The D&O Diary’s Eastern European sojourn continued earlier this week with a very brief stop in Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia, which is about a two-hour train ride from Budapest. With a population of only about 450,000, Bratislava is small, but it has a rich history and interesting setting on the Danube, only about 30 miles downstream from Vienna.
Continue Reading Bratislava, Slovakia
The D&O Diary is on assignment in Eastern Europe this week, with multiple destinations on the itinerary, starting with a weekend stop in Hungary’s capital city of Budapest. With a city population of 1.7 million and an urban population over 3 million, Budapest is a large, sprawling place. The taxi ride from the airport into the central city cuts through some pretty scruffy parts of town, so it was startling to arrive at the river and encounter the Danube’s sweeping beauty as it rolled through the city’s central district.
Continue Reading Budapest on the Danube
The final stop on The D&O Diary’s European assignment last week was a brief sojourn in Madrid, Spain’s capital city. More than 3 million people live in the sprawling city, but the city’s elegant central district is quite compact. Under any conditions, the city’s many boulevards and neighborhoods invite exploration on foot. But with the summer-like sunshine and warmth that prevailed throughout our visit, we were happy to ramble around the city, taking in the sights and enjoying the city’s many charms.
Continue Reading Scenes of Madrid
The D&O Diary’s European assignment continued last week with a stopover in Lisbon, Portugal’s hilly capital city, known to the locals as Lisboa. It is located on the north side of the Rio Tejo (known as the Tagus River in English). The city itself has about 550,000 residents, but the city’s sprawling metropolitan area has about 2.7 million residents. Lisbon may not have the allure of some other European capitals, but it has an abundance of history and charm; a diversity of interesting neighborhoods to explore; and an abundance of great food, as reflected in the pictures below.
Continue Reading A Visit to Lisbon
The D&O Diary is on assignment in Europe this week, with a first stop for meetings and events in London. In between, l had time for some touring around the city. I have visited London many times before, but just the same, I made a commitment to myself that I wouldn’t do anything that I have done before. As the pictures below show, I was largely successful.
Continue Reading Images of London
The D&O Diary was on assignment in Germany last week for meetings and to attend a conference. The excursion was a bit of a return tour, as I have previously visited all of the stops on the itinerary. My wife accompanied me this time, and for her each stop represented a first encounter. With the help of the excellent German train system, we managed to visit a number of German cities in a very brief period, and to see a little of the countryside, as well.
Continue Reading Scenes of Germany
It was my honor and pleasure this past Thursday to be a part of the PLUS Canadian Chapter event in Toronto, Ontario. It was a well-organized and really well-attended event — so well-attended in fact that it was sold out. It was standing room only. I was also fortunate with weather for my visit. There was some occasional sun while I was there and the temperatures were generally mild, at least for this time of year in Canada, so I had a little chance to look around some as well.
Continue Reading PLUS Canadian Chapter Event in Toronto
The D&O Diary was on assignment this past week in Hamburg, Germany’s second largest city and Europe’s second-largest seaport. January may not be the best time to visit; at 53 degrees northern latitude, Hamburg is chilly and dark this time of the year. Fortunately for me, the weather was not nearly so unkind as had been forecast, and other than a few periods of rain, I most enjoyed chilly sunshine. My northern Germany visit included a brief stop in the Baltic port city of Lübeck.
Continue Reading Hamburg and Lübeck
The D&O Diary’s European assignment continued this week with a stop for meetings in Oslo. On the flight to Oslo from Stockholm, it was clear from looking out the window that it had snowed overnight in Norway. Skies were clear and the sun was shining brightly when I made my way in to the city from the airport, but Oslo also was covered with a fresh layer of snow. The grounds of the Royal Palace, where the lilacs had been in bloom when I visited Oslo in May, were snow-covered, as shown in the accompanying picture.
Continue Reading Snow in Oslo
The D&O Diary is on assignment in Europe this week, with the first stop in Stockholm, Sweden’s capital city. Given Stockholm’s Baltic climate and northern latitude, November is not necessarily the optimal month to visit Stockholm. The weather forecast for my visit was particularly forbidding, with freezing rain and snow predicted. Fortunately, the foul weather never materialized, and other than one overcast day, I enjoyed brisk but dry late fall weather throughout my visit, as the pictures show.
Continue Reading November in Sweden