Visiting the Charles Bridge in Prague will give you a walk over the river that includes views of Prague Castle and sculptures lining the bridge. Charles Bridge carries a history involving flood after flood, battles, beheadings, and statues of saints. It is the oldest bridge across the Vltava River in Prague and was once the…
The mountain town of Truckee lies just north of Lake Tahoe in California, on a line between Sacramento and Reno. Take a stroll through the old downtown and you will hear echoes of the raucous Old West in these streets. Founded as a way station in the 1800s, the present day version of Truckee dates…
The “Castles on the Rhine” are so well known, but until I visited the Middle Rhine, I didn’t understand the abundance of the castles that line the bluffs. The first time I cruised along the Rhine, I expected to see a castle or two. Instead, every few minutes, around the bend, another town and another…
The Latin Quarter of Paris is my favorite area of Paris, both for the ambience and for what you can see. Here’s a little tour of some of the sights of the Latin Quarter, from its place on the left bank of the Seine, just across the river from Notre Dame. It has its share…
The Orangerie (or l’Orangerie) in Paris is the home of a large circle of paintings by Claude Monet. You can find the Orangerie, a lovely small museum at the entrance to the Tuileries, at the opposite end of the park from the Louvre. It’s tucked away in a corner, but definitely worth finding. This post…
The Paris Invalides is a fascinating place where you can take in France’s military history going back about 200 years. The tall dome that crowns the Invalides is a landmark in the center of Paris. The Eiffel Tower rises behind a front yard that’s filled with shrubs and cannon. The Invalides is a chapel, an…
I’m pleased to share with you this Guest Post by Lorelei from California Globetrotter. So many of us are enchanted by fairy tales of a damsel in distress and a heroic prince coming to the rescue and the two living happily ever after in that classic romance story that could only have ever been written…
Innsbruck, Austria hosted the 1976 Winter Olympics and still maintains the Bergisel Olympic ski jump. This lovely town at the foot of the Austrian Alps provides a picturesque place for skiers and visitors alike to thrill to the steep downhill ski events. In deciding to keep the ski jump that’s built into the forested hills…
The town of Innsbruck, Austria, sits at the base of a portion of the Austrian Alps. While these mountains are known as a winter skiing destination, you can ride a cable car up in the warmer months and explore here after the snow melts. We enjoyed this adventure, with its views of the town and…
Innsbruck is a gem in the west of Austria that is often overlooked by travelers. It’s definitely worth a visit, though, for many reasons. And not the least is the beauty of this little city that nestles peacefully at the foot of the alps. People tend to flock to Salzburg and Vienna in Austria, but…