Travel

By Glen Bruels

A day in Kaohsiung and Tainan, Taiwan

This is part of a series called Northern Pacific Wanderings 2024 Our first stop after leaving Hong Kong was Kaohsiung, Taiwan. We actually made it without the Chinese invading (of course, this was just our first stop in Taiwan, so there’s still time!) — although we were buzzed by a number of “fishing boats.” While…

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By Glen Bruels

Pécs, Hungary

This is part of a series called Pan European Sojourn 2023 On our last full day of the cruise, we found ourselves in an area of Hungary called the Southern Transdanubia to visit Pécs, the 5th largest city in Hungary, but second only to Budapest in the number of visits. The city actually dates back…

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By Glen Bruels

Belgrade, Serbia

This is part of a series called Pan European Sojourn 2023 Today, we visited the capital of Serbia, Belgrade. It had also been the capital of Yugoslavia. In fact, Belgrade is one of the oldest cities in Europe, having been conquered and rebuilt 40 times during its rather tumultuous history. We spent our time focusing…

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By Glen Bruels

Valiko Tarnavo and Arbanasi, Bulgaria

This is part of a series called Pan European Sojourn 2023 Today, we went into Bulgaria to visit the ancient capital, Veliko Tarnovo, and a small village named Arbanasi know for the frescoes in their Nativity Church. It’s interesting that while Romania and Bulgaria had similar histories (e.g., former Roman territory, challenges in bring together…

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By Glen Bruels

Vidin, Bulgaria

This is part of a series called Pan European Sojourn 2023 After the longest sailing day on the Danube, we arrived in the regal town of Viden, located in northwestern Bulgaria. This area has been continuously inhabited since the time of the Romans because of it’s strategic positioning in a bend in the Danube across…

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