TRAVEL AND LIFESTYLE DIARIES

When I was a little kid I went to a private Catholic school. The school was co-founded by a German priest and because of that, we have pious and ultra-strict German priests and nuns running amok in our corridors. The school has deep European roots and I believe up to this day, are still active in the exchange student program with a number of universities here in Europe. Apparently, due to this Germanic influence, our library was filled with all sorts of European fairy tale books. One of them authors was the celebrated German Grimm Brothers of the 1800’s. Disneyland would not have Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella and Snow White had these German brothers opted for a different career path. Bremen is situated in northwest Germany and is part of the Niedersachsen region. See the black square in the map to locate Bremen. Well one of the Grimm Brother tales I read as a kid was the Bremen Town Musicians , a story about a donkey, a dog, a cat and a rooster, who all wanted to go to Bremen to become t...

I am halfway with my ski lessons. Now I can glide easily from the top of the runway all the way down. Hallelujah! I think the runway we trained is not that steep compared to the rest of the runways but still it’s quite high up there. A delicate triumphant grin and pose after the slide. On the 2nd photo is the runway we trained. See those tiny people lined up horizontally on top? That’s us, ready to show off our newfound ski talent, hehe. Click to enlarge foto. The first time I was up in the runway, I felt butterflies attacking my stomach, mix emotions of awe [beautiful scenery of the park], fear [the height!] and the dare factor that I have to surmount [to actually have the courage to slither down]. Half of my insides were screaming: “ You are damn petrified! ” The other half told me: “ You must defeat these goliaths that face you ” I experienced the chills of nervousness because gliding down can happen so fast. You can soar through the runway in a matter of seconds and if you don’t kn...

Oops, I just found out that I am the “ Blog of the week ” at PinoyBlog . Now that’s charming. The rudimentary description of this Dutched Pinay was summarized into two words starting with the letter N: “ Naughty ” and “ Nice ”. The Dutchman thought that the writer was just being polite. Hmm... maybe I need to loosen the collar belt a little bit. Well dank je wel PinoyBlog!

A few days ago I was down south in the Belgian border, in Roosendaal for a meeting. As I was trying to find my way, I inadvertently reversed the map and well evidently I got lost. Ugh, how stupid one can be? Then when I found the street, I couldn’t find the freaking building. Right in front of me where a building or an office should have stood, was a construction site filled with mangled bushes. In my mind, “ Shit, I hate being late to a meeting, this is just not done! No way, not in Holland! ” I rushed to ask several people around the area and they had no idea of the company I was looking for. Roosendaal is part of the North Brabant region bordering Zeeland on its left, another region in the Netherlands and Belgium on its south. Time was running out, I decided to call the company but couldn’t reach it. So I SOS’d the Dutchman. As a matter of fact, I panicked that I forgot to dial 0 before calling the local number. That explains why I couldn’t reach the company, haha. But oh well, the...

I guess everyone already know that the French did not invent fries but the Belgians did. Back home in the Philippines and in other countries, we always order fries by saying, “ I’d like some French fries with my burger ”. But alas in Europe, people don’t. They just say “ Fries please ”. What’s so French with it anyway? *raise eyebrows* So how do these fries differ from each other? The Dutch Patat [Dutch Fries] ordered “ Speciaal ” with mayonnaise, curry sauce and chopped onions. The Belgian version, which we usually call here Vlaamse patat or Vlaamse frites [means Flemish fries] are quite thicker and bigger. The fast food standard fries, like the ones in McDonalds, Burger King and other fast food joints are smaller, thinner and crunchier. The Dutch version which we call here Patat [means fries] is in between the Belgian and the fast food standard. You have a choice to order only with mayonnaise, or without, or with curry, or without the chopped onions. I will have to poin...

The city of Maastricht lies in the river valley of the Maas where the Netherlands, Germany and Belgium meets. See Maastricht on the red spot in the map. Founded by the Romans in 20 AD and a former bishop diocese, this once upon a time fortified city has fought and survived countless assaults and sieges of armies and kings in the 16th to the late 17th centuries. After the defeat of Napoleon in the famous Waterloo battle, Maastricht in 1815 became a part of the united kingdom of the Netherlands. Please check MY DUTCH FOTO ALBUM to see the beauty of Maastricht [foto’s are not arranged and labeled yet, so my excuses]. Points that makes Maastricht UN-DUTCH : TOPOGRAPHY & CLIMATE – The area is not at all flat! They have small hills and valleys! The climate too is at least 2C to 3C warmer and dryer. Since the city is more inland, you do not have the ubiquituos pesky Dutch sea wind here. Arriving in Maastricht is like having a mild placebo effect of having left the Netherlands. Not quit...

I was having my favorite vegetarian salad; a mix Italian Antipasto stuff, in La Place , a modish restaurant on top of V&D [Vroom & Dreesman, a Dutch department store] in Utrecht. I always take the window seat every time I am here because I love savouring the picturesque view outside. Later, I noticed [yeah after years of coming into this restaurant] that they actually have an open air terras [balcony] on the topmost part. So after I had my fill, I went up… The panorama caught me by surprise. It was simply breathtaking! The weather was perfect, not that cold and the skies were clear [something that is considered a luxury or a phenomenon here]. So I started clicking away with my camera… Here are some of the beautiful [with the help of my Fuji Camera and Picasa ] snapshots of Utrecht’s Medieval City Centrum . Click each picture to enlarge. Then there was this English girl and Swedish guy, obviously tourists, who passed by me and opened the gate to the outer section of the s...

Setting : Manila , Philippines , around 7 in the evening inside Starbucks Coffee Makati [the one beside Shangri-La Makati Hotel] Circa : 1999 , I was then 29. I was checking the menu trying to figure out what I want but could not decide, so I ordered the normal cup of coffee. While waiting for it, this almost 60 year old something white guy was trailing my back until such that I finished garnishing my coffee with sugar, cinnamon and milk; he, with his coffee too in tow, followed me outside to where my friends were sitting chatting with each other. These set of friends are not the flaccid and prude types, so I knew exactly what’s cooking in their mind. Let’s just say, something not good. True enough, they thought it was the perfect idea to pull my leg me so they asked the old white guy to join us, which of course he gladly did. Well, I am sure all his glands were flapping over with joy! To complicate matters, after the excessive bantering, my friends gave him my business card [someone...

Any seafood lover would want a bite of this! Crunchy and so good. Made from deep fried white fish such as Kabeljauw, Wijting, Roodbaars, and Koolvis [Sorry, I don’t know the English terms] to name a few, this typical Dutch fish treat will definitely leave your palates asking for more. Best eaten as a snack in the morning or afternoon, and for a few Euro cents, you can select the sauce you want. I chose my favorite, Knooflook Saus (Garlic Mayo Sauce). People, try this when visiting Holland! Utrecht Centrum, The Netherlands October 2005 Keep in touch and follow me on Facebook: Travel & Lifestyle Diaries by Dutched Pinay Travels Happy Travels! Enjoy Life =)