14-day trip to Europe
14-day trip to Europe
Hello, welcome to my new blog. I recently travelled to Europe, one of my dream destinations. This blog is a comprehensive account of my 14-day trip through 11 European countries. Let me take you through my travels and discover beautiful places here.
Days
Day 1: Arrival in Paris
Arrival in Paris
On day 1, we left for Paris and arrived late night. We hired a cab and checked-in to our hotel for a good rest.
Visit
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Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG)
Stay
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B&B HOTEL Paris Grand Roissy CDG Aéroport
Day 2: Disneyland Paris
France - Disneyland Paris
This was the actual day where the trip began. My childhood dream was to visit Disneyland at least once in my life. And that dream was going to be fulfilled. Today we were going to visit Disneyland in Paris. I had already booked tickets online, so I did not have to face the hassle to buy tickets there. There are multiple ways to reach the park. From the city centre, there are buses and trains to the park. From the airport too, there is a bus and a train plying regularly. However, since we stayed on the outskirts of the city, we booked a cab to the venue. After a ride of almost an hour, we reached the place. The excitement was at its highest. There are 2 parks here – Disneyland Park and Walt Disney studios. There are multiple ticketing options available. One can buy tickets to both parks on the same day or can buy tickets for both parks on separate days. We chose Disneyland Park. There are multiple zones here - Main Street U.S.A., Frontierland, Adventureland, Fantasyland, Discoveryland. Each zone offers a plethora of rides, shows and excitement. A parade featuring beloved characters like Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and Goofy takes place three times a day. There is music and dance and it is a treat to watch. Apparently, there is also fireworks show in the evening, however, we could not witness it as we returned to our hotel. It was a tiring day but still my favourite day with all the wonderful rides and shows. In the evening, we took a cab back to our hotel. Just a note, the trip further on from here was a group trip. We joined the whole group once we were back from Disneyland. After a good dinner, we headed for a good night’s rest.
Visit
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Disneyland Paris
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Eat
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Casa de Coco – Restaurante de Familia
Stay
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B&B HOTEL Paris Grand Roissy CDG Aéroport
Photos
Day 3: Paris City tour
France - Paris City tour
The next day we were off to the city tour of Paris. After a good breakfast, we left for the city. After an hour, we reached our first stop, the Eiffel tower. There was a wee bit of que for the entrance. However, after a half hour wait in the queue, we went inside. So, there are 3 levels in the Eiffel tower. The first level is 57 m from the ground. The second is at 120m and the top floor is at 300m from the ground. The second level offers more spectacular views than the top floor. To reach the top floor, one must change the elevator at the second level. Great views welcome you at each floor and it was an amazing experience. We were back down soon, and we were off to our lunch. After lunch, it was time for an orientation tour of Paris city. We passed through the Invalid point (Tomb of Napoleon), the French Parliament, the Notre Dame Cathedral, the Orsay Museum and the Louvre Museum. The tour ended at the Seine River, where our next activity, a cruise along the river, began. We passed through multiple architectural structures and we were able to capture panoramic pictures of the Eiffel tower. After an hour’s ride, we got a pit stop at the Paris Opera house, where we could shop for perfumes and chocolates. We were soon back on the bus to our hotel and dinner on our way. That ended our day in France.
Visit
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Eiffel Tower
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Arc de Triomphe
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Tomb of Napoleon
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SeineRiverCruise
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Bateaux-Mouches
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Eat
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Welcome India
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Dawat
Stay
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B&B HOTEL Paris Grand Roissy CDG Aéroport
Photos
Day 4: Arrival in the Netherlands
Netherlands - Madurodam and Amsterdam
After breakfast at the hotel, we started out early on our journey the next day towards the Netherlands. The time taken to reach Amsterdam from Paris is about 6 hours. It was a long journey. We had our lunch midway at Antwerp and continued our journey. Our first stop in the Netherlands was Madurodam at the Hague. Madurodam is a miniature park with small sized replicas of major structures in the Netherlands. The park is named after George Maduro, who resisted the Nazis during World War II. His father constructed this park to honour his son with the help of the architect S.J.Bouma. The park holds several replicas like the parliament, airport, tulip gardens, harbours, train stations, windmills etc. It is a must visit in the Netherlands. From here, we reached Amsterdam. We had some leisure time for shopping and exploring Amsterdam city, especially the city centre, the dam square. Souvenir shops, cheese shops and cafes lined up the streets as we explored a bit. It was then time for our next activity, canal cruise. Amsterdam is a city which is beneath the sea level and hence is filled with canals throughout. A boat ride in these canals shows the history and the beautiful structures in the city. One advantage of traveling in Europe is the late sunset, often around 8 PM. So, we get more than sufficient time to explore places. After the canal cruise, we checked into our hotel in Amsterdam for a good rest.
Visit
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Madurodam
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Amsterdam
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Dam Square
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Lovers canal cruise Anne Frank
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Eat
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McDonald's
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ibis Schiphol Amsterdam Airport
Stay
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ibis Schiphol Amsterdam Airport
Photos
Day 5: Brussels and Luxembourg
Belgium - Brussels and Luxembourg - Luxembourg
From Amsterdam, we started our 4-hour journey to Brussels, the capital city of Belgium. Brussels is known for its architecture. The attraction here is the Grand place, shown in the movie PK. A small fountain, Manneken Pis, is another attraction, depicting a small boy urinating. It is said that the Nazis had captured his parents and were about to capture this boy when he urinated in the place conveying that the place belonged to him and not the Nazis. Another similar monument is the Circulus Monument. It is believed that if you hover over the body of the Circulus statue, your wish will be fulfilled. Also, Belgium is often credited as the birthplace of French fries. So, do not miss to try them here. The taste cannot be explained; it can only be experienced. Just a note, this is the birthplace of Tintin, the detective cartoon character. After our lunch in Brussels, we moved on to our next destination, a small but rich country, Luxembourg. The Luxembourg valley lies with a gorge and is a beautiful place. Luxembourg is one of the richest countries in the world. This is due to the highest percent of income tax levied on its residents. However, it does offer free transportation (bus and tram), free education and free health service. It is a wonderful place to settle down. We had our dinner here and checked into our hotels for a night out.
Visit
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Brussels
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Grand-Place
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Manneken Pis
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Eat
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WAY TO INDIA
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Restaurant Swagat
Stay
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Ibis Luxembourg Sud
Photos
Day 6: Black Forest and Rhine Falls
Germany - Black Forest and Switzerland - Rhine Falls
Our next destination was towards Germany – the Black Forest. The Black Forest is so called due to the tall trees in the region covering the German Alps. During World War 2, the soldiers used to hide here in the forest region. Due to the tall trees, very minimal light used to pass through. Hence the name – Black Forest. Here, pine trees are very common. And in these tall trees, are several cuckoos present. Inspired by the cuckoo sounds and the abundance of pine trees, locals crafted exquisite cuckoo clocks. The clocks are famous and precious too. The intricate designs and the precision make them so tempting. From admiring the cuckoo clocks (and some shopping too), we continued to our next stop, the Rhine Falls. The Rhine falls is the largest and the most powerful waterfall in Europe. The Rhine falls are formed on the Rhine River and situated in Switzerland, just as you cross the border between Germany and Switzerland. The falls is 150m wide and 23m high. There are boat tours where one can access the falls close by. It's an amazing experience on the boat ride. After the ride and clicking some beautiful pictures, we rested our day and checked into our hotel in Lucerne.
Visit
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Black Forest
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Steigenhaus
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Rhine Falls
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Eat
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Steigenhaus
Stay
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Holiday Inn Express Luzern - Neuenkirch
Photos
Day 7: Mt.Titlis and Lucerne
Switzerland - Mt. Titlis and Lucerne
Who doesn’t like Switzerland? The green pastures, the snowy mountains, the foggy mornings, the cool lakes, milky chocolates, precise watches what not. Swiss was and is my favourite destination till date and it stayed true to its hype. We stayed for 3 nights in Switzerland. And those 2-3 days were the best. We had already had our first sighting of Switzerland with the Rhine falls the previous day. We were moving on to our next place – again one of my bucket list places – Mount Titlis. We started from Lucerne and reached Engelberg which is about a 45 mins journey. From Engelberg, you need to catch multiple vehicles to reach the peak of Titlis. First up is a funicular which clips a steep climb and reaches one of the sub-levels. From here, you need to catch a cable car which takes you to another level. Again, from the third level, catch another cable car to reach the fourth level. Here, hop onto a revolving cable car – yes you read it right – to reach the destination. The revolving cable car is a wonder as you get the 360-degree view of the snow-covered mountains whilst standing at the same place. Enjoying an ice cream at -1 degree Celsius was a unique experience. Once you reach the top, there are many activities. Glacier cave, Ice Flyer, Ice Grid are some of them. Glacier cave is a cave made of ice and is a museum type structure. Ice Grid is a wire-held bridge. You walk and cross-over the bridge to get to the Ice Flyer. This is another cable car like activity, which takes you down the slope and provides mesmerising views of the Alps around. Atop, there is a photo of Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol from Dilwale Dulhania le Jayenge movie. There are other activities too here like zip lining, boating on the Trubsee lake, skiing, ice skating, ledging. Also, there are multiple restaurants at Trubsee (a middle station) and atop the hill providing multiple cuisine options including Indian. After having a wonderful time at the top, it was time to descend. We took the same route via 3 cable cars and a funicular and finally we were back at Engelberg. Our day was not yet complete. We moved to Lucerne, a beautiful town with a huge lake. We stopped her first for the Lion Monument. The monument depicts a dying lion with a spear stabbed to its stomach. This monument commemorates the French Revolution, which led to the end of the monarchy and the birth of the republic. Although this happened in France, this monument was constructed here to honour that revolution. After this, we had quite some time for shopping. Swiss is known for its watches, cheese, chocolates and Lucerne has multiple shops and cafes for shopping all of these. We did some shopping, and we were off to the final activity of the day. A cruise on the lake of Lucerne with spellbinding views of the Alps capped off a beautiful day. An hour-long cruise filled with music, dance, DJ and fun was truly like an icing on the cake. We reached our hotel and were off to bed for a much-needed rest.
Visit
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Titlis
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Titlis Glacier
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Titlis cable car station
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Engelberg
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Lucerne
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Lake Lucerne
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Lion Monument
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Eat
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Alpstubli am Trübsee
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Holiday Inn Express Luzern - Neuenkirch
Stay
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Holiday Inn Express Luzern - Neuenkirch
Photos
Day 8: Interlaken and Jungfrau
Switzerland - Interlaken and Jungfrau
Another fun filled day awaited us in Switzerland. We left our hotel in the morning to another beautiful place, Interlaken. A small town located between two lakes is Interlaken, a name given so due to its location. It is a beautiful town exemplified by many bollywood movies especially Dilwale Dulhaniya le Jayenge. To honour this, the Swiss government has installed a bronze statue of Yash Chopra for bringing many more Indian tourists to Switzerland via his movies. After a quick sightseeing, we left for our main destination for the day, Jungfrau. Jungfrau, or young lady in German, is one of the tallest peaks in Switzerland. It's also called the top of Europe. To reach the top, first one must reach the village Grindelwald. Here, one can catch a cable car, the longest cable car in the world, to reach another point Eigergletscher. From here, one must catch a train, a cog wheel train. It is one of the highest railways in the world. A 10 min ride on the train takes you to Jungfrau. The peak is 11,416 feet above sea level and the temperature was -5 degrees. Here again, there are multiple activities like skiing, snow ledging, ice skating etc. There is a glacier view as well. However, unlike Mt. Titlis, one must be more careful here as the oxygen supply is less. Too many activities lead to oxygen deficiency and dizziness. There are restaurants and coffee shops here, including the Indian restaurant Bollywood. There are shops too; Lindt has its highest shop here. We did some chocolate shopping here and then left the venue back to our hotel. Another fun-filled day had come to an end and it was time to leave Switzerland as we moved on our journey.
Visit
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Interlaken
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Grindelwald Terminal
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Jungfraujoch
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Eat
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Restaurant Bollywood
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Holiday Inn Express Luzern - Neuenkirch
Stay
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Holiday Inn Express Luzern - Neuenkirch
Photos
Day 9: Liechtenstein and Munich
Liechtenstein - Vaduz and Germany - Munich
And so, we left Switzerland, and the first stop was a small country, Liechtenstein. It is a small monarchy, with a population of around 33000, led by the prince of Liechtenstein and supported by Switzerland on the economic and military front. The capital is Vaduz. First thing one notices here is how peaceful the country is. The place is known for its wine, apples and winter sports. We arrived at Vaduz and undertook a tram ride. The tram takes you through the streets of Vaduz, showing the important landmarks like the castle, the football stadium, the university etc. You also see the Rhine River, apple orchard and the vineyard along the way. One can also get the passport stamped here. After our lunch, we started another long journey to Germany. Our destination in Germany was Munich. Munich is the capital of the Bawarian region. Munich is renowned for its automotive industry, with brands like BMW and Mercedes. Munich, often called the Beer Capital, boasts over 20,000 breweries. We visited one such brewery, Hofbrauhaus. It is one of the oldest breweries. As we visited on the Friday, the place was brimming with people and live music was played too. It was a sight to watch for. The place is near to Marienplatz and is worth visiting. Next, we dropped by Marienplatz. It is a central square in the city centre and is a happening place. It is also a shopping place. A must visit place here is the Glockenspiel in the tower of the New Town Hall. Here, at 5pm every day, the bells start ringing and the dolls start dancing. In the 19th century, King Ludwig II was the king of Bawaria. The town hall now was his palace called the Nymphenburg palace. His wedding was announced at 5pm and since then the tower clock with the dancing dolls creates a spectacle every day. After a long day, we headed to our hotel in Munich for a good rest.
Visit
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Vaduz
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Munich
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Marienplatz
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Hofbräuhaus München
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Eat
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Schlössle Mahal
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Restaurant Suhag
Stay
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ibis München City Süd
Photos
Day 10: Salzburg, Swarovski and Innsbruck
Austria - Salzburg, Swarovski and Innsbruck
We left Germany and entered another country, Austria. The first city here was my favourite city, Salzburg. Salzburg lies on the banks of the Salz river. There is also a salt mine on the outskirts, which the city is named after. Salzburg is the birthplace of the renowned composer, Mozart. We had a walking tour in the city where we passed through the birth house of Mozart, the Salzburg castle, Residenzplatz (main square for fairs and shops, also has a tower clock and a church), Mozartplatz (a square with the statue of Mozart), Straatsbrucke (a bridge over the river Salz where many love locks can be locked), University of music and the Mirabel gardens (a beautiful garden with fountains, floral displays and a popular church for weddings). The city is very beautiful and calm; it nests among the Austrian alps, so the temperature is similar to Switzerland. After lunch here, we started to our next destination. This was another special place, where probably most girls would love to visit. A place where jewellery is created with the use of crystals. Yes, it is Swarovski. We visited the Swarovski factory at Wattens. Here, a man-made waterfall with water spouted out from the mouth of a man welcomes you. As you enter, you first pass the museum where a lot of structures, 3-D light art, snow structures, monuments etc made from crystals are showcased. There is a shop as well where artistic jewellery is sold. After some shopping and lovely crystal sightings, we moved to our next place, our last for the day. Innsbruck, another small city in Austria, amidst the Alps was our next stop. We took a small stroll through the lanes where many cafes lined up. We also saw the golden roof, a balcony which is thatched with 2563 gold tiles. After a small visit, we headed to our hotel atop a hill with the view of the Alps for a much-needed rest.
Visit
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Salzburg
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Mirabell Gardens
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Mozart Residence
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Mozart's Birthplace
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Nonntal
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Makartsteg
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Swarovski Kristallwelten
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Golden Roof
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Eat
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Maharaja Restaurant
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Hotel Olympia
Stay
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Hotel Olympia
Photos
Day 11: Venice
Italy - Venice
After breakfast, we headed to our final part of the journey. We stepped into Italy and our first destination here was Venice. It is a long journey from Innsbruck to Venice of almost 5 hours. We took a break at Padova for lunch. We then hopped on to our boat at the Tronchetto boat terminal. Now talking about Venice, it is a beautiful port city on the shores of the Adriatic Sea. Venice is composed of 126 islands connected by canals and bridges. It is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world and a UNESCO world heritage site. Venice started a land of refugees when people from mainland Italy moved here to escape the rule of Byzantine emperors. What started as a refugee land soon became a republic. It was an important port connecting Asia to Europe. In the 19th century, it became a part of the Kingdom of Italy and subsequently the country of Italy. We reached the pier and got off the boat. Venice had 4 times more visitors on the day we arrived. Our first stop was the St.Mark's Basilica and the Doge’s Palace. The basilica earlier was a place of worship for the rulers of Venice, but later was converted to a basilica. It hovers over the St.Mark’s square, where a bell tower can also be found. Adjacent to the Doge’s palace is a prison. To reach the prison, one had to cross a bridge called the Bridge of Sighs as this was the last place for the prisoners to catch a glimpse of the outer world. The transportation inside Venice is mostly by boats. A special type of boat called the Gondola is used which is made of 8 types of wood. The gondoliers (riders of the boat) take pride in riding these boats. This is a worthwhile ride as they take you around the multiple canals and bridges in Venice. After the ride and some walk around the city, we had a gelato here and it was time to head back. We boarded another boat back to Tronchetto terminal to catch our bus. Our place of halt was at Ferrera (yes, you guessed it right, the place of Ferrari). This was about three hours from Venice. We reached Ferrera and checked into our rooms for a good sleep after a tiring day.
Visit
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Venice
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St. Mark's Square
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Bridge of Sighs
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Gondola Ride
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Eat
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Rangoli Indian Restaurant
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Astra Hotel
Stay
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Astra Hotel
Photos
Day 12: San Marino
San Marino
We headed for Rome. However, we still had one more stop before that. We passed through Ferrera castle and hit the highway. After a couple of hours of travel, we reached yet another small country, San Marino. San Marino is a tiny landlocked country, with a population of around 30,000, and relies on Italy for economic and military support. This country is on a hillock located next to the city of Rimini. The country was built by San Marino, who started out with a hammer and a chisel. Thus, the country is named after him and a basilica which is located inside the fort of San Marino. We undertook a walking tour here as vehicles cannot navigate after a while since it is a hilly region. We passed through the basilica, the parliament, the beautiful cafes and viewpoints. We tried the authentic Italian pizza here and it was amazing. From San Marino, we left for Rome, which was another 5-hour journey. We directly checked into our hotels as we reached Rome.
Visit
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San Marino
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Eat
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Ristorante Bolognese
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B&B Hotel Pomezia Roma
Stay
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B&B Hotel Pomezia Roma
Photos
Day 13: Rome and Vatican City
Italy - Rome and Vatican - Vatican City
The penultimate day of our tour started with the city of Rome. Rome is one of the world's oldest continuously inhabited cities. You might have heard the saying ‘All roads lead to Rome’. This is true as there are multiple entries and exits to the city. But since it is an old city, the roads are narrow and are prone to traffic jams unlike other European cities. Rome has of historic importance right from the BC time period. The Roman kingdom was huge and had a great impact not only in Europe but also around the world. Emperors like Julius Caesar, Augustus Caesar etc played an important role in the history of Rome. Our first stop here was the colosseum. It is a circular structure which was built to hold around 30000 people. It acted as an amphitheatre and hosted shows, dramas and so-called wrestling wars among people. Basically, it was an entertainment centre. An earthquake damaged a portion of the colosseum but most of it remains intact. This is one of the wonders of the world. From the colosseum, we continued walking and we reached the Roman Forum. In the roman empire days, this used to be a market where gems and gold were sold apart from the vegetables and meat. The Roman Forum is located on the road which also holds the Julius Forum and Augustus Forum, the emperors who built the city. As we continued, we passed the Monument to Victor Emmanuel II, a monument to honor Italy's first king and the first world war soldiers. We next stopped at the Trevi fountain. This is one of the largest fountains in the world. Articulate inscription and structure define this 18th century fountain and is a must visit when in Rome. One must note that Rome is undergoing construction work due to the Rome metro and some places are closed due to this. We had our lunch here in Rome and left for Vatican City, a country within the city of Rome and the home of the Pope. Vatican City is a small country of 2 sq kms radius. It is the home of the Pope. The main attraction is the St. Peter’s Basilica, one of the most sacred pilgrimage places for Christians in the world. St. Peter’s square is one of the iconic places in the Vatican. After a visit inside the basilica, we headed on our way to our last destination.
Visit
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Rome
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Colosseum
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Roman Forum
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Statue of Julius Caesar
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Ottica Flaminio
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Trevi Fountain
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St. Peter's Basilica
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Vatican City
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St Peter's Square
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Eat
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Maharajah
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Grand Hotel Golf Tirrenia
Stay
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Grand Hotel Golf Tirrenia
Photos
Day 14: Pisa and Departure to India
Italy - Pisa and Departure to India
Yes, this was the last day of our tour. We reached Pisa overnight from Rome. We had all our bags packed up and were ready to leave. We still had a last place to visit, the leaning tower of Pisa. We took a tram from the bus parking area to reach the venue. The place where the tower is located is called the Square of Miracles. This is so called because it is a place which shows the circle of life. Entering the square is a baptistry where babies were born. Next to that is the cathedral where a person gets into a wedlock. And right behind is the cemetery where the person will be buried. This square symbolizes the cycle of life. The leaning tower is a small bell tower of 7 levels. Earlier, the tower was straight when it was constructed. But again, an earthquake caused the tower to lean towards one side, although it did not make it to fall. And since then, the tower has been kept so. This is again one of the earlier wonders of the world. There are a lot of shops around the tower. Bags, wallets, clothes, handicrafts, souvenirs can be purchased here. After a bit of shopping and lunch, we drove towards Milan, a city in Italy, to catch our flight back home. Easily, this was my best trip. The places were amazing and now I got to know why people call Europe as the place to visit. It is expensive but the quality of life is just on another level. I would want to come back to cover the remaining places in Europe. A word about the tour organiser - Veena World. They had organised the trip very well. The places were planned perfectly and the food they provided was delicious, and it included Indian in most places. We did not feel exhausted or bored at any point in the trip. I would love to travel with Veena World again. That's it from me on this blog. Meet you in the forthcoming ones.
Visit
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Pisa
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Leaning Tower of Pisa
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The Square of Miracles Apartment
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Milan Malpensa Airport (MXP)
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Beach Tirrenia 2
Eat
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INDIAN RESTAURANT RAJASTHAN
Photos
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A traveler who loves to experience different countries, cultures and places.
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