A LEADING political science team says Eastern European countries such as Romania are experiencing a return to authoritarianism some 30 years after the Prague Spring uprising as the ruling government tightens its grip on power.

With a post-communist and increasingly cosmopolitan vibe and plenty of artistic creavity juxtaposed with historic sites and pockets of conservative attitudes, what was formally known as Eastern Europe has some extraordinary places to visit. Fancy yourself as a bit of hipster? If so, our guest blogger Jules Bukovsky, a traveller and expat with a taste for...