The Italian journalist and travel writer Giovanni Vale is used to writing tourist guidebooks, but usually they're for countries that still exist. We rang him up to ask why he's turned his attention to 'extinguished' countries, starting with the Venetian Republic which sprawled across the Mediterranean for more than a millennium. Also this week: Polish punk and Europe's organic revolution. Giovanni's guide to the Venetian Republic is available for pre-order here: https://bit.ly/2zB1Rar Isolation Inspiration: Rabbit Hole - The New York Times https://www.nytimes.com/column/rabbit-hole (Although) In Pieces, Yet One - Francesca Vincentie https://inpiecesyetone.com Inside Politics - all that bond stuff, explained https://bit.ly/2AcEPq6 Thanks for listening. If you like the show, you can help us keep making it by chipping in a few dollars a month at https://patreon.com/europeanspodcast. Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com