Euro Beer & Magnet Tour

March - May 2023

A bit of a jaunt around Europe, to see some interesting spots and share beers with a few pals….plus collect a few fridge magnets along the way 💪 Read more

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- Apr 5, 2023, 9:08pm
- 🌙 12 °C
- Altitude: 75 m
- Spain Catalonia Girona Girona Railway Station 41.977287, 2.81901441°58’38” N 2°49’8” E
Day 10
Girona - crazy Roman festival!
April 5, 2023 in Spain ⋅ 🌙 12 °C
I love it when you arrive in a new town and the Romans rock up with a massive display in your honour 🤪

We found our Airbnb close to the station - a stylish apartment belonging to Flori and Joan: their English was as non-existent as our Spanish, but it was all smiles….so once our bags were sorted, we set off to explore the small but beautiful city.

We soon discovered a City Wall you could walk, so up we went. It dropped down near the Cathedral, a Game of Thrones location for those interested, only to discover something of a buzz….a few Police around, people appearing to gather.

Soon, Romans began to emerge from a church, and we suddenly found we had arrived on one of two evenings where a Legion of around 150 Roman Soldiers march through town as part of their Easter celebrations 😎

It started with a few….then a few more….then those mounted horses, and suddenly the square was full of them!

Utterly bizarre yet absolutely fascinating.
We followed them through the narrow streets, then watched some marching displays in a square: very impressive.

After a while, we headed back to a boujee little restaurant we had spotted earlier in the tiny streets.
There, we found a Senegalese fella, Denis Singuila, was playing and singing, and soon I had a djembe thrust in my hands, joining in. Turns out our small audience of diners were doubling as percussion.
Slightly pleased that he felt I had “skills”, it made for a fun meal!

Later, we heard the Romans returning, which was quite a sight late in the evening in the tiny streets!Read more
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- Apr 6, 2023, 9:58pm
- 🌙 11 °C
- Altitude: 78 m
- Spain Catalonia Girona Girona Railway Station 41.977329, 2.81918341°58’38” N 2°49’9” E
Day 11
Girona…walking, Jews & films
April 6, 2023 in Spain ⋅ 🌙 11 °C
For our second day we had a lazy wander through town: over the Eiffel Bridge, designed by….well, I’m sure you know!

We discovered the Jewish museum, although they had been gone for over 500 years. We later had to be chased out of the Cinema Museum when it was closing: thoroughly riveting!

A final meal turned out to be at a Mexican place, with perhaps the best nachos I’ve ever eaten, and fantastic “Day of the Dead” wall art inside!Read more
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- Apr 7, 2023
- ⛅ 21 °C
- Altitude: 34 m
- France Occitania Montpellier Gambetta 43.600224, 3.87939843°36’1” N 3°52’46” E
Day 12
Travel day to Montpellier
April 7, 2023 in France ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C
We were able to leave Girona quite late: Joan kindly ran down 5 flights of stairs to get the lift to come back up for us with our bags!

We had a long day to get to Montpellier, made longer by a bus replacement through some winding coastal towns to get from Cerbère to Perpignan….but eventually we arrived, and picked up some salad for tea.Read more
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- Apr 8, 2023
- ☀️ 20 °C
- Altitude: 34 m
- France Occitania Montpellier Gambetta 43.600166, 3.87933243°36’1” N 3°52’46” E
Day 13
Montpellier
April 8, 2023 in France ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C
We were staying close to the Sant-Rich station in a bargain Airbnb with Veronique: a lovely room in her equally lovely house!

A short walk to town found the famous and huge Place de Comedie was closed for refurbishment - City of Culture in 2028, they appear to be getting a head start!

That said, there were some grand old buildings to be found; a couple of small exhibitions we happened upon; plenty of cool architecture; Montpellier’s most popular bakery (checkout the line 👀) and much more….

Keeping a sharp eye on our budget, but without a kitchen to cook in, we succumbed to the Tasty Corner takeaway near our lodgings for dinner…naughty but nice!

Averaging over 14k steps each day….pretty shattered all the time, but wouldn’t have it any other way!Read more
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- Apr 9, 2023, 9:53pm
- ⛅ 13 °C
- Altitude: 34 m
- France Occitania Montpellier Gambetta 43.600243, 3.87952143°36’1” N 3°52’46” E
Day 14
Beautiful Roman Nîmes
April 9, 2023 in France ⋅ ⛅ 13 °C
A spectacular city to visit, very easy to do as a day visit from Montpellier.
Nîmes was a great place to visit on Easter Sunday.
We started by taking an audio tour inside the best preserved amphitheatre outside Italy. A chance to hear “first hand stories” from a gladiator. Very impressive 😎

From there, we moved on to the beautiful Maison Carrée Roman temple, also in astonishing condition.

On to the Jardin de La Fontaine, but our aches and pains meant we wisely avoided walking right up the hill to the Tour Magne viewpoint 👀

We enjoyed a fine vegan lunch in the gardens at Restaurant La Fabrik before heading back to the centre and taking a look inside the Musée Romanité: a startling structure next to the main amphitheatre, designed loosely as a Roman Toga!
Some great exhibits inside, including some astonishing old scale models of various Roman buildings.

Finally, we headed on the short return train back to Montpellier.Read more
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- Apr 10, 2023, 8:15pm
- ☁️ 14 °C
- Altitude: 35 m
- France Occitania Montpellier Gambetta 43.600113, 3.87948343°36’0” N 3°52’46” E
Day 15
Séte - a seaside wander
April 10, 2023 in France ⋅ ☁️ 14 °C
We took the suggestion to visit this nice seaside town. Veronique, our host, also recommended trying the local delicacy - la tielle setoise. Kind of mussel pasty….not over keen on them, but bought one from the market stall to try: tasted surprisingly good!

We found La Maison Verte for refreshments, then wandered round the coast. Stepped into an artist studio where the lady used Nespresso pods for some of her creations: very cool!

Out to the Théâtre de la Mer, then continued on up the hill to see the cemetery with the grave of local poet, essayist, and philosopher, Paul Valery, before finally heading back into town.

Struggled to decide on where to eat: ended up at a very “fast foodie” looking joint, The House, which somehow garnered good reviews: they presented me with an amazing plate of fish, great stop!

A walk back up to the station before taking the train for one final night in Montpellier.Read more
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- Apr 11, 2023, 7:15pm
- ☁️ 14 °C
- Altitude: 14 m
- Italy Liguria Genoa Foce 44.400509, 8.94964544°24’2” N 8°56’59” E
Day 16
A long day to Genoa
April 11, 2023 in Italy ⋅ ☁️ 14 °C
Today was a BigTravelDay™, joining up 5 trains: what could possibly go wrong🤞

Well, delays through Monte Carlo saw us miss the Italian connection at Ventimiglia. Every cloud has a silver lining, and with a bar across from the station, a cheeky beer was drunk instead….on the bright side, the next train was direct, making things mildly easier.

Genoa was but a bed for the night, although the reception lady recommended a fine small restaurant round the corner - Trattoria O Becco Fin.

Simple yet delicious Italian fare, & the young waiter got all excited when I noticed his decorated crash helmet and rushed outside with us.

I assumed he would proudly show me his amazing Ducati, or Moto Guzzi.
Instead, he reached into the top box of his little scooter to give me a Genoa football team sticker. I am now a local 😇Read more
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- Apr 12, 2023
- ☁️ 18 °C
- Altitude: 8 m
- Italy Tuscany Pisa Piazza del Duomo 43.725136, 10.39094543°43’30” N 10°23’27” E
Day 17
Beautiful Pisa
April 12, 2023 in Italy ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C
Our train turned out to be direct (despite suggesting a change was needed), so our journey was seamless…..and Pisa was a breathtaking spot to visit😎

Our room was within sight of the tower, & after settling in, we moseyed over to the hoards of people in the main area.

It was just beautiful, even with all the visitors.

We walked a 6km loop of the City walls, watching some students playing volleyball along the way.
The wander back through town was pleasant, and we had an evening slot to climb the 297 steps up the Tower for fine views as the sun was setting. A lovely spot to watch the sun setting!

Finally, we ate well in a fancy looking place, forcing them to find some beers instead of the vast wine list they offered us.Read more
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- Apr 14, 2023, 8:15pm
- ⛅ 14 °C
- Altitude: 73 m
- Italy Veneto Verona Piazza Pradaval 45.435516, 10.98537445°26’8” N 10°59’7” E
Day 19
Verona….from Dante to Bier House!
April 14, 2023 in Italy ⋅ ⛅ 14 °C
On to yet another beautiful place with a nice vibe. Well worth a visit!

A little confusion over breakfast with our host, Mario…we gave up discussing that the listing had it included. Then he called me at 9pm to apologise: told us to go to a local cafe on the corner and mention his name, so all sorted 🤣

We found a very cool Dante exhibition at the top of the funicular to visit: free, but book online before you go in👍

A nice man in a little opticians tightened my glasses up….then adjusted the fit, then gave them a good clean, and waved away any suggestion of payment.

Dining was at the huge Pizza Napoli, just round from our room - utterly delicious. A final cheeky beer at a nearby beerhaus closed off our time here.Read more
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- Apr 15, 2023
- 🌧 13 °C
- Altitude: 16 m
- Italy Friuli Venezia Giulia Trieste Civico Museo di Storia Patria 45.650009, 13.77609145°39’0” N 13°46’34” E
Day 20
A Birthday in Trieste 🎂
April 15, 2023 in Italy ⋅ 🌧 13 °C
On Saturday, we moved further east to Trieste, with one change.

At Venice Mestre, the platform was heaving: it transpires that a cruise ship in port meant lots of folk with big bags.
We had a chat with a small group on the platform from San Diego.

Aboard, we found two old ladies absolutely dominating SEVEN seats between them with their bags (which could have been left in a luggage area well within their sight!).
I politely asked them to squeeze around a bit (they spoke English). Absolute refusal, so we engaged in a full and frank discussion, with me smiling at their angry faces.

The result was them agreeing to move, but only on the basis that I was a very nasty man. A fair swap 🤣

SanDiego man joined us for a chat and said “thank you” - I felt we had the entire busy carriage wanting victory against the self entitled old bats 🤣

Trieste: a very grand place!

Lovely feel, beautiful buildings in an Austro-Hungarian style. Some Roman ruins too.

We had a spacious apartment (chosen as a treat for Christine’s birthday 🥳🎂), and our hosts had kindly left a bottle of bubbly for her 🥂
My plans for a swanky dinner were slightly trumped when we found a very cool and highly rated cafe named Genuino, serving delicious healthy food.
As a bonus, it was close to the Geco bar 🍻😎

The next morning, we took a bus to the amazing Grotta Gigantic - a vast place, 100m tall and at one point the biggest known showcave on earth by volume!
500 steps down: one lady was too scared and gave up!
Of course, there were also 500 steps up 😱

On our final day, we hopped on a train to go and spend some time at Miramare Castle: a sad tale of a young man desperate to be someone, but a nice place to visit with lovely gardens.
Inside was interesting, but the building had a slight Shrek vibe in the main staircase: very Lord Faquaad with the wooden carvings!

Popped to the beach to touch the Adriatic, and had an earnest young man rush over to politely tell us it was a protected area. He was so nice about it (since the signs were not obvious!), we enjoyed a chat then left.
We also saw a dolphin jump!
Well….we saw a massive splash, & he agreed it was probably a dolphin 🤷‍♂️

Another walk back up the hill to get the next train back to town for a couple of beers before a sunset up by the Monumento ai Caduti di Trieste - the War Memorial on the hill.Read more
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