The Hanging Houses of Cuenca, Spain take the phrase “living on the edge” to extremes. Built in the 15th century atop rocky cliffs, the homes extended the town to its geographical limits. Las Casas Colgadas, as the structures are known in Spanish, seem suspended in both time and place. Some feature wooden balconies that jut […]
Day Trip
Old Believer Villages of Lake Peipsi, Estonia
Old Believers first settled in Estonia in the mid 1600s. Major reforms were taking place in the Russian Orthodox church at that time, and not everyone was on board. Those strongly opposed to the reforms were dubbed “old believers” and denounced by the church. Many fled the religious persecution and sought refuge across the border […]
Driving the Great Ocean Road with Go West Tours
No trip to Australia would be complete without cruising the Great Ocean Road. This 250-kilometer highway stretches along the southern tip of the continent and provides jaw-dropping views of the coast. Surf towns dot the shores, koalas slumber in eucalyptus forests, and centuries of erosion are evident on steep sandstone cliffs which culminate in the […]
Blue Mountains: A Self-Drive Sydney Day Trip
Australia’s Blue Mountains are covered with eucalyptus trees which produce a lovely and aromatic blue haze. I wanted to bottle that wonderful air and take it home with me. Since I didn’t have an empty container on hand, I purified my lungs by huffing and puffing along the hiking trails. The Greater Blue Mountains Area […]
Mostar and Pocitelj: Two Can’t-Miss Towns of Bosnia and Herzegovina
As captivated as I was by Sarajevo, I was delighted when the friends I was visiting suggested a road trip. We headed south for Mostar and Pocitelj, two gems of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). While it’s possible to visit both as a day trip from Sarajevo (or Dubrovnik, Croatia, which is equally close), we opted to […]