History shows up in small, ordinary ways. It lives in the worn stones of village squares, in the paint on old church walls, and in songs a grandmother hums while she cooks. You pass centuries on the way to buy bread, and every custom gets explained over a second cup of something strong.
The climate is mostly continental, with cold snowy winters, hot summers and milder weather on the coast and in the south, so spring and autumn suit long walks between towns. A Local Friend opens a door you would not have knocked on, perhaps into a family courtyard where a recipe arrives with its story.