Winter sun in Europe can be as elusive as a unicorn. Even destinations you might expect to stay warm, like the Amalfi Coast and Istanbul, can be blanketed in fog or even snow. I wasn’t sure what to expect when I traveled to Lisbon in December, but I needn’t have worried. Thanks to the city’s […]
UNESCO
Fun Things to Do, See, Eat, and Drink in Porto
Porto, or Oporto, is a city in northern Portugal, where the Douro River meets the Atlantic Ocean. Porto’s 2000-year-old center is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, notable for historic buildings of various architectural styles that showcase continuous growth and prosperity over the centuries. Porto’s prime location near sea trade routes ensured that the city’s port […]
Rovinj and Porec: Gems of Croatia’s Istrian Coast
Rovinj, Croatia is one of those stunning places you see on postcards and wonder if the reality will live up to the image. The old town is crammed onto a small peninsula, which juts off northern Croatia’s Istrian coast. A spindly bell tower reaches skyward from atop the peninsula’s central hill. Concentric circles of tall […]
10 Interesting Things to Do in Amsterdam
Amsterdam is one of my favorite cities. In addition to its stunning architecture and canals, it boasts enough quality attractions to keep even the most discerning traveler busy for at least a week. From museums and a royal palace to cheese shops and the Red Light District, there are some very unique and interesting things […]
How to Visit the Kinderdijk Windmills from Amsterdam
No image is more iconically Dutch than the windmill. (Well, except maybe the tulip.) For centuries its sails have harnessed the power of wind to help manufacture items as varied as paper, mustard, and chalk. Saw mills were particularly important in early shipbuilding when a large naval fleet was a key to economic success. Later, […]