<[email protected]> wrote:

    > In the UK, Birmingham.


Staines

--
Best
Greg

[email protected] wrote in news:1111706525.113408.325540
@l41g2000cwc.googlegroups.com:

    > What cities do you think generally get a bad rap from travellers but
    > you personally found interesting and rewarding?

Belgrade, Serbia. Good architecture and sights.

Skadarlija at night is a pleasure.

[email protected] wrote:
    > What cities do you think generally get a bad rap from travellers but
    > you personally found interesting and rewarding?

This is not underrated as much as unknown, but Goslar in Germany. Beautiful
intact medieval town, not a cutesy but just as fascinating as Rothenburg,
with out the crowds. Great modern art museum and public art, interesting
place in history, nearby mine is also interesting.

Julie

--
Julie
**********
I could be wrong. My experience is limited to my experience.

Check out my Travel Pages (non-commercial) at
http://www.dragonsholm.org/travel.htm

[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected] oups.com...

<< "My vote goes to Napoli. Absolutely the best city in Europe."

Many people say it's the most truly Italian city. The city has a
streetlife that is much more vibrant than the North Italian
cities...IMO the city's highlight was its people rather than the city
itself.>>


Things certainly seem to go with a bang there!!!

http://www.repubblica.it/2005/a/sezi...4/napoli4.html

    > "Our two favourites were Prague and Oxford."
    >
    > Both wonderful places, but I wouldn't call them underrated! Most
    > people rave about Prague, and the only negative comments I've heard
    > about it come from people who think that it has become overtouristed
    > or overcommercialized. I've never heard anything bad about Oxford.

Oxford has next to no shops or cheap eating places that aren't
international chain outlets. It's also choking in pollution as
a result of decades of more-cars-and-bugger-the-consequences
corrupt local government. If you want to spend all day sheltering
from the fumes to look at the Renaissance architecture alternately
through the windows of a Starbucks or a McDonalds you'll have a
great time. Otherwise you might well consider it a smelly overhyped
cultural colostomy bag for America.

I can forgive it something for having the Pitt-Rivers Museum and
the excursion boat to Abingdon but that's about it.

============== j-c ====== @ ====== purr . demon . co . uk ==============
Jack Campin: 11 Third St, Newtongrange EH22 4PU, Scotland | tel 0131 660 4760
<http://www.purr.demon.co.uk/jack/> for CD-ROMs and free | fax 0870 0554 975
stuff: Scottish music, food intolerance, & Mac logic fonts | mob 07800 739 557

On Fri, 25 Mar 2005 16:07:51 GMT, "colin." <colin###@###j0o.com>
wrote:

    || From my short experience of Napoli, I congratulate you on finding such
    || a wonderful girl. Sure it'll be the same place without her? :-))
    |
    |Who says it's going to be without her? From talking to her lately, looks
    |like there might be hope fot us yet again (;
    |
In that case, anywhere may be wonderful. But, I think I could find
some slightly more wonderful than others. Particularly Naples. Good
Luck.


Cheers, Alan, Australia

On Fri, 25 Mar 2005 18:02:03 +0000 (UTC), Juliana L Holm
<[email protected]> wrote:

    |This is not underrated as much as unknown, but Goslar in Germany. Beautiful
    |intact medieval town, not a cutesy but just as fascinating as Rothenburg,
    |with out the crowds. Great modern art museum and public art, interesting
    |place in history, nearby mine is also interesting.
    |
    |Julie

We found many like that in wandering around southern Czech Republic.
The trouble is that I forget the names. It's difficult enough for me
to remember the English ones, but all those Ceskys....

My most memorable unexpected one was a tiny village in Tuscany.
Wandering along a back road we saw what looked like a telephone pole
on top of a hill on the far left. As we got closer, it became a tall,
square, turret. So we turned left up a winding, narrow bitumen road to
climb up the hill and eventually reached Radicofani.

I couldn't remember the exact location so I just looked it up on
viamichelin:

http://www.viamichelin.com/viamichel...=12&productId=
or http://tinyurl.com/3m8v7

Fascinating old castle, with a little but good museum inside the
turret as you climb up to spectacular views over Tuscany to die for.
Hardly a tourist in sight, I doubt the buses go there.

Someday I'll take the trouble to work out how to stick some photos on
the web..


Cheers, Alan, Australia

"Alan S" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
    > My most memorable unexpected one was a tiny village in Tuscany.
    > Wandering along a back road we saw what looked like a telephone pole
    > on top of a hill on the far left. As we got closer, it became a tall,
    > square, turret. So we turned left up a winding, narrow bitumen road to
    > climb up the hill and eventually reached Radicofani.
SNIP

    > Someday I'll take the trouble to work out how to stick some photos on
    > the web..
    > Cheers, Alan, Australia

Alan

Some people have beaten you to it.
Check this on Google.
http://images.google.com.au/images?q...=Google+Search

Gerrit - Perth area

On Sat, 26 Mar 2005 11:20:54 +0800, "Gerrit 't Hart" <[email protected]>
wrote:

    |
    |"Alan S" <[email protected]> wrote in message
    |news:[email protected].. .
    |> My most memorable unexpected one was a tiny village in Tuscany.
    |> Wandering along a back road we saw what looked like a telephone pole
    |> on top of a hill on the far left. As we got closer, it became a tall,
    |> square, turret. So we turned left up a winding, narrow bitumen road to
    |> climb up the hill and eventually reached Radicofani.
    |>
    |SNIP
    |
    |> Someday I'll take the trouble to work out how to stick some photos on
    |> the web..
    |>
    |>
    |> Cheers, Alan, Australia
    |
    |Alan
    |
    |Some people have beaten you to it.
    |Check this on Google.
    |http://images.google.com.au/images?q...=Google+Search
    |
    |Gerrit - Perth area
    |

Yep - excellent photos too. I can't compete:-)

You can see what I meant about the views.
I know that driving can be awkward on a holiday, particularly on the
wrong side of the road in a countries where the drivers all behave
like homicidal maniacs - but coming across unexpected places was the
best part of the trip.







Cheers, Alan, Australia

Alan S wrote:

    > We found many like that in wandering around southern Czech Republic.
    > The trouble is that I forget the names. It's difficult enough for me
    > to remember the English ones, but all those Ceskys....


There are lots of great little towns in southern Bohemia and adjoining
Moravia. Just drive down any intriguing looking lane or road and you'll
more often than not stumble across something scenic or interesting....

--
Best
Greg

In article <[email protected]>,
BrianE <[email protected]> wrote:

    > Belgrade, Serbia. Good architecture and sights.

Get to see what ethnic cleansers look like?

On Sat, 26 Mar 2005 13:01:58 +1100, Alan S <[email protected]> wrote:


    >We found many like that in wandering around southern Czech Republic.
    >The trouble is that I forget the names. It's difficult enough for me
    >to remember the English ones, but all those Ceskys....

Telc, on the road south from Prague, probably doesn't count as 'off
the tourist beat' (it's a Unesco workd heritage site) but still this
charming old town is well worth a visit.

    >My most memorable unexpected one was a tiny village in Tuscany.
    >Wandering along a back road we saw what looked like a telephone pole
    >on top of a hill on the far left. As we got closer, it became a tall,
    >square, turret. So we turned left up a winding, narrow bitumen road to
    >climb up the hill and eventually reached Radicofani.

Elsewhere in Italy Parma (noted for cheese and ham) is delightful.
The little town of Roncole Verdi (noted for the composer Verdi and
also for Guareschi, creator of the Don Camillo stories) and the
surrounding area are all very charming and interesting.

In Britain I've known the Welsh borders, and particularly the Wye
Valley between Chepstow and Monmouth, since my teens. It's a great
area to visit with fine scenery, but doesn't seem to be on many
tourists' itineraries

Martin

<[email protected]> ha scritto nel messaggio
news:[email protected] oups.com...
    > What cities do you think generally get a bad rap from travellers but
    > you personally found interesting and rewarding?

I would say Bergamo - Italy and particularly Bergamo Alta. It is a
beautiful town. Unfortunately his location close to Milan, Como and other
touristic spots probably induces too many tourists to bypass it despite
Ryanair services its airport.

Keith Anderson wrote:
    > On 24 Mar 2005 15:22:05 -0800, [email protected] wrote:
    > >What cities do you think generally get a bad rap from travellers but
    > >you personally found interesting and rewarding?
    > >
    > Nancy in France has a poor reputation amongst the French, but I was
    > pleasantly surprised. The Place Stanislas is impressive and elegant,
    > and the Old Town has some pleasant narrow streets.
Agreed- a real surprise, not least the Place Stanislas which is one of
the most impressive sights in France. Had one of the best meals of my
life there too.
Why would it have a poor reputation? Aside from being out in the sticks
and thus unknown I can't think why.

Other nominations:
Mechelen, Belgium
Copenhagen
Cordoba, Spain



    > Came back to the UK and told a friend from Alsace that I'd enjoyed
    > visiting Nancy - he still maintains it's a dump!
Nancy is in Lorraine, not Alsace. Probably geographically-inspired
prejudice:-)

Edmund

I cast my vote for Ravenna, Italy. Incomparable mosaics ... excellent
Romagna food ... nice central piazza that is quiet and
picturesque...not far from some fine Adriatic beaches... and a lot of
history.