Travel does the heart good
Technically, or administratively, the city belongs to the state of Bavaria but truly there is nothing about Lederhosen, Weißwurst, Bier and Biergartens. Würzburg, the wine capital of Franconia in the northwestern tip of Bavaria, will show you that there’s more to life than beer and sausage. The dialect is different, the choice of sausage is…
Never in my life did I think I would have an honour of traveling to Kosovo 🙂 Booking this trip was a bit of a bullet in my throat but it ended up being totally thrilled with the state/non-state. Depends on which side you are. Travelling from Skopje to Prishtina, our local guide welcomed us…
When you dive into the story of this city, you go medieval. Let me show you where I ended up. This city is the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It has been founded in the 8th century by Charlemagne by building the Cathedral dedicated to Saint Paul. The cathedral stands by the Münstersche Aa river. Upon arrival to the…
Koki the rooster, Lupo the dog, Burlón the cat and Tonto the donkey. And me. Starring in Brother Grimm’s story in Bremen. 🙂 The story tells they formed a band playing guitar, drums, trumpet and saxophone with the aim of winning a contest in the city of Bremen. Let’s start at the beginning. In medias…
My summer Scandinavian road trip finished. From the Trelleborg port, we took the ferry to Rostock. It took 6 hours to float on a Huckleberry Finn passing down the Danish islands like Bornholm. Rostock is a city in northern Germany, located on the coast of the Baltic Sea. It is the largest city in the…
Sweden’s second city gets much less attention than its fancier east-coast alternative (Stockholm), but for me, that’s all the more reason to visit Gothenburg. Yes Patrick, this is how you write it in English. The city was named Göteborg in the city’s charter in 1621. The name was given after the Göta älv, the nearby…
Living in Belgium, I have been saying I need to visit this city for so long. The most I got of this city for all these years was flying from the Charleroi Airport. I knew there was no beauty in this city as it was built in 16th century, as an industrial hub, exploiting people…
My little jubilee, the 50th country visited was Liechtenstein. And boy what a ceremony happened. The Principality of Liechtenstein and the Swiss Confederation were celebrating the 100 years of their common Dounae contract. We were about to cross the bridge that was built over the river Rhine, but we were stopped as the celebration was just…
Krapina is my hometown. Zagorje runs through veins. Kajkavian dialect is spoken out loud by my core. So please, allow me to show you a portion of heaven given to us people from Zagorje to enjoy, nourish, and remain proud. Krapina Krapina was first mentioned in 1193. It has always been a favorite site for…
This is a post of a lovely, walkable city that will charm all wine, gastronomy and history lovers. From Markets to Mustard! This capital of Burgundie is calling you to get all its tastes. And you will not know all of these existed! The province was home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until…
Avignon is a city on the Rhône river in the south of France. It is surrounded by walls of Avignon (French: Les Remparts d’Avignon) – a series of defensive stone walls that were originally built in the 14th century during the Avignon papacy and have been continually rebuilt and repaired throughout their subsequent history. We entered through Porte Saint-Michel. The…
This historical province of southeastern France, extends from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the Italian border to the east; it is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the south. It largely corresponds with the modern administrative region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur . The largest city of the region and its modern-day capital is Marseille. Known for its diverse landscapes, miles of…
It is located on the slope of Monte Caputo, overlooking the very fertile valley called “La Conca d’oro” (the Golden Shell), a production area of orange, olive and almond trees, the produce of which is exported in large quantities. The town, which has a population of approximately 39,000, is about 7 kilometers inland (south) of Palermo, the regional capital.
Monreale forms its own archdiocese and is home to Monreale Cathedral, a historical Norman-Byzantine cathedral, one of several buildings named in a UNESCO World Heritage Site, a group of nine inscribed as Arab-Norman Palermo and the Cathedral of Cefalù and Monreale. Most of the tourists come here for the cathedral. Me, visiting it, it seriously messed up my numbering of cathedrals. I am no longer sure if St John’s Co-Cathedral in Malta is still taking place no.1.
After the occupation of Palermo by the Arabs (the Emirate of Sicily), the Bishop of Palermo was forced to move his seat outside the capital. The role of a cathedral was assigned to a modest little church, Aghia Kiriaki, in a nearby village later known as Monreale. After the Norman conquest in 1072, Christians took back the former Palermo cathedral. Probably the village’s role as a temporary ecclesiastical centre played a part in King William II’s decision to build a cathedral here.
Monreale was a small village for a long time. When the Norman Kings of Sicily chose the area as their hunting resort, more people and commerce came to the area after the royalty built a palace (probably identifiable with the modern town hall).
All that pilgriming – and one gets hungry. If you will ever be in Monreale, I recommend you to eat at Il Giardino Degli Aranci. It is worth every penny, at least if not for the food than for the view.
RED RIDING HOOD 