The heart of nations

Summary

"We may no longer be officially the centre of England" says a lady in Meriden in the English Midlands. "But we are undoubtedly at the heart of the country." Join us as we ponder on the heart of nations.

hidden europe 20 / Snippet / By hidden europe

Geographical centre points often command a certain fascination. Way back in hidden europe 5 (November 2005) we had an article on quite where is the very centre of Europe, concluding that it possibly lies in western Ukraine or in Lithuania - all depending on which Arctic islands you include in the calculation. On our travels, we have run across quite a number of communities that claim to be the central point of the countries in which they are located. The middle of Switzerland, for example, is marked by a stone on a suitably scenic mountainside called Älggi-Alp in the Canton of Obwalden. Switzerland has it easy - no offshore islands to complicate the calculation.

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Editorial hidden europe 20
Editorial

By hidden europe

Welcome to hidden europe 20. The issue contains articles on the island of Helgoland (Heligoland), England's Pennines, the mountains of Montenegro, South Ossetia, local markets in Hungary Pecs and European charity stamps.

Read on
An island outpost: Helgoland
Feature

By Nicky Gardner

One tiny island, a mere fleck of land in the North Sea! And yet so laden with history. Helgoland (often called Heligoland by English speakers) has been both Danish and British. Nowadays it is surely one of the most extraordinary parts of Germany. We visit Germany's only "Hochseeinsel".

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Montenegro: accursed mountains
Feature

By Rudolf Abraham

The mountainous country where Montenegro abuts onto Albania is one of Europe's true wilderness areas. Guest contributor Rudolf Abraham describes the Prokletije region. The name means "accursed". Read on!

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A Pennine portrait
Feature

By Nicky Gardner

Heptonstall is a place where gritstone ledges and neat green fields play backdrop to the moods of Pennine weather. This is Yorkshire. We visit gritty moodscapes populated by folk whom poet Ted Hughes described as "bleak as Sunday rose-gardens".

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A Caucasian knot: South Ossetia
Feature

By Karlos Zurutuza

In Tamarasheni, the clocks are set to Georgian time. Just down the road, the community of Tskhinval prefers Moscow time. All a matter of borders. But in South Ossetia every frontier is contested. Karlos Zurutuza reports from the quasi-state of South Ossetia.

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Not just face value: European charity stamps
Collectables

By Nicky Gardner

Micro-donations to charity have been a feature of European postage stamps for over a century. Letter-writers have supported athletes, orphans and unemployed intellectuals - as well as clothing naked Swedish soldiers - by buying charity stamps.

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Market forces: the city of Pécs
Perspective

By Amanda Wilson

What is a city that does not respect its markets and its open spaces? Cherishing communal assets does not always rest easily with the search for profit, as Amanda Wilson finds in the south Hungarian city of Pécs.

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Spring, storks and trains: a visit to Brcko
Moments

By Nicky Gardner

Brcko is one of those places that lie at the heart of hidden europe. When we visited this small Bosnian town recently, we were amazed to find that the train to Croatia only runs in warm weather!

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Kaliningrad conundrum
Routes

By Nicky Gardner

The Königsberg problem: start and end at the same place, and walk through the city, crossing all seven bridges once and no more. A mathematical puzzle from the Russian city of Kaliningrad.

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Know your gentilics
Words

By Nicky Gardner

Lesbians don't necessarily come from Lesbos, not everyone from Bohemia is bohemian, and Alsatians are generally dogs. A letter to the editors from a hidden europe reader prompts a few thoughts on the knotty issue of gentilics.

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Expo architecture
Special spaces

By Nicky Gardner

Expo is back in the news with Milan having just been selected to host the 2015 World Fair. At their best, Expos have served as a boost to imaginative urban regeneration. We look at the Expo legacy in various European cities.

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Polar quest: the 1928 Nobile expedition
Hidden histories

By Nicky Gardner

It was eighty years ago this spring that Umberto Nobile embarked on the airship Italia. His destination? The North Pole! Read about an expedition that was to prompt the biggest rescue effort in the history of polar exploration.full article available in pdf format

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A dog's life
Snippet

By hidden europe

Chtenia: Readings from Russia is a new themed literary journal that features good Russian writing, old and new, in translation. If it lives up to the promise of its first issue, which focuses on canine tales from Russia, it will be a huge success.

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The heart of nations
Snippet

By hidden europe

"We may no longer be officially the centre of England" says a lady in Meriden in the English Midlands. "But we are undoubtedly at the heart of the country." Join us as we ponder on the heart of nations.

Read on
Snickelways
Snippet

By hidden europe

What were once back streets of iniquity in the English city of York are now important elements in the cityscape - little lanes and alleys that, for those in the know, provide valuable short cuts.

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Worth a detour
Snippet

By hidden europe

Many classic guide book publishers, going back to nineteenth century, have used star ratings to grade sights. But is Antibes really only "interesting" and not "worth a detour"?

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Preview hidden europe 21
Preview

By hidden europe

a look ahead at hidden europe 21

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hidden europe 20

The heart of nations

Summary

Editorial

Feature

Feature

Feature

Feature

Collectables

Perspective

Moments

Routes

Words

Special spaces

Hidden histories

Snippet

Snippet

Snippet

Snippet

Preview

Rivers of memory: Wrocław

Cultural border zones

From Paris to the Peloponnese