Brussels
Belgium – Chocolaty and Mussel-Bound
Friday, April 19th, 2013
Those of you who have seen the film In Bruges know there are two different ways to look at Bruges. You can love it or hate it and it was about time for me to find out to which group I would be in. When thinking about Bruges I can’t help but think of the cliché: Chocolates, waffles, mussels and beer. But could a place really fulfil my expectations without Willy Wonka being involved?
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Footsteps in Flanders
Tuesday, April 2nd, 2013
My first ever Belgian journey began with a snowy Dover – Calais ferry crossing and a coach into Ypres. Ypres, or Ieper to the Flemish, is a lovely little town close to the French border, you definitely wouldn’t think it was the scene of so much destruction almost a hundred years ago. Ypres played host to some of the fiercest battles of the First World War, hence the workshop organised by Flanders Tourism in commemoration of the upcoming centenary. During my two and a half days in Ypres, I learnt about the Great War itself, visited memorials, cemeteries and former battlefields.
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700 Years of History in Flanders
Monday, March 25th, 2013
My wife Tiina and I really made the most of our time in Flanders; I had not been since childhood and Tiina only knew Brussels from one short visit. I am so glad that we could at least glimpse at 700 years of history during our weekend, starting before Rubens and finishing with MAS. Of course there was much we missed and which will tempt us back before long. The Diamond Museum and the Fine Arts one will surely draw the crowds as MAS has done.
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Bruges and Ghent – Two Medieval Marvels
Friday, January 25th, 2013
Having visited Belgium many times before but never really venturing out of Brussels, I was excited to be visiting Bruges and Ghent, particularly after watching the film In Bruges.
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Crowne Plaza Brussels – Le Palace
Wednesday, April 4th, 2012
Strolling through the streets of Brussels at 9am on a Saturday morning is a surprisingly peaceful experience; it feels almost as if the city breathes a gentle sigh as it bids farewell to the throngs of corporate visitors before receiving an abundance of excited sightseers. It’s a beautiful time of day to make the walk from the Leopold district into the city centre, especially if you are lucky enough to do so on a sunny, spring day.
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London to Berlin via Cologne
Wednesday, January 25th, 2012
For nearly a year I have been selling the virtues of the German railway system based on my colleagues first hand experience, but finally it was my chance to try it out.
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Brussels and Bruges
Monday, October 3rd, 2011
I began my trip to Brussels with an early journey on the Eurostar train. Your first introduction to Belgium is the trilingual service announcements, in English, French and Flemish. We made on brief stopover in Lille, and before I knew it I was gazing out at low-lying Belgium, and the handsome town-houses on the outskirts of Brussels.
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A Journey to Cologne
Wednesday, September 14th, 2011
Leaving London on a Sunday to head to Cologne I really should have headed Railbookers advice and checked the Transport for London website to see if the tubes were running OK, I didn’t and they weren’t! All was not lost as I was just doing the short hop from the city to St Pancras so jumped in a cab but if I was travelling from further afield perhaps I would have been more anxious!
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Hotel of the Week – Hotel Amigo Brussels
Wednesday, March 31st, 2010
Located within arm’s reach of one of the most beautiful squares in Europe, the Grand Place, the newly refurbished Hotel Amigo provides a stylish and central base to explore Brussels. Definitely one of my favourites of the city with its flawless “Art of Simple” décor throughout, you know as soon as you walk into the lobby that you have arrived at a 5 star establishment!
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Amsterdam and Berlin
Saturday, February 27th, 2010
With the advent of high speed rail travel, visiting Germany’s famous capital Berlin by train is an increasingly popular option, and one Matt and I were keen to explore. Before this however, we decided to take the opportunity to try out the new high speed rail links to the Netherlands, with Brussels to Amsterdam in particular having been reduced to a 1 hour 53 minute journey at the start of 2010.
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