Through Ružomberok, Slovakia : Sicily to Ukraine by camper van part 80
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Here I drive through the northern Slovakian town of Ružomberok
which is located in the Liptov Basin of the Sub-Tatra Basin. It is surrounded by the mountain ranges of Chočské vrchy, Greater Fatra and Low Tatras. Rivers flowing through the town are Váh, from east to west, Revúca and Likavka.
The town is located around 65 km from Žilina, 190 km from Košice and 260 km from Bratislava (by road).
From the second half of the 10th century until 1918, it was part of the Kingdom of Hungary. The first written mention about settlement was in 1233 as terra Reuche. The town was established by Germans, who named it Rosenberg. It got its town rights in 1318. In 1340, Hungarian King Charles Robert confirmed its town rights and extended more. However, its growth was interrupted as it was placed under Likavka rule.
In the 19th century, it was one of the centres of Slovak national movement. It slowly became one of the industrial and financial centres of the Kingdom of Hungary, particularly after the Kassa Oderberg Railway was completed in 1871, when many new factories emerged including paper and pulpwood works, brick works (1871) and the textile industry.
After the break-up of Austria--Hungary in 1918, Ružomberok became a part of Czechoslovakia.
According to the 2001 census, the town had 30,417 inhabitants. 96.64% of inhabitants were Slovaks, 0.95% Roma and 0.87% Czech. The religious make-up was 75.47% Roman Catholics, 14.65% people with no religious affiliation, and 5.46% Lutherans.
Ruzomberok is the home of paper and packaging manufacturer Mondi SCP.
The centre of the town is located at the Andrej Hlinka Square (Námestie Andreja Hlinku). Among the sights in or around the Square are the Roman Catholic Church of St. Andrew, first mentioned in 1318 and originally built as a Gothic, but now is in a Renaissance-Baroque style; town hall, built in 1895 in the neo-Baroque style and the church and monastery of the Holy Cross (built 1806 and 1730 respectively).
Cultural institutions in the towns include the Liptov Museum, established in 1912 which also has exhibitions outside the town. These include the Likava Castle, which is just outside the town in the Likavka village; and the Museum of the Liptov Village in Pribylina. The Ľudovít Fulla Gallery is a branch of the Slovak National Gallery and is dedicated to Fulla's works of art. The town also has the only scout museum in Slovakia.
Other sights within the town include the Evangelic church from 1923--1926, a historic building of the railway station from 1871, now protected as a national historic monument; Calvary above the town in the Classicist style, built in 1858; synagogue from 1880; and the church in Černová, where the tragedy in 1907 happened.
Attractions in the surroundings include the Čebrať mountain (1,054 m), Vlkolínec village, inscribed in 1993 to the UNESCO World Heritage Site list, and the skiing area of Malinô Brdo (also called Malinô Brdo).
Chyżne to Spytkowice : Sicily to Ukraine by camper van part 83
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On 9 June 2013 I started off in Hungary and drove through Slovakia. In terms of kilometres this was not a particularly long journey and certainly could have been done in a couple of hours. However I was following the minor roads as can be seen in my films, I stopped at various places and I saw a great deal. By the time I crossed the Polish border at Chyżne I was ready to stop for the night. As with all my camper van films, I attempt to show where one can park. I mention Biała where I parked for a couple of hours on both the outward and return journeys when I went to Hungary in May 2012.
I had slept near Chyżne once before, in 1995, but this time I chose a different location.
Chyżne is a very small town but it is one of the most signposted places in Poland as it is on the major E77 north south route. From there I pass Jasiowska Puściżna, Kielca, Suwadowskie and Jabłonka. Jabłonka is the first large village after passing the Slovakian border with a population of 4,000 people.
I pass through Orawka and Podwilk before getting to Spykowice, another village of around 4,000 people, which is strewn out over a large distance. Here there is a large parking area which is perfect for me to spent the night!
North of Naples to Mondragone : Sicily to Ukraine by camper van part 22
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This is the road around Naples - to the north of the city. Some travellers take the coastal route through the centre of the city but I took the one my Tomtom suggested. Gone are the mountains which had accompanied me from when I left Scily, around here it is flat. The roads are also rather bad quality. However I get to the sea and am able to follow it north.
You can hear the Tomtom satellite navigation device in the camper version which is extremely good in my opinion. On the motorway it is not particularly useful but when you come off and try to take the smaller roads it is absolutely essential. It is a wonderful tool in my opinion.
As well as the scenery, there is my comments on using a camper van in Italy and some of the places you can visit.
This is part of a very long journey in May and June 2013 from Brucoli in Sicily to Bełżec on the Polish - Ukrainian border. From there I travelled to the UK - so the journey was much longer but I did not film the part from eastern Poland to Norwich (UK).
Motorway around Lauria : Sicily to Ukraine by camper van part 18
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On my journey through the Pollino Mountains in southern Italy, I stop to buy fuel and food at the Conad hypermarket in Lauria. This is the cheapest fuel I know of in Italy, although of course there may be cheaper places. I am also quite impressed by the service in the Conad store in Lauria and the suggestions I get from the staff on local foods.
Lauria is found at the northern end of the Pollino Mountains in the Italian province of Basilicata. You see very little of Lauria in this film and maybe I should have stopped there - I certainly will do next time. It is a walled city that is over 1,000 years old. It's castle was built by the Saracens. In the 12th century Lauria was the seat of a Norman fief, which was held by Gibel and then by his son Richard of Lauria, who died in the battle of Benevento on 1266. In 1806 the city was destroyed and the population massacred by Napoleonic troops under general André Masséna, following the way in which the Kingdom of Naples had defied the French although after the Battle of Austerlitz and the defeat of the Austrians and Russians, Naples was unable to defend itself. The battle of Campotenese was fought to the south of Lauria in the Pollino Mountains.
Even though it is the beginning of June we can see snow at moments - snow had fallen on 2 June in higher areas although you can see in other films how nice the weather was.
Lauria has wonderful views of the Pollino mountains. I particularly like this range of mountains, I comment a couple of times that I find the views and drive even better than those in the Alps! This is the border of Calabria and Basilicata in southern Italy and in 1992 it was included in the Pollino National Park which I believe is the largest national park in Europe (I may be wrong about that). The range and park is named after Monte Pollino 2,248 m but the highest point is Serra Dolcedorme at 2,267 m which overlooks the plain of Sibari. Despite the height of these mountains, have a look at a map and see how close it is to the Tyrrhenian and Ionian Seas. The Pollino is home to a large number of interesting species including wolves and I very much hope that I will get the chance to see more of it!
This is part of a very long journey in May and June 2013 from Brucoli in Sicily to Bełżec on the Polish - Ukrainian border. From there I travelled to the UK - so the journey was much longer but I did not film the part from eastern Poland to Norwich (UK).