Teatro Massimo in Palermo.
If you are keeping a strict diet, avoid this place like the plague.
Sicily deserved a part 2 after the Catania trip, and Palermo was the natural next stop. It's also conveniently situated near the beach, as well as the nearby town of Cefalu, which was also on the trip list. We were so ready for a few days of Dolce Vita, andare in spiaggia, mangiare i cannoli and enjoying some ancient history combined with great scenery.
Rural Park of Anaga view near
the ocean.
There's also a Starbies on the promenade, perfect to sip on a Cold Brew while watching surfers just getting destroyed by the waves. Oh, bliss.
Surf's up! It was time for a much more longer trip, and the place we chose was Paradise. Tenerife does have a reputation. It's a go-to place for many Europeans, as it's not very far from home, it's warm, it's beautiful, and there's so much to do, from lying on the beach to hiking next to a volcano. Our hopes were higher than the volcano, honestly, and we were not prepared to be disappointed.
Lecco view of the Lake
Como.
Just reading a book and enjoing a coffee. Niiice.
I've been contemplating of booking a cheap flight to Milan, only with a backpack, rent a car, drive all the way to Como to a hotel near the lake and stay for a couple of nights. And, while there, rent a bike, pack a sandwich and a San Benedetto, pick a couple of trails and don't look back. Maybe you should, too.
Found a nice hotel in Bellagio that had breakfast included, Seta. There was also a bike renting shop nearby, Bike It! Bellagio, and the best thing about it was that they had a website which contained a few bike trail suggestions, so it was easy to start the trip with minimum preparation. Bellagio, as a town is quite nice, but there was a lot of construction going around and there weren't many places to eat or have a coffee, at least I did not find any. That was not on the convenient side, but the main topic of the trip was biking, so I forgave the shortcoming.
The Odeon of Herodes
Atticus.
But anyway, here I was, Syntagma square, baby.
Ever had that urge to just go some place, do nothing but eat, chill, have a few walks with some coffee in between. Well, folks, how about some Athens in February? After enjoying Madrid and Malaga in January and December, I developed quite a passion for Mediterranean destinations during winter. All I wanted was some place that was still warm, not that crowded but still offering relevant stuff to do. And Athens really hit the nail in the head on this one.
Also, as a side note, notice that I'm writing about my February trip at the end of September. I'm quite behind on this little travel blog I have going on, and I decided to cut my articles short. I'll focus only on the good stuff, throw some of the best pictures and I'll wrap it up sooner than expected. I'm not going aiming to turn this blog into the Song of Ice and Fire.
View over the lake in Parco del
Rotiro.
If you think you know already the meaning of tasteful luxury, visit this place and reset your standards.
Today, damas y caballeros, we stay in beautiful Spain, but this time we leave the sunny South for Mardrid, the capital of football, culture and, well, Spain. It was a long time coming, and I was super excited to start 2024 travelling season with this one. I had high expectations, given the reviews I received from my friends, and, honestly, I was still amazed by what the city had to offer.
View of Malaga from the
Mirador de Gibralfaro.
Truth be told, I don't mind palm trees with Christmas lights. I could live with that.
Finally, the South of Spain. It took a while to get here, but here we are. It's December, sure, but not in Malaga though. Good thing I brought a couple of T-shirts, otherwise it would have been a tough time. Christmas decorations while the weather's so good is just out of this world. Truth be told, I don't mind palm trees with Christmas lights. I could live with that.
So far so good. It turned out that going to Malaga at the beginning of December is a great idea. That was the good part. The bad part was that also half of Spain thought it was a good idea, and the place was packed with visitors. I believe they also had a day off during the week we chose to visit, and everyone took advantage of it. Our apartment was in the center (Be Mate Malaga Centro, great place, check it out) and we had to park somewhere, but, really, there was absolutely no place to park a bicycle, yet alone a car. We finally found a payed multi level car park nearby, barely. Inside it, we found an empty spot on the last floor. Lucky us.
View of Etna from the
Ancient Theatre in Taormina.
The food was delicious, from the Tagliere di Salumi e Formaggi to the Pesce Spada a Siciliana.
I had Sicily in mind for some time, and going to Catania was definitely something I looked forward to. Initially, Palermo was the preferred destination, until I realised I bought the tickets for Naples instead. Anyway, Catania was supposed to be better as it was closer to Etna and Taormina, so off we went to this place full of history. And cannoli.
Praia de Vale Figueiras at
sunset.
I deserved the pizza for dinner that evening.
Portugal in November has already become a tradition for me. It's the third time in a row when my friend and I use the Lisbon Web Summit as an excuse to go surfing in Lagos, visit Lisbon and its surroundings, and just enjoy everything that the south of Portugal has to offer. This year was no exception, and we had a blast of a time spanning a couple of weeks, full of surfing, visiting, hiking and just laying on the beach. Are we going to continue the tradition in 2024? Probably.
View of the old town from the
Prague Castle.
So, picture this. Silviu, one protein bar, some water, 25% phone battery, no waterproof jacket, pink bike with a basket, soaking wet, in a God forsaken town called Roblín, where the only bus station was served at some point during that day, towards some destinations I had no interest in.
Prague is special to me. It's the city I lived in for almost 3 years, and in many ways, it has shaped me into the person I am today. It's a great city to live in as an expat, with a mix of eastern, western and central Europe, pretty much a melting pot of cultures. Some people choose Prague to be their home, others will move to a different city after a few years, and there are also some who choose to return to their home country. I met all of them, and I am not aware of anyone regretting their experience of relocating to the Czech Republic.
I am not going to focus on what Prague means to me as an experience, although there is a lot to say here. Instead, I am happy that I've visited the city 3 times this year, mostly because most of my team at work is based in Prague, and there have been quite a few occasions to visit. My first visit was in January, which is probably the least recommended time of year to schedule a visit. The subsequent trips were in June, which is way better weather wise, and the last one was in October, which turned out to be better than expected. All in all, I would probably recommend visiting Prague during the summer, as it's not very hot during that time, and you would get the most out of your trip. You don't want to be in Prague when it's cold, or when it rains, or both. Trust me on that one.
View of Naples and Vesuvius
from the Sant'Elmo Castle.
There's something about this town and football.
If you've read my travelling plans for 2023, I mentioned only a couple of places that have been on the top of my list. As 2023 went by and I travelled quite a lot until now, I added Sicily to the top of my list, so I started to look for tickets during the summer. Since both the tickets and the accomodation were great value for money, I decided to go ahead and seal the deal for the trip to Naples. Just as I was getting ready to pay, I realised that I wasn't actually going to Sicily at all. In my mind, Naples and Palermo sounded to be the same thing, and that sparked a great deal of confusion. After I paused for a few minutes, I realised "what the hell", and bought the trip anyway. Yolo.