Highlight Photos
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Milan – Duomo -
Milan – Bosco Verticale -
Lucerne Plaza -
Milan – Sforza’s Castle -
Lucerne – Chapel Bridge -
Prague – View of Central Square -
Milan – Piazza Gae Aulenti -
Lucerne – Painted House -
Milan – Famedio at Monumental Cemetery -
Zurich – Grossmünster -
Milan – Santa Maria del Carmine -
Basel – Dom -
Prague – St. Vitus Cathedral -
Prague – View from Charles Bridge -
Prague – Town Hall -
Prague – Jewish Cemetery -
Zurich View -
Prague – National Museum -
Basel – City Hall -
Augusta Raurica – Theater -
Prague – Old New Synagogue -
Zug Castle
Highlights Map
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Our third trip to Europe this year is quite a hectic one as we shuttle between countries and cities seemingly every day. We start with rich and majestic Milan and after a quick stop in Bucharest we visit Prague, a city that we wanted to travel to for years given the many tourist sites scattered throughout. Then back to Romania for about a week before ending the trip with a few days in Switzerland.
This trip is different from most of our trips as we do not rent a car in most locations, except Switzerland. As such we are using mostly public transportion which restricts a bit what we can visit and increases the time between hotels and attractions especially in Milan where we are forced to stay near the airport which is quite far away from Milan proper. Each country is quite different and we enjoy seeing the different architectural styles and taste the various local specialties.
To learn more click on the Links below or Markers on the map above to go directly to a specific part of our trip and follow our visit through Europe. Enjoy!
- Long flight to Milan
Long flight to Milan to start our Europe trip with quite a few delays along the way - Imposing Milano Centrale train station
Every day while in Milan we make the pilgrimage from our hotel near the airport to the beautiful Milano Centrale train station and back in the evening - Modern Milan – surprisingly impressive
Near Milano Centrale we explore a few more modern attractions including the “Vertical Forest” and Piazza Gae Aulenti - Monumental Cemetery, worth visiting
Monumental Cemetery is worthy of a stop in a city full of attractions due to the extravagant tombstones and buildings - Sforza’s Castle, the Milan fortress
One of the major Milan attractions is the Castello Sforzesco built to keep an eye on the unruly city as much as to protect it - Ending the day near the Duomo
We finish the day in the very busy area near the Duomo with a relaxing dinner focused on Milanese specialties - Quadrilatero d’Oro – the heart of fashion
We start the day with an exploration of Quadrilatero d’Oro an upscale neighborhood with fancy stores and ornate houses - Palazzo Morando – unexpected gem
An hour visit to an ornated 18th century palace with art, furnishing and fashion exhibits - Indro Montanelli Gardens
Waiting for our entry time at Brera Museum we spend half hour in the extensive Indro Montanelli Gardens - Pinacoteca di Brera
One of the most important art museums in Milan with a focus on pre 19th century paintings that requires an advance reservation - Santa Maria del Carmine and around
Santa Maria del Carmine is one of the impressive churches we visit while exploring the Brera neighborhood - Basilica di San Simpliciano
One of the impressive churches of Milan the Basilica of San Simpliciano is neatly tucked between the surrounding houses and has an ornate interior worth seeing - Chiesa Parrocchiale di San Marco and dinner
The majestic church of San Marco is officially the last of the three major churches in our tour but we actually visit it first as it didn’t close during the afternoon - Famous Starbucks Reserve and downtown (again)
We spend the rest of the day exploring the downtown area while visiting the famous Starbucks Reserve which usually you have to queue for to enter - A must-see place, Santuario di San Bernardino alle Ossa
One of the most surprising places in Milan was the Santuario di San Bernardino alle Ossa a less visited impressive ossuary - Duomo Museum
We start our combo ticket with the Duomo Museum the place where we were able to buy it with the least queue - Ambrosian Library
Next on our combo ticket is the Ambrosian Library one of the more famous art museums in Milan - Inside the Milan Duomo, finally
On our last day in Milan it is finally time to visit the Duomo, always keep the best for last - On top of the Duomo
Last major stop on our tour is the top of the Duomo where we enjoy the great views of Milan all around us - Two short days in Bucharest
We spend two days in Bucharest enjoying the food and helping relatives with some chores around town - First steps in Prague, with nutrias(!) up to Petrin Hill
We start our visit to Prague with a walk in the neighborhood crossing the Vltava river and seeing our first nutrias - Up the Petrin Hill with the funicular
We use the funicular to climb to the top of Petrin and then explore along the way as we follow the trail to Strahov Monastery - Famous library at Strahov Monastery
Strahov Monastery is famous for the medieval library and it also has a few other religious attractions in the complex - St. Vitus Cathedral in the middle of Prague castle
The visit to the Prague castle complex start with St Vitus Cathedral the centerpiece of the complex - Old Royal Palace Rooms
Second stop on our tour of the castle are the medieval castle rooms including the famous defenestration one - St George Basilica, the oldest church in the castle
We decide to enter historical St George Basilica for a short visit because it is part of our combo ticket - The Golden Lane and lunch
Street lined with charming houses built in the 16th century for the guards of Prague Castle followed by a traditional lunch - Going down on historic Nerudova Street
We descend from the castle via the beautiful Nerudova Street surrounded by magnificent buildings - Charles Bridge, the most famous bridge in Prague
We end the day by crossing the historic Charles Bridge famous for its many statues - St Cyril and Methodius Cathedral and the Dancing House
We start south of the downtown area exploring the historic Cyril and Methodius Cathedral and the scenic Dancing House - Old Town towards Prague Town Hall
We walk in from the west side of the old town admiring the old buildings before visiting the superb Old Town Hall - Old Town Square
From the Old Town Hall we go and explore the large Old Town Square anchored by two major churches on two sides - Maisel Synagogue, the start of our Jewish Quarter tour
The start of our in depth visit to the Jewish Quarter is the Maisel Synagogue part of our combo ticket - The scenic Old Jewish cemetery
Scenic old cemetery home to thousands of tombstones including Rabbi Loew creator of the mythic Golem - Klausen Synagogue, a small, interesting museum
Interesting 17th-century synagogue in the Prague ghetto with exhibits affiliated with the Jewish Museum - The Old-New Synagogue, the home of the Golem
Part of our combo ticket is the Old-New Synagogue the rumored home of the Golem and Europe’s oldest working synagogue - Pinkas Synagogue, a somber monument
Pinkas synagogue holds a sobering Holocaust memorial to nearly 80,000 Jewish victims and it is worth a visit just to understand the amount of lives lost without a good reason - Spanish Synagogue, the exorbitant one
The Spanish Synagogue is the most recent synagogue in the Prague Jewish Town with impressive Moorish interior design influenced by the famous Alhambra - Short exploration of New Town Prague
We end the day tour through Prague with a walk through the New Town area with Cubist and Art Nouveau buildings - Night exploration of Prague with a risque museum
We go for an evening stroll through the downtown area finally seeing the famous clock at the right time and visiting a quite interesting risque museum right next to it - To the famous Sedlec Ossuary
Sedlec Ossuary is about an hour away by train and a major attraction in Kutna Hora, an Unesco World Heritage Site - Sedlec Cathedral, an Unesco WHS, and a leisurely walk to Kutna Hora
The yellow Sedlec Cathedral is close to the Ossuary and worth a visit if in the area given its World Heritage Site status - First time through downtown Kutna Hora to St Barbara Church
After our riverside walk from Sedlec we explore the interesting Kutna Hora downtown area on the way to St Barbara church - Impressive St Barbara’s Cathedral
St Barbara is a spectacular, cathedral-like church decorated with sharp spines, flying buttresses & frescoes - Exploring downtown Kutna Hora more in depth
From St Barbara we return to Kutna Hora downtown train station on the scenic route trying to view all the other interesting sights that we missed - Dinner at the “Two Cats”
We end the busy day with a relaxing and filling dinner at “U Dvou kocek” – The Two Cats restaurant - One last hoorah for Prague downtown
On our last day in Prague we start with a visit to the downtown area to finish the major sights including a famous church with a mummified hand - The really long Wenceslas Square
Wenceslas Square is an unexpectedly long square, almost 1 km long, with beautiful buildings on both sides and anchored by the National Museum - The very expansive National Museum
We spend the afternoon in the National Museum exploring both the old and the new buildings and the many interesting exhibits - University “Politehnica” Bucharest, a blast from the past
A nostalgic tour on a beautiful University campus that we are quite attached to - Bucharest Botanical Garden, finally
The Botanical Garden is a peaceful place and while not as extensive as other Botanical Gardens it is worth a stop to slow down and relax a bit - Obor and Bucharest downtown before flying to Cluj
We spend the last hours in Bucharest before our flight to Cluj by exploring the Obor area where we lived previously and the downtown - Rosia fortified church and an anniversary
Today we are invited and celebrate the birthday of the famous writer Eginald Schlattner held at Rosia fortified church - “Discoteca 90” a retro concert
Today we are invited and attend a 90’s hit concert where formations from that era perform the hits that made them famous - A week exploring Cluj
During our week in Cluj we explore both the old town and more newer areas of the city both with our relatives and alone - First steps in historic Basel
We start our half day in Basel with a walk through town from the train station to the Minster enjoying the sights along the way - Basel Minster, formerly Catholic now Protestant
The Minster of Basel is a highlight of any visit with its location on top of a small hill with nice views over the Rhine and surrounded by beautifully restored plazas and houses - Basel City Hall and return to the train station
The Town Hall really stands out and is worth a visit and from here we are slowly returning to the hotel to pick our luggage and leave Basel - Augusta Raurica, frontier town of the Roman empire
Our only stop on the way to our friends is Augusta Raurica a former Roman frontier town and the best preserved Roman town north of the Alps - Exploring around Zug
Late afternoon after meeting with our friends we explore the area around Zug guided by them stopping at a secluded restaurant - Lucerne, a well preserved medieval city
Due to some issues with our friends we arrive quite late in Lucernse and have only two hours to explore the beautiful downtown area - Morning visit to the Zugerberg
Short morning exploration of the trails on Zugerberg and of the funicular going up top - Afternoon in Zug
We spend an hour in the afternoon exploring downtown Zug and the various historic buildings - Evening in Zurich
In the evening we have a couple hours to explore downtown Zurich before darkness falls and we have to drive to the airport