It was a dream come true. After teaching European history for over three decades, I was finally able to get myself a one month trip to Europe. My husband and I saved for years for this chance, and we were hoping that nothing would stop us. We’ve been in Europe many times, of course, but have never had the chance to stay for this long, or to enjoy ourselves this much. Most of my European travel has been as a graduate student, as a professor taking students on a whirlwind ten day tour, or as a research grant for my latest article, but never have I had the chance to simply relish in my travel for the sake of enjoyment.
Now, as we were both ready to retire, we couldn’t wait for our adventure to begin. In total, we spent a bit of time in Eastern Europe, enjoying Budapest, Prague and Warsaw, and then made our way to Geneva and Paris before enjoying London at the end.
The entire trip was simply a dream come true. As a professor of European history, I obviously enjoyed the historical aspects of the trip the most. My husband, an architect, was enthralled with the architecture of each location. Together we were quite a pair!
The most fascinating place for the both of us was in Geneva, where they’ve created a European art market in one location with over a dozen stores, set in a picturesque and breathtaking area. We actually extended our time in Geneva just so that we could soak in these art galleries and enjoy both the artistic offerings inside the galleries – and the magnificent architecture surrounding them.