What’s the single-most universal impression you carry home from European cities? For me, it has to be timelessness. Translated: continuity. And one of the best examples is reflected is the enigmatic town square.
Continue reading “The curious case of the immortal European square”
Witnessing an old Portuguese tradition that lives on…
We stared across the waist-high parapet, dumbstruck by the glorious view of Nazaré and the Atlantic Ocean below. From the large Sitio Square at a mountain ridge over 100 meters above sea level, the softly curved sandy shores, the curling white waves on the beach and the tranquil blue-green shaded waters seemed unreal, untouched, perfect.
Continue reading “The fascinating mystery of the seven skirts”
What to see on Las Ramblas, Barcelona’s buzzing nerve centre…
Anyone who’s been to Barcelona will tell you that its most famous boulevard, Las Ramblas is the best place to soak up the cosmopolitan vibe of the city.
The second you join the throngs of tourists and locals, you feel a tingle run up your spine. Call it magic in the air or the sheer energy of the liveliest city in the world…whatever it is, it’s contagious as hell. You can’t escape it! Before you know it, you’re free-falling, swirling, swimming in a sea of people, on a 60 feet-wide pedestrian walkway, where traffic sometimes exceeds 7,000 persons per hour…don’t worry, there is always space for one more!
Continue reading “Insanely amazing free street performances, all in a day”
He gazed down haughtily at me…from the thick folds of his sumptuous velvet purple cloak studded with rich gold embroidery, his white stockinged legs poised perfectly to flaunt his extravagant red block-heeled shoes. I locked eyes with Louis XIV. Was I was more enamoured by the craft of the artist who had painted this magnificent canvas oozing power, defiance and superiority from every inch or the sizzling persona of the French monarch himself? I couldn’t decide.
Continue reading “Secret behind black magic”
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