TRAVEL AND LIFESTYLE DIARIES

Gerlos sits in the heart of Ziller Valley, 1300 meters above sea level and about 10-minute zigzag drive from Zell am Ziller. The village is a very popular wintersport destination by the Dutch and Germans as well. Everywhere I go, be it in the Spar supermarket, on the streets, in the restaurants, hanging on the bar, waiting at the ski lift, skiing in the slopes, practically everywhere, Dutch is spoken. It felt like I have not left the Netherlands after all. The Village: Gerlos The alpine village, Gerlos, at dusk. Because of Gerlos popularity, I have expected a much bigger village however it’s actually a very small and laid-back town. No more than a strip, a kilometer long street filled with hotels, inns, banks, and shops. That’s it, that is the village. There is a small arena with a slope and a ski school in the center of the village, perfect for children and beginners who need to practice. Also a great place to enjoy sledding. Most of the shops on the little road strip are f...

This is our wooden chalet in Gerlos, Austria: I love the wide glass windows. Making breakfast for the Dutchman and I. Please excuse my harassed morning face. Moi at the terrace. Well, not harassed anymore, haha. Here are some pictures of the surroundings of our chalet: There is a little chapel around the corner. Many Austrians are Roman Catholics and you will see a lot of the religious influence everywhere in the village, from chapels to churches to random crosses on the streets. And we did a little stroll in the neighbourhood with our new found friends. Travel Period: January 2009 Destination: Gerlos (Tirol), Austria Keep in touch and follow me on Facebook: Travel & Lifestyle Diaries by Dutched Pinay Travels Happy Travels! Enjoy Life =) All pictures were taken by a point and shoot pocket camera or a smartphone.

Vltava River is the longest river in Czech Republic and it splits the Lesser Town (Hradcany) from the Old Town and New Town. It was a very chilly morning and I could feel the crispness of the wind on my lips. I made sure to dress warmly by wearing my knitted red muts, scarf and gloves. I just need to do this even if it’s very cold outside. At least it’s not snowing today. Trivia: Did you know there are 18 bridges crossing the Vltava River? Here are some of the views I had while doing the stroll along the Vltava River by Nove Mesto (New Town): I think the building with the impressive golden roof is the National Museum. By the way, moi, before going out for the stroll making sure I am fully wrapped. Not sure if this is the Negrelli Viaduct Bridge. Tramline along the river. Nove Mesto View to the Old Town or Stare Mesto. View to the Lesser Town or Mala Strana. Travel Period: December 2008

This is the Dancing House or Ginger & Fred (Tančící dům), the nickname of the Nationale Nederlanden Building in Prague. Trivia: Did you know that the Nationale Nederlanden is an insurance company owned by ING Bank in the Netherlands? This piece of modern architecture and nowadays a touristic attraction was built in the early 1990's and is located in Nove Mesto District which is the New Town part (downtown) of Prague. The building is also sometimes called as the Drunk Building. Architects are: Vlado Milunić and Frank Gehry Travel Period: December 2008 Destination: Prague, Czech Republic Keep in touch and follow me on Facebook: Travel & Lifestyle Diaries by Dutched Pinay Travels Happy Travels! Enjoy Life =)

Coming back to reality after two self-indulgent excursions in a month and now facing the grim business climate in Europe is like waking up inside the cave full of shimmering silver and gold in the Ali Baba fable and getting struck with a huge falling rock, then getting amnesia, and realizing painfully that you have no idea how to get out of there. Sucks. Well, I am not back to work yet, not until tomorrow Tuesday and I am pleased to report that I have successfully resisted the ‘easier said than done’ temptation to open my work emails today, which I am sure will pour over in the hundreds. It’s too tempting to work from home but I am reminding and persuading myself that I am still officially on holiday, and that I have many errands to run for the home, for myself and for the Dutchman who’s back at work today, and that I should, for once in my life at least this month for a day, stop being a corporate slave. So it worked. I had all the errands done today except for my two boots that nee...

Hi, just back yesterday from the Alpine mountains after a looooooooooong drive from Austria and through Germany with uber crazy STAU near the borders and into Germany just before the highway split to Nuremburg and Regensburg. STAU is the Deutsch word meaning TRAFFIC JAM. In Dutch, the word is FILE, pronounced as fee-leh. Utrecht, Netherlands to Tirol, Austria and vice versa is about 11.5 hours car drive factoring in traffic, three stopovers and refueling at an everage speed of a safe and economical 120 KM/per hour. What is quite interesting on the trip back were the herd of PL, CZ, and H luxurious cars causing heavy traffic. With the open borders now, the moneyed in the former communist East bloc have finally discovered Austria as a wintersport holiday destination. Come February and March, it’s the Dutch turn to clog the autobahns and annoy the Germans with their yellow plates, lol. So, a week of winter ski vacation in the Alps... well, we got snowed in on the third day, the slopes wer...

A goal in this Prague visit is to shop for an evening dress. In Stare Mesto, just beside the Old Town Square I discovered the shopping district with expensive signature stores, chicer than in PC Hooftstraat in Amsterdam, in ‘Parizska Street’. The main shopping street however that promises not to break your wallet is the ‘Na Prikope Street’. The only challenge with shopping in non-Euro countries is the manual calculation of the prices. It’s quite intimidating to see four to five zero digits on the price tag but after a mental calculation which I am not always good at, I can heave a sigh of relief. I got lucky, I found the dress I wanted. And it was the first dress I saw when I walked into this shop. The first dress I took off the hanging rack. Lucky indeed and I can now put off this task and continue to enjoy the city. Main shopping street of Prague: Na Prikope On Na Prikope Street there were shows featuring Czech Black Theater, and some roasted chestnuts as well. Moi doing my fitting...

I did an evening stroll in the Old Town Square (Staroměstské Náměstí). The glittering Christmas lights are lovely and the dramatic backdrop of the Church of Our Lady Before Tyn is an enchanting sight to behold. The beautiful sight before me made me remember of my encounter with a Filipina businesswoman on the plane. This was years ago and I have mentioned her previously in this blog. Her husband just recently died, and she end destination is Prague. She and her husband have traveled the Eastern bloc during his healthy years, unfortunately missing out Prague in the list. She said that her husband has always told her that they need to go to Prague. So with her husband gone, she feels the responsibility of realizing his final travel wish: A visit to Prague. She showed me his picture in her wallet. She said that she made sure she brought his picture along so she can feel he is with her. She is therefore not alone. Anyway, here is Prague by Night: Travel Period: December 2008