A Journey Across Borders: Recent Episodes
Virginia Stuart-Taylor
This is the tale of my 6-month journey across 26 borders in Europe in early 2017, to discover how borders evolve, what they mean and how they impact people’s lives.
Written in summer 2017, while living outside the UK.
In this final episode I bring together all of the learnings from the 8 trips, to form my conclusions on the roles that borders play in their many different guises across Europe.
Written in summer 2017, while living outside the UK. You can find the full text of this episode, along with maps photos and videos, at https://AJourneyAcrossBorders.wordpress.com/conclusions/
In trip no.8 I organise a summer school in the Netherlands on the topic of illicit trade, visiting Rotterdam Port and learning from Interpol staff. I discuss how a transnational response is needed to track down and tackle the illicit traders, and I also look at the cost in time and money to the UK of new trade tariffs and customs checks if there is a hard border with the EU.
Written in summer 2017, while living outside the UK. You can find the full text of this episode, along with maps photos and videos, at https://AJourneyAcrossBorders.wordpress.com/8-trips/trip-no-8-illicit-trade-in-the-netherlands/
To find out more about the Summer School on Ilicit Trade that I helped to organise, head over to https://www.rug.nl/education/summer-winter-schools/summer_schools_2019/illicit-trade/
In trip no.7 I attend a week-long conference in Krakow as part of my Master's. I look at the terrible history of the Holocaust in Krakow and the role of brick walls in the Jewish Quarter and barbed wire fences in nearby Auschwitz. I discuss the concept of Othering and the way that language can influence people's worldviews.
Written in summer 2017, while living outside the UK. You can find the full text of this episode, along with maps photos and videos, at https://AJourneyAcrossBorders.wordpress.com/8-trips/trip-no-7-life-of-an-erasmus-mundus-student-a-week-in-krakow/
For tips on travelling to Krakow, see https://TheWell-TravelledPostcard.com/2015/07/20/postcard-of-the-week-krakow-poland/
To find out about the academic paper on island mentality that I presented at the conference in Krakow, head to https://TheWell-TravelledPostcard.com/portfolio/an-island-drifting-away-into-the-atlantic-understanding-the-role-of-the-sea-in-the-tide-of-british-euroscepticism/
In trip no.6 I travel to the French and Italian Alps and try to summit the highest peak in the EU. From over 4,000m I reflect on how physical borders like mountain ranges and seas (like the English channel) impact the people and communities living near those borders, and the impact of de-bordering and re-bordering when significant infrastructure, like tunnels or walls, are built.
Written in summer 2017, while living outside the UK. You can find the full text of this episode, along with maps photos and videos, at https://AJourneyAcrossBorders.wordpress.com/8-trips/trip-no-6-attempting-to-summit-mont-blanc-the-highest-peak-in-the-eu/
For more information on how to train and prepare for summiting Mont Blanc, head to https://TheWell-TravelledPostcard.com/2017/06/08/one-week-to-mont-blanc-training-and-preparations-for-the-summit/
In trip no.5 I take a road trip from Sweden to the Norwegian fjords. I compare the Nordic Passport Union to the UK-Ireland Common Travel Area, and discover how the hi-tech external EU border between Sweden and Norway works in practice, between two countries that are so close historically, economically and linguistically - much like the UK and Ireland.
Written in summer 2017, while living outside the UK. You can find the full text of this episode, along with maps photos and videos, at https://AJourneyAcrossBorders.wordpress.com/8-trips/trip-no-5-a-scandi-road-trip-to-visit-the-vikings-in-norway/
For a video of the beautiful Norwegian fjords we saw on this trip, head over to my Instagram (@VStuartTaylor): https://www.instagram.com/p/BUt-5sKjsvR/
In trip no.4 I make a pilgrimage of sorts back home to London. I look at the impact of Brexit on inbound tourism to London and at the so-called “Brexodus” of skilled EU workers that have started leaving the UK amidst the uncertainty over their citizenship status in the country.
Written in summer 2017, while living outside the UK. You can find the full text of this episode, along with maps photos and videos, at https://AJourneyAcrossBorders.wordpress.com/8-trips/trip-no-4-pilgrimage-back-home-to-london/
For my list of '80 Things Every True Londoner Has Done', head over to my travel blog at https://TheWell-TravelledPostcard.com/2015/03/20/77-things-every-true-londoner-has-done/
In Trip no.3 I go on a whistle-stop tour of Europe, from Sweden to the Netherlands, to Italy and back to Sweden again, via Germany (all in the space of about 6 days). As I pass through the Schengen area, barely needing to show a passport, I look at the way border officials treat non-EU travellers' papers with suspicion, and discuss the calls to bring back blue passports, and the potential future rules and visas that Britons may need to visit the EU.
Written in summer 2017, while living outside the UK. You can find the full text of this episode, along with maps photos and videos, at https://AJourneyAcrossBorders.wordpress.com/8-trips/trip-no-3-eurotrip-sweden-%E2%86%92-the-netherlands-%E2%86%92-italy-%E2%86%92-sweden-via-germany/
For my guide to visiting Lake Como, head over to my travel blog at https://TheWell-TravelledPostcard.com/2015/12/23/what-to-see-do-and-eat-in-bellagio-at-the-heart-of-lake-como/
In Trip no.2 I move to Sweden for the second semester of my Erasmus Mundus Master's degree. I look at the UK’s participation in Erasmus+ opportunities to study and work abroad, and compare the different immigration processes for EU and non-EU students in my Masters, considering how that could look in future for UK citizens after Brexit.
Written in summer 2017, while living outside the UK. You can find the full text of this episode, along with maps photos and videos, at https://AJourneyAcrossBorders.wordpress.com/8-trips/trip-no-2-an-erasmus-semester-in-sweden/
For more about Erasmus Mundus Master's degrees, head over to my travel blog at https://TheWell-TravelledPostcard.com/2016/10/17/what-is-an-erasmus-mundus-masters-degree/
To read my academic papers, head to https://TheWell-TravelledPostcard.com/the-well-travelled-journal/
In Trip no.1 I go ski racing in Switzerland. I look at the Swiss model of borders, seeing as the country sits outside of the EU, but inside the Schengen Area, and I analyse Switzerland's changing attitude to free movement.
Written in summer 2017, while living outside the UK. You can find the full text of this episode, along with maps photos and videos, at https://AJourneyAcrossBorders.wordpress.com/8-trips/trip-no-1-ski-racing-in-switzerland/
For more about the Inferno ski race itself, head over to my travel blog posts at https://TheWell-TravelledPostcard.com/tag/inferno-ski-race/
Introducing 'A Journey Across Borders', a 10-part podcast about my 6-month journey across 26 borders in Europe in early 2017, to discover how borders evolve, what they mean and how they impact people’s lives.
Written in summer 2017, while living outside the UK. You can find the full text of this episode, along with maps photos and videos, at www.AJourneyAcrossBorders.wordpress.com