The Roadtrip - Part IV..

Hey there!

Part IV - Maastricht

We started our trip to Maastricht in a small town near Namur where a friend of mine lives. It took us an hour to get there.

Maastricht is a beautiful city. It offers great architecture, amazing shopping opportunities and the biggest markets.

This stop of our road trip was probably my favourite. Naturally Amsterdam had been extremely vibrant, but Maastricht appeared to me as a bit more charming and less overcrowded.

As it was Sunday when we came there the shops were starting to close and there wasn't a lot to do.
However we took a long walk around town to take it all in.

We passed the University of Maastricht, the central square, visited the old churches and walked along the riverside.

However I think we haven't seen it all which is probably going to lead to another visit in the near future.

Next week will be Part V - Emden

Thank you for reading!

xx, Steph

The Roadtrip - Part III..

Hey there!

Part III - Brussels

My friend and I stayed in Brussels for half a day, since we were on our way to our Belgian friends' house near the border to France. It only took us 30 minutes to get there.

We decided not to visit the city centre, because we didn't want to take part in all that traffic madness we had heard about.

That's why we went to "The Atomium" in the North of Brussels. This landmark is located amid a beautiful park that goes on for miles.

As we arrived at the sight we were astounded by the huge amount of tourists strolling alonng.

This eventually led to us leaving, since we preferred a less crowded environment. We found a nicely arranged garden and a great fountain within. ( 41 Av. des Ebéniers, 1020 Brussels )

After a few hours we decided to hit the road and to visit our Belgian friend.

Next week will be Part IV - Maastricht.

Thank you for reading!

xx, Steph

The Roadtrip - Part II..

Hey there!

Part II - Antwerp

This weeks' part of the series is all about Antwerp, Belgium.
It took us approx. 2 hours to get there and to find the place where we would stay the night.

Antwerp is an old town located in the North of Belgium. The proximity to The Netherlands influences the spoken language. All signs are in Dutch and the people that can be heard chatting in lovely cafés speak Dutch as well.

When we arrived we first headed to the city centre (Grote Markt) to search for a place to eat.

Antwerp has got beautiful architecture in the old part of town such as the facades as above.
As we were walking around we found a small waffle shop situated at the crossroads "Torfbrug" and "Kaasrui". The waffles are amazing and the waiter was very friendly.

Despite the fact that Antwerp has got a beautiful historic district we felt that other parts of the town aren't quite in their best state.

Nevertheless Antwerp offers great shopping areas such as "Nationalestraat", "Meir" and "Kammenstraat". Because of its small size Antwerp can easily be explored by foot.

We started our walk through the city at the central station of Antwerp which is an impressive old building, probably the prettiest train station in the entire European region. We then went along "Meir" towards "Kammenstraat".

When we arrived at our hostel we checked in and went upstairs to our room. The hostel wasn't as colourful and old as the one in Amsterdam, it was rather puristic and reminded me of a bachelor's apartment.

Anyways, I would recommend to not stay longer in Antwerp than a day. It's a great place for shopping since it is supposed to be an aspiring centre of fashion.

Next week is about Part III - Brussels.

Thank you for reading!

xx, Steph

The Roadtrip - Part I.II

Hey there!

Part I.II - Amsterdam

This post is mainly about the spots and activities I recommend in Amsterdam.

1st rent a bike for at least 24h to explore the city faster and to get around just like the natives.
(start off the Vondelpark and just head towards the city centre, or just go wherever you feel like, since the city isn't spread widely)

2nd take a boat cruise around the "Grachten" (engl.: canals) either during the day or as soon as the street lights are lit

3rd have a coffee in one of the great cafés

4th Utrechtstraat for shopping, it's less crowded and offers independent/innovative designer stores

5th De Nieuwe Kerk, there's the World Press Photo exposition sponsored by Canon at the moment which I found extremely interesting

6th walk through the Jordaan quarter to find cool houseboats, great architecture and pretty canals

7th visit the public library in the north of Amsterdam, there you can enjoy great but inexpensive food whilst overlooking the skyline ( Oosterdokskade 143, 1011 Amsterdam )

8th Begijnhof, a beautiful inner court that shows the historic architecture of medieval times

9th visit a flea market for example the one at Waterlooplein, it can be packed, but if you get there early you won't feel narrowly

10th I've said it before, but I'll say it again: the Vondelpark!

Next week is about Part II - Antwerp.

Thank you for reading!

xx, Steph

The Roadtrip - Part I..

Hey there!

In the following weeks I will show you little snapshots of my roadtrip around parts of the Benelux region ( Belgium, The Netherlands ) I went on with my dear friend Maddie.

Part I.I - Amsterdam

We started our journey in Hamburg, North Germany and arrived in Amsterdam after approx. 5 hours.

Since traffic is horrible in the city centre we parked our car in the outskirts of town to catch a tram to our accomodation. The hostel is nestled along the gorgeous Vondelpark where we spent a lot of time to relax and to take long walks as many people in Amsterdam do.

The hostel

Vondelpark

And what are the habitants of the Netherlands also renowned for?
Well first of all there is probably the huge amount of bicycles that are more ore less used every minute.

Furthermore there'd be the great fields of tulips that show they colourful beauty around spring time.

Of course there's also heaps of delicious cheese in The Netherlands which everyone should have tasted directly in the Dutch region.

As soon as someone gets lost in Amsterdam the habitants of this cool city are happy to help a friendly but confused tourist out.

Amsterdam has got the prettiest streets, great architecture, lovely food and completely satisfied me with its modern, innovative lifestyle.

Who knows, maybe this building is going to see me again sometime soon?!

Next week will be Part I.II - Amsterdam, since we stayed there the longest.

Thank you for reading!

xx, Steph