Postcard from the Road: A Mystical Shaman Ceremony in the Remote Siberian Wilderness

Postcard from the Road: A Mystical Shaman Ceremony in the Remote Siberian Wilderness
MIR Corporation / August 19, 2019
Russia

While in Kyzyl, a small Siberian village in remote Tuva, Tatiana took one of our favorite photos from her trip: a photo of a shaman ceremony. The photo was taken about halfway through the trip, when the group met with a shaman for a demonstration of an authentic ceremony. Tuvan shamanism is based on an animistic spiritual belief that used to be an integral part of Tuvan life and, to some extent, still is. Shamans intercede for people with the spirit world, the unseen world that pervades the Tuvan’s environment. Read More

Postcard from the Road: Clients Try Their Hand at Traditional Woodcrafts in a Small North Caucasus Village

Postcard from the Road: Clients Try Their Hand at Traditional Woodcrafts in a Small North Caucasus Village
MIR Corporation / August 7, 2019
Russia

Tour Manager Michel Behar checked-in from the road while on MIR’s Return to the North Caucasus small group tour. Michel and his tour group in five jeeps were traveling between Derbent and Makhachkala in the North Caucasian Republic of Dagestan when they made a stop up a winding road to a small village called Untsukul. Upon arrival, they were met by Shamil Nurmagomedov, a fourth generation woodcarver and one of five master craftsmen left in Untsukul. Shamil gave Michel and his group an inside peek into his one-of-a-kind craft. Read More

Postcard from the Road: A Photo Finish at the Naadam Festival in Mongolia

Postcard from the Road: A Photo Finish at the Naadam Festival in Mongolia
MIR Corporation / July 30, 2019
Mongolia

Tour Manager Tatiana Pokalova sent us this postcard from the road while on MIR’s Mongolia to Moscow: A Trans-Siberian Railway Adventure small group tour. Find out what’s happening here and in other photos taken on the regularly scheduled Trans-Siberian train traveling over a dramatic and variegated route. Read More

5 New UNESCO World Heritage Sites to Add to Your 2020 Bucket List

5 New UNESCO World Heritage Sites to Add to Your 2020 Bucket List
MIR Corporation / July 22, 2019
UNESCO

Each year, the UNESCO World Heritage Committee considers a new assortment of sites to add to its list of awe-inspiring places around the globe. These sites are carefully selected based on a strict set of criteria determining their cultural or natural significance and “outstanding universal value” to humanity. Some have been on the UNESCO Tentative List for years, waiting for their turn to shine. In 2019, the UNESCO committee added 29 new sites to its list, and significantly expanded an older one. Read More

Cruise the North Pole: The Ultimate Journey on Top of the World

Cruise the North Pole: The Ultimate Journey on Top of the World
MIR Corporation / June 28, 2019
Remote and Undiscovered

For hundreds of years, travel to the North Pole represented the pinnacle of pioneering endeavors. This remote, icy realm on top of the world stirred the hearts and minds of countless adventurers, daring them to discover the vast wilderness of the Arctic North. Even today, many consider the chance to reach 90ºN as an astounding travel achievement worthy of adding to their bucket lists. Now you can be one of the few to experience life at its most mysterious on MIR's once-in-a-lifetime voyage to the North Pole. Retrace the path of early polar explorers as you cruise aboard the world’s largest icebreaker, keeping a lookout for the astonishing array of wildlife in the Arctic and enjoying fantastic views of an endless, frozen icescape. Read More

Congratulations on your retirement, Mariana!

Congratulations on your retirement, Mariana!
MIR Corporation / June 25, 2019 / 6 comments

For nearly two decades, the words of MIR’s Senior Copywriter, Mariana Noble, have graced countless pages in our catalogs, brochures, destination guides, and reading materials, not to mention numerous stories and personal travel accounts written especially for the MIR blog. Throughout her long tenure at our Seattle office, she has been a dedicated co-worker, a thoughtful travel companion, a warm and generous mentor, and a cherished friend. Today, with bittersweet emotions, we bid Mariana a fond farewell as she heads into new adventures in retirement. Read More

MIR’s Annie Lucas Quoted in Men’s Journal Article Recommending Travel to Uzbekistan

MIR’s Annie Lucas Quoted in Men’s Journal Article Recommending Travel to Uzbekistan
MIR Corporation / June 17, 2019
Silk Road

A recent article in Men’s Journal sings the praises of Uzbekistan, giving a shout-out to MIR for being a specialist in the region. The piece, “Bustling Bazaars, Ancient Cities, and the Silk Road: 10 Ways to Explore Uzbekistan,” quotes MIR Vice President Annie Lucas. Read More

Winter and Holiday Tour Extravaganza in Russia, Poland, and Central Europe

Winter and Holiday Tour Extravaganza in Russia, Poland, and Central Europe
MIR Corporation / June 14, 2019
Winter Travel

Ever considered traveling to unconventional places during an unconventional season? It's time you did: both Russia and Poland are at their most regal in winter under a blanket of fresh snow, and other travelers are few. Read More

9 Extraordinary Experiences You Can Only Have in Lhasa

9 Extraordinary Experiences You Can Only Have in Lhasa
MIR Corporation / June 11, 2019
2 comments
Tibet

Tibet has long been one of the world’s most remote and forbidding places. Until the early 20th century, only a handful of Europeans had been to Lhasa, and there were stringent laws against foreigners entering the city. Today, Tibet is still remote, but the path has been increasingly smoothed. Much of Lhasa itself is surprisingly urban and modern. It will take years before Lhasa is a fully modern city, but now is the time to visit, before too many changes obscure its original Tibetan culture. Make sure to have these nine extraordinary experiences when you visit Lhasa, Tibet. Read More