Small countries of Europe

Andorra

Baskets of colorful flowers add to the charm and peaceful beauty in the mountain town of Ordino. The tiny Continental country is a tax-free mecca for shopoholics.  (Susan Spano/Los Angeles Times)

Andorra

High up in the Pyrenees, Tristaina Lake is the perfect spot for a picnic, or just to admire the view. The lake is set in a scree-covered cirque near the ski area of Arcalis.  (Susan Spano/Los Angeles Times)

Andorra

Tired of duty-free shopping? Strap on a helmet, grab a go-kart and fly down that hill. During the summer, go-karters make use of snowless ski slopes in tiny Andorra.  (Susan Spano/Los Angeles Times)

Andorra

The nation’s capital, Andorra la Vella, is a densely packed modern city. There’s also an old town surrounding Casa de la Vall, Andorra’s former administrative center. Nowadays, a Spanish bishop and the president of France are technically Andorra’s co-princes, but the country has a democratically elected parliament.  (Susan Spano/Los Angeles Times)

Vatican City

Vatican City, the tiniest country in Continental Europe, is also the most influential. At the heart of it all is St. Peter’s Basilica, built between 1506 and 1615 by famous architects, including Michelangelo, who designed the dome.  (Susan Spano / Los Angeles Times)

Vatican City

Here, one of the most popular modes of transportation is the scooter. WIthin the Vatican’s walls are a bank, printing press, commissary, gas station, railroad, helipad, radio station, tennis court, medical clinic, hotel and offices of L’Osservatore Romano, the Vatican’s daily newspaper.  (Susan Spano / Los Angeles Times)

Vatican City

“Sphere Within a Sphere,” by Italian sculptor Arnaldo Pomodoro, sits in the Pine Cone Courtyard in the Vatican Museums, which has seven miles of galleries.  (Susan Spano / Los Angeles Times)

Vatican City

The Gallery of Maps in the Vatican Museums is a masterpiece of 40 historical-topographical maps of Italy devised in the 16th century by papal astronomer Ignazio Danti. Other must-see galleries include frescoed rooms by Raphael and, of course, the Sistine Chapel by Michelangelo.  (Susan Spano / Los Angeles Times)

Vatican City

Vatican City, though small, can be overwhelming, and that’s where guided tours can help. Tours cover the Vatican Museums-Sistine Chapel, the gardens and the pre-Christian necropolis underneath St. Peter’s Basilica, among other sights. Pictured, an official guide leads her group around the Vatican Museums.  (Susan Spano / Los Angeles Times)

Monaco

The Port of Monaco with grandstands for the 2008 Grand Prix, lower right. Those aboard the yachts of the rich and famous have front-row views from their decks of the race in Monte Carlo.  (Susan Spano / Los Angeles Times)

Monaco

The Palace of Monaco, home to the Grimaldi royal family. An ancestor took over the area in 1297.  (Susan Spano / Los Angeles Times)

Monaco

A vintage roadster at the fabled Hotel de Paris, which was built in 1864.  (Susan Spano / Los Angeles Times)

Monaco

Boats of the rich and famous in the Port de Fontvieille. The country is the size of Disneyland.  (Susan Spano / Los Angeles Times)

Monaco

The 2008 Grand Prix, during practice runs through the streets of Monaco that make up the course.  (Susan Spano / Los Angeles Times)

San Marino

Guaita Tower, one of three crowning Mt. Titano, overlooks the city of San Marino below. Set on an outcropping of the Apennine Mountains in east-central Italy, San Marino is the world’s oldest republic, based on its founding in the early 4th century.  (Susan Spano / Los Angeles Times)

San Marino

Along the Piazza della Liberta sits the Palazzo Pubblico, the boxy, faux medieval building that is the seat of San Marino’s government. Nearby are the Waxworks, Curiosity, Torture and Modern Weaponry museums.  (Susan Spano/Los Angeles Times)

San Marino

Don’t leave San Marino without a potent memento or two — liqueurs are a popular souvenir. And for historical reenactors, there’s a wide assortment of imitation weapons, from medieval maces to AK-47s.  (Susan Spano/Los Angeles Times)

San Marino

A guard keeps watch in a colorful uniform and rather splendid feathered shako at the Palazzo Pubblico on the Piazza della Liberta.  (Susan Spano/Los Angeles Times)

San Marino

The 2,500-foot Mt. Titano is crowned by three medieval towers — Guaita, Cesta and Montale — that also appear on the country’s crest. It’s said that from here, visitors can sometimes see right across the Adriatic to the coast of Croatia.  (Susan Spano/Los Angeles Times)

Liechtenstein

Vineyards and a pretty hamlet lie on the outskirts of Gutenberg Castle near the town of Balzers in Liechtenstein, a small German-speaking principality that’s tucked into the Alps between Switzerland and Austria.  (Susan Spano/Los Angeles Times)

Liechtenstein

Vaduz Castle is home to the prince of Liechtenstein.  (Susan Spano / Los Angeles Times)

Liechtenstein

Garden gnomes nestle on a lush lawn in Liechtenstein.  (Susan Spano / Los Angeles Times)

Liechtenstein

Handcrafted wooden clocks come from a shop in Vaduz, a modern town with a pedestrian-only main street.  (Susan Spano / Los Angeles Times)

Liechtenstein

A hang glider sails past Vaduz Castle.  (Susan Spano / Los Angeles Times)

Luxembourg

In Echternach in eastern Luxembourg, a country of nearly half a million people, tourists gather in front of the Basilica of St. Willibrord, an imposing, Gothic structure.  (Susan Spano / Los Angeles Times)

Luxembourg

The Grand Ducal Palace of Luxembourg, a country about the size of Rhode Island at 998 square miles, is in the historic center of Luxembourg City.  (Susan Spano / Los Angeles Times)

Luxembourg

The Dancing Pilgrims Procession is part of the Whit Tuesday festival in Echternach, an observance following Pentecost Sunday, linked to St. Willibrord. The groups of dancers proceed under banners identifying their home parishes.  (Susan Spano / Los Angeles Times)

Luxembourg

The equestrian statue of William II, once King of the Netherlands and the Grand Duke of Luxembourg, in Luxembourg City’s Place Guillaume.  (Susan Spano / Los Angeles Times)

Luxembourg

The town of Gaichel, about 50 yards from the Belgian border, is known for its venerable inn, founded in 1853. Here, one of 17 rooms at the modest Auberge de la Gaichel, which has its own bistro; a second building houses the elegant Hotel-Restaurant La Gaichel.  (Susan Spano / Los Angeles Times)