Sunday, December 18, 2011

Brussels

Before going to brussels we were given a great deal of negative feed back about the place. Dirty, ugly, boring were the words most commonly used to describe it. Some even explained that it wasn't worth a visit, that instead we should head straight to the prettier town of Brugge. However thankfully my sister in law and her husband, both keen travelers, went against the grain. 'You will love it', they told me, so we kept it in the itinerary.

Once we got there I managed to find a very handy little map that suggested multiple walks you could take around the city. The one we chose took us first to breakfast at a lovely cafe, through the main part of town, past the European Parliament and ended in a lovely large park where many Belgians were out walking their dogs. It was a glorious winter day and we loved it. Sure it wasn't as pretty as Paris or as organized as Berlin, it didn't have as many sights as Rome or was it as romantic as Verona. But it was, in it's own way, completely charming.
...and I don't know how you could not love a place that is famous for waffles, beer and chocolate.

Thursday, December 15, 2011

Belgium Waffles

The best thing about visiting Belgium?
...waffles of course.
That and meeting the regular cafe patrons.

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Germany

In Stuttgart we visited a wonderful friend of mine and while we were there we saw snow.
It was only a little... but it was magic.
I love Europe in winter.

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

A half-way point

This beautiful city marked the half way point for my travels with my darling cousin Tess. We stayed in a gorgeous little apartment, strolled along a beautiful river, enjoyed the buskers along a gothic bridge, walked up the steps to an old castle and spent hours sipping hot chocolates in warm cafes... and were thoroughly enchanted by Prague.

Sacher Tart

In Vienna we stopped by the Sacher Hotel to eat the famous Viennese cake that was first created in 1832. For me it was really interesting to read the history of this recipe that today has become a national treasure. It inspired me to continue to experiment in the kitchen and keep trying out my ideas for new recipes. We felt very posh sipping tea and nibbling on our tart... and it was delicious.


Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Vienna Zoo

In Vienna Zoo is the oldest zoo in the world, first open to the public in 1779. I loved it because it was just like going to a zoo in a picture book.

Monday, November 28, 2011

A note from home...

The boy and I are excited that it is now less than a month until he joins me on this trip. However we have been in contact lots and I was super excited and a just a little homesick when he sent me this pic he took from our new place... we are renting a little old farm house and these are our new neighbors, aren't they cute?

Sunday, November 27, 2011

Innsbruck

On our way from Rome to Verona (about a five hour journey by train) we shared a cabin with a lovely young couple from Innsbruck who were returning home after a romantic weekend in Italy. They were surprised when we told them that we were planning to spend two nights in their home town, but they invited us to meet them for a drink none the less.
Well, not long after arriving in Innsbruck we started to fall in love.
We loved the old town, the mountains and the endless grey skies. We loved the markets and the beautiful Christmas tree decorated in fairy lights. We loved our accommodation, a small room just above the best cafe in town, where we made sure we had a hot chocolate and a pastry every afternoon. And we loved meeting our new Austrian friends on a cold night in a cosy bar for a drink. But we'll have to let them know that next time we come, we'll stay three nights.