Western Europe Archive

6May 4, 2012
Rome vs. Florence: Which “Italy” Speaks to You?

Share Vanilla or chocolate? Pizza or pasta? Rome or Florence? I got to thinking about the connections we form and how our preferences are shaped – from the foods we…
0March 23, 2012
Should I Rent a Car in Italy?

Share When friends are planning a trip to Italy they often ask me the question: Should we rent a car and drive while we’re visiting? My rhetorical question in response…
0March 15, 2012
Drunk on Wanderlust in Barcelona

Share It’s easy to lose yourself amongst the beautiful, narrow streets of Barcelona. Especially when you’re tipsy on wunderlust, epicurean dreams and Rioja. Or so we learned the hard way. When my…
6March 12, 2012
How to Eat Well in Italy: 7 Classifications of Italian Eateries

Share Italians use the term mangiare bene which literally means “to eat well”. But along with referring to a meal of flavor and value, it also suggests a savored time…
0February 16, 2012
Modern Meets Ancient: A Trip to the Swiss Capital of Bern

Share Before I left my hometown Freiburg to start the 200km journey eastwards to the Swiss Capital, I adjusted my expectations. Having been raised in a European country, there is…
1January 6, 2012
Lisbon, Portugal: It was the Little Things

Share Dare I say you’ve not seen Lisbon until you’ve seen the inside of one of the city’s slightly dirty, poorly lit emergency rooms, taking in the gawks of other…
0October 20, 2011
Being Summoned to Southern Spain: Living Each Day in Los Pueblos Blancos

Share A chill-tinged late October wind blew me to the South of Spain, from my central location in the region of Castilla y Leon. I had been on a long…
0August 19, 2011
Cinque Terre, Italy: Gems of the Ligurian Coastline

Share After a few days of having basked in the architectural grandeur of the brick-red Duomo in Florence, sipped on frothy cappuccinos on the balcony of Café Key Largo in…
1July 15, 2011
Sarlat, France: Of Duck and Tranquility

Share After a long and complicated train ride, followed by a 50-minute drive in a taxi, I finally arrived in Sarlat, a tiny medieval town in the Périgord region of…
0July 13, 2011
24 Heures du Mans: Top 5 Things to do at the Le Mans Car Race

Share Whether you’re a car racing enthusiast or not – the 24 Heures du Mans is something worth experiencing at least once in your life. Along the same lines of…
1June 3, 2011
Nerja, Spain: Pizza and Hash on the Costa del Sol

Share I had just moved to Spain to study for a year and was overwhelmed with the desire to explore all of Europe in the first few days. Totally doable….
2May 23, 2011
Picnicking and Public Drinking in Paris

Share I was sitting on the steps of Sacre Coeur when I noticed that everyone around me was drinking a Heineken. My first thought was “bus tour.” I assumed that…
3May 2, 2011
Paros Island, Greece

Share Ahh. Paros. I’ve already dished on Santorini just a bit, and now I think it’s time to move on (temporarily at least!) to one of it’s less talked about…
2April 25, 2011
Santorini, Greece: Paradise, The Real Deal

Share My underwear were blowing in the breeze. No, not the ones I was wearing. It was a whole line-up of them actually, a laundry line-up. Above and below the…
0April 22, 2011
Freiburg, Germany: Island of Nature in a Sea of Industry

Share Leisurely, the creek is forming its way through dense forests, along long rows of vine and amongst old, Black Forest cottages. Arriving in the small lanes of the city,…
2April 18, 2011
¡Viva las Tapas!

Share Tapas are just tops. I don’t care who you are, I know for a fact that there is absolutely no way you would turn down a delicious snack or…
1March 23, 2011
Granada, Spain: Art Shows in Alley Ways

Share Dozens of white stone plazas surrounding fountains adorned in cherubs and crosses. Snow-capped Sierra Nevada mountains framing winding rivers. Medieval brick cathedrals complete with original bells. This is the…
2March 16, 2011
A Trip to Crete: Strolling, Shopping, Sipping and Sunbathing

Share Given the tricky travel coordination and numerous options, it can be frustrating to decide where to go in Greece and how long to spend at each place. Santorini and…