TROY The city of Troy, which was famous throughout history, was founded before 3000 BCE and ranks today as one of the world’s best known mythical cities. The city once enjoyed a seaside location but as the Karamenderes and Dümrek streams filled the port with silt, it now lies 6 kilometers inland. The signs of a fire, dating to the 13th century BCE, are thought to belong to the period […]
Rilan luostari on yksi tunnetuimmista ellei tunnetuin Bulgarian nähtävyyksistä. Se on perustettu noin tuhat vuotta sitten. Luostari on nimetty paikalla asuneen erakon, Pyhän Rilan Iivanan, mukaan. Vanhin tallella oleva rakennus on Hreljan torni, joka seisoo luostaripihalla. Se on 1300-luvulta. Pääosa rakennuksista on 1800-luvulta. Joka tapauksessa hieno paikka ja varmasti käynnin arvoinen. Rila on edelleen toimiva luostari. Luostari sijaitsee kauniissa vuorisolassa, joka jo sinällään on näkemisen arvoinen. The Rila Monastery is […]
Tonava on Euroopan pisin joki, joka alkaa Saksan Schwartzwaldista ja kulkee 2850 kilometriä Keski- ja Kaakkois-Euroopan läpi Mustalle merelle. Sen varrelle osuvat muunmuassa Euroopan pääkaupungit Wien, Bratislava, Budapest, Belgrad ja Bukarest. Tonava oli pitkään raja Rooman valtakunnan ja barbaarien välillä ja myöhemmin Ottomaani-valtakunnan pohjoisraja.
The Danube is the longest river in Europe with its source in the Black Forest (Germany). It flows 2850 kilometers through Central and Southeastern Europe to the Black Sea. The European capital cities Vienna, Bratislava, Budapest, Belgrade and Bucharest are all on the Danube. The Danube was the northern border of the Roman Empire for centuries and roughly a thousand years later the northern border of the Ottoman Empire.
There is a third group of seven churches on the UNESCO World Heritage list. These are the Painted Monasteries of Bucovina in northeastern Romania. The outside walls of the churches are covered in colourful frescoes depicting scenes from the Bible as well as stories of local saints. These churches are from the 15th and 16th centuries. The frescoes away from the sun are clearly better preserved than the ones on […]
Wooden Churches The northwestern region of Maramures is known for its traditional wooden churches. These were built starting from the 17th century and are still being built today. You can still also see traditional houses built from wood in the villages. The roofs are wooden tiles and wooden tiles also sometimes cover the walls. Maramuresin puukirkot Maramuresin alueen puukirkot ovat hieno esimerkki paikallisesta kirvesmiestaidosta. Kirkkoja on vielä jäljellä satakunta, joista […]
12
Apr
Romania has a lot of churches. Some of them can be grouped by architectural style and geographical area and the most commonly used groups are: the fortified churches of Transylvania, the wooden churches of Maramures and the painted monasteries of Budovica. Fortified Churches of Transylvania South-eastern Transylvania still has about 150 fortified churches from the 13th to the 16th centuries. These were built for defence against the Cumans and Ottomans. […]
20
Mar
In Prague we found a nice camping ground in Troja. It was in the backyard of a single family house with all the necessary facilities including wifi. We spent two nights here. It was within easy reach of the centre of Prague by tram and close to the river Vltava. We took the tram to visit Prague and walked around the old town. The Vltava river runs through the city […]
15
Mar
We arrived in Leipzig March 10th around noon and parked the motorhome behind the main railway station. From the railway station a bus took us onto the main square. The church where Johan Sebastian Bach was ”Kapellmeister” for over 25 years, St. Thomas Church, is just around the corner. Bach’s statue stands outside the church. Off the market square, in the Mädler Passage, is the Auerbachs Keller where Goethe is […]
7
Mar
We arrived in Travemunde a few hours late at 10:30pm on Wednesday night (March 2nd). It was quite foggy and we got lost on the way to our intended parking spot so it was already 2am when we arrived. After a quiet night we woke up to the call of the black woodpecker. Our first target was the old town of Schwerin in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. It is the capital of the […]
21
Feb
Our departure is imminent. Tomorrow the apartment should be empty and we move into our motorhome. Another six nights in the motorhome before the ferry leaves. We still need to have the fixed LPG bottle installed before our departure. We should definitely also think of a name for the motorhome.