It has been fairly quiet on Emilienstrasse for the last few days – but we are actually very busy. We are essentially trying to figure out how to spend the remaining 4 months here. We have both the spring and summer trips to plan out, we are filling up our weekend excursions and short day trips. We are organizing things […]
Packed like sardines we set off for Frankfurt to drop off our parents for their trip back to Edmonton. Not a lot of traffic, not a lot of construction nice and easy drive, just the way lazy Saturday drives should be.
On a more upbeat note, a short distance from the cemetery is a quaint little place called Hesperiden Garden. It has a number of small whimsical statues we saw at the German National Museum on Wednesday. Other than a lot of paths and hedges there are some fountains and of course a restaurant and a […]
After a visit to the Rally Grounds we continued with our early afternoon morbid theme and visited a beautiful cemetery where Albrecht Dürer and other famous people are buried in Nuremberg. Dürer was a German painter, engraver, printmaker,mathematician, and theorist from Nuremberg. His high-quality woodcuts (nowadays often called Meisterstiche or “master prints”) established his reputation […]
We are back to the Rally Grounds. There is a massive Volksfest going on right now so most of the place is taken up by rides and parking and concession booths. However, the Zeppelin Field is wide open and unoccupied. The Zeppelin field is the size of 12 football fields and it used to hold […]
We set out to revisit the German National Museum today. It is hard to be impressed, especially after seeing The Louvre and The British Museum in London, yet we remain charmed by the German National Museum in Nuremberg. It has a lot of really amazing exhibits, it is quite big, yet small enough to really […]
This is the updated map of our Easter Weekend travels. A nice trip with hopefully a few more of these to come before we are back. Google Maps
I am not sure how this happened but it appears that Salzburg Christmas Store is our most popular blog post ever. Second most popular is “Going Back” There are 4 times as many visits to either one of these two posts than any other posts in the top 10 visited blog posts. In fact, […]
We had a wonderful stay at Agriturismo ai Casoni – honestly if we could we would stay there a few more days. This truly is an amazing place, a mom and pop operation that prides itself on great service, amazing food and wonderful atmosphere. Helped by their 3 kids, all off of whom work in the kitchen, […]
For the rest of us not taking part in the water fight, we simply just sat around on our porch – enjoying a quiet evening in a peaceful and serene Italian countryside with spectacular views at Agriturismo ai Casoni. To the right are the mountains, in front is an old country house, to the left […]
At 5pm, when we were coming home from Treviso, it was still 26C outside and very humid. The best solution for that would be to cool off in the pool which was a bit cold still, so the children went for the second best option – a water fight. There were no winners in this […]
Today is our last full day in Italy so we are visiting Treviso. This small city of about 80,000 people is actually quite famous. Treviso became a city in 89 BCE, the main road leading up to the Venetian defence walls is lined with spectacular villas on both sides of the road. Because of its […]
Piazza San Marco often known in English as St Mark’s Square, is the principal public square in Venice. The Palaces, St. Mark’s Basilica, the Bell Tower, the Clock Tower leading to the Rialto Bridge as well as the connection to the Grand Canal and the Grand Canal promenade is all here. It is a massively large open […]
The Grand Canal, Rialto Bridge and St. Mark’s Square and Basilica are the most iconic landmarks in Venice They are instantly recognizable and quite amazing in their own right. The weather is fabulous, there are no crowds – a perfect day to be in Venice.
Going to Venice and not taking a gondola ride is like going to Rome and not seeing the Coliseum or going to Paris and not seeing the Eiffel Tower. Not only do you get to see Venice from a totally different perspective but you also get to see Venice as people who live there see […]
Venice is famous for its glass, colourful and ornate. You can buy just about anything you can imagine made out of glass, from candies and cakes to animals, to pencils and cufflinks. You can also get some good street art. While a lot of it is simply printed there are some local artists that actually […]
There are some 190 churches in Venice. To see them all in one day or even a week is mission impossible. There are churches dedicated to all sorts of saints and holidays and important historical events you can imagine. ” The plague is over” – let’s celebrate and built a church – literally. To make […]
This church has a status of cathedral. It is not so much due to its size but its historical importance. Dating back to the late 1400’s this church was at the centre of Renaissance movement in Conegliano. Of particular importance was the fact that the front facade of the church was connected to the school and […]
Conegliano is a small town and commune in the Veneto region, Italy, in the province of Treviso, about 30 kilometres north from Treviso. The population of the city is around 36,000 people. Conegliano is noted for its wine, mainly the dry white Prosecco (made from the grape of the same name) which comes in three varieties: tranquillo (still), frizzante (slightly sparkling) and spumante (sparkling). It […]
The remains of a 10th-century castle are situated on a hill that dominates the town and offers beautiful views of the countryside. Formerly belonging to the Bishop of Vittorio Veneto, what remains of the castle is a bell tower, which now houses a small museum, and outer walls. There is a huge courtyard as well as […]
We have arrived at Agriturismo ai Casoni, just outside Treviso – where we are going to be spending the next 5 days. This is a small family run agriturismo that produces its own wine and Prosecco as well as the meats and fruits and vegetables. So, as you walk in and are greeted by the hosts […]
It is a very short drive from Ljubljana to Treviso through a beautiful and winding mountain highway. We are taking a short break for a bit of shopping and an espresso at Noventa di Piave Designer Outlet. While we only stopped to get some shoes for the kids, Evelina once again made off like a […]
Let’s face it – I think that by now, our need to travel is largely dictated by the fact that we don’t want to be recognized as “are those people eating again?” That’s us, we travel and eat and eat and eat, but it is soooooo good, we simply can’t help ourselves. From this day […]
Turn the other cheek might as well be the biggest lie ever told. Today I got a fair share of “turn the other cheek and give an evil eye” stares. I was simply trying to take a few quiet pictures of this lovely early-Baroque Franciscan Church. Built in the mid 1600’s the layout takes the form of a basilica with […]
We are leaving Salzburg once again and driving to Slovenia. It should be a great drive through the mountains, it is only about 3 hours with a stop or two for coffee. It’s nice and sunny so the views should be amazing and hopefully the traffic will be light.
Some 5 minutes on foot from our hotel is St. Sebastian’s Church. Tucked away behind the church is a famous cemetery. The cemetery was designed in the shape of an Italian Capo Santo. There are a number of famous Salzburg natives found here – their last resting place. Mozart’s widow and his father were buried […]
According to some sources, including the restaurant itself of course, the Siftskeller has been serving food since 803, making it the oldest restaurant in Europe. Not 1803 – that’s not a typo. Eight-oh-three. Although we can’t personally verify this data, we can certainly attest to the quality of food and service. We started with a […]
In two hours we are back here for dinner. Judging by the menu it should be nothing short of spectacular!
We are going church crazy today – it’s almost Easter so why not. St. Peter’s Abbey is well over 1300 years old. This old Benedictine Monastery is a church, it has a spectacular library, a small quiet and charming cemetery, if there is such a thing, a massive court yard and the oldest European […]
The University Church with its grandiose façade is one of the most magnificent Baroque churches in Austria. It feels light, open and airy – with the usually obscene dash of expansive marbles and gold, as no god could ever be happy without the usual riches. The chapels inside the church are dedicated to the patron […]
After the Mirabell Palace we set off along the river towards the Medieval Street and towards the old town. It it amazing how we have already been here but have not seen about 90% of things we are looking at today. Quick stop for coffee and dessert and we are off to the Cathedral and […]
We are exploring a bit of the other side of Salzburg. The side of Salzburg we did not see the last time we were here. First on the agenda after breakfast was a quick stop for a coffee and beer. Prince-Archbishop Wolf Dietrich von Raitenau had Altenau Palace built in 1606 as a token of […]
We are back in Salzburg for a couple of days. This time, while it is still quite cool, there is sunshine and blue skies. We can finally see the mountains surrounding this great city. While today we only took a quick stroll it was great to see some of the old places we visited without […]
We are setting off on a little holiday with Anna’s parents. First we are driving to Sankt Georgen im Attergau, in Austria where Anna’s dad begun his journey to Canada some 35 years ago. We are then going to spent 2 days wondering around Salzburg, a day in Ljubljana, Slovenia and then off to Treviso, Italy […]
We are back to our favourite restaurant in the old town – for a good traditional German dinner. For a flame roasted Nuremberg sausages – this place is a real treat.
We are setting off for dinner to the old town which is a short walk from out home, but the sky looks like it is ready to turn into a biblical proportion downpour – hopefully we will make it there before it does.
We spent a day exploring a bit of our beautiful city – from the Imperial Castle to the old town and a section of newly renovated St. Sebaldus Church. After a bit of pre-dinner gelato and a lovely dinner, we set out for another walk around the large park by our house. Lovely day… […]
It’s dinner time. We are down at our local restaurant Mullers. Great authentic German food – no cooking involved in this meal.
Lazy Saturday afternoon – out for a walk and a beer.
In an unusual turn of events we are out of the house before 9 am. Out of the house, through the park to the bakery to get some fresh bread. Our parents are here, and in about an hour more guests from Poland are arriving for the weekend. It’s going to be fun.
Nothing says Welcome to Germany like a massive gridlock on the Autobahn just outside the city. Standing still, and going nowhere fast!
After the most brutal and dreadful drive we got to Frankfurt, just in time too as the flight arrived early. Now we are waiting in arrivals for the first guests from Canada this year.
We are off to Frankfurt to pick up Anna’s parents. They will be visiting with us for about 3 weeks!
The Bavarian Spring is in full swing. Everything is exploding in all shades of green. All other colours of spring are not far behind. White asparagus is in season and literally everywhere you look, next up will be rhubarb and then strawberries all locally grown of course. While today was not the hottest day – […]
Heroes’ Square is one of the major squares of Budapest, rich with historic and political connotations. Its iconic statue complex, the Millennium Memorial, was completed in 1900, the square was named “Heroes’ Square” in 1929. The square is dedicated to the heroes of Hungary and was originally conceived as a Millennium Memorial for Hungary’s 1000 year anniversary as a […]
This place is no Zeller Bistro but we are out trying something new. Tonight we are at Lado Cafe. This little place, is where the locals hang out to have a dinner and listen to some live jazz or blues. Tonight is a live jazz show. Frankly we did not have the time to take […]
Art Deco is everywhere in Budapest, but so are great many other buildings in Romanesque, Gothic, Gothic Revival, Neo-Classical, Baroque, Hungarian secessionist, Renaissance and modern styles. For anyone with any interest in architecture Budapest is a treasure trove of amazing examples of different architectural styles – more often than not standing side by side.
It is quite warm and humid – a walk down by the Danube offers not only great views of the Buda side of the city but also a nice and refreshing breeze. From the Parliament Building, by the Jewish Memorial and all the way up to the Gellert Hotel famous for its baths – this […]
The Parliament Building on the bank of the Danube is currently the largest building in Hungary and together with St. Stephen’s Basilica the tallest building in Budapest standing at 96m. The number 96 refers to the nation’s millennium, 1896, and the conquest of the later Kingdom of Hungary in 896. About one thousand people were involved in construction of the Parliament, during […]
The church is named after Saint Stephen I of Hungary, the first King of Hungary (c. 975–1038), whose incorruptible right hand is housed in the reliquary. This is the most important church building in Hungary, one of the most significant tourist attractions and the third highest building in Hungary. Equal with the Hungarian Parliament Building, it is one of […]
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