Category Archives: Europe Tours
Gregorian Chant in the Monastery of Santo Domingo de Silos, Spain
We drove over gorgeous rolling countryside in the early evening of May 20 about thirty kilometers from Lerma for the evening Vespers at the Monastery of Santo Domingo de Silos. The monastery has a long tradition of singing Gregorian chant. The monks of Silos became internationally famous through the album “Chant,” one of a number […]
An overnight in a Ducal Palace in Lerma, Spain
The Lerma Ducal Palace is the palace of the dukes of Lerma in Lerma in Spain, occupying the whole of one side of the city’s Plaza. Originally it had immense gardens below it, on the banks of the river, with fountains, stately homes and seven chapels, of which one (Cristo) remains. All documents relating to […]
St-Remy-de-Provence
A visit to the charming village at the foot of the Les-Alpilles in the Luberon, Provence. We had lunch there the other day and here are some vignettes from our stroll around after our meal.
European Focus Private Tours Advantage #62
Bus tours race you through the country at a breakneck pace because they’re on a schedule. Bags out in front of your hotel room door at 6:30. Breakfast at 7. Departure at 8. Rush-rush-rush through the day, being led around like sheep with walkie talkies jammed into your ears. Exhaustion. No time for taking photographs […]
Courtroom 600 in Nurnberg
The new museum dedicated to the trials following the end of World War II is a new “must see” in Nurnberg. The room known as “Courtroom 600” is where the trials were held, and it has been preserved in pretty much its original form, other than a rearrangement of the docks and the place for […]
Before the Charles Bridge in Prague, there was Judith Bridge
The Charles Bridge has spanned the Vltava River in the heart of Prague for more than 650 years. Before this mammoth structure was built under the reign of Charles IV, there was the 12th century “Judith Bridge,” which was actually longer than the present-day bridge. A fragment of this fascinating piece of history can be […]
Prague is City of Beautiful Architecture
A small sampling of the architectural details found throughout the former Jewish district, which is located north of the city’s main square about two blocks.