plans to nua have been going just dandy. i've finally uploaded everything to facebook. i have also finished Fringe and started on The Daily Show. jiayin unfortunately thwarted my plans to finish the rest of my shows by introducing this new comedy The Big Bang Theory to me which is really quite bringing the LOLs. (jiayin! i like that sheldon who says all that crap with a droll face! haha!) and also as promised to myself, here's the rest of the europe updates:
6-7th may: strasbourg/riquewhir/colmar
the train to strasbourg was at 610am which meant that we (ok. ME) had to wake up at 430. even then, we underestimated our speed at packing our luggage and also it was raining, and so we ended up running for the train (which ALWAYS leaves on time. when they say 610, they mean 610. not 611)
the train to strasbourg was at 610am which meant that we (ok. ME) had to wake up at 430. even then, we underestimated our speed at packing our luggage and also it was raining, and so we ended up running for the train (which ALWAYS leaves on time. when they say 610, they mean 610. not 611)
it was another 4 hour train ride. as usual the views kept me up (and also the we were sitting next to the doors connecting one carriage to another and it was friggin' noisy)
we reached the charming town of strasbourg at ten-ish, and made our way to our apartment hotel about 20 minutes away from downtown.
i liked it! it was bright and welcoming and cosy and stuff. downside? no wireless nor cable. (ie. American Dad in french. :()
lunch at a shopping centre
i have no idea what my pasta, the seemingly uncooked noodles with white paste, was, but whatever it was, it wasn't nice. jiayin's crepes were sinfully decadent though. french pastries/desserts are heaven!next up was the EU headquarters, the Parliament European
the sleek trams we took around town
walking around downtown
strasbourg has the prettiest buildings. strasbourg must be one of the few rare cities that we visited that has been able to find the balance between modern day architecture and old-world european charm. many cities tend to go overboard in one direction and the ending result just doesn't sit well with me. that's why i really liked strasbourg despite only staying there for one day!
did i mention that france has the most beautiful patisseries? THEY ARE EVERYWHERE! and each tempting you with the most exquisitely designed and baked goodies. it's evil really, because IT'S CARBO + FAT packed into one innocuous and pretty package!!
and the strasbourg cathedral(or something)
more bakeries
pastries (and frozen pizza we bought back to bake) for dinner!the next morning we checked out and went to pick up our car!! YAY to no more baggage dragging on trains!
big and spacious :)first stop of the day was rhiquewhir which was this picturesque little town among the vineyards in the countryside. it looks like it came straight out from the pictures of a storybook, just look! too pretty to be true
however, you do get the feeling that the town was specially preserved in this way so that all the suckers who love picturesque towns would a-comin', you know what i mean? it was a little too cute. it's just got that commericialised vibe to it despite the old-town exterior. might be the horrendously expensive meals and hordes of tourists talking.speaking of which, lunch was at a cave-like restaurant. a tad gimmicky, but nevertheless an eyeopening experience.
after lunch we were back on the road towards colmar
checking into our hotel was the first order of business of the day at colmar. i don't know man, but it does seem like all european hotels like to look shabby on the outside to scare you but then proceed to calm you down with its pretty furnishing. case in point: our zurich hotel, but more on that later.
colmar, in my opinion, was almost identical to strasbourg in terms of its architecture, except that it didnt quite have the organized, clean and fresh vibe strasbourg had. i don't know! i definitely preferred strasbourg over colmar. and since the two towns pretty much looked the same, i didn't take many pictures so instead kop-ed them from the rest. heehee. oh yeah the weather was horrendous too. it was almost the same temperature as it had been in frankfurt. no wonder people looked at my boots funny.
one thing about colmar though, it was much more up to the times with its shopping. sephora anyone? we walked past two sephoras in a space of 1km. SEPHORAS ARE LIKE THEIR WATSONS HAHAHA.
the voltaire residencelittle venice
and that was pretty much all we did that day. tons of walking round on those damn cobbled streets are not kind to your feet. so we had an early dinner (and had much difficulty looking for a restaurant. the french do not eat dinner until 7 and hence restaurants do not serve dinner until that time)
awesome rosti. the rosti at marche here can bow its head in complete shame. the rosti in france is humongous, covered with a heartattack-inducing layer of cheese, with tons of sausages buried in its gooey yummy depths. ARGH I WANT!our entertainment for the night was yuexin who decided that she had had enough of us ignoring her (jiayin using her laptop, zhi using her phone to surf net, me watching my ipod) and went to draw out mahjong tiles. HAHAHA
we didn't play with them that night though. poor yuexin. hahaha.
can't remember why i took this picture but i'd just post it anyway 'cos it looks funny haha.alright more coming up.
Labels: travel log