hidden europe 42

Join us as we visit the Danish island of Ærø, follow the crowd at Rijeka’s carnival, travel down the Mani peninsula in Greece and discover a few surprises in the German town of Weimar.

We also take the road from Ermelo to Amsterdam to discover New Scotland, take the slow train through the hills of Bohemia, reflect on the European Union’s Eastern Partnerships initiative and delve into the history of the Northern Sea Route.

Picture above: Stranded wreck at Yíthion in Greece (photo © Duncan JD Smith).

Summary

Join us as we visit the Danish island of Ærø, follow the crowd at Rijeka’s carnival, travel down the Mani peninsula in Greece and discover a few surprises in the German town of Weimar.

We also take the road from Ermelo to Amsterdam to discover New Scotland, take the slow train through the hills of Bohemia, reflect on the European Union’s Eastern Partnerships initiative and delve into the history of the Northern Sea Route.

Editorial hidden europe 42

Welcome to hidden europe 42. More than half a century after his death, Robert Schuman still makes good reading. His work in the early 1950s to create “a gathering of European nations” was rooted in ideals for a Europe that wanted to look to the future rather than the past. The ideals which Schuman valued were freedom, equality, solidarity and peace.

Double act: the Danish island of Ærø

The Danish island of Ærø is no more than a fleck in the Baltic. Yet this beautiful island is a good place to understand Danish history. If you are ever in any doubt as to how much the sea has inflected the Danish experience, make time for Marstal, the largest community on the island of Ærø. Then head on over to Ærøskøbing, the island capital, to appreciate the comforts of small town life.

Bright banquets in the Elysian Vale: musings on Weimar

Can a town have too much history? That certainly seems the case with the small city of Weimar in the German State of Thuringia. The town packs a few surprises and there is even a little counterculture to offset Schiller and Goethe. We unpack the details that you don't find in the tourist brochures in this special feature on a town that is still very much 'east' Germany - and all the better for that.

Exploring New Scotland

In the eastern highveld, where South Africa nudges up to Swaziland, place names on maps reveal the predictable mix of isiZulu and Afrikaans influences. But there is another layer to the toponyms of the region, one that reveals a legacy of Scottish settlement in the region. We unpack the history of New Scotland which, with its capital Roburnia (named after Robert Burns), was founded 150 years ago this year.

Choreographing opinion

Did Prince Grigor Potemkin really try to fool Catherine the Great into thinking that life in Russia's Black Sea region was rosier than it really was? We think the idea of Potemkin villages is probably a myth, and that Prince Potemkin was guilty of doing no more than what PR agencies do every day - nudging opinion towards a favourable interpretion of reality. It's a fact of modern life, as common in Stockholm and Strasbourg as it is in Sochi.

Tales from the A39

Forget the Maserati centenary celebrations this year. 2014 marks the centenary of the Mendip Motor. Chewton Mendip was never destined to become a Detroit. But one hundred years ago this month this small Somerset village saw the launch of the Mendip Motor. We travel down the A39 to uncover this story of car production in the Mendip Hills of England.

A question of numbers

'Grey gold' is the term used by Ærø councillor Carl Heide to describe the talented and still-very-active migrants whom he feels can help sustain community life on the Danish island of Ærø. For an island where deaths greatly outnumber births, and where young adults often move away, the challenge of maintaining a viable community is uppermost on the local agenda.

Rail timetable reborn

The renaissance of the European Rail Timetable (ERT) is good news for rail travellers across the continent. The decision last year by Thomas Cook to scrap the title was a bitter blow. But, thanks to a new company set up by the team that compiled the timetable in Thomas Cook days, the ERT is back.

The idea of ‘good’ borders

The Curzon Line, which for so long marked the approximate western border of the Soviet Union is named after Lord Curzon. His Lordship has strong ideas on borders, seeing them very much as zones of demarcation. But ideas have changed since Curzon's day. Across much of Europe, they have become invitations for communities on either side to collaborate.