It’s been nearly two years now since we took a trip internationally. Far too long. It’s not in the making this summer—so far, anyway—so I thought I’d review the last trip, July 2010. It’s for myself to relive it a bit, but also for those readers who weren’t around at that time, perhaps to inspire and encourage to get out there and see the world a bit.

The story of how this particular trip came about starts in the summer of 2006, when Beatrice and I headed off for a 3-week tour of Europe by car, no hotel reservations. We touched down in Paris, got the car, stayed the night, then headed south towards Barcelona. From there, we hugged the Med all the way up through Spain, across France, down into Italy, all the way to Pizza. After a couple of days in Firenze (Florence), we headed north, passed through Switzerland and just a bit of Germany, then west back to Paris for the flight home. In all, about 6,000 km. Each afternoon, we’d stop in a place we couldn’t not stop at, I’d drop Beatrice on the waterfront, and she’d go from hotel to hotel until someone could show her a nice room with a view she liked; she’d ring me on the phone, and we’d have a place.

I’ve travelled this way—no reservations—a number of times and it’s my preferred method of vacation/touring travel. So much better when you can see the whole context and decide accordingly. Those wanting to follow along with our Eurotrek 2006, posts begin July 3, 2006 in the archives, and run through July 26.