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Ramblings

Ramblings

Photos, travel stories, reportage and random stuff from New Zealand and around the world by Peter de Graaf

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Iran

Middle East Photos 

Iran in pictures

April 18, 2020July 22, 2021 pdg 0 Comments Chakchak, Esfahan, Iran, Kandovan, Kerman, Persepolis, Qazvin, Qom, Shiraz, Yazd, Zoroastrianism

Former US President George W Bush called it part of “the Axis of Evil”. I call it one of the most fascinating and welcoming places I’ve been.

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Middle East 

Please don’t press that button, Mr Trump

June 25, 2019September 20, 2020 pdg 2 Comments Donald Trump, Esfahan, Iran, Qom, Revolutionary Guard, Shiraz, Tehran, Yazd

Why I’m hoping against hope the US won’t go to war with Iran.

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Photos Weird Travel 

Phone booths of the world

June 25, 2018August 31, 2021 pdg 12 Comments Armenia, Croatia, Czech Republic, Czechoslovakia, Ethiopia, Hungary, Iran, Laos, Macedonia, New Zealand, phone booth, Portugal, Romania, Spain, telephone, Ukraine, USA, Vanuatu

The phone booth has, tragically, become an endangered species — hence my mission to preserve these once ubiquitous features of our urban landscape through photography.

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Middle East 

Inside the Axis of Not-So-Evil

May 9, 2018September 19, 2020 pdg 0 Comments Iran, Tehran

Former US president George Bush dubbed it part of the Axis of Evil. Instead I found kindness, warmth and generosity, along with a young generation itching for freedom and a vast gulf between rulers and the ruled.

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About Ramblings

Kia ora and welcome to Ramblings, a fairly random collection of travel stories, photos and reportage from New Zealand and around the world by Peter de Graaf. I’m a reporter and occasional travel writer based in Kerikeri, a small town in New Zealand’s Far North. Read more...

LATEST

Who are they? Exhibition aims to identify people in Ans Westra’s famous photos
New Zealand 

Who are they? Exhibition aims to identify people in Ans Westra’s famous photos

May 6, 2025May 6, 2025 pdg 0

The organisers of an exhibition by acclaimed Dutch-New Zealand photographer Ans Westra are hoping visitors will recognise people in her images.

Farewell faithful servant: Obituary for a Toyota Corolla
New Zealand 

Farewell faithful servant: Obituary for a Toyota Corolla

April 13, 2025April 13, 2025 pdg 0
Hīkoi mō te Tiriti: A new generation rises up
New Zealand Photos 

Hīkoi mō te Tiriti: A new generation rises up

January 4, 2025April 11, 2025 pdg 0
The Northland Tarara on training night at Taipā, ahead of a four-match tour of their Croatian homeland.
Europe New Zealand 

Northland’s ‘Tarara’ reconnect with Dalmatian roots on Croatia rugby tour

October 21, 2024October 21, 2024 pdg 0

WEIRD TRAVEL

The Bone Church of Kutná Hora: Final resting place of 40,000 people or macabre tourist attraction?
Europe Weird Travel 

The Bone Church of Kutná Hora: Final resting place of 40,000 people or macabre tourist attraction?

November 18, 2021November 19, 2021 pdg 0

The monks of Sedlec Abbey, in what is now the Czech Republic, turned a problem into a morbid masterpiece.

Is this the world’s most bizarre place for a castle?
Europe Featured Weird Travel 

Is this the world’s most bizarre place for a castle?

July 22, 2020July 4, 2021 pdg 3
The Merry Cemetery: Where folk art conquers grief
Europe Top stories Weird Travel 

The Merry Cemetery: Where folk art conquers grief

August 24, 2019December 28, 2020 pdg 2
Is this the world’s strangest parade?
Europe Photos Weird Travel 

Is this the world’s strangest parade?

August 11, 2019September 20, 2020 pdg 0

PHOTOS

Hīkoi mō te Tiriti: A new generation rises up
New Zealand Photos 

Hīkoi mō te Tiriti: A new generation rises up

January 4, 2025April 11, 2025 pdg 0

A photo essay capturing the start of one of New Zealand’s biggest-ever protests, the nine-day Hīkoi mō te Tiriti (‘March for the Treaty’).

Ukraine revisited: Invasion rekindles memories of long-ago trip
Europe Photos 

Ukraine revisited: Invasion rekindles memories of long-ago trip

August 1, 2022September 28, 2024 pdg 0
Jordan in pictures
Middle East Photos 

Jordan in pictures

July 1, 2022September 21, 2024 pdg 0
Egypt in pictures
Africa Photos 

Egypt in pictures

November 12, 2021November 12, 2021 pdg 0
Cambodia in pictures
Asia Photos 

Cambodia in pictures

October 4, 2021October 4, 2021 pdg 0
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