Wow. The pub crawl the night before was so much fun, but it definitely took its toll on me the next day. Waking up, packing, and dealing with the train stations were all even less fun. Haha Jasper helped me get back to the train station which was sweet (he was an awesome host by the way. Incredibly trusting and giving), then I was off to the next Belgian city of Bruges (known as the Venice of the North because of its famous canals).
Upon arrival in Bruges around noon, I dumped off my large pack in a locker at the train station and snagged my school backpack with water and other stuff for the day. The town was very pretty, with nice parks and beautiful canals. I feel like this town is overhyped tho. The main square is nice, but not as gorgeous as other places I've been to. And the canals weren’t any cooler than the ones in Ghent, Leeuwadern, or Amsterdam (I’m a few days behind in the blog, I'm actually in Hamburg Germany right now and head to Copenhagen this afternoon). The streets weren’t all that cool either, and with a million tourists everywhere, this town really went down on the cool charts for me, especially considering how hyped it was by people I know.
The one highlight of Bruges came at 4pm when I did a brewery tour for 5.50 euro (includes a free drink at the end). I believe the company was called Half Moon, and their prize winning beer is the Brugse Zot. They have a really cool history which was all explained/shown on the tour. I met a nice couple from Pennsylvania/Germany on the tour who I hung out with for a while after the tour, drinking our beers. Turns out the guy just graduated from Penn State as an Industrial Engineer. Haha Crazy. However, as always, I wasn’t really watching the clock that closely, and had to sprint to the train station to make my train on time – which I did. J
Next stop, The Netherlands!!! I got into Leeuwarden (1.5 hours north of Amsterdam) a little after midnight, and Elisabeth (my good friend from Germany – couchrufer/Nanny in Palo Alto) picked me up. It was so great to see her. After some quick hellos at the station we made our way through the cold dark streets back to her apartment. After hanging out for a bit and having a cup of tea (I’ve had so much tea on this trip btw), we went to one of her friend’s house to pick up a bike for me to use the next few days. We debating going out for a drink, but thought better and went to bed “early.” Haha
Side note: it’s nice to be staying with a friend I knew from before again. As much as I love couchsurfing (which I do), it’s nice to just be able to relax and not have to impress (not sure that’s quite the right word) the person you’re staying with. It’s just more laid back staying with a friend you already know, and after couchsurfing in Caen and in Ghent the last 5 nights or so, I'm glad to be staying with Elisabeth for a few days.
No comments:
Post a Comment