Having left Paris on Friday we took the train an hour north to the city of Lille. Sitting just 10 miles from the Belgium border, it is the tenth largest city in France with approx a million citizens and was the original capital of Flanders. We had been drawn here, en route to Belgium, byContinue reading “Touring Western Europe -France -My New Friend Lille”
Category Archives: Adventure
Guide to Versailles and Chantilly: A Tale of Two Châteaux
Whilst in Paris we have visited both Versailles and Chantilly. What a totally different experience! This is certainly a tail of two chateaux!The aim of this post is to hopefully enable you to decide which property you would prefer to visit assuming you have a choice. Versailles is of course a Palace and not aContinue reading “Guide to Versailles and Chantilly: A Tale of Two Châteaux”
Touring Western Europe -France-Old Man Notre Dame
We arrived in Paris on Tuesday after a 7 hr train journey from Barcelona. Having booked our tickets before we even left the UK, we had secured first class tickets for a minimal increase on the second class price. On arrival on the train we discovered that there was very little difference between the two typesContinue reading “Touring Western Europe -France-Old Man Notre Dame”
Barcelona: Saved by Modernist Architecture
Whilst I left Barcelona feeling as if it had sold it’s soul for the tourist dollar ( see my previous post published on April 11th) I also left appreciating and acknowledging that the city has some rare and beautiful modern architecture. You cannot help but be in awe of Gaudi’s work, Barcelona’s most famous ModernistContinue reading “Barcelona: Saved by Modernist Architecture”
The Instagram Society- Am I Too Old to Understand?
Despite being a midlife adventurer I have some understanding of social media. Both of my children are in their mid to late twenties and as such social media started to really take off when they were in their teens. However the more recent trends really have me flummoxed, trends that I’d love to ignore butContinue reading “The Instagram Society- Am I Too Old to Understand?”
The Valencia Fallas Festival
As part of our explorations of this wonderful city we visited the Museo Fallero or Fallas Museum. From the outside the museum looks fairly small and unassuming. It costs just 2 euros per person to enter. The attraction for us stemmed from a previous visit to New Orleans where you can visit Mardi Gras WorldContinue reading “The Valencia Fallas Festival”
Valencia, It Just Has It All!
So what else did we see or do which made us want to stay in this wondrous city? We took a break from the Jardin de Turin to visit the Museum Faller. This museum is all about the art of carnival sculpture and to which I am dedicating a separate article on Tuesday because itContinue reading “Valencia, It Just Has It All!”
Touring Western Europe -Spain-Valencia, Please Can I Stay?
Wow! Oh my goodness! This is it! We have been looking for a city that makes us want to return and actually try life as a local for three months and this could be it! I am so excited………………… On Wednesday, we travelled from Granada back to Madrid Atocha before boarding our train to Valencia,Continue reading “Touring Western Europe -Spain-Valencia, Please Can I Stay?”
Touring Western Europe -Spain- Granada
We arrived by train into the city of Granada on Sunday Afternoon. At the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains, but only one hour by car from the Mediterranean coast, it is of course famous for the Alhambra Palace. The Alhambra is one of the most revered monuments of Islamic architecture and one of theContinue reading “Touring Western Europe -Spain- Granada”
Granada -A View to Remember
In modern day society it’s sometimes hard not to be a tourist. As I’ve mentioned before all the key sights want you to book tickets in advance for a specific day/time. It’s lovely, therefore, to sometimes just to throw away the guidebook and plans and to take time out to wander at will and that’sContinue reading “Granada -A View to Remember”
A Midlife Adventure 