For the first time we got to climb the old City Hall Tower – as it is only open during the spring and summer. Needless to say the views are equally as spectacular as they are from the main church tower next door but then again the climb is a lot easier too for the […]
The church was built between 1905 and 1909, and designed by Jan Sas Zubrzycki in the Gothic Revival style. It is the largest church in the area. The interior is shaped in the likeness of a Gothic cathedral in the so-called Gothic Vistula style. It is filled with numerous altars, benches and other items made […]
This monument was erected in 1964 to honour those who were murdered in the adjacent concentration camp between 1943-1945 in Płaszowie. Actually the monument is in place where routine massive executions took place before most of the people were shipped to Auschwitz. There was a stone quarry near by where most of the prisoners slaved […]
Wieliczka Salt Mine has been around for about 7 centuries but it was originally explored from Neolithic times . Wieliczka salt mine, excavated in the 13th century, produced table salt continuously until 2007, as one of the world’s oldest operating salt mines and now a museum and a UNESCO site. There are some 287 km […]
Krakow – first time for me but not for the rest of the family. We are massively jet lagged but we keep pressing on. Kraków is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. The city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 and has […]
Today we were rewarded with a sunning sunset, more unique every minute and more spectacular – it’s like the sky was on fire. [hd] [hd]
We can’t seem to outrun the white stuff. We went out for dinner and an hour later there it was – the white stuff.
Beautiful and a sunny day – perfect day for a walk on the beach.
Gdansk certainly deserves to be called the World Amber Capital or so the local sentiment claims. This museum is brand new, it opened last year and it houses some amazing pieces of art and history. It also houses the larges amber in the world weighing in at 68.2kg. Every colour and every shade of amber […]
This museum is located in the old late-Gothic Franciscan monastery, which has been used to house exhibits since the end of the 19th century. The museum used to hold a sizeable collection of historical works of art. In 1884. The core of the Museum’s collection constitutes the collection of Jacob Kabrun, which includes several thousand […]
The archcathedral in Oliwa is a three-nave basilica with a transept and a multisided closed presbytery, finished with an ambulatory. The façade is flanked by two slender towers, 46-metres tall each with sharply-edged helmets. It is enlivened by a Baroque portal from 1688, as well as three windows of different sizes and three cartouches. The […]
Today we are doing something more productive. Right after we finished the morning coffee and other drinks we set off to Oliwa, a small suburb of Gdansk that’s famous for its parks, gardens and the large cathedral with a huge organ. Did I mention cakes, lots of amazing cakes to eat too.
Some things just don’t get old. The weather is absolutely fantastic, the city is buzzing with activity and we are soaking it all in.
We are taking a train from Nuremberg to Berlin to Warsaw to Bialystok. It’s about 13 hour train journey through the German and Polish countryside. Food and wine service and internet at full speed, it’s a relaxing way to travel.
Today is officially Volker’s 60 birthday. We have been celebrating for the last two days but today it cumulated with a proper 6 hour German Lunch. Five courses, plus two extra desserts, plenty of wine and some great company. This charming little place is in Boxdorf – a tiny town between Nuremberg and Großgründlach.
A walk around the defence walls of the old city and some of the favourite and most picturesque spots in Nuremberg we remember. The castle is always good for a few good photos.
Everything from Galilio’s finger to a broken glass from his telescope to everything else as it was invented to make the modern world tick – it’s all here and it is well worth a visit. Alternatively – it’s worth even getting the free app and do a virtual tour of the place to explore this […]
Our hotel is right over the Arno River which gives us access not only to great views but also great photo opportunities. If you want to see something really interesting look this up here.
Some of the great sites we visited on the little vintage Fiat Tour. From vineries and olive tree orchards to monuments, churches and homes. Lots of great views, food and company. It truly was a great day.
This tours is definitely lacking in visits to the holy places but little church certainly makes up for it. You walk in here and find some amazing crypts of who is who of Renaissance and beyond. St. Francis of Assisi left his frok here. Buried in this church are Galileo, Michelangelo, Dante, Machiavelli, Marconi, Rossini […]
This was really a last minute idea for doing something different – aka something that involved less walking and more sitting. We booked it the night before and had to get up early to be there by 8:30 am. This turned out to be a half day tour through the hills around Florence with an […]
I think one of the greatest benefits of the hotel we are staying at, other than the fact that there are a lot of great pubic areas, is the rooftop patio. You can grab a drink from the bar, park yourself and enjoy a beautiful sunset. Truly amazing. […]
Took a quick stroll after dinner to figure out where we should eat tomorrow…and to find a good gelato place, and we accomplished both. […]
We took a train from Rome to Florence. This is the first time we are on holidays where we did not bother with a car. Less than 1.5hours later we were in the centre of Florence – instead of the usual almost a 4 hour drive. I think we can get use to it. We […]
The Stadium of Domitian was dedicated in AD 86, as part of an Imperial building programme at the Field of Mars. It was Rome’s first permanent venue for competitive athletics – think Olympic Games and other things, including gladiator fights when the Colosseum burned down. It was modelled on Greek buildings and seated as many […]
To the right of the Baroque church on the opposite side of the Trevi Fountain are the ruins of an ancient Roman apartment complex located 9 meters beneath the city’s Trevi district. The archaeological site dates back to the first century, but wasn’t discovered until the late 1990s. The site is called Vicus Caprarius, the City […]
Trastevere – goes as far back as the days of emperor Augustus. It has been part of the city’s 14 districts, and it was quite popular with important Romans who built villas in this neighbourhood, including Julius Caesar. It is many colourful building and narrow streets. In the old days it was primarily occupied by fisherman […]
This is a small church among some 900 other churches in Rome, and is dedicated to Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of the Society of Jesus, located in Rome. Built in Baroque style between 1626 and 1650, the church functioned originally as the chapel of the adjacent Roman College, which moved in 1584 to a new larger […]
We have done bits and pieces of the Roman Forum and the Palatine but this time we took our time. I think we spent good 4 or 5 hours meandering through the ancient ruins of a city built upon an older city built upon and older city still, stories below where the current city is. […]
Still walking around Rome looking for new things to explore and new things to see. We took a full 5 minute ride on a LIME scooter that would have taken 3 minutes to walk because of traffic and a minor confusion with a car on the road. After that we promptly park the darn thing […]
Perhaps if Papa Francesco was in we would have gone to the church, aka as St. Peter’s Basilica, but in truth we really just went for the nice walk after dinner to enjoy the night views without the crowds, without the noise and without the vendors. It was a long day. […]
The sunsets are crazy spectacular, this is taken from the edge of the gardens at Villa Borghese on our way down towards the Spanish Steps. On the way down we met the nicest young man a great artist from Albania, studying art in Rome, how amazing is that? […]
In the gardens of Villa Borghese a chocolate festival, the richness of which you could smell from a mile away. Dangerous time and place to ‘find’ yourself in – just before dinner! […]
This little area in Rome was built around the 1920s and is was famous for its mixture of several different architectural styles, all coming together to create something never seen before. This is the place where you will find the Villino delle fate (the fairy house) and in the centre of the square the Fountain […]
That seems to be the dominant colour palette for Rome. No matter where you are and no matter where you look those are the three primary colours, occasionally punched with a bit of white, mostly churches, and the broccoli trees, the towering pines. […]
Yesterday was rough, but today after a good night’s sleep and plenty of coffee we are visiting the old favourites, away from crowds, and at a very leisurely pace. First stop Campo de’ Fiori. Colourful, fragrant and lively. Nothing changed here since our last visit and that’s a good thing. […]
The European Solidarity Centre is a museum and library in Gdańsk, Poland, devoted to the history of Solidarity, the Polish trade union and civil resistance movement, and other opposition movements of Communist Eastern Europe. It resembles a hull of the ship both inside and outside. It is done exceptionally well with lot of amazing exhibits. […]
This really is a last minute trip – a quick getaway to relax before the holidays. November in Gdansk is cool and grey but the atmosphere is amazing, the food, so far, has been phenomenal and every time we take a turn onto a new street there is a new restaurant or a bar or […]
Like yesterday, first thing in the morning, we went to see a bit of Rome, but this time on the other side of the river. We went to St. Peter’s Basilica fully expecting to see thousands of people lined up trying to get in and see the house of the richest god there ever was. […]
We did get up at 6:30am on our vacation to see what Rome looks like when it is quiet and empty. I did not disappoint, it was quiet and empty and serene – just beautiful.
This museum is located in a home of a 17th century noble family in Matera and the 7 limestone caves dating back to Neolithic times. The family used the caves for food and wine storage but today the entire residence and the caves are one great museum of modern contemporary sculpture.
No word of a lie it was 40°C so we spent most of the day either in the pool or around the pool. In the evening when it got cooler, 31°C, we set of for Ostuni. It is a small town with about 32K people in winter but during the summer months its populations swells […]
Alberobello is a small city of less than 11,000 people and it is famous for it’s trullos. Trullos are scattered throughout this part of Puglia. The story behind trullo was to build a small home with only dry stone and no mortar so they could easily be reconfigured and taken down. They were simply built […]
We have done absolutely nothing since we got here. Haven’t been anywhere, haven’t seen anything yet, other than the inside of some restaurants for food of course. We haven’t even been out for a gelato yet. Lazy and relaxing is the name of the game and this is the perfect setting for it.
To work off some of the gelato we have consumed over the last few days and excessive amount of food and wine today we are going cultural. We are going to visit a couple of museums, some art galleries and climb the tallest tower in the city for the most spectacular view of the city […]
There is always something new at the Uffizi Gallery in Florence that is worth seeing. The priceless other works of art aren’t too shabby either. I think the best thing about the Uffizi is the fact that it can be done in a reasonable amount of time – even in 3 hours. The rest of […]
We are really going our of our way to explore all the side streets in San Gimignano. Not only that, we also managed to have a great afternoon drink, do some laundry, a bit of shopping, have gelato too many times and sit down for a great dinner. A day full of nothing really – […]
At around 1 am the town goes quiet with hardly anyone roaming the streets, except people like me aimlessly wandering through the narrow streets with a camera in tow.
We are, for the first time, not just visiting San Gimignano but staying in the city for a few days. We parked the car at the bottom of the hill and will spent a few days just walking around and exploring all the great gelato places this city has to offer, but really just concentrating […]
It appears that after Castelmunzio, Montisi is our next favourite place to over eat at dinner. Montisi is a tiny and serene village, steeped in tradition but largely unspoiled by tourism. It’s also a quiet retreat for a good number of celebrities who come here to hide from the crowds.
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