, it s much more important for the cards and the owner to form a connection. This really happened and recently I was proven that my truth Seeker's Tarot is working for me. I felt like I had to read the cards one day, and I did. The question I asked was related to something that was bothering me. However, the cards I took out were all about loss and theft. I was confused as I couldn't relate them to my question. Later that day I tried again with a different question and the result was the same. Next day I lost my credit card. It was the first time that I truly realized what was quietly sleeping in the golden-yellow box.

However, I have always felt quite challenged by the Truth Seeker's Tarot. The Minor Arcana lacks images to help the reader and sometimes the overall feeling I get is controversial. Or I simply get a positive overall feeling from cards supposed to show difficult times. To solve this issue, I started looking for a deck with clear images on all cards to help me learn better. The Caselli Universal Tarot hit a nerve somewhere inside me. It was the Empress card that made me feel like someone was reading my heart (photo courtesy of http://www.oephebia.com/.

I knew this place where she is now. I know these fields, I even know where my house is, and the Mediterranean is on the left of the painting. The green massive seen on the left border is a vineyard... Is this magic? Or is it how Tarot should really work from the very beginning? I wonder.

Since I bought the deck, I have asked many questions and have made reports, and saved the readings as I usually do, so I can follow up and see if I did the reading well, or if the cards told me the truth. Somehow this deck excites me. I hope our connection will lead us all where we want to be. Do you have Tarot or would you like to try it? I would be happy to hear about your experiences. After all, it is not the future telling that made Tarot famous but the method of teaching arcane truth. And that is far more challenging for a materialistic world as ours.

Next deck I'm going to buy will be the Traveller's Tarot!

The not-so-usual way to travel

Good morning all! It was Twitter that brought this remarkable website to our attention: http://chrisguillebeau.com/3x5/support/ . The Art Of Nonconformity offers so much information and great articles that we actually read only half of them before deciding to feature it here. The reason we are doing so is hidden in the unusual, funny, innovative way the website looks at life and travelling. We hope you enjoy reading it too.

On our usual subject - what are your top three unusual ways to travel on a gloomy, rainy, autumn afternoon? Here are ours:
1. Trip to the backyard - for all those who have a backyard with trees and flowers, don't forget to enjoy it! We put on our rain coats and rubber boots, and went for an expedition in the backyard. It all looks so different after the rain! We looked at the drops on the petals, followed the ants searching for food, climbed our big tree and listened to the water whispering in the leaves. We got all muddy, there is hard-to-clean stuff under our nails, our child covered his face in black earth and resembles a SWAT member. Our little basket is full now with treasures: coloured leaves, dried flowers, one or two herbs that survived the cool weather, a feather left by a bird, fruits from pine trees and oaks. Our afternoon will be spend arranging a "wish board" - we will put all these treasures in an old frame, top them with glass and save them forever.
2. Trip to the park - for those who live in apartments, enjoy the park folks! It offers almost the same if you only leave the alleys and hit the small roads among the trees. We watch the birds leaving or still looking for food in the lake. The squirrels get their breakfast from our bags and come so close to us! We make photos of the branches with the rain drops and red-yellowish leaves. We investigate the hidden roads, never really knowing where we're going to find ourselves in one hour. Civilized as it looks, the park still offers secrets to the searching eye. We eat there, climbed on a tree and listening to the wood. It is a different world in the heart of the everyday world we are so bore of sometimes.
3. Trip to the gardens - you know those various gardens they make in the big cities - the manicured ones with fancy plants, either botanic gardens or just designer gardens. We found they could be a hidden spot. Fewer people go there in the fall and especially when it's wet. But this is really the time when you can inhale the aroma of the foreign petals, whisper to them your winter dreams and wishes, breathe deep the humid, enriched air around these travellers who came from all parts of the world to your city. Celebrate them for their beauty and courage. Our favourite thing to do - take some great music with us, sit under the majestic plants on the wet ground, and listen.

The most important thing: make it look like a trip! Pack your sandwiches, get the picnic basket, blankets, clothes, etc. Even a trip to the living room can be exciting on a gloomy afternoon. We are currently setting our small tent in front of the TV, I will make the food, all packed in little boxes, the movie will be shown in one hour, the blankets are to be on the floor, the little one is stuffing his backpack with toys... :) We are setting off to the living room!

TIFF experience

And this si going to be a short one - how was your TIFF experience this year? Did you festival a lot, did you read reviews at home, or were you in the gossiping heaven?
We did well, worked as volunteers, didn't mingle with the stars but enjoyed a number of great movies which were not on the a-list of reporters or critics. One of these - Tanner Hall, we highly recommend to those who had a rough growing up period. It is an intimate, small movie, beautifully photographed and directed by two young ladies. Sadly, after the showing, there were people who were unhappy with the lack of "action".
We truly hope such "lacking action" movies will keep manifesting our inner worlds where sometimes the real action consists of silence. Amen.

It was fun, to make it short. We made new friends too. Oh, and caught a cold. If you ever volunteer, bring a really warm sweater!

Beautiful Romania

*Photo courtesy of www.viamigo.com

We continue our journey through the Balkans. A little reminder from the past - New York Times on Bulgaria: http://travel.nytimes.com/2006/04/30/travel/30next.html ; on Transylvania, Romania: http://travel.nytimes.com/2006/08/27/travel/27next.html?scp=7&sq=romania&st=tcse ; and on Montenegro: http://travel.nytimes.com/travel/guides/europe/montenegro/overview.html?scp=1-sub&sq=montenegro&st=tcse .

We are heading to Romania today. A country with ancient origins like most in the region, and with not so easy past, Romania has been called by many "Beautiful Romania" while Bucharest was known in the 18th-early 19th century as the "Little Wien". A lot has changed since then but many older buildings can still be seen, especially houses of wealthy manifacturers built two-three centuries ago, hiding behind rows of plane and chestnut trees, surrounded by iron gates and fences. Look carefully.

Naturally, Transylvania is the most famous child of the country thanks to its Drakula resident. But Romania has much more to offer. If you like the seaside, go to some of the resorts - Mamaia for example, http://www.mamaia.com/ . Don't expect mad luxury or fancy hotels, many of the facilities were built during the communism and carry the marks of this architectural style but the sand is soft, the shore is beautiful, and the people are warm. Other seaside resorts to check are Eforie, Neptun, Jupiter, Venus, Saturn and Mangalia. Don't forget the mineral water and mud and visit some of the numerous spas in the resorts. For more info about the seaside resorts, visit this website: http://www.infolitoral.ro/ .

Next, don't miss the fabulous castles and fortresses which best illustrate the medieval heritage of the country:

Biertan Fortified Church (part of UNESCO World Heritage) in Transylvania – Central Romania. Nearby large town: Sighisora. http://www.biertan.ro/ .

Bran CastleLocation: Transylvania – Central Romania. Nearby large town: Brasov. http://www.bran-castle.com/

Calnic Fortified Church (part of UNESCO World Heritage). Location: Transylvania – Central Romania. Nearby large town: Sibiu.

Corvinesti Castle. Location: Hunedoara – Central Romania. http://www.castelulcorvinilor.ro/ .

Fagaras Fortress. Location: Transylvania – Central Romania. Nearby large towns: Sibiu and Brasov.

Peles Castle. Location: Sinaia – Southern Romania. Nearby large towns: Brasov and Bucuresti.

There are hundreds of others, really. If you decide to visit a particular area, just send us an e-mail and we'll provide you with more names, sitghts and locations to visit.

Also, it is a must to visit the seven walled medieval towns: Bistrita, Brasov, Cluj Napoca, Medias, Sebes, Sibiu, and Sighisoara. These are fantastic locations, many films have been made there, Google them for some images and to get an idea how beautiful they are!

And for even better Romanian experience, hit the road to the Painted Monasteries, an amazing sight and treasured world heritage. The monasteries are: Arbore Monastery, Humor Monastery, Moldovita Monastery, Patrauti Church, Probota Monastery, Saint George’s Church/ Saint John the New Monastery, Sucevita Monastery, Voronet Monastery (probably the most famous one). Some of the things you should know and consider if visiting the monasteries: they are easily accessible from both Suceava - with its direct airline and rail links with Bucharest, and Iasi - offering daily flights from Vienna and Bucharest. You can probably make it in one day but better plan for at least a weeknd, so you don't have to rush. Part of the beauty of these places is their silence and lack of time sense. Enjoy it.
The town of Suceava is probably the best starting point. Iasi – the largest city in eastern Romania – is located about 120 km southwest of the monasteries and could work out too.
The easiest way to visit the Painted Monasteries is by car; a 30-minute drive (or less) separates them. Car rental is available in Suceava and Iasi. Excursions and day trips are also available from Suceava and Gura Humorului.

On the wine route

It's in the fall when you will experience most of any wine producing the country. If you are thinking of enjoying late sunny afternoons and sunny crispy mornings, plan for joining the grape harvest on the Balkans. September-October are the best months for that. Bulgaria can offer you cheap (still) accommodation in the countryside and award winning wines.
As we've listed websites for you to check out before, here are some of our choices for wine degustations and grape harvesting trips in Bulgaria: http://www.todoroff-hotel.com/index.php?lang=en - Todoroff is an award winning wine producer for his red wines. http://www.rumelia.net/index_en.html - a relatively young winery but already has won awards.
http://www.magurawinery.bg/en/default.htm - now, this is something really special! Magura is a famous cave, you can read more about it if you Google the name. The winery and the tours will provide you with the unique opportunity to see both this wonder of the nature and degustate fantastic wines.
http://www.pamidovo.com/en.html - one of the older wineries, great traditions, very very beautiful area of the country!
http://www.rosevalleywinery.com/main-en.htm - another one of the unique experiences you can have - in the very heart of the Rose Valley where the famous Bulgarian Rose Oil is gathered (think Lancome!), a fantastic winery with great wines to offer. Not to miss!

And if you have any questions or need help, don't hesitate to ask us!

Much later

I know, it's been terribly long time since my last post! My excuse is we have been crazy busy with people ordering vacation research as winter approaches, and many of you are planning ahead. A good research for a one week vacation may take up to a week as well, depending on how many people are going and how many things they want to do/explore/try, etc.

Being back again, we will renew the Balkans series for sure with some autumn festivals and traditions. However, this post is dedicated to the Toronto International Film Festival opening tomorrow. In case you ahven't checked out, the website of the festival is http://www.tiff.net/ and all schedules (including the free events on Yonge/Dundas Square and the Press&Industry screenings) are now uploaded and accessible.

*Photo courtesy of Science Daily

On the gossip side and for those willing to do some star stalking, you probably know that the Yorkville area is your best bet. For more info and maps, go here: http://www.bloor-yorkville.com/Finding-Us.aspx . There are parkings north of Yorkville Avenue where you can leave your car and pay less than south of it. Drive the small streets, avoid the central ones (aka Avenue Road or Bloor) for cheaper parking, or if you're lucky - get a spot on the street and pay the city meters, they are reasonably priced usually.

Stars are easier to spot around their hotels, usually Hyatt and Four Seasons on Avenue Road. However, there has been a trend towards renting luxurious furnished condos to avoid the fans and paparazzi around the hotels. One of these to check out - Minto downtown. Other places to keep an eye on - Sutton Place hotel for some TIFF related events and the small streets south of Bloor with their secret luxury suites and Victorian hotels, for example Windsor Arms.


The little parks and gardens of the University of Toronto are rarely listed as stars spotting places and that's why you may wanna have a picnic or two there. Stars love to have picnics away from the usual spots. Still, restaurants like Sotto Sotto and Bistro 990 will likely host some of the A-listers again. Little Italy (on College Street) - too. The Bloor shops - ....mmmm, sometimes you can see a start shopping but more often not. It's better to hit the Yorkville small shops and boutiques.


Some articles to check out for more star spotting tips and hints: http://www.toronto.com/tiff/article/376999


http://tiff.sympatico.ca/Home/TIFF09_FEATURE_CP?newsitemid=f0f542b1-38c7-4890-b6e4-e6230d776063&feedname=tiff2009&show=False&number=2&showbyline=True&subtitle=&detect=&abc=abc&date=False


http://communities.canada.com/dose/blogs/tiff/archive/2009/09/02/a-guide-to-star-spotting-during-tiff.aspx - a video guide for the fan;


http://www.torontolife.com/daily/51-must-know-tiff-hotspots/ - the 51 hot TIFF spots you should know! In general, following the Toronto Life is a good idea and they already have tons of stuff on TIFF.


Finally, if you're coming on a budget, the best rated Toronto hostels these days are http://www.globalbackpackers.com/ and http://www.canadianalodging.com/ - very good location for both of them too, close to most of the TIFF hot spots and if you like walking, Yorkville is about 25-30 minutes walk (I walk fast though). There is the public transportation, of course. For a list with more hostels, go here: http://www.youthhosteltoronto.com/


If you have any comments or questions, ask! We will be part of TIFF as many others. The excitement is growing!