Routes of lovers
Traveling is one of the best gifts for Valentine’s Day. This year, a couple in love can arrange a short trip both on Wednesday, when the holiday falls, and next weekend after it. We have selected for you the five non-banal cities of Europe, visiting which you will feel the incredible spirit of romance.
Of course, nobody will stop you from admiring the view from the Eiffel Tower, riding a gondola along the canals of a city standing on the water, or watching the red roofs of medieval buildings from a hill. However, if you are not afraid to change tourist routes, then choose one or more of these cities, feel free to go on a romantic trip and capture unforgettable emotions in your photo and memory.
Bruges (Belgium)
Ancient canals among the streets of Bruges? They say that the happy do not watch time. And why see the clock hands if in the Belgian town of Bruges, located in the north of this country, it can stop at all? Only the hourly chimes of the local Gothic town hall remind of its course here. Because everything else – medieval stone houses, sleepy canals through which white swans float, the smell of real chocolate that spreads through the narrow streets, cannot but immerse into the atmosphere of comfort and peace.
This city was also created for lovers of medieval exoticism, which is transmitted by small houses by the water, Market Square, the Belford watchtower, the Church of Our Lady, as well as the Holy Blood Basilica. The last one contains a bundle on which the Savior’s blood drops supposedly remained. After walking this corner of Belgium, do not forget to again swear love to each other.
You can do this in Bruges by the Lake of Love, which gathers the most swans. One has only to go to the bridge near the reservoir, hold hands, say quivering words, and then, as the legend says, you will be together forever. Do not deny yourself the pleasure of boating along the small canals of this town, which is often called mini-Venice. Lovers can still discover Bruges by tasting the local cuisine and visiting dozens of museums.
Bordeaux (France)
Grape plantations of Bordeaux Chateau Margot, Saint-Esther, Pomrol, Sauternes …
If you know what all these names mean, then quickly go to the French town of Bordeaux.
It is located in the south-west of the country and is just suitable for growing the five main varieties of red wine: Cabernet-franc, Cabernet-Sauvignon, Merlot, hardness and malbec.
One wants to take a car and ride along long vineyards. However, Bordeaux is famous for the only bushes of these fruits and such a craft. It is a real treasury of many museums of various subjects: from the Archaeological, Ethnographic to the Customs, where they collected a lot of exhibits related to smuggling.
Verona (Italy)
Balcony of Romeo and Juliet in Verona “Like Romeo and Juliet, we lost and found our Verona.” So at Eurovision 2017, the participants from Estonia, Koit Toome and Laura, sang. And five centuries earlier, in about 1595, William of Shakespeare sang this eastern Italian town, settling Romeo and Juliet on Via Capello. Walking along this street, you can see the house and the romantic balcony, under which the young beauty Juliet Capuleti gave Romeo Montecki, gentle and passionate serenades at the same time.
In particular, the interior of the 14th century was recreated in the young girl’s house, and her bronze statue was installed below. Tourists who come to feel the atmosphere of romance do not pass by the sculptures of the Verona master Constantini and touch the chest of Juliet. They believe: after such a touch on a girl, happiness and luck in love will not go around them.
You can enjoy Verona while strolling through the central square of Piazza delle Erbe, contemplating operas in the Arena di Verona, relaxing in the garden of Giardino Giusti and enjoying the panorama of the city from the observation deck of the local restaurant and castle square, located above the Adige River. The romantic atmosphere can be enhanced in the evening: take a light wine, order pizza and invite your loved one to one of the hills to see the sunset together. It will pass the baton to the evening lights of the city, which are in no hurry to fall asleep.
Sintra (Portugal)
Palace Pena in Sitra If in the middle of winter you suddenly want to catch romance by the ocean, then Portugal is a great option for such an adventure. Just on the way to the Atlantic coast, do not forget to wrap yourself in the ancient town of Sintra, which is in the west of the country, and try to look out for ocean open spaces from there. After all, part of this settlement is kept by high hills, on which are the walls of ancient castles.
The brightest of them – in the literal sense of the word, is the Pena Palace, built on the highest cliff surrounded by green trees. Such a monument of architecture began to be erected in the middle of the XIX century by order of the then King Ferdinand II. Thanks to the combination of yellow, red, orange, blue and gray colors, this architectural masterpiece is visible from afar.
