Articles from this Category
26 July 2014
Breakfast today comprised of pastries and coffee on a litter-strewn pedestrian mall not far from the hotel. The surrounding area had been cleaned up since last night but the area where we had seated ourselves was still waiting to be done. We took the metro then train to Antwerp. We had bought ourselves a return […]
25 July 2014
We did a trip to Ghent today. Some people recommended staying at Ghent but because Belgium is quite compact, we figured it is easier to not move around too much with luggage and stay for four nights in Brussels. We opted for a hotel buffet breakfast before heading out. It was served on the 9th […]
24 July 2014
Our Brugge hotel had a rather early standard check-out time of 1030 which gave us just enough time to pack up after breakfast. We walked across Market Square to catch the bus to the railway station where we caught the train to Brussels, the capital of the EU and also Belgium. The journey was slightly […]
23 July 2014
We explored Brugge today, largely by foot. Our hotel was near Market Square and we started the day’s exploration there. The markets were in full swing, unlike yesterday evening when the place was rather quiet. We got some fruits and continued our walk admiring the Belfort (belfry) and the buildings around the square. At Burg […]
22 July 2014
We left Downham Market about 0845 bound for Brugge. If we hadn’t analysed it, we would have returned our Hertz car to Heathrow, then take the tube to St Pancras to connect with the Eurostar to Brussels where we would change for Brugge. Instead, we returned the car to Cambridge at no surcharge, and took […]
4 August 2011
I had to wake up at 0340 for a 0400 pickup, in time for an 0600 flight from Nene Tereza airport in Tirana, to Munich. But my subconscious kicked in too effectively and woke me at 0230. Upon arrival in Munich at 0750I had a short wait before taking the train to Salzburg across the […]
27 July 2011
I met Nicole for breakfast today; we had studied Thai Masage in Bangkok together and stayed at the some hotel. It was lovely to see her again and the venue was very atmospheric at Mariandl Pension’s cafe called Cafe am Beethovenplatz. It was a nice old building with an outdoor section. I had enough time […]
26 July 2011
After a two-night stay in Downham Market with my brother-in-law, I have an evening flight to Munich for a 22h nightstop. Lufthansa like most good old-fashioned airlines consider any flight connection less than 24h to be a transit (rather than a stopover) and is free-of-charge … anything longer is only permitted on a more expensive […]
21 September 2009
Above: View from Belle Ville Park shows the Paris skyline including the Eiffel Tower. I thought revisit Sacre Coeur today but Marie took me for another “real Paris” outing. We took the bus to Belle Ville park in the northeast and walked back down. The walk back down was a mix of African, Asian and […]
19 September 2009
This morning Marie took me to the northern part of Paris around Gare du Nord (the northern railway station). The area is a hotchpotch of people from Africa, Middle East and the Indian Subcontinent living in more rundown conditions than the Paris we know and love. The markets were incredible and far cheaper than in […]