Bucharest has a great botanical garden – this is a country that really seems to love its rose gardens. Also taking in a production of Verdi’s Don Carlo at the State Opera.

Bucharest’s massive parliament was originally designed to bring a very large, centralized communist government together under one roof. It was another five years after the revolution before it was completed and used to support the emerging democracy. With 1100 rooms it is the second largest building in the world and the heaviest building in the…

It wasn’t so very long ago that Bucharest found its independence from Ceaușescu, but its roots go back much deeper than that. it’s a very walkable city with many different styles that all seem to come together to give the city a personality. The traffic can be intense but there are also plenty of leafy…

Catching up on my blogging. In my last few days in Sofia I had the chance to continue to explore the city but also to see some of the new buildings appearing in the area. This building caused me to do a double take. The next time you call for customer support you may be…

If there is a symbol of Sofia or perhaps even Bulgaria itself it’s the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral. With construction starting in 1882, when complete it was a whopping 31,000 square feet with the capacity for 5000 worshippers.

I wasn’t sure what to expect from Sofia. It’s been a very pleasant surprise. Having been inhabited since 7000 BC, it’s a city with a lot of history. I enjoyed seeing how the different eras mix and come together to form this vibrant city. St Sofia Church – the city’s namesake cathedral with the remnants…

My last full day in Budapest so it was a chance to see St. Stephen’s Basilica. I also had the chance to take in a production of Swan Lake at the beautiful State Opera House. Just a stone’s throw from my apartment is the famous ruin bars. Initially created in buildings that were slated to…

Back on the Buda side to visit St Stephen’s Hall one of the opulent rooms restored after being bombed out in WWII, then being converted to more utilitarian spaces during communism. Over the last few decades Hungary has worked to restore the castle and its many past treasures.

The rain cleared away and under sunny skies the city sparkles. I spent some time on the Buda side of the river exploring the banks of the Danube and some of the historical sites,

It was a rainy start to my time in Budapest but the city is still very grand. One of my first stops was a poignant memorial, the shoes on the Danube. It marks the spot some 23,000 people were massacred (most of them Jewish) during the fascist regime. The rain provided a chance to visit…