Europe! Where do we start? Describing the sights to see in Europe fills libraries!
Barcelona
Istanbul
Lisbon
London
Moscow
Paris
Prague
Reykjavik
Overview
After a makeover lasting more than two decades, Barcelona has transformed itself into one of the most dynamic and stylish cities in the world. Summer is serious party time, but year-round the city sizzles - it's always on the biting edge of architecture, food, fashion, style, music and good times.
The buildings, especially the work of the eccentric genius Gaudí, will blow you away. The art, with significant collections by Picasso and Miró, will make you clammy all over. The people, with their exuberance, their creative spirit, their persistent egalitarianism, will fascinate you.
When to Go
The combination of tourists and business travellers visiting Barcelona means hotels are busy for most of the year. Spring and early summer is the best time to be in the city. The weather is usually pleasant, the number of tourists manageable and the city humming. High summer (mid-July to late August) is asphyxiating - many locals get the hell out and leave it to the guiris (foreigners). September isn't bad; the city recovers its normal rhythms, the heat eases and tourist numbers drop, but the weather can be dodgy. For real rain, hang about in October. Winter isn't especially distressing, but you will want a room with heating.
Weather
Barcelona enjoys a Mediterranean climate, with cool winters and hot summers. If it's sun you're after, the best months to go are May, June and September. The heat is at its harshest in July and August, with highs sometimes reaching the mid-30°s C (90°F)
Entertainment
Barcelona is bursting with pubs, hedonistic gay bars and frenetic clubs, and the whirr of live jazz, rock, flamenco and salsa is never far away. The calendar is crammed with holidays and festivals, and Barcelonins are usually buzzing with the anticipation of an upcoming event.
Getting there & around
Orientation
Barcelona's coastline runs roughly northeast to southwest and many streets are parallel or perpendicular to this. Two major hills - Montjuïc and Tibidabo - provide good landmarks for orientation. The focal point of town is La Rambla, a 1.25km (0.75mi) boulevard running northwest and slightly uphill from Port Vell (Old Harbour) to Plaça de Catalunya. The Plaça is the boundary between Ciutat Vella (Old Town) and the more recent additions further inland. L'Eixample, the city's 19th-century answer to overcrowding, stretches 1.5km (1mi) north, east and west of Plaça de Catalunya. Montjuïc begins about 700m (763yd) southwest of the southeastern end of La Rambla, and Tibidabo, with a landmark television tower and golden Christ statue, is 6km (4mi) northwest of the city.
The Ciutat Vella, a warren of narrow streets, centuries-old buildings and budget accommodation, spreads on both sides of La Rambla. Barri Gòtic (Gothic Quarter) is at its heart, on the lower half of the eastern section of the boulevard. West is El Raval, where travellers need to be alert; this vibrant, ethnically diverse neighbourhood is a great place to find quirky cafés and unique shops, but it's also an easy place to get mugged, especially at night. Port Vell has an excellent modern aquarium and two marinas, and at its northeastern end is La Barceloneta, the old sailors' quarter. Beaches and a pedestrian promenade stretch northeast from there to Port Olímpic, a harbour built for the 1992 Olympics and now home to lively bars and restaurants.
Getting There, Getting Around
Getting There
If you're flying to Barcelona, the airport is 12km (7.5mi) southwest of the city centre. It's a fairly busy airport and receives many direct flights from North America and Europe.
Alternatively you can catch an international train to Barcelona. Buses are a cheaper, less comfortable way of getting there or for something a little different, you can get to Barcelona via ferry from the Balearic Islands and Italy.
Bus
Buses are generally cheaper than trains, though not so comfortable. The main intercity bus station, Estació del Nord, is 1.5km (0.9mi) northeast of La Rambla, close to Arc de Triomf metro.
Train
You can take domestic and international trains to Barcelona. The main train station is Estació Sants, 2.5km (1.6mi) west of La Rambla. Direct overnight trains from Paris, Geneva, Lisbon and Milan arrive here, as do services from various French cities and across Spain.
Plane
Barcelona's airport is 12km (7.5mi) southwest of the city centre at El Prat de Llobregat. The city is a big international and domestic destination, with direct flights from North America and many European cities. Departure tax is factored into ticket prices.
Ship
You can get to Barcelona via ferry from the Balearic Islands and Italy. From the Balearics there are standard boats, on which you can get beds in cabins of up to four people and high-speed boats on which sleepers are not necessary.
The metro is probably the swiftest and easiest way to get around inner areas, and buses or suburban trains to get a little further out. Buses service the airport and can get you into town pretty efficiently.
Obviously, in a town like Barcelona your boots were made for walking but hiring a bike can be handy too, despite the sometimes hair-raising traffic. Speaking of which, driving in Barcelona is a frustrating business, so utilise the public transport or snag one of the many taxis available if you really need private wheels.
Bus
Renfe-run Rodalies (Cercanías in Castellano) service the airport as well as towns around Barcelona. Buses run along most city routes every few minutes, and there's a tourist bus that covers two circuits of major sites.
Walking
Barri Gòtic and surrounding areas are ideal for walking, but you'll probably need to use public transport to reach further-flung sites like La Sagrada Família and Parc Güell more efficiently.
Taxi
For the most part it's better to abandon your car while you're here - the traffic is more grief than it's worth. The public transport is excellent and taxis are easily available. A green light on the roof means the taxi is for hire.
Bicycle
Although the moped rules in Barcelona, plenty of people zip around on bicycles. Use bike lanes if you can - the traffic is a little hairy.
Underground Rail
The metro is the easiest way to get around most of the city. You may need buses or suburban trains to reach some places.
Disabled Travellers
Although some concessions are made for disabled people, the city remains largely an obstacle course for them. Some hotels and public institutions have wheelchair access. Some public transport (such as Metro line 2, some buses and taxis) is equipped to cater to the needs of people with disabilities. The city is currently at work to ensure that all Metro stations and buses are wheelchair adapted, but it's slow going.
History
Pre-20th-Century History
Barcelona has emerged from a wannabe history. With Castilian kings pumping cannonballs over the city walls and anarchists disagreeing on which shoulder to hang their rifles, the city shrank in the shadow of greater cities and powers for centuries.
Legend establishes the foundation of 'Barcino' by the Carthaginians at around 230 BC, and although the city was later invaded by both the Visigoths and the Muslims, the history of Barcelona only truly began after armies from what is now France pushed back the Muslims in AD 801. At the time, the plains and mountains to the northwest and north of Barcelona were populated by the people who by then could be identified as 'Catalans' (although surviving documented references to the term only date to the 10th century).
In the 12th century, Catalonia grew rich on pickings from the fall of the Muslim caliphate of Córdoba. The Catalans managed to keep their creative beacon alight through to the 14th century, when Barcelona ruled a mini-empire that included Sicily, Malta, Sardinia, Valencia, the Balearics, the French regions of Rousillon and Cerdagne and parts of Greece. But by the 15th century, devastated by the plague, spectacular bank crashes, and the Genoese squeezing its markets, the empire ran out of steam. While the Catalans may have hoped that union with the kingdom of Castile would pump cash back into the coffers and vitality onto the streets, heirs to the crowns of Castile and Aragón were more interested in juicing Catalonia to finance their own imperial ambitions.
A 1462 rebellion against King Joan II ended in a siege in 1473 that devastated the city. Barcelona was more or less annexed into the Castilian state, but was excluded from the plundering of the Americas that brought fantastic riches to 16th-century Castile. By now, the peasants had started to revolt. Disaffected Catalans resorted to arms a number of times, and the last revolt, during the War of the Spanish Succession, saw Catalonia siding with Britain and Austria against Felipe V, the French contender for the Spanish throne. That was their undoing. Barcelona fell in 1714 after another shocking siege, and as well as banning the Catalan language, Felipe built a huge fort, the Ciutadella, to watch over his ungrateful subjects.
After 1778 Catalonia was permitted to trade with America, and the region's fortunes gradually turned around. Spain's first industrial revolution, based on cotton, was launched there, and other industries based on wine, cork and iron also developed. By the 1830s, the European Romantic movement virtually rescued Catalan culture and language just as it was in danger of disappearing. The Catalan Renaixença, or Renaissance, was a crusade led by poets and writers to popularise the people's language. A fervent nationalist movement sprang up around the same time, and was embraced by all parties of the political spectrum.
Modern History
The decades around the turn of the 20th century were a fast ride, with anarchists, Republicans, bourgeois regionalists, gangsters, police terrorists, political gunmen called pistoleros and centrists in Madrid all clamouring for a slice of the action. This followed an explosion in Barcelona's population - from around 115,000 in 1800 to more than half a million by 1900, then over a million by 1930 - as workers flocked in for industrial jobs. As many as 80% of the city's workers embraced the anarchist Confederación Nacional del Trabajo (CNT) by the end of WWI, and industrial relations hit an all-time low during a wave of strikes in 1919-20 when employers hired assassins to kill union leaders.
Within days of Spain's Second Republic forming in 1931, a coalition of leftists and Catalan nationalists under the moniker Esquerra Republicana di Catalunya won the election and soon declared a republic within an 'Iberian Federation'. In 1934 the regional ERC government proclaimed a Catalan state, triggering the arrest of key government figures. In 1936, in the face of rising ultra-right popularity, the ERC joined forces with other leftist groups across the country to form the Popular Front, which convincingly won elections of that year. In May 1937 infighting between factions of the municipal government - notably communists, anarchists and the POUM - exploded into a three-day street fight that killed at least 1500 people.
The Republican effort across Spain was troubled by similar infighting, which destroyed any chance they may have had of defeating Franco's fascist militia. Barcelona, the last stronghold of the Republicans, fell to Franco's forces in January 1939, and the war ended a few months later. Thousands of Catalans fled across the border to France, Andorra and further afield.
Franco wasted no time in banning the Catalan language and flooding the region with impoverished immigrants from Andalucía in the vain hope that the pesky Catalans, with their continual movements for independence, would be swamped. But the plan soured somewhat when the migrants' children and grandchildren turned out to be more Catalan than the Catalans. Franco even banned one of the Catalans' joyful expressions of national unity, the sardana , a public circle dance.
But they'd barely turned the last sods on El Caudillo's grave when Catalonia burst out again in an effort to recreate itself as a nation. Catalan was revived with a vengeance, the Generalitat, or local parliament, was reinstated. Catalonia was granted limited autonomy in 1980 and today people gather all over town several times a week to dance the sardana . While there's still talk of independence, it remains just talk. Meanwhile, Barcelona is the country's most happening town, and seems set to stay that way.
Recent History
The 1992 Olympics allowed Barcelona to once again strut its stuff on the world stage, projecting an image of cultural prosperity. It hasn't looked back since. The once-shabby waterfront has been transformed with promenades, beaches, marinas, restaurants, leisure attractions and new housing. The games may be receding from the public mind but the impetus created has hardly slowed. Enormous projects to 'rehabilitate' vast tracts of rundown central Barcelona continue, the most recent being the huge Forum 2004 development in the city's east, which includes a massive convention centre and auditorium. The city's profile continues to rise; these days, Barcelona needs no introduction.
Overview
Byzantium, Constantinople, İstanbul: by any name it's glorious.
Straddling the Bosphorus, its skyline studded with domes and minarets, İstanbul is one of the truly great romantic cities. Its history tracks back from Byzantium to Constantinople to its place at the head of the Ottoman Empire. Today it hums as Turkey's cultural heart and good-time capital.
In this sprawling, continent-spanning city you can tramp the streets where crusaders and janissaries once marched; admire mosques that are the most sublime architectural expressions of Islamic piety; peer into the sultan's harem; and hunt for bargains in the Kapalı Çarşı (Grand Bazaar).
When to Go
The best times of year to visit Istanbul are from April to June and September to October, roughly the months of spring and autumn respectively. During these months, temperatures are in the consistently mild range of 16-25°C (61-77°F) and the humidity is not too bad, plus the crowds aren't as big a nuisance as in the summer months. The wintery months from November to February have the highest rainfall (80-100mm/30-40in per month), and it's when spirits are most likely to be dampened.
Weather
Turkey has seven climatic regions. İstanbul is situated in the Marmara region, which includes eastern Thrace and Edirne. It's a countryside of rolling steppeland and low hills with an average yearly rainfall of 668mm (26.3in). Rainfall is highest (between 80mm/3.1in and 100mm/3.9in per month) from November to February; July and August have the least rainfall. Humidity follows the same pattern, with the lowest humidity (under 30%) in July, August and September, and the highest (over 60%) - a bone-chilling damp - in December and January.
Temperatures in July and August peak at around 30°C (86°F), with lows around 20°C (68°F). In December and January, temperatures fall as low as 2°C (36°F) and even below: bring a carrot for Frosty. Daily highs reach about 9°C (48°F). April, May, September and October are the best times to visit, with daytime highs usually around 16°C to 25°C (61°F to 77°F), and lows from around 9°C to 18°C (48°F to 64°F).
Entertainment
Istanbul's once-festering hang-outs have spawned an entirely new generation of funky bars and clubs. Nightlife centres on Beyoğlu - take a stroll down Istiklal Caddesi on a Thursday, Friday or Saturday night to check it out. Ortaköy also cranks it out till the early morning.
Getting there & around
Orientation
The Bosphorus, the strait flowing between the Sea of Marmara and the Black Sea, creates a natural north-south divide in İstanbul - European İstanbul comprises the bulk of the city to the west, while Asian İstanbul is to the east. European İstanbul is itself divided by the Golden Horn (Haliç) into the old city to the south, and Beyoğlu and other modern districts to the north.
The Old City is where you'll find all the main sights, such as Topkapı Palace, Blue Mosque (Sultan Ahmet Camii), Aya Sofya (Sancta Sophia), the Atmeydanı (Hippodrome) and the old city walls. The 21st-century version of İstanbul is a short walk north across the Galata Bridge, and is exemplified by bustling Taksim Square, the eye of the city's commercial storm. The Asian part of the city has less of the sights tourists come to see.
There are clusters of budget places in the Sultanahmet district of the old city; Akbıyık Caddesi in Cankurtaran is the backpacker hub, other streets nearby are more low key. The heart of modern Istanbul, Taksim Square and Beyoğlu are also good places to stay, with lots of restaurants, theatres and shops nearby. If you want to spend a bit more, head for the luxury hotels of Harbiye and along the Bosphorus. Most cafes are clustered in Beyoğlu, but many are dotted in the suburbs on both sides of the Bosphorus and in other well-heeled suburbs. Kumkapı and Çiçek Pasajı, and Nevizade Sokak in Beyoğlu are home to clusters of meyhanes (taverns).
Getting There, Getting Around
Getting There
İstanbul's Atatürk Airport is Turkey's largest and busiest. Any number of popular regular services from the Middle East, the USA, Australia and Europe land here. Although the city's major airline, İstanbul Airlines, went bust, the main domestic carrier, Turkish Airlines (THY), has regular flights to major European and Asian cities. Another smaller airport, Sabiha Gökçen International Airport, some 50km east of the Old City on the Asian side, is becoming increasingly popular with cheap airlines. The price of your air ticket will usually cover the airport departure tax.
Atatürk Airport is 23km (14mi) west of Sultanahmet. A taxi into the city centre is the quickest option; it takes around half an hour. A cheaper option is to catch the LRT (Light Rail Transit) from the airport to Zeytinburnu, from where you connect with the tram that takes you directly to Sultanahmet. Another cheap option is to take an airport bus, which costs around EUR4.5 and takes 35-60 minutes to get to Taksim Square. If you are heading for Sultanahmet, get out at the Yenikapı stop beneath the underpass.
A number of local bus companies service other European destinations, but these services are slower and often more expensive than the equivalent flights. Within Turkey, bus is the most widespread and popular way of getting around; they go literally everywhere, all the time. The main bus station, the otogar , is a town in itself, with 168 ticket offices, restaurants, mosques and shops. Buses leave here for domestic and international routes. There's also a bus station on the Asian shore of the Bosphorus at Harem. Currently train is the least preferred option for international visitors travelling to Turkey, as the services are generally slower, but it's becoming increasingly popular for those with time to burn and a love for a journey. The main station is Sirkeci, and there's also Haydarpaşa station on the Asian shore of the Bosphorus.
Driving through Turkey is becoming more popular too. You can bring a car over on a ferry from Italy or Greece; however, you'll find yourself docking in İzmir or Çeşme rather than İstanbul. Car and passenger ferries operate fairly regularly around the Turkish coastline - book your trip well in advance, as they're popular.
Getting Around
İstanbul has a decent public transport network, which you'll appreciate once you get the hang of pre-buying tickets (try an Akbil pass instead, if you're in town for a few weeks), jumping on half-moving vehicles and avoiding armpits in tram jams. And if it all gets too much, a mad taxi driver is always ready to race you to your destination - and you won't pay too much for the thrill, either. But all public transport slows to a crawl around peak hours; this is the time to take to your feet. Walking is the best way to see İstanbul - though the ferries rate a close second.
The main bus station, the International İstanbul Bus Station, or more simply, the otogar , is 10km (6mi) west of Sultanahmet at Esenler. Both city and private buses run services in İstanbul. The suburban trains are a bit decrepit but reliable and inexpensive, running from Sirkeci station. İstanbul's metro is under construction, though some lines are already in service; it's inexpensive, with frequent services. There are several tramlines to choose from if you want a ride with a view. Istanbul has a large fleet of yellow taxis. It's an easy matter to rent a car; it's navigating the thing through the insane traffic that might prove to be difficult. Save it for leaving town. Ferries and catamarans can take you along the Golden Horn or up the Bosphorus - an hour-long ferry ride is cheap and fun.
History
Pre-20th-Century History
Prompted by the oracle at Delphi, a man named Byzas established a town on the site of present-day İstanbul around 657 BC. Although conquered by Alexander the Great and eventually subsumed by the Roman Empire, Byzantium fared pretty well until it annoyed a Roman emperor by backing his rival in a civil war, and it was subsequently destroyed. A new city was erected in 330 AD, at first called New Rome but quickly rechristened Constantinople in deference to the new Roman emperor, Constantine.
Constantinople was regarded as the capital of the Eurasian world, thanks in large part to its magnificent architecture - many of the Christian churches, as well as the impressive Hippodrome, are still visible today. Embellishments to the city continued as the Eastern Roman Empire grew in strength, reaching its peak in the time of Emperor Justinian in the 6th century. Over the next few centuries the city weathered attacks by the armies of the Islamic and Bulgarian empires, but the crusaders finally sacked it in 1204. The city was reclaimed by a rejuvenated Byzantine Empire 50 years later.
The fall of Constantinople occurred in 1453 when the Ottoman army of Sultan Mehmet II took the city. It was under the Ottomans that a classic mosque design was established and many other great buildings constructed in the city, which was soon renamed İstanbul. The Ottoman Empire overextended itself militarily in the 18th century and went into a decline, accentuated by the fact that it was well behind Europe in the areas of science, politics and commerce. This led to modernisation attempts and in-fighting, including the eventual slaughter in İstanbul of the janissaries, the sultan's bodyguards and a prominent symbol of the old regimes.
Ethnic nationalism ultimately splintered the Ottoman Empire. Greece asserted itself in 1832, with Bulgaria, Romania, Albania and the Arabs primed to follow suit. Meanwhile, other European powers were getting ready to squabble over the geographical pickings. Russia tried to pressure the Ottomans for control of the faltering empire's subjects, but the unfortunate result was the Crimean War, fought in 1853-56 with British and French support for the Turks against encroaching Russian power.
Modern History
The turn of the 20th century was greeted with more nationalist uprisings in Macedonia, Crete and Armenia, and Turkish stability hit a new low after the country opted to side with Germany during WWI - the result was the British occupation of İstanbul. The Turkish War of Independence, during which revitalised nationalist forces fought off invaders from Greece, France and Italy, finally led to the birth of the Turkish republic in 1923.
The seat of the new nation was established in Ankara, and İstanbul, no longer regarded as a political or cultural powerhouse, was relegated to a back-seat role in terms of its prominence as a city.
Recent History
However, recently İstanbul has undergone a renaissance, with its infrastructure being upgraded, its cultural life emphasised and its political tenor increasingly influenced by the West. Indeed, Turkey's bid to join the EU is underpinned by the fact that these days its major city is a cosmopolitan and sophisticated megalopolis more than ready to reclaim its status as one of the world's truly great cities.
Overview
Lisbon is the city for fado , funiculars, feasting and frolicking.
Lisbon's position on seven low hills beside a river once lured traders and settlers, and it's still a stunning site. Add to that its cultural diversity, laid-back feel and architectural time warp, and you have one of the most enjoyable cities in Europe - and also one of the most economical.
At Lisbon's heart are wide, tree-lined avenues graced by Art Nouveau buildings, mosaic pavements and street cafes. Seen from the river - one of the city's many great viewpoints - Lisbon is an impressionist picture of low-rise ochre and pastel, punctuated by church towers and domes.
When to Go
If you've come to lie on the beach any month will do, but keep in mind a bit of heat is good to complement the brisk Atlantic Ocean beaches. Carnaval, in February or March, is a draw card - but most places know it and prices rise accordingly, until it's much like the later mid-June to August peak season. Unless you're a football fan or a 'when in Rome' kind of person it's best to check when EFC games are held, as hordes of boisterous supporters descend on the city for various matches.
Weather
Lisbon lies in both the Atlantic and Mediterranean climatic zones, thereby enjoying a pleasantly temperate climate year-round. Its mean annual temperature is 17°C (63°F), with average temperatures in winter of 13°C (55°F) and 27°C (80°F) in summer. Even when summer temperatures reach the mid-30s, the proximity of the Atlantic Ocean insures some cooling breezes. July and August are the hottest, driest months, while November to February are the wettest and coldest. The granite Serra de Sintra hosts a series of climatic phenomena that results in considerably cooler, damper conditions than in Lisbon, with frequent mists that occur even in midsummer.
Events
Catholic Portugal celebrates festas (festivals), feiras (fairs) and romarias (religious pilgrimages) like they're going out of style. When you add in an almost-religious love of soccer and a vibrant arts calendar, Lisbon is abuzz almost all year round.
Carnaval - Mardi Gras with rosary beads - sees normally reserved Lisboêtas indulge in some revelry before they start fasting for Lent. Come May (and October) hundreds of thousands of pilgrims make their way to Fàtima to celebrate the apparitions of the Virgin Mary witnessed by three shepherd children in 1917. Hot on its heels is the June Festas dos Santos Populares (Festivals of the Popular Saints) - a riot of parades, music, dancing, fireworks, all-night partying and, of course, church services.
A celebration of Portugal's proud seafaring history, the Festival dos Oceanos (Oceans Festival) in August encompasses music, tours, food, regattas and parades. Wine lovers in town in November can have their thirsts sated at the Festival do Vinho. Other highlights include the 18 concerts of the poetically rhyming Super Bock Super Rock festival in March, the Festival de Cinema Gay e Lésbico in late September and an international marathon every November.
Fado aficionados should visit in February, when the Festival das Músicas e dos Portos (Harbour and Music Festival) showcases the country's melancholic folksinging tradition.
Along with the usual Christmas, New Year and Easter public holidays, Lisbon celebrates a range of other religious days: Carnaval Tuesday (the day before Ash Wednesday), Corpus Christi in May/June, Feast of the Assumption (15 August), All Saints' Day (1 November) and Feast of the Immaculate Conception (8 December).
Historical and political holidays are Labour Day (1 May), Liberty Day (celebrating the 1974 Revolution of the Carnations) on 25 April, Portugal Day, or Camões & the Communities Day (10 June), Republic Day (commemorating the declaration of the Portuguese Republic in 1910) on 5 October, and Independence Day (commemorating the restoration of independence from Spain in 1640) on 1 December.
Entertainment
Lisbon loves the night. Clubs come and go, and the bar scene is casual. Bairro Alto, where some bars have DJs and open late, heaves with revellers at weekends, as does the booming riverside Doca de Santo Amaro, where the local crowd is dressed-down cool. Even the hipper places are welcoming.
Getting there & around
Orientation
Lisbon nestles against seven hills on the north side of the Rio Tejo (Tagus River). Many of the city's attractions are within walking distance of each other in the central city area. Charming, medieval Alfama with its maze-like streets sits to the east, crowned by the magnificent Castelo de São Jorge. The Baixa's grid of tidy commercial avenues lies next to it, stretching from the riverfront Praça do Comércio up to the Praça da Figueira. The elegant Chiado shopping area climbs away to the west, while at the top end of the Baixa, the Elevador de Santa Justa sits at the juncture of the Bairro Alto. A traditional residential area, the Bairro Alto (high quarter) is also home to much of Lisbon's nightlife.
A short tram or train ride along the river to the west is Belém, birthplace of Portugal's Age of Discoveries. The Parque das Nações (former World Expo 98 site) is a train ride northeast of the city. Most budget accommodation can be found in the Baixa and Rossio areas. Mid-range and top-end hotels tend to be in the Saldanha, Marquês de Pombal and Avenida da Liberdade districts. Aeroporto de Lisboa is about 4km northeast of the city centre.
Getting There, Getting Around
Getting There
Lisbon airport is the city's main international gateway (Portugal's other international airports are at Porto and Faro). All overland connections are through Spain, of course. The two main rail crossings are at Vilar Formoso (the Paris to Lisbon line) and at Marvã-Beirã (the Madrid to Lisbon line). Buses remain the cheapest way to get to Portugal, but not by much. Prices for the alternatives are coming down fast, thanks to the growing attraction of rail passes (even over point-to-point tickets) and the rise of budget airline services.
Bus
Buses are slower and less comfortable than trains, but cheaper - especially if you qualify for an under-26, student or senior discount.
The major long-distance bus terminal is Arco do Cego (tel: 213 545 439; Avenida João Crisóstomo). From here the big carriers run frequent services to almost every major town in Portugal. Destinations with 10 or more services a day include Coimbra, Évora, Porto and Faro.
The two major options for European long-distance bus travel are Eurolines (www.eurolines.com) and Busabout (www.busabout.com).
Car
Of over 30 roads crossing the Portugal- Spain border, the best and biggest do so near Valença do Minho (E01/A3), Chaves (N532), Bragança (E82/IP4), Guarda/Vilar Formoso (E80/IP5), Elvas (E90/A6/IP7), Serpa (N260) and Vila Real de Santo António (E1/IP1). There are no longer any border controls.
Train
Lisbon has rail links to most major Portuguese cities such as Coimbra, Porto and Faro.
There are two standard long-distance rail journeys into Portugal. Both take the TGV Atlantique from Paris to Irún (in Spain), where you must change trains. From there the Sud-Expresso crosses into Portugal at Vilar Formoso (Fuentes de Oñoro in Spain), continuing to Coimbra and Lisbon. The other journey runs from Irún to Madrid, with a change to the Talgo Lusitânia , crossing into Portugal at Marvão-Beirã and on to Lisbon. Two other important Spain-Portugal crossings are at Valença do Minho and at Caia (Caya in Spain), near Elvas.
Plane
Aeroporto de Lisboa (Aeroporto da Portela; flight information tel: 218 413 700) is about 4km northeast of the centre. Portugália and TAP both have multiple daily flights to Lisbon from Porto and Faro, and over 20 carriers operate scheduled international services.
Lisbon's antediluvian trams are more than just a way to get from A to B - they're an essential Lisbon experience. Similarly, the city's three funiculars are an indispensible part of its charm. There are also trains, a rapidly expanding underground system and buses, which run into the night. Stick to public transport - the manic traffic makes cars or bicycles a stressful option.
Bus
Companhia Carris de Ferro de Lisboa (tel: 213 613 054; www.carris.pt) operates all transport except the metro. Its buses run from about 05:00 or 06:00 to 01:00 ; there are some night bus and tram services.
Car
Lisbon can be quite stressful to drive around, thanks to heavy traffic, maverick drivers, one-way systems and tram lines, but the city is at least small. If you are used to driving in other European capitals you probably won't find it too problematic. There are two ring roads, both useful for staying out of the centre: the inner Cintura Regional Interna de Lisboa (CRIL) and the outer Cintura Regional Externa de Lisboa (CREL).
Tram
Companhia Carris de Ferro de Lisboa (tel: 213 613 054; www.carris.pt) operates all transport except the metro. Its trams run from about 05:00 or 06:00 to 01:00 ; there are some night bus and tram services.
Don't leave the city without riding the No 28 from Largo Martim Moniz or No 12 from Praça da Figueira through the narrow streets of the Alfama. Two other useful lines are the No 15 from Praça da Figueira and Praça do Comércio via Alcântara to Belém, and the No 18 from Praça do Comércio via Alcântara to Ajuda. The No 15 line features space-age articulated trams with on-board machines for buying tickets and passes. Tram stops are marked by a small yellow paragem (stop) sign hanging from a lamppost or the overhead wires.
Train
The expanding metropolitano (www.metrolisboa.pt) system is useful for short hops and to reach the Gare do Oriente and nearby Parque das Nações. The Santa Apolónia link from Baixa-Chiado will hopefully be finished by the end of 2007. Entrances are marked by a big red 'M'. Useful signs include correspondência (transfer between lines) and saída (exit to the street). There is an impressive array of contemporary art at various stations, for example, Angelo de Sousa at Baixa-Chiado, and various artists including Hundertwasser at Oriente. Watch out for pickpockets in rush-hour crowds.
Disabled Travellers
Public offices and agencies are required to provide access and facilities for disabled people, but private businesses are not. Lisbon airport is accessible: the useful website www.allgohere.com has information on facilities offered by all airlines. Newer and larger hotels tend to have some adapted rooms, though sometimes the disabled facilities are not up to scratch. Ask at the local turismo. With its cobbled streets and hills, Lisbon is difficult for the disabled, but not impossible - the Baixa's flat grid and Belém are fine, and all the sights at Parque das Nações are accessible.
History
Pre-20th-Century History
Lisbon dates back to pre-Roman times - legend has it that Ulysses founded the city, although it was more probably the Phoenicians. Its early years were spent as a constant battleground, with Phoenicians, Greeks and Carthaginians in turn overthrown. In 205 BC the Romans began their two-century reign in Lisbon, and it became the most important city in the western Iberian region, renamed Felicitas Julia by Julius Caesar.
In 714 the powerful Moors arrived from Morocco, replacing a succession of northern tribes. They fortified the city and held out against Christian attack for an impressive 400 years. By 1147 the Moors' luck had turned and the Christians finally recaptured Lisbon. (It took another century for Christian forces to complete the reconquest of Portugal.) In the mid-13th century Lisbon replaced Coimbra as Portugal's capital and developed rapidly on the back of booming maritime and inland trade.
The 15th century brought the Age of Discoveries - Portugal's golden era of sea exploration. Not satisfied with repelling the Moors from Portuguese soil, Prince Henrique (Henry the Navigator) decided to sap Islam's economic power by finding a way around it by sea. He put to work the best sailors, map makers, ship builders and astronomers he could find. In 1434 one of his ships sailed beyond the much-feared Cape Bojador on the West African coast, breaking a maritime superstition that this was the end of the world. The Prince was rewarded with gold and slaves from West Africa. In 1497 came Vasco da Gama's famous discovery of the sea route to India. The wealth from these expeditions transformed Lisbon into the opulent seat of a vast empire. It also spawned the extravagant Manueline architectural style, best typified in the Mosteiro dos Jerónimos in Belém.
Lisbon's glory days as the world's most prosperous trading centre were short-lived. The cost of expeditions, maintaining overseas empires and attempting to Christianise Morocco brought Portugal to its knees. In 1580, in a bitter blow to national pride, Felipe II of Spain claimed the throne, and it took 60 years for fed-up nationalists to overthrow their traditional rival and return Portugal to its people. By the late 17th century the tide had well and truly turned and the discovery of gold in Brazil saw Lisbon enjoy another period of profligate expenditure. Again, however, this extravagance was cut short. In 1755 a massive earthquake reduced the city to rubble and Lisbon never recovered its power and prestige. After Napoleon's four-year occupation of the city Lisbon, like the rest of the country, fell into political chaos and military insurrection for over a century.
Modern History
In the early 20th century, a 16-year period brought 45 changes in government. Yet another coup in 1926 brought António de Oliveira Salazar onto the scene. Quickly rising from finance minister to prime minister, he ruled Portugal for 36 years, heading an authoritarian regime that lasted until 1976. During his rule, political parties and strikes were banned. Censorship, propaganda and brute force, exemplified by a feared secret police force, kept the country in a terrified kind of order.
Revolution in 1974, in response to the continued unpopular military suppression of Portuguese colonies, brought a a slow road to democracy. More political turbulence gradually changed to stability and ultimately membership of the European Union in 1986. With the support of the EU, and its much-needed injection of funds, Lisbon (and Portugal) finally began to shake off its depressed Salazar-era looks and lifestyle.
Recent History
In recent years, more stable government combined with massive EU funding (especially welcome in Lisbon after a major fire in 1988 destroyed the Chiado district) has led to the city's rejuvenation. In 1994, it returned to the limelight as European City of Culture. The following years of spectacular economic growth were boosted by major infrastructure projects such as the Ponte de Vasco da Gama, the longest river crossing in Portugal. Redevelopment schemes throughout the city have included restoration of historic neighbourhoods such as the Alfama. Lisbon was given a further sprucing up for its role of host to Expo '98. In the run-up to the Expo, the metro was expanded, port facilities extended, hotel construction went into high gear and leading architects created some stunning monuments. Hosting the 2004 European Football Championships maintained the momentum. Lisbon has regained some pride in its past and, with a revitalised and vibrant urban life and more huge infrastructure projects planned, looks forward to a future firmly within Europe.
Economically, however, the country is still suffering, with the highest unemployment since the country's 1986 entry into the EU recorded in February 2006. Brand new president Aníbal Cavaco, elected in January 2006, has vowed to address these issues and, as an ex-economist, may just prove to be the catalyst the country so desperately needs.
Overview
London's contrasts and cacophonies both infuriate and seduce.
London - the grand resonance of its very name suggests history and might. Its opportunities for entertainment by day and night go on and on and on. It's a city that exhilarates and intimidates, stimulates and irritates in equal measure, a grubby Monopoly board studded with stellar sights.
It's a cosmopolitan mix of Third and First Worlds, chauffeurs and beggars, the stubbornly traditional and the proudly avant-garde. But somehow - between 'er Majesty and Pete Doherty, Bow Bells and Big Ben, the Tate Modern and the 2012 Olympics - it all hangs together.
Events
Most businesses close on public holidays such as New Year's Day, Good Friday, Easter Monday, May Day Bank Holiday (the first Monday in May), Spring Bank Holiday (the last Monday in May), Summer Bank Holiday (the last Monday in August), Christmas Day and Boxing Day (26 December) although London's essential multiculturalism means you'll always find some shops open.
There are countless festivals and events in London. It all kicks off with the New Year's Eve fireworks and street party in Trafalgar Square, followed by the New Year's Day Parade. On Shrove Tuesday pancake races are held in Covent Garden, and in early May more serious racers take part in the London Marathon.
All London gets its colours on for the FA Cup Final in mid-May. There's even more colour at the Chelsea Flower Show, held in the last week of May.
Trooping the Colour, the Queen's birthday parade, is held in June; Wimbledon runs for two weeks in the same month and London Pride, Europe's biggest gay and lesbian festival, also hits the streets. The raucous Notting Hill Carnival takes over the West End streets in August, although there is now a smaller celebration in Hyde Park, too. In September, some 500 normally inaccessible buildings throw open their doors as part of the Open House weekend. This month, the city also celebrates its greatest natural asset with the Thames Festival on the south bank of the river.
Things wind down as the weather gets colder, though there are plenty of bonfires on Guy Fawkes Night, on the 5th of November. The Lord Mayor's Show is held in late November, complete with floats, bands and fireworks. Trafalgar Square lights up in December with the Lighting of the Christmas Tree.
Entertainment
Choosing how to entertain yourself in London can be daunting. Whether you like your culture high or low, your dance in pointe shoes or heels, your music in strings or sub bass, being sporty or watching others play, drinking cocktails in an elegant club or a bitter at a pub, London has it all.
Getting there & around
Orientation
The main geographical feature of the city is the River Thames, which meanders through central London, dividing it into northern and southern halves. The central area and the greatest number of important sights, theatres and restaurants are within the Underground's Circle Line on the north bank of the river. In the past decade, however, the south bank of the river has been transformed into one of London's must-see district, with attractions such as Borough Market, the London Eye, Shakespeare's Globe theatre and the Tate Modern art gallery. The tourist-ridden West End includes Soho, Trafalgar Square, Piccadilly Circus, Leicester Square and Regent St. The East End, so beloved of Ealing comedies, lies east of the Circle Line; it used to be the exclusive preserve of the Cockney but is now a cultural melting pot. There are interesting inner-city suburbs in North London, including Islington and Camden Town, with leafy Hampstead further north. Further south, London includes a mix of poor, dirty, graffiti-ridden suburbs, and increasingly gentrifying areas like Clapham and, to an extent Brixton.
London is one of the world's major transport hubs, and your choices of ways to get in and out of it are myriad. Its major airports - the monster Heathrow and the smaller Gatwick, Stanstead, Luton and City - are all efficiently linked to the metropolis.
You've always been able to hop to the European mainland (and Ireland) by ferry, but now the Chunnel link makes it a breeze.
Bus
You can get to Europe by bus, and unless you use the Channel Tunnel, there's a short ferry/hovercraft ride thrown in as part of the deal. Bus travellers arrive and depart from Victoria Coach Station, about 10 minutes walk south of the Victoria railway and Tube station.
Ferry
There is a bewildering choice of ferries travelling between Britain and Ireland and mainland Europe. Ferries will carry your car, motorcycle or bike, and they can be a cheap option - but book early.
Train
For the first time since the ice ages, Britain has a land link (albeit a tunnel) with mainland Europe. Two services operate through the Tunnel: Eurotunnel operates a rail shuttle service (Le Shuttle) for motorbikes, cars, buses and freight vehicles between terminals at Folkestone in the UK and Calais in France; and the railway companies of Britain, France and Belgium operate a high-speed passenger service, known as Eurostar, between London (mainly Waterloo Station), Paris, Lille and Brussels. Within the UK, fast InterCity trains whisk you to destinations from 10 mainline terminals around London.
Plane
Heathrow Airport is accessible by bus, London Underground (Piccadilly line) and the Heathrow Express, which makes the journey from Paddington Station to Terminals 1-3 in 15 minutes and to Terminal 4 in 20. The Gatwick Express runs between Gatwick Airport and Victoria Station in 30 minutes or you can take Airbus No 5 to Victoria Coach Station. The Stansted Express will get you to Stansted Airport from Liverpool Street Station in 45 minutes. Cabs to all the airports are only an option for the seriously loaded.
The dirty, wrathful congestion of London streets makes both driving and cycling an extreme sport. Hop on a bus, a Thames ferry or an elegant black cab - and let a native negotiate the chaos on your behalf. Or take the Tube: you're sure to come up against its notorious, infuriating inefficiencies, but in most cases it's still the quickest way to get about.
Bus
If you're not in a hurry, buses are a pleasant and interesting way to get around, as long as the traffic's not gridlocked. The classic red double-deckers are sadly a thing of the past now, but due to enormous outcry, they have been retained on two 'heritage' routes. Route No 9 goes westbound only from the Royal Albert Hall to the Strand and loops back to Piccadilly Circus. Route No 15 runs from Trafalgar Square past St Paul's Cathedral to Tower Hill. Normal tickets are valid; for more details see www.tfl.gov.uk/buses.
Boat
Various boats ply London's Thames and canal system, with numerous companies running shuttle boats on the river. Traditionally, these cruises have been genteel affairs. But after a traditional guided tour down to Canary Wharf, the new services from RIB London Voyages (tel: 7928 2350; www.londonribvoyages.com; London Eye, Waterloo Millennium Pier, Westminster Bridge Road SE1; adult/child £26.00 / £16.00 ; hourly from 11:15 - 16:15 year-round) roar back up the river at 30-35 knots - a good choice for thrill-seekers.
Car
If you drive a car in London, beware that you'll have to pay £8.00 a day to enter the centre. You're also in for a parking nightmare - it's almost impossible to park in the city centre, and the punishments for parking illegally are cruel and unusual indeed.
Walking
Since many of the main sights are relatively close together in central London, walking is an excellent transport option. It will also give you a more coherent picture of the city than travelling by Tube will.
Taxi
London's famous black cabs are excellent but expensive. Minicabs are cheaper competitors, with freelance drivers, but you can't flag them down on the street.
Bicycle
Although it is inexpensive, heavy traffic makes cycling a rather grim way to get around. Most London cyclists wear masks to avoid fumes and become artful at dodging.
Train
Several rail companies now run passenger trains in London, most of which interchange with the Tube. The driverless Docklands Light Railway (DLR) links the City at Bank and Tower Gateway at Tower Hill, with services to Stratford to the east and the Docklands and Greenwich to the south.
Underground rail
London's immense Tube (consisting of 12 lines) is legendary, but mainly because it's not that much fun to use - inevitably, you'll spend a lot of time sitting in tunnels. Still, it's usually the quickest and easiest way to get around.
Disabled Travellers
For many disabled travellers London is an odd mix of user-friendliness and downright disinterest. These days new hotels and modern tourist attractions are usually accessible by wheelchair, but many B&Bs and guesthouses are in older buildings that are hard (if not impossible) to adapt. It's a similar story with public transport. Some of the newer trains and buses have steps that lower for easier access (such as the Stationlink buses that follow a similar route to that of the Circle Line), but it's always wise to check before setting out. Transport for London's Unit for Disabled Passengers can give you detailed advice and it publishes Access to the Underground , which indicates which tube stations have ramps and lifts (all DLR stations do).
Many disabled toilets can be opened only with a special key, and this can be obtained from tourist offices.
Many ticket offices and banks are fitted with hearing loops to help the hearing-impaired; look for the ear symbol.
History
Pre-20th-Century History
Although a Celtic community settled around a ford across the River Thames, it was the Romans who first developed the square mile now known as the City of London. They built a bridge and an impressive city wall, and made Londinium an important port and the hub of their road system. The Romans left, but trade went on. Few traces of London dating from the Dark Ages can now be found, but the city survived the incursions of both the Saxons and Vikings. Fifty years before the Normans arrived, Edward the Confessor built his abbey and palace at Westminster.
William the Conqueror found a city that was, without doubt, the richest and largest in the kingdom. He raised the White Tower (part of the Tower of London) and confirmed the city's independence and right to self-government. During the reign of Elizabeth I, the capital began to expand rapidly - in 40 years the population doubled to reach 200,000. Unfortunately, the medieval, Tudor and Jacobean parts of London were virtually destroyed by the Great Fire of 1666. The fire gave Christopher Wren the opportunity to build his famous churches, and the city's growth continued apace.
By 1720 it contained 750,000 people, and as the seat of Parliament and focal point for a growing empire, it was becoming ever richer and more important. Georgian architects replaced the last of medieval London with their imposing symmetrical architecture and residential squares. The population exploded again in the 19th century, creating a vast expanse of Victorian suburbs. As a result of the Industrial Revolution and rapidly expanding commerce, it jumped from 2.7 million in 1851 to 6.6 million in 1901.
Modern History
War in the first half of the 20th century destroyed many of the gains achieved by the previous century. Georgian and Victorian London was devastated by the Luftwaffe (German airforce) in WWII - huge swathes of the centre and the East End were totally flattened. After the war, ugly housing and low-cost developments were thrown up on the bomb sites. The docks never recovered - shipping moved to Tilbury, and the Docklands declined to the point of dereliction. In the heady 1980s, that decade of Thatcherite confidence and deregulation, the Docklands were rediscovered by a new wave of property developers, who proved to be only marginally more discriminating than the Luftwaffe.
Recent History
London briefly regained its swinging reputation in the 1990s, buoyed by Tony Blair's New Labour, a rampaging pound and a swag of pop, style and media 'names'. Blair's bane, Ken Livingstone, donned the mayoral robes in May 2000, opposing plans to sell off the Tube and pushing for improved public transport and safety. The face of the city changed with the construction of the costly white elephant Millennium Dome, the London Eye and the Tate Modern. And it's set to change even more in the build-up to the 2012 Olympics. But some things never change: London's cost of living outdoes itself year after year, its chic quotient continues to soar and the gap between the haves and have-nots looms ever larger.
A series of co-ordinated terrorist bomb attacks targeting London's massive transport network in July 2005 cast a pall over the city's optimism. However, Londoners are nothing if not resolute and the city has carried on defiantly.
Overview
Russia's barometer shows a country fast coming in from the cold.
Moscow is the barometer and nucleus of the changes sweeping through Russia. Nowhere are Russia's contrasts more apparent than here - ancient monasteries and ultra-modern monoliths stand side by side, and 'New Russian' millionaires and poverty-stricken pensioners walk the same streets.
Moscovites now prefer international name brands to monolithic department stores, and the beautiful churches vandalised or abandoned during the Soviet era of hardline atheism are being lovingly restored. But the real flavour of this city is in its nooks and crannies, each of them unique.
Events
Moscow's festivals have shaken off their 'joyous workers' march' image and are now shaking booty with the best of them.
A great many festivals are derived from Orthodox church tradition. Orthodox Christmas begins with midnight mass on 7 January. Orthodox Easter, known as Paskha, falls some time in March or April - it begins with a midnight church service, after which people eat special dome-shaped and curd cakes and swap painted wooden eggs.
In odd-numbered years, the Moscow Film Festival hits the city's screens in autumn. The Russian Winter Festival is pretty much a tourist affair with troika rides, folklore shows, games and vodka, and is celebrated between 25 December and 5 January. Novy God is the Russian New Year celebration, and is the main gift-giving festival of the year, with presents placed under the traditional fir tree. Muscovites see out the old year with vodka and welcome the new one with champagne.
Entertainment
A ballet at the Bolshoi, a concert in the Kremlin or a night at the Moscow circus is a unique experience. There's a lively club scene, too, though tastes are fickle: the DJ decamps, or the owner is rubbed out by a rival mob or closes shop and flees to Monaco, just one step ahead of the tax auditors.
Getting there & around
Orientation
Moscow lies in the centre of what is known as European Russia. The border between Europe and Asia runs down the west side of the Ural Mountains, 1300km (805mi) east of Moscow. To the east of Moscow is the south-flowing Volga River, one of Russia's historic highways.
The Kremlin, a north-pointing triangle with sides 750m (2460ft) long, is at the heart of Moscow in every way - symbolically, historically and geographically. Red Square lies along its east side, the Moscow River flows past its south side. From here, Moscow spreads out in four distinctive rings of development. Each area has its own collection of monasteries, museums and elegant buildings. Most of the city's sights are within the first circle - an area that can easily be covered on foot. Otherwise, Moscow is flat, flat, flat and has few useful landmarks for getting your bearings from a distance: probably the most prominent buildings are Stalin's imposing 'Seven Sisters' skyscrapers.
Moscow's five airports are all beyond the outer ring road, 30 to 40km (19 to 25mi) from the city centre. Sheremetevo-2, where you'll arrive if you fly in from outside the former Soviet Union, is to the northwest.
Getting There, Getting Around
Getting There
If you're coming in from an overseas flight, you'll likely fly into either Domodedovo or Sheremetevo-2; there are also additional airports to handle travel to domestic destinations and the ex-Soviet states. There's a network of comfy-enough buses that run to places within about a 700km (435mi) radius of Moscow. The city also has 9 main rail stations, and you can jump on trains to most parts of Russia and Europe as well as China and Mongolia.
Bus
Buses run to a number of towns and cities within about 700km (435mi) of Moscow. Buses are reasonably comfortable but to most places they're a bit slower than trains, and less frequent.
Boat
In summer, passenger boats from Moscow ply the rivers and canals throughout Russia all the way north to St Petersburg, and south to Astrakhan on the Volga delta, near the Caspian Sea.
Car
If you want to travel by car or motorbike, 10 major highways, numbered M1 to M10, fan out from Moscow to all points of the compass. Most are in fairly good condition at first but some get scraggy further out.
Train
Moscow has rail links to most parts of Russia, most former Soviet states, numerous countries in Eastern and Western Europe, and China and Mongolia. Moscow has nine main train stations, all with metro stations on the spot.
Plane
Sheremetevo-2 airport (30km/20mi northwest of the city centre) and Domodedovo (40km/24mi south of the city centre) handle flights to and from places outside the former Soviet Union. There are daily flights by numerous airlines to and from nearly all European and many other world capitals, and many provincial cities, too. A flight from London or Paris takes about three hours, from New York about 10 hours. Four Moscow airports serve flights to and from places within Russia and the other ex-Soviet states. Check-in for flights within the ex-USSR is supposed to close 40 minutes before take-off, but be sure to reach the airport well before that.
International flights from most Moscow airports incur a departure tax which is included in the price of airfares. You can get to all five airports and the city centre cheaply by a combination of bus and metro or suburban train, but if you're going early in the morning or late at night, or have a lot of baggage, you'll probably need a taxi. The easiest approach is to arrange an airport-city transfer through a travel agent; you'll pay no more than an average taxi fare.
Getting Around
Moscow's metro is the most common, efficient and wondrous way to traverse the city: many stations are fine works of art in themselves. Buses, trams and trolleybuses fill in the gaps. Catching a taxi is simplicity itself - just stick out an arm - but bear in mind that many private cars cruise as taxis and that even official taxis are often not metered: negotiate the fare beforehand.
Tram
Buses, trolleybuses and trams run almost everywhere the metro doesn't go, and are good for radial travel or for getting outside the centre. You'll need a ticket that you punch inside the vehicle - tickets work on all three forms of transport.
Taxi
If you'd rather catch a taxi than the metro, just stand on the street and stick your arm out. Many private car drivers cruise around as unofficial taxis. Prices vary according to the length of the trip, the time of the day and traffic conditions. Pay anywhere from Rbl50.00 to Rbl150.00 . No driver uses a meter, so it's probably best to negotiate your fare before you get in. For long trips it may be better to prebook a cab.
Underground Rail
There are more than 150 metro stations - many of them elegant, marble-faced, frescoed, gilded works of art. The magnetic card system is easy to use, and there are plenty of signage and maps to help you. You'll rarely wait more than two minutes for a train: nine million people a day use the system. The oldest stations were originally intended to double as bomb shelters, which is why the escalators seem to plunge halfway to the centre of the earth.
Disabled Travellers
Inaccessible transport, lack of ramps and lifts, and no centralised policy for people with physical limitations make Russia a challenging destination for wheelchair-bound visitors. More mobile travellers will have a relatively easier time, but keep in mind that there are obstacles along the way. Toilets are frequently accessed from stairs in restaurants and museums; distances are great; public transport is extremely crowded; and many footpaths are in a poor condition and hazardous even for the mobile.
Readers who use wheelchairs report that Russians are anxious to help, but don't know how, thus either speaking Russian or having a translator is essential. In museums, staff may say that most floors are inaccessible because they don't want to suggest the freight elevator for fear of offending.
History
Pre-20th-Century History
The area where the Kremlin now stands was probably settled by the 11th century, but the founding of Moscow is traditionally ascribed to Yury Dolgoruky, Prince of Suzdal, who is recorded as giving a feast here in 1147. In 1237-38 Moscow was sacked, along with the rest of the Vladimir-Suzdal realm, by Tatars led by Batu, Genghis Khan's grandson. These Tatars set up a capital at Saray on the southern Volga and became known as the Golden Horde. Moscow, near river trade routes, became a princedom in its own right, and emerged as the Golden Horde's chief northern tribute collection point. It wasn't until the late 15th century, under Prince Ivan III (the Great) that Moscow could cease paying tribute to the Horde. Ivan brought Italian architects to build cathedrals in the Kremlin and styled himself 'Ruler of all Russia'. By the end of Ivan's reign, Moscow's control stretched from Novgorod in the west to Tula in the south, towards the Urals in the east and to the Barents Sea in the north.
Ivan IV (the Terrible) expanded Muscovite territory by launching the conquest of Siberia and winning control of the Volga region. By 1571 the city had over 200,000 people and was one of the biggest in the world. The Prime Minister, Boris Godunov, faced famine and a Polish-backed invasion. The seven years after his death were the Time of Troubles, characterised by civil war, invasions and a Polish occupation of Moscow. The Poles were finally driven out by Cossack soldiers and 16-year-old Mikhail Romanov was elected tsar by a council of nobles, launching the 300-year Romanov dynasty and a period of consolidation during which Moscow's territory spread southwards.
Peter the Great toured Europe in 1697-98. He built a new capital, St Petersburg, on the Baltic to open Russia up to Western trade and ideas and to consolidate military victories over Sweden. He disliked Moscow, where as a boy he had seen his uncle and his mother's advisers killed in a palace coup. He forced the nobility to move to St Petersburg and wear Western-style clothes and slapped a tax on beards - a symbol of the old, inward-looking Russia. However, Moscow remained important enough to be Napoleon's main goal when his troops marched on Russia in 1812. After the bloody Battle of Borodino, 130km (81mi) west of the city, the Russians abandoned Moscow and allowed Napoleon to march in and install himself in the Kremlin. The night he arrived Muscovites torched the city, including the stores. With winter coming, the French had to pull out little more than a month after they had arrived. Immediately, Moscow was feverishly rebuilt and the city's population swelled.
Modern History
October 1917 saw more savage street fighting in Moscow than in St Petersburg. The Bolsheviks occupied, lost and retook the Kremlin over an eight-day period. In 1918 the government moved the capital back to Moscow after two centuries' absence, fearing that St Petersburg (then Petrograd) might come under German attack. Moscow became the epicentre of the country's total re-organisation. Under Stalin, one of the world's first comprehensive urban plans was devised for Moscow. The first line of the metro was completed in 1935. In 1941 Hitler broke the nonaggression pact he had signed with Stalin and German troops came within 40km (25mi) of the Kremlin. As with Napoleon's army, they were halted by the cruel Russian winter, Moscow's best defence. After WWII, huge housing estates grew up round the outskirts.
Moscow had been in the forefront of political change, and a thorn in the flesh of the national leaders, since the first whispers of glasnost (public frankness and accountability) in the mid-1980s. Boris Yeltsin, made the city's new Communist Party chief in 1985, became hugely popular as he sacked hundreds of corrupt and inept commercial managers, set up new food markets and permitted demonstrations. This last move was too much for the communist old guard and led to Yeltsin's resignation in 1987; however, his time at the centre of Russian political life was by no means done. It was the rallying of Muscovites behind Yeltsin at Moscow's 'White House', seat of the new parliament of the Russian Republic, that foiled the old-guard coup in 1991 and precipitated the ultimate collapse of the Soviet Union.
Recent History
By the mid-1990s Moscow was very much the vanguard of the 'New Russia', filling up with all the things Russians had expected capitalism to bring but which had barely begun to percolate down to the provinces: banks, stock exchanges, casinos, advertising, BMWs, new shops, hotels, restaurants and nightlife - money . And with it, a wave of organised crime and the 'oligarchs' (big-business tycoons), who had become fabulously wealthy when Yeltsin sold them state enterprises for a song.
Vladimir Putin, who replaced Yeltsin as Russian president at the end of the millennium (and was replaced in turn by his hand-picked successor Dmitry Medvedev), seemed determined to firm up state control of Moscow's business dealings, as well as its social scene. The last decade has seen a flurry of building activity promoted by populist mayor Yury Luzhkov. Outside the garishly wealthy scene of the 'New Russians', though, many people are doing it hard, with education and health underfunded and many older Russians begging and scrimping at the margins of Moscow's new marketplace. Still, Moscow is one place where the new, burgeoning middle class is making its mark. The younger generation especially is revelling in its new-found freedoms and increasing wealth. Moscow remains the most free-wheeling city in Russia; for the cynics there are no surprises, and for the ambitious and connected there are no limits.
Overview
Gay Paree will put the joie back in your vivre .
Paris stimulates the senses, demanding to be seen, heard, touched, tasted and smelt. From romance along the Seine to landscapes on bus-sized canvases to the pick-an-ism types in cafes monologuing on the use of garlic or the finer points of Jerry Lewis, Paris is the essence of all things French.
Gaze rapturously at its breezy boulevards, impressive monuments, great works of art and magic lights. Savour its gourmet selection of cheese, chocolate, wine and seafood. Feel the wind in your face as you rollerblade through Bastille, or a frisson of fear and pleasure atop the Eiffel Tower.
Events
Most museums and shops are closed on France's jours fériés (public holidays). When a holiday falls on a Tuesday or Thursday, expect to see a lot of shuttered storefronts on that Monday or Friday as well. The doors of banks are good places to check for announcements of long holiday weekends.
France's national day, 14 July, commemorates the 1789 storming of the Bastille prison, the event that kicked off the French Revolution. Across the country, the holiday is celebrated with serious abandon, especially in Paris, where the day ends with a massive fireworks display and throngs of people in the streets.
Entertainment
Whatever your tastes, you'll never be bored in Paris. Music lovers can bounce from grand opera to smoky little jazz clubs to cabaret and end the night with some uplifting house or salsa. The cinema and theatre options are boundless, and the exhausted can recover in a series of stylish bars.
Getting there & around
Orientation
Both the capital of the nation and of the historic Île de France region, Paris is located in northern central France. Central Paris - known as Intra-Muros , or within the walls - is a nice, oval-ish shape, divided neatly in two by the Seine, with 20 arrondissements (districts) spiralling clockwise from the centre in a logical fashion. The area north of the river, the Rive Droite (Right Bank), includes the tree-lined Avenue des Champs-Élysées, running west to the Arc de Triomphe. East of the avenue is the massive Musée du Louvre, the Centre Georges Pompidou and a lively district of museums, shops, markets and restaurants. Immediately south of the Centre Georges Pompidou on the Île de la Cité is the world-famous Notre Dame. The area south of the river, the Rive Gauche (Left Bank), is home to the city's most prominent landmark, the Eiffel Tower. To the east, in the Saint Germain de Prés and Montparnasse districts, Paris' famous academic, artistic and intellectual milieus waft in and out of focus through a haze of Gitanes smoke.
France's Aéroport Roissy Charles de Gaulle airport is a sleek introduction to the country; it's a major international hub, so you can take your pick of flights in and out. The train system is also impressive, and will whip you quickly to most places in France; there are TGV services to Amsterdam and Brussels. You can get to Britain (and Ireland) by ferry, but Eurostar is perhaps the most chilled and luxurious way to get to Paris, and you can pop your car on board as well. Buses are fine for travel between Paris and other countries, but for the rest of France they're not so hot.
Bus
Euroline buses run from Paris to cities all over Europe. Long-haul bus travel within France isn't really an option, however.
Car
With the Eurotunnel service, you can now drive from London to Paris, with your car neatly on the shuttle train. If driving from elsewhere in Europe, once you're in France modern autoroutes will get you to Paris quickly, if rather expensively.
Train
There are six major train stations in Paris, each of which handles traffic to different parts of France and the rest of Europe. The most spectacular route is via the Channel Tunnel (or Chunnel); the Eurostar passenger service takes only three hours. TGV (train à grande vitesse) services also link Paris with Amsterdam and Brussels. France's superb domestic rail network can take you to almost every part of the country.
Plane
Charles de Gaulle international airport is 27km (17mi) north of Paris. It's a major transport hub, so you shouldn't have any trouble finding a flight, regardless of where you're flying. Flights run daily to all parts of the country, but the high-speed TGV (train à grande vitesse) train services are usually more convenient. Departure tax is built into the ticket price and varies according to the destination. There are lots of ways from Charles de Gaulle to the city, from shuttle trains to an assortment of poky public buses, private shuttles and taxis. The city's second main airport, Aéroport d'Orly, is 16km (10mi) south of central Paris. A bus runs between d'Orly and Charles de Gaulle. Beauvais is a smaller airport that handles Ryanair and charter flights.
Water
Hoverspeed runs bus-boat-bus combos from London, but with the convenience of the Channel Tunnel routes you'd have to be pretty hard-pressed to consider it. There are also ferries and hovercraft between Britain, Ireland and France.
The most satisfying way to get around Paris is on foot - just watch out for the pedestrian crossings, which cars tend not to respect - or on its famous, lovely and efficient Métro. Unfortunately, you're not allowed to take bikes on the Métro, and the city in general is none too friendly to cyclists. If you're in a hurry to get somewhere, don't take the river shuttles that ply the Seine - they are more meandering, sight-seeing affairs than A to B propositions - or the bus system, which is horrendously inefficient. However, there are night buses, which is handy when the Métro closes down.
Bus
The public bus system covers everywhere, but its hours are laughable; don't even try it on Sunday or a holiday. The Noctambus network takes over in the heavily trafficked areas once both the underground and the day buses go to sleep.
Car
In case you hadn't guessed it, driving around Paris is a job best reserved for the terminally aggressive - if you don't have lots of time to kill, you're better off taking public transport, which is generally well-maintained and supremely convenient.
Walking
Paris is surprisingly pedestrian-friendly: it's compact and there are few hills. Watch out on pedestrian crossings, though - cars tend not to stop.
Bicycle
Parisians don't much like to share the road, and cycling in this city is no joy. To make matters worse, bikes aren't allowed on the metro.
Water
There are river shuttles along the Seine, but these cater more to tourists wanting to slowly soak up the sights along the way than to commuters trying to get somewhere.
Underground rail
Say what you will about driving around Paris, but the city's public transportation is world class. The most charming of Paris' public transport options, the underground Métropolitain (and its sister system, the RER), is a simply massive network. No matter where you are, chances are there's a metro station within a few blocks. Choose travel passes carefully - depending on how many trips you make, daily passes aren't necessarily good value for money. The weekly (also monthly) Carte Orange travel pass can be a better deal, even if you're staying less than a week.
Disabled Travellers
Paris is not particularly well equipped for les handicapés (disabled people): kerb ramps are few and far between, older public facilities and bottom-end hotels usually lack lifts, and the metro, most of it built decades ago, is inaccessible for those in a wheelchair ( fauteuil roulant ). But disabled people who would like to visit Paris can overcome these problems. Most hotels with two or more stars are equipped with lifts, and Michelin's Guide Rouge indicates hotels with lifts and facilities for disabled people. For details of sites that provide facilities for the handicapped, go to parisinfo.com.
History
Pre-20th-Century History
Paris was founded towards the end of the 3rd century BC on what is now the Île de la Cité by a tribe of Celtic Gauls known as the Parisii. Centuries of conflict between the Gauls and Romans ended in 52 BC, when Julius Caesar's legions took control of the territory. Christianity was introduced in the 2nd century AD, and the Roman party was finally crashed in the 5th century by the arrival of the Franks. In 508 AD, Frankish king Clovis I united Gaul as a kingdom and made Paris his capital, naming it after the original Parisii tribe.
Paris prospered during the Middle Ages: In the 12th century, construction began on the cathedral of Notre Dame (work continued for nearly 200 years), while the Marais area north of the Seine was drained and settled to become what's known today as the Right Bank. The Sorbonne opened its doors in 1253, the beautiful Sainte Chapelle was consecrated in 1248 and the Louvre got its start as a riverside fortress around 1200.
Scandinavian Vikings (also known as Norsemen, or Normans) began raiding France's western coast in the 9th century; after three centuries of conflict, they started to push toward Paris. These conflicts gave birth to the Hundred Years War between Norman England and Paris' Capetian dynasty, eventually resulting in the French defeat at Agincourt in 1415 and English control of Paris in 1420. In 1429, a 17-year-old stripling called Jeanne d'Arc re-rallied the French troops to defeat the English at Orléans, and, with the exception of Calais, the English were expelled from France in 1453.
The Renaissance helped Paris get back on its feet at the end of the 1400s, and many of the city's signature buildings and monuments sprang up during the period. By the late 16th century Paris was again up in arms, this time in the name of religion. Clashes between the Huguenot Protestants and Catholic groups sank to their darkest levels in 1572 with the St Bartholomew's Day massacre of 3000 Huguenots in town to celebrate the wedding of Henri of Navarre (later, King Henri IV).
Louis XIV, known as le Roi Soleil (the Sun King), ascended to the throne in 1643 at the tender age of five and held the crown until 1715. During his reign, he nearly bankrupted the national treasury with battling and building. His most tangible legacy is the palace at Versailles, 23km (15mi) south-west of Paris. The excesses of Louis XVI and his capricious queen, Marie-Antoinette, led to an uprising of Parisians on 14 July 1789 and the storming of the Bastille prison - kick-starting the French Revolution.
The populist ideals of the revolution's early stages quickly gave way to a Reign of Terror, wherein even a few of the original 'patriots' got uncomfortably cosy with Madame la Guillotine. The unstable post-revolution government was consolidated in 1799 under a young Corsican general, Napoleon Bonaparte, who adopted the title First Consul. In 1804, the Pope crowned him Emperor of the French, and Napoleon proceeded to sweep most of Europe under his wing. Napoleon's hunger for conquest led to his defeat, first in Russia in 1812 and later at Belgium's Waterloo in 1815. His legacy in modern France includes the national legal code, which bears his name, and monuments such as the massive neoclassical Arc de Triomphe.
Following Napoleon's exile, France faltered under a string of mostly inept rulers until a coup d'état in 1851 brought a new emperor, Napoleon III, to power. In 17 years, he oversaw the construction of a flashy new Paris, with wide boulevards, sculptured parks and - not insignificantly - a modern sewer system. Like his namesake uncle, however, this Napoleon and his penchant for pugnacity led to a costly and eventually unsuccessful war, this time with the Prussians in 1870. When news of their emperor's capture by the enemy reached Paris the masses took to the streets, demanding that a republic be created. Despite its bloody beginnings, the Third Republic ushered in the glittering halcyon years of the belle époque .
Modern History
The belle époque was famed for its Art Nouveau architecture and a barrage of advances in the arts and sciences. By the 1930s, Paris had become a worldwide centre for the artistic avant-garde and had entrenched its reputation among freethinking intellectuals. The flowering of that era was cut short by the Nazi occupation of 1940, and Paris remained under Germany's thumb until 25 August 1944. (The Allied forces that retook the city were spearheaded by Free French units in order to give the French the honour of liberating their capital.) After the war, Paris regained its position as a creative hotbed and nurtured a revitalised liberalism that reached a crescendo in the student-led 'Spring Uprising' of 1968. The Sorbonne was occupied, barricades were erected in the Latin Quarter, and some 9 million people nationwide were inspired to join in a paralysing general strike, drawing attention to their increasing dissatisfaction with the rigidity of French institutions.
During the 1980s, President François Mitterand initiated the futuristic grands projets , a series of costly building projects that garnered widespread approval even when the results were popular failures. Responses to the flashier examples, like the Centre Pompidou and the glass pyramids in the Louvre, have ranged from appalled 'mon Dieux' to absolute doting rapture; if nothing else, the projets invigorated dialogue about the Parisian aesthetic.
In the late 1990s, the city seized the international spotlight with two front-page events: the rumour-plagued auto-accident death of Princess Di in 1997 and France's first-ever World Cup victory in July 1998.
Meanwhile, the political party behind Jacques Chirac (France's president since mid-1995) lost the parliamentary elections in 1997 to a coalition of Socialists, Communists and Greens headed by then Prime Minister Lionel Jospin. In the 2002 presidential elections, far-right leader Jean-Marie Le Pen was highly successful in the first round of the elections due to a low voter turnout. A subsequent strong show of support for Chirac - and a powerful slap in the face for Le Pen - gave Chirac a landslide victory, knocking Jospin out of the race in the process.
Recent History
On 31st May 2005 Chirac named Dominique de Villepin as prime minister following the resignation of Jean-Pierre Raffarin.
In 2001 Paris elected its first openly gay mayor, Bertrand Delanoë. He continues to enjoy widespread popularity, particularly for his efforts to make Paris more liveable by promoting bicycles and buses and to create a more approachable and responsible city administration.
In October 2005, the deaths of two teenagers who were accidentally electrocuted while allegedly hiding from police sparked riots that quickly spread across other regions of Paris, and then across France.
Further country-wide demonstrations in 2006 were a response to government attempts to shake up the rigidly protected labour market. The action forced a policy backdown, but left the issue of unemployment as intractable as ever.
In 2007 France voted in Nicolas Sarkozy as president, the same Sarkozy whose dismissal of the 2005 Paris rioters as hoodlums and rabble had only poured fuel on the fire scorching across the country.
Overview
Beautiful buildings, bargain-price beer and Bohemian beads.
Matička Praha - 'little mother Prague' - was largely undamaged by WWII, and the cityscape is stunning. Its compact medieval centre remains an evocative maze of cobbled lanes, ancient courtyards, dark passages and churches beyond number, all watched over by an 1100-year-old castle.
Kidnapped by communism for 40 years, Prague has become one of Europe's most popular tourist destinations. Its traditional pubs and eateries have been augmented by a wave of gourmet restaurants, cocktail bars and trendy cafes - though you can still feast on pork and dumplings washed down with a beer.
Events
The year begins with a festive New Year's Eve celebration, followed by holidays like Three King's Day (6 January) and the Anniversary of Jan Palach's death (19 January), which honours the memory of a Charles University student who burned himself to death in protest of the 1969 Soviet occupation.
Easter Monday, which falls in either March or April, is a classic rite of spring: Czech men of all ages swat at their favourite women with willow swatches, while the ladies respond with gifts of hand painted eggs, after which everyone parties.
Labour Day (1 May) is a communist leftover that coincides with the much older Majales, a spring festival dating back at least two centuries. Majales was banned by Nazis and communists, revived during the 'Prague Spring', subsequently squelched by Soviets and reincarnated in 1997. Majales' bands, dancers, floats, costumes, beer and sausage have since returned with a vengeance.
Liberation Day was celebrated 9 May (the day in 1945 that the Red Army marched into Prague) under the communist government, but in recent years you've had to get there by 8 May (the day Prague liberated itself) to enjoy the festivities.
Entertainment
Prague's past plays a big part in its entertainment scene by providing centuries-old stone cellars for musicians to blaze away in, sculpted facades for beerhalls to make noise behind, or grand auditoriums for the staging of classical events. Competing with these are suavely modern bars and clubs.
Getting there & around
Orientation
Prague sits amid the gentle landscapes of the Bohemian plateau, straddling the Vltava River, the Czech Republic's longest river. Central Prague consists of five historical towns: Hradčany, the castle district, on a hill above the west bank; Malá Strana, the 13th-century 'Little Quarter', between the river and castle; Staré Mêsto, the gothic 'Old Town' on the Vltava's east bank; adjacent Josefov, the former Jewish ghetto; and Nové Mêsto or 'New Town,' (new in the 14th century), to the south and east of Staré Mêsto.
Within these historical districts - linked by the landmark Charles Bridge - are most of the city's attractions. The whole compact maze is best appreciated on foot, aided by Prague's fine public transportation system. Beyond the centre is 19th- and 20th-century Prague, many of whose districts began as separate towns.
Getting There, Getting Around
Getting There
Getting in and out of Prague is a snap, thanks to the cheap and well-run trains of Czech Railways (ČD) and the buses, which are even cheaper still, run more frequently and are quite comfortable. The budget prices and convenience of these modes of transports mean that air travellers to Prague are comparatively rare; if you do fly into the city, you'll fetch up in Ruzyně, the international airport.
Bus
Buses tend to be faster, more frequent and marginally cheaper than the train. All domestic long-distance buses and most regional services depart the Florenc station, though many regional buses depart other terminals scattered throughout the city.
Train
Trains run daily between Prague and most major European cities; Paris, Amsterdam, Munich and Vienna are some major hubs. Within the Czech Republic, Czech Railways (ČD) provides cheap, efficient service. Various passes are available.
Plane
Prague's Ruzyně airport, 17km (11mi) northwest of the city centre, is the Czech Republic's only international airport. It's served by dozens of international carriers, including Česke aerolinie (ČSA), the state airline. Departure tax is included in the price of the ticket. Smaller Karlovy Vary airport primarily serves domestic travellers, but has regular flights to Moscow.
Getting Around
Prague's compact historic centre is best appreciated on foot, with the help of cheap, widespread public transportation. To think of driving is just foolhardy - the city's not set up too well for cars (or, for that matter, for bicycles). If you take taxis, beware of inflated fares; your best bet is a radio taxi.
Car
Driving through the narrow, winding cobbled streets of Old Town, particularly during rush hour, should be attempted only by masochists. However, if you can handle the parking, trams, pedestrianised zones, other cars, cyclists and police looking for a handout, at least you get to stay on your own schedule, as opposed to the city's timetables.
Taxi
Prague is plagued with unscrupulous cabbies; a 2002 crackdown exposed the extent of the problem and introduced harsher penalties, but hailing a taxi on the street, at least in a tourist zone, still holds the risk of an inflated fare. Calling a radio taxi will probably be better value.
Bicycle
Bicycling is somewhat problematic, as traffic is heavy and there are few bicycle lanes. Be sure to lock both your frame and tyres!
Water
Weather and water levels permitting, various outfits ply boats up and down the Vltava River. These are more sightseeing cruises than transport.
Disabled Travellers
Increasing, but still limited, attention is being paid to facilities for the disabled in Prague. Wheelchair ramps are becoming more common, especially at major street intersections and in top-end hotels. For the blind or vision-impaired, most pedestrian-crossing lights in central Prague have a sound signal to indicate when it's safe to cross. The Stavovské Theatre is equipped for the hearing-impaired, and this and several other theatres are wheelchair-accessible. The monthly what's-on booklet Prehled indicates venues with wheelchair access. Few buses and no trams have wheelchair access; special wheelchair-accessible buses operate Monday to Friday on line Nos 1 and 3, including between Florenc bus station and námestí Republiky, and between Holešovice train station and námestí Republiky. Praha hlavní nádraží, Holešovice train station and a handful of metro stations (Hlavní nádraží, Hurka, Luka, Lužiny, nádraží Holešovice, Stodulky and Zlicín) have self-operating lifts. Other metro stations (Chodov, Dejvická, Florenc C line, Háje, IP Pavlova, Opatov, Pankrác, Roztyly and Skalka) have modified lifts that can be used with the help of station staff. Czech Railways (CD) claims that every large station in the country has wheelchair ramps and lifts, but in fact the service is poor.
When flying, disabled travellers should inform the airline of their needs when booking, and again when reconfirming, and again when checking in. Most international airports (including Prague's) have ramps, lifts, accessible toilets and telephones. Aircraft toilets, on the other hand, present problems for wheelchair travellers, who should discuss this early on with the airline and/or their doctor.
History
Pre-20th-Century History
The oldest evidence of human habitation in the Prague valley dates from around 6000 BC. Permanent farming communities were established in the area by Germanic and Celtic tribes around 4000 BC. Slavs came into the picture around the turn of the millennium, and by the 600 AD had settled opposite sides of a particularly appealing stretch of the Vltava River. They successfully defended the land now known as Bohemia for generations, but by the 9th century it had been conquered by the Great Moravian Empire.
The short-lived empire introduced the locals to Christianity, but it was 'Good King Wenceslas' of Christmas-carol fame (he was actually a duke) who made it the state religion of Bohemia in the 930s. He remains the patron saint of the Czech Republic. It was under the rule of Charles IV (ruled 1346-78) that Prague truly came into its own, becoming one of the continent's largest and most prosperous cities, acquiring its fine Gothic face and landmark buildings like Charles University, Charles Bridge and St Vitus Cathedral.
Jan Hus, who attended Charles University in the late 1380s, rallied popular support for the Church-reform movement; when he was burned at the stake in 1415, the rabble was roused enough to hurl various Catholic officials from the upper stories of Prague's New Town Hall, introducing the word 'defenestration' (literally, to toss someone out a window) into the popular political lexicon. While the 1526 ascent of the Catholic Hapsburg family to power in the region cooled things off briefly, a second round of defenestrations in 1618 made it clear that the matter was not quite settled.
In fact, the insurrection catalyzed the Thirty Years War, which devastated much of Europe; a quarter of Bohemia perished. Their defeat slammed the door on Czech independence for almost three centuries. The Czech national spirit was not so easily crushed, however, and by the 19th century, Prague - which had been unified in 1784 by imperial decree - had become the centre of the so-called Czech National Revival. Czech literature, architecture and journalism were celebrated, even as Czechs were denied participation in the political process.
Nationalist sentiment was growing as waves of pro-democracy protests swept the continent. An 1848 uprising was summarily squelched, but in 1861 the Czech majority defeated German candidates in the Prague council elections. It was a watershed event for Czech independence.
Modern History
The 20th century solidified the Czech nationalist movement. Czechs had no interest in fighting for their Austrian masters in WWI, and neighbouring Slovakia was equally reluctant to take up arms for their German occupiers. Leaders from both independence movements approached US President Wilson, who was actively trying to build the League of Nations, asking for his help in achieving their dream. With Allied support, Czechoslovakia became an independent nation in 1918; Prague became its first capital.
The young country weathered the Great Depression only to be occupied by Nazi Germany in 1939 - Bohemia and Moravia were labelled a 'protectorate' and Slovakia an 'independent' (puppet) state. Prague's community of some 120,000 Jews was all but wiped out; almost three-quarters of them either starved or were murdered in concentration camps.
On May 5, 1945, the population of Prague rose up against German occupation forces as the Red Army approached from the east. Most of Prague was liberated before the Soviets arrived. Liberation Day is now celebrated on May 8; under communism it was May 9. In the 1946 elections, the communists became the young republic's dominant party, and in 1948 did away with the inefficiencies of a multi-party system with a Soviet-backed coup d'état.
In 1968, after years of gradual liberalisation under General Secretary Dubcek, the 'Prague Spring' came into full bloom. Full democracy, an end to censorship, and 'socialism with a human face' were the goals of this popular movement. Moscow was miffed and sent tanks into Prague. Fifty-eight people died, almost 300,000 sympathisers lost their jobs and, in something of a step down, Dubcek was forced to find employment with the Slovak Forestry Department.
The newly stringent communist leadership maintained control until the breaching of the Berlin Wall in 1989. A series of peaceful demonstrations beginning on November 17 became confrontational, though the essentially nonviolent character of the uprising earned it the name 'Velvet Revolution'. Free elections were held in 1990, and the Czech and Slovakian separatist movements subsequently inspired the smooth 1993 split into the Czech and Slovak Republics, remembered as the 'Velvet Divorce'. Prague quickly became one of the top tourist destinations in the world during the 1990s, and the ringing of cash registers combined with a solid industrial base has left its citizens in better economic shape than those in the rest of the country. Much of this spare change has been reinvested in the city itself, making for an even more pleasant visit.
Recent History
The Czech Republic has become a member state of the EU, and Prague will preside gracefully as the country finds a new place in the world.
In August 2002 Prague experienced the worst floods in almost two centuries, with the river Vltava sweeping the city. Sixteen people died, hundreds of thousands of people were forced to evacuate their homes and businesses, the historic city centre was closed off and there were fears - not realised - that the 14th-century Charles Bridge would be washed away. The final damage was calculated in the billions of US dollars, with the city's low-lying Jewish Quarter suffering considerable damage, as well as the Karlin and Troja districts, the metro system and numerous cultural and tourist attractions. Despite the disastrous damage, Prague and its citizens managed to bounce back, demonstrating once again that the spirit of the city really is indomitable.
Overview
A little piece of Europe dropped down in Arctic wilds.
Reykjavík boasts all the trappings of a modern European city, dusted over with eccentric Icelandic spirit. Thriving cafes, high-energy pubs and clubs, and a brightly coloured old town with rows of wood-and-corrugated-tin houses cluster together in the compact city centre.
The barren lava fields that surround Iceland's international airport are an eye-grabbing introduction to this near-Arctic island, belched out of the mouths of volcanoes (some still active), awash in midnight sun from May to August, glistening with glaciers, geysers, hot springs and waterfalls.
Events
The Christian Lent celebrations that precede Easter are undertaken in Reykjavík in traditional Icelandic style, with Sprengidagur (Shrove Tuesday) marked by the loud slurping of pea soup and salted mutton. Food also dominates February's Þorrablót : originally a Norse feast, today it gives Icelanders an excuse to make like Vikings and snack on the more gruesome traditional dishes (boiled sheep's eyeballs, anyone?).
The first day of summer is officially at the start of June, but the citizens of Reykjavík let their anticipation get the better of them and stage a carnival to celebrate Sumardagurinn Fyrsti well ahead of schedule in late April. When Sjómannadagurinn (Sailors' Day) rolls around in the first week of June, every pair of sea legs in the country gets to take a day off to toast themselves with a glass or two of brennivín (burnt wine), a schnapps-style drink also known as svarti dauði or 'black death'.
, a commemoration of when Iceland wriggled out from beneath the regal Danish thumb on June 17 1944, sparks the country's biggest festival, with lots of parades, outdoor concerts, dancing and old-fashioned costumes on display. More partying takes place on the nightless Midsummer Night on June 24, as well as in early August when people flock to camping grounds around the island to fire up barbecues and sing boozy renditions of folk songs for Verslunarmannahelgi .
Other big events on the calendar are Gay Pride in late August, which draws the second-highest attendance of all the city's celebrations, and Menningarnott (Culture Night), an evening of cultural events, with musicians and drunks on every street corner, and a massive fireworks display to round it all off.
Entertainment
Reykjavík has a famously energetic and uninhibited nightlife. On weekends, practically the entire population goes out to partake in the great Icelandic runtur , a wildly-excessive extravaganza of drinking and debauchery which takes place throughout bars, clubs (and cars) in the city centre.
Getting there & around
Orientation
Reykjavík, the world's northernmost capital, lies on a small peninsula on the southwest coast of Iceland, off a sizeable bay called Faxaflói. This city is where the vast majority of the country's population huddles for warmth and economic gain; only one-fifth of this otherwise ice cap, lava field and desert plateau-covered island is considered habitable. Reykjavík's Old Town is situated between its harbour and a large pond called Tjörn to the southeast, and is encircled by an ever-expanding concrete sprawl of newer houses and office blocks. The city centre's main landmarks are the lofty heights of the 75m (246ft) Hallgrímskirkja and the old town square Austurvöllur, hemmed in by the parliament buildings, the Lutheran cathedral and the city's most historical hotel. The adjacent cafe-studded street Austurstræti links Austurvöllur to another square nearby, grimier Lækjartorg, one of the city's main bus stands. Up the hill from Lækjartorg is the main shopping street, Laugavegur.
Reykjavík has two airports: Reykjavík city airport (handling domestic traffic and flights to Greenland and the Faroes) is a pumice stone's throw south of the centre, while Keflavík international airport is 48km (30mi) west of town. Long-distance buses depart from the BSÍ terminal at Vatnsmýrarvegur 10, on the northeastern edge of the city airport.
Getting There, Getting Around
Getting There
Reykjavik is connected to destinations throughout Iceland as well as Europe and North America. BSÍ bus services run to many destinations throughout the country.
Bus
Long-distance buses depart from the BSÍ terminal at the northeastern edge of Reykjavik city airport. Over summer, there are daily buses driving north to Akranes and Snæfellsnes, northeast to Akureyri and east to Skaftafell.
Plane
Reykjavik city airport is on the southern edge of the Old Town and welcomes domestic flights from northern towns like Siglufjörður and eastern destinations like Egilsstaðir, as well as the odd arrival from the other nations of the sea-scattered West Nordens (Greenland and the Faroe Islands). Keflavík international airport is on a site 48km (30mi) to the west of Reykjavik, where its traffic controllers juggle incoming flights from European centres like London, Paris, Barcelona, Frankfurt and Stockholm; US destinations like Boston, Washington and New York; and Canadian cities like Halifax in the southeastern province of Nova Scotia.
Getting Around
Getting around Reykjavik is made easy by its excellent SVR city bus system, which runs from 07:00 to 24:00 daily (except Sunday, when drivers get behind their wheels at 10:00 ). The two central terminals are at Hlemmur and Læ kjartorg, with another two depots out at Grensás and Mjódd.
Several car hire firms rent out vehicles in the inner city, but the aggressive duelling that takes place on local roads makes this a seriously bad option. Bicycles can be used to negotiate the city's extensive network of cycle paths.
Bus
Reykjavík's excellent Stræto city bus network offers regular and easy transport around downtown Reykjavík and out to the suburbs of Seltjarnarnes, Kópavogur, Garðabær, Hafnarfjörður and Mosfellsbær. Services leave at 20-minute intervals 07:00 to 19:00 weekdays, and at 30-minute intervals every evening and at weekends. Buses will pick up and drop passengers only at designated stops, these are marked by a yellow sign with the letter 'S'.
Bicycle
Bicycles are a great way to get to the attractions outside the centre, but be prepared for some steep hills, particularly if you intend to head up to Perlan. Reykjavík has a network of cycle lanes, but these are not well integrated, so you'll often end up on busy roads. Be very cautious of the traffic as drivers show little consideration for cyclists.
Disabled Travellers
Narrow wooden buildings and a general absence of elevators in Reykjavík's Old Town may make wheelchair access to some guesthouses, cafes and clubs problematic; a little forward planning will be necessary. International and internal flights can accommodate most disabilities, but some flights use small aircraft that may be unsuitable for the mobility impaired. The car ferries Baldur and Herjólfur have facilities for wheelchairs, as do Reykjavík city buses. For more details of facilities for the disabled - including disabled-friendly hotels and tours - contact the tourist office in Reykjavík.
History
Pre-20th-Century History
It's likely that the Greek navigator Pytheas sighted Iceland during an epic voyage around 325 BC; he referred to it in his journal as Ultima Thule, and apparently decided not to set foot on its chilly soil. The island's first human inhabitants were probably solitude-seeking Irish monks, who arrived at what they reverently considered an ideal hermitage at the beginning of the 8th century and contemplated the divine in peace until the Norse began to arrive 150 years later. The first of the Norse-folk to pay Iceland a visit was the Swede Naddoddur, who washed up somewhere on the east coast, took a quick look around and promptly named the place Snæland (Snow Land) through a lack of other identifying features. He was soon followed by Garðar Svavarsson, who decamped with his crew on the north coast for a full winter, and in 860 by a Norwegian farmer who landed on the iceberg-decorated west coast and decided a more fitting name for the place was Ísland (Ice Land).
A Norwegian Viking called Ingólfur Arnarson was the first person to intentionally settle in Iceland in 874, choosing the exact location of his new home in the traditional way by tossing some of his pagan belongings (a pair of high-seat pillars) into the ocean as he approached the island and seeing where the gods elected to bring them ashore. He thus set up house at a spot adjacent to a set of steam-gushing thermal springs, which he named Reykjavík (Smoky Bay), and local industry began when he planted a hayfield in what eventually became the town square. Arnarson and his descendants lorded it over the southwestern chunk of Iceland, while other settlers soon arrived to claim their own limited bit of freehold.
Subsequent major changes in Iceland's social landscape included the island declaring itself a Christian nation in 1000 (under pressure from a proselytising Norwegian king), the early 13th-century wars between feuding private armies that became known as the infamous Sturlung Age, the construction of what became a powerful Augustinian monastery near Reykjavík on Viðey Island in 1226 and the territorial consumption of Iceland by Norway in 1262. The already demoralised situation in Iceland worsened in the 14th century with three disastrous eruptions of the volcano Hekla in the south of the island and various epidemics, followed in 1397 by a transfer of ownership from Norway to Denmark when the Scandinavian countries were brought together under the Kalmar Union. Later, the Reformation brought the imposition of Lutheranism in 1550, and in 1602 the Danish king set up a trade monopoly that choked local economic growth.
It was a rough couple of centuries, but things started to turn around in the mid-1700s when sheriff and entrepreneur Skúli Magnússon started undermining the trade monopoly by establishing wool-dyeing, rope-making, tanning and weaving factories. Reykjavík received its first proper street (Aðalstræti) when Magnússon's new abode and weaving shed were raised in 1752, which led to the city being granted charter as a market town by the Danes in 1786. Soon afterwards, the city became the new home of the country's Alþing (National Assembly) and cemented its theological status with the construction of a Lutheran cathedral in 1796. Throughout the 19th century, Icelandic nationalism reasserted itself, culminating in the removal of international trade barriers in 1855 and a draft constitution in 1874.
Modern History
At the end of WWI, Iceland became an independent state within the Kingdom of Denmark under the newly signed Act of Union. But it took another 26 years for Iceland to formally become a republic and Reykjavík a fully fledged national capital.
Over the last half-century, Reykjavík has prospered economically, with a stock exchange being established in the 1990s and the cityscape growing relatively quickly along with the national tourism industry, though (perhaps predictably) this growth has been accompanied by a broadening gulf between the haves and have-nots.
Recent History
The progress the city has made has translated into a cultural blossoming. Reykjavík now enjoys a vibrant musical scene, and citizens can feed their classical appetites with a symphony orchestra as well as ballet and opera companies. In a neat bit of historical irony, Reykjavík is now known as the 'smokeless city' due to its complete adoption of geothermal heat and power.