In the historic region of La Mancha, Spain

 “When life itself seems lunatic, who knows where madness lies? Perhaps to be too practical is madness. To surrender dreams — this may be madness. Too much sanity may be madness — and maddest of all: to see life as it is, and not as it should be!”

― Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, Don Quixote
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(in Spain) The historic region of La Mancha is found in the the modern provinces of Cuenca, Toledo, and Albacete, and most of the Ciudad Real province. La Mancha is an arid yet fertile plateau that stretches from the mountains of Toledo to the western spurs of the hills of Cuenca, and bordered to the south by the Sierra Morena and to the north by the Alcarria region -- and constitutes the southern portion of Castilla-La Mancha. Described by Miguel de Cervantes in his 17th-century novel Don Quixote, visitors to the La Mancha region today still can encounter the 16th-century windmills at which Cervantes’s fictional would-be knight-errant “tilted,” believing them to be gigantic rivals. the landscape is richly patterned, with undulating plains of rich henna-colored earth, neatly striped and stippled with olive groves and grape vines, stretching to a horizon you never seem to reach. In addition to its association with Cervantes, La Mancha is well known for its wines.

In the lovely town of Trogir, on Croatia's Adriatic coast

 "The sun is couched, the sea-fowl gone to rest,

And the wild storm hath somewhere found a nest;
Air slumbers--wave with wave no longer strives,
Only a heaving of the deep survives,
A tell-tale motion! soon will it be laid,
And by the tide alone the water swayed...."
-- William Wordsworth, "By the Sea"
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(on Croatia's Adriatic coast) The lovely town of Trogir is found within medieval walls on a small island, linked by bridges to both the mainland and to the larger Čiovo Island. On summer nights people gravitate to Trogir's wide seaside promenade lined with bars, cafes and yachts, leaving the knotted, mazelike marble streets gleaming under old-fashioned streetlights. The historic town center is a pedestrianized district that is rather like an outdoor museum. Finely-carved facades, elegant churches and palaces, Renaissance gates and medieval streets reflect Dalmatian art and architecture at its best. Once the cultural center of Dalmatia, the Old Town has retained many intact and beautiful buildings from its age of glory between the 13th and 15th centuries. In 1997, its collection of Romanesque and Renaissance buildings earned it World Heritage status. Its beautiful Romanesque churches are complemented by the outstanding Renaissance and Baroque buildings from the Venetian period.

In the valleys of Spessart (Woodpecker Forest), northwest Baveria, Germany

 “And into the forest I go, to lose my mind and find my soul.” –John Muir

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(in northwest Bavaria, Germany) For centuries the red-sandstone studded hills and forested valleys of Spessart (Woodpecker Forest) were the private hunting domains of Germany’s nobility and bishops, and remained largely untouched by the outside world. Today, one benefits from that lack of development by visiting the Spessart, which has become a preferred destination for hikers and horsebackers. The region’s famous Donkey Trail (Eselweg) leads through 111 km (68 miles) of the area’s woodlands, along the path followed by the donkey caravans that transported salt from the medieval salt works at Orb and Fulda to the shipping ports along the River Main. This ridge trail passes through Germany’s largest continuous stretch of forest, shaded by some of the old growth oak trees. The Donkey Trail passes through six stages with places to find provide today's trail trekkers a bit of shelter and food at the end of each day’s trek. The Donkey Trail starts at Schlüchtern‘s railway station. Along the way, it passes by many old cloisters, hillside crucifixes, and chapels. In its later stages, it will take you to the legendary Mespelbrunn moated castle, the setting for the notable 1950s German film, “The Spessart Inn.”

In the hilltop village of Pienza, Tuscany, Italy

 "Every renaissance comes to the world with a cry, the cry of the human spirit to be free." -- Anne Sullivan

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(in Italy's province of Siena, Tuscany, in the historical region of Val d'Orcia) The hilltop village of Pienza in the midst of the magnificent Val d’ Orcia (which extends from the hills south of Siena to Monte Amiata) in central Italy. is widely considered yo be the "Ideal city of the Renaissance." It was the brainchild of the great humanist Enea Silvio Piccolomini and architect Bernardo il Rossellino -- and was meant to exemplify the principles and philosophy of the Italian Renaissance. In 1996, UNESCO declared the town a World Heritage Site (citing the revolutionary vision of urban space) and in 2004 the entire valley, the Val d'Orcia, was included on the list of UNESCO’s World Cultural Landscapes. (Pienza was the birthplace of Aeneas Silvius Piccolomini, who would become Pope Pius II.) Once a sleepy hamlet, lovely Pienza was transformed when, in 1459, Pope Pius II began turning his home village into an ideal Renaissance town. The result is magnificent – the church, papal palace, town hall and accompanying buildings in and around Piazza Pio II were completed in a period of just three years and haven’t been remodeled since.

In the pilgrimage town of Lourdes, in the Occitanie region of France

 “We must never stop dreaming. Dreams provide nourishment for the soul, just as a meal does for the body.” ― Paulo Coelho, The Pilgrimage

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(in the foothills of the Pyrenees, in the Occitanie region of France) The pilgrimage town of Lourdes, straddling both banks of the Gave de Pau River at the foot of the mountains, served as a strategic stronghold in medieval times. During the Hundred Years’ War the French captured it from the English in 1406, after an 18-month siege. The contemporary importance of Lourdes, however, dates from 1858, during which year, from February 11th to July 16th, Bernadette Soubirous, a 14-year-old girl, had many visions of the Virgin Mary in the nearby Massabielle grotto, on the left bank of the stream. The visions were declared authentic by Pope Pius IX in 1862, and veneration of Mary as Our Lady of Lourdes was authorized. The underground spring in the grotto, revealed to Bernadette, was declared to have miraculous qualities, and Lourdes became a major pilgrimage center. The basilica, built above the grotto in 1876, eventually became overcrowded by the increasing number of pilgrims, and in 1958 a large concrete (underground) church was dedicated. Lourdes is visited by millions every (normal) year, and tourism plays a big role in the local economy.

In the twon of Sintra, northwest of Lisbon, Portugal

 "Be thou the rainbow in the storms of life. The evening beam that smiles the clouds away, and tints tomorrow with prophetic ray." -- Lord Byron

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(in Portugal) The town of Sintra is found about 15 miles (24 km) northwest of Lisbon, on the northern slope of the rugged Sintra Mountains. The area possesses a beauty that was celebrated by Lord Byron in his poem, Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage -- and English author Robert Southey referred to it as “the most blessed spot on the whole inhabitable globe.” Sintra was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1995. On one of the mountain peaks is the Pena National Palace, a 19th-century castle, an adaptation of a 16th-century monastery (and an imitation of a medieval fortress) built for Queen Maria II by her young German consort, Ferdinand II. On the grounds of the castle, Ferdinand created the Parque da Pena, a series of gardens and walking paths that incorporated more than 2,000 species of domestic and nonnative plants. Loosely adopting the conventions established by the English garden movement in the 18th century, the park incorporates natural elements throughout, adapting to the area’s rugged terrain (rather than reshaping it). (Palácio Nacional da Pena is considered the greatest expression of 19th-century romanticism in Portugal.)

In the city of Bergen, in Vestland county, Norway

 "... I've looked at life from both sides now

From up and down, and still somehow
It's life's illusions I recall
I really don't know life at all."
-- Joni Mitchell, "Both Sides Now" lyrics
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(Norway's second city, in Vestland county, on the west coast) The colorful Norwegian city of Bergen is also a gateway to majestic fjords. The principal port and business section is on a peninsula projecting into Byfjord, bounded to the north by the inlet and harbor of Vågen (for small ships) and on the south by Pudde Bay (for larger vessels) and the Store Lungegårds Lake. Bryggen Hanseatic Wharf will provide an early sense of the local culture; take a bit of time to snap photos of the Hanseatic commercial buildings (which look like scenery from a movie set). The city's outdoor fish market, a multi-sensory reminder of the city’s role in early fish trade, is also worth checking out. Ferry across a fjord to Lysøen, where the former villa of 19th-century composer Ole Bull will captivate you, and yours', with fairytale charm. During the early Middle Ages, Bergen was an important seaport and a member of the Hanseatic League, as well as Norway's capital -– a heritage that is still reflected in the beautifully preserved wooden buildings of Bryggen, now protected as a UNESCO World Heritage site.