RSS Parrot

Northern Portugal

https://curiositydrive.org/2026/04/05/northern-portugal/

Published: April 5, 2026 15:55

It’s been 19 years since we last visited Portugal—and then only Lisbon, en route to Brazil. On this occasion the camper van would give us much more access to varied landscapes and to traditional Portuguese culture. We began our exploration in the north.…

Northwestern Spain

https://curiositydrive.org/2026/04/05/northwestern-spain/

Published: April 5, 2026 15:54

Leaving the Basque Country we continued westward into the Spanish provinces of Cantabria looking for ancient art, Asturias hoping for mountain vistas and Galicia in search of scenic coastline. Coordinates Cantabria Another day, another art gallery—although…

France into Basque Country

https://curiositydrive.org/2026/04/04/france-into-basque-country/

Published: April 4, 2026 20:20

Despite concerns about rising fuel costs thanks to Trump’s war on Iran, we decided to press on with plans to tour the Iberian Peninsula—while still feasible. This involved a relatively quick transit of France to reach the Basque Country where our tour…

A road warrior in Oz

https://curiositydrive.org/2026/02/14/a-road-warrior-in-oz/

Published: February 14, 2026 09:08

Australia is a land of remote places; most of the country has little to no mobile network coverage. Likewise, many of these remote regions are served by little to no road network. Where there is no paved road, the driving surface may be gravel, dirt or…

North Island down the middle

https://curiositydrive.org/2026/01/24/north-island-down-the-middle/

Published: January 24, 2026 04:11

Not only did we find ourselves back in NZ, but back in a van—albeit for a short tour in North Island this time. Coordinates Auckland Smaller than our live-aboard 2022–24 home Curiosity, the family’s rejuvenated camper is an ex-rental KEA Nomad M700. A…

Worlds apart

https://curiositydrive.org/2026/01/23/worlds-apart/

Published: January 23, 2026 22:00

We had spent the previous three and a half years almost joined at the hip: first 18 months living in a motorhome in NZ, then living in a small apartment in Frankfurt and touring in an even smaller van. All of a sudden B had the opportunity to do some…

Autumnal Hessen and Bayern

https://curiositydrive.org/2025/11/09/autumnal-hessen-and-bayern/

Published: November 9, 2025 09:34

The colours of the German autumn somehow seem more striking in 2025. We explored using a combination of feet, bus, train and small car—while Toru took a rest following our recent journey into eastern Europe. Coordinates Hessen We revisited Frankfurt’s…

Dipping in and out of Czechia

https://curiositydrive.org/2025/10/14/dipping-in-and-out-of-czechia/

Published: October 14, 2025 08:13

Although not the focus of our expedition east (as a direct German neighbour, it’s easy to return to the Czech Republic) we did dip in and out of the country several times as dictated by our route into Poland and back from Slovakia. Coordinates After…

Gorges and castles of Slovakia

https://curiositydrive.org/2025/10/13/gorges-and-castles-of-slovakia/

Published: October 13, 2025 05:57

The High Tatras form part of the border between Poland and Slovakia, and we were keen to see them from the Slovak side, despite the weather turning more autumnal. Aside from delivering fresh alpine air, mountains also create dramatic gorges and vantage…

Salt and snow in southern Poland

https://curiositydrive.org/2025/10/12/salt-and-snow-in-southern-poland/

Published: October 12, 2025 07:42

Our first trip to Poland was aimed at visiting the Wieliczka Salt Mine, a UNESCO World Heritage Site near Kraków. En route we would call at Wrocław, explore some natural attractions and witness the infamous Auschwitz-Birkenau camp before reaching the High…

Hiking through history in eastern Germany

https://curiositydrive.org/2025/10/10/hiking-through-history-in-eastern-germany/

Published: October 10, 2025 15:50

Exploring eastern Germany has been long overdue for us. We’d crossed east from the Bavarian Rhön into Thüringen a couple of times, and visited Berlin for a weekend, but for some reason a “wall” remained long after the Cold War ended and Germany reunified.…

Hier und da in Deutschland

https://curiositydrive.org/2025/08/30/hier-und-da-in-deutschland/

Published: August 30, 2025 12:21

We’ve made a few more local excursions over recent months, mostly to the south and west of Frankfurt, beginning and ending with settlements that were established by the Romans. We learned how a famous Roman emperor—Marcus Aurelius—is influencing politics…

Returning from the Balkans

https://curiositydrive.org/2025/07/01/returning-from-the-balkans/

Published: July 1, 2025 10:24

We set out on a two-month long road trip through most of the Balkan states, making our way along the Adriatic and across Greece to the Aegean Sea. This log chronicles our return transit through Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), and through Slovenia (we didn’t…