Source: Edition: Country: Date: Page: Area: Circulation: Ad data: Phone:
The Daily Telegraph {Travel}
Keyword:
Den Bosch
UK Saturday 28, May 2016 21 905 sq. cm ABC 498474 Daily page rate £46,000.00, scc rate £214.00 020 7931 2000
The ultimate European road trip A month ahead of the EU referendum, Jonathan Thompson embarks on a 21st-century take on the Grand Tour
H
istorically, a “Grand Tour” of Europe was a rite of passage for young Englishmen: a pilgrimage across the continent, expanding their cultural and social horizons over months, or even years. My goal this summer – accompanied by a photographer and videographer – is a 21st-century spin on that concept, confined to one calendar month: a “mini” Grand Tour. We’re aiming to take in all the key stopping points of a traditional tour – from Calais to Vienna to Rome – but also to unearth some hidden gems such as Wallonia, Transylvania and Moravia to the backstreets of Europe’s liveliest second cities, like Aarhus, Turku and Brno. Unlike our forebears, we’re not restricted to horse and carriage as our primary means of propulsion but, to
even things up, we’re making it more difficult for ourselves. Blessed with tarmac roads and GPS, we’re aiming to visit every country of the European Union. There are 28, from the UK to Cyprus, and to make the route function within the confines
of a month (or, rather, Europe’s car ferry schedules) we’ll also need to cross two others: Turkey and Albania. So, there’s a neat target for our millennial road trip: 30 countries in just over a month – and back in Britain for the long-awaited referendum on June 23. Finally, to complete this latter-day Grand Tour, there was only one car we could really go for: a racing red Mini Clubman.
Days 1-5: UK to Sweden “Hej!” chirrups the voice at the other end of the line. “You will soon be connected to a random Swede.” A click, a pause and then there he is – our very own unpremeditated local. In this case it’s “Lars”, primed to answer any question we might have on his homeland. Sweden is the first country to introduce a hotline that plugs you into the nation itself. It began last month and is already receiving 5,000 callers a day. “We’ve had calls from 185 different countries already,” says Lars. “There are only 11 nations who haven’t called Sweden for a chat.”
Reproduced by Gorkana under licence from the NLA (newspapers), CLA (magazines), FT (Financial Times/ft.com) or other copyright owner. No further copying (including printing of digital cuttings), digital reproduction/forwarding of the cutting is permitted except under licence from the copyright owner. All FT content is copyright The Financial Times Ltd.
Article Page 1 of 4
358397394 - GARGRE - A24529-1 - 113165981