Peter Sommer Travels Blog
Welcome to our blog!
Since 2011, this is where we provide extra insight and information about our expert-led cultural tours and cruises. Our blog posts complement what is available on our main website and in our brochures – they offer examples of the fascinating stories and ideas, the lovely flavours and sights, the extraordinary experiences that we share with our guests on our tours.
Our posts cover a wide variety of topics and are in various styles: articles about archaeology and history brought to you by our tour experts, tour diaries, news from excavations and museums, recipes, reading suggestions, updates on our new itineraries and much more – it’s all here for you to discover and enjoy.
After browsing some of our posts, why not take a look at our range of expert-led archaeological tours or gulet cruises, or get in touch so we can help create a wonderful private tour just for you.
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Glendalough: a beautiful monastic centre in Ireland Our first visit of the day on the second day of our Exploring Ireland tours was to Glendalough, one of the most beautiful places in the vicinity of Dublin city. ... Read More
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Ireland Diary 2019 - the Liffey in Dublin “Exploring Ireland” is Peter Sommer Travels’ first Irish itinerary, running only for the second time in 2019. We followed those precedents, not describing every day in detail (just check our ... Read More
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Message on a Column: rewriting history at Mystras “May he have the curses of the 318 God-bearing Fathers of Nicaea and also the curse of me, the sinner. [In] the year 1312." These are the final four lines ... Read More
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KorÄŤula Town in Croatia - Dalmatia's other Pearl For three years now, Peter Sommer Travels' guests on our Croatian cruises have been treated to staying at KorÄŤula Town. The town, capital of the island of the same name, ... Read More
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A Travel Postcard from Wales: some key places to visit This article was first published in 'The American'. In Wales, you have to start with mountains and hills. There’s probably an ordinance written somewhere, and, to be fair, it makes ... Read More
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The Palace of the Roman Emperor Diocletian in Split, Croatia Split! The second biggest city in Croatia, a hub of activity during the summer travel season, a place that is fun and friendly, a good location for fine dining, and ... Read More
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Swimming from a gulet in the Mediterranean Swimming is good for you - we all know that. It is an easy and usually a very pleasant way to exercise, to use all of your limbs and nearly ... Read More
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Greece's Oldest War Memorial on the Acropolis In this post, I want to show you a very unusual monument, seen but not noticed by most visitors to Athens, a monument that, if you know how to 'read' it, ... Read More
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Ancient ships on a krater from Thera: Sailing the wine-dark sea What do you see? It's a trick question, as you see an image, but also part of an object. Let's stay with the image for now. Yes, it's a ship, ... Read More
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Ancient grave stones and a Big Story in Canterbury And you may find it less than impressive. Direct your attention, if you will, not to the wall, but to the grey plaque. Yes, that’s it. You may be thinking ... Read More
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Saint Manchan's Shrine in Ireland There's a lot to look at here! A strange and complex object made of metal and wood, bearing odd ornaments and weird figures, executed with much intricate detail. The artefact ... Read More
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Rediscovering the island of Nisyros in the Greek Dodecanese Last month, I rediscovered Nisyros and it was wonderful. It is odd that I would write I “rediscovered” the place, as there are few islands I have set foot upon ... Read More
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A Roman glass bowl in Zadar, Croatia What are we looking at? A glass bowl, found in a Roman-era grave near Zadar on Croatia's Dalmatian Coast. Zadar is a very beautiful place and a very interesting one ... Read More
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The town of Mandraki on the island of Nisyros in the Greek Dodecanese After yesterday's exploration of the ancient fortification and volcano on Nisyros, we spent the entire morning in the island's main town (or largest village), Mandraki. There, we saw the Monastery ... Read More
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The volcanic crater of Stefanos on Nisyros in Greece We began our exploration of Nisyros, during our gulet voyage, by visiting Palaiokastro, one of the finest Ancient Greek fortifications to survive (and I need to write a separate post ... Read More
