Trieste has been called the ultimate nowhere-place: officially part of several successive countries and empires through the ages, yet spiritually bound to none of them. Many of the 200,000 Triestine, I came to learn, do not see themselves as truly Italian. They belong to Trieste, and Trieste alone. In fact, a small but committed independence movement is seeking the recognition of Trieste as a free … Continue reading Trieste, Italy
Being placed atop a small hill in northern Croatia, Trakošćan Castle looks like a fairytale castle, proudly peeking its spires. It dates back to the 13 century as pat of fortification system and small observation fortress for monitoring the road from Ptuj, Slovenia. According to a legend, Trakošćan was named after another fortification (arx Thacorum) that was built at the same spot back in antiquity. Another source claims … Continue reading Trakošćan castle, Croatia
Boč Boč, also called the Triglav of Slovene Styria is just a few kilometres away from Ptuj. It is 978 metres high and I climbed it in all its essence. 🙂 Boč, which is among the southernmost extensions of the Karawanks mountain range – the Southern Limestone Alps – is covered with forest and protected as a natural park. I was particularly intrigued by the mountain house that … Continue reading Ptuj castle, I feel sLOVEnia
The very beautiful Macedonia (FYR of Macedonia, to be more exact) 🙂 after belonging to many empires over time, it is nowadays mostly shared by Christians and Muslims, who still come together at the fascinating Old Bazaar in Skopje, one of the Balkans’ largest markets. The territory of Skopje has been inhabited since the times of Neolithic and later Bronze ages. The most famous settlements have been … Continue reading Macedonia: Skopje & Mavrovo and Lake Ohrid
Keukenhof is Hollands most famous tulip garden in bloom. It is open for 7 weeks every year and has a variety of more than 7 million bulbs in bloom with a total of 800 varieties of tulips. In 2017, you can visit the tulip gardens of Keukenhof from March 22 until May 21. I went there for a one day trip with my colleague and friend … Continue reading Keukenhof, the Tulip Garden in Holland
Revolutionary Russia, the main character Inna Feldman, who decides to flee Kiev after witnessing the assassination of Prime Minister Stolypin in a theatre, is a Jewish orphan and by that fact almost inappropriate in a society. She is travelling to St Petersburg to a distant relative in search of safety and security. There she faces two men she is torn between. First is a violin-maker who is … Continue reading Midnight in St Petersburg
Set in the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War, Winter in Madrid, by C. J. Sansom is about three British citizens already scarred by their experiences of life and warfare when they come to Madrid. Harry Brett accepts a Special Intelligence Service mission in Franco’s Spain, when the armies of fascism seemed invincible and the Communist revolution was utterly betrayed by the Stalin-Hitler Pact. His old school … Continue reading Winter in Madrid
So much to discover about about Sicilian capital, and so less time… I had a day and a half and made my best of the days! I woke up early in the morning and crashed into the buzz of the Saturday’s streets. The city is such a mixture of Western, Islamic and Byzantine styles which is the reason many of the region’s churches have been … Continue reading Palermo, Sicily
The largest of italian islands, seeking for independence and great place of landscapes – it is a gift of God! My 8 days of discovering northern part of Sicily was just not enough! 🙂 So here is how it started! Prior landing to Palermo Airport, we flew over crater of Etna – 3,323 m high volcano that is still active. Apparently it has long and even mythological history: Aetna was … Continue reading The Landscapes of Sicily ☀
RED RIDING HOOD 