Will you be travelling to Italy this summer? Knowing something about the history and culture of Italy can greatly enhance your experience. Here are five of our favorite books on Italy, a sampling to give you a taste of what to expect besides pizza and gelato: ROME: THE BIOGRAPHY OF A CITY by Christopher Hibbert. … More Read Your Way Through Italy
26 April 2023 I am sitting on the edge of Lake Como, a vision of sparkling blue, nestled in the Cyprussy hills of northern Italy. Yesterday we arrived here in the train after eight hours of travel, much of which was through the alpine valleys of Switzerland. Tomorrow we’ll train into Rome. Everything is so … More Travel Log: Rome & Florence
Author Peter Barber shares with us his take on being married to a Greek, the life he loves in Greece, and his new books. … More Adventures of an Anglo Greek Marriage
Perhaps because of its pristine landscape, or the tendency of its residents toward verbal restraint, Finland has an understated national character that has kept generally out of the international limelight. However, this largely forested country has much to offer in the way of culture and literature. Its language has developed since ancient times, and now represents a growing literary entity on the world stage. … More Introduction to Finland in 5 Books
Communal wisdom states that “no man is an island,” but that is certainly not due to a lack of some of us trying to become one. Seppo Kemppainnen, the reluctant anti-hero in the new short story The Lucky Finn by VM Karren, is a master at burning the bridges that connect his island to anybody or anything else. Seppo’s only goal in life is to remain an island of solitude but finds luck conspiring against him, bringing him undesired good fortune…and too many neighbors! … More No Man is an Island
With the onset of the COVID-19 Pandemic, some of the details addressed in this article have been greatly modified. You can first read the original article below to get a frame of reference for a traditionally Dutch concept of space, then read the UPDATE at the end to find out how social space in the Netherlands has been affected by COVID-19. … More For Cultural Understanding: A Different Concept of Space
Injured as young man in Ukraine in 1993, author Val Karren finds himself stuck in a hospital in Vienna. … More Viennese Hospitality
Do you have a favorite motto, phrase or mantra that keeps you positive or motivated? Maybe it’s something from a favorite book, or a quote from someone you admire. I have many of these: ‘Stay calm and carry on,’ ‘when the going gets tough, the tough get going,’ and of course, ‘when life gives you … More Luctor et Emergo
Wishing you could get out and go somewhere new and interesting? We have the solution! We’ve just published a new video to our YouTube channel that we think you will love. ‘Maastricht Has It All’ will show you the wonders and delights of our home town in the Netherlands: Maastricht. Never heard of Maastricht? It’s … More Armchair Travel: Maastricht Has It All
This week we are highlighting the novel, From the Rooftops by V M Karren, which is set mainly in the eastern European country of Romania. We thought you might enjoy taking a brief glimpse at what everyday life looks like in Romania as an introduction to the book. Although the book is set in the … More Everyday Life in Romania
