“Life is like walking on stairs; You have to take the first step to reach your destination.” The guest host for this week’s Monochrome Madness is Aletta from “Now at Home” and she has the theme of STEPS AND STAIRS. Here are some steps and stairs from my travels through the years. Let me start with the…
Tag: Europe
Light fixtures
For Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge I am featuring the different styles of lamps in France, Spain, Portugal and the UK. Old fashioned house lamp in the Cotswolds, UK Quinta da Regaleira ceiling lamp in Sintra, Portugal Classic lamp post in Barcelona. Old style wrought iron lamp post also in Barcelona,Spain Abney Park in Stoke Newington,…
The Holocaust Memorials
“And now, a prayer—or rather, a piece of advice: let there be comradeship among you. We are all brothers, and we are all suffering the same fate. The same smoke floats over all our heads. Help one another. It is the only way to survive.” — Elie Wiesel, Night …and on a serious note… I…
Public Art in Budapest
“My garden is my most beautiful masterpiece.” – Claude Monet You’ll be surprised with the number of Monuments, Statues and Streetart all around the streets of Budapest.…But if you’re like me and my husband, every time we look for a place in google maps, we get lost. Why is it that my kids can find…
A rainy day in Budapest
“I told them they’d see me walking in the rain in Budapest.” – Mary Chapin Carpenter’ TRAVEL DIARY: BUDAPEST 2 Our fifth and last day in Budapest was very cold and wet but that didn’t stop hubby and I to make the most of our day. We decided to go back to those places that…
The quaint little town of Szentendre
“It is always sad to leave a place to which one knows one will never return. Such are the melancolies du Voyage: perhaps they are one of the most rewarding things about travelling.” – unknown TRAVEL DIARY: SZENTENDRE On the 17th of November, 2018 we went on a day trip to Szentendre (St Andrews), just…
A walk on the PEST side of Budapest
“There are no foreign lands. It is the traveler only who is foreign.” – Robert Louis Stevenson The following day, the 16th of November 2018, took us to the opposite side of the Danube River, the PEST side of Budapest. From our hotel we crossed the Széchenyi Chain Bridge to get to the other side….
A day in BUDApest
“Europe’s most underrated big city, Budapest can be as challenging as it is enchanting.” – Rick Steves TRAVEL DIARY: BUDAPEST 1 It was a wonderful morning in November of 2018 and this was the view from the hotel where we stayed. Budapest, Hungary’s capital, is divided into two parts by the River Danube. The 19th-century…
Budapest is Glowing
‘They said that, of course, Budapest is beautiful. But it is in fact almost ludicrously beautiful.’ – Anthony Bourdain It was dark when we got to Budapest. I wanted to freshen up a bit before going on our dinner cruise when I decided to just look out of our bedroom window…and to my surprise… this…
Last Day in Vienna
“You need some reason why Beethoven, Mozart, and Haydn in the 18th century all flocked to Vienna. What was it about Vienna? They must have known on some level that that is where they would flourish. It’s what biologists call selective migration.” – Eric Weiner Situated in the very heart of Vienna’s City center, the…
Sightseeing in Vienna
“Adventure is allowing the unexpected to happen to you. Exploration is experiencing what you have not experienced before.” – Richard Aldington It was the 13th of November 2018 and it was foggy, cold and raining when we went for our first breakfast in Vienna. Beautiful and calming scenery from the Hilton Vienna Danube Waterfront First…
KunstHaus Wien
I am posting this for Ludwig’s Monday Windows and for Xingfumama’s Pull Up a Seat Challenge The KunstHausWien is a museum in Vienna, designed by the artist Friedensreich Hundertwasser. This museum houses the world’s only permanent exhibition of Hundertwasser’s works but it also hosts regular temporary exhibitions of other artists. The front design is very…
Quirky side of Vienna
“Dream on, but don’t imagine they’ll all come true. When will you realize… Vienna waits for you.” – Billy Joel (November 2018) After Bratislava, next stop was Vienna. It was already a bit dark when we got there but we managed to stroll around the grounds of the Hilton Vienna Danube Waterfront. It was so…
Bratislava
“To move, to breath, to fly, to float, To gain all while you give, To roam the roads of land remote, To travel is to live.” – Hans Christian Anderson After Prague, our tour group passed by Bratislava for a few hours before continuing on to Vienna. Bratislava is a small city and is the…
Last Day in Prague (Part 2)
“Prague never lets you go. This dear little mother has sharp claws.” – Franz Kafka After our amazing pre breakfast walk, we went back to our hotel to have breakfast and to freshen up. Next in our itinerary was to go to Petrin Hill My husband and I went to Petrin Hill and that’s when…
Last Day in Prague (Part 1)
The ancient splendour and beauty of Prague, a city beyond compare, left an impression on my imagination that will never fade. – Richard Wagner This was our last day in Prague so the plan was to do everything and visit everywhere that we planned on seeing. Yesterday, we were in Charles Bridge, but we were…
Day 3 in Prague
“In Rome, the statues. In Paris, the paintings. And in Prague the buildings suggest that pleasure can be an education.” – Caleb Crain It was hard on my feet yesterday but I am guessing that this day will be a better one. Our activity for today is a Sightseeing guided walk plus a few hours…
Windows and Cobbled Streets
“Never hesitate to open new windows in your life!” – unknown In Prague, when I avoided the crowds in the streets and was able to capture these windows …
Doors in Prague
‘The most unspoiled baroque city in Europe.’ – Christopher Booker Arched doorway, heavy wooden doors and walkways in Prague Castle, Petrin Hill and surrounds. These are old historic landmarks in Prague, Czech Republic. For Dan’s Thursday Doors Challenge
Day 2 in Prague
“No matter how many countries you’ve travelled to or where you’re going, Prague will sweep you off your feet.” – unknown From our hotel, hubby and I decided walk to the Old Town Square. It is said that Prague is very walkable… so that’s exactly what we did. We may be using the tram in…
Tour of Imperial Europe
“Prague changes like a precious stone to reflect the weather, the time of day and the season of the year.” – Christian Norberg – Schulz ”We must not cease from exploration. And the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we began and to know the place for the first time.” –…
All aboard…
“I name this ship Britannia. I wish success to her and all who sail on her.” – HM the Queen Our 23 days of European tour was all over but our travelling still continues. Next stop was Edinburgh and this time I am sure won’t be as hectic because we were staying with my cousin,…
Musee du Louvre
“My favourite thing to do is go where I’ve never been.” – Anonymous It was a free day because we didn’t go with the optional excursion. We decided to go to Musee du Louvre for our last day in Paris. The Musee du Louvre or just plain the Louvre is one of Paris’ most iconic…
Around Paris
With an early morning wake up call, we got ready for a city tour aboard the Cosmos tourist bus Still some awesome view from inside the coach window around the main city. Next, we went down for a guided city walk On the left hand side is the Palais de Justice, a beautiful building, which…
Versailles
The Palace of Versailles is perhaps the most opulent and beautiful palace in Europe. This was once home to kings and queens of France. It is one of the most important places in France and is now recognised as a world heritage site by UNESCO. This is the golden entry gate to The Palace of…
A Day in Paris
“Paris is always a good idea.” – unknown Aside from Disneyland, Paris is the only other place that was in my bucketlist when I was a lot younger. I thought to myself that when I find a boy, Paris is the place to be, because it is the City of Love and Romance. But several…
Poitiers
“A breeze, a forgotten summer, a smile, all can fit into a storefront window.” – Dejan Stojanovic The city of Poitiers is a French city located west of France. We passed this city on our way to Paris. Here are some narrow and almost empty streets with old houses when we ventured further from the…
The doors and Seats of Château d’Amboise
A place of residence for French kings from the 15th to the 19th centuries and is linked to the history of France. These are some of the outdoor benches and doors that can be found in the Chateau d’Amboise in France. Inside the castle you can find countless doors, hallways, staircases all leading up to rooms…