Travel Blog

Coordinates

A Serious Case of Travelling

Our journeys

From a hot air balloon to a sail boat;
from scorching heat to icy extremes

Coordinates are much more than just numbers that mark a specific point on earth. They are code for wanderlust and adventure and stand for fascinating places, captivating stories and magical moments. Explore the world with “Coordinates. A Serious Case of Travelling” and the Lufthansa Aluminium Collection – a blog dedicated to intriguing travel stories.

60° 42' 50.9" N 135° 04' 33.3" W

Canada – The brave women of Yukon River

Bears, bison and boreal forest – life in a wild land

Klondike desires: Where Jack London and gold miners once hoped to strike it rich, female bush pilots live their dream in the Canadian wilderness.

Prospectors once staked their claims in the Canadian wilderness and Jack London helped to mythologise the Klondike. Among the men who went north were intrepid women as well. What these pioneers undertook is now par for the course for the women of the North, who live and work demanding jobs amidst spectacular scenery.

Read the Canada story

50° 50' 00.3" N 5° 59' 38.9" E

Netherlands – In the Service of Perfection

Aspiring butlers undergo eight weeks of training before they are released into the world of royal palaces and superyachts.

Butling isn’t a job, it’s a calling. Or even an art.

Butlers are all-rounders. Always on hand, always friendly, always courteous. ‘There are no problems, only solutions’ is their creed. Two academies in Holland offer professional butler training, but the high art of butling is not something you can learn – true butlers have it in their blood.

About the Netherlands Story

13° 43' 35.4" N 100° 30' 40.0" E

Bangkok – The city that never switches off

Buried beneath the tumult is a giant with a heart of gold.

Thailand’s capital knows all about superlatives.

Day and night, millions of people push through the behemoth’s crowded streets, past skyscrapers, markets and golden temples. But amidst all the hubbub, a small miracle occurs: people cope with the craziness by meeting life with a smile.

Read the Bangkok story

23° 37' 13.4" N 58° 33' 52.4" E

Oman – Gardens in the Desert

Many legends surround oases, places poised between delusion and reality, between desire and suffering death by thirst.

An oasis: The oldest and most magical destination of all

It’s a fairy-tale place. A port for adventurers, discoverers and ships of the desert. Oases are a miracle: they enable life where life is virtually impossible.

About the Oman story

54° 56' 06.2" S 67° 37' 06.3" W

Chile – Mr Cape Horn

They call him Mr Cape Horn. He doesn’t say a lot, but everyone knows him here. He’s rounded the Fin del Mundo more often than anyone else.

The Albatross, the Minke Whale and the Call of the Wild

The End of the World has become his second home. He knows the wind and weather here better than anyone else. Osvaldo Torres has rounded the notorious Cape at the tip of Tierra del Fuego more than a hundred times. These days, he takes visitors and scientists out in his boat to see glaciers and whales.

Discover the Chile story

33° 16' 38.7" N 131° 30' 21.6" E

Japan – A Steamy Affair

Beppu is a geothermal hotspot dotted with volcanic vents that shoot hot steam into the sky.

As if built on a laundry: a city of vapours and vents

Nature has designed a rare spectacle on the island of Kyūshū. Thousands of hot springs keep the city at a constant boil. Its inhabitants soak in blue thermal baths, relax in hot sand and even cook with the scalding vapours from beneath the ground. A visit to Japan’s steaming capital of well-being.

Discover the Japan story

37° 02' 54.6" N 112° 31' 36.3" W

USA – Showdown in the Desert

Man with suitcase in front of LED screen showing Mars landscape

Welcome to the most film-worthy place on Earth. The greatest storyteller the world has ever seen.

How the American West became a dazzling stage

Rumbling engines, hot desert, endless stretches of road. Nowhere is the American Dream as big and American as here. The Southwest is the queen of backdrops, the mother of all clichés. A drive through Earth’s most film-worthy landscape where the boundaries between reality and illusion blur.

Discover the USA story

51° 33' 45.4" N 0° 04' 43.1" W

London – The World is a Sphere

More than any other object, globes have fuelled our desire to travel, have encouraged us to set off for distant shores ourselves.

All-round success: The Earth as an artisanal masterpiece

The explorers departed from the River Thames, traversed oceans and made their way to India and Africa. London became known as the capital of travel. What remains to this day is the city’s enthusiasm for the world and a knack for manufacturing exquisite globes.

Discover the London story

9° 58' 03.9" N 76° 14' 29.0" E

India – Queen Coconut

Coconuts are not easy to reach. To harvest them, you have to climb the tree.

The star of South Sea fantasies is an age-old globetrotter

The coconut conjures visions of distant shores, snow-white beaches and blue lagoons. It’s also an economic resource and tastes incredibly good. Sometimes, though, Queen Coconut just lets herself drop, rolls into the water and embarks on a voyage across the sea.

Discover the India story

39° 20' 01.5" N 8° 23' 59.5" E

Sardinia – An Ancient American and the Wind

The boat wings over the frothy waves at a speed of seven knots. True sailing bliss.

Weigh anchor and cast off:
Sailing the blue Mediterranean Sea

Open sea, alabaster beaches, blue grottos. What could be more beautiful than the Mediterranean? But a visit to Sardinia on an old, well-travelled sailing yacht is a next-level experience. Amidst the crooning of the lines and the thrumming of the shrouds, you’ll discover beauty where you never thought to look.

Discover the Sardinia story

Man carrying trolley in front of Cessna at sunset

39° 20' 01.5" N 8° 23' 59.5" E

Namibia – An Airman named Oli

A man, a flying machine and a manoeuvre you won’t read about in any book. One day, Oliver Braun packed up his things in Germany and started a new life. The print salesman from Bad Homburg became an African bush pilot who flies safari tourists across the oldest desert regions in the world. Meet airman Oli.

Discover the Namibia story

1° 10' 47.1" S 36° 43' 32.7" E

Kenya – The Mzungu from East Frisia

A boy grows up on a remote farm, goes to sea, becomes a pilot and flies around the world. Fleet manager Fokko Doyen builds his own story. It takes us to Africa, has to do with travel and the wonderful things that seeing the world can achieve.

Discover the Kenya story

45° 59' 00.9" N 7° 47' 00.6"

Switzerland - Way out there

The Swiss aren’t only good at making cheese, cowbells and expensive watches. From Bern to Geneva, they’re developing instruments that search for life on distant moons. But that’s not all: high up in the Swiss Alps, astronomers are peering into the universe to discover the origins of space and time.

Discover the Switzerland story

39° 08' 43.0" N 8° 18' 30.5" E

Isola di San Pietro – Italy’s Most Captivating Island

There it lies in the sea, south-west of Sardinia. An island off an island – ancient, authentic and just a little bit old-fashioned. Famous people sometimes stop here, but that doesn’t matter, they don’t play an important role. What matters on Isola di San Pietro are the marinai, the tuna and the taste of the sea.

Discover the Isola di San Pietro story

22° 57' 58.4" S 43° 10' 40.2" W

Rio de Janeiro – The Sound of Brazil

Bossa nova – the sweetest temptation since the invention of music – was born in the centre of Rio. Emanating from three small pubs, the velvety tunes, among them the immortal ‘Girl from Ipanema’, took the world by storm. A return to the roots in Copacabana, where the guitars never sleep.

Discover the Rio de Janeiro story

47° 04' 27.6" N 12° 41' 40.6" E

Alps – Crossing the Mountains in a Basket

Mountain high: Sailing over the Alps in the oldest craft in aviation history changes the way you look at the world. Welcome aboard a hot-air balloon!

Discover the Alps story

Two men with sunshades in front of launch ramp

15° 47' 00.2" N 104° 09' 13.2" E

Thailand – A Deafening Plea for Rain

Shortly before the monsoon starts, people in Isan turn their eyes to the sky, hoping the heavens will send rain to northern Thailand. To increase the odds and ensure a good harvest, they fire rockets up to the gods.

Discover the Thailand story

78° 13' 27.3" N 15° 37' 58.9" E

Svalbard – Turn of the Tide in the Arctic Ocean

The realm of polar bears and whales begins north of the 66th parallel. From Svalbard, early explorers set off into the icy wilderness. But this remote corner of the world is changing. Researchers, free thinkers and nonconformists converge on a territory being shaped by a new way of thinking.

Discover the Svalbard story

A listening experience:

12 full-length reports

Immerse yourself in other worlds: Enjoy our exciting stories and adventures uncut in full length. Read by the author himself!

Listen to podcasts on Spotify
Listen to podcasts on Apple Music

Marc Bielefeld

Author

From a balloon to the desert, out to sea, into the ice: in captivating reports and podcasts, the author describes fascinating places around the world and encounters with remarkable people

marcbielefeld.de

Jens Görlich

Photographer

Great moments, peaceful bliss, poignant scenes: the photographer from Frankfurt always has his camera ready to capture what words can’t express.

jens-goerlich.de

Lufthansa Aluminium Collection

Travel companion

The trusty case goes along on every adventure: it travels by hot air balloon, rides on a dog sledge and attends a rocket launch – bringing home an exciting experience every time.

worldshop.eu/alu

Discover the world with us

Always at your side: a companion with no destination too remote

Designed with the spirit of travel in mind, this case – the ultimate symbol of travel – is always packed full of inspiration, longing and the urge to set off. Let’s go!

To the Lufthansa Aluminium Collection

Coordinates

A Serious Case of Travelling

Our journeys

From a hot air balloon to a sail boat; from scorching heat to icy extremes

Canada – The brave women of Yukon River

Bears, bison and boreal forest – life in a wild land

Klondike desires: Where Jack London and gold miners once hoped to strike it rich, female bush pilots live their dream in the Canadian wilderness.

Netherlands – In the Service of Perfection

Aspiring butlers undergo eight weeks of training before they are released into the world of royal palaces and superyachts.

Butling isn’t a job, it’s a calling. Or even an art.

Bangkok – The city that never switches off

Buried beneath the tumult is a giant with a heart of gold.

Thailand’s capital knows all about superlatives.

Oman – Gardens in the Desert

Many legends surround oases, places poised between delusion and reality, between desire and suffering death by thirst.

An oasis: The oldest and most magical destination of all

Chile – Mr Cape Horn

They call him Mr Cape Horn. He doesn’t say a lot, but everyone knows him here. He’s rounded the Fin del Mundo more often than anyone else.

The Albatross, the Minke Whale and the Call of the Wild

Japan – A Steamy Affair

Beppu is a geothermal hotspot dotted with volcanic vents that shoot hot steam into the sky.

As if built on a laundry: a city of vapours and vents

USA – Showdown in the Desert

Welcome to the most film-worthy place on Earth. The greatest storyteller the world has ever seen.

How the American West became a dazzling stage

London – The World is a Sphere

More than any other object, globes have fuelled our desire to travel, have encouraged us to set off for distant shores ourselves.

All-round success: The Earth as an artisanal masterpiece

India – Queen Coconut

Coconuts are not easy to reach. To harvest them, you have to climb the tree.

The star of South Sea fantasies is an age-old globetrotter

Sardinia – An Ancient American and the Wind

The boat wings over the frothy waves at a speed of seven knots. True sailing bliss.

Weigh anchor and cast off: Sailing the blue Mediterranean Sea

39° 20' 01.5" N 8° 23' 59.5" E

Namibia – An Airman named Oli

1° 10' 47.1" S 36° 43' 32.7" E

Kenya – The Mzungu from East Frisia

45° 59' 00.9" N 7° 47' 00.6"

Switzerland - Way out there

39° 08' 43.0" N 8° 18' 30.5" E

Isola di San Pietro – Italy’s Most Captivating Island

22° 57' 58.4" S 43° 10' 40.2" W

Rio de Janeiro – The Sound of Brazil

47° 04' 27.6" N 12° 41' 40.6" E

Alps – Crossing the Mountains in a Basket

15° 47' 00.2" N 104° 09' 13.2" E

Thailand – A Deafening Plea for Rain

78° 13' 27.3" N 15° 37' 58.9" E

Svalbard – Turn of the Tide in the Arctic Ocean

12 full-length reports

Marc Bielefeld

Jens Görlich

Lufthansa Aluminium Collection

Discover the world with us

Always at your side: a companion with no destination too remote

From a hot air balloon to a sail boat;
from scorching heat to icy extremes

Weigh anchor and cast off:
Sailing the blue Mediterranean Sea