High above the Our River valley, the silhouette of Vianden Castle commands the skyline of the small Luxembourgish town below. Its towers and battlements rise with a grandeur that speaks of medieval power and romantic restoration. The castle underwent extensive reconstruction in the twentieth century, returning it to its former glory as one of the […]
Categories: Luxembourg, Sights
Gold covers nearly every surface inside Monreale Cathedral. Six thousand four hundred square metres of Byzantine mosaics tell stories from the Old and New Testaments. The figures stare down from the walls with enormous eyes, their robes shimmering in the dim light. King William II built this cathedral in the twelfth century to outshine the […]
Categories: Islands, Italy, Nature, Religious Monuments, Sicily, Sights, Sights, Virtual Travel
Mist hovers over the moat as dawn breaks behind the twin towers of Egeskov Castle, a Renaissance fairy tale rising from the Danish island of Funen. Legend claims the entire structure rests on a foundation of oak pilings requiring an entire forest, giving the castle its name meaning oak forest. Inside, creaking floorboards lead through […]
Osborne House is the beloved seaside retreat of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, a magnificent Italianate palace on the Isle of Wight that was designed by Prince Albert himself and served as the royal family’s private escape from the formality of Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle. Victoria famously described Osborne as “a place of one’s […]
Categories: Sights, United Kingdom
Windsor Castle is the medieval castle and the oldest royal residence in Great Britain. It is located in the southeastern part of the country, about 10km west of London. Windsor Castle dates from the 11th century. Originally it was built of wood by William the Conqueror in 1070, as the protection of western routes into […]
Categories: Castles and Palaces, Sights, Sights, United Kingdom
Deep in the hills of central Portugal, the Mata Nacional do Buçaco, or Bussaco National Forest, is one of the most remarkable and romanticised forests in Europe. Enclosed within a 105-hectare wall, this ancient woodland has been carefully managed by monastic orders for over 400 years, preserving a unique collection of native and exotic trees […]
