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Intro
States
Photos
Blog
Facts
Overall impressions
This is a picture from the “Old World”, the largely Protestant and ethnically quite homogeneous region stretching from Prague in the southeast to Ireland in the west to Scandinavia in the north – and to some extent Russia in the east. For four hundred years, between 1550/1600 and 1950/2000, countries in this region defined the world as we today know it. Geo-politically, economically, militarily, philosophically, culturally, and in terms of world languages.
All about this region is history. Everything older than 200 years fascinates Americans who come here. The OMGs emit at a constant pulse. This region hardly offers anything but 200+ years of historical artefacts. Asians who come here find consumers able to pay for their products. Africans coming here find nothing but a boot kicking them back home again.
The region’s population is (at least relatively speaking) in decline, it is ageing, the economic importance is becoming negligent, innovations take place elsewhere in the world, the region’s countries have for decades been vassal states under an external superpower. Europe as a whole is splitting apart in infighting, selfishness and an overburdened welfare state.
The countries above are the 24 I have been to. Click to view all posts from each country.
My definition of North and Central Europe encompasses everything north of the Mediterranean Ocean, including parts of Eastern Europe. Sandalsand’s travels in this world region are numerous. Obviously, I have lived here all my life. If I was to attempt a resume of my travels in this region, I would not know where to start or finish, or how.
What follows is a map of the region and Sandalsand’s visited and non-visited countries. Luxembourg is actually the only country I have not been to, out of 25 countries. I have however chosen to include three unvisited countries in the Caucasus: Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan. Historically, they have been categorised as West Asia or even Middle East. In recent years, geographers have started to group the three under the Europe heading as well. I am including them here for the time being. That sums up to four unvisited countries, some of which are on my bucket list.
Map of Northern Europe (including the Asian part of Russia). Sandalsand has been to countries marked with a green colour, not the yellow ones. (Map source: Wikimedia Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported)
Photo galleries
Open the box to view a multitude of picture galleries from my travels in this region.
Click to show or hide
For the best experience, open a picture gallery in a new tab or window. You will find the numerous galleries from Norway on another page. Read the introduction to Norway.
Posts from North, Central and East Europe
Norway entries are on a separate page.
VIDEO – Russia – Lake Baikal
Lake Baikal is no. 754 on UNESCO's World Heritage List. Filmed from the train on the Trans-Siberian Railway. Audio: The Russian national anthem (old...
World Heritage #0754 – Lake Baikal
This huge lake in Siberia, Lake Baikal, is a natural phenomenon, but is also of big cultural importance to the Russians. The UNESCO World Heritage...
VIDEO – Russia – Moscow – Kremlin
"Kremlin and Red Square, Moscow" is no. 545 on UNESCO's World Heritage List. This video is from the magnificent religious and secular buildings and...
More attractions in Moscow
We spent a couple of days to seek out more attractions in Moscow. A cruise on the Moskva River, the Gorky Park, the Kremlin and even more....
World Heritage #1097 – Novodevichy Convent
The Ensemble of the Novodevichy Convent is a convent in the middle of Moscow which doubled as a fortress. The UNESCO World Heritage List includes...
VIDEO – Russia – Moscow – Metro
The Moscow metro is one of the world's most famous, and must certainly be the one with the most beautiful stations. Audio: Alexander Borodin -...
VIDEO – Russia – Moscow – Moskva River
Cruising down the Moscow (Moskva) River on a river boat. A relaxing way to see some of the major sights in the Russian capital. Audio: Peter...
World Heritage #0657 – Sergiev Posad
Sergiev Posad is an important Russian Orthodox pilgrimage site as well as being the residence of the head of this church for centuries. The UNESCO...
VIDEO – Russia – Sergiev Posad
"The Architectural Ensemble of the Trinity Sergius Lavra in Sergiev Posad" is no. 657 on UNESCO's World Heritage List. This video is from a visit to...
Moscow and Sergiev Posad
On the third of a five day visit to Moscow we went on an excursion to Sergiev Posad, a wonderful city in the Golden Ring. We spent the evening back...
World Heritage #0545 – Kremlin
From the gold capped onion domes of the Kremlin and its high walls, to the large Red Square and the buildings on it, this heritage site is...
VIDEO – Russia – Moscow – Red Square
"Kremlin and Red Square, Moscow" is no. 545 on UNESCO's World Heritage List. This video is from the Red Square, one of the world's most famous...
If countries were people, England and France would be old men. Italy would be dead. Compared with them, America is in its 20s. (will.i.am)
A fact sheet
This is Wikipedia’s introduction to Europe as a whole.
Map and numbers
- Area: 10,180,000 km2
- Population: 741,447,158 (2016)
- Population density: 72.9/km2
- Nominal GDP: $20.2 trillion (2017)
- PPP GDP: $26.7 trillion (2017)
- Per capita GDP: $27,330 (2017)
- HDI: 0.845
- Demonym: European
- Countries: 50 sovereign states, one observer, 6 with limited recognition
- Dependencies: 6 dependencies
Geography
Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west and the Mediterranean Sea to the south. It comprises the westernmost part of Eurasia.
Since around 1850, Europe is most commonly considered as separated from Asia by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas and the waterways of the Turkish Straits. Though the term “continent” implies physical geography, the land border is somewhat arbitrary and has moved since its first conception in classical antiquity. The division of Eurasia into two continents reflects East-West cultural, linguistic and ethnic differences, some of which vary on a spectrum rather than with a sharp dividing line. The border does not follow political boundaries, with Turkey and Russia being transcontinental countries.
Europe covers about 10,180,000 square kilometres, or 2% of the Earth’s surface (6.8% of land area). Politically, Europe is divided into about fifty sovereign states of which the Russian Federation is the largest and most populous, spanning 39% of the continent and comprising 15% of its population. Europe had a total population of about 741 million (about 11% of the world population) as of 2016. The European climate is largely affected by warm Atlantic currents that temper winters and summers on much of the continent, even at latitudes along which the climate in Asia and North America is severe. Further from the sea, seasonal differences are more noticeable than close to the coast.
History
Europe, in particular ancient Greece, was the birthplace of Western civilization. The fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 AD and the subsequent Migration Period marked the end of ancient history and the beginning of the Middle Ages. Renaissance humanism, exploration, art and science led to the modern era. From the Age of Discovery onwards, Europe played a predominant role in global affairs. Between the 16th and 20th centuries, European powers controlled at various times the Americas, almost all of Africa and Oceania and the majority of Asia.
The Age of Enlightenment, the subsequent French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars shaped the continent culturally, politically and economically from the end of the 17th century till the first half of the 19th century. The Industrial Revolution, which began in Great Britain at the end of the 18th century, gave rise to radical economic, cultural and social change in Western Europe and eventually the wider world.
Both world wars took place for the most part in Europe, contributing to a decline in Western European dominance in world affairs by the mid-20th century as the Soviet Union and the United States took prominence. During the Cold War, Europe was divided along the Iron Curtain between NATO in the West and the Warsaw Pact in the East, until the revolutions of 1989 and fall of the Berlin Wall.
Source
Wikipedia on a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Date: 2018-06-22