Antwerpen/Amsterdam

I have finally made it to the last leg of my journey!

After Cologne, Miles and I took a 6am train to Antwerpen (it was the only last minute train we could get for under 100 euro)! We were so exhausted, but so ready to have made it successfully onto the train. There was however, a moment of panic when we realized that our printed tickets were only to Brussels! After, some stress, ques, and pointing we discovered that open ended tickets to Antwerp were included.


So relieved to be on the train to Antwerp, at last!

We arrived and I was amazed at my ability to successfully bring us to St. Jansplein (where my Uncle and Oma live) without incident...though the ice and suitcases did not make friends.
Despite our timely arrival, the rest of the family were not at home due to some expected and unexpected circumstances. Nonetheless, it was so great to finally be able to settle in for a little bit.


The Antwerp train station, listed among the most beautiful in the world! It's true...and I should have taken more pictures.


The Grote Markt---shown are the guild houses


Miles in front of the statue of Brabo, the hero of the Antwerp who cut the hand off of the toll collecting giant. The name Antwerpen means 'hand-throwing'




I'm not going to lie, I ate a lot of fries! And they were fabulous, every time.
Behind me is the Cathedral of Our Lady (which we did not go into because they charge...which is preposterous anyway)


We went to Desire de Lille...it was fabulous. Belgian waffle, of course.


Panakuken- the Belgian take on the crepe or the pancake...sort of both but different. I think they are fabulous. Tender, moist, and a little chewy. This one was great but, I think lemon and sugar are my favorite toppings!

We stayed in Belgium for about a week, exploring the city, being lazy, and eating!!!
We also went to Amsterdam for New Years Eve to meet up with my lovely friend Hannah!



We were only in Amsterdam for a day, over a holiday, so we sort of missed out. Still it was cool to experience it---I didn't anticipate it being as typical as everyone says, but it was!

Also, I booked our hostel for the wrong date and we were homeless! Luckily, Hannah and her friends let us stay with them at their lovely hostel for FREE! Lovely is a loose term, free was really the only thing lovely about it!



These photos should describe what the entire hostel looked like! Not to mention the bugs and potential blood stains on the mattress...but that's another story!

Amsterdam hosted the biggest fireworks display in the world this past New Years Eve and if you were watching the countdown on TV, you definitely saw us standing in the crowd! Cool, huh? No pictures though, don't ask me why!




Trash littered the canals and streets New Years Day


Beautiful swans in the red light district

I have been extremely busy lately with a new serving job in Brevard, applying for grad school and/or a fellowship with this organization. I can't seem to get my schedule settled and my to do list is a mile long!!! I promise that clothes pics will come soon (when I am finished battling my camera). Also, my after-work motivation is at an all time low! Wish me luck.

Cologne, Koln, or the City of a Million Names?

Cologne!!!
What a wonderful city.
Maybe it was that we were relieved of the worry of 6 am flights
No longer did I have to attempt to speak Italian-Spanish
Or just that the city seemed vaguely familiar and unusually manageable...
Whatever it was, I can say that Miles and I both fell in love with Germany!


Nogger ice cream bar; which also became an insult. Example: I wish that you would stop being such a nogger today.

Upon arrival at the airport, we boarded a slightly confusing train into the city. All went well, until that unavoidable moment of uncertainty, "should we get off here?!?", "Well, how would I know? Maybe!"...."Get off, HURRY!"

And we got off... to discover a beautifully snowy little city!
Which probably would have been ideal had Miles not been dragging my 40lbs. suitcase through snow drifts. Luckily, after 10 blocks or so we located the hotel which was not a disappointment (well, except for the 10 flights of stairs my suitcase had to travel...thx Walt)!


A Metro view of the Rhine

We learned our lesson in Italy, so this time we did some research which really did pay off!
We hopped on the Metro, that employs an honor system for payment (an added complication for weary tourists), and headed downtown. We trekked around in the snow, enjoying the Christmas decorations that were still up.
Starving and ready for the German beer, we headed to El Gaucho, an Argentinian restaurant that received incredible reviews. We found it, got a table without a reservation, AND sat a table away from the gaucho, I call that success! The gaucho is the proprietor of the restaurant and actually wears a gaucho costume---I was hoping to impress him with my sweet Spanish skillz, but alas he did not come visit us! However, we both agree that we received the best steak and potato of our LIVES! This is no exaggeration, I have never tasted something so tender, juicy, and seasoned to perfection. I still think about it longingly, not to mention the Gaffel Kolsch which just tastes better in Germany than in the US of A.


Kölner Dom or High Cathedral of of Saints Peter and Mary

The famous cathedral in Cologne, which survived the bombings during WWII
It really was beautiful and a unique experience because both my grandfather and Miles' had been in Cologne during WWII. His as a soldier, living in the Cathedral and mine as a child visiting with a Nazi soldier, who had occupied their home in Belgium during the war.





One of the most beautiful and simple stained glass windows I have ever seen. Just colored squares!





After rushing around to see all of the sites in Rome, it was so nice to just relax and have no schedule in Cologne! There were some things that I wish we had gotten to do however, the holidays complicated some of those. My friend Irena, who is from Cologne, recommended the Lindt chocolate factory and the museum of Roman history. So, if you're in Koln, check them out!

Next up, Antwerp!

Roma

Shall we continue our trip back in time?

Miles and I left Venice on an early morning flight--So early that we were at the bus stop by 5:30 to get to the airport.  I, being the panicked, worry-wart that I was, slept restlessly in anticipation of all that could go wrong!  Miraculously, we made it to the airport, checked in my bag (without weight complications), and enjoyed a VERY comfortable EasyJet flight.  

Then we were in Rome!!!

For Christmas, no less

Upon our arrival things began to be less than perfect.  We were stopped by police in the train station, who demanded our passports (not a huge deal).  Tickets were purchased without incident and we settled into our seats on the Leonardo Express, an overpriced direct train into the center of Rome.  While reading the tickets, Miles realized that they needed to be validated;  I waited on the train while he dashed off to fix the problem.  Shortly thereafter, the train door shut and it began moving.  I freaked and began searching for Miles outside, unable to see him.  I turned the corner to return to my seat, only to see Miles entering the train car!  He ran the length of the train and somehow made it on before it left the station!  To continue the complications, the metro station was a nightmare of steps and we had serious hotel address complications.  Needless to say, we didn't accomplish anything the rest of the day!

The Coliseum was so very close to our hotel, which was in Piazza Vittorio Emmanuel II

 

Arch of Constantine, near the Colosseum

This is why you don't visit Europe in December, not to mention all the rain!!! We were soaked the whole time.

Speaking of rain, we were obligated to duck into cafes.  This one, San Eustachio, is known to make one of the best espressos in the world.  We had cappuccinos, as you can see below.  A Belgian dip anyone?

Me at the Vatican before going to the Vatican Museum

Miles was very sneaky and took pictures of the Sistine Chapel without being caught! Lucky us.

Trevi Fountain!  Don't worry, we threw in our coins the proper way and are waiting to return to Roma!  Did I mention we were soaked at this point, it was Christmas Eve, and the awesome little restaurant we planned to go to just closed?  It turned out fine in the end!

Some ruins in the middle of the city, in typical Roman fashion!

I don't like this picture, but it's Miles' favorite and pretty funny I suppose.  Apparently, this is my highly annoyed face!

We spent Christmas seeing the sites and watching lots of childhood Christmas movies.
(mostly, avoiding the rain)

It was amazing to be in Rome because there is so much to see and experience.  Unfortunately, we were competing with limited time, the holidays, and poor weather.  Next time, huh?

So, this was the longest post ever!!! Next stop, Cologne!