Europe


Europe, the birthplace of Western civilization, named after a Phoenician princess, lies bordered by two oceans, the Arctic and the Atlantic and three seas, the Mediterranean, the Black, and the Caspian, its eastern boundary running along the Ural Mountains.

Ever-changing scenery

Forty-four European countries are clustered on the second smallest of the continents. Traveling through Europe means the constant change of the scenery – such is the diversity of the countryside. Hugely varied and complex, it gives rise to wide diversity, from the Scottish Highlands to the rolling...

Europe, the birthplace of Western civilization, named after a Phoenician princess, lies bordered by two oceans, the Arctic and the Atlantic and three seas, the Mediterranean, the Black, and the Caspian, its eastern boundary running along the Ural Mountains.

Ever-changing scenery

Forty-four European countries are clustered on the second smallest of the continents. Traveling through Europe means the constant change of the scenery – such is the diversity of the countryside. Hugely varied and complex, it gives rise to wide diversity, from the Scottish Highlands to the rolling plains of Hungary. Driving for just several hours, you pass the landscape that changes from high, snow-capped mountains under the thick cover of trees, descending to timid green hills and valleys and rich wheat fields intersected by numerous rivers.

The majority of Europeans enjoy the temperate climate zones, with the “Europe’s central heating”- the Gulf Stream, which makes Europe’s climate warm and wet. It is not just the contrast between the freezing north and the hot and simmering sunbathed south, but it also gets colder from the west towards the east.

Choose your own adventure

In Europe, there is something for everyone’s taste. Going south, you come to the Mediterranean coastline, home to some of the most beautiful landscapes and towns in the world with their azure waters, rocky hillsides, and ancient architecture. For those fond of hiking or mountaineering, there are notable mountains and mountain ranges – the Alpes with Mont Blanc and  Matterhorn, the  Apennines, the Dinaric Alps, the  Tatra, the Carpathian, and the Scandinavian Mountains, the Olympus Mountain, Pyrenees, and Scottish Highlands. You can go sailing or canoeing on countless rivers – the Danube, the Volga, the Loire, the Rhine, the Elbe or swim in numerous lakes –  Maggiore, Lucerne, Como, Bled. A highly irregular coastline indented by many bays, fjords, and seas invites those adventurous ones.

This cradle of western civilization nestles cold castles with thick walls where you can hear the echoes of the past, fortresses, the ancient monasteries, and churches, each of them telling a story. Every European city has its own charm. London, with its glorious parks, museums and galleries and particularly Buckingham Palace – home of the most popular European monarch, Paris with Louvre, the Eiffel Tower and Arc de Triomphe, Rome and its Colosseum and Pantheon, the noble decadence of Vienna, Warsaw, Berlin and so on.

Grown from the classical culture

Although European culture and spiritual heritage derived from Greco-Roman antiquity, we still can’t speak of a uniform concept. It is rooted in the art, architecture, film, different types of music, literature, and philosophy that have their own national specific features. These features are altered from the west of the continent to the east, as well as from south to north. Throughout Europe, you will hear different languages that mostly belong to the Germanic, Romance, and Slavic groups, with Greek and some other isolates.

National customs are equally varied. Traveling through Europe, you can try different national dishes – Goulash in Hungary, Palatschinken in Austria or Crepes in France, Stew in Ireland, Pierogi in Poland, Cheese fondue in Switzerland, Cevapi in Serbia, Mousaka in Greece, Waffles in Belgium or English breakfast in the UK. If you are in the south, a glass of wine will normally follow the meal, but going north you will probably prefer a beer instead.

Videos of Europe