Back in my most beloved city, München (Munich), the first thing I wanted was to visit the Viktualienmarkt. It is my tradition to buy strawberries at the VM regardless of the season, just a simple and sweet thing I look forward to. My friend and I went to München’s city center and I showed him some…
After a whirlwind week of road tripping from München to Bad Kötzting and then to Neuschwanstein in Schwangau, I was ready for a solo retreat to Heidelberg. Heidelberg’s official song “Ich Hab’ mein Herz in Heidelberg Verloren” translates to “I lost my heart in Heidelberg” and was first recorded in 1925 by Fred Raymond. This…
Berlin is the city that makes my heart skip a beat. The very buildings, monuments, and street names define and narrate my lifelong obsession with Germany and its history like an interactive storybook. First with the Weimar Republic era when the artists, filmmakers, musicians, architects, scientists, and great writers who emerged during this time birthed…
Something bit me in Transylvania, and that is no joke. Segesvar (Hungarian) aka Sighisoara (Romanian) aka Schassburg (German) is a striking and well-preserved medieval Transylvanian city in Romania that was originally founded by Saxons in the 1100s. Like Biertan, it is a Unesco World Heritage Site. For a few days I kept a close eye on…
Here is my article that was published in KnoxZine last year. This fall, I was presented with the opportunity to visit Russia, a goal on my bucket list since childhood. After researching, brushing up my language skills, and obtaining a visa, I refined details with a travel companion and a close friend who resides in Moscow. Once…
Something about the Greek Islands has always called to me. Greece is so different from any other country in the Balkan region and holds an air of mystery. My song pick for this entry is “Greek Song” by Rufus Wainwright. Oddly it’s the song I get stuck in my head and have to sing loudly…
There are always aspects of each trip that do not fit in with other blog entries or lack the substance to fill out an entry of their own. A lot of them are goofy and have nothing to do with the trip or the country I am in, just kind of a universally comical experience. Some…
Norris is a small East Tennessee town known for its lake, marinas, state park, museums, and giant Tennessee Valley Authority dam. Like most small towns surrounding Knoxville, new businesses are springing up and outdoor areas are being developed for tourism, drawing day-trip lovers like me to explore. Sweet Cafe Not too often am I surprised…
Ireland’s west coast forms a crescent shaped bay around the Aran Islands, and this was our route from Letterfrack through Galway, and down to Bell Harbour / Bealaclugga, right to the heart of the Burren. What Irish radio lacks, we made up for by singing our favourite songs at the top of our lungs.…
Wealthy British doctor-turned-politician Mitchel Henry built the Kylemore Castle in the heart of Connemara in the late 1800s, and for that time it was mindbogglingly futuristic. Henry had married the love of his life, Margaret, and they had several children. Shortly after the castle was finished, the family went on a vacation to Egypt where Margaret caught…
Once Hurricane Ophelia had blown over, we packed up and left our refuge in Letterfrack for a visit to the Connemara National Park. I have never seen a landscape so surreal, in person, in all of my life. Here, it looks like you are inside a virtual reality game. Every few miles the scene…
In less than 3 hours you can drive completely cross-country in Ireland, but you would be foolish not to stop at the Wonderful Barn, Maynooth Town, Clonmacnoise or another historic site along the way. Renvyle We reached Galway late evening and headed north up to the Connemara Loop to spend the night in the village of…
