Around the world: our most unusual routes
- audreyubertino
- Jun 9
- 6 min read
Get off the beaten track, explore places you'd never thought of, run in the desert or the lush jungle... Wherever you are, JOOKS can suggest some exceptional routes! Discover with us the ghost town of Granadilla, the desert expanses of central Argentina, or Pristina, the vibrant heart of Kosovo...
Granadilla
Granadilla Castle, dating back to the 13th century, sits enthroned in the eponymous ghost town. The latter belongs to the Spanish municipality of Zarza de Granadilla, a former lordship of Granada, which was an ancient fortified town of feudal origin in the north-west of the province of Cáceres. It was once an important city, capital of the region known as the Tierras de Granadilla and head of a judicial district. The fortress was founded by the Muslims in the ninth century, as it stands on a slate hill overlooking a vast area of land and is a key point on the Vía de la Plata, the silver route. The Almohads built the citadel in the most vulnerable part of the town, to the north-west. In 1160, the city was conquered by Fernando II, who brought it under Christian rule and fortified the entire city.
Its inhabitants were expropriated in the mid-twentieth century, when it became a flood zone due to the construction of the Gabriel y Galán reservoir. Today, it remains officially classified as such, although neither the town nor the castle have ever been flooded, even when the reservoir was full. Today, it is a remarkable site, protected by the government, where you will come across many campers who come to enjoy the unique atmosphere of this abandoned stronghold.
San Juan
In a majestic landscape, in the middle of Argentina, stands the city of San Juan. Ranked among the country's top ten urban centres, it was founded on 13 June 1562 by the conquistador Juan Jufré de Loayza under the name of San Juan de la Frontera. There are a number of tourist attractions nearby, including the Embalse and Ullum reservoirs and the Quebrada de Zonda. There are also thermal springs, museums and, not to be missed, the starting point for the local wine routes.
The province is huge, covering almost 90,000 square kilometres, slightly larger than a country like Serbia. The terrain is mountainous, interspersed with arid valleys. The city lies at the centre of the Tulum oasis, home to over 60% of the province's total population. Not far away is Ischigualasto, an important palaeontological site with strange geoforms dating from the Triassic period. JOOKS invites you to discover San Juan and the surrounding area on long cycle routes, in the land of alpacas and vicuñas!
Soumagne
In the green Belgian plains lies the small town of Soumagne, in the Pays de Herve region, around fifteen kilometres from Liège and Verviers.
Along the banks of the Magne, the commune's main stream, you can listen to the history of this mining town, whose roots go back to prehistoric times, as traces of Neolithic occupation have been found here. You'll pass through the town of Ayeneux and its provincial estate, where you'll admire the Château de Wégimont, a Renaissance building that is one of the most remarkable sites in the region. JOOKS offers you no fewer than 10 routes to discover this pretty Walloon commune, its rolling countryside and its bocage.
Pristina
Little-known Pristina is the capital and largest city of Kosovo, a territory with a disputed status. Situated near the Goljak mountains, a few kilometres north of the Šar mountains and Lake Badovac, it is home to some impressive monuments, including the national library, the Xhamia mosque and war memorials such as Newborn and Heroinat.
An unusual detail: the two tributaries of the Ibar that used to flow through the city, the Vellucha, which descends from the Germia hills to the east, and the Pristina, which flows to the west of the old town, were covered over in the 1950s and late 1970s respectively, linking them to the city's sewage system. Pristina is therefore a city without rivers.
It also has a history stretching back thousands of years: inhabited since Roman times, it was chosen as the capital by King Milutin of Serbia (1282-1321) and his successors. However, the Ottoman occupation in 1389 after the battle of Kosovo Polje foreshadowed its total conquest in 1454. The long period that followed set the course for the city's future. Sultan Mehmed II ordered the construction of the Imperial Mosque as a mark of his authority. As a result, most of the inhabitants converted to Islam. During your run through Pristina, you will have the pleasure of discovering both this Muslim culture in the heart of the Balkans, and a city that has been modernised since the war.
Ubud
The jewel in the crown of the Indonesian island of Bali, the town of Ubud will transport you back to a past as mysterious as it is exotic.
At the confluence of two rivers near Campuhan, a Javanese priest named Rsi Markendya is said to have meditated on the site in the 8th century. At the foot of Gunung Lebah, he built a temple that later attracted many pilgrims. Thus was founded this town, which has since become a major source of many herbs and plants used in traditional medicine. The Indonesian word ubad, meaning ‘medicine’, is the origin of Ubud's name.
By the end of the 19th century, Ubud had established itself as a political and cultural centre, the seat of the feudal lords of the Sukawati ksatriya family. These lords had sworn allegiance to the king of Gianyar, the most powerful of the southern states of Bali. They helped to publicise the village's growing artistic reputation.
Walter Spies, a German of Russian origin who taught art and music and had a passion for dance, is credited with launching the town's tourist industry. The place has also attracted many celebrities. Charlie Chaplin, Noel Coward, Barbara Hutton, H. G. Wells, Margaret Mead, Gregory Bateson and Vicki Baum, to name but a few, helped Ubud become the cultural centre of Bali. With the emergence of the young artists' movement and the work of Dutch painter Arie Smit in the 1960s, Ubud was able to continue to develop as one of the country's major artistic centres.
Ubud is home to some magnificent museums, including Puri Lukisan, which houses a superb collection of art dating from the 1930s, the Neka Museum, which displays the vast personal collection of Wayan Suteja Neka, an art lover from Ubud, and the Agung Rai Museum.
Beauvais
If the name Beauvais only conjures up images of an airport, don't forget to pay a visit during your next weekend in the French capital!
Its history dates back to the 1st century AD. In the Middle Ages, the town flourished, particularly in the textile sector, which made a major contribution to the town's development and economic growth. You'll come across the magnificent cathedral of Saint-Pierre de Beauvais, an unfinished masterpiece of Gothic architecture, with the highest Gothic choir in the world - 48.50 metres! If you push open the cathedral door, you'll admire a 19th-century masterpiece by Auguste-Lucien Vérité, its superb astronomical clock.
On your way, not far from the old town, stands a medieval hospital almost without equal among its French counterparts. You'll also pass the former leprosarium of the maladrerie Saint-Lazare, built in the 12th century. Beauvais is full of centuries-old monuments, and as you stroll around, you'll be able to contemplate a thousand years of history.
Plovdiv
Off the beaten tourist track in Bulgaria, Plovdiv surprises with its unexpected charm. Perched between the Rhodope mountains and the vast Thracian plain, this ancient city has a relaxed atmosphere and an incredible wealth of history. With its Roman theatre in perfect condition, cobbled streets lined with colourful houses and omnipresent street art, every street corner offers a new facet of its multifaceted identity.
Plovdiv is also known for its hills. Seven, to be exact. Or rather six, since one of them - Markovo Tepe - was razed to the ground at the beginning of the 20th century to be replaced by a shopping centre. It's a rare, almost absurd fact: here, the hills are disappearing in favour of modernity.
A Thracian city that became Philippopolis under the Roman Empire, it has seen Byzantine, Bulgarian and Ottoman rule, leaving behind a rich architectural and cultural heritage. Even today, this diversity can be seen in the details: a Bulgarian Renaissance façade stands alongside an Ottoman hammam or a contemporary fresco. To explore Plovdiv on foot or on a run is to cross the centuries, from Antiquity to the present day, in a creative and unique atmosphere.
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