Discover the age-old continent through these Europe travel stories, its curious, unsung places as well as its more familiar spots.
You may notice a few countries that may not traditionally be considered European. Europe’s borders are never easy to define. So I’ve decided to go by the old definition I learned in school: In the east, Europe ends at the Ural Mountains. That means the Caucasian countries – Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia – are part of Europe, according to Sophie’s World. This is probably also according to the countries themselves: all three are members of the Council of Europe and cooperate with the European Union with a view to future membership. Also, all three countries participate in the Eurovision Song Contest; can’t argue with that.
Albania
Andorra
Armenia
Austria
Azerbaijan
Belarus
Belgium
Bosnia and Herzegovina
British Isles
Bulgaria
Croatia
Czech Republic
Cyprus
Denmark
Estonia
Finland
France
Georgia
Germany
Greece
Holy See (Vatican)
Hungary
Iceland
Ireland
Italy
Kosovo
Latvia
Liechtenstein
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Macedonia
Malta
Moldova
Monaco
Montenegro
Netherlands
Norway
Poland
Portugal
Romania
Russia
San Marino
Serbia
Slovakia
Slovenia
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
Turkey
Ukraine
Azores Islands (Portugal)
Balearic Islands (Spain)
Canary Islands (Spain)
Faroe Islands (Denmark)
Madeira (Portugal)
Republika Srpska
Svalbard (Norway)
Transdniestr (Moldova)
Latest Europe travel stories
Ancient Nessebar and Bulgaria’s southern Black Sea coast
I've always thought the Black Sea has an exotic ring to it. Dramatic events have unfolded here: Gorbachev losing his job while holidaying in Sochi in August 1991, The Yalta Conference during World War II, Dracula arriving in Varna in a coffin on his way to Transylvania, Jason and the Argonauts searching for the Golden Fleece. This is exciting stuff. [...]
Venezia la bella
Strange, isn't it, how when you're about to do one thing, random thoughts or happenings take you somewhere else entirely? I was about to write another post about quarantine cuisine (Arabic this time), when I began thinking about the word quarantine. And then I heard December 1963 by the Four Seasons playing through a neighbour's open door. So instead of [...]
Bringing the world home: Food, the Italian edition
It's fair to say this is not a food blog. Furthermore, my kids will tell you I'm not in the kitchen all that frequently. As my oldest likes to remind me, many were the times she had to go to grandma’s house if she wanted a proper dinner. My excuse was, I took the girls hopping about the globe instead, [...]
Alten Lodge: cosy and comfortable
Hoping to catch a glimpse of that elusive lady of the Arctic, Aurora Borealis, Annette and I arrive in Alta on a snowy Thursday morning in February. The plan is to couch surf at Ann-Mari's house for a couple of nights. But she has a surprise in store: the good folks at NORD Ekspedisjon have invited us to spend a [...]
Winter in the city of Northern Lights
Ever wanted to see the Aurora Borealis, that technicolour freak show of nature, also known as the Northern Lights? Well, you might need to be patient. And, if unlike Bill Bryson, you don't have 16 days to wait for the fickle Aurora, you'll be glad to know there's much else to do here at the very edge of the world. [...]
Snowmobiling in the Arctic (Day out Alta)
After a night in an ice hotel, what could be more logical than spending a day on a snowmobile? Let's dig right in. We're going with the good folks at Gargia Lodge, just outside of Alta up in the northernmost part of Norway, well above the Arctic circle. Beginning down in the valley, we'll head past the tree line up [...]
Sorrisniva igloo hotel: transient icy charm
We haven't talked about quirky sleeps for a while here. Time to remedy that. And what's quirkier than a hotel that exists only temporarily? Built when winter arrives and slowly melts away into nonexistence when spring makes its presence felt. Then the process is repeated next winter. My immediate thought is of Sisyphus. Pushing that boulder up the hill, only [...]
Langhoff & Juul: a boutique hotel on the sea shore
The old port town of Ebeltoft is a summer favourite. But is it great only in summer? Our little blogger collective travelled to Denmark to find out. Turns out the little town with the cobbled streets and medieval houses is sweet also in December. During Advent, Ebeltoft changes into a Christmas town, all decked out in festive finery, and with [...]
Exploring Christmas markets in Denmark’s Aarhus Region
The sparkling team has just returned from a weekend in Denmark, exploring Christmas markets. And Denmark has Christmas markets galore, on every island and peninsula, all around the country. Only so much you can do in a few days, however, so we settled on Jutland. Specifically, the Aarhus region, an area we're all familiar with. We have been curious to see [...]
Budapest Christmas Markets
It's that time of year again! A mere 24 days until Christmas, as I'm writing this on the last morning in November. In a cafe... in Riga. But but but, I hear you say... the heading says Budapest...? Indeed it does. And yet, here I am. In Riga. Have a few hours or so waiting for a friend to arrive, [...]
Vatnajökull: waterfalls, glaciers, fire and ice. (Day out Reykjavik)
I seem to be having a thing for glaciers lately and can't help but sharing it with you good folks. Luckily, I live in a part of the world where they abound; not only in Norway but in some of our neighbour countries as well. In this post about walking inside Langjökull glacier, I briefly refer to Vatnajökull, Iceland's largest, [...]
Augsburg: water, water everywhere (Day out Munich)
Whatever this potentially ominous sign means, water is everywhere in Augsburg and it has been systematically managed since the 14th century. In fact, you'd be hard pressed to go anywhere in Augsburg and not encounter the city's ingenious water operating system. There are medieval water towers, fountains, millwheels, hydroelectric power stations...
