Mont Fort Sunrise is one of those ‘accidentally cultured’ travel experiences that my sense of adventure seems to attract! I have to admit, I was totally unaware that Mont Fort existed. But, unable to resist a sunrise photoshoot at 3328 m, I recently found myself heading skyward towards this magnificent destination. Mont Fort Sunrise Mont Fort is a mountain in the Swiss Pennine Alps. It rises high above the famous Verbier ski resort and it takes four cable cars to reach it! Obviously, it offers a fabulous ski run in winter. But, in summer, although it is a great place to hike, viewing the sunrise at this altitude is a […]

The Via Francigena Carol had always wondered what it would be like to be a pilgrim walking the ancient medieval Via Francigena pilgrimage route from Canterbury to Rome.  So, this is a story about how she accidentally became a pilgrim when she decided to visit Romainmôtier Abbey in Switzerland. But, her primary motive for the visit was to see the church which is the oldest Romanesque Church in Switzerland.  And, she is very passionate about Romanesque architecture! The story unfolds one very hot winter’s afternoon when she caught the train from Lausanne to what she thought was Romainmôtier. However, beguiled by a sweet old Swiss lady who she befriended on […]

Sophia Dorothea was the wife of King George I of England who ascended the throne in 1714 with two mistresses!  The cruel man had left his wife behind in Germany, imprisoned for the last 32 years of her life. So, I went in ‘search of’ her in England and Germany to see how history has remembered her. Sophia Dorothea in England My search for Sophia Dorothea began in England where I failed to find any evidence of her existence. However, I did find a rather stern faced terracotta bust of her husband, King George I in the National Portrait Gallery, London. Sophia Dorothea in Bath I had my first encounter […]

Accidentally Cultured is a notoriously bad cook!  His cooking specialty is the ‘removal of flavour’.  But when it comes to eating, he is an expert! I should have taken note of early courting day warnings.  This was the ‘hippy’ era and he sported a goatee beard accompanied by long hair and headband.  One particular day, working in room 308 in the Chemistry School at University of Sydney, he smelt particularly shocking.  At first I suspected the Organic Chemistry experiments on the fifth floor, but towards the end of the day I realised the smell was coming from the goatee. ‘Oh!’, he said, ‘I licked my ice cream plate last night!’ […]

Arriving in Marrakech, AC gasped in amazement at the sensory overload of the ‘exotic bedlam’ of Jemaa-el-Fna Square! ‘Where are we?’ We had just left the Kasbah Tamadot and the sights, sounds and smells of Marrakech were a bit of a shock! Art Place Hotel, Marrakech We were waiting in the car near the Square for porters from the Art Palace Hotel to collect our luggage when our chauffeur was harassed by an angry police officer for parking in a no standing zone.   Consequently, we hastily departed,  walking across the Square to the Art Palace taking care not to step on dancing cobras. Hence, the exotic doors of the […]

“We’re not doing the whole ten corridors are we?” AC was living in terror of yet another tour of the National Gallery in London. This fear was based on what we now call a ‘Rubens Moment’. It refers to that point of visual saturation that occurs when one’s eyes have been forced to look at too many famous paintings in one day. Standing in a room full of Ruben’s paintings, unable to even enjoy ‘Samson and Delilah’, we knew it was time to head for the exit. Perhaps Rubens will forgive us for walking out on ‘Samson and Delilah’. We did squeeze a lot into the day.

Amersfoort is a hidden gem!  The medieval old town abounds with history and culture.  So, here is a glimpse of what the city has to offer! Amersfoort is a flourishing city with beautiful suburbs and a well-preserved medieval old town. And, it all began as a prosperous merchant town which was granted a city charter in 1259. Remarkably, it still has its city walls, canals and ancient dwellings.  In its medieval heyday it was famous not just as a pilgrim destination, but also for its beer brewing! Pilgrimage to Amersfoort Pilgrims flocked to Amersfoort in the hopes that the Virgin Mary would reward them with a miracle. In medieval times […]

About Accidentally Cultured For many years I have travelled extensively with my husband, Paul, who has earned the nick-name, Accidentally Cultured. This is because he never discusses where we are going or why! He just wants to be pointed in the direction of a motorway to get to a nice hotel quickly. As a result, his crazy antics and reactions to the ‘culture’ of foreign destination has well and truly earned him his title. Accidentally Cultured was never intended to be a luxury travel blog.  But for many reasons it is! Firstly, we never budget, but somehow end up in luxury accommodation at very reasonable prices. Secondly, we have indulged in fine […]

Bath in a Flash After the big flight from Sydney, we arrived in London at 7 am, hired a car and headed to Bath. Our visit to Bath was very brief and we left for Beeley around 3 pm. Off to Bealy Despite the pleasure of google maps blue dot on the iPhone I was longing for a paper map. Even more so as the phone’s charge began to plummet towards 5%. AC was nervously twitching in his seat and constantly erupting into various types of rages and fiddling with everything on the dashboard and console. “Where is it?  Where is the f…g thing?  Have you taken my shit again?” […]

“I refuse to eat that Gruyère cheese!’  In other words, Accidentally Cultured (AC for short) will only eat Australian Bega cheese. This was his constant complaint all the way from Le Châble to Gruyères, along with, “I’m going to freeze my balls off!” or “I want my thermal underwear!” I’m not sure which he feared the most, the cheese or the cold. But I had to admit, there was a very nasty chill in the air. And, a very cold wind ruffled the golden autumn leaves. Gruyères Castle The approach to Gruyères Castle is stunning! The medieval, fortified Castle stands high above the surrounding village, glowing golden in the autumn foliage. Nevertheless, […]