Travel Logs – Page 3 – Travel Destinations

It was in Prague not so long ago

So goes the opening line of 1965 released song Prague by Rika Zaraï, an Israeli singer who not only sang in French, but English, Hebrew, Spanish, Italian and German. Rika lived most of her life in Paris where she made a career as a singer, songwriter, musician and author.

Rika Zaraï – Prague – 1967 Recording

Prague is a great place to visit at any time of year but the winter always seems so magical. Come the evenings the buildings in the centre are lit up and somehow it enhances their beauty.

Then at the end of your evening you can head for a cosy restaurant or maybe a bar where you can drink “probably” the best beer (pivo) in the world.

The Prague Beer Museum offers 31 beers on tap so you have plenty of choice.

Many visitors will head for the Old Town Square for refreshment. It is equally stunning both in the day and at night. The Square has remained relatively unchanged since the 10th Century. Here in the summer and for the hearty in the winter you can sit out al fresco and watch the world pass by. Standing or sitting in the square you can view the beautiful arcitecture. There are usuallly a few street performers and traders to enhance your experience.

Old Town Square – Prague – Czech Republic

I personally became familiar with the layout of the city via countless hours playing Forza on my Xbox. If you can get access to one have a go and you will get a great feel for the city. Many a time have I outbraked myself and crashed into the building above. One of the most familar sights from the games is that of the Charles Bridge in whose reign in 1357 the construction was begun. It wasnt formally called the Charles Bridge until 1870. The distinctive stone arches are similar in principle to the stone bridge in Regensburg and is now a UNESCO heritage site. Until 1841 the bridge was the only means of crossing the river Vltava and this led to Prague becoming an important centre on the east-west trade route. The bridge connects Prague Castle with the Old Town. Starting in 2019 it is currently undergoing a 20 years process of inspections, repairs and restoration.

Charles Bridge – Prague – Czech Republic

Whilst in the square do not miss a chance to see the Astronomical Clock. It was installed in 1410 and whilst it is the third oldest in terms on construction, it is the oldest working one in the world. It is mounted on the south wall of the Old Town Hall. The clock mechanism has three main components — the astronomical dial, representing the position of the Sun and Moon in the sky, the statutes of various saints and a calendar dial showing the months. According to legend the city will suffer if the good operation of the clock is neglected, so you can understand why it is in excellent working order today. In fact it was restored in 2018.

Astronomical Clock – Prague – Czech Republic

On the opposite side of the Charles Bridge is Prague Castle, the most visit attraction in the Czech Republic. Not only in this area is the castle itself but the St Vitus Cathedral, St George’s Basillica and Golden Lane. There has been a castle on this site since the 9th century. The St Vitus Cathedral is the largest religious building in Prague and it was here that the kings and queens were crowned. St George’s Basillica was the second church of the castle. Here you will find the tomb of One of them belongs to prince Vratislav, father of St. (Good King) Wenceslas.

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Songo ‘e nato

This song by Mario Abbate was realeased in 1969. Mario Abbate is one of a long line of singers who follow in the tradition of a long line of artists who perform “Canzone Napoletana”, songs sung in the Neopolitan language typically by a male singer. In 1830 at the Festival of Piedigrotta an annual song writing competition was held in the Mergellina district of Naples. This festival was instrumental in bringing forward singers and songwriters. Since that time there have been numerous classics written. Many of these have travelled round the world mainly through the emigration of people from the Naples region around the turn of the 20th century.

Mario Abbate

Naples is Italy’s third largest city and often gets overlooked by its larger cousins Milan and Rome. Hindered negative press tourists have tended to look elsewhere when choosing an Italian destination. However the city has so much to offer and because its not been as popular as its northern counterparts it just feels that bit more authentically Italian or should we say Neopolitan.

Mount Vesuvius – Backdrop to Naples – Italy

This city is full of history, which you sense as you walk down its narrow cobbled streets and sits in its many bars, restaurants and pizzerias. With Vesuvius to the east, the port of Pozzuoli to the west and the islands of Capri, Ischia and Procida not far away in Naples Bay. Right in the centre of Naples you will find the Chiostri di Santa Chiara. The construction on this site began in 1310 when two convents were built, one for men and one for women. Around 1740 major modifications were made and this is basis of what we see today. Sadly in August 1943, almost the entire building was destroyed by Allied bombing. It took 10 years to reconstruct the buildings. There is a museum where arifacts that survived the bombing on on display including a traditional shepherd based nativity scene from around the end of the 18th century. This is the place to head towards the end of the day to unwind from the hussle and bussle of the city.

Aerial View of Naples featuring the Chiostri di Santa Chiara.

Most of the churches that we visit on travellogs, have a long and ancient history. The Basilica di San Francesco in Naples is relatively new and was not in fact built as a church. The square in front and the building itself were planned by Napolean’s brother-in-law as a tribute to the Emperor. Napoleon was defeated and the Bourbon royal family were restored. King Ferdinand continued the construction and had it converted to a church devoted to Saint Francis of Paola, who once stayed in a monastry on this site.

Basilica di San Francesco in Naples, Italy

The dome is 53 metres high and overall the church would appear to take its design and styling cues from the Pantheon in Rome. The interior is fascinating as its contains a number of statues and arteifacts some of which are from around the period of its construction, but other older ones transfered from other churches including many from the renaissance.

When we visited Milan here on travellogs last year, we didnt have space to mention the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II. Something that we will redress at a future date. Naples has its own version called the Galleria Umberto I. Built between 1887 and 1891, it was part of the rebuilding of Naples programme called “risanamento” or “making healthy again”. The Galleria gets its name from Umberto 1 who was the King of Italy at the time of construction. The building is part of the listing of the Historic Centre of Naples as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

We don’t normally recommend that you head below ground to travel on the metro or underground. However in Naples the Linea Uno has a collection of over 180 one-off commissions by international artists. For example at Toledo station the silver-blue walls are designed to make you feel that you are traversing through the ground and into the sea. The station was the 2013 LEAF Award as “Public building of the year”. The line for a large part runs parallel to the ancient city wall and many historical object were recovered during the construction process. These objects are displayed in the Museo station, there are plans to exhibit more at other stations in the future.

We do love a market and in Naples you will find a very unique one. The San Gregorio Armeno is a church and monastry. It was established by a group of nuns escaping from the Byzantine Empire with the relics of St Gregory, a bishop of Armenia, on the site of a Roman temple. The current church was built in the 15th century and you can visit the cloisters for a couple of hours each morning before the nuns reclaim it. Close by in the Via San Gregorio Aremeno is a well established market that comes into its own at Christmas.

Via San Gregorio Aremeno – Naples – Italy

Here you will find endless jobs dedicated to the Christmas Nativity scene. Neapolitan families will come here buy figures to create their own nativity scenes at home. Outside the nativity season, visiting the market will allow you to see many of the artisans at work and you will have more space to shop.

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Vanlose Stairway

Van Morrison wrote this song* about his Danish girlfriend Ulla Munch. She lived on the fourth floor of an apartment in the Vanlose district of Copenhagen. They lived together here from 1980 to 1983. The song itself was released in January 1982.

Vanlose Stairway – Van Morrison

Vanlose is on of the 10 districts of Copenhagen and also was home to the The French artist Paul Gauguin between 1884 and1885. and the Danish artist Henry Heerup who lived there for many years. The Heerup Museum was opened in the district in 2000.

The Heerup is just one of many museums that Copenhagen has to offer. There are several other art based museums in the city and the surrounding areaO including the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, which is considered by many to be the top attraction in Denmark. Incidently the Louisiana has no connection with the USA, it was the name given to the first property on the site by Alexander Brun (1814-93), who named the villa after his three wives, all called Louise.

Louisiana Museum of Modern Art – Denmark

At the other end of the time scale why not visit the Glyptoteket which houses excellent collections of Egyptian, Greek, Etruscan and Roman art, as well as works by Gauguin and Degas.

Glyptoketet - Copenhagen - Denmark — Glyptoteket – Copenhagen -Denmark

On a less high brow note, adjacent to the Glytoketet, are the Tivoli Gardens. The gardens house the world’s third oldest operating theme park. It has been operating since 1843 and is the 5th most popular amusement park in Europe. One of the highlights of a visit is a ride on the “Rutschebanen” (Roller Coaster), this is a wooden roller coaster where a brakeman controls the speed of the descent. The ride is designated as a classic roller coaster by the ACE (American Coaster Enthusiasts). The oldest amusement park in the world is also in Copenhagen, approximately 6 miles (10km) north of the city centre. An amusement park has been operating at Bakken since 1583.

Tivoli Gardens at Night - Copenhagen- Denmark — Tivoli Gardens at Night – Copenhagen – Denmark

The most internationally recognised symbol of Copenhagen is the Den lille Havfrue (The Little Mermaid). It depicts a mermaid becoming human and is based on the Hans Christian Anderson story of the same name. It has been on display since 1913, the head is based on the ballerina Ellen Price, whilst its body is that of the sculpture’s wife. When you seen the sculpture, be prepared to be underwhelmed as its only around 4 ft (1.25cm) tall. Sadly over the years the mermaid has had her head cut off twice (the first time it was never recovered), her right arm was sawn off, been covered in green paint, red paint and then blue and white paint, and an attempt was made to blow her up. It is not surprising therefore that the current sculpture on display is a copy of the original. From time to time she has been dressed. Notably in Norwegian or Swedish football jerseys.

Den lille Havfrue (The Little Mermaid) - Copenhagen - Denmark — *Den lille Havfrue* (The Little Mermaid) – Copenhagen – Denmark

Hans Christian Andersen lived in Copenhagen in Nyhavn (New Haven). In years gone by this was the seedier part of town. Along side a 17th century canal stand some beautifully painted houses from the same era. Andersen lived at various times at numbers 18, 20 and 67. Today the ground floors of the properies are home to bars, restaurants and cafes most with outdoor seating wherre you can view the wooden boats.

Nyhavn - Copenhagen - Denmark — Nyhavn – Copenhagen – Denmark

Keep following us here on travellogs.co.uk as we will be returning to Copenhagen at a future date.

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Be Sure to Wear Flowers in Your Hair.

The title of today’s post is from a 1967 song sung by Scott McKenzie. The full title of of the song is neither “San Francisco” or “Be Sure to Wear Flowers in Your Hair”, but both. The song was produced and released by John Phillips (who also wrote the lyrics) and Lou Alder to promote their Monterey International Pop Music Festival in June of that year. The video below was recorded at the festival itself.

My introduction to San Francisco was the epic car chase in the film Bullitt starring Steve McQueen. You can visit the RJSmith’s excellent website to see details of all the locations used in the filming. If you have 10 minutes you might like to watch probably the greates car chase of all time.

https://youtu.be/FJZ-BHBKyos

We havent come across a specific Bullitt tour, but we do know that currently there is a Dirty Harry Tour operating and there are general Movie related tours that will take you to some of the places seen in the video clip above. The San Francisco Movie Tour company for example operates a tour that allows you visit 50 plus film locations that includes various locations from the film Bullitt plus the spot at the Golden Gate Bridge where Kim Novak jumped into the water and Jimmy Stewart saved her in Vertigo, the house where Robin Williams’ family lived in Mrs. Doubtfire, the high school attended by Anne Hathaway in The Princess Diaries, the sniper’s perch from Dirty Harry and many more.

Alcatraz Island – San Francisco – CA – USA

For many visitors, a trip to San Francisco wouldn’t be complete without a trip to Alcatraz Island. Just a 15 minute ferry ride from pier 33 will take you to the island which is surrounded cold water and strong currents which make it almost impossible to escape. The not only is home to a former federal prison, but a military fort, a military prison and was occupied by native Americans for a period of time. In the picture above you can see very clearly the lighthouse, which was the first built on the west coast of the United States.

Interior Alcatraz Prison – San Francisco – CA – USA

For 29 years the island was home to the federal prison that held some of the most notorious criminals in American history, who included gangsters such as Al Capone, Robert Franklin Stroud (the “Birdman of Acatraz”) and George “Machine Gun” Kelly. Today you are allowed to get off the island. The authorities state that no-one ever successfully escaped from the island though 36 tried.

The island and its facilties are managed as part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. The area is not one continuous area but a collection of areas and is one of the largest urban parks in the world. It attacts over 15 millions visitors a year. Included in the area is the Presidio, which is located on the northern tip of the San Francisco peninsula. This area was fortified in 1776 when New Spain was established, it passed to Mexico in 1820 and then to the United States in 1848. It is from here that you can get an amazing view of the Golden Gate Bridge.

Golden Gate Bridge – San Francisco – CA – USA

The bridge is the most photographed bridge in the world as well as for many years being the tallest and longest suspension bridge in the world. It was opened in 1937 and has provision for bicycles and pedestrians so if you fancy a one long walk at a height of 245 feet (75M) above the water then its possible. The colour of the bridge is officially called international orange and was chosen to compliment its surrounding as well as enhancing its visibility in poor weather.

Phew I am exhausted. We will be back to visit more of San Francisco on another occasion.

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P’tite fleur aimée

P’tite fleur aimée (“Little beloved flower”, also known as P’tite fleur fanée, “Little faded flower”), is the best known song from the island of Réunion . It is considered the unofficial local anthem. Being technically part of France its national anthem is La Marseillaise.

P’tite Fleur aimée (Ti Fleur fané) – île de La Réunion – Jessica Morel – Jean-Claude Welche

Flying from Paris to the island of Réunion you are undertaking the longest domestic flight in the world. Its just over 11 hours from Paris. Add on the a hop across the channel from London and we are looking at 13 to 14 hours travel time airport to airport. The island is in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Madagascar, hence the journey time and it an alternative destination to the Seychelles or Maldives.

Volcan du Ciel – Reunion – France
Copyright Emmanuel Virin

The island is 63 km long and 45 km wide, so in theory it should be relatively quick to get from one side to the other, however the island is volcanic in origin and its landscape presents challenges and opportunites to the islands inhabitants and visitors. The island is above a hotspot in the Earth’s crust and two volcanoes dominate the landscape. The 3000 m tall Piton des Neiges is now dormant but the Piton de la Fournaise (2600 m) has erupted over 100 times in the past 400 years.

Outstanding Views – L’Reunion -France Copyright -Stéphane Michel

Making the effort to venture inland and upwards will give you some of the most magnificent views possible over a volcanic landscape. There are over 1000 kms of hiking trials on the island. If that sounds like hand work then a helicopter ride round the island might be the answer.

Réunion contains many beaches many of which are pretty civilised being equipped with barbecues, amenities, and parking spaces. Hermitage Beach is the most extensive and best-preserved lagoon in Réunion Island and a popular snorkelling location.Plage des Brisants is a well-known surfing spot, with many athletic and leisurely activities taking place. L’Étang-Salé on the west coast is a particularly unique beach as it is covered in black sand consisting of tiny fragments of basalt. Grand Anse is a tropical white-sand beach lined with coconut trees in the south of Réunion.

The miles of coastline provide ample opportunities for many kinds of watersports including snorkelling, diving, surfing, stand-up paddling boarding and sailing.

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It’s the same from Auschwitz to Ipswich

So go the lyrics from the track “Auschwitz to Ipswich” by Jarvis Cocker from his “self titled” solo album. Its quite difficult to find songs with Ipswich in the lyrics that are positive about the town. We debated hard and strong on whether to include Ipswich Town football chants or go for a bit of Jarvis. So here we go a bit of Jarvis.

https://youtu.be/Sg-y0sZas4E

From Auschwitz to Ipswich – Jarvis Cocker

Earlier this year Tripadvisor released a list of the Top 25 emerging travel destinations. Top of the list was Kaliningrad, Russia. We recently covered the 13th place on the list, Tulsa and by now you can guess that Ipswich is also on the list at No. 14.

In some ways its not surprising that Ipswich it up there on the list. In a survey by the Royal Mail, Ipswich was rated as the 7th most desirable place and in a separate service, the 3rd happiest place to live in the UK.

Although settled in Roman times, Ipswich grew due to the importance of maritime trading in the middle ages. The riverfront area of the town used to be a hub of activity with boats loading and unloading their wares. Today the boats are for pleasure. There are a number of boat trips you can book lasting from an hour up to 3 and half hours down the River Orwell to the port of Felixstowe. You can even book dinner on a river barge. For those of you who prefer to keep your feet on dry land, there is plenty of choice to eat and drink along the waterfront.

The oldest surviving building on the Ipswich Waterfront is over 175 years old. The Old Customs House as it is known today has been at the centre of Ipswich’s maritime story since its construction in 1845. It was built to coincide with the construction of the Wet Dock. An area of thirty-three acres and an island of fourteen acres. When the dock when built, it was the largest in the country exceeding any of the docks in London, Liverpool or Hull. The building was designed by local architect, John Medland Clark who won a competition for the design. The iron door shown above was the entrance to the bonded stores and sits beneah the stairways to the main entrance.

Christchurch Mansion is a beautiful brick built Tudor House. Vistors can visit the rooms that show the history of the house from Tudor to Victorian times. In addition there are a number of collections available to view incluing the biggest selection of works by Thomas Gainsborough and John Constable outside of London.

Ipswich has great road transport routes in part due to its position near the main east coast ports. In addition it has good rail links to London, Cambridge, Peterborough, Norwich and the whole of the East Anglian region. In fact one of the hidden gems in Ipswich is the Ipswich Transport Musuem that is housed in the old Trolleybus Depot. Please check their opening hours before travelling as they are restricted. The collection started with one bus now inludes include trams, trolleybuses, motorbuses, lorries, fire engines, horse drawn vehicles, bicycles, prams, ambulances, a police car, and even a funeral hearse.

Ipswich is the entertainment capital of the region with an exciting summer events programme, thriving theatres, cinemas, clubs and bars.

Lavenham Church – A short drive from Ipswich – UK

Yet, wherever you stay in or around the town you are only minutes away from picture postcard villages, Constable Country and the Heritage Coast. We will cover these in more detail at a later date.

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Then it’s the feeling like you’re also glad you came

We have a really tenuous link between our video and today’s destination. First enjoy the video and then we’ll explain the link. The title of today’s post is taken from the second line of the song.

Many of you will be aware that Canadian born Nelly Furtado is of Portuguese ancestry and has from time to time sung in Portuguese. In fact Nelly’s parents were born on Sao Miguel Island which are part of the Portuguese Azores.

The Azores are a group of volcanic islands in the Atlantic Ocean, almost equidistant from Portugal and Morocco. Another 500kms to the north west would take you to Newfoundland, Canada.

There are nine major islands in three main clusters, each one is distinct due to the fact that these remote islands were gradually inhabited over two centuries. Sao Miguel Island is one of the easterly islands. Alternatively known as the “Green Island”, Sao Miguel Island is the most populated of the islands and the location of the islands largest city, Ponta Delgado. The low buildings that dominate the city are mainly built of local volcanic stone which contrasts with the traditional Portuguese facades.

Building Facade – Ponta Delgada – Azores – Portugal

The island’s main attractions are not man-made but its natural landscapes. The most famous of these it the Sete Cidades, a forested caldera with twin lakes at the bottom, one green and one blue. The tour round the outside of the caldera is fairly flat whilst in contrast the drive to the rim is up, narrow uneven dirt roads.

Lagoa das Sete Cidades – Azores – Portugal

There are a number of local legends associated with the formation of the Lagoa das Sete Cidades (Lagoon of the Seven Cities), the green and blue lagoons are very distinctive.

Moving on from Sao Miguel Island, further to the west is the “Blue Island” of Faial. The name comes from many hydrangea bushes they flourish on the island as the result of being introduced by Flemish settlers many years ago. You can visit Faial as a day trip from nearby Pico or stay overnight. The highlight of the island is Capelinhos, which erupted in 1957. The closest village to the volcano was covered in ash and pumice and you can vist the half buried lighthouse which today houses the Capelinhos Volcano Interpretation Centre.

Capelinhos Volcano Interpretation Centre – Faial _Azores – Portugal

Pico is known as the “Grey Island”. A look at the landscape and the volcanic rock explains why. Its landscape was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2004. It was neither the Portuguese nor the Flemish who had most influence of the destiny of this island, but Sicilian monks who brought their knowledge of grape husbandry to the island. They used the volcanic stone to great effect as can be seen below. The stone walls protect the vines from the Atlantic winds and the stone absord heat during the day and keep the vines warm at night.

Moving on again we come to the “Brown Island” of São Jorge. Again this island can be visited on a day trip from Pico. The brown is from the colour of the cliffs and looking at the cliffs you can make out the outline of a dragon’s spiney back, hence the island is named after São Jorge the dragon slayer. Can you spot the dragon in the image below?

The main reason to visit the island is for the cheese as cows outnumber the local population by 2 to 1. The spicy cheese produced on the island is gaining a following around the world.

This leads us on to our final island of the day, the “Purple Island” of Terceira, famous for the colour of the sunsets seen from the island. The city of Angra do Heroísmo is the oldest on any of the its and with its narrow cobblestone streets, whitewashed buildings and terracotta-tiled roofs gained it a UNESCO World Heritage Site desination.

Bulls play a very important part in the culture of the island. When the Spanish tried the invade the island, the locals forced their cattle to stampede the Spanish invaders as they tried to come ashore. Since the 16th century, the “touradas a corda” are held in the summer months. A bull is let loose with a very long rope around its neck. The other end of the rope are held by eight men who control the bull at length. People then attempt to get as close as they dare to the bull.

Getting back to the title of the post. We think that once you are in the Azores you will get the feeling that you were glad you came.

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One Hundred

This is the One Hundreth posting. I know many of you haven’t been with us all the way through. However since around the 40th post we have seen a number of your regularly return to see the lastest offering.

It took us awhile but we got into the habit of introducing each destination with a musical link. Some were very direct, others a bit tenuous. We hope that these songs have introduced you to new artists and genres as well as reaquainting you with old favourites. You might enjoy this video of a 100 travel hacks. We did say some links were tenuous.

One artist that particularly caught our attention was the Belgian born Wendy Nazaré who was singing about Lisbon. The video accompanying the song was filmed in Lisbon and provides a opportunity to see and hear the sights and sounds you can expect on your visit.

Wendy Nazaré – Lisbon

The artist who has featured most, is David Bowie, with his songs about Berlin, Warsaw and Cyprus. We could have included more David Bowie tracks as he has covered other songs that we have used like Jacques Brel’s “Amsterdam”.

In terms of destinations, we have visited California more often than anywhere else. Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, Pasadena and Death Valley.

David Bowie – Berlin

We have more destinations to visit in the next 100 postings and we look forward to having you along for the ride.

Last Train to London

Last Train to London was released by ELO in 1979. One of the lines in the lyrics goes “The sun is going down”. When discussing London as a travel destintion its so difficult to know where to start. However going back to 1979 I remember going on a walk round the centre of London in the early hours of the morning and for the first time in many cases fully appreciating the beauty of the city of my birth.

Last Train to London – Electric Light Orchestra

Where better to start than alongside side the Thames at the one of the most famous landmarks in London – Tower Bridge.

The bridge was completed in 1894 and is unique in terms of bridges across the Thames in that the central section of the bridge opens to allow the passage of taller vessels. Today you can cross the bridge via a glass floored walkway 42 metres above the river and if you are lucky the bridge might even be raised beneath you. The bridge or to be more technical the bascules are raised around a thousand times a year. The times of the raising are listed on the tower’s website so you can plan you trip to coincide with such an event.

If we move downriver from the City of London to the City of Westminster, then the Palace of Westminster dominates the views from the south side of the river.

Westminster Palace – London – England – UK

In the view above we can see the 300 metre long facade of the Palace. This part of the building was built of land claimed from the river in the period from 1840 to 1870. Most of us are more familar with the land or Westminster Abbey side of the builing. This night view helps to highlight the beauty of the architechure in a way that sunlight cannot. There has been a palace on this site since the 11th century and was the primary residence of the Kings of England until the 16th century. The building is still technically owned by the Crown and is still a designated Royal Palace. Today the building houses by the House of Commons and the House of Lords or as they are more commonly called the Houses of Parliament.

Eros Sculpture – Piccadilly Circus – London – England – UK

The Eros Sculpture or to give it, its correct title the “Shaftsbury Memorial Fountain” stands in Piccadilly Circus and was erected to commemorate the work of the Earl of Shaftsbury in helping to replace child labour with school education. Although know as Eros the sculpture is based on a previous work by the sculptor Alfred Gilbert of Eros’ brother Anteros. Strangly most people take a selfie from the other side of the sculpture than the one in the image above. But is it only from this side we can see it full on. Maybe because to get this view you have to cross the busy road or stand in it, which is much easier to do in the middle of the night!

Leadenhall Market – London – England – UK

Leadenhall Market is one of London’s oldest markets and is located in the City of London. It is a busy market selling mainly food in the week, though like many markets there is an increasing emphasis on other goods and services. Its position is probably in the centre of Roman London. Some of you might recognise the resemblence to Diagon Alley in the film “Harry Potter and the Philospher’s Stone”. You might have also recognised in the Erasure video of “Love to Hate You”.

Love to Hate You – Erasure

Opened in 2000, the Millenium or “Wobbly” Bridge as it soon became known was opened to connect the south bank of the Thames, near the Globe Theatre with the north side near St Paul’s Cathedral.

Millenium Bridge and St Pauls Cathedral – London – England – UK

The alignment of the bridge is such that a clear view of St Paul’s south facade is presented as you cross the river, framed by the bridge supports. The bridge also features in a Harry Potter film, this time in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, where the bridge collapses following an attack by Death Eaters. By contrast there has been a place of worship on the site of St Paul’s Cathedral since 604 AD. The present building dates from the late 17th century after much of the previous cathedral was destroyed by the Great Fire of London of 1666. It was officially declared open on 25th December 1711 though additional works continued after this date. Until 1963 St Paul’s was the tallest building in London. As you may have guessed the cathedral also appears in another Harry Potter film, this time “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban” which shows the Geometric Staircase in the south west bell tower, representing the staircase towards the Divination classroom.

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Ventura Highway

This post is inspired by another song by the band America. The song “Ventura Highway” was from their second album homecoming. Dewey Bunnell who wrote the song stated “I remember vividly having this mental picture of the stretch of the coastline traveling with my family when I was younger. Ventura Highway itself, there is no such beast, what I was really trying to depict was the Pacific Coast Highway, Highway 1, which goes up to the town of Ventura.”

Many people confuse the highway in the song which is fictious with the Ventura Freeway which is real. The Freeway runs from the Santa Barbara/Ventura county line to Pasadena in Los Angeles County. It is the principal east-west route (designated north-south) through Ventura County and in the southern San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles County.

Ventura Highway – America

We do like a roadtip on Travellogs and give a stretch of road a special sounding name we will be there. Check out our other recent road trip posts: North 500 and Route 66.

Santa Barbara is sometimes referred to as the American Riviera. It has beautiful beaches against a backdrop of magnificient mountains and hotels and restaurants to match. Santa Barbara is a 2-hour drive north from Los Angeles or it can be reached by connecting flights from Las Vegas, San Francisco, Phoenix, Dallas and Chicago amongst others.

Santa Barbara’s harbour is where you will find the historic “Stearns Wharf”. It is California’s oldest working wharf dating back to 1872. It is the most visited attraction in the city. The wharf was built to save boats having to transfer their cargoes into smaller vessels to bring them ashore. It has a colourful history being hit by a number of disasters over the years.

For the oenophiles amongst you, Santa Barbara wine country is minutes away. The Santa Ynez Valley is home to over 120 wineries, from tiny tasting rooms with low-scale production wineries to mass-producing operations and a regular shuttle bus will allow you make the most of your day without the worry of driving.

Wine making dates back to 1782. By the late 1800’s, there were 45 vineyards in the area. Today Santa Barbara’s Wine Country contains over 77,000 acres of grapes with 60 plus varieties grown.

Pasedena is closer to Los Angeles and is literally 10 miles away. Known as the “Crown of the Valley” is has a rich history.

The City Hall exhibits Italian Renaissance and Spanish influences with its red tile roof, ornate fountain, and lush garden courtyard. It is included in the National Register of Historical Places. A very costly rennovation has made the building as earthquake proof as is possible. The building has appreared in a number of films and TV programmes including Charlie Chaplin’s “The Great Dictator” and more recently in “Parks and Recreation”.

Pasadena is also home to the Rose Bowl, which is at the time of writing the 16th largest stadium in the world. Opened in 1922 it is synonymous with US College Football, being the venue for the annual Rose Bowl game which is traditionally held on New Year’s Day. On a week by week basis it is home to the UCLA Bruins but hosted the 1994 FIFA World Cup Final.

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