Europe Explored

"La semplicità è l’ultima sofisticazione" (Attributed to Leonardo da Vinci.) This trip was designed to visit some of the ancient cities of Italy which I had not been to before that were key players in the development of pre-Renaissance art. These were suggested by my wife who visited them while Interrailing in her youth. The …

Continue reading "Europe Explored – Trip 17 – Medieval Italy"

"With a hop, skip and a jump" This post continues the account of my journey from Barcelona to London, covering my time in France. I had been in South West France on two of my previous Europe Explored expeditions (in March 2022 and November 2023), so my itinerary was filling in the gaps of some …

Continue reading "Europe Explored – Trip 16 – Return from Catalonia – Part Two: France"

“Homage to Catalonia“ (George Orwell) This trip was designed to weave together some places I had not been to before, some I had been to a very long time ago, and some from more recently where I had not had enough time on my previous visit. This first post describes my time in Spain, while …

Continue reading "Europe Explored – Trip 16 – Return from Catalonia – Part One: Spain"

"... And now for something completely different" (Monty Python) This post continues the account of my journey to Romania and Bulgaria in October 2024. Romania was a country that I had previously visited 41 years earlier, whereas I had never been to Bulgaria before. Bulgaria uses the Cyrillic alphabet, but all place names in this …

Continue reading "Europe Explored – Trip 15 – Romania and Bulgaria – Part Two: Bulgaria"

"À la recherche du temps perdu" (Marcel Proust) This trip was designed to combine a visit to a country I last went to a long time ago with a visit to a country that I had never been to before. In 1983, I undertook an Interrail journey across Europe and back. My time in Romania …

Continue reading "Europe Explored – Trip 15 – Romania and Bulgaria – Part One: Romania"

“... You have nothing to lose, but your chains.” (Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels) Day 6 – Monday 16th September 2024 – Leipzig to AugsburgWe were making an early start on this day and walked the short distance to Leipzig Hauptbahnhof in good time to catch the 07:48 train to Munich. The station was much quieter …

Continue reading "Europe Explored – Trip 14 – German Medley – Part Two: from Leipzig"

"Workers of the world, Unite! ..." (Friedrich Engels, Karl Marx) In recent years I have visited most of the major cities in Germany, most recently being a trip along the Baltic coast from Hamburg to Poland last October. My wife and I had a number of places in Germany we still wanted to go to …

Continue reading "Europe Explored – Trip 14 – German Medley – Part One: to Leipzig"

"Beautiful plumage" (Description of the Norwegian Blue parrot - Monty Python sketch.) Day 5 (continued) – Friday 7th June 2024 – KristiansandMy ferry from Hirtshals in Denmark docked in Kristiansand on time at 15:30. Disembarkation was relatively speedy - a connecting passageway was attached to the side of the ship almost as soon at it …

Continue reading "Europe Explored – Trip 13 – Denmark and Norway – Part Two: Norway"

"We are red. We are white.We are Danish dynamite!"(Chant of Danish football fans at the Euro 92 tournament -won by Denmark.) My only previous visits to Denmark and Norway had been two trips to their capitals, Copenhagen and Oslo in 2018 and 2019, not counting my return from Sweden via Copenhagen airport last September. So …

Continue reading "Europe Explored – Trip 13 – Denmark and Norway – Part One: Denmark"