Sunday, February 20, 2005
Work trip to Belfast
This past week I visited Ireland for the first time. ARA has an office in Belfast and my boss and I travelled over to meet, train and work with staff. We stayed at the Europa Hotel which has the unique status of being 'the most bombed hotel in Europe'. We didn't get to see much of the city as we were working flat tack all day. It takes around 1 and a 1/2 hours to get to Belfast from London by plane. We travelled over the night before so we could get two full working days in. Otherwise you have to catch a 7.50am flight which gets you into the office between 10.30 and 11am, tired from having to get to the airport at 6.50am.
Belfast had a nice feel to it. The waterfront has been nicely developed and the City Hall, which houses the local authority, is amazing with it's impressive size and classical style (dome, columns etc). I wish I had my camera and Lonely Planet with me. We were able to wander around the city centre at night as the hotel and office were centrally located and we enjoyed the food and Guinness the restaurants and pubs had to offer. Apparently Guinness is very good for you as it contains iron. The people are very friendly and good humoured. Maybe next time I visit I'll be able to explore more of the city.
There is not a lot of evidence, on the surface, of Belfast's dramatic past. Every now and then little things elude to it like barbed wire and the highly fortified police station. We did walk past the Northern Bank which was recently robbed of millions of pounds. The IRA are suspected of the crime. This trip has made me keen to go to Dublin as well. We might be able to fit a weekend visit before we go home.
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Belfast had a nice feel to it. The waterfront has been nicely developed and the City Hall, which houses the local authority, is amazing with it's impressive size and classical style (dome, columns etc). I wish I had my camera and Lonely Planet with me. We were able to wander around the city centre at night as the hotel and office were centrally located and we enjoyed the food and Guinness the restaurants and pubs had to offer. Apparently Guinness is very good for you as it contains iron. The people are very friendly and good humoured. Maybe next time I visit I'll be able to explore more of the city.
There is not a lot of evidence, on the surface, of Belfast's dramatic past. Every now and then little things elude to it like barbed wire and the highly fortified police station. We did walk past the Northern Bank which was recently robbed of millions of pounds. The IRA are suspected of the crime. This trip has made me keen to go to Dublin as well. We might be able to fit a weekend visit before we go home.
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Now you can see when we add new posts without having to check here every couple of hours like you do now ;^)
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Saturday, February 05, 2005
Bruge pics now up
Thursday, February 03, 2005
Bruges
Bruges is “a town dominated by fifteenth, sixteenth, seventeenth and eighteenth century houses, and a great number of magnificent buildings are reminiscent of the town’s unsurpassed flowering during the Middle Ages.” It was famous at this time for its Flemish cloth and became the “foremost centre of commerce” with the first stock exchange residing there. It also was the centre of Flemish primitive art. It was thankfully relatively undamaged in the world wars so you can wander around the narrow cobble-stoned streets looking at the beautiful medieval architecture knowing that it probably looked much the same in the Middle Ages.
First impressions
My first impression was that many people travelled by bicycle. There were a few cars but the narrow streets make bicycles much more practical, and healthy! The canals were also very pretty. We got into Bruge, via Brussels, in the evening and were struck by the stillness of the water in the canals which acted like a mirror reflecting the image of the beautiful buildings that lined the canals. Our hotel was in the centre of town so we could walk to all the major sites easily. As soon as we had checked in we headed out for dinner. When you think of Belgium you think of beer and chocolates. You should also think of the famous dish of mussels and fries or ‘moules et frites’. This is the dish I had on this first night. The Belgians claim to have invented fries so I had to oblige! I faithfully learnt ‘Table for two please” in Flemish (Dutch) i.e. “Tafel voor twee alstublieft”, but as soon as we entered the restaurant the waiter spoke English to us (o: Every one speaks English but nevertheless we tried to learn a little Flemish. We also tried some of the local brew ‘Brugse Tripel’ which was very nice.
Madonna and Child
The next day was beautiful and clear. Our first stop was the oldest church in Bruges. It had good examples of Flemish tapestries. The Flemish were famous for their tapestries and these reminded Joseph and I of the extravagant tapestry hall in the Vatican museums. We then headed, via a couple of lovely shopping streets, to the Church of Our Lady. The draw card of this church is Michaelangelo’s Madonna and Child sculpture, one of the only sculptures of the great master that resides out of Italy. It certainly lives up to the hype. Michaelangelo achieves near perfection in both form, dimension, detail and beauty. I guess that’s why he’s one of the great eh (o:
The Belfry and Gothic Hall
We then went to the Belfry which is a tower with an impressive carillon of bells at the top which play popular tunes at regular intervals. We climbed up the 366 steps to the top, stopping along the way to enjoy watching the mechanics of the tower clock and the carillon at work. The view from the top was great. It looked just like the game ‘Cathedral’ with all the medieval buildings and churches with pointed a-line roofs and spires. After the tower we went into the Town Hall and specifically the Gothic Hall which was beautifully decorated with frescoes the colour of which was still bright and vivid. This is because the fresco technique requires the painter to paint on the wall plaster quickly while it is still wet and this ensures that the colour quality lasts because the paint sinks into the wall.
Eating and shopping
We then took a break for a lovely lunch in a trendy café and then went for a nice walk along the canal. By then we were over the sight seeing so decided to hit the shops. I bought a nice Burton tshirt (on sale) and was eyeing up the ski jackets but resisted the temptation. The ski jackets we bought on sale in London are very functional but not particularly stylish. We also tried a Belgian waffle with chocolate sauce which tasted much like waffles anywhere else! I hear the Dutch waffles are very good so must try some when we go to Amsterdam.
We were a tad tired after that so went back to the hotel to watch some telly (a novelty!) and a snooze. Later in the evening we headed out for dinner. We went to De Stove first (another recommendation from the LP) but unfortunately it was booked out so we went next door to Bistro de Pompe which looked just as nice and a little cheaper. Bonus. We both had yummy salmon and of course beer and fries.
Groeninge Museum
On our final day we headed to the Groeninge Museum. This had a famous selection of Flemish Primitive paintings. The ‘primitive’ movement “focuses on the depiction of landscapes, people and everyday life. Moreover, the painters show a great interest in details and religious symbolism.” There were also paintings from the Renaissance and Baroque periods and I enjoyed the Neo classical paintings. I didn’t enjoy the collection of modern art. It just looked like rubbish with no substance to me.
Canal ride
From the window of the gallery I noticed that there were boats taking tourists for rides on the canal. This service is regular in the summer but only operates on Sundays for a couple of months in the winter. This was one of the last Sundays of the winter service. I managed to persuade Joseph that we should line up for tickets. Luckily we didn’t have to wait long for the next boat. Each boat holds around 30 people. The trip was 30 minutes and very pleasant. The driver gave a commentary in French and English. It was nice to view the town from a different perspective. After that we went in search of chocolate shops. I bought two boxes of chocs, one for us and one for Rae and Steve. In fact I’m eating a Belgian chocolate as I type this. Yum! Then it was time to head back to the hotel to pick up our bags and walk to the railway station to take a train to Brussels and then the Eurostar back to London.
Jasper and Doris
When we arrived at Waterloo station our friend Jasper and his girlfriend Doris were there to meet us. Jasper has been living in Vienna for the last year. He also spent a lot of time in Berlin so his German is very good. So much so that he spoke English with a German accent! I think his Kiwi accent started to sneak back after an hour with us even though our Kiwi accents aren’t very strong. A guy at work couldn’t quite place my accent but thought I was from somewhere in England (o:
Wimbledon
Those of you who enjoyed watching the Aussie Open will be jealous of me and Rae. I entered the public ballot for tickets to Wimbledon and I got a letter the other day saying that I had been successful in securing two tickets. Joseph isn’t keen to go so Rae will be joining me on Tuesday 28 June in Court 1 to watch the Ladies Singles Quarter finals matches. Whopee! I’m so excited!! I hope that the scheduling changes a bit so we get to see a Men’s singles match as well. Wouldn’t it be great to see Federer and Roddick play! I’ll keep dreaming. I’ll be happy whatever I see. I just hope it doesn’t rain.
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First impressions
My first impression was that many people travelled by bicycle. There were a few cars but the narrow streets make bicycles much more practical, and healthy! The canals were also very pretty. We got into Bruge, via Brussels, in the evening and were struck by the stillness of the water in the canals which acted like a mirror reflecting the image of the beautiful buildings that lined the canals. Our hotel was in the centre of town so we could walk to all the major sites easily. As soon as we had checked in we headed out for dinner. When you think of Belgium you think of beer and chocolates. You should also think of the famous dish of mussels and fries or ‘moules et frites’. This is the dish I had on this first night. The Belgians claim to have invented fries so I had to oblige! I faithfully learnt ‘Table for two please” in Flemish (Dutch) i.e. “Tafel voor twee alstublieft”, but as soon as we entered the restaurant the waiter spoke English to us (o: Every one speaks English but nevertheless we tried to learn a little Flemish. We also tried some of the local brew ‘Brugse Tripel’ which was very nice.
Madonna and Child
The next day was beautiful and clear. Our first stop was the oldest church in Bruges. It had good examples of Flemish tapestries. The Flemish were famous for their tapestries and these reminded Joseph and I of the extravagant tapestry hall in the Vatican museums. We then headed, via a couple of lovely shopping streets, to the Church of Our Lady. The draw card of this church is Michaelangelo’s Madonna and Child sculpture, one of the only sculptures of the great master that resides out of Italy. It certainly lives up to the hype. Michaelangelo achieves near perfection in both form, dimension, detail and beauty. I guess that’s why he’s one of the great eh (o:
The Belfry and Gothic Hall
We then went to the Belfry which is a tower with an impressive carillon of bells at the top which play popular tunes at regular intervals. We climbed up the 366 steps to the top, stopping along the way to enjoy watching the mechanics of the tower clock and the carillon at work. The view from the top was great. It looked just like the game ‘Cathedral’ with all the medieval buildings and churches with pointed a-line roofs and spires. After the tower we went into the Town Hall and specifically the Gothic Hall which was beautifully decorated with frescoes the colour of which was still bright and vivid. This is because the fresco technique requires the painter to paint on the wall plaster quickly while it is still wet and this ensures that the colour quality lasts because the paint sinks into the wall.
Eating and shopping
We then took a break for a lovely lunch in a trendy café and then went for a nice walk along the canal. By then we were over the sight seeing so decided to hit the shops. I bought a nice Burton tshirt (on sale) and was eyeing up the ski jackets but resisted the temptation. The ski jackets we bought on sale in London are very functional but not particularly stylish. We also tried a Belgian waffle with chocolate sauce which tasted much like waffles anywhere else! I hear the Dutch waffles are very good so must try some when we go to Amsterdam.
We were a tad tired after that so went back to the hotel to watch some telly (a novelty!) and a snooze. Later in the evening we headed out for dinner. We went to De Stove first (another recommendation from the LP) but unfortunately it was booked out so we went next door to Bistro de Pompe which looked just as nice and a little cheaper. Bonus. We both had yummy salmon and of course beer and fries.
Groeninge Museum
On our final day we headed to the Groeninge Museum. This had a famous selection of Flemish Primitive paintings. The ‘primitive’ movement “focuses on the depiction of landscapes, people and everyday life. Moreover, the painters show a great interest in details and religious symbolism.” There were also paintings from the Renaissance and Baroque periods and I enjoyed the Neo classical paintings. I didn’t enjoy the collection of modern art. It just looked like rubbish with no substance to me.
Canal ride
From the window of the gallery I noticed that there were boats taking tourists for rides on the canal. This service is regular in the summer but only operates on Sundays for a couple of months in the winter. This was one of the last Sundays of the winter service. I managed to persuade Joseph that we should line up for tickets. Luckily we didn’t have to wait long for the next boat. Each boat holds around 30 people. The trip was 30 minutes and very pleasant. The driver gave a commentary in French and English. It was nice to view the town from a different perspective. After that we went in search of chocolate shops. I bought two boxes of chocs, one for us and one for Rae and Steve. In fact I’m eating a Belgian chocolate as I type this. Yum! Then it was time to head back to the hotel to pick up our bags and walk to the railway station to take a train to Brussels and then the Eurostar back to London.
Jasper and Doris
When we arrived at Waterloo station our friend Jasper and his girlfriend Doris were there to meet us. Jasper has been living in Vienna for the last year. He also spent a lot of time in Berlin so his German is very good. So much so that he spoke English with a German accent! I think his Kiwi accent started to sneak back after an hour with us even though our Kiwi accents aren’t very strong. A guy at work couldn’t quite place my accent but thought I was from somewhere in England (o:
Wimbledon
Those of you who enjoyed watching the Aussie Open will be jealous of me and Rae. I entered the public ballot for tickets to Wimbledon and I got a letter the other day saying that I had been successful in securing two tickets. Joseph isn’t keen to go so Rae will be joining me on Tuesday 28 June in Court 1 to watch the Ladies Singles Quarter finals matches. Whopee! I’m so excited!! I hope that the scheduling changes a bit so we get to see a Men’s singles match as well. Wouldn’t it be great to see Federer and Roddick play! I’ll keep dreaming. I’ll be happy whatever I see. I just hope it doesn’t rain.
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