The best way to explore an off-beat destination

Barcelona, Spain is home to many wonderful, amazing things. Balmy beaches. Catalan food. Fantastical buildings created by the famous architect, Gaudi. Spanish wine. Ancient, winding, narrow streets. Tapas. Towering Gothic churches. Catalan food, tapas, …. and Spanish wine. Ok, maybe we were a tiny bit biased. We were mostly looking forward to the food and wine in Barcelona. Can you blame us? But for all of our excitement about delicious Catalan food and tapas, we didn’t know much about the wine in Barcelona. If you’d asked us about Spanish wine, we probably would have shrugged and said something about Sangria, maybe a vague offhand mention of Cava ( isn’t that like …Champagne? ), nothing at all about Vermouth, and certainly not been able to name a single grape grown in Spain. As it turns out, we aren’t the only ones under-informed about the wine in Spain. Although Spain is the 3rd largest producer of wine in the entire world – be...

Capo Vaticano, Calabria, Italy. The white granite cape is a popular bathing spot in Italy. White sandy beach, crystal clear and warm water of Tyrrhenian Sea make it a perfect holiday destination. According to writer Giuseppe Berto, the spot is a holy place, that was often visited by the priests to confirm their future predictions. It is due to rock Mantineo, which means „to communicate with God“. The cliff is indeed a magnificent natural wonder. Photo by Unknown Photo by Unknown Photo by Unknown [symple_googlemap title=”Faro Capo Vaticano, VV, Italija” location=”Faro Capo Vaticano, VV, Italija” zoom=”10″ height=250] Lead photo by Bartuccio Antonino

In Bruges We arrived tired again so did not see much of the town before heading to the hostel. Here are a couple pics of a very beautiful city on a brisk day. Tomorrow we are up early (for once) for the Flanders fields tour.  In Flanders Fields

Juman Malouf and Wes Anderson with Pieter Bruegel’s  Tower of Bable . (Photo: Rafaela Proell/KHM Museum Association) Vienna’s Kunsthistorisches Museum has turned its entire 4 million-piece collection – which includes Egyptian mummies, antique carriages, Old Master paintings, and Austria’s crown jewels – over to the whims of filmmaker Wes Anderson and his partner, costume designer and author Juman Malouf . The couple’s favorite pieces will make up Spitzmaus Mummy in a Coffin and Other Treasures from the Kunsthistorisches Museum , which opens today and runs through April 28, 2019. Photo: KHM-Museumsverband. Photo: KHM-Museumsverband. Photo: Rafaela Proell/KHM-Museumsverband. Photo: KHM-Mu...

Walk down one of Copenhagen’s narrow, cobbled streets and it’s easy to imagine yourself in a Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale. Add in castles, an amusement park as nostalgic as a vintage toy train set, museums filled with Viking artifacts and bog mummies, a modern royal family, and a tinier-than-expected Little Mermaid  statue best viewed by boat, – plus open-faced sandwiches as tall as towers, and Copenhagen takes on near mythic qualities. If Denmark’s capital is a storybook, then the boutique Nimb hotel is the page you turn to plot adventures with city characters. At the Nimb, most rooms overlook Tivoli Gardens. My spacious terrace in one of its new suites stands one floor above Tivoli Gardens, the second oldest amusement park in the world. From here, you feel part of the merry crowd, connected to their joy as if  flying above them on a park-approved, magic carpet. Adored by visitors of all ages and dispositions, the park brings people together in all seasons. It’s a place of pal...

Gliding along the mighty Rhine, river cruisers get an intimate perspective on medieval castles, lush vineyards, and historic villages. But for those also hoping to trace the region’s extensive Jewish roots, Uniworld’s new-for-2018 Rhine itinerary features themed Jewish-heritage excursions at nearly every port. Don’t-miss experiences include visits to Basel’s Great Synagogue, Israel Park, and sites significant to the Zionist movement’s inception; the Museum Judengasse in Frankfurt, featuring the foundations of five homes from Europe’s first Jewish ghetto, Judengasse (Jew’s Alley), and an adjacent Holocaust memorial; Amsterdam’s former Jewish Quarter, where Rembrandt lived – the Dutch painter’s works often depicted local Jewish citizens, and his house, now a museum, is one of the few originals still standing in the area; and Strasbourg’s Old Town to tour the Alsatian Museum’s Jewish collection and model prayer room. Traveling through the Netherlands, Germany, France, and Switzerland, cr...

Scotland is the country of contrasts. From rough terrain and sharp peaks, mountainous landscapes and unusual rock formations, to dazzling beaches and azure waters. Historic castles and rich heritage also attract visitors from all around the world. Check out these ten choices, that you might like to consider visiting this year. 10. Gearrannan Blackhouse Village, Garenin A really really small village, consisting of nine restored traditional cottages. The tourists are offered a self-catering accommodation. The village provides the most authentic experience, while exploring the unspoiled nature of Isle of Lewis. Why to go there? The village is regarded to be one of the most beautiful and best preserved historic settlements on the British Islands. Photo by Hebridean Photoart Photo by praccus Photo by Unknown Photo by Unknown 9. The Old Man of Hoy In Orkney archipelago, on one of its islands of Hoy, a 137 m (449 ft) sea stack protrudes from the water. Made of the Old Red Sandstone ...