TRAVEL AND LIFESTYLE DIARIES

I guess I am one of those guilty individuals who rarely make contact with neighbors. I am far from being shy in real life but I shy away from making social contact (I do not have a disease!) in the neighborhood because, honestly, I am simply just not interested? Well, the short walk to the city center yesterday made me feel small, like I should be accountable to my surroundings when I saw this rainbow painted stone slab just 2 blocks away from where we live. “Maakt u een praatje op ons stoepje” means and is a call to action to the people in the neighborhood to have or build more contact with each other. With the growing individualism and please-mind-your-own-business attitude in the society, getting neighbors to bypass the standard ‘hallo’, ‘goede morgen’, and ‘dag’ greetings has become one of the more difficult social challenges in neighborhoods nowadays. I cannot deny the fact that this is a good call to action -- build more contact with people around us and not build walls, albeit i...

In December last year, I was in Prague, Czech Republic. After spending the whole day in Mala Strana, the neighborhood across the old town, I checked out the Christmas Market located under the Charles Bridge. The market was nice and low-key. I made sure I had my gluhwein with me as I toured around the place. Then for dinner, I tried the traditional Prague ham. I have been eyeing this piece of crunchy meat all day long. Grilled in open-flame and meat carved directly from the pig when you order it! Delicious. I then sat down on a bench and watched a group of country folk musicians playing on stage. With my second cup of warm gluhwein in my hand, I just sat there, enjoying my surroundings, and taking in the whole merry ambience. The music on the podium was new to my ears. I do not even understand a single thing as it was in Czech. It came to a point that the people in front of me and around me were dancing. Everyone suddenly was in high spirits! It felt so surreal. The music, the l...

How timing! Flying Dutchman frequent flyers magazine is featuring Morocco with a long article discussion on Essaouira and of course Marrakech! Magazine caption translation - Morocco, Saida: “My country is the most beautiful country.” I am going with a girl friend and our plane tickets and hotels were already booked a couple of weeks ago. However, I have not yet gotten myself to face up the upcoming spring holiday because I am still wrestling various obstacle relay matches at work that includes irritations, misinterpretations, long string of email battles (ha-ha combative mood, can you relate?) and raising my voice! ARGHHHHHH! I hate office politics! I’m telling my stubborn, strong willed, aggressive self to back off a bit so I won’t bite off an ear. The backing off, and even just the thought of it, is enough to cause me so much STRESS. The guy sitting in front of me suggested I should take up knitting as a hobby to help improve my (im)patience but I told him if I follow his suggestion ...

The Daliborka Tower has an interesting story about Knight Dalibor. I had the chance to explore the dungeon tower he was held prisoner and stories said that he was probably the first prisoner in Daliborka Tower. He was detained due to rebellion where he spent his days learning to play the violin. Soon rumors about the beautiful yet sad melodies he played spread. Many locals would come and gather under the tower to listen, and some even brought him food. Dalibor’s daily diet normally consists of bread and water, given to him by the guards. However, with the new variety of food the people brought him every day he surely was well fed and pampered. In the coming days, Dalibor became so popular with the people that the authorities were scared to announce his fate, which should have been death. I am not sure how the tale ended really... Anyway, I descended the ramparts and caught these breath taking views of Prague’s crimson roofs: Around and below the castle fortifications there are vineyar...

The Golden Lane (Zlata Ulicka) is a narrow alleyway with tiny shops selling locally made handidrafts inside the Prague castle grounds. It somewhow awakens the child in you. Maybe because of the bright and colourful hues of the little shops. They are best fit for small people. It just evokes fairy tales, legends and dwarfs, that sort of thing. The houses are built at the end of the 16th century. The writer Franz Kafka lived here on house number 22. The house is now a memorial exhibiting his works. So how did this street gets its name? Legend says alchemists used to live on this street and one named Uhle was secretly experimenting on turning metals into gold. One day the residents heard a big explosion coming from his house. When they arrived at his premises they found him dead and a golden bar which turned out to be gold. I also discovered the traditional Czech spa wafers sold by a street vendor by the entrance to the Golden Lane. They were still fresh and warm. A nice in between snack....

Barneveld, a municipality in Gelderland (in the east of the Netherlands) is popularly known for breeding chickens. Poultry farming and egg production is a huge industry in this little low-key town. In the town center you can find statues of this winged creature everywhere. A giant rooster! The Schaffelaar Castle in Neo-Tudor style is named after Jan van Schaffelaar who jumped off the Barneveld Tower to save his men. However, we didn’t visited Barneveld for its impressive collection of pullet (they even have a museum called Het Nederlands Pluimveemuseum) or for its uninspiring little town center -- we came here for the walking trails in Landgoed Schaffelaar which is advantageously located just right across the small town center and a huge parking lot. If you are a reader of this blog, you will notice that part of my favorite weekend activities (when I am not assaulted with the lazy bug) is strolling in forests, nature parks and noble estates open to the public. More pictures here: Barne...

The Prague Castle was a bit of a disappointment though. It did not speak to me. It is said to be the biggest medieval castle in Europe, but it is actually a complex in itself. I do not find anything so special about it except that it is humongous. This is the baroque Matthias’ Gate built in 1614. There are always guards stationed at the entrance and they are favourite subjects to pose with by tourists. Inside the courtyard of the Prague Castle complex you can find the imposing St. Vitus Cathedral that towers above Hradcany and Mala Strana. I am not much of a fan for eerie-looking Gothic churches but this one have a very nice detailed facade painting. The castle is also the seat of government and is home to the non-partisan Eurosceptic president of Czech Republic, Vaclav Klaus. Czech Republic currently holds the EU presidency and the bullheaded Vaclav Klaus refuses to fly the EU flag at the Prague Castle! He explains that he is not an EU opponent but an “EU realist”. Many Czech citizen...

The famous and picturesque Nerudova Street (King’s Road) that leads to the Prague Castle in Hradcany is also a wonderful experience in itself. The narrow cobbled alleyway is flanked with vibrant multihued pastel coloured burgher houses and is home to many embassies. I just love this street. It was just 10 in the morning when I walked on this street and it was already completely buzzing with people and activity! People are out here early. On this street you can find beautiful house emblems on the facade. Back in the olden times, the residents do not have house numbers. They identify and name their houses by their emblems located on top of the doors. Hmmm. Must be an interesting job being a mail man in those days. My photos below: Just lovely isn’t it? Travel Period: December 2008