Photography & travel

ITALY – Puglia – Gallipoli

We are no strangers to northern and central Italy. But we had never visited the far south, or ‘the heel’. It was about time to change that. We landed in Brindisi, which couldn’t have been more convenient, picked up our hire car and visited the city. Our first stop was a local delicatessen shop to eat ‘ a made in Puglia’ sandwich with Martina Franca ham & burrata cheese. Delicious, it was! Brindisi is a small provincial town on the Adriatic Sea and actually quite charming. But we didn’t stay there long. The lure of Gallipoli was too strong.Besides, we …

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CORFU – East-West I North-South

Sandy beaches are scarce on Corfu, most of them are pebbly or rocky. During our stay, we travelled from the east to the west coast and to the northern and southernmost points of Corfu. Close to Afionas, there is a small, lovely beach [Porto Timoni] tucked away. You can descend to the beach via a hiking trail on top of the cliff. It’s about a 30 mins walk to admire the crystal clear water. Hiking shoes are recommended. Some walkers however, did it in flip-flops, but they are real daredevils. Further north is Cape Drastis. We took a beautiful walk …

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CORFU – KERKYRA

Corfu or Kerkyra in Greek, the capital city of Corfu has quit a history. During the fifth century BCE it was one of the largest naval powers in the area. They were ruled by the Republic of Venice, repeatedly managed to thwart attacks by the Ottoman Empire, were under French rule for two years and then fell into the hands of the British Empire, eventually becoming part of Greece. During the Second World War, the island was occupied by Italy and, at the end of the war, heavily bombed by the Germans, resulting in the destruction of many historic buildings. …

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CORFU – COUNTRYSIDE

Corfu is an island. It is also six times smaller than Belgium, which has the advantage that you never have to drive far in any direction to see the sea. Although travel time is relative, as there are no highways on Corfu. Since we love peace & quiet and nature, and I had already spent a week at sea, we decided to stay at Vradi estate. A place nicely hidden in the countryside surrounded by cypress and olive trees. The hotel where we stayed only serves breakfast, which is excellent by the way, but no dinner or lunch. However, this …

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CORFU SAILING

Ring, ring. Somewhere mid-April, I receive a phone call from my dear childhood friend Christophe, asking if I would like to go on a sailing trip in September together with three other sailors; Marc, Richard and Chommie. His question made my body sing. My first reaction was, ‘of course, let me check with my wife,’ and after comparing my calendar with my wife’s, we were good to go. It had been 20 years since I had been on a sailing boat, but luckily there were two seasoned sailors among us. My task would be limited to being the boat’s mate …

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BARCELONA 2024#2

First time i visited the Sagrada Familia was in 2001, and a revisit in 2012. I still remember well how much of a construction site it was in 2001. The nave itself was not accessible, but climbing the Bell towers on the Passion façade, or Nativity, was possible in small groups. The progress that has been made in 23 years is simply amazing. (and not to forget that the first cornerstone was laid in 1882)The photo of star of this blog post is the ‘Star of the Virgin Mary’. A true milestone of the construction in November 2021. Was Antoni …

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BARCELONA 2024#1

It was only two months ago that we were driving around Spain, and now we’re back again.But this time it’s just for a long weekend. We had promised to show Karen’s nieces Barcelona because they had never been there before. And was is the easiest way to show people around? Yes, a velocipede, and a lot of walking… Some of the highlights we included in their planning. Plaça de George Orwell, Plaça Reial, Plaça de Calalunya, Las Ramblas, Gothic Quarter, Parc de la Ciutadella, La boqueria, Casa Milà, Sagrada Familia and more. We have a busy schedule, but we included …

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MADRID#3

Visit Madrid and not go to the Prado? Impossible. As a Belgian, you can’t obviously pass up the opportunity to admire a Rubens. The Prado owns one of the largest and one of the best collections of Rubens’s paintings thanks to the connection with the Spanish monarchy. There was one painting in particular that I definitely wanted to see; ‘The Adoration of the Magi’. I first came across it when I was nine years old in a Suske & Wiske comic strip. ‘De raap van Rubens’ or Rubens’ apprentice. What I didn’t know is that different versions were painted. The …

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MADRID#2

Parque de El Retiro really is a gem, a green lung in the middle of Madrid. A place to slow down, stroll, lie down on the grass, read a book or breathe in the sweet scent of roses. You can do the latter to your gusto in La Roseleda, a rose garden designed by Cecilio Rodriguez in 1915. The park has several highlights.To our disappointment, we were not allowed to enter one of them, the Palacio de Cristal due to renovation work. Built in 1881 for the 1883 National Exhibition of Mining, Palacio de Velázquez is now a museum and …

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MADRID#1

We have already been to many places in Spain, but never to the capital Madrid. Do we like it more than Barcelona? Yes. No. It’s different. Where’s the sea? Madrid is a vibrant city with great food, sangria, a nice atmosphere, lots of trees, nice parks, gardens with fragrant flowers, elegant boulevards, intimate squares & big squares, flamenco, beautiful museums, a partnership with Brussels [Belgium] and of course; Jamon! Since we like strolling around to soak up the atmosphere of the city we never took the metro. We stayed at Room Mate Alba next to Plaza de Santa Ana, which …

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