Wonders of Europe

In January 2017, I was planning to visit Shruthi and Shashank in UK for a short time. In turn, they wanted me and Mangala to be with them for a sufficiently longer duration.

They had the best plan to retain us with them for a longer period this time. They booked a European holiday for both of us and wanted us to visit 5-6 European countries. It was beginning of summer and thus was a wonderful time to visit Europe. On our previous several visits to the UK, we were not able to visit Europe and hence prevailed upon us to accept their offer. We reluctantly accepted their proposal.

Everything was arranged with Star tours. We commenced our journey on 12th May 2017. We left London at 6.00 am by coach. It took approximately two hours to reach Folkstone to cross over to Calais. We had to cross the English Channel here to get to France.

Eurotunnel manages and operates the Channel tunnel between Britain and France. Train operation consists of shuttle trains conveying cars, coaches and lorries including the passengers. The distance between two stations is 32 miles which is covered in 30 minutes. It was exciting to travel in the tunnel beneath the sea. The tunnel was built at a cost of £9.5bn and opened in 1994.

From Calais, we continued our journey to Brussels. The journey was a feast to our eyes as both sides of the road is greenery in abundance, roads are more than excellent, the coach and the comfort was superb. Every bit of the journey was enjoyable.

We passed through several beautifully located small cities and towns and reached Brussels, the capital city of Belgium. Rain greeted us at Brussels. After a shower of 30 minutes it was totally a pleasant weather. The first visit was to Grand Place. It is the central square of Brussels known for its decorative and aesthetic buildings. The city hall and museum are located there. This is the main market place. This is a World heritage centre. Innumerable chocolate shops are doing fantastic business here. Belgian chocolates are tasty and famous. We moved on to Manneken Pis statue. This is a landmark small bronze sculpture depicting a naked little boy urinating into fountain’s basin. Several incredible tales going round lacks explanation. Further, we moved on to touring Brussels city. A high domed church, many more attractive buildings, disciplined traffic, beautiful parks and green trees at the center of the city were main attractions. The Atomium is a building constructed for Expo 58, the 1958 Brussels World fair. It is 102m tall. Stainless steel spheres are connected to form the shape of a unit cell of an iron crystal magnified 165 billion times. One can view the Brussels city from the top sphere. Our night stay was planned at Strassburg, a six hours journey ahead and we rushed to reach it. On the way, we had a bird’s eye view of Luxembourg, a large city and a small European country. It is Europe’s most powerful investment management centre. We had good food and night sleep at Strassburg comfortable hotel.

Next morning, after breakfast, we started to the Black Forest region of South Germany. After crossing France border, a beautiful look of Rhine river welcomed us to Germany. A demonstration on how cuckoo clocks are made was enjoyable and informative. A family, which manufactures cuckoo clocks have established their business since some generations. Black forest is a live example for conservation of forests. Sun rays do not reach the land due to thick forest cover and hence the name black forest. Roads and other amenities are excellent even in such dense forest. This is a wonder for us Indians! A small hydro-electric cum solar power generating station was taking care of the needs of electric power at that thick jungle. After having lunch, we left for Rhine falls in Switzerland. Rhine falls is the largest plain waterfalls in Europe. Majesty and beauty of the falls is difficult to be explained. It is such a marvellous creation of the nature. Though it cannot be compared to Niagara falls in vastness and grandeur, it is a very beautiful place, Hydroelectric power is being generated from the river. A boat ride takes us closer to the falls. We can enjoy the beauty of the water falls from a cliff adjacent to the falls which is fully secured. Against our wishes to leave, we had to move on to Lucerne as we had spent nearly two hours in the falls. Lucerne is a picturesque, clean and marvellous city in Switzerland. Head quarter to many major banks. We witnessed hundreds of architectural marvels throughout the city and were awestruck walking through the city. I personally feel, Lucerne gets 8 of 10 in rating for its beauty. A 16th century wooden bridge, called chapel bridge, a vast lake, a mind blowing view of snow top mountains surrounding the city, the Lion monument, chocolate shops are the other main attractions. Our night stay was arranged at Engelberg. Engel means Angel. Berg is a piece of thing. A perfect name to a heavenly town in Switzerland. Our hotel was at the base of snowy mountains. We were at the foot of mount Titlis. It was a clean and tidy town. Full of numerous canals, lakes and parks. A heavenly abode. My lifetime wish was fulfilled. A pleasant, calm and peaceful night brought us a good night sleep. By morning all our exertion due to long travel and walks had vanished. We were as energetic as teenagers.

After breakfast the following day, we headed to Mount Titlis, a 10,000ft tall snow capped mountain. A secure, comfortable, ambient cable car takes us (Hike) to the top of the mountain. Previous night there was some showers and snow formation was substantial.  We were able to walk and play in snow. We had the experience of rotating cable car called Rotair. Breathtaking panoramic views of the surrounding landscapes were enjoyable. An artificial ice cave on the mountain gives a beautiful experience of life on ice. After lunch in the afternoon, we left for hotel near Venice.

Venice is the most romantic city in Italy. Architectural and scenic bonanza combined with historic monuments makes Venice visit a memorable one. Venice has only waterways. Wooden boat called Gondola, takes us around the city in the waterways. Experience is unforgettable and inexplicable. St.Mark’s square, one of the elegant squares in the world, Basilica di San Marco, Murano glass showroom are important places of interest. The ambience and beauty of Venice need not be explained in detail. Just as in any other tourist places, cheating and exploitation are rampant. There are no free public toilets. Lunch was sumptuous and we left for a hotel near Rome for our night stay.

A local professional guide took us around Vatican city and explained the historic importance of several things. Vatican city, home to pope and the Roman catholic church is given statehood. St.Peter’s Basilica, Trevi fountains are unforgettable experiences. The entire interiors of St.Peter’s is lavishly decorated with marbles, mosaic with painstaking detail. We visited the World famous sites such as Colosseum and Constantine arch. The Colosseum is an oval amphitheatre in the centre of Rome city built of concrete and sand. It is a World Heritage Site and one of the seven wonders of the world. Rome is a historic city with thousands of ancient architectural buildings and structures. The city tour was very exciting and a great treat to our mind and vision. Rome is the capital city of Italy. Ancient ruins evoke the power of Roman empire. Rich in art, architecture and cultural display. We were never tired after a full day’s tour of Rome indicates that it was so capturing and mind blowing. At the end of our Rome visit, we were taken to Time Elevator, a multisensorial and dynamic cinema experience stimulating a travel into time, taking viewers through the history of Rome, view of Roman forums where ancient civilisation developed. We departed to Florence for our night stay with a heavy heart as a day’s visit to Rome will not satisfy our hunger to explore. A week stay in Rome is necessary to undertake and understand a little bit of Rome.

Our next stop was Florence, the renaissance city. It has the most impressive architecture of the finest historic buildings of Italy. Duomo of Florence, the largest brick dome ever created, Basilica of Santa Croce, the final burial place of Michelangelo, Ponte Vecchio bridge are some of the places we were able to view. Florence was the capital of Italy for five years before Rome became its capital. This is again a tourist attraction place. Cheating and exploitation is rampant. There are no free toilets and other amenities. Later, we proceeded to Pisa, an ancient historic city in Italy. World famous leaning tower, cathedral square, is the main attraction. Vehicles are not allowed into some parts of the city. A toy train like vehicle operates to carry the tourists into the attractions. It was exciting to ride through. Travelled to Sanremo, another ancient beach city for night stay. It is a picturesque, clean and tidy small city with palatial buildings and hotels.

After our dinner in the hotel, an aged woman approached us and enquired whether we are from India, when we said yes, she was a bit excited and said her father is there. When I asked her to name the city, she could not do so. She said that her father was a defence officer and imprisoned in India in 1937 and she still believes that her father is there. It was a very emotional moment.

Driving along Italian and French Riviera, passing through spectacular mountain scenery along the Mediterranean sea, we reached Cannes, a resort town on the French Riviera is famous for international film festival. 2017 festival had started the previous day. A festival look was already there. We had a view of the venue, saw some artists, a brief city walk, a brief beach visit, we left for Nice, a retreat for European elite. A very large number of palatial buildings, hotels and other structures provide visitors, a visual delite. We had lunch here and proceeded to Monte Carlo, where Monte Carlo casino is located. This is a place of super rich and super cars. During our brief stay, we were able to see several high end cars such as Ferrari, Rolls Royce, Lamborghini etc. In front of Monte Carlo casino several such cars were parked. Formula one race track passes through the city. Preparations were being made for the next race.

From Sanremo, after six hour drive, we reached Geneva There we visited the United Nations building, the flower clock, a symbol of Geneva (broken), and a quick city tour. Geneva is a great city in Switzerland and hub of hectic international political activities. A broken chair is installed in front of UN building as a refusal of armed violence against civilians. Broken chair is a symbol of both fragility and strength, precariousness, brutality and also stability and dignity.

Finally, as a climax to the beautiful European trip, we entered Paris, the fashion city. The beauty and grandeur are beyond the words for explanation. Thousands of ancient palatial buildings and structures attract our attention. Eiffel tower, victory arch are the important landmarks. A boat ride in the river Seine is a wonderful experience and remains in memory for ever. We went on a night tour of Paris. All important buildings and structures were illuminated. Different bridges were illuminated decoratively. As the day was long, sunshine was up to 10-o-clock in night. We could not enjoy much of night tour.

Europe is a wonderful place. Most at the foot of Alps. Luckily, we had a great and wonderful weather during our visit to enjoy the beauty. How can one forget the hundreds of tunnel journey in Switzerland and Italy. Many tunnels are longer than 10 km. The longest one that we passed through was 17 km. Roads are excellent. People are friendly, except in some parts of Italy. Natural resources are well exploited in Switzerland. Hundreds of small Hydro power generation units are functional and power generation is surplus and profitable. Italy has several manufacturing hubs and a great tourist savvy place.

  

From French side, the English channel was crossed in a ferry from Calais to Dover and with a heavy heart, bid adieu to our other group members to reach Shashank’s home in Brentwood.

By forcefully sending us to the tour, our children made us a very big favour. We were able to enjoy the beauty of heaven on the earth. This will remain in our memory for ever.