Cuz We Said So

Europe 2010, Day 14: Brussels

As planned, the centerpiece of our second and final day in Brussels was a bus tour of the city, which highlighting many buildings tied to the cities long history and its more recent role in European politics.  I thought by far the most entertaining part of the trip, however, was the stop at the Atomium, a unique structure built 52 years ago for the Brussels World's Fair.  Inside is a retrospective of the “world of the future” display from the fair, which showcased advanced technologies and materials (like Formica), a snack bar that served up some seriously tasty waffles (with ice cream), and an observation deck in the topmost sphere.  All very retro.

Europe 2010, Day 13: Brussels

Ah, another day, another high-speed dash across France… I could definitely get used to living like this, though being on the go for so many days at a stretch does get tiring.  Count me as a new fan on Thalys, the national Belgian rail carrier, which in addition to having a terribly fancy first class cabin has onboard power and free Wi-Fi.

We took it easy on our first of two days in Brussels, finding our hotel, just across the street from the Bourse, then walking the block to the Grand Place for dinner.  A visit to Belgian waffle stand nearby and a visit to chocolatier Leonidas rounded out the afternoon.  Next up on the agenda: power nap.  Tomorrow: a tour of the city before heading back to Paris for one last full day in Europe.

Europe 2010, Day 12: Nantes

Most of today was dedicated to travel, as we sprinted from Berlin in eastern Germany last night to western France this afternoon.  As we passed through Paris, we rendezvoused with my friend Daniel, who by chance was in England on business, then continued on to scenic Nantes to catch the Jean-Michel Jarre concert that was the original motivation for the whole trip.

Jarre is an electronic musician who is very popular here in Europe, particularly his native France, though relatively few people in the US have heard of him.  It was Daniel that first introduced me to his music, way back in grade school, and it has been more than 20 years since I've seen Jarre live, so it was a great opportunity.  The concert itself was an amazing; Jarre is quite the showman, and with a history of staging large scale laser-light spectacles in outdoor venues, the man knows how to play a gig.

 

 

Europe 2010, Day 11: Berlin

Today we visited the Reichstag. It was quite a wait to get in-security- -but worth it to see Berlins from (architect's) glass dome. From there we crossed into what was once East Germany; the wall is almost entirely gone today. but its former path is marked on the ground by a line of stones.

 

Following the wall, we came to the Brandenburg Gate, the Holocaust Memorial, a display of segments of the Wall (where you could get your passport stumped as was once required to enter the DDR) and finally the site of Checkpoint Charlie, home to a museum dedicated to those who escaped the Soviets over the Wall, and to those who tried and failed.

A quick U-bahn ride and a short walk brought us back to the Hauptbanhof and our night train to Mannheim, where we'll catch the connection to Paris and points West.

 

 

Europe 2010, Day 10: Berlin

Another night train, and we are in Berlin!  We arrived at our hotel on Kurfürstenstraße early this morning to drop our bags, and were happy to discover that they were already ready for us to check in.  Most of the big things we want to see here are located closer to the central train station, where we’ll be leaving from tomorrow night, so today we stayed around the hotel.  Lunch: tagliatelle at the nearby Mövenpick restaurant

Exploration: the Berlin Zoo, oldest and largest in Germany.

Dinner: Thai curry at a Vietnamese restaurant, then zabaglione for dessert at an Italian restaurant down the block.

 

  

Tomorrow: the history of Berlin, then off to Paris, friends Rip and Daniel join the party, and a concert in Nantes.

Europe 2010, Day 9: Munich

Another relatively quiet day today in Munich.  It’s Monday, so most of the museums and the like are closed.  This morning, we walked from the hotel to the Frauenkirche and Marienplatz, which Russell hadn’t seen before, and admired the New Town Hall there.  (“New” in this context means built between 1867 and 1908, and distinguished from the Old Town Hall, which dates from the 1300’s).  Now Russell is on a train to Salzburg (so he can check Austria off his list of visited countries) and I’m hanging out here in the München Hauptbahnhof (central train station) catching up on some reading and writing.

 

 

Europe 2010, Day 8: Munich

Overnight: the night train from Copenhagen.  Based on the experience, I’d say night trains are a fun way to travel—so long as you are neither claustrophobic nor insomniac.  The cabin space is very tiny—a cube six feet on a side serves as room for two—and the night is full of loud noises and the occasional rough movement.  If you can easily get back to sleep, you’re in good shape.  If you can’t?  Catch a plane.

 

Today: arrival at and recon of München Hauptbahnhof, then a city tour out to Nymphenburg Palace and the Olympic Park area, home to the Olympic Tower and the headquarters of BMW, with its excellent BMW Museum.

 

This evening: a visit to the City SB Waschcenter to do laundry, so that we have sufficient clothes to make it through the end of the trip.

  

Europe 2010, Day 7: Copenhagen

A nice easy day as we packed up, had another ridiculously good breakfast at the hotel, and made our way into Copenhagen to kill some time before our train leaves this evening.  Went for another walk around town, and visited the Royal Botanical Garden, but missed the visiting hours for the greenhouse by a few minutes. 

 

Europe 2010, Day 6: Copenhagen

This morning we took the train from Malmö across the Oresund Link and into Copenhagen, and walked past Tivoli (an amusement park) to the Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek (an art museum) to see their impressive collection of ancient Greek and Roman statues.  Afterwards we headed back to Wagamana for lunch.

In the afternoon, we met up with Mads, a friend of Rip’s, who I met in Houston a few weeks back, and who kindly volunteered to show us around Copenhagen.  He took us down to the harbor, past the Royal Danish Library and the Copenhagen Opera House to the statue of The Little Mermais at Langelinie.  Then after some coffee at a nearby coffee shop, he took us for a walk through Freetown Christiania, an anarchist commune in Christianshavn, before guiing us back to the central station for the trip to Malmö—and dinner.

Picked up some snacks (including a bottle of cactus-flavored sparkling water) on the way back to the hotel.  Legs=so very tired.  Doing a lot of walking in Europe, unsurprisingly.

Europe 2010, Day 5: Stockholm to Copenhagen

Caught the train to Copenhagen this morning, and enjoyed the light onboard breakfast, and the wonder of seats with power outlets.  Almost to Copenhagen, that is.  We’re actually staying in Malmö, Sweden, just across X from Copenhagen, so we hopped off the train a stop early, and spent most of the rest of the day exploring the central shopping district.

Random Observations:

• For a train trip this length, first class is definitely the way to go, even for a daytime trip.  The seats in 2nd class are four wide instead of three wide, and particularly when the train is packed (as this leg was today) it looks a bit cramped.
• Almost without exception everyone we've spoken to in Scandinavia speaks English at least as well as I do.  (English is taught in the schools from the fourth grade onward.)
• Licorice flavored—sorry, I mean liquorice flavoured— candy is big here.  Other product flavors we’ve seen that are relatively rare in the US include wild black currant and cactus (as flavors of sparking water) and elderberry flower (as a variety of tea).
• The twelve-year-old in me also notes that several of the candy brands sound rather inappropriate to English ears.  Firklover and Plopp come to mind as examples.
• Unusual food item spotted at the store: mayonnaise, aioli, and other condiments sold in in tubes like toothpaste.