Hungary is unlike any other country in Europe, and the enchanting city of Budapest is a center of language, culture and history. Backpackers head to Budapest to party and to party on the cheap; most …
November 21, 2013
Europe
Slumming in Budapest's ruin pubs
Small-town Italy: Orvieto and Civita
For hundreds of years, Orvieto was a major stopping point along the road from Florence to Rome. It was so highly regarded through the centuries that it is only one of two cities outside of …
November 12, 2013
Small-town Italy: Vernazza
Life seems mellow and tranquil in the tiny, idyllic seaside town of Vernazza in Italy’s Cinque Terre. But the community suffered a traumatic experience in October 2011 when torrential rains led to a flash flood …
October 9, 2013
Leipzig, Germany
Leipzig, in what was East Germany, was one of Europe’s most important music centers. I knew Felix Mendelssohn Barthody and Johann Sebastian Bach lived here. As it turns out, Clara and Robert Schumann, Richard Wagner, …
September 30, 2013
Small-town Italy: Montelupone
The Marche region of Italy is rarely included among travel itineraries to Italy. It’s also scarcely mentioned in most guidebooks – yet this may simply enhance its appeal among travelers who yearn to forge a …
September 19, 2013
About the beer: Oktoberfest in Munich
I took another swig of crisp, clean German lager as I spied the nascent Oktoberfest fairgrounds across the street. Only the steel frames and brewery names were up – the stark beginnings of the world’s …
Meteora, Greece: The Old Master
In the mountainous interior of Greece near Meteora, gigantic granite outcroppings, most of them topped with Christian monasteries, point skyward like fingers tipped in prayer. They are a stone’s throw from the pass of Thermopylae, …
August 29, 2013
Small-town Italy: Varenna
Varenna is a stunning, yet underrated, jewel on Lake Como just north of the more well-known and widely visited Bellagio. If you’re looking for a tranquil atmosphere to accompany magnificent views of the lake, Varenna …
August 19, 2013
Honoring the fallen at Ypres
Though the reasons for WWI are murky to most Americans – something about the assassination of an Archduke, as well as the unification of feudal-era principalities into modern nation-states – the war brought our country …
August 13, 2013
Small-town Italy: Urbino
Urbino, a former center of culture during the Renaissance, has largely been forgotten by tourists due to its location in the Marche region of Italy. But, despite having far fewer visitors than its more glamorous …
August 6, 2013
When in Lisbon
If you’re dying to go to Europe but discouraged by the value of the euro, consider Portugal, where you can actually spend less than $50 a day. Portugal’s capital city, Lisbon, has stunning Moorish castles, …
August 1, 2013
Small-town Italy: Civitanova Marche
If you’ve visited the major sites in Italy and yearn for something unique and different, consider Civitanova Marche, a pleasant seaside village with a distinctive local flavor. The little fishing town and seaside resort in …
July 26, 2013
Decadence in Bruges
In the Middle Ages, back when canals were the super-highways of Europe, Bruges experienced a surge of wealth and culture. Before the canals started silting, there was a direct route to the sea from the …
July 25, 2013
No worries in Potsdam
“You’re American? What are you doing here? Usually Americans just visit Berlin.” This was the response I received after a vendor asked me a question in German. Apparently, most American tourists forego 1,000-year-old Potsdam, Berlin's …
Small-town Italy: Conegliano
Rome, Venice and Florence are all amazing experiences, but it’s also nice to just relax in a small Italian village with the locals and experience Italian culture in a different way. Few Americans have heard …
July 15, 2013