Skip to main content

When in Belgium

A short intro why I need to write at this moment about my first experience in Belgium. Last night I had a nightmare. I was in a train/subway and after we left the station, it stopped suddenly. Then the train driver announced: "Don't panic!". In that moment I knew the train was hijacked. My panic mode installed, I couldn't move at all. I remember at some point the doors opened and some people got out, but I was blocked and afraid if I go out I will be shot. And then my bed broke and I woke up :)).
This dream made me think a lot. And then I figured it out. In one week I will travel to Brussels. It will be the first time I travel there after the attacks. I realized what a huge impact those unhappy events had on me. But why? That's the question. First I thought it's related with the fact that's the route to my office. But then I dug up more and... I remembered Cristina's remark from last night: "It will be so nice to go alone in a foreign city and discover it". My first thought was: "I did that, in Brasov", but wait, that wasn't the first time. My first city where I got lost alone was Brussels. Voilà...
Two years ago, by this time, I traveled to Belgium, by myself, for the first time. I was following my heart. The first mindful travel.
I stayed in Ghent at a Spanish friend I met in Stockholm :). Funny thing. From Brussels airport to Ghent central station with the train it takes you around 1h. I don't know what train I took but it took me 2h to get to the destination. Hahaha... And if that was not enough, I took the tram to the city center in the opposite direction. My poor friend.. He was waiting me (Thank you for waiting me!!!).
I spent one day in Brussels by myself. I had a really nice time.
Brussels Park - Relaxing in the grass
The next day I wasn't alone :). We went to Bruges. When we arrived there we went to a supermarket to buy a sandwich and a beer. I was surprised to discover that you can drink in public spaces (I love Belgium for this).
In Bruges
In the last day, another Romanian girl joined us to Antwerp (or Anvers in french). They were celebrating the remembrance poppy. I still have one to remember me about that day.
The Museum aan de Stroom, Bruges
Breathtaking panorama of Antwerp at the top of the MAS 
Remembrance poppy
And when I come back I spoiled my co-workers with Belgian waffles and Nutella (Andra, I said it. I will buy you a jar and we'll share it :)).

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Stories from Hamburg

Lately I've heard a lot about Hamburg, how awesome it is and I was curious to see it with my own eyes. Being in Berlin these days, was the perfect moment to do it. I bought train tickets and here I am in a train going to Hamburg. With my book, enjoying a 2h train ride  The weather was not favorable to me, but I still have all my fingers. I must say, the rainy day enhanced the colors of this city. I was not kidding about the cold It took me a few time to get used with the temperature, but after that I forgot it was cold. I had set in mind to see the canals. I came here for that. I read some articles about this and I was impressed. It's said that it has more than Venice or Amsterdam. From what I've seen, it looks a lot with both of them, but on a different scale. If in the two cities mentioned the buildings are not so tall, here we find massive constructions. #wanderlust #urbanphotography #enthusiastictraveller A post shared by Madalina G. (@gmadalina92)

Bustling Ho Chi Minh City & tranquil Mekong Delta

  My 3 weeks itinerary through Vietnam ends in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) or Saigon (as the locals know it). I had 2 days and a half to spend here. Here I met again with Leroy, who got to the city one day before me and left one day before I. From Mui Ne I took another bus to reach the big city. As I mentioned before, buses are the most convenient way to travel. If you arrange it through your hotel/hostel the bus will come and pick you up from there. Usually I prefer traveling by train because I can read and stretch my legs whenever I want, but during my stay in Vietnam I got to enjoy the conversations that you can have in the bus. On the bus to HCMC I met a woman who is teaching English to staff of a resort in Mui Ne. She wasn't a teacher but she did this for the past years, traveling around and teaching locals basic English. She was finding these opportunities through  https://www.workaway.info/ , a website who connects travellers who like to travel and do volunteer work in the place

Beach life: Nha Trang & Mui Ne

Leaving behind Da Lat, the city of eternal spring, I went to Nha Trang, a high-rise, high-energy beach resort. The city enjoys a stunning setting: it's ringed by a necklace of hills with a turquoise bay dotted by tropical islands.   From Da Lat to Nha Trang I took a bus and it took me ~4h to get to my destination. Buses are the most convenient way of moving around. Most of the times they pick you up from your hotel and drop you off to the next one.  The road from Da Lat to Nha Trang meanders through the hills. The scenery is quite spectacular. I'm happy I didn't have any breakfast before this ride. Beside the zigzag road, the Vietnamese drive like crazy, overtaking cars in forbidden spots. On the minibus I met two women who were stopping in Nha Trang for a couple of hours on their way to Hoi An. We started chatting and spent the afternoon together. When travelling solo it's easy to meet other people, although I'm an introvert and for me it's not that easy as it