Question: a typical holiday destination? Answer: Lago di Garda. Hesitation: what? Why? Answer: it has been a holiday destination ever since Roman times – Roman senators had their holiday homes there. Well, not really homes. Villas. Luxurious, located on hills and with stunning views. They even had spas. Seriously. Even today in Sirmione you can take a stinky, beautifying sulfide bath. So what was after the Roman times? It’s belived that Saint Francis of Assisi established an hermitage on Isola del Garda. Now, you’ll find a private villa there. Once a week its doors open for average citizens to take a tour around it. In Sirmione, Maria Callas had…
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Verona – more than Romeo and Juliet
Verona. The city of Romeo and Juliet. Ok, we’re done with that, can I move on? Verona, a city hurt by Romeo and Juliet. A city which is so associated with this couple that no one is looking for anything else there. Poor Verona is a victim of a Shakespeare related marketing. Btw, not a bad marketing if you ask me. Juliet’s house with Juliet’s dress and Juliet’s bed and, my favourite, Juliet’s tomb. Cool, but she DIDN’T EXIST. And hundreds of people are going crazy under her balcony and are sending her letter. From what I’ve heard – she’s replying. Ok, guilty as charged, I went to Juliet’s house.…
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Lago di Garda – expectations vs. reality
Oh how I love doing this! Writing down my expectations before the trip and confronting them with reality once I’m on the trip or back at home. This time I decided to make it even more fun to everyone (I hope). There were 4 of us on our trip to Lago di Garda and around (like far away around, like 150km to the east and to the south). It took us 11,5h to get to our destination and you have to do something in the car, right? So I asked everyone to share their expectations on the way to Italy and their reality on our way back. Our plan…
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Bucket list: Weinachtsmarkt
I love Christmas kitsch. Ugly Christmas sweaters, socks and everything which clearly says that at this time of year I’m loosing a sense of style. So it shouldn’t be surprising that visiting a traditional German Weinachtsmarkt was on my bucket list. And it’s not anymore. Technically, it wasn’t German, it was Austrian. But it was beautiful. And there was more than one. I wouldn’t go to Christmas market to Vienna (500 km), because Dresden is actually closer (200km) if it wasn’t for my dear friend who currently lives in Ljubljana. We wanted to see each other and somehow we figured out that the middle of the road between Wrocław…
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Vienna – people-friendly city
Donau City. Center of business. You’re leaving the office and see a guy in a suit. With a briefcase. On a scooter. Welcome to Vienna, a people-friendly city. Donau City. You’re walking between office buildings, passing by DC Tower 1 with it’s amazing facade, to the other side of the apartment block and all of the sudden you’re in a huge and beautiful Donau Park. With lawns and flowers and bushes and trees and a meadow and drinking fountains. And if you want, you can go bungee jumping from a Donauturm. There are asphalt paths, so you can go rollerskating or ride your scooter. Welcome to Vienna, a people-friendly city.…
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Grinzing – Tuscany in Vienna
A short story about a coincidence and logic and two tourist attractions. It was July 2012. And later it was August 2017. In July 2012 I came to Grinzing for the first time, by tram from Schottentor. In about 25 minutes I was somehow teleported from the center of Vienna to Tirol. At least that’s what I thought when I arrived in Grinzing. Charming little houses, flowers on window sills, restaurants and a road which leads uphill. A little bit rural, a little bit folksy, definitely like in the mountains. In August 2017 my impressions were the same. In July 2012 I read that Grinzing means wineries and wine.…
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Bucket list: back in Schönbrunn
I was 8 years old and I was on the way to Slovenia for holidays with my parents. Or maybe it was a way back. I don’t remember that well. What I do remember is a quick stop for sightseeing in Vienna. I remember that I didn’t like the cathedral that much. But Schönbrunn Palace was a different story. I was totally amazed. Huge palace, rooms full of furnitures and decorations. These furnitures were the most important for me as a kid. I was always disappointed when castles and palaces were empty. And in Schönbrunn I could imagine how everyday life looked like, what the royal family did, where princess…
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Museum of Florence
Florence. City of artists. Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Dante, Machiavelli and more. City of churches, city of its cathedral. THE cathedral. Il Duomo, with the biggest brick dome in the world. Well, from what I’ve heard, technically it’s not a dome. Florence. City of tourists and crowded streets. Or just a museum. When a city has such a huge amount of monuments, it’s not a city anymore, it’s a museum. Btw, how do people live in a city like this? How they’re going for walks, to work, to do shopping, to a restaurant? How do they function in a city which is dominated by monuments and tourists? 10:00am. Crowds in…
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Colors of Tuscany
I have an idea in mind, based on my short, but cool trip to Tuscany. Tuscany has colors. Cities have colors. To be more specific, each city has one color. Or shade. And it goes like this: Bologna is red I landed in Bologna. Bus, train, train and I reached my destination, a huge camping in a small town. But let’s start from the beginning. So I landed in Bologna and figured out it would be nice to see something. How much time do I have? 1,5h? How long does it take to walk from the railway station to the city center? 20 min? Ok, let’s go! And I went.…
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Don’t go to Berlin, go to Potsdam
Everyone goes to Berlin. Well, many go. Because of the atmosphere, museums, landmarks, history, wall. And I agree with it. Well, with most of it. But I would recommend something different: don’t go to Berlin, go to Potsdam. Potsdam is know for a palace with a park and for being close to Berlin. If someone goes to Berlin, he or she will probably go to Potsdam. Or not. All in all there’s a palace and a park, come on, there’s much more to do in Berlin. Well, that’s what I thought and I couldn’t have been any more wrong. It occurs, Potsdam is a really beautiful city, there are many…
