Posts tagged Belgium
Day 4: Amsterdam – Europe 2012
I don’t even know where to start when it comes to describing how beautiful I think the Netherlands are. I mean, putting aside my amateur photography, the photos speak for themselves.
We started off the day visiting the Peace Palace, a great example at showing off the country’s true colours and beautiful landscaping. Most of the country is below sea-level, so much of their land is surrounded by water, rivers, creeks and man-made reservoirs to make up for the abundance of water. From a visual standpoint, the scenery is fantastic. The way the landscaping intertwines with the water; and how life revolves around nature.
Our afternoon was spent at the “Zaanse Schans” where we got to tour their land, seeing how their cheese is made, tasting some cheese/wine combinations, as well as seeing how the traditional wooden shoe is made. Again, the scenery was magnificent – with their farm sitting on the riverside and windmills everywhere. It was literally one breathtaking-view after another.
We progressed by visiting the Diamond Factory in Amsterdam, getting a tutorial about how diamonds are made and classified; followed by visiting a few local food stands serving up cappuccinos, and custom-made dutch burgers. It was the perfect afternoon of local culture.
Ending our afternoon and kicking off our evening included a spectacular cruise through the city’s canals (very reminiscent of Venice), where we had an opportunity to take in the architecture and hear about how the city was formed around its dams, water locks, and many manmade waterways.
If you ever get a chance to visit Amsterdam, you’ll notice that there is an over-abundance of bicycles, scooters, and other related two-wheeled vehicles. There are even dedicated parkades for bicycles, and it is the one of the main modes of transportation for Amsterdam residents.
I also learned a lot through taking a stroll down the streets. I won’t even get started about their Red Light District; but if that’s your thing, you’ll go bananas, pardon the pun.
I can go on and on about how beautiful it is here, but it wouldn’t nearly do the experience justice. Take a look at a few of the photos below! Really, I would classify it as being of the most beautiful cities in the world.
Tomorrow, we’re moving onto Paris! A long day of driving ahead of us. Chat soon!
Day 3: Frankfurt, Bonn, Cologne, Amsterdam – Europe 2012
After a day and a half in Frankfurt, we moved onto our next destination. We drove towards Amsterdam in the Netherlands, visiting a few places in between. We first stopped in Bonn where we visited their university, town hall, and a few of its famous farmers markets/local boutiques. Again, I was very much impressed with the country’s laissez-faire approach, not to mention their hospitality to their tourists.
I’ve got to hand it over to the Germans here. Their transit system is beyond superb, far superior to that of Toronto, or any other Canadian metro system for that matter. It’s well-developed with interactive digital time schedules everywhere (I have to give credit where credit is due and say that Toronto is starting to develop that too), and they also have a robust fare system so you rarely see long lines for a ticket-taker. Toronto is slated to get the LRT streetcar-train system down the road, and having seen the system operate here in Frankfurt, I honestly can say I can’t wait. I have no doubt that there are quite a few commuters, but looking into the buses, trains and streetcars, one would notice that they’re rarely packed – another sign that their transit system works.
We headed back on the road towards the Netherlands, and we even hit up the infamous German “Autobahn” highway for fun – the highway with no posted speed limit. In reality, it wasn’t nearly as scary as I had anticipated, as people rarely went over 130 kilometres/hour.
Our next stop was Cologne. We visited one of their oldest and largest churches there. We then headed on a mini shopping bonanza on a stretch of road that seemed to turn into a makeshift cobblestone market. Even though there were quite a few mom-and-pop boutiques, one would also notice the presence of many chain franchises that you would typically see in North America (i.e. Subway, Starbucks, McDonalds, Zara, H&M, and LUSH Cosmetics). That didn’t come as a surprise to me. What was unique was the way they were intertwined with one another, so you would see an H&M next to a local pretzel shop; both with an equal amount of shoppers.
Of course, I can’t finish this blog without talking about food. For the foodies out there, their food is definitely not something to complain about, either. I visited many of their pastry-shops making their cheeses, pretzels, chocolates, and danishes in-house, and the smells were unbelievable. I ordered a slice of their pudding-cake to go with my moka-latte, and the price was the best part. 2,99 €, no tax! I was not allowed to snap photos of their food, but I tried to sneak in a few window shots – take a look at them in the gallery below. My favourite store was one that sold every type of pretzel under the rainbow. In the words of Rachael Ray, “Yummo!”
I can definitely see myself living here one day. While I don’t speak German (yet), I love their way of lifestyle. They have a well developed public transit system for the “downtowners,” and if you live in the suburbs, most people drive either a BMW, Audi, Mercedes-Benz, or a Volkswagen. I certainly wouldn’t mind either! I find their environment to be very well-kept, and I definitely have an appreciation for the history behind their landmarks.
Now I only spent a day-and-a-half here – definitely not enough – but I certainly plan on returning for a longer period in the not-too-distant future.
Next stop, Amsterdam – chat soon!
Day 2: Frankfurt – Europe 2012
The past 48 hours have been insane. We’ve finally landed in Frankfurt (around Sunday 11:00am local time), and we’ve picked up our luggage. We were taken straight to our hotel, where I definitely went straight for my bed. I am definitely living in a totally different time zone compared to the rest of the population here.
This may come as a surprise to you – again, hopefully you caught my sarcasm – my life is extremely fast-paced with several things going on-the-fly, all the time. So for me, sitting still with nothing to do is more exasperating than being busy, running around. When I told my buddy, Curtis, that I would be blogging my way through personal vacation in Europe, the good ol’ “why” question definitely popped into his mind almost instantaneously. It makes sense – why would one create more work, when they’re going on vacation to relax? Well, for me, I think keeping a blog acts as an outlet for my thoughts – similar to keeping a diary. The inner journalist in me wants to broadcast my experiences, possibly enticing you to embark on a similar journey, and open your eyes on this planet we call home.
It is currently Sunday here, so everything happens to be closed. We stayed in a nearby Sheraton Frankfurt, and as I’m used to living in a busy city, it felt as if it were a ghost-town here! I did not see a single soul roaming the streets.
As for first impressions, I found the European roads to be quite different. I must admit, it was quite intimidating – everyone is driving around in either a Mercedes-Benz or an Audi – and the speeds here are quite fast. Horsepower is definitely not something locals use conservatively here. I suppose it also didn’t help that I couldn’t interpret any of the street signs here. German is the main language here; however you can easily squeeze by with English under your belt. I found a very nice French lady here at the Sheraton, so I found communicating with her far easier in that language.
I woke up around 6:00pm local time, and headed down for dinner. Choice was not plentiful here – again as it was a Sunday, it seemed as if everything was closed – so German hotel cuisine it was. For the foodies out there, I had a roasted pork loin dish, with pepper-cream sauce and lemon-thyme spetzel. My overall first impression of the European culture is quite positive – very positive, with quite the laid-back and laissez-faire attitude – definitely quite different from the hustle-and-bustle of Toronto.
Internet access is quite limited here, and free Wi-Fi usually comes with a time limit. In “Happy Endings” TV slang, “that sooks.” I’m continuing to take many photo and writing blog posts. While I may be slow in posting them up, they’re coming! So stay tuned.
Day 1: In Transit to Vacation Mode – Europe 2012
4:02pm EST, Saturday, March 10, 2012
I suppose since I’m not doing work right now, I’m currently in vacation mode! As I’m writing up this entry, I’m sitting in the waiting area at Gate F82 in the Toronto Pearson International Airport. Did I mention I arrived three hours ahead of my flight – thinking there would be a massive line up – seeing as it is March Break? Well, here is a photo of the mass exodus.
Hopefully, you caught my sarcasm…
In day one of my European journey, jet-setting is the name of the game. Our flight leaves at 5:06pm EST, and arrives in our connecting city – Charlotte – around 7:00pm EST. We hop on our Trans-Atlantic flight around 8:30pm EST and arrive the next day at 10:30am (local time) in Frankfurt, Germany.
My airport experience from Toronto was pretty smooth-sailing. From the time we arrived to the time I sat down at the gate was only about 45-minutes, so I was definitely a happy camper. I must also add that I was chosen as a lucky victim of the infamous pat-down or full-body scanner – the ones that caused quite the controversy not too long ago – but honestly that didn’t really matter to me. I really don’t see the huge kerfuffle behind all the controversy. For the record, I chose the full-body scan – strictly personal preference. It took literally all of thirty seconds; it was painless, and no fuss at all. If anything, I’m thankful for the extra security whilst in the air. But, that’s a totally different blog post.
11:03pm EST, Saturday, March 10, 2012
According to the television in front of me, I am currently in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. After this long day, I’m thankful for three things: Wi-Fi, power outlets, and Starbucks. I’m going to be completely honest – patience is not something I have a lot of – so from the three hours at the Toronto airport, one-and-a-half in Charlotte, not to mention the eight hour Trans-Atlantic flight from Charlotte to Frankfurt, I’m definitely running low on energy.
Now, I think most of us would know that aircrafts aren’t the most comfortable aspect of traveling. As I have not been to Europe before, I’ve spent the day thinking about what my upcoming experience would be like – admittedly in an attempt to take focus off my aching back in these uncomfortable seats. The “techie” in me downloaded a range of offline apps to keep me entertained whilst in the air – like the Paris ‘Fotopedia’ app – and the thrill suddenly rushes back in as I anticipate the next few days to come.
Upon arrival, we’ll be checking into our hotel, and the journey will officially begin. Expect future posts to be more about the places and landmarks – versus my personal online diary – and stay tuned as I’ll be posting additional blogs in the coming days with exciting photos, anecdotes, and other fun stuff. I now have five hours to arrival in Frankfurt at 10:50am local time, so I’m going to try to catch some shut-eye time.
You’re Invited! – Europe 2012
Ladies and gentlemen! It’s official – you may form one single line for your free tickets to come with me to Europe! Well, free online tickets, anyways. While I may not be that financially generous to bring you all on my trip physically – I thought being the budding journalist I am – I would blog my way though Europe at WinstonSih.com/Europe.
As I venture on my 10-day vacation, I’ll be driving through Frankfurt (Germany), Amsterdam (Netherlands), Brussels (Belgium), Paris (France), Luxembourg (Luxembourg), and the many cities in-between. I’m flying out to Germany on Saturday March 10th, and coming back to the grind on Tuesday March 20th.
It is exactly nine days before the trip, and the thought of packing hasn’t even crossed my mind; so I have a feeling that I will be frantically running around in the days-coming as I prepare to venture out of the country.
I’ll be visiting some of the world’s most famous landmarks including the Manneken Pis, the Arc de Triomphe, Champs-Élysées, Place de la Concorde, Château de Versailles, and the Eiffel Tower.
Many of you don’t know, but I’m a self-proclaimed (and closeted) “foodie.” I love eating, reading, smelling, watching, cooking, and anything that has to do with food; and I’m hoping that this will be an opportunity for me to explore the exquisite foods of Europe.
Je parle français aussi, et avec plusieurs années d’études à l’école, j’espère que je pourrai l’appliquer pendant ma visite. Translation: I also speak French, and with the many years of French studies at school, I’m hoping that I am able to use it during my visit.
My goal with this vacation is to keep things minimal – as minimal as a technology journalist can get, anyway! Throughout my daily blogs, I want to bring a taste of the varying cultures from the countries I’m visiting (i.e food and lifestyle); so I’ll bringing along my Canon 60D DSLR camera for capturing every moment, my iPad for blogging while I’m on the road, and my MacBook Pro for uploading photos and posts back at the hotel. That’s it.
I can’t even remember the last time I went to sleep without my smartphone turned on, and for the duration of my vacation, I’m disconnecting my iPhone’s data and phone connectivity – leaving myself with only a phone card. I’m hoping that my venture through Europe will be an opportunity to “digitally cleanse” myself from social media; so I’ll be sharing my thoughts about my connection to technology abroad (or lack thereof).
Check back daily from March 10th to March 19th, as I will be posting daily blogs for you to follow. If you have anything you’d like me to take pictures of or blog about, please don’t hesitate to leave a comment below!
[portfolio_slideshow exclude="955, 1019" pagerpos="disabled"]