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Hello Reader,

🧭 Where in the World?

We’ve moved on from Italy and the wonderful town of Padua to start using our Global Pass with Eurail. Before leaving Padua, though, we took a quick tour of the University’s Palazzo Bo and saw the historic Anatomical Theater and the famous podium built for Galileo, who taught there. Little did we know that the University, established in 1222, was founded by students who sought to be free of the Church-run university in Bologna. (Did you know, dear reader, that Galileo was only reinstated to the Church in 1992, after being found to be a heretic in 1633 and sentenced to house arrest for life for his crazy scientific idea that the earth revolved around the sun.)

Unfortunately, our first day of Eurail Pass travel coincided with a wildcat rail strike in Italy. Having our pass in hand, though, meant we could hop on regional trains without standing in ticketing lines. We got from Padua to Trieste, but ended up arriving in Ljubljana, Slovenia, by bus. Oh well, it’s a beautiful town we could happily spend more time in. Calm, friendly, and with food and culture that draws on both its Italian and East European neighbors.
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Today we are in Zagreb, the capital of Croatia. We enjoyed a lovely two-hour train ride through the Slovenian mountains and Sava River valley to get here. Our five days here will be filled with walks around town, museums and markets galore, maybe some rest, some laundry, and a few hours planning our next steps.

🧳 Our Latest Posts

As we said above, we spent a few days in Padua, much of which was spent gaping at the frescoes in the Scrovegni Chapel and all the art of the Basilica of Saint Anthony. You can see a lot of the details and photos in Tom's post about Two Days in Padua.

🗞️ Travel News From Around the Web

• I don't know who exactly these guys are who rate bars. That said, we do love a good bar, and have actually been to a couple of these. Here's a list of the 50 Best Bars in the World. Our favorite that's not on the list is Wynand Fockink in Amsterdam. And, let's be honest, the world really needs a good bar now.
• Ever thought of visiting Greenland? We had a cruise booked that was cancelled during the Covid pandemic. We haven't been able to rebook it yet, but getting to Greenland has just gotten easier with the opening of a new airport. Wtih the new airport comes new direct flights to Nuuk from New York. United Airlines has announced daily seasonal flights starting summer 2025.
• New US airline refund rules are now in effect. If your flight is cancelled or delayed within the US, you're entitled to prompt compensation (if you don't accept the airline's offer of other arrangements.) Read about it here.

💸 This Week's Best Deals in Travel

It’s getting to be that time. Make a list and prepare for the onslaught of Black Friday deals. Here’s one we can all get behind. Up to $800 savings on tours by Go Ahead Tours, now through Black Friday. One size fits all!

If you are looking for something more tangible, check out the Black Diamond Outlet Sale, offering 40-60% off outlet items now through Christmas Day.

Stay tuned for more holiday shopping deals in our upcoming emails!

✈️ Points and Miles News

If you're not making the most of your credit card spend by cashing in on points and miles, you're costing yourself a lot of travel money that you could be spending on great dinners at your destination instead of the airfare to get there. So, if you haven't already got a credit card or two that you like, check out the enhanced offer on this card that's ending next Thursday, November 14.

It's our favorite travel credit card (which unfortunately banking compliance regulations prohibit us from naming here, but it's easy to figure out.) We're using this card primarily on all our travels, and the points we accumulate have recently got us free airfare to Europe, and free hotels in Italy and Croatia. The card is offering 60,000 points and a $300 statement credit for travel purchases within their travel portal, after you spend $4000 during the first three months you have the card. That's a value of up to $1050 for an annual fee of only $95. Read our full review of this card for even more details on how this card delivers great value. This offer is ending November 14, so don't miss it.

📖 What We're Reading

Tom just finished Snow, by the Irish writer John Banville. Banville is a Booker Prize winner for his "serious" fiction, but he also started a series featuring a quirky Irish detective St. John Strafford. The debut book in the series uses the murder of a priest to make serious comment on the Church in Ireland, as well as high and low Catholic and Protestant society. A revealing take on Ireland, rivaling the books of Tana French that we've mentioned here before for both suspense and literary quality.

Kris is mostly reading background info on Zagreb at the moment. She’s missing her book group discussion of Horse, by Geraldine Brooks (there’s lots to discuss in this story …), but has started, Doorman Wanted, by Minneapolis author and friend Glenn Miller.

Note to self: download more books and audio stories before the next train ride. What a way to go!

For our previous book recommendations, you can see this list.

❝Travel Quote of the Week❞

An early morning walk is a blessing for the whole day. – Henry David Thoreau

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Happy travels,

Kris and Tom

​ Tom Bartel and Kristin Henning ​Travel Past 50​ ​ Connect with us: Facebook, Threads, Instagram, ​ Join our Facebook community.

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