Welcome to “the old continent”!
With its imposing buildings, cities full of history, traditions that infuse a little bit of all the cultures that have come and gone… We want to find out the differences between countries that are similar on the surface but have a lot of personality in the little details.
Click on the name of the country you want to explore with us or browse all the Europe related travel stories below.
Denmark. It’s not only the happiest country on earth, but it’s home to the world’s best restaurant and lots of fairytale cottages along the 7,000km of coastline. Although it is rather expensive if you compare it to Southeast Asia, the unique history, fabulous food and amazing nature certainly makes up for it. The fact … more »
Today, 10th of June, is PORTUGAL DAY. No, I haven’t declared it myself for the sake of this travel blog. It is an actual official holiday in Portugal, when both citizens in the country and those abroad (like yours truly!) remember everything that is awesome about our country. As I know some of … more »
It’s mid-season and the cold breeze still manages to chill us as we walk around Cardiff. Once known as an industrial city, the capital of Wales is now charming and easy to get around. People smile, take their time to make small chit-chat with curious visitors such ourselves – the … more »
Read part 1: 10 Traditional Dishes a Portuguese Grandma Would Feed You! After the success of 10 Traditional Dishes a Portuguese Grandma Would Feed You, I thought it’d be a good idea to dig in a little deeper on traditional Portuguese food. After all, we’re always hungry at Backpack … more »
In a city with so many historical trams, one wonders why Tram 28 (locally known as eléctrico 28) is so famous in the Portuguese capital. It’s not about the tram in itself (they all look pretty much alike) – it’s all about the voyage that it invites you on… Taking … more »
Alheira is a typical Portuguese sausage. Well, it’s more than a sausage. Contrary to most regular sausages, it isn’t usually made of pork but, instead, of a combination of meats. Most alheiras involve chicken, rabbit, duck and sometimes quail, rolled into shape with bread. Typical dishes in each country are … more »
When we hear the words frat house, many of us automatically picture something that looks like this… … with people in there who behave along these lines: Well, in Portugal, things roll a bit differently. Coimbra is the most college student oriented city in our country. The University … more »
Some places do not become sought-after travel destinations because of their list of landmarks one “must see” or popular “things to do”. Instead, they stand out because of their homely and down-to-earth atmosphere, for the way its neighborhoods look, how daily life flows in them and how it all becomes … more »
With the premise “food is a cultural expression”, André and the team behind Taste Porto Food Tours organize one of the best intros to food and beverage you are likely to come across in the North of Portugal. As someone from this part of Portugal myself, I was curious as … more »
In a previous post, I had mentioned how it was pretty hard to get a schengen visa to travel to Portugal in 2011. The issues were compounded by the fact that I had recently quit my job in Dubai to travel the world and as such, an un-employed [self employed … more »