Paris: Bakeries, Towers, Paintings, Presidents…..and Excrement

I’ve always been somewhat skeptical of Paris. I’m not sure exactly why. Perhaps it’s because I kept hearing how awesome it was. You know when people keep telling you a movie or food is unbelievably awesome, and when you finally try it, it doesn’t live up to the hype? That’s what I was afraid of happening in Paris.

The final stop on our mini-European tour with my in-laws was 2 nights in Paris. Not a whole lot of time to see the city, but enough to get a taste. And that taste confirmed something: I’m an idiot for being skeptical. Paris is amazing.

Of course, we saw the normal tourist things, such as the Eifel Tower, the Louvre (and the Mona Lisa), the Arc de Triomphe, Notre Dame, and the Champs Elysees. Those were great, but it was just exploring the city that made me love Paris even more.

One night, we had heard of a wine festival that was going on in the Montmatre district, so we headed up there. We never did find the festival, but that area was so alive with restaurants, shops, theaters, and people! They were everywhere, even though the weather wasn’t great. They weren’t buzzing about in the way that Londoners do, but rather just walking around enjoying themselves. As we walked down a street and turned a corner, I was blinded by the red neon of the Moulin Rouge.

On our second day, as we explored the area around our hotel, we came upon a candy shop, and went inside. It turns out that this particular candy shop was A la Mere de Famille, a family-run candy shop that has been in business since 1761, at the same location.

On our last day, we attended the “International mass” at Notre Dame. It featured a grand total of 2 readings in English. The rest of the mass was in French. Not very international if you ask me. From there, we wandered around Paris for a few hours, killing time until our train departed. We somehow made it to the Musee D’Orsay, and the wonderfully unique fountain outside.

My father-in-law and I noticed a number of French military men with large semi-automatic guns wandering the street and giving everyone the once-over. We had seen other military like this at the Eifel Tower and at Charles de Galle airport, but they seemed very out of place here in the square in front of the museum. We were on a pedestrian-only street, but there was a car parked in front of us. Out of the building next to the parked car came another military man, carrying a small white furry puppy. As we walked past, I could see an older man in a suit, and an older woman very nicely dressed, being escorted out of the building. The man looked familiar. As I watched him get into the back seat of the car, I realized that it was former French President Jacques Chirac. 3 days in Paris, and I was already closer to a French President than 30 years living in the US had got me to an American President.

After grabbing our bags from our hotel, we made the 10 minute walk to Gare du Nord Station for our train. We had heard that this particular station isn’t in the nicest area of town, but had had no problems on our arrival. As we neared the station, my wife noticed a woman squatting down in the middle of the sidewalk. Taking a crap. Again, she was doing this in the middle of a very busy sidewalk, and nobody seemed to care. A few feet further up the street, I noticed a man relieving himself against the side of an open magazine stand. Now, living in Amsterdam, I’m no stranger to seeing men urinate on the street. Usually, they try to find a canal or a private corner, but this guy was surrounded by people walking to and from the station. Again, nobody cared. At least it was a rather unique way to end our Paris trip.

Knowing that Paris is only a few short hours away by train, I definitely want to go back, especially in the spring. I wouldn’t mind going back around Christmas either. It’s a beautiful city, and the French were nothing but polite and friendly to us the entire time. Don’t be like me and delay visiting the city. Go now. It’s worth it.

 

Budapest, Hungary

With some extra vacation days to use, and KLM offering an inexpensive vakantie deal, we found ourselves in Budapest for 4 nights last week. Budapest is known as one of the prettiest cities in Europe, and it did not disappoint. I’m ashamed to admit that up until a few years ago, I had no clue what country Budapest was located in. It sounded to me like it should be near Istanbul. Regardless, after learning about the history of Budapest (and Hungary), I’m amazed at how well the city looks.

The history of Hungary is sad. It was ruled by the Turks for many years before the Austrian Habsburgs drove them out. The Habsburgs initially promised simply to rid Hungary of the Turks, but evidently they liked the country so much they decided to stay as an occupying force. After being on the losing end of World War 1, Hungary lost 70% of its territory. It quickly fell to the Germans, and Budapest suffered heavy losses during WWII, including all of the bridges over the Danube. After the war was over, Hungary became a part of the Eastern Bloc of Soviet-controlled countries. In 1989, Hungary finally broke free of their Soviet masters, and the country has been flourishing as an independent nation ever since.

Most of the bridges over the Danube have been re-built in their original style, leading to a very pretty waterfront area. Budapest was formed by combining several cities, among them Buda and Pest. Buda is the hilly side of the Danube, and Pest is the flat side. Buda contains more historical sights, while Pest is the more modern side, with the majority of the hotels, shops, and attractions.

A statue, in front of the Elizabeth bridge.

Parliament, on the Danube

Parliament

The Royal Palace

Hero's Square

While under Soviet rule, some Hungarians rebelled in 1956. They took a Hungarian flag, complete with a communist coat of arms in the middle, and cut out the communist symbol. The flag with a hole in it became the symbol of the revolution. It was ultimately unsuccessful, but the flag is still a source of Hungarian pride to this day.

I won’t lie, certain parts of Budapest reminded me of the movie EuroTrip’s portrayal of Bratislava, complete with people bathing themselves in the street. I guess you can’t expect an entire city to rebound from years of communist rule in just over 20 years. Look how long it has taken Berlin. Most of Budapest is pretty, but it really shines when the sun goes down.

The Chain Bridge

The Chain Bridge, with Castle Hill in the background

All in all, we definitely enjoyed our trip to Budapest, despite me leaving a bag containing our iPad and my Nikon Digital SLR camera in the taxi on the first night. We got it back the next day, but it could have started our vacation out on a disastrous note. As it was, it was a lot of fun, and we get to check another city off of my Travels & Plans list.

 

Nijmegen

Roxy will be starting a new job in a month, and will lose her travelcard at the end of her current job. With that in mind, we decided to take advantage of the nice weather this weekend and travel somewhere in the Netherlands. Our goal was Maastricht, but trains were taking 45 minutes longer than normal, so instead we decided to visit Nijmegen.

Nijmegen is close to the German border, and is considered the oldest city in the Netherlands. It was founded in the year 5 a.d, and was a part of the Roman empire back in the day. Nijmegen was the first Dutch city to fall to the Germans during WWII, and had the misfortune of being bombed twice, once by the Germans, and once by American pilots who thought it was a German city. As a result, much of the city center was destroyed. Much has been re-built, and other buildings were built to look old. As a result, the city center still has an old feel, with narrow streets and buildings almost right on top of each other.

There’s a very nice park near the train station with remnants of the old city wall and tower, as well as a nice pond.

While wandering down a road, we found a port to the river that was built in the 15th century.

It seems like every city in the Netherlands (except Amsterdam) has a main square called the Grote Markt, and Nijmegen was no exception. It was full of bars. We had read that Nijmegen has more bars per citizen than any other city in the Netherlands.

Finally, our walk around the city ended in a park near the riverfront. It had a small chapel, and the remnants of an old ruined church. And, just to be random, a wooden bunny that you could go into (for a fee of course).

 

Photos: Kasteel De Haar

Kasteel De Haar (De Haar Castle) is the largest castle in the Netherlands. Despite the forecast for rain, we hopped onto the train to Utrecht, and made our way to the castle. While it wasn’t the most beautiful day, the rain did stay away, and the sun even peaked out for a bit. I had intended to bring my DSLR camera, but with the forecast of rain, I decided to stick with my iPhone, and my favorite photo-taking app. Photos were not allowed inside the castle, so the images below are from our walk to the castle, and around the castle grounds.

The tour was conducted in Dutch, but English audio-guides are available. Two interesting facts about the castle: 1) It is privately owned, and every September the owners close the castle to visitors and hold huge parties and events there for a month. 2) Some of the rooms featured spikes hanging from the ceiling. It was thought that when ghosts came out at night, their flowing white gowns would get caught on these spikes. The ghosts would then be trapped until daybreak, when they would turn into dust.

If you have the time, I recommend making the trip. We found the castle much more interesting than the over-hyped Schloss Neuschwanstein in Germany.

The road to the castle.

The Castle, as seen from the road

The castle gate

The castle, as seen from the rose garden

Behind the iron gates at the front door

Cool door-knocker

The front door

 

Koninginnedag 2011

Every blog having anything to do with the Netherlands has already covered Koninginnedag, but I’ll throw my 2 cents in anyway, just in case there is anyone reading this who is unfamiliar with this Dutch holiday.

Koninginnedag (pronounced: Co-ning-INN-ah-dach), or “Queen’s Day”, is the celebration of the Queen’s “official” birthday. I say “official” because it isn’t really her birthday, it’s her mother’s birthday. Queen Beatrix was born in January, but that time of the year does not lend itself to an outdoor festival, so she celebrates her “official” birthday on the day of her mother’s (the former Queen Juliana). Since the Dutch royal family is part of the House of Orange-Nassau, everyone dresses up in the color orange and throws a big giant party. The nice thing about Koninginnedag is that its a party for everyone. From ages of 1-month to 100 years old, everybody goes outside and celebrates being Dutch. If I had to compare it to something in the US, it would be Mardi Gras plus the 4th of July.

The festivities around town consist of the “Vrijmarkt”s, concerts, canal parades, and children’s performances. In the Netherlands, you must have a permit to sell anything. This pretty much means nobody holds Yard Sales, since the cost of the permit would eat up any profits from the sale. However, on Queen’s Day, no permits are needed, so the Dutch go into their basements, pull out all the junk they’ve accumulated, and sell it on the street (or in Vondelpark, which is more geared towards children’s items). They also sell homemade food and drinks, bottles of soda and beer, and anything they think will make them a profit.

Throughout the city, stages are set up in the various “plein”s (squares), and bands or DJs entertain the crowd. Radio 538 set up a huge stage in Museumplein, and featured various bands as well as some well known DJs. Marie Heinekenplein, Leidseplein, and Dam Square also hold large gatherings. Here’s a quick video I took of Leidseplein, as well as some pictures around Museumplein.

The crowd in front of the Concert Gebouw (Concert Hall)

People listening to the music in Museumplein. You can see the stage in the top-left above the Van Gogh Museum.

We walked around and took in the sights from about 10am until 7pm. Most outdoor events stop by 8pm, and the parties move inside. All in all, it was quite a sight to behold, and I’m already looking forward to next year.

 

Easter & Amsterdamse Bos

Thanks to my schedule being based off of German holidays in Hamburg, I had a 4 day weekend for Easter. Friday and Saturday were spent running errands, getting ready for Easter, and having a few drinks in Rembrantplein with friends.

Sunday, Roxy’s colleague and cousin both came over to eat. Her colleague is from Germany, and brought us wine and a German plum liquor. After the wine, beer, and liquor were exhausted, we found the closest open Albert Heijn and made a quick trip. Churchill got his first experience running alongside us while we rode our bikes. A 12-pack of Heineken later, we were back in business.

Today we decided to enjoy the beautiful weather Amsterdam was having, and take a long bike ride to Het Amsterdamse Bos (The Amsterdam Forest). From our apartment on Cruquiuseiland, the Bos is about 10km. The journey took us through Oosterpark (Eastern Park) and Sarphatipark, and past Olympic Stadium.

The forest is actually man-made (it was planned and planted many years ago), so it’s very nicely laid out. There are bike paths, walking paths, water, and grassy areas everywhere. As we rode through the park in the shade of the trees, we would frequently emerge into a small open field filled with people laying on towels, enjoying the sun.

There is water running throughout the area, and a large lake filled with people swimming, playing, and boating. Roxy and I decided to come back later in the year on a nice day and hop in the water.

On the way home, we passed over the Amstel River, which was filled with boats. I took this shot over my shoulder while riding my bike, so you can’t see most of the boats, but it should give you an idea. Afterwards we stopped at a coffee house for a quick snack.

Once we got home, we decided that Churchill shouldn’t be left out of the day in the sun, so we took him to Flevopark. It was too crowded to let him off his leash, but we sat on a bench for a while and let him enjoy the day. We talked about the sheer number of people out in the parks today just enjoying themselves. It’s something we never saw in St. Louis. Sure, there would be people having picnics or playing sports in the park, but those were generally organized activities. It was rare to see people just literally enjoying the park as a family. It’s very nice to see people do that here. I guess back in St. Louis, almost everyone has a backyard, whereas that’s rare here, so the park has to be used as your own backyard. Still an interesting sight to see.

 

Photo Post: Hipstamatic Goes for a Ride

To enjoy today’s beautiful weather, I hopped op mijn fiets and went for a ride. I’m currently sitting on the couch next to Churchill giving my legs a rest, but shortly we’ll be heading to Flevopark for a nice long walk.

This bridge is interesting. It’s for bikes and pedestrians only. From the air, it looks like an X, as the 2 paths (1 for bikes, 1 for people) come together in the middle, and then split apart into a ramp for the bikes and a stairway for people.

 

Photos: KNSM Eiland

During my lunch hour today, I decided that because of the beautiful weather, it would be a crime to stay at home. So I hopped on my bike, opened up the new Hipstamatic app that I downloaded to my iPhone, and rode to KNSM Island. I hope you enjoy the journey.

Op mijn fiets / On my bike.

KNSM Eiland / KNSM Island

De brug naar KNSM / The bridge to KNSM

Unieke deur / Unique door

Picknickplaats op het dock / Picnic spot on the dock.

Mooie versieringen op een gebouw / Pretty decorations on a building

Van de andere kant / From the other side

Fietspad symbool / Bike path symbol

Interessante brug / Interesting bridge

 

Trippin’

In a little over a week, my parents will be arriving for their first visit to Amsterdam, and 2nd visit to Europe. I’m very excited to show them around our new home. Besides Amsterdam, we’re also going to spend a few days in Rome with them, and maybe take a day trip to Florence.

Italy is a special destination for me, since a) it’s where I spent my honeymoon, and b) it was my first trip to Europe. On our honeymoon, we spent a week on the Isle of Capri, and took day trips into Naples, Amalfi, Positano, Anacapri, and a number of other little cities. After that first week, we spent a few days in Sorrento, and then a few more in Rome. We hiked up Vesuvius, wandered the ruins of Pompeii, and ate more gelato than any 2 people reasonably should.

While this upcoming trip won’t take us back to the Amalfi Coast, it did get me looking through my old photos, and looking forward to visiting the Eternal City again. Below are a just a few of the several thousand pictures my wife and I took during our 2 weeks in Italy.

1) Arco Naturale: Upon making the looooooong journey to Capri (St. Louis -> Chicago -> Munich -> Naples -> Ferry to Capri), we took a quick nap in our hotel room. From there, we headed out to the streets to check out the island. With no plan, we just started wandering, and eventually spotted small signs with arrows leading us to Arco Naturale. Not having heard of it, we just decided to go. About a 30 minute walk later, we arrived at a beautiful natural archway looking down over the Mediterranean. We just sat there admiring it for ages, thinking this was what a honeymoon was supposed to be like.

2) The Amalfi Coast: This has to be one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen in my life. Extremely hilly, but covered in green, there are a number of small towns that seemingly cling to life against the cliffs overlooking the Mediterranean. Positano was my wife’s favorite, but I like this picture of the town of Amalfi.

3) Trevi Fountain: Legend holds that if you throw 1 coin into Trevi, you will be destined to return to Rome. 2 coins means you will find your true love, and 3 coins means you will marry them. Needless to say, being on our honeymoon, we each only threw 1 coin into the fountain. Looks like the legend holds, as we will be returning to Rome only 4 short years since we last visited.

4) The Vatican: Everybody knows about the Vatican, and has seen pictures of St. Peter’s and the Sistine Chapel. No need to rehash that here. Instead, I’m fond of this picture of Ponte Sant’Angelo, a bridge built a little after 400 AD that lead people into the Vatican.

5) Rome: I don’t exactly know where this picture was taken, since Rome seems to have about 500 of these obelisks, but I think it’s a cool picture nonetheless. This could be Piazza Navona, or the square in front of the President’s house. Who knows?

 

Spuistraat

This afternoon, I braved the rain and mist to head into the Centrum to visit 2 beer stores: De Bierkoning, and the Cracked Kettle. Each store stocks over 1,000 types of beer from around the world. Luckily, they’re only a short walk from each other, both off the same street: Spuistraat.

After purchasing several beers at De Bierkoning, I started walking towards the Cracked Kettle. At this point, I should tell you that I’ve never been a big fan of the idea of living in the Centrum. To me, the Centrum is all about tourists, bars, souvineer shops, red light windows, and of course, coffeeshops. While much of it is dedicated to those things, there are plenty of areas where the tourists don’t really go. Spuistraat seems to be one of those. It was not crowded on a Saturday afternoon, despite being very close to Dam Square. The street was lined with small clothing boutiques, a few little cafes, and some art galleries. Even the buildings themselves were interesting:

We are currently halfway through the 1-year lease on our apartment, and will definitely be moving when the time comes. Previously, I had limited my interest to the Jordaan and De Pijp neighborhoods, but I think I may cautiously start paying attention to apartments in the Centrum.

Oh, and in case you’re wondering, here are my purchases from the beer stores. The 2 German beers are for for my wife’s cousin, who is staying with us. The 2 fruit beers are for my wife, and the rest of the beers are for me.

From L to R – Mongozo Banana, Westmalle Dubbel, Texelse Winterbier, Weihenstephaner Tradition Bayrisch Dunkel, St. Peter’s Irish Cream Stout, a Westmalle gobblet, Newcastle Brown Ale, Hallerndorfer Hausbrauerbier, Ter Dolen Kriek, and 2 Rochefort Trappistes #6s.