Ballenberg is an open museum with a 100 original, century-old buildings from all over Switzerland, original gardens and fields. It is a working museum where people are in period, bake break, make sausages, make cheese and pretend they live in the centuries past. There are also 250 domestic animals on display as well. This is […]
This is the last stop in Switzerland. Apparently I can’t count to 5 so I booked us in for 4 nights. Needless to say a day before check out we needed to find a room for one more night. Booking.com to the rescue and this is how we ended up in this village. Dating back […]
Doing something outdoorsy today – something right up Evelina’s alley. Seilpark in Gantrisch has the highest forest adventure platforms in Switzerland – 36m – it is freaky. There are 10 different courses to go through and 1.5km of paths suspended through the beautiful Längeney Forest. We did 9 of the 10, the second most difficult one […]
Thun is a small city of about 45,000 residents. The area of what is now Thun was inhabited since the Neolithic age mid 300 BC. Like most Europe and Switzerland it was conquered by Rome in 58BC. In 1819 a Military School was founded in the city, which later developed into the main military school in […]
It is going to be hard to leave these views behind. It is a good thing that the roads are twisty and narrow, at least by going slow you can enjoy them – not the driver though the roads are too darn twisty and narrow to look away.
When the sun is setting and we are lucky to be back home, the sky lights up with a thousand colours like it is on fire which is contrasted by the insanely green hills and reflected over the village homes – all 6 of them.
The construction of the Cathedral of Notre Dame of Lausanne began as early as 1170 by an original unknown master mason. Twenty years later another master mason restarted construction until 1215. Finally a third engineer, Jean Cotereel, completed the majority of the existing cathedral including a porch, and two towers, one of which is the current […]
The city is situated on the shores of Lake Geneva, 62 kilometres northeast of Geneva. Lausanne has a population of 146,372, making it the fourth largest city in Switzerland. Lausanne is a focus of international sport, hosting the International Olympic Committee, which recognizes the city as the “Olympic Capital”. Since 1994 the Court of Arbitration for Sport and some 55 international sport associations […]
Directly overlooking the Lake Schiffenen is a carved out cave measuring 120 meters which was chiseled out in the rock by two hermits around 1700. The floor, as it was recently discovered, is actually a fossilized sandstone dune from prehistoric times. The dwelling in the cliff was later expanded to its current size by the hermit Johann Dupré and his […]
The Gothic Cathedral of St. Nicholas in Fribourg dominates the centre of the medieval town. The main church was started in 1283 and completed by 1430. The tower was completed in 1490. It is 76 metres tall and houses 11 bells. Originally a parish church, in 1945 it became the cathedral of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Lausanne, Geneva […]
Fribourg is located on both sides of the river Saane, and is an important economic, administrative and educational centre on the cultural border between German and French Switzerland. Fribourg also has one of the most prestigious universities in Switzerland. Its Old City, is one of the best maintained in Switzerland. There is a very old funicular […]
We have arrived in Switzerland. Once you pass the tunnels and the trains the views open up – no matter where you look the vistas are spectacular. Interesting note, in Italy, the fastest drivers on the highway are either from Germany or Switzerland. The posted highway speed is 130km/h the Swiss will do 150 to 160km/h. The moment […]
Milan dates back to 400BC. Today Milan is the 2nd largest metropolitan city in Italy. The population of the city proper is 1.3 million, while its urban area with a population estimated to be about 5.5 million is the 5th-largest in the EU. Milan is the main industrial and financial centre of Italy, it has the 3rd-largest […]
Our schedule for today is very relaxed. A nice stroll through the Borghese gardens towards the Spanish Steps and a bit of shopping. The Borgheses were a wool merchant family from Sienna. The head of the family, Marcantonio, moved to Rome in 1541 and this Sienese family rapidly gained access to the upper echelons of Roman […]
After the morning museum trip and an extensive siesta from the unyielding and relentless heat, we set out for a lap around Rome. Last time we were here the Trevi Fountain was being renovated and cleaned, which apparently is done once every 50 years or so. There are over 2000 fountains in Rome but this one […]
MAXXI – National Museum of the 21st Century Arts, is a national museum of contemporary art and architecture in Rome and is about 5 min walk from the gorgeous apartment we are staying in. The museum was built on the old and decommissioned military compound site. This spectacular building was designed by Zaha Hadid who passed away this […]
Imagine owning the entire mountain top of a peninsula on the Amalfi coast. Small villa, pool and massive gardens. Originally built in the 11th century the villa was rebuilt and reconstructed over the years passing from one family to the next. The most extensive rebuilding and renovation was done at the start of the 20th […]
Today we ventured out on a drive from Agerola, where we are staying, to Ravello. Sine there is only one road that clings to the side of the mountain we had to drive through Amalfi. However, the drive is not as bad as everyone has said it would be. Would I drive it in my […]
Pompeii was an ancient Roman town-city near modern Naples. Pompeii, along with Herculaneum and many villas in the surrounding area, was mostly destroyed and buried under 4 to 6 of volcanic ash and pumice in the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79. The city was lost and forgotten for about 1500 years. It was […]
We set out for a short walk, from the village of Agerola to Priano – it turned out to be about 8.5km. Path of the Gods is one of the most famous and most spectacular trails in Italy with stunning view of the Amalfi coast and its towns, mainly Positano, Priano and Amalfi. There are […]
We visited both Positano and Amalfi as part of our boat trip today. Both of these small villages are perched on the cliff similar to Cinque Terre towns. We took a boat from Amalfi to Positano, hang around there for a bit then a boat back to Amalfi. From Amalfi we took, what can only […]
We are finally here… We are checked into Divina Costiera which is located in the Latter Mountains, 2 km outside Agerola. We are really really hight up in the mountains, it is 10:44 and it is 26C and humid! It’s beautiful, despite the heat. […]
The Principality of Monaco is a sovereign city-state, located on the French Riviera. France borders the country on three sides while the other side borders the Mediterranean Sea. Monaco has an area of 2.02 km2 and a population of about 37,800; it is the second smallest and the most densely populated country in the world. […]
Notre-Dame de la Garde (literally Our Lady of the Guard), is a Catholic basilica in Marseille, France. The basilica was build on the foundations of an ancient fort. The fort was located at the highest natural elevation in Marseille, a 149 m (490 ft) limestone outcrop on the south side of the Old Port of Marseille. The basilica […]
Marseille is the oldest continuously inhabited city in France, it is a second largest city in France after Paris and the centre of the third largest metropolitan area in France after Paris and Lyon. Humans have inhabited Marseille and its region for almost 30,000 years, it was the first Greek settlement in France. It is […]
After the city folk found their way of the forest, we immediately stopped in the first available town to have some well earned gelato. Lourmarin is a small village of 1000 people which has been settled for at least a thousand years, and was probably a Neolithic campsite before that. A dominating fortress was first […]
On the outskirts of Bonnieux village is a massive cedar forest that began with trees imported from North Africa during the Napoleonic era. It sits opposite Mont Ventoux, know as the windy mountain where winds in the summer reach 320km/h but on average over 240 days out of the year go at 90+ km/h. We decided to […]
The original bridge on this road was built in 3BC and it was a wooden structure which was swept in one of the floods. The bridge was part of the Via Domitian road which was a quick way to connected Rome with the southern France. The bridge was eventually replaced with an arched stone bridged with two […]
Roussillon is a tiny but a picturesque village of about 1300 residents. It is famous for the rich deposits of ochre pigments, mostly red, yellow and orange, found in the clay near the village. The large quarries of Roussillon were mined from the end of the 18th century until 1930. Roussillon is located within the […]
Today, after lazing around after breakfast, and then lounging by the pool for a couple of hours, we decided to take a little lavender drive through Provence. As it turns out we are a bit late to the lavender party as the first harvest has already been taken and the new flowers are not going to […]
The cathedral is located on the route of the Roman road, the Via Aurelia. A fragment of a Roman wall and the columns of the baptistery seem to be the origin of the legend that the church was built on top of a Roman temple dedicated to Apollo. According to the Christian tradition, the first […]
Aix-en-Provence name comes from a Roman consul, Sixties Calvinus, who gave his name to Aquae Sextiae, “the Baths of Sixties,” a site of thermal springs in 123BC. Aix-en-Provence has about 140,000 residents and is generally considered a university town. There are great many sights to see here. The Cours Mirabeau is a wide thoroughfare, planted with […]
The origin of this town dates back to 800 BC. More importantly though the town was taken by Romans in 123 BC and as Romans do they build a lot of cool buildings. The Gallo-Roman theatre, the arena or amphitheatre, necropolis, Arles Obelisk and Barbegal aqueduct and mill to name few. Most of the old Roman buildings are being […]
Chances are that if you have ever seen a picture of a lavender field in France with a large building in the back ground it most likely was Senanque Abbey. The abbey was funded in 1148 and rose to an enormous prominence and wealth in the 13 to 14th century then lost it all when […]
Today we are taking easy after a long drive yesterday. After a late start and a lazy morning breakfast we are out for a short drive. First stop, Bonnieux, a small hill-top village dating back to the 6th century.
Musee d’Orsay is located in an old converted railway station right across the river from the Louvre. It holds mainly French art dating from 1848 to 1914, including paintings, sculptures, furniture, and photography. It houses the largest collection of impressionist and post-Impressionist masterpieces in the world, by painters including Monet, Manet, Degas, Renoir, Cézanne, Seurat, […]
So another busy day in Paris. A bit of shopping, a lot of walking, a lots of snacking but generally relaxing. Today we climbed 24 floors, mostly getting up to the Pantheon and walking up the hill by Sorbonne, and walked about 23,600 steps which is about 13.6km. Good workout!
The Luxembourg Garden and Palace was created at the beginning of 1612 by Marie de’ Medici, the widow of King Henry IV of France, who at the time was building a new home that was to mimic her home in Florence. Today the gardens are owned by the French Senate, which meets in the Palace. It covers 23 […]
The Pantheon, roughly translated from Greek means “to all gods”. Originally intended as a church to the saint patron of Paris, it was later converted to a mausoleum to honour the great men and women that brought honour and respect to the nation. The motto on the Pantheon reads ” To great men, the grateful homeland” […]
The Sainte-Chapelle or “Holy Chapel” was constructed to house Louis IX’s collection of relics of Christ, the crown of thorns, a piece of the cross and others. At the time the king paid 135,00 livres for the relicts, which were put in an ornate silver chest that cost further 100,000 livres. The entire chapel in 1238 […]
First order of the day and the highlight of the day for the kids was a Rihanna pop up store – at Colette. Super cool store with just about something for everyone. Needless to say we showed up early, in fact we beat almost the entire Paris and ended up 4th in line. Score. […]
One of the largest buildings you can see from Centre Pompidou is the church of St. Eustache. The building actually dates back to the 13th century. The current church, a gothic masterpiece, was built between 1532 and 1632. St. Eustache was prominent enough in Paris to have Louis XIV take his first communion there and Mozart has […]
Centre Pompidou is an interesting building – it is sort of inside out building. We visited Pompidou in Metz a while back which looked like a giant tent. From the roof top you can almost see all the major landmarks in Paris. A very nice Passion women pointed out all of them to us, all […]
Today is our first day out after a long day of travel yesterday. On the agenda for today is what started of as a little village in the 11th century then became a hunting lodge with a bit of forest to what today is simply know as the Palace of Versailles. When you are the […]
Finally we are setting off on our summer vacation. It has been a long time coming.
Our last tourist stop on this trip is the ancient village of Bagno Vignoni located in the heart of Tuscany, in the Val d’Orcia Natural Park. At the heart of the village instead of the usual piazza is the “Square of sources” – a huge hot springs pool dating back to the sixteenth-century. This spot was […]
If you have ever seen a calendar of Tuscany, postcards or even some promotional material chances are you have seen Vitality Chapel in at least one of the pictures. The chapel of Our Lady of Vitality originally built around 1590 is located on a private property on the road between Pienza to San Quirico d’Orcia and […]
This is our third visit to Siena. We always find something new to see and to do. After two hectic days of driving around and looking at towns and villages today we are taking it easy. This time around in Siena, we decided to climb the Torre del Mangia which is 88m in height – same […]
Sant’Anna in Camprena is in the heart of Tuscany – about 6km from Pienza. It is a monastery from the 15th century perched on the top of hill with spectacular views of the rolling Tuscan hills. The buildings are beautiful, the garden is huge and the food is simply amazing. Having said that this place would be nothing if it […]
Relatively speaking this is a large town compared to some of the smaller villages we visited. There are about 10K people living in Foiano della Chiana today. This is also an agricultural town which used to be surrounded by marshes on three sides, and not a hill top town like all others. If it was […]
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