Tag Archives: old town

Estonia

Estonia

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Estonia finds itself at the edge of the European Union, connecting Europe to Russia, combining the best of the Nordics and the Baltics.

Estonia consists of the mainland, two larger islands (Saaremaa and Hiiumaa), and over 2,300 other islands and islets on the east coast of the Baltic Sea. The area has been inhabited by humans since at least 9,000 BCE. The Estonian mainland was one of the last pagan civilisations in Europe to adopt Christianity (after the crusades in the 13th century).

Once again my early knowledge was limited but the writeups suggested that it was as good as Latvia and Lithuania but with a much prettier Old Town. Given that we loved the old towns of the other two, then this was something to look forward to.

The train to get us here from Riga for some unknown reason was to take us around 12 hours, but the local 5 star bus only took three. So the bus it was. A very calm and relaxed bus ride, with full WIFI all the way. A cab ride (bolt actually) to the hotel and we were ready to explore the Old Town of Tallinn.

Tallinn

Tallinn is the capital city of Estonia, with a population of a little under half a million. The town sits on a bay on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea. The oldest evidence of habitation dates back 5000 years with evidence of hunting and fishing settlements.

As an important port on a major trade route between Novgorod (northern Russia) and western Europe in around 1050 AD, a fortress was built on the hill of Toompea in what is now central Tallinn.

The Church of St. Nicholas is one of the oldest in the city, dedicated to the patron of the fishermen and sailors.

It was partially destroyed in the Soviet bombing of Tallinn in WWII. While the building has been restored, it has not been used for regular religious activities since WWII. It now houses the Niguliste Museum.

Our accommodation was just outside the old town (closer to the port, as that would be our exit) but still a short walk to the centre of things. It retains its walled, cobblestoned Old Town which is now home to cafes and shops. Our entry saw us wander down to the town where we were met with some amazingly thick brick walls that made up the medieval defences.

At this point we entered and were already impressed. We passed through the gates and found ourselves on cobblestoned streets staring at old buildings and church spires. Almost every corner you turned landed you onto a new scene with old buildings, museums, churches, medieval defences, you name it.

The wandering continued until we found ourselves in the heart of old town at the Town Hall Square. This has been a marketplace and the centre of town since the Middle Ages and became the centre of Old Town in the 13th and 14th centuries.T he central part of the square is the gothic Town Hall that was built in the 13th century with its 64m-high tower.

In summer the square is packed with restaurants and at times plays host to medieval festivals, and is also a venue for open-air concerts, and fairs. In winter it becomes a Christmas market, the centrepiece of which is a towering spruce tree. The tradition of celebrating Christmas festivities here dates back to 1441 when the Brotherhood of the Blackheads are thought to have erected the world’s very first Christmas tree.

Alexander Nevsky Cathedral is an Eastern Orthodox Church. It was built in 1894–1900, when the country was part of the former Russian Empire.

The cathedral is the city’s largest cupola church. 

Up at the top of the hill near the cathedral you will find another defensive tower known as Tall Hermann and the old Toompea Castle.

As you keep coming down the hill you run into the Kiek in de Kok .

Meaning peep into the kitchen in old German and Bastion Passages Museum is a 15th-century defensive tower.

It is an artillery tower built in 1475 and is 38 m tall, has walls 4 m thick and still has Cannon balls dating back to 1577 embedded in its walls.

And as a 55 year old man I really should be more mature than to still find the name amusing.

Coming down the hill from the Kiek in de Kok you find yourself entering Freedom Square, at the southern end of Old Town. Freedom Square holds a Victory Column (2009) commemorating the Estonian War of Independence 1918–1920. The square also abuts St. John’s Church (built 1862–67).

And all around the outside of the Old Town is patches of the old city walls and the renovated gates that take you in and out.

We really enjoyed our time in Estonia, and in fact all three of the Baltic nations. The food has been good, and with one exception so have the beverages. Temperatures in February are terrible but by the time summer rolls around you are pulling low to mid 20’s with long days, so there is plenty of time to explore.

Our August foray into the three Baltic nations was pretty much spot on. It is technically the high season with the most tourists, but the volume of tourists coming here is way less than you will get in places like France or Italy. So even at peak times, the place is really manageable.

Latvia

Latvia

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Latvia is one of the three Baltic states (with Estonia and Lithuania). It borders Russia (east), and Belarus (southeast) and shares a maritime border with Sweden (west).

Once again this is a nation that we both had little knowledge of before entering. Like many of the nations in and around eastern Europe, they have been at the mercy of the big nation states around them (notably Russia and Germany). It finally got its independence at the end of WWI but was forcibly subsumed into the Soviet Union at the beginning of WWII. It was invaded by Germany in 1941 and retaken by Russia in 1944.

The Singing Revolution

At the end of the Cold War the three Soviet-occupied Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania sought and ultimately peacefully won their independence. It manifested in a series of events between 1987 and 1991 where widespread dissatisfaction with the Soviet system provoked mass demonstrations (peacefully singing). The Latvian official independence occurred on 21 August 1991.

The area that is now Latvia has a history dating back to 3000 years BC. One of the last corners of Europe to join Christendom, Latvians are still very much pagans at heart. They worship nature by jumping over bonfires at Midsummer Eve, and many surnames are about birds, animals or trees. Today with a population of just under 2 million,

Riga

Our time throughout the Baltics was short, but the long summer days (20 hours of daylight) gave us more than enough time to look around and get our tourist on. As with most of the European older towns and cities, most of the old touristy stuff is in the central area, or Old Town area of the city. The rest of the place is just like any other modern city and the surrounding suburbs. Interesting enough, but not really blog worthy or anything different.

Our first port of call, having got off the train was to hit the Riga Central Markets. The markets are set up in a series of five WWI Zeppelin aircraft hangars. It covers a vast floor space and is Europe’s largest market. There are more than 3,000 vendors that sell an impressive range of fresh local produce. The stalls are divided neatly into each hangar with meat, fish, dairy, and vegetables all found separately.

We had limited time on day one so did a quick scoot through vowing to come back tomorrow for our lunch. This vow was based upon seeing some of the most amazing deli meats and cheeses that can be found. Add to this some really delicious looking other random items and how could you not want to go back and gorge yourself.

As it turned out this was a mistake as the next day was Monday and the food court bit was closed. There was still much of the fresh fruit and produce, and being berry season the quantity, quality and price of the berries put our measly offerings back home to shame.

So our first evenings walk was aiming for the Freedom Monument.

It is a 42 meter tall monument honouring the soldiers killed during the Latvian War of Independence (1918–1920).

It is considered a symbol of the freedom, independence, and sovereignty of Latvia.

But to get there we found ourselves walking through the abundance of green space that is throughout Riga. For an old city it really is fantastically well laid out with a ton of green areas for the people to enjoy. Throw in the usual mix of old buildings and you immediately get a great feel about the place.

The next morning it was up and into it. So we headed down to the markets, only to be disappointed. We checked out where we would be leaving the next day (bus station) and made out way into old town once again to do the tourist thing.

The House of the Blackheads was originally built in 1334 as a warehouse, meeting and celebration place for merchants.

During the 15th century it was used by the Brotherhood of Blackheads, a guild for unmarried merchants, shipowners and foreigners in Riga.

Over the years, many citizens of Riga became interested in the property, and carried out different works to expand and reform it, following a purely Gothic style. However, the old House of the Blackheads was completely destroyed during World War II.

The National Opera and Ballet was a nice enough building in the midst of the gardens and green spaces.

St. Peter’s Church is the highest church in Riga and a significant Gothic-style 13th-century architectural monument.

The tower is more than 130 meters tall and was completed at the end of the 15th century.

Since then it has been destroyed and rebuilt several times. In 1666 it collapsed, in 1721, lightning struck the tower and it burned down and during WWII the church and tower burned down.

The National Library of Latvia sits on the other side of the river (the Daugava) from Old Town. The architecture is seriously cool.

The Old Town has an interesting architecture mix and most of the buildings have the status of cultural monuments. Almost everywhere you look in the old town area are some seriously nice buildings. It is really clean and well maintained and the people are happy, friendly and accommodating.

The streets and squares of Old Riga open up to countless restaurants, cafes and bars. Having come from Prague and Poland and heading north we are noticing a considerable increase in the pricing as we get closer to Scandinavia.

With almost 500 km of coast, Latvia has tons of beaches added to this over half its territory is covered by forest. As an interesting side note, it was Latvian-born tailor Jacob Davis who in 1871 in Reno, Nevada, invented denim as a tough material for trousers. He then went into partnership with Levi Strauss and made a fortune.

Latvian Beer

I am very pleased to report that the Latvian beers were very nice indeed. The price is increasing, but still not quite up to Australian pricing, but the quality of brew is much better. And much like the European standard, each ale earns its own glass,

Both Latvia and Lithuania have been lovely. Our next port of call will be to ride the bus up to Estonia where, if you believe the tourist blurb, the old town is even better again. But so far, if you are looking for a great European summer holiday, you cant really go past spending the month of August travelling in and about the three Baltic nations.

Portugal

Portugal

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Portugal is the westernmost country of continental Europe and includes the island groups of the Azores and Madeira (both autonomous regions in the north Atlantic Ocean.

It has existed as a country since the 12th century (originally as a monarchy) but has evidence of civilisation dating back beyond 10,000BC. The nation was integral in the discovery and exploration of Africa and South America.

The Portuguese empire differed from the Spanish empire because the Spanish conquered large areas of land while the Portuguese preferred to control only major trading ports. Throughout the 15th century, Portuguese explorers sailed the coast of Africa, establishing trading posts for commodities, ranging from gold to slavery.

The Portuguese empire created colonies in Africa including Angola, Mozambique, Guinea. Added to this was the islands of the Azores, Madeira, Cape Verde Islands (off the coast of Mauritania-Senegal), and Sao Tome and Principe (islands in the Gulf of Guinea). Then there were the major ports of Cochin, Goa (in India), Colombo (Sri Lanka), Macao (China) and Nagasaki (Japan) in East Asia and of course Brazil.

Lisbon

OK, so we have been to Europe about 6+ times now and this was our first foray into Portugal. How stupid are we? This place is fantastic. We got off the plane and grabbed (a really cheap) Uber to our hotel. The driver was the nicest and most helpful person we had ever met, to the point where we both commented on it. Until the next day when we got our next Uber to the Monastery when the same thing happened, and then again on the way back.

These people are just super friendly and want to ensure that everyone who visits enjoys their time. Add to this that the pricing is more than reasonable for everything and the sights have a nice mix of natural beauty and old world charm how can you go wrong here.

We were not really blessed with the weather here, it rained for two and a half of our three days here. We got the odd glimpses of sunshine (particularly on day one) and in between there were some some pretty soggy days. Our day two was on and off sunny with the skies changing every 10 minutes or so until it finally settled in.

Our hotel was perched high on the hilltop in oldtown, which sadly had been built on the side of a damn mountain. As beautiful as the views were, it meant that everywhere we went was either up, or down, a ridiculously steep hill.

Finding your way around the old town could not be simpler, just follow the tram tracks. Be sure not to be run over by cars, trams, tuk tuks, bicycles, vans etc, that are all competing for the narrow road, but just follow along and you will pass pretty much everything that there is to see.

The tram goes past almost all of the tourist spots in the old town and centres around the main square, Praca do Comercio. This will include the churches, palace, castle, bars, cafes and restaurants. As long as you can see the tracks, you will see the bits.

Jammed in the middle of the tracks you will find Sé de Lisbon. This cathedral started being built in 1147 and ended in the first decades of the 13th century.

The tram tracks quite literally split and run either side of the triangular street entrance.

Castelo de S. Jorge Stands on Lisbon’s highest hill and offers panoramic views of the city. The fort dates back to Moorish times (11th century), and has served as military barracks and royal chambers. Currently, it functions as a national monument, museum and archaeological site, with fantastic views and great gardens. And if this is off season, I hate to see the lines in peak times.

Lisbon’s central park is named Edward VII Park taking up 26 hectares in the middle of town. It was named as a tribute to the British Monarch.

Mosteiro dos Jeronimos (Jerónimos or Hieronymites Monastery) was originally donated to the Order of the Friars of St. Jerome. Construction began in near the launch point of Vasco da Gama’s first journey. Its construction lasted for a hundred years and was funded by a tax on the profits of the yearly Portuguese India Armadas. The day of our visit the weather kept coming and going, alternating between blue skies and torrential downpours.

To say this place is impressive is a massive understatement. Everywhere you look is a different aspect of the place and the intricately carved windows and openings act to frame the next amazing sight.

Portuguese Custard Tarts (Pasteis de nata)

Lets not be silly we have all eaten these. Whether it is the cheap boxed up ones in Costco, or the ones after a Chinese Yum Cha (bearing in mind that Shanghai was one of the Portuguese territories), or just from some dodgy bakery that does them. And they are always good, even the shitty ones are great, with their signature flaky crust and sweet custard filling they are world-famous, and incredibly delicious.

But now we are at their point of origin, and sadly, all others pale by comparison to the original version. It was created by monks at the Jerónimos Monastery and has certified origin. The original recipe is called Pastel de Belém and we found our way to Pasteis de Belem which is right next to the monastery and is recognised as their true home. And in case you were wondering, they were good.

Literally across the road from the Monastery is a park and the Discoveries Monument which serves as a monument to Portugal’s Age of Discovery on both land and sea.

The monument was reconstructed in 1960 to mark 500 years since the death of the Infante Dom Henrique (Henry the Navigator).

A few hundred meters down the bank of the Tagus River you find yourself at Torre de Belém. This is a 16th-century tower that is a mix between a medieval keep tower and a modern bastion. It was built to guard the river entrance into Lisbon’s harbour.

That evening we found our way down to Praca do Comercio which is one of the biggest squares in Europe, this stylish area in downtown Lisbon often displays beautiful works of art and sculpture and is a great place for a leisurely stroll.

The Aqueduto das Águas was built in the 18th century to supply water to the town. Its construction was funded by special levies on meat, olive oil and wine. It stretches 14 kilometres and can now be visited as a tourist attraction.

The blurb for the Museu Nacional do Azulejo said that it was a must-see for people interested in the history and design of ceramic tiles. Now lets be serious here, that is not a title that I have particularly aspired to. But being in Lisbon, you do get a fair old appreciation of the ceramic tile as almost every building is finished (on the outside) with them. Looking at the photos of the museum, if it is your thing, then this specialty museum does house an impressive collection of decorative tiles dating from the 15th century to now.

The Coaches Museum is one of Lisbon’s most visited attractions, and is a collection of fairytale type carriages that have been used by the royalty and nobility of Europe over the centuries. While most European royal carriages were destroyed over time (especially in Paris after the French Revolution), in Portugal they were preserved. Most of them date to the 17th to 19th centuries, but the oldest example dates back to the late 1500s.

Brazilian BBQ – Portuguese Style

On our third Uber ride, our driver asked us if we liked seafood, which of course we do. He then went on to tell us that in Portugal, they do a similar thing to the Brazilian BBQ but instead of using meat, they do it with seafood. He told us the best place in town and the price came out to about 450 Aussie per head. Well if that is not a done deal then I don’t know what is.

So we headed down to the main square, took our happy snaps of the square and then headed to a little wine bar (as we were early for our reservation. A funky little place called shoes and booze. We had a drink and watched the waitress just dancing around having a great time enjoying her work. When we ordered the second round she asked Jill if she just wanted the bottle as it was 4.50 for a glass or 12 Euros for the whole bottle. The chat continued and we got invited to a private party back at the bar (with live music) the next evening.

Anyway back to the seafood, we made it to the restaurant and ordered the all-you-can-eat thing and it arrived with some interesting fare. The prawns, mussels, crabs and clams were all good and even the crab head mousse was good, but it was the whelks and barnacles that threw us a little. We had to seek guidance on just what part and how to eat the barnacles.

The construction of the Christ the King monument was approved on 20 April 1940, as a plea to God to release Portugal from entering WWII.

The monument consists of a 82 meter pedestal with a 28 meter image of Christ.

Perched on the opposite side of the river the figure of Christ has its arms extended out facing the city of Lisbon, as if to embrace the city.

Long story short, apart from the weather, Lisbon was fantastic and we will need to come back as there is so much more to explore and do. It became very clear that the time that we had allotted was insufficient for the amount to see and do. This was further hampered by the rain that kept us hiding more than exploring.

The prices are more than reasonable and the friendliness of the people was just amazing. And I think that both Jill and I can fit another egg tart or two in, and for the record, even the shitty ones remain good. And there is so much more that missed out on seeing.

Colombia

Colombia

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Colombia has been on my bucket list for a very long time now.

The country is more than double the size of France with almost 50 million people living here.

And the government has gone a long way to throw off the mantle of its narco-terrorism roots.

The nation has about 1,600 km of coastline to the north onto the Caribbean Sea, and a further 1,300 km of coast to the west onto the Pacific Ocean. The northern border is Panama, which divides the two bodies of water using the infamous Panama Canal. Venezuela and Brazil sit to the east and Peru and Ecuador to the south.

Cartagena

Our entry was a couple of days into the port city of Cartagena, on the Caribbean coast. Oh my god I love this place.

Before I even get into the rant about how great this place is, let’s take a moment to explain the introduction that you get to the town when you get off a cruise ship. As you walk through the port the first thing that you are met with is a FREE aviary and tourist park. This is just there. There are trinket shops, cafes and restaurants right here at the entry point. Within this, the first thing that you see is a grassed area with about 20-50 flamingos in it. Around them are about 10 parrots, some macaws, various waterfowl and the odd tree rat.

Quite literally, if you went no further than this then you would have had a great day out in Cartagena. But there is more. Keep walking around the corner and you come across the ubiquitous “I Love” sign coupled with about another 50 macaws of varying colours. A bit further I got to see my first ever live toucan. From here there were some tortoises and I even ran across a giant anteater.

And all of this for free before you even leave the port, how good is this?

Getting out of the port, we were told it would cost us $20 each in a cab to get to the tourist area. As we walked out we found a dude with a minibus who offered us a 4 hour tour of the sights (including return) for the same price as a one way cab. So off we went.

Cartagena is a major city of about a million people, with a fantastic mix of modern city and down by the ocean is the historic walled Old Town.

The first stop was the seaside suburb of Manga. This is a leafy residential neighbourhood with a park, seafront promenade and nice views of the new city skyline across the bay.

The next stop was the old city walls and some of the fortifications of Old Town.

This olden section of town was founded in the 16th century and now has the historic squares, cobblestoned streets, colourful colonial buildings, and of course all of the tourist hustle and bustle that you would expect. Fair warning…the touts here can be pretty full on so be prepared for a total assault on the senses.

The main entrance to the old town is through the Puerta del Reloj. This is the original and historic main gate to the centre of the fortified city, Cartagena de Indias.

As usual for us, it was covered in scaffolding.

OK…before I step you through the gates into old town, lets talk about the coolest thing in this entire city. Right in the heart of Cartagena city is a small unassuming park surrounded by yellow walls. It is officially called Parque del Centenario and on first glimpses you would probably just walk straight past. But you would have seriously missed out as within the park there were 7 sloths (as of November 2023) living in the trees in and around the park.

In addition to the Sloths, there are also tamarin monkeys, red squirrels and several iguanas in the park. The monkeys are tree rats that annoy you and carry diseases (but the tourists still try and hand feed them) while the Iguanas are usually found lounging on the grass soaking up the sunlight.

The park is located between the squares Plaza de Independencia and Plaza de los Coches. Both of these were in full Christmas decoration phase when we were there. The place just feels right, from happy vendors, beautiful streets great little restaurants the place is welcoming. Admittedly the touts can get a bit much after a while but for the most part they are friendly and just trying to earn a living.

Once you step through the gates you are in full tourist mode (in case you had not already noticed by all of the touts etc).

The Cathedral of Cartagena de Indias was built in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. It is in the heart of Old Town and is dedicated to Saint Catherine of Alexandria. The original structure of the cathedral has been preserved today almost unchanged.

Cartagena is just a lovely city. The care and pride shown in the homes, the parks and the neighbourhoods give the place a really great feel. As our ship stayed here overnight we learned a trick that we should have done. Some people got off the boat and paid for a night’s accommodation (under $100) in the heart of the action. This will be us for sure, next time we come.

Within the walls of the old city is the suburb or area of Getsemani this is the bohemian-style neighbourhood where everyone is welcome. Poor or wealthy, tourist or local? Back in the day, it was the neighbourhood for prostitution, drug, and violence. But today it is the home to awesome street art, food, bars and music.

The street art in this part of town is truly something to behold. What was once probably a pretty sketchy to walk through is now an absolute delight. At no point did we feel nervous or concerned for our safety, even amid the mad tourist throngs.

As part of our tour on day one we hit the usual haunts but also had a couple of entries into some museums around town. The first was an art gallery that focussed on the faces of the pandemic and the losses that were felt in Colombia. The next was the local cultural museum.

The last was the Emerald Museum. Colombia is one of the world’s largest producers of emeralds (supplying about 90% of the world’s supply), and as such they are on sale everywhere. And we went through the museum (and shop) that told us all about this.

We were paired at dinner with a Swedish couple (Patrick and Anna) who were fantastic. So on our second day in Cartagena, we decided to head out together to explore the various areas. They took us to the flash cocktail bars and we took them to the dodgy neighbourhoods. They were such good company that we also spent the next day in Aruba with them kicking back by the beaches.

Castillo de San Felipe de Barajas is the castle/fortress that was built on the Hill of San Lázaro in 1536. It was placed in a strategic location where it could dominate approaches by both land and sea. It was built by the Spanish using African slave labour and was involved in several battles between the late 17th to early 19th centuries between the European powers.

We did not get there this time around but we are due to return to Cartagena in about 6 weeks time for a second stint. We will update these photos and give a much better viewing soon.

Once you get a bit further afield there are other little gems that look they should also be added to the things to see list. Some of these include the islands.

Isla de Barú, with white-sand beaches and palm trees.

Isla del Rosario, known for their coral reefs.

Tayrona National Park has long stretches of beaches lined with coconut palms and a dense rainforest with lots of day hikes.

The Lost City (La Ciudad Perdida) was built around 800 CE and contains 169 terraces carved into the mountains, as well as a network of tiled roads and small plazas. The site is older than Machu Picchu!

The last thing that I have to mention about Cartagena is the absolute idiocy of the American tourists. They (almost without exception) all hated it. Clearly Colombia’s troubled past (cartels, paramilitaries, poverty, and petty crime) has cast a long shadow that for many will not go away and danger lurks around every corner.

They felt unsafe and one comment was that they were walking around in groups of 10 or more so that they didn’t get kidnapped. For us, this was truly one of the safest places we have ever been to. I am not sure exactly what they thought they would be ransomed for (maybe their vintage chewed gum collection from high school).

We loved the place and cannot wait to come back (which thankfully we will be fairly soon).

Caribbean

Martinique

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Martinique is an overseas territorial island of France. It is part of the Lesser Antilles and is 35km from Dominica, 26km to Saint Lucia and about 75km to Guadeloupe.

Martinique is about 80 km long and 35 km at the widest part. This makes it one of the smallest of the French overseas territories, but it has one of the highest population densities. The climate is remarkably constant with the average temperature being about 26° with minimums of 20–22 and maximums up to 34 °.

According to the blurb the original population disappeared after Europeans arrived, as a result of either disease or being wiped out by the invading French. In 1658 there were 5000 French settlers on the island. From here a lot of slaves were brought from Africa which added a new ethnic component. Today people of mixed European and African ancestry account for more than 90% of the population.

Fort-de-France

Fort de France is the main city of the overseas territory and was our landing point on the island. Interestingly as Martinique is only a territory, it does not officially have a capital. While the city lacks the palm trees and beaches of the rest of the island it does have the restaurants, shops, bars, and places showcasing the island’s history. Many of these venues sit in colonial-era buildings.

Fort Saint Louis was built to protect the city against enemy attacks. The fort was soon destroyed, and rebuilt in 1669 under Louis XIV as Fort Royal. It changed to Fort-de-France sometime in the 19th century and is the enduring name of the fort and the surrounding town.

St. Louis Cathedral is the main church in town and is probably the highlight of a town with not that much going for it.

Old town hall is one of the more impressive buildings in a town that is broadly underwhelming.

The covered market was the next on the trek through town. It provided the mix between a normal fruit and veggie market, some trinkets and souvenirs and some traditional food stalls. But in essence, it was a tin shed with some veggies in it. I don’t mean to sound down on Martinique, there really was nothing wrong with it at all. The people were friendly, the prices were good, there just was not too much to see or do.

Jardin de Balata is the local botanic gardens that is a short cab ride from town, if you are of a mind to do the hike be warned it is a fair walk and it is all uphill.

There is a zoo here, we didn’t go to it, but the promo picture shows this little critter. I have no idea what it is, but it looks pretty interesting.

Anyway, that is something else you could have done.

If you had more time in Martinique the recommendations are to stop and visit some of the smaller towns. The top on this list is Les Anses d’Arlet. The area is mostly jungle-covered mountains but there are also 3 coves for the nature lovers.

Other towns suggested were Big Cove (Grande Anse) and Arlet Cove (Anses d’Arlet) in both have restaurants and accommodation right on the sandy beach while Small Cove (Petite Anse) has a rocky shoreline.

Romania

Romania

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Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria (south), Ukraine (north), Hungary (west), Serbia (southwest), Moldova (east), and the Black Sea (southeast).

Romania is particularly known for the forested region of Transylvania, long associated with the Dracula legend. It is ringed by the Carpathian Mountains and has many well preserved medieval towns and fortified churches and castles.

Human remains found in Romania have been dated back to 40,000 years ago, making them the oldest known homo sapiens in Europe.

Castle Dracula

We did not get near this one, but I thought that I should at least mention it and provide a few stolen tourist brochure shots. More rightly known as Bran Castle it was built in 1377 and attracts over 700,000 visitors a year.

Bram Stoker’s character, Dracula, is a Transylvanian Count with a castle located high above a valley perched on a rock with a flowing river below in the Principality of Transylvania.

Bran Castle is the only castle in all of Transylvania that fits Bram Stoker’s description.

The Bram castle website offers the opportunity to get in touch with the creatures of the night through an exhibition entitled ‘A history of dreads in Transylvania’. This provides a history of local myths and fears (their symbols and significance) and the way they were reflected in the historiography of the 15th century. And how they were then discovered and used by Bram Stoker in the 19th century for the creation of Count Dracula.

Bucharest

My relationship with Bucharest is a mixed one. I have both loved and hated it at the same time. My first introduction was magnificent, we hopped off the plane and straight onto a local transfer bus that delivered us (close enough) to our hotel – seamless. Our hotel was one of the best we had seen thus far and was clean and efficient. The room was luxurious with a fully functioning air conditioning unit (it was about 37 degrees) which pleased me nicely.

Bucharest is a big capital city (2.2 million), and it doesn’t really have much to make it stand out apart from the main two or three tourist attractions. While certain aspects of the place are stunning and photogenic, the majority are in a terrible state of disrepair. Billions have been spent on the presidential palace and constitution square etc. but the rest of the place is being left to crumble down upon itself.

Having relaxed and cooled off, we had to find our way to the Bucharest Nord train station to pick up our physical tickets (to Moldova) for the next evening. On the map, it seemed like a simple enough task but this is where the wheels started to fall off.

There are two stations at the Nord, one is for the longer trains while another is for the local trains. We landed at the local one one first of all and it was a dump. Having been redirected to the main one (about 800m away) we walked along the urine soaked, rusting, vandalised and generally dilapidated path that at one time connected the two stations together. Travellators had been smashed and destroyed and at some point had became shelter to the homeless population leaving a very overt stench of urine. These have now been barred off to keep the homeless out.

We eventually got to the main station and after some consternation was able to locate and find our tickets (mainly due to the magnificent website the man in seat 61).

This is actually worth mentioning (www.seat61.com) is a privately run website by a guy called Mark Smith who started it as a hobby.

If you are ever looking to get on a train you need to check this website out. It gives you answers virtually any question that you may have almost everywhere in the world.

Having gotten our tickets (and sweltered in the heat) we (at considerable urging from me) opted to catch the Metro to Old Town. Disappointment number two. Old town Bucharest is almost entirely dilapidated or under repair. The buildings are falling down or are covered in scaffolding (at least they are trying to bring it back to its former glory). Those that are open are nightclubs, strip clubs, brothels, rub-and-tugs and really loud (overpriced) lager-lout bars.

Stavropoleos Monastery is a monastery for nuns and was about the only thing in Old Town still worth looking at.

The building which dates back nearly 300 years has been heavily affected by earthquakes. Only the church still stands from its original state. 

Feeling very disillusioned, we caught the bus back to our hotel and had a nice meal in pleasant surroundings… tomorrow would be another day.

Its main draw is the Palace of Parliament is the heaviest building in the world coming in at just over 4 billion kilograms. This place is huge it is 84m tall with a floor area of 365,000 sqm. It was ordered by Nicolae Ceausescu the president of communist Romania and took 13 years to build. Uranus Hill was levelled, and the Uranus-Izvor neighbourhood was destroyed so the building could be erected. It was finished in 1997.

We came at it from the side (through the park) and were impressed by what we saw, but once you make your way around to the front things go up another level. The palace houses the two branches of the Parliament of Romania, three museums (contemporary art, communist totalitarianism and palace) and an international conference centre. The building has eight underground levels, the deepest housing a nuclear bunker, linked to main state institutions by 20 km (12.4 mi) of tunnels. From the palace, you look out onto Constitution Square.

Bulevardul Unirii (Union Boulevard) the Palace and Constitution Square were designed at the same time as an architectural unit.

It connects the Palace with  Alba Iulia Square (Piața Alba Iulia), running through Union Square.

The Romanian Athenaeum is the main concert hall in town and has been since it opened back in 1888. As we arrived almost the entire symphony orchestra was chain smoking at the side door in full tuxedos, not sure what was playing that day, but they were clearly on a break.

Kretzulescu Church is an Eastern Orthodox Church located in one of the corners of Revolution Square. 

Arcul de Triumf is a triumphal arch located in the northern part of Bucharest, Romania, on the Kiseleff Road. It was originally hurriedly built of wood in 1878 so that the victorious troops could march under it after Romania gained its independence. The current version was built in 1921–22, renovated in 1935–36, and renovated again starting in 2014. And of course, it is now the home to Instagrammers (who apparently now bring their own chairs with them for their photoshoots).

Having done the long tourist hike, we found ourselves back in the Old Town area again and thought we would give it one more try. Sadly, the CEC Palace, George Enescu Museum, peoples Salvation Cathedral, Coral Jewish Temple and many of the things we came to see were covered in scaffolding and were unable to be seen. The central part still sucked, but if you hunt hard on the fringes you can get glimpses of what it may once have looked like and hopefully what it may once again be.

There isn’t a lot of nature in Bucharest outside a few parks. It is a major city, and like most major cities it doesn’t have tons and tons of green space. However, Romania more broadly is known for its incredible scenery and nature. It is a bit of a shame that you don’t get a taste of that in Bucharest.

Other things that we missed but would like to come back and see include the Transfagarasan Highway this 80+ kilometer highway runs from Wallachia to Transylvania.

Also, the Statue of King Decebalus which is carved into the rock as you sail through the Iron Gates on the Danube River.

This 141-foot-high face of Decebalus honors this last king, who fought for the country’s independence against the Roman emperors Domitian and Trajan.

And beyond Brand Castle there are another 309 castles dotted throughout Romania that would be nice to see. They were mostly created between the 14th and 18th centuries and have served as fortresses for armies to defend the country against its many intruders.

Leaving Bucharest we once again headed to the Bucharest Nord train station for our overnight train to Moldova. Having learned our lesson we went straight to the main entrance and managed to avoid the urine soaked mess that we were met with on the first day.

A few days later, we found ourselves back in Romania on our way back from Moldova. Nothing really to report other than the highway robbery that was taking place at the train station and airport. Coffee usually ran to $2 but at the railway station it was $7 and at the airport, it was just over $10. We were going to get some food but even the Hungry Jacks at Bucharest airport was charging $25 Aussie for a small whopper meal. We chose to go without.

As I said up front, my relationship with Bucharest is a mixed one. The bad here is very bad and the normal is only barely passable. But the good is exceptional. On the whole, it was ok and eventually, it probably won me over. I would however like to come back to Romania to see some of the sights that exist a little further outside the capital.

Serbia

Serbia

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Serbia is a landlocked country in the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hungary (north), Romania (northeast), Bulgaria (southeast), North Macedonia (south), Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina (west), and Montenegro (southwest), and Kosovo.

Serbia has about 6.6 million people.

Having loved our (240 km and 8 hour) bus ride into Bosnia and Herzegovina we decided to fly out for a 40 minute puddle jump into Serbia, more specifically Belgrade.

Belgrade

Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the junction of the Sava and Danube rivers with a population of around 1.6 million. Belgrade is one of the oldest continually inhabited cities in the world with the first dated records of habitation going back to the the 3rd century BC.

Our accommodation saw us perched between the old and new town directly opposite the old main railway station and associated park.

The park is amazing with an incredibly impressive monument to Stefan Nemanja (over 20m high).

He was a medieval Serbian nobleman who together with his son Sava (who the big church is named after) are considered the fathers of the Serbian Orthodox Church).

As it was early enough we dropped off our gear and headed out on a walk to see the sights. We chose to hit the ones that were away from old town, where we would be spending most of our time the following day. So we turned the corner from our hotel and started our way up the hill aiming towards St Sava Temple.

But within two blocks we had already landed upon the railway museum, which was incredibly impressive in its own right.

Half a block up and across the street we came upon the Government of the Republic of Serbia building.

This was built in the 1920s and was the first public building built in Belgrade for the purposes of the public administration of the newly formed Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes.

Next came the Department of Defence, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Belgrade city museum, public health department. And they were all housed in amazing soviet era architecturally designed buildings that were incredibly impressive.

Anyway, we did eventually make it to St Sava Temple which again, blew our socks off. The church is dedicated to Saint Sava (son of the dude with the big statue opposite our hotel), the founder of the Serbian Orthodox Church and an important figure in medieval Serbia. It was built on the location of St. Sava’s grave.

The next morning we were up and off to the 160 acre Belgrade Fortress. For many centuries the entire town existed within the walls of the fortress. It sits at the meeting of the Sava and Danube rivers.

As with all of Europe, the warring tribes saw this piece of land change hands many times over the millennia. The romans had their turn and according to wiki “in the period between 378 AD and 441 the Roman camp was repeatedly destroyed in the invasions by the Goths and the Huns. Legend says that Attila’s grave lies at the confluence of the Sava and the Danube (under the fortress)”. In the following centuries the fortress suffered continuous destruction under the Avar sieges. 

The name Belgrade was first mentioned in AD 878 by Bulgarians. The fortress kept changing its master as Bulgaria had it then the Byzantines and then Bulgaria again, in the 11th century it was given to the new Serbian state as a wedding gift. In the 15th century it was conquered by the Turks (with short periods of Austrian and Serbian occupation), but it remained under Ottoman Empire rule until 1867, when the Turks withdrew from Belgrade and Serbia. 

From the fortress you got a fair view of the Gardoš Tower or Millennium Tower.

It was built and opened in 1896 to celebrate a thousand years of Hungarian settlement in the region.

Within the walls is St Petka’s Chapel which was built in 1417 and was allegedly erected over a sacred spring. At one time it held the holy relics of St Petka. With all of the destruction of the fortress over the years, the exact location of this chapel is not known so a replacement was built on the grounds in the 1930s.

The amazing thing for us was that to visit and walk through the fortress and associated grounds was 100% free.

There was one odd children’s playground area with dinosaurs in it that had a small fee.

But as we did not want to play on the playground, we avoided that cost.

From the fortress, you spill out into the remainder of old town and the main tourist and shopping district of Belgrade. This part of town is full of funky old buildings with tons of character.

As you wander through you come upon the Cathedral Church of St. Michael the Archangel or simply St Michael’s Cathedral. This is a Serbian Orthodox church in the centre of the old part of Belgrade. It was built around 1840, on the site of an older church dedicated to Archangel Michael.

The Historical Museum of Serbia is currently in this building but it has been granted the building opposite our hotel (the old main railway station) as its permanent home and will be moving soon.

The Stari Dvor or old palace was the royal residence of the Obrenović dynasty (1800’s).

Today it houses the City Assembly of Belgrade. 

Novi Dvor or new palace was was a royal residence of the Karađorđević dynasty (late 1700 & 1800’s)

Today it is the seat of the President of Serbia. 

House of the National Assembly was built in 1936 and has served as the seat of parliament for the Parliaments of Yugoslavia, Serbia and Montenegro and since 2006, Serbia.

For the most part, Serbia has been great. The food is good (if not exactly heart smart), the prices are reasonable, the beer is well-priced, and there is plenty to see and do (mostly without charge). I would certainly not hesitate in coming back.

The Golubac Fortress is somewhere that looked amazing but sadly (at about 120km from Belgrade) we could not get to. It was a medieval (fortified) town on the Danube 4 km downstream from the current town of Golubac. The fortress was built during the 14th century and has ten towers. Most of these started square but evolved to get many-sided reinforcements to accommodate modern firearms.

Croatia

Zagreb

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Zagreb is the cultural, scientific, economic, political and administrative centre of the Republic of Croatia. Zagreb (with a population of just over 800,000), contains almost a quarter of the entire Croatian population. Over the centuries, the city has been inhabited by people from all over Europe.

It is flat and is relatively small compared to other European capitals so walking around is not too taxing.

There are lots of parks and even forests within the city limits.

For us simple tourists it is beautifully laid out in a U shape meaning if you go up one major park, across a bit and back down the other park you have pretty much ticked all the big tourist boxes.

The strict town planning scheme outlined that all streets must be straight and of the same width, and all buildings of the same type and height. The town itself is lovely, but it is a terrible state of disrepair. The main tourist walks are ok but stray just a little off the path and the neglect and graffiti become painfully evident. And they have seriously taken their toll on the city. While it is clear that attempts are being made to pull this back (scaffolding and renovations abound) for now the city looks quite derelict.

For us the obvious place to start our tour of the town was at the top end of the U which was the central railway station. An impressive building (but a rubbish train station) , directly opposite is a huge statue of Kralj Tomislav (former prince and believed ruler dating around the 9th century) on a horse and a park leading towards the Art Pavilion.

Crossing the road from the the Art Pavillion you enter the Park Josipa Jurja Strossmayera (a Croatian bishop, theologian, politician, and founder of central Croatian scientific and cultural institutions). The park is another lovely green space making up the straight part of the U but in reality is a park full of old guy statues.

Next on the U is Park Zrinjevac another green space with fountains and a meteorological column at the end that was erected in 1884.

Popping out of here you find yourself in Ban Jelacic Square. This is the main square of Zagreb and is the starting point for exploring the downtown area. The square is huge, with lovely buildings surrounding it on all four sides. The majority of buildings date back to the 19th century and feature different architectural styles: from post-modernism, Art Nouveau, and Biedermeier.

In the square is yet another very impressive statue of a dude on a horse (Count Josip Jelacic – an important Croatian politician of the 19th century). There is a very impressive copper diorama showing the old town area, also a local (Dolac) market and the usual array of retail shops and transport.

Just around the corner is the main church in town (Cathedral of the Assumption of the Blessed virgin Mary) which has been under permanent renovations for decades. In fact there is not one photo of it in its original form (without scaffolding) for many years. I found one on google images but cannot tell how long ago it looked this way. Our photos are what most people get to see.

Across the U and you find yourself at the bottom of the Lotrščak Tower and the the Grič cannon which fires every day exactly at noon, and has done for over 100 years. The tower was part of the southern gate and town defences against the Turks, built in 1266. The Zagreb Funicular is the shortest funicular in the world but also the oldest and first means of public transportation in Zagreb.

Once up the top you find yourself among a bunch of impressive buildings, museums and galleries along with the impressively roofed St. Marc Church.

Finishing off the bottom of the U you come across the Stone gate (Kamenita Vrata), a very cool horse and dragon statue and into the usual retail and tourist offerings that cannot be avoided.

With all of that done all that is left is to walk the straight part of the other side of the U. The first thing you hit is the Hrvatsko narodno kazalište (Croatian National Theatre), a tribute to Marko Marulić ( the 14th century father of Croatian literature). And of course, lots of green space along the way and finally finishing at the botanical garden.

According to the blurb, the key bits of upper town are the tucked away courtyards within the buildings. Twice a year celebrations (Secrets of Grič, and Dvorišta) open the courtyards to reveal their secrets.

Oh and as is our way, we might have taken the opportunity to sample some of the local beers. They do tend to be very tasty and along the Czech lines however, they are much more gassy which left us feeling similarly.

Horse Statues

On doing the research for this and other cities I came across the following blurb about people who are represented in statues on horses. The position of the horse indicates how the figure died in real life. If the horse has one leg raised it is meant to mean that the person died of wounds from the battlefield. If the horse had its both legs raised, the person died in combat. Lastly, if the horse had all four legs on the ground, the person died of natural causes. 

Slovakia

Slovakia

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Slovakia is yet another landlocked country in central Europe, with a population of over 5.4 million.

It is bordered by Poland (north), Ukraine (east), Hungary (south), Austria (southwest), and the Czech Republic (northwest). The country is mostly mountainous (Carpathian Mountains) offering views of wine-growing valleys, picturesque castles, and historical cities. 

In 1536, Bratislava was declared the capital of the Kingdom of Hungary.

Getting to Bratislava from Austria was a breeze, a tiny puddle jump of a bit more than an hour. We hopped off our train and did the 600m walk to our hotel, dropped our bags and hit the streets. Our day started and ended in a sunny manner, but at around 4pm all  hell broke loose as rain tumbled from the skies and flooded the roads, for about an hour.

Bratislava

Bratislava sits on the Danube River by the border with Austria and Hungary. It is the capital of Slovakia and at its heart lies the pedestrian-only, 18th-century old town. This has all of the usual mix of old buildings and churches along with the tourist shops, cafes and bars.

As usual, the big show in town is Bratislava Castle. The first written reference to the city was in 907 but the castle hill was thought to be populated as early as the late Stone Age. The first known inhabitants were the Celts, who founded a fortified settlement here called ‘Oppidum’. In the 16th century, King Ferdinand ordered the rebuilding of the castle in the Renaissance style.

Michael’s Gate is the only preserved 14th century gate of the city fortification system.

The 51-metre-high tower provides a great view of the Castle and Old Town. The tower houses the Museum of Arms.

The SNP Bridge was built in 1967-1972 as a symbol of the Slovak National Uprising. It has a UFO restaurant on top of the 80 metre tall pylon.

The bridge is 432 m long and 21 m wide.

Old Town Hall is the oldest city hall in the country with the tower being built around 1370. It became the town hall in the 15th century when three townhouses were connected.

St. Martin’s Cathedral was the site that ten men were crowned king between 1563 and 1830.

The first reigning king was Maximilian from the Habsburg Dynasty, while the famous era of coronations came to an end for Bratislava with the crowning of Ferdinand V.

Primates Palace was built in the 18th century and today serves as the seat of the Mayor of Bratislava.

It also houses a gallery of 17th century English tapestries.

Grassalkovich Palace was built in 1760 and is now the official residence of the President of the Slovak Republic.

The Blue Church is officially known as the Church of St Elizabeth of Hungary.

The blurb tells me that “It is Bratislava’s most appealing art nouveau building”.

Not sure if I agree.

The Slavin is the largest war memorial in Central Europe. It is 52m tall.

It commemorates the 6845 soldiers who died during the liberation of Bratislava in World War II.

Sadly, due to a tight schedule we never got to Devin Castle. It is a castle ruin on the border with Austria, built on a high rock towering above the merging of the Danube and Morava rivers.

As our luck has been running, we jag being in town for the Bratislava Coronation Celebration, where ceremonies are reenacted by actors and enthusiasts wearing period costumes. It runs over multiple days with events such as jousting (featuring knights in armor), theater and music performances, lectures and exhibitions, and guided tours. We were sadly only in town for the procession.

Bratislava was great, however given its proximity to Vienna and the ease of access, we could easily have done this as a day trip. Hopping a train each way would give you plenty of time to see everything in Bratislava and get back to Vienna in the late afternoon/early evening thereby allowing you to spend more time in Vienna.

Switzerland

Switzerland

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Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a small country of 41,000 square km and a population of under 9 million.

It is bordered by Italy (south), France (west), Germany (north) and Austria and Liechtenstein (east). Once again I was here in 1996 but had a single stop in the Swiss Alps (with no real recollection of which mountain).

A Google search of similar trips to the one I took suggests that the mountain was most likely Jungfrau.

Sargens

This was a quick stop off as we transited towards Liechtenstein. Sargens is a small village of a bit over 6,000 people that serves as a fairly major transportation hub.

Sargans is known for its castle, which dates from before 1291. Since 1899, it has been run by the local church and now houses the Sarganserland museum.

Zurich

Zurich is at the northern tip of Lake Zurich on the Limmat River and is a global centre for banking and finance. And oh my god isn’t that obvious!

This place expensive.

Seriously expensive.

Our first exposure to the city was an economic one. The prices charged here in Geneva are obscene at best and when you couple this with a rubbish exchange rate it makes Zurich almost out of reach for us poor Australians. One Swiss Franc will cost you $1.70 Australian and the prices that you pay back home are generally a lot lower than the ones charged here.

We checked into our hotel and did the usual search for nearby restaurants for dinner. This is where the wheels fell off. An entree soup was 15 francs ($25) and the cheapest steak was 56 francs ($95). Ok time to recalibrate our expectations here. How about a pizza – starts at 19.50 ($33), ok how about a burger – starts at 16.50 ($28), umm maybe a salad – starts at 26 ($44).

Oh, this is going to hurt. We found a kebab shop nearby, they’re cheap right. So we went and bought a (very ordinary) kebab and a soft drink each. The final bill came to 36 francs ($61.30). Anyway, we were fed and would be out in 2 days.

The next thing that we got to experience properly was the public transport system. As we were staying a few km from the centre we chose to tram it in and out of town to the train station and walk from there. This was both easy and efficient. The train station is truly something to behold. It is split over 3 levels with 15 train lines coming in and out of each level, 44 lines in total.

Zurich certainly has a stunning location on the shores of Lake Zurich and the historic old town with amazing buildings is right in its center.

There are about 50 museums and 100 art galleries within the city to keep you amused if your interests run that way. And if you’re after rest and relaxation, you can be in the Swiss mountains in less than an hour.

The twin towers of the Grossmünster are one of the most recognisable images of the city.

According to legend, Charlemagne discovered the graves of the city’s patron saints Felix and Regula and had a church built on the spot.

Construction started in around 1100 and it finished around 1220.

The Fraumünster church in Zürich which was built on the remains of a former abbey for aristocratic women which was founded in 853.

After the Reformation, the Fraumünster came into the possession of the city.

The Bahnhofstrasse is the main shopping street that connects Lake Zurich with the train station, Zurich Hardbrücke. It runs a distance of 1.4 kilometres with all of the usual high end boutiques, department stores and watch shops.

St. Peter’s church is the oldest parish church in Zurich.

The original foundation walls from the 9th century are still visible under the choir.

It also has the largest church clock face in Europe (measures 8.7meters in diameter). There are five bells in the tower, dating from 1880.

Beyond the big ticket items, there are lovely old buildings with amazing architecture and styling almost everywhere you look. The people tend to keep to themselves but are mostly friendly, if a little stand offish.

Our time in Zurich was really nice. Getting around was a breeze thanks to a super-efficient (if a little confusing at times) tram system. The old town was a great wander as was the newer section (although we had no interest in the high end shops). The only real detraction was the price. It quite literally costs about 3 times more for anything that you would get back home.

Our meal situation was overcome by going to Lidl and Co-op and buying groceries. The hotel gave us a well priced ($26 a head) continental breakfast which saw us set up for the day and the shopping run got us through the rest of the day reasonably painlessly. It is amazing how far cheese, tomato, avocado and some decent bread rolls will get you. On our last evening we did treat ourselves to some local beers, but I still ate a ($12) salad in my room.