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Andrew JeromeAndrew Jerome
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I was born in Newcastle, Australia but now live in Adelaide, Australia with my husband Ted.
I currently work as a Flight Attendant for Qantas, and as an ESL teacher.
I have traveled to over 68 countries so far, and am hoping to visit many more. Read more Adelaide, Australia
  • TravelerThe Norwegian Cruise
    Day 24

    Day 24

    Yesterday in Hong Kong ⋅ ☁️ 31 °C

    I’d had some concern about whether I’d be able to sleep or not, particularly with a wake up at 4:30am, but I didn’t have any problems whatsoever. My Uber driver was right in time so after collecting my bags and closing up the apartment, my driver took a high speed route directly to the airport, guaranteeing I would not be late!

    At the check in counters for Lufthansa, I didn’t receive a confirmed boarding pass for my Frankfurt flight yet, but I was still able to check in my bag and make my way through security. I bought a croissant and coffee, just in case I wouldn’t be receiving a meal onboard, and waited patiently at the boarding gate. After the last passenger boarded I still hadn’t heard anything from the ground staff so I inquired about whether I was on board. The lady said “oh yes, you’ve already got a seat”, took my standby boarding pass and wrote “3A” on it. The only downside she said is that I wouldn’t be guaranteed a meal but I didn’t mind.

    As it turned out, a lot of the passengers in business class didn’t want the meal anyway, so I received a tray of cold meats, yoghurt and cheese (avoiding the cold meats of course)! The business class seats were the same as economy, with the middle seat kept free to give passengers more space. The flight was very quick although upon arrival, the wait for my bag was about 25 minutes. I think most passengers who do this route are businesspeople who don’t travel with luggage.

    After taking the transfer train, I sat on a seat close to the Cathay Pacific counters and waited, as the website said they opened four hours before the flight departed. It turns out that no one told that to the staff because we were all left waiting for over half an hour in line! At check in I was given an Economy Class boarding pass straightaway and advised any upgrade would occur at the boarding gate. Considering I was given an awful middle seat, I silently prayed for an upgrade!

    After going through security, I was immediately bailed up by a beauty consultant in the duty free area who wanted to give me a spiel on skin care products. I let her show me the products and even test them on my skin before politely declining her salesmanship! At the boarding gate, the lady from the check-in counter remembered me and advised she would let me know if I received an upgrade. This took a lot longer than expected, and whilst economy class was boarding, she presented me with a boarding pass for Premium Economy.

    Truthfully, I was not disappointed about not receiving Business Class. The Premium Economy offered was spacious and comfortable and, as I read later, one if the best amongst all the airlines. The dinner they offered was great too, as I enjoyed a fish stir fry. I wasn’t originally sure how I’d spend my time during the flight, but decided to watch the film Cape Fear which I’d never seen before, and enjoyed a lot.

    I also tried to watch the film Parasite, however tiredness was starting to set in so I thought the option of sleep sounded a lot more appealing. Tomorrow Hong Kong, then Melbourne, and then, home!    Read more

  • TravelerThe Norwegian Cruise
    Day 23

    Day 23

    June 18 in Germany ⋅ ☁️ 26 °C

    Today I had arranged to meet up with my cousin Simone but since she was busy until lunchtime, I spent most of the morning in the apartment. Since I’m flying home tomorrow, I spent quite a bit of time trying to find the best route home possible. After checking seat numbers, connection times and destinations, I chose the route of Berlin-Frankfurt-Hong Kong-Melbourne. So you can imagine the frustration when the staff travel website crashed as I was about to buy the tickets! I called Ted for help and fortunately, he had no trouble buying them for me on the computer at home.

    After walking to the train station, the connecting train to Simone’s location was easy to reach. I bought a 24 hour train pass which ended up being fortuitous as I needed to take several transport options during the day. Simone came to meet me at the train station with her 4 month old baby David who was really sweet and happy. Simone suggested we go for lunch, so we went to a Thai restaurant not far away.

    The food was really nice and we were amused that the waitress was wearing a Melbourne T-shirt, although she told us she’d bought it in London. As I paid for lunch, Simone offered to pay for coffee and cake, so we went to a place nearby called House of Small Wonder which was previously a Jewish school. The two girls who worked there were actually from Australia and New Zealand, and the Aussie girl and I talked about her interest in becoming a flight attendant. Simone and I couldn’t decide on the bread pudding or the chocolate cake so we ordered both and shared them between us.

    When we headed towards the U-Bahn we were detoured slightly as an apartment building was on fire, meaning there were a lot of firemen and emergency crews blocking the street. Simone was keen on having me meet her daughter Clara so we went to her daycare to pick her up. I think Clara may have been very tired though, because as Simone described it, she’s going through the Terrible Twos! After a short while at their apartment, I headed towards the U-Bahn for my journey back to Roman’s house.

    The first part was easy however, trying to find the train line after leaving the U-Bahn was far from easy since the connecting station was split into two different parts depending on the train taken. Thanks to Google maps, I eventually reached the correct station and was able to return to Roman’s house without any further problems.

    Even though I’d offered to buy sushi for dinner, Roman ended up paying for it, insisting that I was the guest and shouldn’t pay. Therefore I made a promise to pay when they all came to visit Australia! Tomorrow I have an early start to the day (4:30am) as I will need to be at Berlin airport for the first flight to Frankfurt. Even though there are plenty of flights, it’s better to get on the first flight possible in case there are cancellations or delays.

    After packing up all my remaining items, I farewelled Roman and Steffi and thanked them for their hospitality. I’ve already ordered an Uber for tomorrow so hopefully I can still get some good sleep.    Read more

  • TravelerThe Norwegian Cruise
    Day 22

    Day 22

    June 17 in Germany ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C

    Even though I don’t have any plans in the mornings, I still keep waking early which is somewhat frustrating! I spent some time in my apartment typing up this blog before meeting Roman and his family in the main house for breakfast. Today I had plans to meet my friend Luise in Leipzig, so I had an easy 15 minute walk to the train station. Since the supermarkets weren’t open yesterday, I stopped there on the way to get some food and water before catching my train.

    Since arriving in Germany, my 5G hasn’t been working which has caused a deal of frustration, but fortunately there was wifi on the train to Leipzig. After a quick connection at Südkreuz station, the train journey was about one and a half hours. One thing I noticed at the station was how I was the only person wearing shorts so maybe I stood out as a tourist.

    Upon arrival in Leipzig, Luise met me at the station and it was so good to see her again after 7 years. Similarly, I haven’t been to Leipzig since 1997 so I’m pretty sure it has changed since then. Luise admitted she wasn’t a very good tour guide as she was unsure about most landmarks in Leipzig, but I didn’t mind since it was nice just to walk around the city.

    We first went to a Konditerei for coffee and cake, which is one of my favourite activities in Germany. When Luise said she would like to take me to the zoo, I was somewhat confused as a zoo isn’t always the most common attraction. After spending the day there, I could totally understand - the zoo is amazing! The aquarium included a lot of tropical fish from the north of Australia, and the zoo itself even had koalas and kangaroos (although I only saw the latter) - so I felt like a part of home was there with me.

    We had lunch in an outdoor restaurant at the zoo, where you could see some of the Patagonian Mara nearby. One of the highlights of the zoo was Gondwanaland, which was an enormous dome containing a huge rainforest, complete with a boat cruise and treetop suspension bridges. One interesting thing was how the three toed sloths have escaped from their enclosure, and could sometimes be seen hanging from the beams up on the roof of the dome.

    Luise recommended a cafe in the zoo where we could have coffee and cake and, just like our lunch venue, there was plenty of animal spotting as giraffes and ostriches walked past while we enjoyed our cheesecake and coffee. Luise accompanied me back to the train station late afternoon, so we bid each other farewell until we meet next time.

    The train back was just as quick as the morning one but, since I had taken so many photos at the zoo, my phone battery was almost dead. Upon arrival back at Teltow Stadt, I chose the wrong exit and after walking for a while, realised nothing looked familiar. I opened a map back to Roman’s house on my iPhone and quickly read the names of the streets where I’d need to turn before the phone died completely. Thank God I got back okay! Otherwise I would’ve been wandering the streets of Teltow clueless.

    That night I had dinner with Roman and his family again, but I have offered to buy dinner tomorrow night since I haven’t contributed anything since my visit! Roman and Steffi thought sushi sounded like a good idea. Tomorrow I’ll be visiting my cousin Simone who has lived in Berlin for about 10 years as an an opera singer.    Read more

  • TravelerThe Norwegian Cruise
    Day 21

    Day 21

    June 16 in Germany ⋅ ☁️ 23 °C

    Despite going to bed very late last night, I still woke at the regular time, which is probably likely because my brain is working overtime thinking about everything I needed to do. As breakfast was provided here, I got dressed and went down to the modest dining room. I’m pretty sure I’m the only person who speaks English here! The breakfast was very traditionally German, with bread, meats, eggs, cheese and coffee. I think everyone else staying here is at least 60 years old too!

    After last nights expensive Uber to the hotel, I asked my cousin Roman if he could pick me up today. He arranged my other cousin Sandy to pick me up instead as she would be passing by on the way to Roman’s place. I had plenty of time to get ready, as the checkout time was 12:30pm.

    It was really great to see Sandy and Martin again, and I also got to meet their three kids, including their eldest Julia who is thinking about coming to Adelaide next year. I was originally concerned that my suitcase would be too big for their car but we managed to fit it in perfectly.

    The drive to Roman and Steffi’s house was about 20 minutes and he has very kindly let me stay there during my time in Berlin. He has a detached apartment close to his house, which they rent out via Airbnb, and is a great size with two bedrooms, kitchen and a large living room. Roman had arranged a barbecue for all of us which was a great way to spend the afternoon. Plenty of food and good conversation!

    The weather turned bad by late afternoon, which everyone said has been typical of the weather recently. We packed up everything and continued inside. Sadly it wasn’t long until Sandy, Martin and their kids had to return to their place which is about an hour away. Hopefully we will be back in Germany again or they will be able to come to Australia soon.

    By the evening, the weather had turned nice again, so Roman and Steffi set dinner up again outside. Since the days are longer here too, it was still light when we all headed off to bed. Tomorrow I will taking a train to Leipzig to visit my friend Luise whom I met whilst studying Spanish in Valencia back in 2017.    Read more

  • TravelerThe Norwegian Cruise
    Day 20

    Day 20

    June 15 in Germany ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C

    Even though my flight wasn’t until the afternoon, I still woke early for some reason and packed up my few final things before heading out for breakfast with Heddi and her family. Since our experience with that awful restaurant a few days back, we have been using Google reviews to check every venue from now on, Heddi found a wonderful cafe just outside their apartment called Next Level Specialty Coffee so we thought we’d give it a try.

    We were very glad we did - the service, food and coffee were all great. It made me wonder if it had some sort of Australian connection since they served a flat white (first one I’ve seen in Europe) as well as avocado on toast.

    Heddi walked me back to my apartment for a final farewell before I relaxed in my apartment until 11am, the checkout time. The wheels on my suitcase have been giving me grief so I wasn’t looking forward to the 12 minute walk back to the train station in the Málaga heat. I considered paying extra for an Uber and now, in hindsight, I’m wondering if I should have done that!

    Everything was going okay, despite the fact that my bag was so difficult to drag, but when I finally arrived at my “destination”, it was not the place I wanted! Despite Google Maps saying it was the train station, it was another part of the city altogether. I tried the directions again, finally arriving at the station as a hot and sweaty mess. And just as annoying, the elevator at the station didn’t work so I had to lug the suitcase all the way down the stairs too.

    Fortunately I didn’t have to wait long for a train, although there was a mad rush of people embarking and disembarking. After travelling a few stops, I noticed that there were actually two different trains, and only one of them went to the airport! After waiting to see what station would come next, I was relieved to see I was on the correct train!

    As the check-in counters hadn’t opened yet, I parked myself in a Starbucks cafe directly across from them so I could relax with a water and croissant, type up this blog, and easily see when they would open. After checking my bag through to Berlin, I went through the slow security area before looking for my gate. I bought two sandwiches and a bottle of water too, just in case there would be no food option on my flight.

    Our flight to Lisbon was on an Embraer, complete with a screaming baby. After seeing our arrival time, I thought it was only going to be a 20 minute flight, before realising that Portugal is in a different time zone, so it was actually 1:20! The flight was mostly uneventful, and upon arrival in Lisbon we were bussed to the terminal from the aeroplane.

    Lisbon airport wasn’t all that interesting, particularly since I couldn’t get any signal in the terminal. I bought myself a coffee and Portuguese tart before sitting down at a charging station which was located right below a departure screen. Once I knew where my Berlin flight was departing from, I collected my things and headed straight for the departure gate.

    Once again we needed to catch a bus to the aeroplane, and I was surprised to see a woman with a Qantas bag. We talked briefly before boarding and learned she was a staff traveller. I was very happy with my seat - it was the emergency exit row which had a huge amount of legroom and comfort. I befriended one of the flight attendants who was seated next to us, and I also managed to get another crewfie before the flight landed.

    Upon arrival into Berlin, there was quite a long wait for our bags, as the baggage belt was being used for two other flights as well. As it was already past 11pm, I needed to get an Uber to my accommodation, which was easily done as there is an Uber pickup area at Berlin airport. The only difficult part was the wait - it took a while for a driver to take the job, and even then, I had to wait about 20 minutes before he arrived.

    The accommodation I’m in is literally in the middle of nowhere! It’s in an area called Mittenwald which was still a distance from the airport. Fortunately the hotel gave me easy instructions to get in - similar to the last accommodation, I needed to retrieve my room key from a lockbox, before opening and re locking the front door, tiptoeing down a hallway, and going into my room.

    To call the room quaint is appropriate - it’s very traditional German style. After the long day today though, I was just so happy to see a shower and a comfortable bed. Tomorrow I will be seeing my German cousins - the first time since 1997!    Read more

  • TravelerThe Norwegian Cruise
    Day 19

    Day 19

    June 14 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C

    We had an earlier start today for our 12 hour day to Granada and the Alhambra. Fortunately I still had plenty of time to have breakfast and get ready before walking to the pickup point at a nearby hotel. I originally wondered if we needed to wear trousers as I was unsure if the Alhambra was a religious site. When I saw a group of men standing near the pickup with trousers on, I thought I’d dressed inappropriately but fortunately they were just businessmen on their way to work!

    Heddi, Pentti and Freja arrived shortly afterwards before we boarded the bus with all the other tourists, including some Australians I recognised straight away by their accents. Our first stop today was at a service centre for coffee and to use the bathrooms. It seemed like every other tour bus was there too, which was heavily overloaded with teenagers. But at least the coffee was decent.

    Originally the itinerary said we would visit Alhambra first which we were pleased with as the day was meant to be hot…as it turned out, we went to Granada first! Our guide gave us a basic walking tour of the city, which included examples of the architecture and the shopping laneways. We then had plenty of free time to explore (about 2.5 hours) so we went to a nice paella restaurant for lunch before looking through some of the shops and the Plaza Larga.

    I treated myself and Freja to an ice cream from KFC as I couldn’t find a churros restaurant, before we continued our drive towards Alhambra. First we saw more of Granada from the bus, as well as the Sierra Nevada mountains in the distance before arriving. We then met with our guide for Alhambra who gave us each individual headphones which made his tour so much easier to hear.

    The first sight we saw were the Generalife Gardens, which were a beautiful combination of hedges, rose bushes and fountains. The palace and the gardens were originally used as a private retreat and summer palace for the Nasrid rulers and their family, away from the official business that took place in the Alhambra.

    The Alcazaba citadel looked more like ancient ruins and is the oldest part of the Alhambra today. It was the centrepiece of the complicated system of fortifications that protected the area. Its tallest tower, the 26m high Torre del Homenaje ('Tower of Homage'), was the military command post of the complex. Some parts of the Alhambra faced annihilation at the hands of Napoleon’s army when, after occupying the fortress city in 1812, retreating French forces laid explosives at their departure with plans to destroy the Alhambra. Some blasts damaged a few buildings in the complex, but most of it remains intact today.

    One of my favourites were the Nasrid palaces, which are a continuation of Moorish (western Islamic) architecture from earlier centuries but developed their own characteristics. The combination of courtyards, water features, gardens, arches on slender columns, and intricately-sculpted stucco and tile decoration gives Nasrid architecture qualities that are described as ethereal and intimate.

    The Palace of the Lions is one of the most famous palaces in Islamic architecture and consists of a rectangular courtyard centered on a marble fountain with twelve sculpted lions. This was where a lot of the most intricate architecture was obvious, with the three dimensional Muqarnas architecture in places like the Hall of the Two Sisters.

    We had expected today to be really hot and unbearable but since the tour was at an easier pace and there was plenty of shade, it turned out to be easier than we’d expected. Our drive back to Málaga was quicker too as we didn’t have any stops, and were back around 8pm.

    As I’m heading to Berlin via Lisbon tomorrow, I needed to pack up everything before my departure tomorrow, meaning I wouldn’t have time to go out for dinner. Fortunately I had enough food in the apartment so it wasn’t a problem. Málaga has been a very pleasant stopover, and it has been wonderful to see Heddi and her family again, but tomorrow I will head to my final destination of this holiday before heading back home!    Read more

  • TravelerThe Norwegian Cruise
    Day 18

    Day 18

    June 13 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    Last night I had a very good sleep, as I was clearly recovering from the previous day! The day was definitely a challenge - I didn’t end up having any time to buy food before, so this morning I woke up very hungry and slightly dehydrated. As the supermarkets don’t open until 8:30am, I went down to buy some cereal, bread, juice, water and almond milk. What a huge relief to be better organised than before!

    Heddi and Pentti had plans to go to Gibralfaro Castle, so I headed out to their apartment to meet up with them. Fortunately most sights in Malaga are close and very easy to reach, however all the lanes and alleyways are so confusing! The walk up to the castle wasn’t very easy - most of it was straight uphill, and the weather wasn’t exactly cool! We did have a nice sea breeze thankfully. The views from the top were wonderful too.

    Similar to the cathedral yesterday, the castle provided an audio tour you could add to your mobile phone, however after a while we lost interest and did our own thing. After coming back down to ground level, we were all feeling hungry so we went to a cafe named Cister Catorce which was located right there in the square and advertised €2 tapas. Big mistake! After sitting down, we ordered only drinks but the service was so unbelievably rude, I thought I’d do a quick check of the reviews on Google. I’m glad I did - there was absolutely nothing good written about the place, and the average rating was 1.1/5. We then quickly decided to go elsewhere which was a smart move - even the four drinks we ordered were an absolute rip-off.

    We relied on Google again for advice, and found Cafetería Framil, which was a welcome delight after the last place. I had the lunch meal special which included cold tomato soup (may have been gazpacho), vegetarian bocadillo and crème caramel for dessert. Great choice! By this time, we were all feeling a bit tired, so we returned to our respective apartments to rest.

    When I arrived back at the apartment I was thrilled to see that the washing machine was now fixed, so I washed some clothes before having a nap. Heddi suggested going for a walk down to the beach and waterfront area, where Pentti and Freja had gone earlier so that Freja could swim at the beach. It was a very affluent area, with yachts and expensive boats docked there, as well as exorbitant prices at the restaurants and bars. Clearly you were paying for the location!

    For dinner, Heddi and I went back into the city centre to eat at Andino Gastrobar, a Latin American restaurant which was very popular and had a wonderful atmosphere. It seemed a bit unusual having South American food in Spain but the menu was good so we didn’t mind. I had the empanadas but could’ve eaten a lot more.

    Since we have a full day at Alhambra tomorrow, we stopped and bought some snacks at a small supermarket as were really not sure what the food arrangements will be. I definitely don’t want to spend another day with a rumbling stomach!    Read more

  • TravelerThe Norwegian Cruise
    Day 17

    Day 17

    June 12 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    Today was our earliest start so far, so when the alarm went off at 3:30am, we didn’t exactly jump out of bed with excitement! Fortunately we were well prepared last night, so we only needed to get dressed, brush our teeth, grab our bags and walk slightly down the street to wait for our pre-booked Uber driver.

    Ted had been concerned about the number of seats available on his KLM flight back to Amsterdam but he didn’t need to worry because he got a ticket without any trouble. He did however need to check a bag in, but he will still have time in Amsterdam to collect it before his next flight.

    We had breakfast together at Le Pain Quotidien in the airport before we sadly had to separate before continuing on our individual itineraries. As Ted didn’t have as much holiday leave as myself, he is heading to Bali to meet our friend Josh before returning home, whilst I am going to Málaga to see my longtime pen pal Heddi and her family, followed by family and friends in Berlin. Fortunately there is wifi on Singapore Airlines, so I was able to communicate with him throughout his journey.

    I stayed behind in the cafe to continue typing this blog and, by the time Ted landed in Amsterdam, it was only just time for me to check into my RyanAir flight. Fortunately the process was very quick, as RyanAir seems to have gotten some things right! The security process at Brussels airport was very thorough, which I assume could be a result of the terrorist attack a few years ago. Since my flight wasn’t until after 9, I bought myself a water and chocolate croissant before waiting in the boarding lounge until it was time to board our flight.

    Unsurprisingly, the flight was very mediocre, and slightly worse than I’d anticipated. This was mainly due to there being no vegetarian option available, meaning I could only have a bottle of water and Pringles for the 3.5 hour flight. I was hoping for a crewfie with the RyanAir crew to add to my collection but unfortunately, they weren’t particularly friendly or outgoing.

    When we arrived in Malaga, we were greeted with warm weather and fortunately, the quick arrival of my bag. It was a long walk to the airport train station and I wondered what the long queue was for. It turned out it was for the train ticket machine, so I joined the line. After nearly taking the wrong platform, I was finally on my way to the accommodation.

    The 12 minute walk from the nearest station to my apartment wasn’t all that fun due to the weight of my bag and even though the weather wasn’t that warm, I was a sweaty mess by the time I arrived! The check in process was odd - I never actually met anyone, I just had to send a copy of my passport to the owner via WhatsApp to verify my identity, then they sent me the code for the front door including instructions on how to retrieve the room key from the lockbox.

    The apartment is absolutely beautiful and very well equipped, so I definitely made the right choice with this place. After having a shower, I discovered that a moisturiser had leaked in my suitcase, so I used the washing machine to wash some clothes before heading out to meet Heddi, Penntti and Freja at their apartment.

    It was so great seeing Heddi again! I haven’t seen her since I was living in Valencia doing my language exchange in 2017. She took me up to their apartment where I met up with Penntti and Freja. I gave them my presents from Australia (koala socks and a notepad) which I bought from a koala hospital in Port Macquarie, and they gave me a cartoon book about Finnish people.

    Since I had barely eaten since this morning, I was extremely grateful they had set out a lunch in their apartment of cheese, bread and fruits. After lunch, we went to look at Málaga Cathedral which included an audio walking tour. By the end of the tour, I was really struggling to stay awake after our 3:30am start to the day, so I went back to the apartment for a quick nap before we went out for dinner that night.

    When I returned to the apartment, I was shocked to see that the handle on the washing machine door had broken…and I couldn’t retrieve my clothes!! I sent a quick message to the owner of the apartment about my dilemma before going out for dinner. Penntti had been recommended a tapas restaurant where we had a very good meal, which included salmon, mushroom and vegetarian options. I paid for dinner as Heddi had paid for my ticket to the Alhambra on Friday.

    Heddi and Penntti offered to come back to my apartment to help open the washing machine but upon my return, saw that it was now open! I think the owner may have come into the apartment to try and fix it. I was just so grateful to be able to retrieve my clothes! The owner also advised they’d send a handyman over tomorrow.

    We will be having an easier day tomorrow as I will probably still be a bit tired, but it’s cool being here for the first time in Málaga!    Read more

  • TravelerThe Norwegian Cruise
    Day 16

    Day 16

    June 11 in Belgium ⋅ ☁️ 14 °C

    We didn’t sleep in today, as we were probably self conscious of oversleeping and missing our departure from the ship! There was certainly nothing to be concerned about though as most of our luggage had been collected for us last night, meaning we only had to go to breakfast and collect our last few items before leaving the ship.

    Our departure time was listed as 8am, but as we were already ready, we disembarked early to see if we could collect our bag and leave. As it turned out we could, and it was just as easy as our boarding process. Since Amsterdam was quite rainy, we decided to take a taxi to Centraal Station, as there didn’t seem to be an Uber pickup area available.

    Our very talkative driver checked our train departure for us, advising of our platform to disembark from. When we arrived at Centraal, we were unpleasantly surprised when the driver informed us he only took cash, meaning we needed to scramble and find an ATM in the train station. Fortunately, Ted found a Travelex ATM, where I was able to withdraw some Euro.

    As it seemed like we’d just missed a train, we bought some mediocre coffee before taking the elevator to our platform. When a train pulled into the station indicating Brussels, Ted wondered if the train would go to Brussels Central too. As it turned out, it was the earlier train we thought we’d missed, which was half an hour late. Since we had bought an IC train ticket, we were able to catch this train straightaway, rather than waiting another 2 hours for our original train.

    The train was a basic 2nd class but we didn’t mind, since there was plenty of room and it was comfortable enough. The journey had about nine stops before reaching Brussels Central. It wasn’t until we reached Breda that our tickets were checked, as this was where the international travel started.

    On the way I managed to get a very distant photo of the Atomium, which wasn’t made easy as the view was either blocked by a tree, a building or another train. Our arrival into Brussels was easier than our Amsterdam arrival too, as the station was less frantic. Our accommodation is only a four minute walk from the station too. All I can say about Brussels is….wow!

    Before we even reached our accomodation, we were both gobsmacked by the quaintness and beauty of the area. It was like a combination of Amsterdam, Paris and St. Petersburg all in one. Everywhere you looked there was a sweet delight of decadence, whether it was chocolate, pasties, waffles or macaroons, as well as high end shops and fancy hotels. Our accommodation also did not disappoint - it was located in the Royal Saint-Hubert Galleries, which is an ensemble of three glazed shopping arcades, comprising of cafes and fancy shops.

    The only problem we had was checking in. As we had arrived early, there was no one to speak to but fortunately a man from the business next door called one of the reception staff for us. Our room was already ready, so we were able to leave our bags to go exploring. The room was also large and impressive - it seemed to consist of African artefacts and artwork for decorations.

    Since we were hungry we settled on going to Burger King for lunch, which isn’t ideal, but was a decent and cheap enough option for us. We looked through a few of the shops where we bought some items from a “Tin Tin” store, before starting our own walking tour I had created before leaving Australia.

    Our first stop was the enormous Cathedral of St. Michael and St. Gudula, located within easy walking distance from our accommodation. We then proceeded to the impressive Mont des Arts, which is an historic site, including the Royal Library of Belgium, the National Archives of Belgium, and a beautifully manicured public garden. It also provided a great view from above, where we could see the Brussels Town Hall in the distance.

    Even though there were a lot of renovations and roadworks happening, it wasn’t difficult reaching the nearby Royal Palace which was really impressive, and didn’t have the crazy amount of crowds of Buckingham Palace. There was a huge park across the road from the palace so, after buying an ice cream, it was a beautiful place to wander and enjoy the serenity.

    After walking past the Royal Museum of Fine Arts, we took photos of the Église Notre-Dame des Victoires au Sablon, but were more impressed by the stunning Square du Petit Sablon across the road, which was a flower garden designed in a Flemish Neo-Renaissance style, surrounded by 48 bronze statues depicting medieval professions, such as stone-cutters, tallow makers and linen croppers.

    No trip to Brussels would be complete without seeing Manneken Pis (the replica anyway), so we headed there next, as well as (seemingly) every other tourist in Brussels. The number of tourist shops surrounding the underwhelming statue was huge yet, as tempting as it was to buy something chintzy, we decided to pass.

    The best was yet to come though as we reached The Grand-Place/Grote Markt which is, without doubt, one of the most beautiful town squares we have seen. It was surrounded by the Town Hall, King’s House, and the Houses of the Grand-Place. The square had so much colour and vibrancy, it was like an overload on the senses.

    After our sightseeing, we headed back to the apartment to relax. It is interesting but we had originally regretted booking a side trip to Brussels, solely because Ted’s flight from here to Singapore was changed, meaning he now has to go back to Amsterdam tomorrow to make the flight. We came anyway as we had already paid for the train tickets and accommodation, and we are so glad we did now.

    We thought we would go our for a drink but the closest gay venue - whilst very cheap for drinks - was full of men over 65! For an early dinner we went to Chez Charles Brasserie, which we both enjoyed because the portions of food were huge. Ted had been keen on trying some Belgian meatballs which he had, while I settled for pasta.

    We thought we would try a different venue for a drink, so we went to a local gay street where we had a beer and met a couple of an Australian and a Belgian. In the meantime, it started to pour rain so we needed to go back to our apartment afterwards to get everything ready for our departure tomorrow. As Ted’s flight to Amsterdam is at 6am tomorrow, we will need to wake at 3:30am to take an Uber to the airport. Yikes!

    Brussels has been a wonderful experience - not one we were expecting but also one that exceeded our expectations.    Read more

  • TravelerThe Norwegian Cruise
    Day 15

    Day 15

    June 10, North Sea ⋅ 🌬 12 °C

    Today was a much needed ship day, as we used this opportunity to pack up our bags in preparation for our departure tomorrow. We didn’t sleep as late as we would’ve liked after last night, but it was a relaxing day nonetheless. We couldn’t exactly exhaust ourselves today by merely eating and laying in the Solarium!

    Packing our bags was a lot quicker this time than when we left Australia, and since we didn’t have any wifi coverage, most of the day was spent socialising with our onboard friends. We had our final dinner with the Reno boys before catching up with Blaine, Suzanne and Charlie for a tea before bed. It was quite sad as we all went our separate ways, but that’s what happens when a cruise finishes.

    One awesome thing that occurred was when a helicopter came right up next to the cruise ship before heading to one of the nearby oil rigs. We could literally wave to them from our balcony.

    Tomorrow we will catch our train to Brussels before Ted and I sadly have to head off in different directions before reuniting back home.    Read more

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