cafebabel.com

Why would you learn Hungarian?

('Silvia Alexe',) — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 13:45:00 -0000

I could be daydreaming on the soft sand with a women’s magazine at my feet and a little sunburn on my shoulder. Unfortunately, it’s my Hungarian grammar book in the room I am sharing with two other students. They, too, decided to sacrifice their holiday month of July to improve their Hungarian

Staycation: welcoming 'typical tourist' guiris in Mediterranean Spain

('English language version of cafebabel.com',) — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 10:59:43 -0000

A calm, peaceful town is suddenly heaving with people. The streets are full of walking parasols, hammocks and beach mats, the tourists are practically naked, there are cars everywhere and the summer hit (Shakira, anyone?) sounds day and night. Summer's here - so are the foreigners

Optimistic ideas for a low-cost August

('Franglesa',) — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 10:36:34 -0000

If your work or your wallet are forcing you to stay at home…congratulations! Seriously, congratulations. Let's be positive - you have spared yourself from traffic jams, excess baggage, queues for beach bars and air traffic controllers

German standards: men in speedos vs topless women

('English language version of cafebabel.com',) — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 10:00:00 -0000

Summer might be over, the time when too many items of clothing are bothersome. Boys can jog around without a top, so why can’t women in their bikini tops? One woman rants

Dym and dozhd: useful vocabulary for a smog summer in Moscow

('Natasha Doff',) — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 16:17:11 -0000

Two words have been used more than any others in Moscow this summer. The smoke that has been periodically engulfing Moscow from over 500 wildfires burning across Central Russia for the past few weeks, and the long-awaited rain. Today, the city resembles a scene from a zombie film; it'll be like this until mid-August, forecasters say

Not going on holiday? You're on 'staycation'

('English language version of cafebabel.com',) — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 16:00:00 -0000

It seems an eternity, but the financial crisis is only just celebrating its second birthday. The US has spawned a side effect phenomenon, a neat little neologism called the 'staycation'. The term contradicts the notion of going away on 'vacation'. People can't afford holidays and are 'staying' home. Is it clear enough?

Mediterannean road trip becomes Italian comic

Tue, 27 Apr 2010 08:45:00 -0000

Italian illustrator and writer team Giuliano Cangiano and Gianluca Ferro decided to spend a different kind of summer in a van driving along the western coasts of the Mediterranean. The pictures from 'Europe 2009 A.D' address stereotypes, the Basque omertà and the flames of Marseille

South Italy tempts its tourists back

('Miriam Franchina',) — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 11:00:00 -0000

In recent years the South of Italy has witnessed a decline in its tourist industry. Now, tourists are returning to hidden spots such as the awe-inspiring Castelvenere grotto, said to be the birthplace of Cupid. A guided visit into oblivion

One night stands

('Helen Swain',) — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 12:00:00 -0000

For good or for bad, relationship patterns have changed. It´s more common to enjoy a brief encounter than to tie the knot, and having a one-off romance is no longer the taboo it was in the past. A look at the European language of love

Country life, the good life? Rural Italian holidays

('Mary Maistrello',) — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 10:00:00 -0000

The busy beaches of Ibiza, Polynesia or the Seychelles are no longer the obvious tourist destinations. Times have changed, and travellers are demanding something different from their holidays. What could be better than immerion in nature, with plenty of wine and farm-fresh food to hand?

Europe's political scandals: Alicante-gate, MP scandals and Berlusconi

('Andrew Christie',) — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 12:00:00 -0000

Italy's playboy PM, Britain's MP guzzlers and Germany’s 'Minister Shameless' (according to the Berliner Zeitung) are sharing the heat: the lull in the traditional summer silly season has prompted mass media coverage of affairs and scandals

European theatre tips of the summer

('Helen Swain',) — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 10:56:16 -0000

Sam Mendes subtitled in Greek, Oscar Wilde in the open air in Regent's Park and the British Shakespeare company with Czech director Jiri Menzel in a castle in Prague - the best music, dance and theatre doses in July and August

Calimotxo, Blonder Engel or Advocaat: European cocktails galore

('Sarah Truesdale',) — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 13:00:00 -0000

What would the Coen brothers’ film 'The Big Lebowski' be without its revolting milk and vodka cocktails (White Russians)? Roundup of the zaniest European cocktails, plus a recipe for Poland's 'Mad Dog'

Music: South London's Speech Debelle and Revolver

('Annie Rutherford',) — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 12:07:43 -0000

Two American musicians who play for a better world and are displaced in Scandinavia, the newest female London hip-hop sound, plus a trio of French heartbreakers named after a Beatles track. This month's music picks also feature Peter Broderick and Mark Johnson

Follow the German 'work and travel' slogan summer

('Aatish Pattni',) — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 16:20:15 -0000

The Germans use the term to emphasise an 'alternative kind of trip'. Getting to know the people and country whilst picking strawberries, lying on the beach, going to concerts and getting work experience all at the same time? The summer seems too just short to carry out all our plans. So how else is it possible to combine work and travel?

German nudists off Poland's Baltic beaches!

('Sarah Pybus',) — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 12:00:00 -0000

The nudists have always been there, but until Poland entered into the Schengen agreement on 1 January 2008, Usedom beach, which lies between the German and Polish towns of Ahlbeck and Swinoujscie, was divided by a wire-mesh fence