Making life a holiday with interesting vacation and adventure ideas.

Mike Robertson from Wareham, on England's south coast, has dramatically climbed the Eiffel Tower in Paris to protest at the Burma operations of oil giant Total. With 18 years of climbing experience behind him, he drew gasps from onlookers as he made the rope-free assault on the famous French landmark.

Mike wanted to draw attention to human rights violations in Burma, which he learned of while planning a climbing trip there. Read more in the report by Juliette Astrup in 'This is Dorset'.

Labels: Burma, climbing, Eiffel Tower, France, Mike Robertson, Paris, protest

If you're in London, fancy walking or cycling to Paris? Or, of course, if your in France making the trip to England? It is proposed to build a cycle route linking Sussex to Paris in time for the 2012 Olympics.

Miles Godfrey, writing in The Argus, reports that Sussex has signed up to an agreement with the French authorities to create the 'Avenue Verte', which will enable cyclists to travel on one unbroken route from London to Paris, crossing the channel via the ferry at Newhaven.

Not only that, the route will also be available for use by walkers and horse riders, and it is expected that, with few exceptions, the 'St Paul's Cathedral to Notre Dame' route will be off-road.

Labels: cycle, England, France, London, National Cycle Network, Paris, route, Sussex

The new high-speed rail link between France and Germany opened today. It cuts travel time between Paris and the German city of Stuttgart by a third to just under four hours. Eventually, it is planned to extend the service to eastern European cities such as Budapest and Bratislava.

One of travelling's most atmospheric memories, is to stand on the footbridge linking platforms at a great European rail station like the Hauptbahnhof Munich and read the destination signs for trains heading to the far corners of the continent. Trains seem much more tangible and engaging than planes.

Labels: France, Germany, Paris, rail, Stuttgart