Having been to so many amazing, wonderful places, whittling down my list to my top ten has taken quite a bit of work and thought. Out of all my 80 countries I have been to, there are just five I would never go back to again. I am sometimes reluctant to share my favourites, because it can lead to a war of words on why I chose one place and not another! My criteria are based around culture, food, ease of travel, safety and peace, great nature and people. So with that caveat, here are…
Germany
Tag Archives for Germany.
And Russia makes 77
I am filling in my globe with all of the countries, territories and regions I have visited. With the addition of Russia this week, I have made it to 77 countries. I only count a country if I have left the airport. So while, I have transited through Doha and Johannesburg airports, I do not include Qatar and South South Africa in my tally. I have been to about two thirds of the countries in both Asia and Europe and exactly half of all the nations in the Oceania region of the planet. African exploration…
#Auschwitz, the most sobering place on the planet
Remembering my visit Auschwitz. Over 1.1 million men, women and children lost their lives here. Verdict: My Overall Rating: 100% Global Ranking: Listed Tenth Museum in the world by TripAdvisor. In 1979, the concentration camp was designated as one of the UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites. Why it should be visited: History, Negatives: Crowds Would I return?: Yes. I would choose a period that is as “off seasons” as possible. It is a dilemma about the crowds because in reality, every human should come here. In fact, all politicians should come and see this place (and Hiroshima), before taking…
The 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month
At 11 am on 11th November 1918 the guns of the Western Front fell silent after more than four years of World War One. 98 years ago, my Grandfather was in the thick of it. Turkey signed an armistice at the end of October 1918, Austria-Hungary followed on 3rd November. The German Kaiser abdicated on 9th November, 1918 and on 11th November, 1918 an armistice was signed and the war was over. Between nine and 13 million people perished in this war. Many still have no resting place. My Grandfather was injured twice in World…
Reviewing 2014-How do you measure your travel?
As I reflect on 2014, I pondered how do I measure my travel? 1. By Kilometres, miles or points? In 2014 I covered: 3000km (2000 miles) by train 4000km (2500 miles) by bus 12000km by rental car (7000 miles) 124,754 (77.5k) by air to or from 22 airports. I flew four new airlines bringing my total number of air carriers to 91 airlines! The new ones were: Burma’s Air KBZ, Bangkok Airways Finnair (review coming Tuesday) and Germania 2. The Goals I achieved? In 2014, I completed my first (and last) marathon in Berlin, Germany hiked across…
MH 17 Revised Passenger List
Malaysia Airlines has revised its passengers list after verifying a further 21 of the 41 passengers whose nationality could not initially be verified. These passengers were previously unidentified as they were in transit, and had not entered passport control in Amsterdam. The new breakdown on passengers is: Australia: 27 Belgium: 4 Canada: 1 Germany: 4 Indonesia: 12 Malaysia: 44 Netherlands: 173 New Zealand: 1 Philippines: 3 United Kingdom: 9 Related Posts Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 [updated] Malaysia Airlines Passengers by Nationality
Olt Express Halts
In December 2012, after losing two international contracts, OLT Express Germany announced major cuts to its network, staffing and fleet as part of a reorganisation. It ceased all operations on 27 January 2013 after talks with its Dutch owner Panta Holdings about a reorganisation plan failed. The company filed for bankruptcy on January 29. Panta Holdings also owns Denim Airways and the leasing company Mass Lease. OLT Express was founded in 1958. It took over part of the insolvent Cirrus Airlines last year. Bremen, Germany was its main base with flights to Dresden, Saarbrücken, Münster / Osnabrück and Karlsruhe / Baden-Baden – and a…
Hip Hamburg
I have been wanting to get to Hamburg for twelve years. The city has eluded me until just two weeks ago when I hopped on a train for the 250km (158 mile) trip from Berlin and made Hamburg the 171st city I have visited. This Northern Germany city is 610 miles (380 miles) from Munich and 365 km (227 miles) from Frankfurt. Aesthetics Getting off the train in Hamburg, I was struck by two things. Firstly, how flat Hamburg is and secondly how much water the city has. Officially, known as Free Harbour City of…
Trip Report: Hamburg -Berlin ICE
My rail trip from Berlin to Hamburg was a disappointment with a late, underwhelming train that had stinky lavatories. I hoped the return would be better. Booking- 7 out of 10 I found bhan.com to be a little more complex than I felt it needed to be. German Railways want you to know every single possible piece of information before you commit to buying your ticket. Conditions of travel, what hotels can be booked and even what platform your train will be leaving from are all thrust upon you. There were several choices of ticket delivery including MMS…
Wild About Berlin
Berlin Rocks! Every time I return, I feel the city gets better and better. In fact I rate Berlin the second best city in the world. Established as a cultural capital of a united Germany, Berlin became home to artists, intellectuals and hedonists who enjoyed its freedom before becoming the centre of Naziism in the 1930s. Hitler hated Berlin and longed to see it completely rebuilt architecturally -and socially. He almost got his wish as the city was 80% bombed in World War Two. For most of the rest of the twentieth century, Berlin operated as two separate cities split by walls…
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