Driving from Waterloo, through Belgium, driving past Luxembourg had some beautiful sites.
Arrived in Ulm which is a small city of just over 100,000 people which is in Baden-Württemberg and borders Bavaria. This town was beautiful with a combo of old cathedrals, streets, and cemeteries, that is going through a gentrification process much like the rest of the world. Situated on the banks of the lovely Danube, this town was quite neat. The fog rolling in on the cathedral made it quite interesting to look at during the night.
The rest of the sites and the Christmas Market set a nice tone for the rest of the trip, with great food, great streets, great markets, and great sites…
Leaving from Ulm pretty early in the morning, was a nice ride through rural Bavaria. This is the Bavaria no one sees and is a throwback to the 19th Century or before. The frost glistening on the grass was an added bonus as was the abandoned houses which were in actually pretty good shape. The churches here with a combination of Catholic and Orthodox which made for very interesting photos. I am still researching this, but it could be during the empires days, that so many different ethnic groups settled in these areas that they brought their religion with them, thus combining different ideas of Christianity (I refuse to use AI). This took us to the German and Austrian border.
I love Salzburg. I have been here a few times and a short stopover for the night was just what I needed in this lovely little city. I have been here on bus trips, train trips and now car trips. It never ceases to amaze me of how this town is always bustling and how beautiful it is at night. I love the Augustiner Bräu Mülln, been there several times (https://www.augustinerbier.at/) and they have the perfect blend of an old Bavarian beer hall and food. Pork Belly, Salads, more pork, beer, and more beer pretty much sets this place above all other beer halls.
I would say that the ride across the German border to Trento was boring but it had all sorts of Bavarian towns nested up in the Alps. Zig Zagging in and out of Germany and Austria, and seeing some brilliant landscapes, we finally hit the Italian border which was quite easy and I won 4 Euros on a lottery scratch off!!!! When we set wheels down in Italy, the traffic in small cities was crazy but the sites were worth it…
Once we hit Italy, the snow was a pleasant site and the landscape reaffirmed why Italy is a top destination (not for promoters and influencers, but for the sheer beauty of it). Is it a wonder that civilization has thrived here for so long with different cultures mixing?
Getting into Trento somewhat late by European times as it was dark, a nice tower looking hotel in the old city welcomed us. It was flanked by the old town and the Christmas Market adjacent to the hotel. A quick Christmas Market stroll and a lot of pork bought had me wanting food at a quaint little restaurant. I really enjoyed this place for the night…
Leaving Trento, the sites got better via San Marino. I can say that the cemeteries that sat at the bottom of the Dolmites were an added bonus. Centuries old some of them, but well kept, these gave a sense of the religion and history in this region which still amazes me. More cemeteries rounded out the day, before the border with Italy was hit…
Getting into San Marino was my treat. This was my last European country to hit and I was quite excited to be here as you can tell by my friend…..
San Marino…I could have stayed here with the photography and just the sheer essence of the relaxation and the clouds. The fog added and eerie mystique to a country that is the oldest republic in the world. The streets were lined with cobblestone from years past. The restaurants, shops, and hotels, all in the old style lined these small alley streets which opened up into piazzas.
Moving on from San Marino after a foggy morning, it was back down the mountain with some lovely landscapes via the backroads to Perugia. A quick stop at an industrial town that looked medieval had me looking on in amazement. We then hit the idyllic countryside of Umbria..
As I was visiting friends here from El Paso, we got booked into the Chocohotel. Let’s just say this place was the most interesting hotel I have ever stayed at with the chocolate theme that would put a diabetic in a coma.
Perugia was a lovely town that is surrounded by lush farmland and a medieval feel to it. A walk through the town at night, and then the next morning, proved that this place is worth visiting or living as the prices are reasonable, the views are fantastic and the people are charming.
Leaving Perugia in late morning, had us drive through the beautiful Umbrian countryside and into one of the most famous areas of Italy, known simply as Toscana or Tuscany..
Arriving in the late evening in the quaint little town of Peccioli, saw us check in to a quiet hotel. This town is in the area close to Pisa Province, although you would not know it from being there and the food was marvelous. Spending the day going through small villages with medieval forts on hills was amazing (I do not want to mention the names, but they are popular). To make things better, the Tuscan Sun was in full effect for some great shadowing with people walking and enjoying the sunny but cool weathered day.
Leaving Tuscany after a few days there, saw us driving a couple of hours to a suggested medieval town called Lucca. Honestly, I could have spent a week here with the beautiful lighting and the narrow streets in the walled city. The sun was in a perfect position the whole time there and it was not too busy as I got in there right before the mobs of people. This is definitely a place I will go back to….
Carrying on, we stayed the night in a small town on the French and Italian border and paid handsomely for the toll roads, which they obviously use to keep the highways maintained. The next day, we hit France again and drove through the old Royal Road to Paris, hitting abandoned houses as well as small quaint towns during the day. This is where I noticed that real estate was cheap here and this is beautiful countryside.
As it was Christmas Eve, we stayed at a beautiful little cottage of a friend. This day would be fruitful in looking at different small towns in the area and watching all the Christmas festivities. Some eerie abandoned towns were just what the doctor ordered in this area and stopping every once in a while, to look at cemeteries, houses in ruins, and abandoned or half abandoned towns. This was one of the better days for photography on this trip (actually every day was).
The next day after Christmas which proved to be the one time I celebrated in the last 20 years, we drove back to Belgium, going through Paris and seeing the lovely French countryside for the last time. Was this the best European trip I have been on? Maybe, maybe not? The pictures will tell the story, and I will be back sooner rather than later.