First instalment of a three-part account of my recent trip to the Baltic states. All were fascinating and different from each other, but with a similar history. Starting in Lithuania, visiting Kaunas and Vilnius. europeexplored.travel.blog/2025/09/28/e...

Day 11. Another damp morning in Tallinn. Catching a bus for the first time since Kaunas.

A damp morning in Tallinn to go for a walk before everything else opens, starting at Estonia's Freedom Monument.

Day 9. About to depart from Tartu's elegant railway station.

Day 8. In Soviet times, Tartu was a closed city to foreigners, due to the presence of a base for long-range strategic bombers. On the edge of the city, behind the remains of a barbed wire fence you can see some of the former aircraft hangers.

Day 7. Just to the north east of Riga city centre is an area developed around the turn of last century and full of Art Nouveau buildings.

Day 6. Continuing our exploration of Riga. There is a state visit from the President of Finland. Outdide the castle we encountered the guard of honour awaiting his arrival.

Day 5. An early departure from Vilnius this morning.

Day 4. There are a lot of churches in the centre of Vilnius. They include Lithuanian, Ukrainian and Russian Orthodox, Catholic, and Lutheran.

Day 3. Time to leave Kaunas. It's been nice getting to know you.

Day 2. Kaunas is ringed by a series of forts. The 9th, built just prior to WWI, proved ineffective in defending the city. It was subsequently used as a Nazi extermination camp and later as a Soviet prison.

Once again waiting for the first bus of the day at the stop I started from when visiting the extremities of the London bus network. No such challenge today, but instead trying to beat the tube strike to start a new EuropeExplored adventure, accompanied by my wife.

Off on a day trip to the seaside.

Setting off on another little trip this morning.

Taking it to the limit - the extremities of London's bus network. Including snippets on the history of administrative areas, a Pre-Raphaelite painting and the mixed success of those trying to travel by bus without means of payment. europeexplored.travel.blog/2025/07/30/t...

Last month I circumnavigated London by bus. It only took 7¼ hours using the Superloop network. That was far too easy. So tomorrow I am attempting a far more extreme version, such that, in true @politicanimal.bsky.social style, there is some doubt that I will be able to complete it within the day.

Two cities, one opera, another composer's birthplace, some very dark history, lots of calculating machines, a small fire, a cathedral, Roman remains - all in less than three days. europeexplored.travel.blog/2025/07/15/c...

Day 3. Time to leave Bonn, not least because a music festival is taking over the city centre. I wonder how Deutsche Bahn will treat me today?

Day 2. First stop, the Haus der Geschicte (museum of the history of the Federal Republic). I had visited before & knew that at the moment the main museum is closed to redo its exhibition. The temporary exhibition on the attidude to Nazism by different generations since 1945 was thought provoking.

I had been due to attend a wedding tomorrow. Sadly, it was called off a few weeks ago. I'm using the time to go on a short European trip instead. Although had they cancelled the wedding a bit sooner, it would have saved me a few bob in fares.

My guess was correct - the Bayeux Tapestry will be displayed in the British Museum next year. I very much doubt that if I go and see it there that I will be the only visitor, as I was in Bayeux in 2021 in the brief period that year when travel to France was allowed.

No inside knowledge, but ... President Macron arrives in the UK tomorrow for a 3-day state visit. There appears to be a gap in his itinerary on Wednesday afternoon. Very unusually the British museum is shut for the day on Wednesday. My guess is he will he will announce a loan of the Bayeux Tapestry.

The recent death of the footballer Jota is similar to that of Georgi Asparuhov (that I recalled when I went to Bulgaria): - both were 28; - lost control of a sports car they were driving while overtaking on a remote road; - the car burst into flames; - another player was a passenger, who also died.

How long does it take to circumnavigate London by bus? It was much quicker than I thought possible. europeexplored.travel.blog/2025/07/01/s...

Last year I tested out my new Freedom Pass by travelling from Manchester to home for free. I'm planning a less ambitious bus adventure for tomorrow, but it could be a practice run for something even more challenging. I had this planned for a few weeks ago, but torrential rain caused a postponement.

Proposal for all carry-on bags to be free is absolute stupidity: (a) There isn't enough capacity if everyone brings a bag to go in the overhead locker, so some will have to go in the hold; (b) It removes the incentive to travel light, distorting the market, & increasing fares for those that do.

Off on a day trip from Paddington today.

Last week's flying visit to a rainy Gothenburg to see a brilliant Madama Butterfly. europeexplored.travel.blog/2025/05/28/a...

Last week's flying visit to a rainy Gothenburg to see a brilliant Madama Butterfly. europeexplored.travel.blog/2025/05/28/a...

This morning, I'm off on a short trip to a European city. But where to? (A clue - I'm not catching one of the several charter flights to the Europa Cup final.)

Polar exploration, jute, estuary defences, a 19th century frigate, a hill to climb, and the V&A. There is plenty to do in a couple of days in Dundee. europeexplored.travel.blog/2025/05/10/city-visit-dundee/

Day 3. Departing on a little excursion by bus this morning. Being in Scotland means that I can't use my English bus pass.

Day 2. A walk along the waterfront and Dundee's former harbour area, before the places I want to go to have opened this morning.

Off on my travels again this morning. Not a full Europe Explored expedition, but a shorter City Visit to somewhere I've not been to before. A long train ride awaits.

My recent trip to Italy where I encounter a Guardian journalist nearly killing an Italian child, discover a newly independent part of Europe, and see enough pre-Renaissance art to keep me going for a while. europeexplored.travel.blog/2025/04/27/e...

My recent trip to Italy where I encounter a Guardian journalist nearly killing an Italian child, discover a newly independent part of Europe, and see enough pre-Renaissance art to keep me going for a while. europeexplored.travel.blog/2025/04/27/e...

Day 8. I'm not spending long in Milan, as I gave the city a thorough explore when I stopped off here on my way to Athens in 2022. An early, pre-dawn, departure for me this morning.

Day 7. Even on a Sunday, the museums in Padua open early.

Day 6. Arrivederci Siena. None of the lines through Siena are electrified, so departing on another hybrid train this morning. Just before it left, two policemen got on board and did a full ID/passport check of all the passengers. Which is odd, as it's not going near any international borders.

Day 5. Not a bad view to wake up to out of one's hotel bedroom window.

Day 4. Perugia is a hilltop town, but the railway station is down in the valley, so my walk to the station was a lot easier than my walk from the station. Two connections to get to my destination today, with 20 minutes to make the first. A bit worrying that my train is already 10 minutes late.

Day 3. There is so much art in Perugia that it's difficult to know where to begin. The National Gallery of Umbria opens at 8.30am, so that seemed a good place. Mainly religious art, but that from the 14th century exhibits such exquisite detail.

Day 2. A damp morning for exploring Ancona. Thankful for shelter in the Archaeological Museum and the Duomo.

Setting off a bit later than usual, but only three weeks after I returned from my previous trip, I'm off on my travels again. Where shall I go today?

Travelling through France, where I don't have a vision of cosmogonic ecstasy, but do experience a Proustian involuntary memory. I also travel on an empty 'full' train, get covered in confetti, and learn that Basil Fawlty could have been right after all. europeexplored.travel.blog/2025/03/26/e...

Travelling through France, where I don't have a vision of cosmogonic ecstasy, but do experience a Proustian involuntary memory. I also travel on an empty 'full' train, get covered in confetti, and learn that Basil Fawlty could have been right after all. europeexplored.travel.blog/2025/03/26/e...

When all trains from Paris were cancelled two weeks ago, I caught a bus to Lille and a train to London. Credit to Eurostar, they contacted me spontaneously on the Sunday morning and have refunded all my expenses. As they're not on Bluesky, perhaps @eurostarjustin.bsky.social could pass on my thanks.

The start of my recent journey from Catalonia. Featuring a magic square, an Eiffel Bridge and a wide cathedral. europeexplored.travel.blog/2025/03/19/europe-explored-trip-16-return-from-catalonia-part-one-spain/

For the purpose of research for a future trip, I went this morning to the National Gallery's new exhibition: Siena 1300-1350. (While at the National Gallery, I couldn't resist also reacquainting myself with their impressionist collection - including Pissarro's views of Sydenham and Upper Norwood).

Day 10. Farewell to La Rochelle. For the first time since leaving Spain, I am travelling on a high-speed train and the first TGV of this trip. The train this morning is a TGV-A, the oldest type still in use by SNCF. I've not been on a TGV-A before - a shame that they are just single-deckers.