Traveling can bring you almost no or as much as you can possibly imagine. Everything depends on how open the mind and heart are and exactly how adventurous your spirit.

After selling our house and most of its contents, we left for a two-year adventure traveling and exploring some of the many great places for this wonderful planet, a world full of history, stunning scenery, adventures and different, friendly and generous people. Our mode of travel varied with regards to the places we were exploring. We traveled by car as part of a 6-month journey in Europe.

For the Traveler’s Journal presentation, we give attention to four beautiful and diverse countries: the Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovenia and Croatia.

The Czech Republic has many great cities and towns but the two we enjoyed essentially the most were Prague and Cesky Krumlov. The thing that separates Prague (the Paris of the East) from most other European cities is that it survived for the most part undamaged from The second world war.

It seems every street you walk has even more beautiful old buildings than the previous one. The Czechs take great pride to maintain this beauty. This city, packed with cafes, endless boutique shopping and several other things, is a must.

Cesky Krumlov is a town in the south of the country surrounded by a good looking flowing river. Its great charm and friendly people, along with its picture postcard streets from another time, caused it to be a favorite.

Next stop: Budapest, Hungary. Originally these separate cities of Buda, Pest and Obuda were divided with the river Danube. The three became Budapest in 1873. Although Hungary was essentially the most difficult country in Europe for people to travel because of the language, the friendly people sought out of their way to help along with the language never became a problem. Once again, if beautiful buildings packed with history, magnificent spas once utilised by only the wealthy of Europe and a great city for exploring when walking is for you, we recommend adding Budapest to your Bucket List. We walked for 5 days and could have spent another five easily.

Our period in Slovenia and Croatia came by accident because part of our travel plans included lacking a set itinerary. We wanted the flexibility to stay or leave for the way we liked places.

After about fourteen days in Austria, the weather turned bad along with the forecast showed more of the same, and we all decided to cut our time there short. We visited an Internet cafe to find a place with better weather for one more three weeks. Croatia it was!

Our main focus was Croatia, however the great thing about travel is not only the destination however the journey as well. As we entered Slovenia we knew we must stay a few days and explore the stunning scenery. Bled, each retreat for many parts of Europe because of its beauty and spas, was a spectacular setting. Once again there were found another place we’d come back to. Croatia declared independence in 1991 and contains been growing and upgrading since.

We traveled through Split and of the many islands to visit, Hvar and Korcula looked good to us. There was great weather, beautiful beaches, small-town island charm and incredibly friendly people. The ferries between islands were great; the cost of everything still was very affordable compared to other areas in the Adriatic and Mediterranean. Finding comfort these islands is high on our list.

From these relaxing tranquil islands we embark to the walled city of Dubrovnik. What a history this great city has! Walking around, seeing the harm inflicted just a few years ago, was sad and yet amazing.

The city wall has protected Dubrovnik as well as people since the ninth century. While weapons have changed from old siege weapons for the latest of bombs, mortars and missiles, the wall along with the city endure. It’s incredible to think about. Walking around the city both below and so on the wall is forever etched in our memories, writes tagza.