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Some interesting tours through Croatia and Slovenia
Croatia travel has a bunch of different tours for Croatia, Slovenia and some include Venice. I’m considering the Dalmatian Sunshine tour. At first I thought it was a boat tour with a couple of inland bus excursions. It’s all on … Continue reading
Caution – speed cameras in France are big moneymakers
From France 24. If you are driving in France, you may already know about these. Speed cameras are catching lots of speeding motorists and more cameras are being installed. Slow down! We’re all safer that way.
Heading into the home stretch – Olympic traffic updates for Friday, 10 August
Here is the TfL disruption link for Friday, 10 August. From TfL… 3 days to go: There are only 3 more days before the Olympic Games finish on Sunday evening. Thank you for your support so far; this has helped us get … Continue reading
Let’s try this again – Olympic traffic updates for Wednesday, 8 August
Here is the TfL disruption map for Wednesday, 8 August. There are a few tabs, depending on whether you’re interested in road, rail or Tube info and the maps are very helpful.
How busy is London this month, really?
From France 24. London businesses were concerned that the Olympics would be the only big moneymakers in August and would keep locals away who feared citywide gridlock. They may have been right to worry. Sky-high hotel rates probably don’t help. I … Continue reading
Olympics in London – traffic updates for Sunday, 5 August
This is the last blog post regarding traffic updates for the Olympics. I have been posting links to my emails from TfL (Transport for London) but the links don’t work. The link below leads to the generic getaheadofthegames website and, … Continue reading
Olympics in London – traffic updates for Saturday, 4 August
The latest updates on Olympics-related traffic issues for Saturday, 4 August, mostly in and around London. I’m not paying close attention, but it seems as though the same venues are listed every day, as well as the same slow spots … Continue reading
Watch out, Scotland – English whiskey is coming
From London Independent. An English distillery’s product has just beaten out a bunch of its Scottish competitors in the International Wine and Spirits competition. Cooked up in Norfolk, but the article didn’t name the distillery. Hmmm.
Posted in England, Europe food & wine, not really travel, UK news
Tagged English whiskey, food & wine in Europe, Norfolk whiskey, UK travel
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Chagall exhibition in Moscow
From France 24. An exhibition of Marc Chagall‘s work at Moscow’s Tretyakov Gallery runs through 30 September.
Posted in European art
Tagged Chagall in Moscow, European art news, Tretyakov Gallery
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Hague Masquerade on 31 August, 2012
From DutchNews. The last day of August is the date for the Hague Masquerade, a big fancy dress (costumed) dance party. From what I can find, this is the second more-or-less annual edition of this fascinating event. Another intriguing non-touristy … Continue reading
Tea plantation in Cornwall, England!
From the London Independent. After a recent post about Sri Lanka’s problems with keeping control of their teas, this is an interesting twist – Cornwall, in SW England, has a climate that seems ideal for growing tea. Look for Tregothnan … Continue reading
Olympic traffic and travel updates for Tuesday and Wednesday, 31 July and 1 August
Sorry I skipped posting the Tuesday, 31 July bulletin in a timely fashion. Here’s the one for Wednesday, 1 August.
Multiple weekends of music at the International Music Festival in Český Krumlov
From Prague Post. Český Krumlov’s International Music Festival started last weekend and continues through August 18th, Thursdays thru Saturdays with an occasional Sunday scheduled. Opera, classical music, fun activities for kids and a brewery garden for the grown-ups when they need … Continue reading
Abingdon’s new name – town and firehouse
From the Oxford Mail. Not sure exactly why the name change was implemented, but Abingdon is now Abingdon-on-Thames so the firehouse had to change its name to match. Mark your maps, brains and GPS.
Posted in General magpie travel, not really travel, UK news
Tagged oxford travel, UK travel
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The latest traffic updates and tips for 2012 summer Olympics
According to London Transport, Monday will be one of the busiest for the Games. There getaheadofthegames website will have all the latest. The next few days have the following hotspots, according
Revisiting the White Mountains of New Hampshire, Part 1
The Old Man of the Mountain fell apart in 2003, a victim of thousands of years of weather and an ultimately unsuccessful patch job. This rocky profile on the side of Cannon Mt inspired Nathaniel Hawthorne’s short story, The Great … Continue reading
Virgin Atlantic is updating their fleet
From Virgin Atlantic July newsletter – Virgin is updating its fleet. Click here to watch a speeded up video of the process and find out more.
Medieval gravesite found during tunnel work in Prague
From Prague Post. Archaeologists working near the site of a new tunnel have found a mass grave in Prague dating to the Middle Ages. I wonder if visitors/gawkers will be able to stop by?
Music festival coming in August near Oxford
From Oxford Mail. Chalgrove music festival on the first weekend in August. Sounds like it’ll be a blast (there’s a beer tent, after all).
Upping the speed limit on the Netherland’s widest highway
Night time speed limit may be raised for widest highway in Netherlands.
Get traffic updates for 2012 summer Olympics around the UK
London Transport has a website with current information on traffic issues now that the Olympics activities has begun. There is more to the Olympics rash than the scrum in London over the next couple of weeks. There is also the … Continue reading
Olafur Eliasson’s blackouts at Tate Modern
I saw this artist’s other-worldly Weather Project installation at the Tate Modern several years ago. Now he’s got something different planned for the same museum, Little Sun, beginning on July 28. I hope it runs long enough for me to … Continue reading
Breaking up the lines at customs and immigration at Heathrow
OK, here’s one I didn’t know they needed – separate lines at London Heathrow for incoming visitors depending on whether they need a visa to enter the UK. I don’t know how much difference it will make when multiple flights … Continue reading
weekend craziness in and around London for 21-22 July and beyond
Things are getting wild, with just one week to go before the opening Olympic Games hoopla. Click here to find out about the torch relay that starts in Greenwich at 7.30 am and concludes in Waltham at 7.30 pm this Saturday: … Continue reading
Are you a Morgenmuffel?
From Deutsche Welle’s ongoing feature of weird German words. There are days when I could qualify as a morgenmuffel. How about you?
As the London Olympics approaches, London travel tips
TfL (Transport for London) has some additional thoughts on how to survive the Olympic travel pressures.
Posted in General magpie travel, London travel, UK
Tagged London Olympics tourism, london travel, London Tube, UK travel
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Rugby news from Down Under
OK, so this isn’t news from Europe, but I was in Australia and New Zealand during the inaugural Rugby World Cup in 1987 and I saw John Kirwan play at a club match near Auckland. Phenomenal player. From France 24. … Continue reading
Posted in New Zealand news, not really travel
Tagged John Kirwan, New Zealand rugby news, rugby news
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A cautionary tale for taxi-takers in Europe
I have taken taxis in London (not part of the survey in the article) and Barcelona. In both cases, the meter was on and I feel I was charged fairly, though I didn’t understand the joke on the radio the … Continue reading
Upcoming festivals in Edinburgh
Just my luck that my vacation plans didn’t include checking these out first. The Jazz and Blues fest starts Friday, followed by the Arts festival, the Military Tattoo, Fringe, International Festival, Book Festival. These overlap from early August thru early September. … Continue reading
More travel tips for Germany
From Deutsche Welle… Tips for getting around Germany trains, planes, cars and bikes Favorite foods, tips on tipping and other customs German holidays Social p’s and q’s, recycling, etc.
SuzanneTheTravelMagpie 