Tag Archives: Europe

Travel & Photography: “Wanderlust Alps” (2021)

Stretching from France all the way down to Slovenia, Europe’s most majestic mountain range encompasses eight countries. Wanderlust Alps charts the region’s most treasured routes and guides the reader every step of the way. Aimed at those with an appetite for adventure, this book offers a rich mix of treks for hikers who wish to brave the elements.

Through enlightening maps, first-hand tips, and breathtaking photography, Wanderlust Alps illustrates why the range’s craggy peaks and verdant plains make it an outdoor playground in any season. Expect dazzling content to inspire hikers of any experience and skill level, stunning landscape photography, and helpful hints and information on how best to enjoy more than 50 epic trails.

Alex Roddie is an active backpacker, mountaineer, and climber with over 15 years of outdoor experience. Based in England, he works as an editor, writer, and photographer for outdoor-related print publications and online media. Wanderlust Europe was released by gestalten in 2020.

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Views: ‘Europe From Above’ – National Geographic UK

Europe From Above takes you on an unforgettable journey, full of unique adventures, to explore the spectacular features of six European countries: Norway, Croatia, Portugal, Switzerland, Ireland, and Iceland. Not only does this series show you the beautiful landscapes of each nation, but unravels the magical landmarks that each location has to offer.

From visiting Ireland’s precious grey seals, the magical Northern Lights of Norway and Croatia’s floating village, to exploring the Douro vineyard in Portugal, Iceland’s famous hot springs and stargazing from Swiss mountains, each adventure more exciting than the next. Come along on this trip and discover an amazing new perspectives on counties you thought you knew.

City Views: Tubingen – Southwest Germany

Tübingen is a city in southwest Germany and home to one of Europe’s oldest universities. In the old town, Stiftskirche St. Georg is a late-Gothic church with stained-glass windows and city views from its tower. The ornately painted 15th-century City Hall is topped with a functioning astronomical clock. Hilltop Hohentübingen Castle is home to the Museum of Ancient Cultures, with Greek, Roman and Egyptian artifacts. 

Coastal Views: The Top Beaches To visit In France

Apart from anything else, the magnificent rocky coasts of Brittany bring forth oysters and other shellfish vital to proper seaside sustenance. Moving south, vast Atlantic beaches can accommodate all Europe’s towels with ample space left over for surfers. In the deep south, Biarritz was, incidentally, the Basque birthplace of European surfing in 1957.

Across on the Mediterranean coast, the Côte Vermeille (of Roussillon) takes up where the Pyrenees leave off, before ceding to the flat, unkempt littoral of Languedoc. And so, across the River Rhône, to Provence and the Côte-d’Azur, whose beaches, you will have heard, are overdeveloped and overcrowded. Certainly, their summers are busy — you couldn’t decently expect to have Europe’s most coveted coast to yourself. But much beauty persists and, anyway, there’s something bewitching about being in such a place when it’s at full throttle. That said, there are stretches where crowds and development thin and the elemental Riviera reasserts itself. We detail such spots below, along with hotel suggestions and self-catering options.

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Walking Tour: Mechelen – Northern Belgium (4K)

Mechelen is a city between Brussels and Antwerp in northern Belgium. Inside the 13th-century St. Rumbold’s Cathedral is an imposing altar and a work by Flemish artist Anthony van Dyck. The attached St. Rumbold’s Tower offers 360-degree views of the city. Deportees to WWII concentration camps were held at Kazerne Dossin military barracks, where a museum and memorial commemorate the Jews and Gypsies who passed through.

Tourist Views: Americans Return To Paris (Video)

After vanishing from #Paris for a year and a half, #American #tourists have returned, #Covid vaccination certificates in pocket, as part of a grand reopening of the country’s tourist sector. France, which was the world’s top #tourism destination before the coronavirus #pandemic, began welcoming back Americans on June 9.

Photographic Views: The Epic Libraries Of Europe

“Libraries are especially useful in this moment, because they’re open to everybody,” Robert Dawson says. “They can be a way for us to talk to each other. Throughout the world, they’re symbols of hope.”

Robert Dawson Photography Website

Alpine Drives: Zweisimmen To Gstaad, Switzerland

ZWEISIMMEN: One of the Swiss heavenly village lying in the route of most famous Goldenpass Train Line. This quaint village in the Bernese Oberland forms the gateway to the world-famous Gstaad region. Zweisimmen is also the starting point of the Montreux – Bernese Oberland – rail line, which travels to Montreux on Lake Geneva. The rambling paradise around Zweisimmen offers several themed walking trails. The classic trails here also include a ramble or a mountain bike excursion to the idyllic Seebergsee and onward, towards the Stierenberg. Here, a warm bath in a wooden tub awaits visitors who stay at a mountain lodge. As an alternative, visitors can opt for scooter-based fun: riders can choose between two routes on which to coast down from the mountain into the valley on scooters with specially-equipped brakes. Zweisimmen has a population of 3,040 (as of December 2019).

GSTAAD: Gstaad is an upscale resort town in the Bernese Oberland region of the Swiss Alps. Its soaring mountains and prestigious international boarding schools, top hotels, gourmet restaurants, luxury chalets and nearby Saanen airport, have long made it a popular holiday destination for royalty and international celebrities. Gstaad in the Bernese Oberland attracts a charming mix of visitors: while the chalet village of Gstaad welcomes famous guests, the smaller neighbouring villages offer attractive options for families with children. In recent years, the centre of Gstaad has developed into the most popular and shortest “shopping mile” in Switzerland. The wide-open countryside of the Saanenland offers a versatile and and diverse sports programme: hiking (trail network of over 300 km), mountain biking, paragliding and golf. On the River Saane there are opportunities for mountain torrent and canoo adventures. Summer cross-country skiing is possible in the «Glacier 3000» ski region. The summer toboggan run in Schönried, a via ferrata and the Lake Lauenen nature paradise are ideal excursion destinations for families in Summer.

Morning News: The Fed & Interest Rates, Europe’s Drug Use, Remote Work

The merest mention of future interest-rate rises from America’s central bank sent markets into a tizzy. We consider the merits and the effects of signalling early and often.

Europe’s drug use dipped when the pandemic began, but soon rebounded; we examine the rising potency of the continent’s drugs and drug syndicates. And data reveal what makes work-from-home productivity so low.