Europe Travel to Zurich, Switzerland

I found a deal to Zurich, Switzerland last December 2010. It was really a very cheap trip considering that the transportation, overnight in Hilton Hotel Airport and breakfast were already included during that deal. I immediately booked it because I also want to witness the Christmas market in this Swiss city.

To give you some overview of this city, Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is also the financial center of this country.

We had some hours walk around the Altstadt or old city of Zurich. I am happy with what I saw but I would be very satisfied if we have more time seeing more of its sights. At least, I was able to witness the biggest covered Christmas market in Europe and maybe in the whole world to.

Here are some of the images I took during our visit last December 2010.

Zurich by night. You can see the buildings along the Limmat River in this city.

winter in Zurich. You can see the towers of some of the churches in this city. One of it is the Fraumünster. I guess the one on the right side.

I Miss Nice, France

The name itself already says the beauty of this French city. Nice is truly nice and I love it there! It is almost a year now since we visited this city. It is called Nice la Belle or Nissa La Bella in Niçard, which also means Nice the Beautiful. It is also the title of the unofficial anthem of Nice, written by Menica Rondelly in 1912.

The seafront of the city is a must to go walking or spending sometime relaxing on its beach is a nice experience too. I remember going inside a souvenir shop in Nice and telling the cashier that his place is very beautiful. I was pronouncing Nice as nice in English but I was mistaken and he was not able to understand me. Nice is actually pronounced like the English word "niece". Be careful when talking to someone from Nice. They might not understand you.

It was only a short visit we had in Nice but it was worth seeing the place. If you are visiting French Riviera in the future, don't miss to include Nice in your list.

the seafront in Nice, France during our spring trip last April 2011.

The city’s main seaside promenade, the Promenade des Anglais (‘the Walkway of the English’) owes its name to the earliest visitors to the resort.

Skywatch Friday
Weekend Reflection
Scenic Sunday
Shadow Shot Sunday
Sunday Snapshot

Cruising in Cinque Terre, Italy

Happy New Year 2012! I hope you are having a wonderful start of the year. I can't complain until now but still hoping for a very great 2012 with more travels. I am happy to share my first entry for 2012. Let me share to you about one of the most beautiful trip I had last year. This was in Cinque Terre, the five coastal villages in the Italian region of Liguria. These five villages include Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza and Monterosso which belong to the list of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

After our short sightseeing in Monterosso (I love the beautiful white beaches here), we boarded a boat for a short cruise going to Riomaggiore. We also a short sightseeing in this lovely village. On the main street of Riomaggiore, you can find an assortment of cafes, bars, restaurants, and of course, gelaterie. There are also alimentari shops selling the typical yummy Italian fare: fresh fruit (strawberries, cherries, and nespole), an assortment of salumi (salami, mortadella and the like), cheeses, olives, etc.

We proceeded to Vernazza after Riomaggiore boarding a train. This is where we spent the rest of the day. It was so far a lovely trip seeing some of the beautiful coastal areas in Liguria, Italy. I hope I can have more travels for this year.

the boat where we had a short cruise from Monterosso to Riomaggiore last spring 2011.

the beautiful beach in Monterosso, one of the Cinque Terre in Luguria, Italy.

some buildings in Vernazza, Cinque Terre, Italy.

Our World-Tuesday
Orange Tuesday

NF Waters
Watery, Wordful
Outdoor Wednesday
Wordless Wednesday

Cruising in Amsterdam Canals,

Amsterdam is the capital city of Netherlands. It has lovely canals that criss cross the city and is worthy to explore. Its impressive architecture, great shopping and friendly people are only some reasons why Amsterdam is visited by millions of tourists and visitors every year.

One best way of exploring the city is cruising its canals. Some of the companies that offer canal cruises are Amsterdam Boat Guide, Amsterdam Jewel Cruises and The Canal Bus. Check their websites for schedules and more information.

we had a cruise in Amsterdam canals during our visit. It was quite interesting exploring the many canals of Amsterdam.

These are some of the images I took during our visit in Amsterdam last summer 2010.

The Windmill in Amsterdam, Netherlands

I believed most of you are very familiar about windmills and its purposes. Visiting Netherlands without seeing any windmill seems like you did not visit it. Today, there are around 1000 mills left compared to 9000 in the past. These are the words I heard clearly from our tourist guide as we visited Amsterdam, Netherlands. These mills contributed to the history of this country until today.

One of the windmills we saw during our visit last summer 2010.

This Dutch windmill in Amsterdam was built in 1757 and is identified as De 1100 Roe. It is a smock mill of the type called by the Dutch a grondzeiler ("ground sailer"), since the sails almost reach the ground.

A windmill is a machine which converts the energy of wind into rotational motion by means of adjustable vanes called sails. The main use is for a grinding mill powered by the wind, reducing a solid or coarse substance into pulp or minute grains, by crushing, grinding, or pressing. Windmills have also provided energy to sawmills, paper mills, hammermills, and windpumps for obtaining fresh water from underground or for drainage (especially of land below sea level). wikipedia.

The Royal Palace of Brussels in Belgium

The Royal Palace of Brussels is the most imposing building in the capital city of Brussels, Belgium. It is called in French language as Palais Royal de Bruxelles and is the official palace of the King of the Belgians. It was modified by King Leopold II in 1904. It is located in front of Brussels Park where we also had the chance to sit and relax.

a lion statue in front of the Palace fence.
These images were taken during our visit last August 2010.

the beautiful garden in front of the palace.

The palace is situated in front of Brussels Park. A long square called the Paleizenplein/Place des Palais separates the palace from the park. The middle axis of the park marks both the middle peristyle of the palace and the middle of the facing building on the other side of the park, which is the Palace of the Nation (the Belgian Federal Parliament building). The two facing buildings are said to symbolize Belgium's system of government: a constitutional monarchy.

Eiffel Tower in Paris, France

This is the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France climbing to the cloudy and misty skies of the city. It is considered to be the famous landmark of Paris. I took this image as we were in Trocadero during my second visit in August 2010. You can also find the fountain in Trocadero in my image below. For me, Eiffel Tower is an amazing work of art and architecture.
The Eiffel Tower (French: La Tour Eiffel, nickname La dame de fer, the iron lady) is an 1889 iron lattice tower located on the Champ de Mars in Paris that has become both a global icon of France and one of the most recognizable structures in the world. The tallest building in Paris,[10] it is the most-visited paid monument in the world; millions of people ascend it every year. Named for its designer, engineer Gustave Eiffel, the tower was built as the entrance arch to the 1889 World's Fair.

The tower stands 324 metres (1,063 ft) tall, about the same height as an 81-storey building. It was the tallest man-made structure in the world from its completion until the Chrysler Building in New York City was built in 1930. Not including broadcast antennas, it is the second-tallest structure in France after the 2004 Millau Viaduct.
more here

The Seine River in Paris, France

I did had the chance to visit Paris, France for the second time last month. It was again a very interesting and worth- remembering trip despite the rainy and cold weather. It was supposed to be summer in August but the weather was so unfriendly. You can see the famous river in Paris which named Seine. Here is the image I took during our visit last month.
The Seine (French: La Seine, pronounced:) is a major river and commercial waterway within the regions of the Île-de-France and Haute-Normandie in France. It is 776 km (486 miles) long, rising at Saint-Seine near Dijon in eastern France near the Swiss Alps, flowing through Paris and into the English Channel at Le Havre. It is navigable by ocean-going vessels for about ten percent of its length, as far as Rouen, 120 km (75 miles) from the sea. Over sixty percent of its length, as far as Burgundy, is negotiable by commercial riverboats and nearly its whole length is available for recreational boating - Excursion boats offer sightseeing tours of the Rive Droite and Rive Gauche within the city of Paris. more here

The Mountains in Austria

I guess it is time to slowly share images of Europe in this blog. I just made a random choice in my external hard disk . The photo below is the first one where I landed. This was taken last 2008 as we were on our way to Salzburg, Austria. If I am not mistaken, this might be the Alps mountains. Sorry folks, I can't exactly remember now where exactly in Austria I did took this image. More images to come next time!

taken during our bus trip to Salzburg last 2008..see embedded date on the picture.