June 1, 2009
Brussels/Bruges
Nov 27-30
Belgium was a perfect change of pace after the disappointment of Luxembourg.
The walk from Brussels Central Station to our gorgeous loft had us raving about how much fun we were going to have in this lively city crammed full of thing to see and do. The Grand Place is a square within Brussels with the most dramatic architecture on all four sides.
Just behind the Grand Place stands St. Hubert's Galleries, an indoor shopping area for upscale buyers, surrounded by a fantastic restaurant district alive with lights, colours, and fresh foods on display for hungry travelers such as ourselves. Restaurant owners lurked outside their Establishments and pounced every unsuspecting passer by in hopes of luring them inside.
Walking through the heart of Brussels it's easy to miss the tiny "Mannekin Pis," a fountain modeled after a young boy emptying an eternally full bladder. This little tyke is Brussels favourite landmark.
Our day trip to Bruges was a success. Canals, market squares and giant windmills made Bruges a lovely experience.
Belgium has been a breath of fresh air; we loved waffles for breakfast and the unending supply of fresh chocolate.
Posted by Amanda Grant
June 1, 2009
Luxembourg Nov 25-27 Luxembourg is a mini-France; French language and French attitude. Luxembourg City's old town is a former fortress perched on a cliff with an intricate 23 KM network of tunnels running through the rock beneath it. This feature is closed for the month of November. Bridges connecting the old and new towns are quite dramatic and offer a panoramic view of the city and river valley beneath. If the entire city weren't under construction and removed were the tens of cranes and scaffo... Continue reading...
Posted by Amanda Grant
June 1, 2009
Germany
We began our 10 day tour of Germany in Munich where we were surprised to learn that our KW Oktoberfest is actually quite accurate based on the year round beer gardens of Munich. Only, instead of drunken teenagers - they're jolly, old, beer bellied men gathered around the kegs.
A Day trip to Dachau Concentration camp was a somber and humbling experience that renewed our pride in Canada.
In Fussen we visited the fairytale Schloss Neuschwanstein Castle - the inspiration for Disn... Continue reading...
Posted by Amanda Grant
June 1, 2009
Nov 16-19
Prague, Czech Republic.
We had mixed feelings about visiting Prague after the language barrier nearly cost us our accommodations, but with a little help we made the correct arrangements and even had a driver pick us up at the Train station. Okay, so we´re pretty sure the driver we hired is a former KGB hit-man based on his refrigerator-like build, long scraggly pony-tail, and tailored suit. His cell phone conversations in Czech. were also alarming - but only because as a res...
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Posted by Amanda Grant
June 1, 2009
Nov
13-16
To
be fair, the weather in Austria was decidedly uncooperative, so if our
review isn't 4 star it probably isn't Austria's fault.
We
departed Munich (which we will keep tight lipped about for now, a full
blog to come after we've seen all the German stops on our itinerary)
for Innsbruck on one of the first overcast days we'd encountered in
weeks. Unfortunately that was to be the trend. Clouds parked themselves
right in front of Austria's mountains obstructing... Continue reading...
Posted by Amanda Grant
June 1, 2009
November 1-6
We
boarded the train bound for Switzerland on a typical Italian day of
25 degrees and stepped off again in the Alps at 0 degrees. Luckily the
scenery was enough to distract us from our frozen extremities. For 5
days we literally had our heads in the clouds as we toured the Jungfrau
region of Switzerland's Bernese Oberland. Spoiled again with beautiful
clear days, we were able to soak in the amazing views all around us.
Interlaken was exactly what we had hoped for, a nice... Continue reading...
Posted by Amanda Grant
June 1, 2009
A Spanish Tango: A Girl Thing So we´d been walking for about 30 minutes after I´d said I had to pee, when it simply became urgent to use a washroom. The first place we came across was the best place, you know that way of thinking? ...anyway, I run into the ladies room only to find that not a single stall has toilet paper, and strangely, not even a toilet paper dispensor, but my bladder knows the toilet is near and if I uncross my legs there´s gonna be trouble - so I pee and decide to face th... Continue reading...
Posted by Amanda Grant
June 1, 2009
An Italian Ode: What Time is it, Mr. Wolf?
The alarm rang at 8am sharp because we had a 9:15 ferry to Cinque Terre to catch and the ticket buying procedure was written in Italian. Our initiative was to get there early and hope for the best English speaking tourism director to be on duty. Lofty dreams...
The harbour was strangely quiet, absent were the hordes of smoking Italian men who have the uncanny ability to sit with a lit cigarette in thier mouthes, and smoke it right to the filter ...
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Posted by Amanda Grant
June 1, 2009
A Parisian Tale: Monsieur De La Nuit
My eyes opened and the noise poured in. This man, this foul, filthy, wretched man lay on his bed from the hips up with both feet planted squarely on the floor. The position was the result of what can only be assumed was a drunken stupor. Having reversed himself into the bed, the unwashed man must have felt the mattress against the back of his calves and plummeted blindly backward bending at the knees. His arms were strewn to either side of him in a paraly... Continue reading...
Posted by Amanda Grant
June 1, 2009
November 1-6
We boarded the train bound for Switzerland on a typical Italian day of 25 degrees and stepped off again in the Alps at 0 degrees. Luckily the scenery was enough to distract us from our frozen extremities. For 5 days we literally had our heads in the clouds as we toured the Jungfrau region of Switzerland's Bernese Oberland. Spoiled again with beautiful clear days, we were able to soak in the amazing views all around us. Interlaken was exactly what we had hoped for, a nice, littl... Continue reading...
Posted by Amanda Grant
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