Travel Photos

Travel Photos – Einsiedeln, Switzerland

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Had we not had a little extra time while making our way back to Zurich at the end of a trip in May, 2010, I probably would have never seen the Abbey of Einsiedeln, luckily we did manage to squeeze it in.  The town is relatively close to Zurich but feels like it is completely cut-off from the metropolitan area (approximately 40 kilometers).  The Abbey is obviously the focal point of the town, but we did have a light lunch in the town which was good (unfortunately I cannot remember the name of the restaurant).  As you can see from the photos below, the Abbey is quite impressive from the outside.  The inside is also quite striking.  Please enjoy!

Abbey of Einsiedeln (*** – Very interesting but probably not worth going extremely far out of your way to see it)

One more picture of the exterior (look for the Nuns walking down the steps)

A view of the city of Einsiedeln, Switzerland from the entrance of the Abbey

Travel Photos – Venice, Italy

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The next installment in my travel photos series comes from Venice, Italy.  I have traveled there twice, once in 1989 and once in 2008.  Unfortunately, I was too young to remember much from the 1989 trip and none of those pictures are in a digital format so all I have are photos from a 1-day, rain-soaked, trip to the city in 2008.  These pictures do not do justice to how beautiful the city is but they do capture what the city looks like when the crowds are gone.  Enjoy!

Piazza San Marco (***** – Central to everything in Venice. Quite touristy but still a must visit)

One more…

Rialto Bridge ( *** – Charming but nothing much to it)

Grand Canal

Another….

And another….

 I know these aren’t the best photos due to the nasty weather but hopefully they convey some of the beauty of Venice.  Look for some more travel photos posts coming up and a post detailing some future travel that should result in more extensive trip reports.

Travel Photos – Rome, Italy (At Night)

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I am saving  my primary travel photos entry for Rome until a later date but I did not want to exclude what may be my favorite city in the world so I decided to pull together the few nighttime shots I have of the eternal city into a blog post.  Please enjoy a look at Rome after dark…..

The Pantheon  (***** – Probably my favorite ancient site.  When I visit Rome I typically go through the Pantheon several times as it is free and ends up on my walking path across the city)

Piazza Navona (**** – Would be five stars if not for the constant hawkers.  Sorry for the picture quality on this one, a little blurry)

Travel Photos – Zurich, Switzerland

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Today I am back with another entry in my travel photos series.  This time the pictures are from Zurich, Switzerland during a trip I took in May, 2010.  I am going to pass on making comments on the pictures this time as Switzerland just did not interest me as much as other places and I honestly do not remember the names of the buildings/river/streets in the pictures.  Zurich is a very nice, clean city but it lacks the charm of other European cities, at least to me. (It is also much more expensive)  This is not to say I recommend avoiding Zurich, it is just that I would not value time there as highly as I would most other cities in Europe.

All of that being said, please do enjoy the pictures as Zurich is a very picturesque city.

Travel Photos – Greece (Athens/Delphi)

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Given what is currently happening in Greece, I felt it would be a good time to offer up a post on the beautiful aspects of the country.  I visited Greece in 2005 while still in college with my parents and we spent 7 days in the country, 2 in Athens and the rest driving around the country in our rental car.  It was a memorable experience and now looking back it is easy to see how the country ended up in its present condition.  Regardless of your political viewpoint it is sad to see a country of such beauty go down this path.

Alright, enough commentary, please enjoy these pictures of my time in Greece:

The Acropolis in Athens (***** – Must Visit)

The Greek Flag Flying on top of the Acropolis

(As a side note, I did not have any decent pictures of the Parthenon so unfortunately it will not be included in this Travel Photos post)

The Temple of Olympian Zeus (***** the scale of the columns alone is worth the visit)

(Looking down from Acropolis, also note behind the temple is the stadium from the first modern Olympics held in Athens in 1896)

Temple of Hephaestus (**** – Almost fully intact temple with smaller crowds than the Parthenon, below the Acropolis hill)

Poseidon Temple ***** (South of Athens on Cape Sounion)

As a side note, there is a very cool hotel just down the coast at the base of the hill the Poseidon Temple is located on.  You can see the temple from the balcony of each room and the hotel has some nice beach access.

The Oracle at Delphi (***** – Worth going far out of your way to see)

Another picture (wide-angle)

Looking up the hill towards the remaining ruins at Delphi.  

The Treasury at Delphi

As a travel note, try to not plan to eat in the area surrounding Delphi as the prices are very high and the food quality low.  For a good lunch, continue on to the coastal town of Itea for an authentic experience. See below for the view looking down towards Itea and Olive Farms.

I hope y’all enjoyed these photos from my trip to Greece a few years ago, as you can probably tell from the pictures we were there during an off-peak travel period so the crowds were considerably smaller than in the summertime.  Look for another entry in the travel photos series next week, until then, enjoy the weekend!