From the World Heritage inscription: Prague is one of the most beautiful cities in Europe in terms of its setting on both banks of the Vltava River, its townscape of burger houses and palaces punctuated by towers, and its individual buildings.The Historic Centre represents a supreme manifestation of Medieval urbanism (the New Town of Emperor …
From the Holašovice Historical Village Reservation World Heritage inscription: Holašovice is an exceptionally complete and well-preserved example of a traditional central European village. It has a large number of outstanding 18th- and 19th-century vernacular buildings in a style known as South Bohemian Folk Baroque, and preserves a ground plan dating from the Middle Ages. I …
From the Historic Centre of Ceský Krumlov World Heritage inscription: Ceský Krumlov is an outstanding example of a central European small town dating from the Middle Ages that owes the structure and buildings of its historic core to its economic importance and relatively undisturbed organic development over some five centuries. The town grew up within …
There’s nothing more that I love than some good trivia and those fascinating tidbits that make every country I’ve visited truly unique. And so, my arrival in the Czech Republic means not only a new country for me, but a new installment of “8 Facts,” where I share the most interesting things that have happened …
Before I get too far into Europe, I figure I should go back and do a quick review of my time in the Czech Republic, Austria, Slovakia and Slovenia. It was only a quick trip of 10 days, but I was able to get a taste of the region and see some of the things …
The last week or so I haven’t posted much. It has been an extreme case of Gary’s Paradox. This has been due to my manic schedule across Europe and the limited Internet access I’ve had on the Carnival Magic as we have been sailing around the Mediterranean. Just to give you an idea how hectic …
Over the course of the last four years, only a small fraction of the things which happen to me end up on my website. Most either don’t merit a mention or sometimes I forget to write about it. Today something happened that I didn’t think twice about when it occurred. They were simple enough events …
I visited Prague in 2011 as part of a trip I took through Central Europe. Having been spared much of the worst of WWII and put in a state of arrested development during the Cold War, Prague has one of the best preserved old cities in all of Europe. It has served as the backdrop …
This leg of the trip I’m on was never intended to be much more than an opportunity to see some of Europe that I hadn’t seen, before I head off on a cruise from Venice. My three days in Prague was nowhere near enough time to really explore the city, especially when you factor in …