Journeys and destinations...

River Rhine is one of the major rivers in Europe and flows through Switzerland, Germany and the Netherlands. This blog post is specifically about a small 65 km stretch out of the 1233 km length  of the river! The Upper Middle Rhine Valley  is the the section between Bingen and Koblenz.  Very few locations have something for all, this is one such region. If you are a wine lover , here you will be surrounded by vineyards and local wineries (German: Weingut). If you love hiking and wandering around in nature , you will get plenty of options. If you are a history buff , you can immerse yourself in the study of various castles and their intriguing stories. If you are a cycling enthusiast or love to ride your motorbike, you can ride along the Rhine and witness picturesque scenery.  Finally, if just want to have a relaxing time away from the bustle of the city life and sit next to the river and soak up the sun then this is the place for you!  Welcome to the Rhine valley!!  In Germany, i f yo

The Moselle valley is often overlooked in comparison to the world-famous romantic route of the Rhine valley. Granted, Moselle is not as mighty as the Rhine but the valley has its own charm! River Moselle (German: Mosel) flows through France, Luxembourg and Germany. As the river passes though Germany it creates beautiful landscapes and a great opportunity for wine growers. Most of the hillsides are covered in vineyards which grow the white grape variety called Riesling. The river has been used for trade and travel since hundreds of years and today we can see a high number of castle ruins along the entire Moselle valley. In this blog I am going to cover the cities (and castles)  me and my husband have visited till now.   The rivers Mosel and Rhine meet in Koblenz. The point of confluence is called the  The  Deutsches Eck  and it is a lovely must-see place. M ore about Koblenz in the next blog dedicated to the Rhine valley ! 😉 In Germany, i f you stay in NRW or  Rhineland-Palatin

Please note: We visited Jodhpur before the Corona virus chaos started worldwide. In the current situation #stayhome #staysafe and read away!!! When we (me and my husband) informed our family and friends that we plan to stay in Jodhpur for three days we were often told that one and a half days are enough for sightseeing and there is nothing more to see! That may be true for those who have visited other cities in Rajasthan or who are living in India and get Rajasthani cuisine or handicrafts in their cities as well. But we had neither visited Rajasthan before nor do we live in India anymore. For us, visiting Rajasthan was a dream from a long time. We knew we will not be satisfied with anything less than three days so we went ahead with the plan. As I researched more I found many activities often missed by the fast-paced travelers. I hope this post encourages others to look out for such local activities and truly experience a new culture. Kirty Tour and Travels booked our flights

Ever wondered on a Friday evening what activities can you do on the  weekend ? We eagerly look forward to the weekend but when it arrives most of the time we don't have a plan on how to spend it. Most of the expats don't have a lot of  family and friends  around them and it is very important to be out and about for the  physical and mental well being . A lot of countries have a mall and multiplex culture where a visit to these places is the norm on the weekends and holidays. But I have not seen that in Germany. Saturdays are meant for shopping as all the shops are closed on Sundays including the malls. However, there is a higher preference for being active and fit in your chosen way rather then going to the movies.  Of course, like any other place you can join a gym or a hobby club or play a sport by getting in touch with interested individuals with the help of the many available apps. But there is more that you can do occasionally! Come rain or shine there are

After visiting the charming medieval town of Tallinn ( read more here ) in Estonia, we were ready to visit Helsinki, the modern capital of Finland 😎. With a short ferry ride of 2 hours from Tallinn we crossed the Gulf of Finland and reached Helsinki. Sibelius Monument in Sibelius Park Internet is full of information about the many things to do and see in Helsinki. In this post I am listing the places which are an absolute must-see  in my opinion. Senate square Helsinki Cathedral in Senate square This plaza is surrounded by impressive neoclassical buildings. For me the highlight was the cathedral with its distinct green dome. Unique street identifiers Building in the old city center If you take a walk in the old city center, you will see some streets have boards with a picture of an animal below the street name.  In medieval times when farmers came to the city they couldn't read so photos of animals were used to identify the streets uniquely.  How