We have been here in Brussels two night now and the place is really growing on me. First off, hearing French spoken is always a pleasure, and after a day or so it starts to seem familiar and I can pick up a word here and there. No less of a delight is the food here. The prices are reasonable, people are friendly and accommodating and the food tastes splendid. We ate lunch in a sidewalk cafe in the Galleries du Hubert , which is one of the first "shopping malls" in Europe .
There's Bill below getting a few great shots as usual.
Every other store was a chocolate shop. Of course we had to buy a few bon bons and they were delish.
Another thing Belgium is known for is waffles. So good!
Comics are very popular here.
Oh and beer made by Trappist monks. This old tavern dates from 1928.
Between chocolate shops are stores selling a huge variety of specially brewed Belgium beer.
Of course the most famous resident of Belgium is the little statue known as "Mannikin Pis". It dates from the 1600s and was originally used as a drinking fountain I think. It's really small and wears clothes people have made for it. Once again, underwhelming. Here you see him wearing a lavender soccer. uniform for some unknown reason.
A school field trip stops by the statue. Interesting how all the kids had to wear vests.
There appears to be no limit to the commercial potential of this Mannikin.
Even the French fries salute him. Note yellow sign. The fry is peeing!
I have to say that even though the sky is usually gray, the shops are colorful.
The Grand Place is the main square and has been there for a thousand years. Here's my movie of it.
Tomorrow is our last day. Can you believe it? We plan to spend it in Bruges.
My first reaction to Copenhagen is, wow, I had this place all wrong. I was expecting the reserved demeanor of the Norwegians mixed with the orderliness of the Swedes. Oh my. The little section of town I have seen so far is just the opposite, raucous, rowdy, and out of the box. My impression is that these people pride themselves on their nonconformity! Interesting side note : some researchers say they are the happiest nation. Also, some of this craziness is probably because it is Saturday night and there is a big soccer game in town.
First thing you notice here is that it is a town ruled by bikes. They have their own lanes with traffic lights and crosswalks. Nobody wears a helmet. Many people have modified bikes with a large compartments for dogs and kids. I saw a woman today with 3 kids in the front compartment and one in a child seat behind her. Dang! Four kids equals a minivan in the US. I also saw a lady my age pedaling along with two 8 packs of toilet paper, a few other groceries in a bag and a flat of impatiens on a plain two wheel bike in traffic! Wow! Unfortunately, I was not quick enough to get a picture of any of these "bikers". I should also mention that there were an inordinate number of people with crutches and bandaged arms. On a more cheerful note, I was able to snap this update for the fashion followers out there. Yellow pants with red jacket and tasteful murse (man purse).
Obligatory little mermaid picture. Underwhelming. Not sure why it is famous.
There are so many more intriguing and unusual objects d'arte like this scandalous fountain which originally was a drinking fountain before they elevated it. You'll notice the water shoots out of her breasts, also the standing boy appears to be peeing. Who in the world thought of this for a drinking fountain?
Also saw this boat sailing in the harbor.
Nearby was the royal yacht.
Hans Christian Andersen was from Copenhagen. According to what I read, Danes like to sit on his knee and get their picture made topless. I decided to break with tradition and keep my clothes on.
We rode one of these boats.
This is the area called Nyhaven. It's a canal, and also an area where the sailors used to dock and hang out since the 1600s. A lot of the buildings are actually that old.
It's legal to drink beer on the street so lots of people were getting it "to go. " The bartender told us the drinking age is 16, but I didn't see many young people drinking. Maybe they hang out somewhere else.
It was a superb opportunity for people watching.
Sad to say, there were a lot of drunk folks in some areas.
A theater
Tivoli gardens which we did not want to pay to see.
Statue of two guys blowing a Lur horn, which Rick Steves says is an ancient horn used to call the guys to battle. Now I think it's just used to signal happy hour!
One thing I noticed about the Danes, they seem to be very politically active and very concerned with "green" causes. Also, taxes must be very high. I read somewhere that there was 100% tax on buying a car and that is why so many bicycles. All I know is I paid about $6 for a large cup of plain coffee this morning. Don't judge me. I really needed it. We have just been eating sandwiches here because food is so super expensive, even at the grocery store.
The one thing we did not quite get to do was go to the area called "Christiana" where the hippies created a commune by squatting in an abandoned military base in 1971. They declared themselves a "free nation" and have been in a tug of war with the Danish government ever since. Kind of interesting to see how their experiment turned out, but I'll have to check it out next time. Onward now to Brussels, which is, sadly, our last stop. I'll be home on Friday!
What a beautiful day in Sweden! The sun was shining and a cool breeze was blowing as we cruised past one beautiful island after another on our way into town. It was really stunning scenery. Lots of snug little cabins tucked into forested coves.
You can thank Bill for the great shots above.
Then the rustic feel gave way to city scenery.
by Bill
As we got into the port, we got off the ship and on to a smaller "hop on hop off" shuttle boat that takes you around to the sites.
Old town had picturesque streets, the Nobel Prize museum, cold beer, and good ice cream. The most interesting ice cream flavor was "licorice and salt". Sorry to be a wimp, but I just got vanilla.
Bill bought some art from the artist who runs this gallery. He was from Iceland!
It was a lovely warm sunny day, perfect for tramping around town.
Narrow alley with an extremely long staircase!
photo by Bill At the royal palace we witnessed the changing of the guard with a short band concert,
photos by Bill
then off to the Vasa Museum. The Vasa is a ship that was built in Sweden over 300 years ago in 1628. Although very huge and ornate, it was poorly designed and sank in the harbor in less than an hour where it lay, unrecoverable, for centuries. In 1959 they located it and started the process of hoisting it up in one piece from the bottom. After years of restoration the ship and many of its contents are on view. It's really an amazing sight, as 98% of the ship was preserved. The ropes, however, are all reproductions. The huge exhibit hall is kept in dim light with carefully controlled temperature and humidity. If I understood correctly, they sprayed the whole ship with glycerin for 17 years to replace the water in the wood so it would not crumble.
Below is a model that was made to illustrate what it looked like with all it's sails in original condition. It had over 50 cannons and a tremendous amount of carved wood ornamentation.
Somehow they were able to ascertain how they were painted.
There were several preserved human bodies on board. Their shoes and clothes were still intact somehow, even after more than 300 years! They made realistic reproductions of their faces based on computer analysis of the skulls and DNA analysis. They looked so real. It was spooky.
We returned to our ship and watched the action in the harbor. An incredible number of boats, ferries, cruise ships and even jet skies! I couldn't believe they didn't collide!
Lastly, two colorful reminders of my day in Sweden.
