History

 9-day, 8-night private luxury train trip, May 4-12, 2015. Highlights: Depart Venice, ITALY/tours of Ljubljana, SLOVENIA, and Zagreb, CROATIA/in SERBIA, Tito’s Memorial/in BULGARIA, Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, fourth-century Thracian tomb/in ROMANIA, 14th-century Bran Castle/in Budapest, HUNGARY, Royal Palace, St. Matthias Church. Land, $9,795 per person, double occupancy (ppdo) or $15,295 single, Heritage Class, or $15,395 ppdo or $23,995 single, Deluxe Class. Society of International Railway Travelers (Louisville, KY; 800/478-4881, www.irtsociety.com)

Visitors to Barcelona who confine their sightseeing to the Gaudí architecture, Las Ramblas pedestrian mall, the Gothic Quarter and the inviting beach miss one of the city’s most enticing attractions.

El Poble Espanyol, or The Spanish Village, (Avda. Francesc Ferrer i Guardia, 13, 08038 Barcelona, Spain; phone +34 93 508 63 00, www.poble-espanyol.com/en), is an open-air museum that combines an introduction to that country’s architectural treasures and various cultures with an enjoyable shopping and dining experience.

 24 days, 23 nights; departures May-Oct. 2015. Highlights: In ENGLAND, Tower of London, Windsor Castle, Stonehenge, Cornwall/in SCOTLAND, Edinburgh Castle, Oban Distillery/in IRELAND, Blarney Stone, Book of Kells/in WALES, Conwy Castle, Snowdonia National Park. Land, $5,876-$6,274 per person, double occupancy (ppdo), based on dates. Single supp., $1,898. CIE Tours International (Morristown, NJ; 800/243-8687, www.cietours.com).

In Warwickshire, England, the Earl of Leicester’s chambers on the grounds of Kenilworth Castle opened to the public. In the late 1500s, the Earl John Dudley began expanding and renovating the castle from an extant medieval castle. Queen Elizabeth, who gave the castle to the Earl, visited on four occasions.

Every year in May, Holland celebrates two special days: Day of Remembrance on May 4 and Day of Liberation on May 5.

My husband, Al, and I were in Holland on both of those days in 2005. On the Day of Remembrance, we saw how they decorated military cemeteries with flowers and observed two minutes of silence at 8 p.m. (This was observed throughout Holland, even at traffic stops.)

I traveled to the Dutch Island of Texel (pronounced “Tessel”) in September 2012 to do research for a book I was writing. 

Texel is the site of an unusual battle in which troops fighting under Hitler turned on one another and continued a vicious battle, even after Germany’s unconditional surrender ended World War II in Europe.

Jack & Yvonne Prevo; McKinney, Texas

On May 3, 2014, for the fifth time, I returned to Bolzano, Italy, for a week at the Parkhotel Laurin (Via Laurin Strasse 4, 39100 Bolzano/Bozen; phone +39 0471 311 000, www.laurin.it), what I consider a palace with an included you-never-want-to-miss breakfast (March ’12, pg. 47).

Almost all of the historic sites in Scotland are owned by two organizations: Historic Scotland (Longmore House, Salisbury Place, Edinburgh, EH9 1SH, Scotland; phone + 44 [0] 131 668 8600, www.historic-scotland.gov.uk)… and The National Trust for Scotland (Hermiston Quay, 5 Cultins Rd., Edinburgh, EH11 4DF, Scotland; phone, from US & Canada, 866/211-7573, www.nt

One of the largest Norman castles still surviving now serves as a dormitory for students attending University College (Durham Castle, Palace Green, Durham, DH1 3RW, U.K.; phone 0191 334 3800, fax 0191 334 3801, www.dur.ac.uk/university.college).

Guided tours of the castle are offered each afternoon from Easter to Sept. 30 and on Monday, Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday for all other dates. Tours may be canceled for school events; check with the castle porter (phone 0191 334 3800) before arriving. £5 ($9) adult or £3.50 ($6.50) senior.