I have been fortunate to be able to travel repeatedly and extensively since 1969 to most parts of every single nation of what was called Western Europe and to a few nations of Eastern Europe. Also, for eight years in the 1970s my home was in London, alternating occasionally with long sojourns in Amsterdam and Paris in between before I moved on to Los Angeles and then to Portsmouth, Ohio.  My annual returns to Europe while I live in the States are like a personal pilgrimage.  In my travels, I used every possible transportation mode in what must be an extremely complicated crisscrossing pattern  -- “as the fox runs or the crow flies” from the majestic Nordic fjords to the enchanting Greek isles, from the ageless slopes of the high Alps to the misty lochs of Scotland. Likewise I stayed in all kinds of different places from unpretentious pensions to spectacular medieval manors, made many friends from many nations and professions, visited many places of academic and cultural interest, learned from early on to read in many languages and speak a few, and still crave for more.  This kaleidoscopic experience is the result of the kaleidoscopic nature of Europe. If it were not for this nature, what I try to describe here would not have been possible.  More, with the benefit of eyewitness account I can attest to the incredible changes that have taken place in that part of the world: ranging from the dark days of division and fear and oppression to the sunny days of a Euro land of unity, cosmopolitanism, and prosperity.  I hope each time, in teaching this course, to enliven and enrich my lectures with some of these personal experiences and insights about the subject.  I hope also to motivate my students to embark on their own travel of exploration and discovery in a continent, which, despite its small size is so unique, so multilingual, and multifaceted.