Saturday, September 23, 2023

Ghent, Belgium

 

Ghent is one of the largest cities in Belgium.  Ghent is famous for its canals and waterways and is also known as a university city of Belgium.


5 o'clock struck, working hours is done and and my brother Raymond said "tara na!".  From Antwerp, Ghent is 58 kilometers or an hour drive. Me and my daughter visited him and his wife, Ayen, in April of 2023, it is still cold, and the day is longer.  Photo stamps are from 8pm to 9pm and the sun is still out. We were also able to took photos when there are fewer people in the city.


You can get around Ghent through buses and trams.  Trams are the most convenient and comfortable way to travel.  Ghent has a model tram network connected to a train station.


You can also get around the city by foot or by renting a bicycle.  Bicycle is also widely used by most locals in the city.  Just research more on Belgian cycling rules.



At our background is the Gravensteen Castle or the "Castle of the Counts".  It is built in 1180.  Gravensteen was home to the "Count of Flanders" until 1353 and served as a symbol of power in medieval  Ghent.  The castle now houses the Arms Museum and Museum of Judicial Objects. The museum displays various weapons and other contraptions used for torture and punishment in middle ages.



Gravensteen Castle as our background


Lys River






Belgium as a country is very well known for its:
1. more than 1000 brands of Belgian beers
2. Belgian frites.  French fries originated from Belgium and not from France
3. Belgian chocolates
4. Belgian waffles
5. Belgium has 3 official languages - Dutch, French and German
6. Mannequin Pis is Belgium's most famous statue
7. Saxophone originated from Belgium
8. Smurfs came from Belgium
9. Belgium is the heart of Europe
10. incredible architecture and scenic small towns on lakes


Top ten things to visit or do in Ghent:

1. St. Bavo's Cathedral
2. Gravensteen Castle
3. Canal Cruise at Lys River
4. Saint Nicholas Church
5. Vrijdagmarkt Square
6. Korenmarkt Square
7. Museum of Fine Arts
8. Ghent Belfry - tallest in Belgium
9. Try the Belgian beers
10. Great Butcher's Hall (Groot Vleeshuis)

Saturday, September 16, 2023

Colmar, France

 

Colmar is an enchanting city in Alsace, France.  It is known for its colorful medieval architecture, and looks like a fairy tale in storybooks.

Have you watched Disney's Beauty and the Beast movie led by Emma Watson?  The opening scenes of the movie in which Belle wanders in a medieval village with books in her arms, passing cobbled streets, was inspired by places that can be found here in Alsace, France.  Walking along in Colmar feels like you have stepped inside a fairy tale in one of Disney's movie.


Colmar is known for its well-preserved half timbered houses with windows with flower pots, cobbled streets, brightly tiled-roofs, cafes, museums, canals.  It is also the capital of Alsatian wines.  You can visit a winery here and do wine-tasting.
Le Petite Venice


Top places to visit in Colmar:
1. Little Venice
2. Le Quai de la Poisonnerie
3. Saint Martin Church
4. The Covered Market
5.  The Pfister House
6. The Koifhus

Monday, September 11, 2023

Alsace, France


I'm so thrilled because our itinerary for today is Luzern, Switzerland and prior to that, we had a quick stop to Alsace, France for a bladder break.  Me and my daughter were so sleepy that we don't want to get down the car but my brother insisted that we see the site.  And thank you brother for that, ahaha!


Alsace is one of France' regions with most castles.  We saw them at the background of this photo.  More than 500 castles are counted mostly distributed from north to south.


Some of the famous castles in Alsace are:
1. Chateau du Haut Koenigsburg
2. Chateau Saint Ulrich
3. Chateau du Hohlandsbourg
4. La Chateau des Comtes d' Eguisheim
5. Chateau Giesberg
6. Chateau d' Andlau
7. Chateau du Morimont
8. Chateau Fort de Fleckenstein
9. Chateau du Schoeneck
10. Chateau des Rohan
     .... and 490 more

Sunday, September 10, 2023

Rotterdam, Netherlands

 

The Netherlands, more commonly known as Holland, is a country located in Northeastern Europe.  The Netherlands is a small country bordered by Belgium and Germany.  

The Netherlands is known otherwise as Kingdom of the Netherlands, Koninkrijk der Nederlanden, and Nederland.

The language used in the Netherlands is Dutch (Netherlandic), also spoken in Belgium (where it is called Flemish).


From Antwerp, Belgium to Rotterdam, Netherlands is 100.5 kilometers away and is only an hour and 8 minutes drive.  I always wonder why my brother and his wife would usually go to market from Belgium to Netherlands. It is easier to go here than from Balanga, Bataan to Divisoria, haha!




Rotterdam is the second largest city in The Netherlands.  We can find here the Port of Rotterdam, Europe's largest seaport.  It has a surface area of 12,600 hectares.


Because it is Saturday, my brother and sister in-law brought us to Rotterdam from Antwerp, Belgium to shop. the Binnenrotte market is a place to do buying from fruits, to veggies, seeds, plants, clothes, bags, and everything you need during Tuesdays and Saturdays.




Dutch cheeses made from raw milk, which is more expensive to produce than pasteurized milk. Gouda cheese is the most famous and most produced. Free taste lang kami, haha!


The Binnenrotte market leads to Rotterdam's famous tourist attraction - The Cube Houses. It was designed by Piet Blom. The Cube has 38 small cubes and two super cubes attached to each other.  The cube houses are liveable.  One of the owners decided to open a "show cube" so that tourists can see what's inside for a small fee.  A cube house has three floors - first floor with living room and kitchen, second floor with two bedrooms and bathrooms and the third floor is often used as a small garden.  The walls and windows are angled at 54.7 degrees



Walking a little further from the Cube Houses shows us to Markthal, a residential and office building with markethall underneath.  The building has glass facade on both sides.  It is the largest glass window cable structure in Europe. The overwhelming artwork inside Markthal is called " Hoorn des Overvloeds" or Horn of Plenty by Arno and Iris Coenen.


Horn of Plenty - an artwork inside Markthal






Dutch have worn wooden shoes in the 13th century.  They are otherwise known as klompen.  It is more commonly used now by farmers but most of the wooden shoes now are in souvenir shops.

One of the sex shops along streets of Rotterdam


A lot of street art are also abundant along the streets of Rotterdam

Monday, September 4, 2023

Luxembourg, Luxembourg

 

From Antwerp, Belgium, our itinerary for this day was to explore Luzern, Switzerland. Going Switzerland, I was fortunate enough that my brother would give me a glimpse of Luxembourg, the richest country in the world.
Luxembourg is the wealthiest country in the European Union, per capita.  This country is encircled by France, Germany and Belgium - also the country's main trading partners. From Antwerp, it took us 3 hours and 10 minutes to travel by car.  Luxembourg is 252 kilometers from Antwerp.




Constitution Square

Monument of Remembrance




The mode of transportation at Luxembourg is through buses, trains and trams.  Traveling throughout the country is free and Luxembourg is the first country to offer free transportation nationwide.  Since February 29, 2020, all forms of public transport have been free for residents and tourists.  The passenger will only need to buy ticket if they want to travel first class or if your journey will cross the border of France, Belgium and Germany.


The top 15 best things to do and visit in Luxembourg are the following:

1. Notre Dame Cathedral

2. Neumunster Abbey/Cathedral

3. City History Museum

4. Place Guillaume II

5. Constitution Square

6. Adolphe Bridge

7. Avenue de la Liberte

8. Grand Ducal Palace

9. Museum Drai Eechelen

10. Am Tunnel

11. Monument of Remembrance

12. Bock Casemates

13. Grand Ducal Palace

14. National Museum of Art and History

15. Luxembourg American Cemetery

 
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