Other Travels

An index of our travels - mostly in Europe - with some additional recommendations.  

Austria

(August 21, 2011)

• Three Views of Salzburg

Belgium
(May 2011)

• Daytrippin to Antwerpen
• World Heritage sites in Antwerp

Denmark: Copenhagen 

(December 3-5, 2010)

• Traveling in the Off-Season
• Dutch vs. Danish

Additional recommendations:

• Lagkagehuset: Bakery with excellently delicate "danishes", now with a convenient branch on Nygade in the center of the city.
• Christiansborg Palace: Worth visiting just for the hall of amazing modern tapestries, celebrating the entirety of Danish history in a cacophony of colors and symbols. On a Saturday in December, we were the only people to request the English tour (free with admission, daily at 15:00) and thus got an extensive private tour of the royal reception rooms. I enjoyed this experience far more than Rosenborg Castle and Treasury, which was cold, dark and crowded with busloads of tourists even on a snowy Sunday morning in December.
• National Museum: Awesome relics from the Vikings and their predecessors, including rune stones, horned helmets, and the Gundestrup Cauldron. You could easily wile away an entire day in this place - and it's free!
• City Hall: Worth peeking inside for beautiful artistic detailing and symbols of Danish pride. Jeff always loves a good tower climb - the $4 entrance fee for this building's tower was definitely worth it for us.
• Christiania: Is this self-proclaimed independent hippie commune an example of what peace, love, and alternative living can create, or just a bunch of people mooching off the military, tourists, and drug users patronizing the (mostly) soft drug stands lining Pusher Street?

France: Paris 

(November 20-22, 2010; May 20-22, 2011)

• What To Do on Your Seventh Trip to Paris
• Sacre Couer
• Crepes in Paris

Additional recommendations:

• Le loir dans la théière (3 Rue des Rosiers, Paris 4è). A bustling tea-room with massive and amazing desserts.
• Le Polichinelle (66 Rue de Charonne, Paris 11è). Lovely French bistro cuisine - their fixed course lunch menu (paired with an excellent beaujolais nouveau) blew me away, and was only about 12 euros.
• Worth a repeat: Even if you're a frequent Paris visitor, some places are worth repeat visits - Sacre Couer (of course), Trocadero, the Arc de Triomphe.

Germany: Berlin

(September 16-18, 2011)

• Berlin on the cheap
• By train from Berlin to the Hague

Germany: Bonn  

(February 6, 2011)

• How to spend an afternoon in Bonn

Germany: Cologne 

(February 6-7, 2011)

• Beer halls in Cologne
• Cologne Cathedral
• Train Bridge Love Story

Germany: Munich
(August 19-22, 2011)

• Biergartens

Germany: Rhine Valley & Baden Baden

(July 30-August 1, 2011)

• Why the Rhine Valley Rocks

Ireland: Cork 

(December 23-26, 2010)

• Food in Cork

Italy: Rome

(April 1-4, 2011)

• On the Roman Basilica
• Top 5 Roman Food Moments
• Ostia Antica

Japan

(October 1-14, 2012)

• Tips for Traveling in Japan
• Japanese Hospitality
• Meeting People in Japan
• Japanese Trains
• Temples and Shrines
• Koyasan: The Legendary Stuff of Legend
• A Tourist's History of Japan
• Cheap Eats: Noodles
• More Cheap Eats
• Not-So-Cheap Eats
• Japanese Home Cooking
• Fun Japanese Signs
• Japan: Just Like in the Movies

Luxembourg: Luxembourg City 

(November 12-14, 2010)

• Fortifications of Luxembourg City
• Why Luxembourg?

Additional recommendations:

• Cafe des Artistes (22 Montée du Grund Old Town): I expected this piano bar to be a little "obvious", but was charmed by its cosiness and the heartiness with which the locals belted out French chansons. The wine is not great, but that's not the point.
• Walking Tours: The TI gives out great brochures for self-guided walking tours. I liked the Wenzel Walk (over the ramparts) better than the City Promenade (around the center of town).
• Public Transit: The country's trains and buses are convenient, clean, and cheap. And the trains around the capital go over these really cool train bridges with spectacular views.

Luxembourg: Vianden 

(November 14, 2010)

• Vianden Castle

Additional recommendations: 

• Vianden Youth Hostel: This hostel is almost a hotel (at least in the off-season) - exceedingly clean and pleasant, and right next to the main attraction in town. 
• Cafe du Pont: Not an exceptional menu, but an exceptional location(right on the river at the main bridge in town) and full of locals. The cafe at the Ancien Cinema, up the hill towards the castle, also looked promising.

Morocco

(March 12-20, 2011)

• The History of Morocco in 7 Days
• The Difficulties of Travel in Morocco
• More on traveling in Morocco

I cannot say enough wonderful things about our riad in the Fes Medina. Riad al Bartal is beautiful, wonderfully decorated, staffed by lovely people, and includes an amazing breakfast served on fabulous Fes pottery. It was the highlight of our trip.

Netherlands

(see Netherlands page)

Poland

(August 27-September 4, 2011)

• Hiking in the Tatras
• Feasting on a Farthing (Polish food)
• When History Isn't History (Warsaw, Auschwitz)
• Hoodwinked (salt mines of Wieliezka)
• A Perfect Day in Krakow

Spain: Basque Country

(June 11-14, 2011)

• Bilbao: Vastly Underrated
• Mapping pintxos in San Sebastion
• Insider's Guide to Pamplona

United Kingdom: London 

(February 19-21, 2011)

• Big London Flavour, Little London Cost
• Maritime Greenwich

United States: Hawaii

(August 2012)

• Embracing the Obvious (Maui)
• God is in the Barren Places (Maui)

United States: Kentucky 

(September 3-6, 2010)

• Bourbon Trail
• The Original Kentucky Fried Chicken
• Berea College
• Red River Gorge

United States: Cross Country Drive

(October 2011; June 2013)

• Road Food
• Kiwi Sees America
• God is in the Barren Places
• Embracing the Obvious (Yellowstone)