Header photo – Zurich riverside/ Border photo – street cobblestones, Prague
“Travel teaches toleration.” – Benjamin Disraeli
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Category Archives: All Suzanne’s travel essays
A blog update from one very lazy blogger
I think about writing something for the blog very often. Ah… if wishes were horses. Just a notice that the HOT LINK list on the right has been updated (finally) for 2018. In fact, a few of the links are … Continue reading
Another eclectic trek around Europe – Part One
The older I get, the harder it is to put together a trip to Europe when there is no big-deal (to me) event which self-selects a range of dates as a starting point. A couple of years ago, I was … Continue reading
Monday night jazz in Hartford, CT
Only one photo here but this is a definite highlight of summertime in central CT, USA. For six Mondays between mid-July and mid-August, the rolling lawn of Bushnell Park, behind the State House becomes the perfect amphitheatre for this series … Continue reading
Falkirk, Scotland beyond the Kelpies
As I described in a (very) old post, I went to Falkirk specifically to see Andy Scott’s Kelpies sculptures and perhaps some of his other works which can be found in a variety of locations around the town. In the … Continue reading
Xmas rats on my dashboard
I know, this barely counts as blog-worthy but hey, it’s timely, no? These two critters came from IKEA many years ago. They started life sitting on the top of my office cubicle and, somehow, somewhy, they began getting dressed up … Continue reading
Posted in All Suzanne's travel essays, not really travel
Tagged dashboard rats, Ikea rats
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A day trip to Mostar
I’ve been working on this post on and off for a couple of years and could have sworn that I’d posted it already. Oops! I also confess that it’s longer than more recent posts; in any event, here it is. … Continue reading
Best day on planet earth
What follows is my submission to the Rough Guides travel writing contest. The bolded title is one of three themes we could choose to write about. The piece itself is 492 words. The max allowed is 500 words, the min, … Continue reading
Visiting Richard III in Leicester
If you are an Anglophile and/or history buff (both of which I am) and you haven’t read The King’s Grave, by Philippa Langley and Michael Jones, put it on your reading list. Ever since Richard III – or what was left … Continue reading
Strahov Monastery libraries
Taking baby steps to get back into blogging… Fans of BBC Musketeers should recognize these places. In that series, these two rooms play parts of King Louis’s palace. In reality, both are libraries or ‘halls’ at Strahov Monastery in Prague, … Continue reading
Posted in All Suzanne's travel essays, All Suzanne's travels, Czech Republic, Eastern Europe, European art, European museums, Prague travel
Tagged Musketeers at Strahov, Musketeers in Prague, Philosophical Hall Strahov, Prague art, Prague churches, Prague travel, Strahov Monastery, Theological Hall Strahov
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The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo
Tattoo – a corruption of a Dutch phrase commanding a pub to close for the night so the soldiers can be sent back to barracks. The word also was used to allude to military music practice and now refers to elaborate … Continue reading
Schlepping around Europe October 2015
Sorry, Folks! Once again, I was too cheap to replace my crummy tablet with something more useful so I’m having to rely on hotel wi-fi, which is sometimes excellent (last week in Zurich… gotta love that Swiss precision and efficiency!) … Continue reading
Some online resources on gardens in the south of France
In response to a reader request for recommendations on gardens in the south of France, my only home resource, Secret Gardens of France, listed mostly private properties, almost all of which were near Lyon or farther north, so I did some … Continue reading
Euro news from Prague Post – drink more cava
Not only did Prague Post publish photos of their tree lighting in Old Town Square – making me pine for the trip I took to see their Xmas markets a couple of years ago (see Facebook page) – they also … Continue reading
Rolling along with London’s Bond exhibit
I came to the James Bond films a little late in life. Much as I loved Roger Moore as The Saint back in the 60s, I didn’t really latch onto Bond until Pierce Brosnan took over. That said, I sought … Continue reading
A surprise at US Passport Control
To some extent I expect – or at least look for – what’s different when I revisit foreign destinations, especially London. I try to spend at least a few days there very year and, at the very least, make time … Continue reading
Thoughts on Europe from a departure lounge
Nothing too deep or complicated; just remembering where my head was at while waiting to board my flight from Edinburgh to Berlin last month. The overhead flight board displayed a list of departing planes. Oh, the places you can go … Continue reading
Three and a half nights of London theatre – Part 2
So now we come to the whole reason why I crossed the pond in the first place… I was more than ready for Wolf Hall when Monday night rolled around, probably one of the most anticipated nights of theatre I’ve … Continue reading
Three and a half nights of London theatre – Part 1
London is my favorite place on the planet, not least because it’s where I can OD on theater. This time, I had to book way in advance to be sure of tickets to the two plays the RSC has mounted adapting … Continue reading
Magpie update – August / September 2014
In many ways, summer is possibly my least favorite season. Sure, there is no snow to shovel and late sunsets mean more time to be out and about. But, especially in terms of travel, summer is when I’m most likely … Continue reading
Posted in All Suzanne's travel essays, All Suzanne's travels, Archaeology in Europe, England, Europe food & wine, European festivals, European music, Germany travel, London travel
Tagged Berlin travel, Broch of Gurness, Edinburgh Castle, Edinburgh Tattoo, Falkirk Scotland, Gatwick Yotel, Hilary Mantel, Kelpies, London arts, London theatre, National Theatre London, Orkney Islands, PBS, Scotland culture, Scotland travel, Skara Brae, summer travel, Yotel
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Reflections on D-Day and Dad
Here in the USA, we remember our veterans, especially on particular American holidays. There is Memorial Day at the end of May and Veterans’ Day on November 11th. The first of these started life as Decoration Day after the American … Continue reading
Celebrating Queen’s/King’s Day/Night in the Netherlands
In 2013, the annual celebration of Queen Beatrix’s birthday at the end of April became a joint Queen’s/King’s Day all over the Netherlands. It was to be the last Queen’s Day (Koninginnedag) and the first of many King’s Days (Koningsdag), … Continue reading
Keflavik’s Rainbow and an egg
There are two large outdoor sculptures at Keflavik airport in Iceland. They stand next to the terminal building, so are unmissable whether coming to the airport or heading out towards Reykjavik. The Rainbow is the work of Rúrí, an Icelandic artist and was … Continue reading
WWI unexploded shell goes off near Ypres, Belgium
From several sources a couple of weeks ago. Unexploded munitions from both World Wars lurk, barely buried, particularly in northern regions of Europe. Sadly, this is not a rare occurrence even a century after that first conflict. The reason I … Continue reading
Secret streets near Paddington
There are tons of cozy little streets all over London known as “mews”. On my daily stroll to Paddington station from my hotel last year, I passed a couple of these and decided I would looove to live on one … Continue reading
This is silly! Magpie blog sets new record
For the almost three year life of this blog, daily hits to the site have numbered in the single and low double digits most of the time. Statistics automatically generated by WordPress include the daily numbers of hits and showed … Continue reading
More to Iceland than Northern Lights
I admit that the first two reasons for my trip to Iceland were to see the Aurora Borealis in a fantastic setting. As it’s turned out, the Lights have been disappointing. Solar activity that generates the phenomenon takes two to … Continue reading
Posted in All Suzanne's travel essays, All Suzanne's travels, Iceland travel
Tagged Iceland travel
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Higgins Armory Museum closes and an old memory reawakens
The Higgins Armory Museum, in Worcester, Massachusetts, has been in existence for more than eighty years. It is basically one man’s collection of armor, weapons, clothing, stained glass and banners in a reproduction Gothic setting spread across several floors in … Continue reading
Souvenirs from King’s / Queen’s Day in Amsterdam 2013
King’s Day / Queen’s Day in Amsterdam in 2013 was a once-in-a-lifetime combination affair – the reigning queen stepped down and her son became king. Two for the price of one. Despite having no vested interest in the ceremonies, I … Continue reading
Plitvice Lakes, Croatia – a slide show
I love cities, but there is a wealth of natural beauty in northern Croatia at Plitvice Lakes National Park. Waterfalls, gorges, rock faces and caves, lakes and ponds of all sizes in vistas large and small make for an exhilarating trek. … Continue reading
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