London’s extensive canal network is a haven for nature lovers – and often just a single stairway down from the city’s hustle and bustle One of the best things about London is that you don’t have to leave the city to do some serious walking. The West End is virtually surrounded by the leftovers from…
If you are in a rush, you could reduce those two hours in Milan to 15 minutes …. and still see Italy’s largest Cathedral, the world’s oldest shopping mall and opera’s most famous theatre, all of them “next-arcade neighbours” in one of the smallest central cores of any major city in Europe In the last…
Break within a break Borders within the European Union may have become largely symbolic, scars of ancient conflicts, but there are also places where the underlying wounds are relatively fresh. When you are crossing European borders for a “break within a break”, you should not expect to see a sudden and dramatic change of scenery….
Switzerland’s gateway to Europe and the river Rhine is the place to visit for medieval architecture, modern art and overpriced burgers. Variety is king when it comes to taking “a break within a break”: that’s what I said in our last post. And your best bet for seeing and experiencing something different during a holiday…
Counterpoint is king for any “break within a break” – and the busy street life of Malta’s capital city was the right antidote after the solitude of Gozo Sometimes, even a break needs a break. During a trip of, say, four days or more, about half-way in you will long for a day with something…
The French Riviera would be as beautiful, culturally much poorer without its long history of eccentric Anglo-Saxons With its richly articulated coastline, its pretty coastal villages, its bays and its boats, its nearly perennial sunshine and pleasant temperatures all year round, the French Riviera is a truly blessed spot. But just to prove that nothing…
Théoule-sur-Mer may lack the glamour and urban flair of some of its coastal neighbours in the East, but has a nice little walk attached to it Looking back over the Easy Hiker posts from the last six months or so, it strikes me how few of them refer to anything that we have done on…
… at Milan’s Cimitero Monumentale But there are cracks in the bombast, and you can feel how a very modern sense of discomfort is creeping in. For centuries, death operated a strict two-tier system: cathedral tombs it was for crowned heads and high clergy, the local churchyard for everybody else. (Unless you were a certified…
The provincial capital of Bolzano has a long history, rich cultural attractions – and even some lessons for all of us. One thing is for sure when you go hiking in the Gardena Valley: sooner or later you will come to Bolzano, in nearly all respects the hub of the province, if only between trips…
… with the sound of sizzling frying pans on our Selva-to-Monte-Pana hike in the Dolomites Something I forgot to mention in the report from our first hike in the Dolomites: for the hiking guides, that hike served as their “orientation tour”, intended not only to familiarize the hotel’s newbie guests with the landscape but also to…