My Europe Travel 2011

I am very happy and contented with the travels and trips I experienced this year. I was able to visit again a lot of interesting cities and countries in Europe. It was so far, the most-travelled year I have. Before year 2011 ends, I want to make a roll-call of the wonderful places I visited in Europe this year.

Monte Carlo, Monaco

I thought it was only a dream. That dream of visiting one of the world's famous cities finally came true. When you talk about Monte Carlo, you will also mean its widely known casino and its prominence.

the world's famous Monte Carlo casino in Monaco. Taken during our trip last April 2011.

I also had the chance to see some of the famous sites in Monaco. Among the few are the St. Nicholas Cathedral, Monaco Ville and the Prince Palace (not enough time to go inside), the Oceanographic Museum and Aquarium (from outside), La Condamine, the Formula 1 Grand Prix and a lot more.

The nearest airport is the Nice Côte-d'Azur International which is around 40 kilometers away from the city-centre in neighboring France. There are always cheap flights to Nice depending on the time of your visit and how early you book it.

Côte d'Azur, France

This is so far one of the beautiful coastlines I visited in Europe. Côte d'Azur, commonly known in English as the French Riviera is truly a fantastic place for me. Among the places we passed-by and visited here last spring were Nice, Cannes, Antibes and the nearby city Menton. I love especially Nice, the capital of the Alpes-Maritimes département. The French Riviera coastline is 560 miles long and consists of both sand and shingle beaches.

I still wish to go back to Côte d'Azur someday.

the Promenade in Nice, France from our trip last spring 2011.

Berlin, Germany

Germany's capital is truly one of the best and most interesting cities to visit in Europe. Since I had already visited London and Paris, I can say that Berlin is comparable to these world cities. Among the few sights I experienced in Berlin are the Brandenburger Tor, Siegessäule (Berlin's Victory Column), Berliner Fernsehturm (TV Tower), the Gendarmenmarkt with the German and French Cathedrals, the Reichstag or Parliament building, Potsdamer Platz, Kurfürstendamm, Rotes Rathaus (City Hall) and many more.

Berlin has two operational airports, the Tegel International Airport and the Schönefeld airport. The latter is the base for most low-cost airlines. Another airport, the new Berlin Brandenburg Airport is expected to open on June 2012, the third airport in this city.

the most famous landmark not only in Berlin but in whole of Germany as well, the Brandenburg Gate. I was there last winter of February 2011. No more snow that time but it was very very cold.

Budapest, Hungary

It was so far one of the most enjoyable trip I had in Europe. My summer trip to Hungary with a friend named Jean was truly awesome. We did not only see some of the sights in Budapest but also visited other places in Hungary. Among the few are Szentendre, Gyor, Visegrad, Esztergom, Herend, Lake Balaton and Siofok.

One of the best experience I had was the cruise from Esztergom to Visegrad.

the Hungarian Parliament in Budapest on the bank of Danube River. This is one of the European cities I visited last August 2011.

My Europe travel experience for 2011 will be continued soon! I am thankful for this very wonderful and blissful year despite of some trials in my life. I am also hoping for more travels in 2012. In God's will!