Traveling Light

Surprisingly quite a few of my friends had been to Barcelona. I don't think it is one of their top European destinations (like Paris or Italy), but it seems to be a good place to start their Mediterranean cruises. And I heard only good things about Barcelona from them, except to watch out for pickpockets (not that any of my friends got picked.) With that in mind, I actually started to worry if I had too high of an expectation for Barcelona.

Day Zero - Click from Amsterdam to Barcelona
I amazed myself when I look at how I planned my weekend trip to Barcelona (and also Madrid one week before.) I booked the flights a week before I flew from Toronto to Amsterdam, that is less than two weeks before going to Madrid, less than three weeks before going to Barcelona. My flight to Madrid was with KLM, which is quite reliable, but the one to Barcelona was with Clickair, a Spanish low-cost airline I had not heard of until I started shopping for air tickets. But price was quite attractive, 100 Euro, so I booked it and hoped the airline can stay in business.

1:00am Hilton Barcelona
So the flight was fine, there was no delay, but by the time I got out of the airport, it was well past midnight already. This time, I didn't even think twice, just grabbed the first taxi I saw. The ride was expensive, but it got me to the hotel quickly. The hotel this time is Hilton Barcelona, the one near the west end of the city. Everything from the front door, the lobby, to the lounge look nice, except for my room. Not that there was anything wrong, it just felt a little more like dormitory; I wonder if this was part of the university campus nearby, before turning into a hotel. Well, the room was nice enough, just in a different way.

Day One - Works of Antoni Gaudí and Montjuic:
Sagrada Familia, Casa Mila, Parc Guell, Fundacio Joan Miro, Catalan Art Museum, and Magic Fountain

Best thing about travelling solo is that I can change my schedule in any way at any time. And I had to be flexible for this trip; I simply didn't have time to go to all the places that seem interesting in travel guidebooks. And according to reports, weather was better at the beginning of the weekend, so I thought I should go to the must-see attractions first.

9:30am Sagrada Familia
This is probably not everybody's top attraction in Barcelona, but I'm sure many like me think that it is. Rick Steves had it right in his guidebook, that there is something powerful to witness a community of people building a church that will not be finished in their lifetime. While I was inside, lining up for the elevator to the top of a tower, I read that it won't be finished for at least another 50 years, and it dawned on me that I might not even be alive to see it completed (yet another reminder of me not getting any younger.) Also while waiting for the elevator (it was a long line), the two ladies in front of me were talking about how one of them was afraid of height, that she almost fainted in CN Tower. Eager to meet fellow Canadians in foreign land, I cut into their endless conversations, and asked them if they were from Toronto. One lady replied, "are you kidding me? Can't you tell from our New York accent?" I suppose... I mean everyone has some kind of accent anyway, I just never know which one is which. Now that I think about it, they do sound like TV sitcom characters with exaggerated accent... or so I thought it was exaggerated.

After spending more than two hours there, I was glad that I saw Sagrada Familia first; it was definitely the highlight of my trip, and I felt a bit relax for the rest of the trip, because even at that moment, I know I can leave Barcelona feeling satisfied already.

12:00pm Casa Mila
After seeing Gaudi's unfinished project, I went to see Gaudi's finished work at Casa Mila. The building looks amazing; you don't need to be architecture buff to appreciate it. The artwork at the rooftop is just as amazing, if not bizarre. I just spend so much time taking pictures there, and at the same time, I wondered how he got all this creative energy.

2:30pm Parc Guell
After having a quick lunch at a place not far from Casa Mila (good tourist friendly place that is not tourisy), I followed travel guidebook's advice, taking a bus to the side entrance of a park called Parc Guell. One of the most well-known feature there is the curvy mosaic benches surrounding the raised square. I saw its pictures in magazine years ago, and it was an elated feeling to be there in person.

4:30pm Montjuic: Fundacio Joan Miro and Catalan Art Museum
All the places I had been so far are not quite in city center of Barcelona; I guess it was more like midtown area. Since it was almost late afternoon, I decided to go to another area just outside of city center, Montjuic, a hill on the west side of Barcelona overlooking the rest of the city. It was not high on my list of places to visit, but there are two highly rated art museums in the area. There wasn't a lot of time before they close for the day, so I had a rather quick visit for both museums. To my surprise, I recognized some of the work in this modern art museum of Joan Miro; I had actually seen something similar in... Dallas! My favorite piece from Nasher Sculpture Center in Dallas was Joan Miro's Lunar Bird. I just had no idea who Joan Miro was when I saw it in Dallas. The other museum in Montjuic is the National Art Museum of Catalonia. The place is huge, but their art collection is not as big, and I actually like the building more.

7:00pm Montjuic: Catalan Art Museum and Magic Fountain
Around the time museum closing for the day, more people were starting to gather in front of the museum; they were all there to see the Magic Fountain that is located near the bottom of the hill. I noticed the fountain when I was entering the museum earlier, but I didn't realize about the Magic Fountain show. So I joined people there, sitting on the steps, and had my camera ready. I was wondering how this fountain compares to Bellagio Fountains in Las Vegas; well, it was no comparison, but the Magic Fountain was still quite impressive. They played mostly classical music in loudspeakers, with some nice color lighting and water splashing effects. After the first show of the night was completed, I started walking down toward the fountain, then I realized there are more fountains, waterfalls style, just below the art museum. By the time I got to the Magic Fountain, it was jam-packed with people, and the second show was about to begin.

Before going back to the hotel, I thought I would like some night scene pictures of Sagrada Familia. It was pretty late by the time I got there, and there was hardly anyone around (except for a bus load of Japanese tourists dropping by for a brief moment) I had all the time I needed setting up shots with my tripod, although there were a few people walking by looking at me funny.

Day Two - Ramblas around:
Casa Batllo, Casa Lleo Morera, Placa de Catalunya, Ramblas, Barri Gotic, Cathedral of Barcelona, Barcelona City Hall, City History Museum, Textil-Cafe, Citadel Park, Arc de Triomf, Catalan Concert Hall, Harborfront, Barcelona Beaches, Church of Santa Maria del Mar, and Picasso Museum

I spent my second day mostly in city center area. I didn't have much of a plan, but I knew I want to go to the Ramblas in the morning. Everything else was up in the air.

9:00am Casa Batllo, Casa Lleo Morera, and Placa de Catalunya
But before getting to Ramblas, I thought I could squeeze in a couple of quick visits; Casa Batllo and Casa Lleo Morera. They are similar to the Casa Mila I saw the day before, having that same funky exterior. After that, I went to Placa de Catalunya, a square that is at the north end of Ramblas. This is where airport shuttle buses would go, but it's not the safest area at night, so I took the taxi directly to my hotel instead.

9:30am Ramblas
So what's the big deal with La Rambla? It is one popular street where all tourists go, and also where all the pickpockets happen. That's why I wanted to go there early in the morning, when it is not busy yet. Maybe that is also the reason why I didn't find anything special there.

11:00am Barri Gotic and Cathedral of Barcelona
Cathedral of Barcelona, another popular tourist attraction, although it was under some kind of restoration project while I was there. What's more memorable there is the Sardana Dance that the local people perform at noon time. (Yes, I actually planned to be there at the right time to catch it.) I often wonder if tradition is kept simply because people feel the obligation to do so. But there is definitely value in keeping this kind of traditional dance.

1:00pm Barcelona City Hall and City History Museum
The City Hall is not even in my list of places to visit, but I saw a sign saying there is a tour for the day, so I thought why not. I can't say it is must-see, but I certainly enjoy wandering around there.

3:00pm Textil-Cafe
My second day in Barcelona was so unorganized that I had to find a place to sit down and figure out where I want to go. Actually I was on my way to visit the Picasso Museum, but after seeing the line at the entrance, I figure I can come back later, closer to closing time when there should be less people. So I ended up in this Textil-Cafe, a cafe in the textile museum just across the street (more like an alley). It's a good recommendation by the travel guide, the cafe has some decent food at a reasonable price. It was also a good break from all the running around. I felt refreshed and ready for more sightseeing.

4:00pm Citadel Park and Arc de Triomf
Citadel Park is probably not as impressive or as popular as Parc Guell, but it has some nice gardens, lakes, and promenades. If I had more time, I would've spent more time wandering around, doing some more people-watching (more local people than tourists)

4:30pm Catalan Concert Hall
If there is one thing I should've skipped on this trip, it's the Catalan Concert Hall. It looks very nice from the outside, and I read that the inside is worth a visit as well. I was actually planning buy a ticket for whatever performance they have, just to get inside. But on the day I was there, they have some children show later in the evening. I figure I can do better visiting other places, rather than spending more time there.

5:00pm Harborfront, Port Olympic, and Barcelona Beaches
With about an hour of daylight left for the day, I went to the Harborfront/Beaches area to do some more wandering. It is actually one of top places I want to visit, but I also know I want to be there closer to evening (I don't think it's as pretty at noon time) There weren't that many people around, maybe it's the time of the day, or the time of the year, but I do like it quiet.

6:00pm Rest of Barri Gotic: Church of Santa Maria del Mar and Picasso Museum
One final must-see attraction I had to visit is the Picasso Museum. (I actually managed to take a quick look at another popular attraction, Church of Santa Maria del Mar.) But really I don't think I had to visit the Picasso Museum; I was actually more interested in seeing the museum gift shop, but for whatever great logic, the gift shop was closed for the day before the museum closes. Bummer.

Having been to Belgium, Berlin, and Paris in winter time, I decided to go somewhere a little warmer. So I set my eyes on Spain, both Madrid and Barcelona. One of the coworkers I went to Berlin with a month before had been to Barcelona. So I thought we go to Madrid this time, and save Barcelona for next time when I know I would be travelling by myself.

Day Zero - Flying KLM from Amsterdam to Madrid

We had a pretty late flight going from Amsterdam to Madrid; we didn't get to Madrid until 11:30pm. Best thing about late flights is that they are usually cheaper; bad thing is that they are so late that most public transportation out of the airport were unavailable by then. So there weren't many options, either shuttle vans or taxi. If it were up to me, I would take the cheaper option, the shuttle van. But by that time, shuttle vans run only once or twice every hour, and my coworker just wanted to get to the hotel as soon as possible, so we took the taxi instead (which was very expensive.) I do think it was a wise decision, we got to our hotel just before midnight.

12:00am Sofitel Madrid Plaza de Espana The hotel is not quite in the historic Madrid center, but it is close to one major attraction, the Royal Palace, so it is not completely quiet late at night. It is also close to a Metro station, so it's not a bad location. The room was quite nice, but as usual, other than sleeping, I didn't spend much time in the hotel.

Day One - Museum, Museum, and more Museum:
Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum, Museo del Prado, Parque del Buen Retiro, Centro de Arte Reina Sofia, Plaza de la Puerta del Sol

And just as usual, I had an ambitious schedule, covering quite a few places. I was a little surprised my coworker didn't freak when I said we were visiting three museums in one day.

10:00am Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum and Prado Museum Unlike the museums in Paris, they do not normally allow photography in museums in Spain. So I don't have a lot of pictures for the first day, as we visited 3 museums, all within walking distance, all in one day; Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum in the morning, Prado Museum in the afternoon, and Reina Sofia in the evening. It's probably not how I planned originally, but that's how it turned out.

Normally I would at least take a picture of museum's building, but not for Thyssen-Bornemisza museum; mostly because it is really an art gallery in a plain looking private building, or maybe I still have Paris' Louvre museum in my mind. After spending a couple hours in Thyssen-Bornemisza, we were staving, and we were going to have something to eat at the museum's cafe. But it was jam-packed, and they have some confusing process of taking orders, and servers there weren't too helpful. We ended up walking out, without even paying for the drinks we had. Then we decided to head to the next museum, and just picking up something to eat on the way.

The Prado museum on the other hand is huge with plenty of green space surrounding it. Both museums have great collections of European art, but I enjoyed Prado museum more, mainly because of background information provided by the walking tour in Rick Steves' guidebook. I also had way too much fun of finding specific pieces of art, as the museum have rearranged the rooms quite a bit.

5:00pm Retiro Park After visiting two art museums, we could use a little break before going to the third one. Retiro park, Madrid's answer to New York's Central Park, is just a few blocks away from Prado museum. A couple unique things in this park: there is one big artificial lake in the middle, where people can paddle boats. There is also a Crystal Palace that is used for museum exhibition, but at the time we were there, it was completely cleaned out. I didn't see any special events going on in the park, but there were a lot of people with their families and kids. Visiting this park is probably my favorite experience in Madrid.

7:00pm Reina Sofia Art Center I actually had doubts if we could really visit three museums in one day; it's just too much art. But it sure helps when our third museum of the day, Reina Sofia museum, does not charge any admission on Saturday evenings. The mood there was a little like the Retiro park, with a lot of people bringing their families, looking at some funky art. So it was actually kinda fun, even though it is a modern art museum. But really, it has a great collection of work by Spain's most famous artists, Picasso and Dali, making this visit of third museum in one day quite enjoyable.

10:30pm Plaza de la Puerta del Sol After having a quick dinner at a place near the Reina Sofia museum, we were ready to head back to the hotel. But since we needed to make a transfer at Puerta del Sol, the center of the city, I thought we could make a quick visit there, allowing me to take some pictures at night time. It is literally the heart of the city because roads in Madrid start numbering from this point.

Day Two - Whole lot of walking in Madrid:
Plaza de Espana, Palacio Real, Plaza Mayor, Plaza de la Puerta del Sol, Edificio Metropolis, Parque del Buen Retiro

With some much museums we saw on the first day, we really needed to see more of Madrid. So my plan was to follow two walking tours described in the guidebooks.

11:00am Royal Palace The walking tour in my book was going from the Puerta del Sol, the center of Madrid, to the Royal Palace. But since the Royal Palace is very close to our hotel, we did the walking tour in reverse, starting with Plaza de Espana (which is next to hotel) and heading to the Royal Palace first. I wasn't sure if the palace was worth a visit. But since I only had two walking tours in my plan, I thought we could spend some time at one attraction. Like the museums, cameras weren't allowed inside the palace, so I only have pictures in the square and outside of the palace. It might be true that Madrid's best attractions are the art museums, but I think the Royal Palace is a great place to visit. I found the Armory and the Royal Pharmacy particularly interesting.

1:30pm Plaza Mayor Leaving the Royal Palace, walking toward the Puerta del Sol, we passed by the Plaza Mayor, a great looking square with tons of tourists. There is also a street with some good restaurants nearby the square. There was one restaurant, Casa Lucio, that we want to try for lunch but it was fully booked; it is supposedly popular with well-known public figures. We ended up trying another restaurant nearby, called Julian de Tolosa. It was not bad, but a little more expensive. This ended up to be our best meal on this trip; most other meals we had were really quick bites.

4:30pm From Puerta del Sol to Edificio Metropolis After our late lunch and much needed rest, we finished our first walking tour when we reached Puerta del Sol (literally means Gate of the Sun.) Even though it was already 4:30pm, Madrid still has another two hours of daylight. The second walking tour we followed was going from Puerta del Sol to the Retiro park. One of the nice buildings we saw on the way was the Edificio Metropolis, with the rounded tower covered by 30000 leaves of 24 Carat gold.

6:00pm Retiro Park After seeing some more interesting buildings, we were back to the Retiro park, with just as many people as the day before, but we didn't stay long this time around. Originally we were going to have something to eat back in the city center. We walked back pretty much the same way, but once we got there we didn't like what we saw, so we walked all the way back to the hotel, and had something to eat at a restaurant in the area. With this dinner, our second day ended a little early, but we were surely exhausted from all the walking. And besides, we had a early flight to catch to get back to work the next morning, always the saddest part of the trip.

MSN Sync from http://www.lightrelay.com/?p=126

Early on when I was on assignment in Holland, I remember thinking I wanted to explore places in Europe that is somewhat less popular; I thought the chances of me going to those places on my own are pretty slim. So first place I visited outside of Holland was Brussels and Bruges in Belgium (not exactly unpopular, just relatively so.) And then I joined a couple of people in the Holland office, and went on a road trip to Berlin in Germany (still sort of less popular.)

Naturally the next place I visited was Paris... (I know, it's only the most popular destination in the world.) Ok, it's not exactly my idea. It just happened that a colleague of mine, Aaron, was on assignment in Paris for a couple weeks. So I thought it would be great to meet up with him in Paris.

Technically speaking, I have been to Paris once before, but I don't think it really counted; it was a day-trip from London a couple years ago, and it's not that I had a bad experience, but I was there for so little time, I didn't get to enjoy much of what I saw. So this time around, I was determined to go to most of the same places, in double amount of time (two days!)

Day Zero - Flying from Amsterdam to Paris:
Hotel, Champs-Elysees, Arc de Triomphe, and Eiffel Tower

Instead of taking the train, this time around, I flew from Amsterdam to Paris on an early evening flight. It cost a little more, but it's a bit faster, and I didn't need to watch out for connecting trains.

9:00pm Holiday Inn Paris Bastille To get from the airport to my hotel, which is in the city center area, I took the local rail and subway, and it took just under an hour to get there. The transport system is not too complicated, and it has a good website with trip planner. The hotel looks a little old from the outside, looks even older in the lobby, but the room was nicely furnished, so I was more than satisfied. Even though I had an relatively early flight, I wasn't sure if I had the energy to go out after checking in.

11:00pm Champs-Elysees and Arc de Triomphe Feeling that there was no time to slack off, I went out after a short rest in my room. My first stop is the Arc de Triomphe. I remember when I was there last time, it made a great impression on me as I climbed up the stairs from the subway station (mainly because it's so close to the station.) So I thought I knew what I was expecting, except this time is after dark, and my eyes were lighten up when I saw it in a nice golden glow. I must've spent more than half hour, walking around the monument, and taking pictures.

12:00am Eiffel Tower from Trocadero Square
One thing I noticed while circling the Arc de Triomphe was that I could actually see the Eiffel Tower from there; the light show they have on the hour certainly helps getting noticeable from afar. After spending so much time at the Arc de Triomphe, I realized I need to get a good view of the Eiffel Tower for the light show around midnight. (I wasn't sure if there is one at 1am, and I wasn't sure if I want to stay out that late either.) Instead of taking the subway, I decided to walk to the Trocadero Square, thinking I would spend just as much time waiting for subway. The Trocadero Square is probably one of the best place to see the Eiffel Tower from a distance, but really, the tower looks great from any angle (it being symmetrical after all.)

Day One - Meeting Mona Lisa:
Louvre Museum, French Bistro, Arc de Triomphe, and Eiffel Tower

One strange thing my friends and I did last time, was to visit the Louvre Museum without going inside. Well, technically we did go inside, but only for restroom and its bookstore. Because it was a day trip, we didn't really have any time to spend there. I suppose we could just look at Mona Lisa and go, but that seems a little too expensive to do that. So I was quite determined to visit Louvre this time around.

9:30am Louvre Museum They say you could spend days in this museum (which also lead me to think it is dumb to pay full admission to see only the Mona Lisa.) Good thing that I was using a very good guidebook, called Rick Steves' Paris; it highlights the artwork not to be missed there. It also provides very good commentary on each piece of artwork, makes it a bit more interesting for people like me who knows so little about art. Just as the book describes, it might be a little disappointing to see Mona Lisa for the first time; it is smaller than what most people expect, and it is a bit dark. The room where Mona Lisa situated was specifically built for the painting; something about the lighting, I think. It is the room where I spent the most for this visit, not for Mona Lisa, but because I was meeting Aaron there, who just got off the plane that morning. A few of my friends thought it sounds romantic, if only I was meeting a girl. But really, it is the most obvious "landmark" within the museum; they have many signs there, with a picture of the painting, pointing the direction to the room. But by the time Aaron got there, security people started clearing people out of that room, maybe Mona Lisa needed a breather.

12:00pm Lunch at Le Comptoir du Relais While I spent more than enough time looking at Mona Lisa, Aaron didn't get the chance to see it, at least not when he just got there. We figured they would re-open the room a bit later, so we went for lunch in the mean time. I don't usually do a lot of research when it comes to eating; I always think it could get expensive in places where tourists are, and even worse, it takes up time. But Aaron, quite a foodie himself, came fully prepared, having a list of places he wanted to try in his two weeks there. The bistro we ended up going have some tables set up outside. I'm not sure if you can call that patio because it is really taking up the sidewalk of the street. The weather was nice, not too cold or windy, so we chose to sit outside, doing some people-watching in the street of Paris, while having some good southwestern French country fare.

2:00pm Back to Louvre After a nice relaxing lunch break, we went back to Louvre to see some more Mona Lisa and other art works. I am quite impressed by some of those huge paintings, and I like to take pictures of those paintings with people looking at them, to show just how big those paintings are.

4:00pm Back to Arc de Triomphe After spending a couple more hours at the Louvre museum, we went to Arc de Triomphe (again.) All I really wanted to do is to get on top of it, to have a view of Paris. It is kinda neat to see all those streets (12 of them) leading to this great monument, but the view was not as great as I have hoped (I blame it on the overcasted sky.)

6:00pm Back to Eiffel Tower The previous time I was in Paris, I got to the base of the Eiffel Tower, but I didn't get to go up because I had to catch a train back to London; it was such a unfulfilling experience. So this time I made sure I have plenty of time to visit the tower, it did require quite a bit of time, as the line to go up was long. We stopped at all three levels of the tower, spent lots of time on each level, snapping tons of pictures. I agree with the guidebook that the second level provides a nicer view of the city than the other two levels.

Day Two - More Must See Attractions:
Sainte-Chapelle, Notre-Dame, Orsay Museum

On my last day in Paris, I finally got to visit a couple places I had not gone in my previous time; in fact, I had not even heard of them before (goes to show how unprepared I was for my first visit)

9:00am Sainte-Chapelle We went to Sainte-Chapelle first thing in the morning, which is probably not the best time to visit. They say the best time to go is when the sun is bright, with sunlight shining through the stained glasses, lighting up the chapel like a jewel box. But we were there early, and it seemed to be another cloudy day, so there were barely enough light inside the chapel. I guess I would come here again if I have the chance.

10:00am Notre-Dame I have been to the Notre-Dame in my previous visit, but like Eiffel Tower, I didn't get to go up on the tower. Normally there would be a long line to go up, but since we were there early in the morning, it didn't take us long to go up. From the top, it has a great view of the Seine river and the city.

12:30pm Orsay Museum Surprisingly we spent more than two hours in the Notre-Dame area, cutting into our lunch time. We were planning to go to another eatery on Aaron's list, but because I need to leave Paris and head to the airport in the afternoon, we chose to skip lunch and visit one more major attraction, the Orsay Museum. Just like the time at Louvre museum, I followed the tour in the guidebook to see all the major paintings and sculptures. The art works here are definitely modern, as Louvre museum has a more classical collection.

3:30pm Leaving Paris
Having to catch a 6:30pm flight back to Amsterdam, I thought I should have just enough time to get to the airport if I leave Paris before 4pm. Taking the subway again, I got there shortly after 5pm, but there was a problem; the airport got locked down. I never find out what exactly happened, but there were soldiers with heavy weapons guarding the entrances. I didn't worry too much, thinking that even if I missed my flight, the airline should provide some kind of arrangement. After about an hour, they finally re-opened the airport. With everyone and everything rushing inside, I somehow managed to get myself check in at a kiosk fairly quickly. I even somehow got on a priority security check line where I should not have access to (I think the workers there just want to get through this rush of people as fast as possible.) So I ended up being at the gate just when they started boarding. So I had a rather favorable experience at the Paris airport.

MSN Sync from http://www.lightrelay.com/?p=125

For my first weekend trip outside of Netherlands, I thought I should go somewhere close, some place where I can take the train to. It turns out the obvious choice is Brussels in Belgium. I like the idea of going there, since it is not anybody's top choice of European destination, but I didn't know much about Brussels. I only know that it is the capital of European Union. Then someone from the office mentioned that Bruges, a city not far from Brussels, is a popular tourist destination as well. So my plan is to stay in Brussels for the weekend, with a day trip to Bruges. Skimming through some of the guidebooks I got from libraries, they seem to suggest spending one day in each city, so I figured I can just follow the books without much planning.

Day Zero - Train to Brussel-Noord:
Hotel, Grand Place and St Catherine Square

Train ride from Amsterdam to Brussels takes about 2 hours, but the fare was a little more than I expected; just a bit cheaper than plane tickets. I caught a train early in the evening, which is probably the busiest, with many workers going back home for the weekend. But by getting there early, I could do some sightseeing that night.

8:30pm Hilton Brussels City Hotel The Hilton hotel I stayed at is walking distance from the train station. It seemed new, and everything looked great. It doesn't have a lounge like most other Hilton hotels, but it has an area that serves pretty good breakfast.

9:30pm Grand Place and St Catherine Square After wasting a bit of time in the hotel, I headed out to probably the biggest attraction of the city at that moment, the Christmas Market. I had never been to any Christmas Market in Europe. I have heard of them, but I wasn't sure what to expect. For Brussels, their Christmas Market spanned from Grand Place to St Catherine Square (or the Fish Market district.) So when I got there, I was overwhelmed, with tons of people, lots of stalls set up selling food and gifts. And the Grand Place is one of most beautiful squares I've seen. The colors of light they use to impose on the buildings was very impressive. Over at the St Catherine Square, there was a skating rink and a Ferris wheel, with just as many people. Even though it was supposed to be just below freezing point, it felt a lot colder. (And I remember reading reports about Toronto having a warm December.) After spending an hour or so, I figured I don't need to see these places in day light; I can't imagine it being more fun than Christmas Market in night time. Before going back to the hotel, I went to look for a restaurant the book recommends. It is an old restaurant that serves traditional Belgian food, although I can't really tell how is it different from other western food, I enjoyed it nonetheless.

Day One - No trains to Bruges:
EU area, Arcade du Cinquantenaire, St Gilles and Ixelles, and Place Royale

On Saturday, bright and early, 8 in the morning, I walked to the train station I got off the night before, planning to take a train to Bruges. What I saw when I got there, was a small crowd of people standing around outside of entrance to the platforms. The person at the ticket office told me the train operators went on strike for the day, so there won't be any service and they hope it'll resume on Sunday(!) So I had no choice but to go back to my room, and to rethink my plan for the day. My plan for Brussels, originally for Sunday, was to sleep in, relax and just chill out in the Grand Place square or somewhere. But since I was up early already, I thought maybe I should just walk around and explore some of the neighborhoods.

10:00am Subway to EU area I decided to follow a walking tour in the Lonely Planet book. I thought this one is a bit interesting as it includes a little bit of the EU area. But there is really not much to see, other than a few big EU buildings at the beginning of the tour.

11:00am Arcade du Cinquantenaire Another nice place I walked by on this tour is the Cinquantenaire (Golden Jubilee) Park, and there is the Brussels' version of Triumphal Arch. I definitely enjoyed this part of the tour the most, but a big part of this walking tour is the architecture of the Art Nouveau era. I did not even know the term until I first saw it in the Lonely Planet book, and even now, I do not know how I would describe it. It has an nice unique style on the exterior of the building, mostly with the frames and the actual windows or doors. I saw three of those Art Nouveau buildings in this walk.

12:30pm Walking in St Gilles and Ixelles After finishing the walk close to the EU area, I decided to follow another Lonely Planet walk in some residential neighborhood, with even more Art Nouveau buildings. I did this mainly because I wasn't so interested in the main attractions of the city (although I wish I knew about the Atomium.) In the beginning, I had some difficulties recognizing the buildings with Art Nouveau style. I guess as I followed the second walking tour, it gets a little easier for me to spot them. (I have to say Lonely Planet has listed street name and number for those buildings, with great maps for reference.)

3:30pm Place Royale While I was getting to the start of the second walk, I was riding on a streetcar, and we passed by a busy square, with palace and museum surrounding it. Then I realized that is where most other attractions located. So after finishing my second walk (for about two hours), I took a streetcar back to that square area, called Place Royale. There is a few attractions near the square: Palace of Justice, the Royal Palace, and the Royal Museum of Fine Arts. It was getting late, so I didn't get to go inside any of those places, but it is nice to walk around these places, taking some pictures.

6:00pm Back to Grand Place After wandering around in Place Royale area for an hour or so, I started heading back to the Christmas Market in the Grand Place. It's not exactly a short walk, and there is not much to see on the way, other than this little landmark called Manneken Pis. Not really sure what was the big deal about this little fountain sculpture, but many tourists seem to enjoy taking pictures with it. While I was at it, I couldn't resist trying the Belgium Waffle. It really can't go wrong, it gets kinda messy eating it. The main reason for going back to Grand Place is to catch a performance they have on Saturdays during the Christmas Market. This time they have Italian Opera from the balcony of the Town Hall. It was actually a little early when I got to Grand Place, so I went to a small street nearby, called Rue des Bouchers, where they have door to door restaurants. I ended up going to a popular restaurant that is famous for their Belgium mussels. It was a quick meal because I ordered the everyday special: mussels, chips, and beer. After dinner, I went back to the square and watched a bit of Italian Opera. It was another freezing cold night, but it didn't affect the outdoor performance by the singers. This was truly an unique European experience.

Day Two - Trains to Bruges back on:
Belfort and the Markt, the Burg, Rozenhoedkaai, and Biking to Damme

Not entirely sure if there is train service, I went to the train station again the next morning, and I was relieved to learn that service was back on that day. Train ride was about one hour from Brussels to Bruges. While on the train, I was reading the travel guides on Bruges, and one of them highly recommends a bike ride to a village called Damme, not far from Bruges. Since the train station is not exactly in the city, I figured I could use a bike to get to city center, and give myself an option of going to Damme.

10:00am Belfort and the Markt It took me about 15 to 20 minutes to bike from the train station to city center. There is basically two main squares in city center, one is the Market Square (the Markt), and the other is the Burg. Most of the Markt was occupied by their Christmas Market. But I was really early there, so not much was going on. The biggest landmark there is the bell tower (the Belfort) and I climbed its 366 steps to the top, to have a bird's-eye view of Bruges.

11:00am The Burg The other square, the Burg, is just a few steps from the Market Square. The most interesting feature of this square is that you can see different style of buildings in architecture history, all in one place.

12:00pm Rozenhoedkaai Rozenhoedkaai, the quay of the Rosary, has to be the most photographed image in Bruges. I was really on my way to a church and a couple of museums, and only steps away from the Burg, I was pleasantly surprised this beautiful scenery. With the help of a guidebook, I was able to visit several other different places in two hours or so. It was rather rush, but I have decided to bike to Damme, and I wanted to do that and come back before sunset (not too comfortable biking between towns in darkness.) Since day was getting short (pretty dark by 5pm), I needed to go in early afternoon.

3:00pm Biking to Damme I got a map with bicycle routes to the towns near Bruges, even to the extend of borders with Netherlands. I'm not sure if I had bike in a prettier setting than this country side, with trees lined on both sides of a canal. This is the case where the statement, "it is not the destination, it's the journey," applies. (But then of course I was not riding a Harley.) It's about 7km between Bruges and Damme, but I was taking my time biking (and taking pictures). So it took me almost an hour to get to Damme.

4:00pm Damme There is not that much to see in Damme, which is basically a one main street town. One of the more interesting buildings there is this big church with a tower standing next to it. Normally there is no access to the church tower in winter, but they were having some kind of bird-watching event, so I get to go up on the tower, while the people were watching birds with telescopes, I was there to look at the surrounding area with the setting sun.

4:30pm Leaving Damme It was getting a bit later than I wanted, but timing couldn't be any better, to catch last bit of sunset over the canal. There were even some windmills on the way; it feels more like Dutch than Belgian.

5:30pm Back to the Burg and the Markt By the time I got back to Bruges at 5:30pm, it was pretty much all dark already. I took some more pictures of the same places I've been in the morning, had dinner at a restaurant in the Market Square, took a train back to Brussels, where I spent one more night before going back to Amsterdam the next morning.

MSN Sync from http://www.lightrelay.com/?p=124

When I had my first assignment oversea late last year, I flew to Amsterdam a few times, but I didn't see much of Amsterdam. Most of the time, I stayed in another small city, a nice college town, about half hour train ride from Amsterdam airport. I guess early on, I thought I would have plenty of chances to see Amsterdam, but I ended up only spending one weekend walking around in Amsterdam; for most other weekends while I was away from home, I visited other European cities.

Day One:
Stedelijk Museum, Central Library, De Wallen, Zuiderkerk, Waterlooplein and Stopera, Flower Market, Dam Square

12:30pm Restaurant 11 in Stedelijk Museum Unlike most other trips I have, I had a late start this time. I got on the train to Amsterdam a little bit after 10am, and by the time I stepped out of Amsterdam Central train station, it was almost 11am. And because I didn't do enough research ahead of time, I was actually debating with myself where to go while standing outside of the station. So I decided to get lunch in a nearby museum called Stedelijk Museum (mostly modern art). The museum is actually in their temporary location as their actual building is under major renovation. This temporary building used to be a post office built in the 60s, so it fits the modern art quite nicely. There is a restaurant/bar/club establishment called 11, on the top floor (11th floor). When I got out of the elevator, I thought it was a mistake; it looked like a run-down back door entrance to some night club that is closed for day time. I double-checked with my book, and it say they do open for lunch. So I pushed the door open a bit (not so much as a door handle), I peeked inside, and I saw a empty dance floor. Then I thought, ok, if I can't have lunch here, I can at least take some pictures from windows looking out from the top floor. As I walked in, then I realized there was indeed a restaurant at the far end of the dancing hall, with dining tables and a bar. It was pretty quiet with only a handful of people (I guess it was still early for lunch) The food was not bad, and the place is kinda interesting. I guess it is a cool place to be after dark.

1:30pm Central Library In a way I wish I didn't find the restaurant, because there is a even better place for lunch next door. It is the brand new Amsterdam Central Library (I actually recognized the word library in Dutch). They have a nice cafeteria (and a wine bar!) on their top floor. They also have balcony there to get a good view of Amsterdam. The library is huge, and their decor is interesting; at first I was wondering why all their books have this white and orange colors on the binding. Looking closer, it was actually the orange and white LEDs that were installed in between the shelves. (LED is definitely the future of interior design.)

2:00pm Oude Kerk (Old Church) and De Waag (Weigh House) in De Wallen By the time I left the library, it was almost 2pm, and I still hadn't start any sightseeing. There are a few walking tours described in my travel guides, and one advises that day time is best time to walk in the red light district (safer because less drunk people in daytime.) It also advises not to make eye contact with the people behind the window. So following those advices, it was not a bad visit; it was still quiet, and the area is kinda pretty with the 16th-century canals and houses. There is an old church right in the middle of all this, and apparently it is still in use; but it is bizarrely out of place. Near the end of the walk in this area, there is a building called De Waag, literally Weigh House, where they used to weigh people accused of being a witch. (And they get executed if they failed the weigh test) Some interesting history behind this building.

3:00pm Zuiderkerk (South Church) Following the walking tour in Lonely Planet, I stopped by this church called South Church in a neighborhood where Rembrandt used to live. While the church is not a major attraction, it is interesting to see how the city is using it as office and for displaying exhibits.

3:30pm Waterlooplein and Stopera Not far from the South Church, there is a big building complex called Stopera, literally City Hall and Opera house. It is also next to a popular market square Waterlooplein, where I had my first Dutch Fries with Mayonnaise (It was quite good)

4:00pm Bloemenmarkt (Flower Market) and Kalverstraat (Calves Street) The Floating Flower Market sounds more interesting than what it is. While it is true that all stores are "floating" on water, but all of them are securely attached to the canal bank, so you don't really feel floating. In fact, from the front, they look just like any other store on the ground.

5:30pm Dam Square Finishing off the walking tour, I walked by a shopping street called Kalverstraat (Calves Street), and then reached Dam Square, Amsterdam's city center. Understandably it is the main hangout for tourists and locals.

6:00pm Dinner at d'Vijff Vlieghen I made a stop at this restaurant before getting to the Dam. Although it was still early for dinner, I was ready to eat, but the restaurant is not open for dinner yet. They said the night was fully booked, but they said they could accommodate me around 6pm, the time when they start serving dinner. The restaurant is a bit tourisy, and kinda expensive with the chef's menu, but it's all good. Some of the courses were uniquely Dutch (Pancake and Croquette) and its Dutch Interior looks very nice.

Day Two:
Jordaan Neighborhood, Vondelpark, Van Gogh Museum, Anne Frank House

A friend of mine mentioned to me that he knows someone running a Chinese church service in Amsterdam, and I did find some info online. So the next day I got up earlier, and made it to the location where I thought the church service would be shortly after 9am. But there was no one there. So I walked around in that area, which is residential in the outskirts of Amsterdam. After waiting for a while, a car pulled up in front of the place. I went up to the woman, who was unloading stuff from her car, and asked her if there is a Chinese church service. She said they no longer meet here, and offered to help me to contact the pastor. Since it would have been too late anyway, I declined and thanked her. So I ended up with a little more time to do some more sightseeing that day.

11:00am Prinsengracht (Prince's Canal) and Westerkerk (West Church) Following another walk from a travel guide, I walked to a neighborhood called Jordaan. It is a much nicer looking area, more an upper class neighborhood. The weather was beautiful, a good change from the morning and the day before. There are a few nice churches in this area, but the biggest attraction in this area is the Anne Frank Museum. There was a long line up when I got there, so I decided to come back later on that day, hoping for less people by then. Supposed there are some good restaurants for lunch, but they don't open on Sundays. I ended up going to a Dutch Pancake house. Not counting the little one I had the night before, this is the only time I had Dutch Pancake in Netherlands (because it's really quite similar to pizza, except it's in crepe)

1:30pm Vondelpark Continuing on the walk, I passed by some more residential area, and a nice big park called Vondelpark, kinda like Amsterdam's Central Park. It was cold and wet when I was there, but I'm sure it's nice to visit this park in warmer seasons.

2:00pm Van Gogh Museum Museumplein marks the end of my walk (in this one direction anyway.) It is really a big area with 4 museums. Of the four, one is for modern art (it was under renovation and had relocated at the temporary location where I had lunch the day before); one is the National Museum for more traditional art (also under renovation, but kept one small area to display the best of its collection); the third one is the Diamond Museum; and the last one is the Van Gogh Museum, the only one I visited on this day (although I did have a chance to visit the National Museum a couple months later.) Van Gogh Museum building itself is not too interesting, but the paintings were impressive. They also have tons of information about Van Gogh in audio guide and on display. It's too bad photography is not allowed there.

4:30pm Anne Frank House After the Van Gogh Museum, I went back pretty much the same way, to visit the Anne Frank Museum. Before going to Amsterdam, I had no idea who Anne Frank Museum. When I told my barber, who is Jewish originally from London, that I was going to Amsterdam, he asked me if I was going to visit Anne Frank Museum. That is the first time I heard of it. Actually, I probably have heard of the book that is a compilation of diaries of this little Jewish girl in WWII. I just didn't know it was taken place in Amsterdam. It was certainly an unique experience, and well worth a visit.

6:00pm Chinatown After another long day of sightseeing, I wasn't in the mood of spending a couple hours in a typical restaurant. So I tried one of the Chinese restaurants in the Chinatown, which is basically on this one street. It's not big, but I've seen smaller Chinatown, so it's not too bad. I had Wonton and BBQ pork in noodle soup at this Nam Kee BBQ. It was quite good. I actually came back to this same place a couple more times after.

At that time, I thought I would come back to Amsterdam for more weekends; little did I know that I would start a blitz of visiting other cities in Europe.

MSN Sync from http://www.lightrelay.com/?p=123

www.flickr.com View as slideshow The very first thing we decided during planning is destination, which is Prague. Then next thing we figured out is the flights. We figured we can be a little flexible on the dates (that was 4 months ahead) and we knew it should be open-jaw ticket (no point going full cycle back to Prague) and we also know we would be going west (Prague is enough Eastern Europe experience for us the first time.) Soon it became clear that Munich would be a good final destination, about the right distance from Prague with Austria in between. And then we switched it around, landing Munich first and having Prague as final destination, mainly because there is more direct flights from Toronto to Munich (I would hate to miss connecting flights at the beginning of the trip; not so much for coming back home.) Even though we didn't choose to visit Munich until we bought air tickets, I think we enjoyed the time there better than Salzburg or Vienna. Unlike most other places we visited, we stayed in a hotel that is in a suburb of a big city. The hotel is actually in a business office park, with people driving to work or taking the bus; so it feels very much like North America. To get there from the airport, we figured it would be best to take airport express train to a station close to the hotel, and then take a short taxi ride. It worked out very well, even though there were only a handful of people in the small station we got off. Language wasn't a huge issue, as a lot of people there know some English. Being in a business park, the hotel is designed mainly for business people, but it was quite new and we got a good rate. The only issue is to get to city center; it requires a 20 min bus ride, and then about 10 min subway. All in all, it wasn't too bad, and I would recommend this hotel, but only if they offer this good rate again. Munich is where we had our only fine dining of the whole trip. It kinda happened by mistake; the book suggests a cafe that is on ground level of a department store, but the department store was actually closed by the time we got there, and only the restaurant upstairs was open. I knew even the cafe was supposed to be a little more expensive, and so when I took a quick glance of the restaurant menu, the price didn't jump out at me like it should. So we proceeded to get our table, and then of course by then it was too late to turn back. We figured we might as well enjoy the meal, got some wine, and ordered full 3 courses dinner. The restaurant was quite nice, this being fine dining after all. The food was good, but we all agreed desserts were outstanding. In the end, after paying the bill, we knew we could not afford another fine dining in this trip. Hence we ended up mostly looking for cheap eateries, just to keep it closer to our budget. Here is the list of places we visited in Munich: Hofbräuhaus am Platzl (Beer Hall, reviewed in all books) - one book says it's the world's most famous beer hall. It is a huge beer hall, with tons of people (both locals and tourists), and a brass band playing music; a real festival atmosphere. Of course beer was good, and they serve some inexpensive food, like pork knuckle. Restaurant Dallmayr (Continental, reviewed in Frommers) - this is where we had the fancy dinner. I think Frommers is mistaken to state two $$ for the price. Sushi & Soul (Japanese, reviewed in Frommers) - cool looking place, and we got a good deal for early-bird dinner. Food was ok, except everything seemed salty, including sushi rice itself. Maybe that's how the locals like it. MSN Sync from http://www.lightrelay.com/?p=122