Sweets and Sandwich Stand - Strasbourg, France © www.uncorneredmarket.com
Toulouse, also known as “The Pink City” due to its unique red brick architecture, offers a lively university atmosphere, great cafes and bookstores, monasteries, the mysterious history of the Cathar heretics, and access to southern French fare such as cassoulet, a white bean casserole made with duck, goose, and pork.
The Swiss are said to flinch when Slovenia is described as the “Switzerland of the Balkans”. But the country makes a strong case for the comparison with its decidedly alpine feel and virtually unscathed emergence from the former Yugoslavia. Besides being virtually impossible to prounounce on first glance, Ljubljana offers a youthful college town culture with its galleries, museums, students, and young artists. It serves as an ideal jumping-off point for Slovenia’s other underrated tourist sites.
