When in Rome….

Hello Everyone!

How are you doing guys? It’s been a long time that I wrote something on my blog. It’s because I’ve been travelling so much, Christmas was around the corner, New Year and I had my exams.
But here I am now, finally to write you guys something about one of my trips that I made in December with my parents: Rome.

On December 22th my parents and I went to Rome for 4 days. I was really excited, cause I’ve never been to Rome before.
It was a two hour flight from Düsseldorf-Weeze to Rome Campiano. When we arrived at Rome Campiano we drove with a shuttle bus to Rome centre and had dinner in one of the restaurants in the city. Unfortunately I forgot the name of it… it was bad though….
I had a pizza napolitana, which was a pizza with ansjovis and some cheese and capers. Not very tasty at all! So, that was a nice introduction to the real Italian cuisine 😛

IMG_8424  Pizza Napolitana.

We stayed at a hotel 15 minutes away from the Vatican. It was a long road to take us to the centre of the city.

On our first day we took the bus and the metro to the Trevi Fontain. We couldn’t find it in the first place so we asked locals how to get to the Trevi Fontain. The people in Italy are so polite and nice. Most of them don’t speak English or whatsoever, but they were very friendly. Eventually we found the Trevi Fontain. The weather was nice and it wasn’t too crowded, so we were able to took a lot of pictures with not so many people around us.

IMG_8489 Trevi Fontain

They say that when you throw a coin into the fontain, that you will come back to Rome again. Which, of course, I did! It is all a mythe of course, but it is fun to do it and of course you’re coming back to Rome, cause it is beautiful!

IMG_8483Trevi Fontain

After the Trevi Fontain we walked to the Pantheon. The Pantheon was beautiful inside. It has a round roof and when you step in you see a lot of gorgeous paintings.

IMG_8485 Pantheon

IMG_8459 Inside the Pantheon.

After the Pantheon we were craving an ice-cream. And were in the world do they serve the best ice-creams? Well, yes, in Italy! They got so many different flavours and they scoop you big ones as well.
So, after the ice creams we moved on to Piazza Navona, but first we stopped to have lunch. I ordered a lentilsoup with basil and some bread. It was so delicious! I always eat lentil when I’m at home, but I never ate lentilsoup. It really was good!

After finishing our lunch we walked to the Piazza Navona. You couln’t miss the Piazza Navona. It’s a giant building in the middle of a shoppingstreet.
All the buildings in Rome are so big and so beautiful! It really was an eye opener for me and mindblowing!

P1020591Piazza Navona

It was about 3 pm when we arrived at the Piazza Navona. We did some shopping as well during our sightseeing walk. I bought some Dr. Martens and some perfume made in Italy.
After all that we decided to go back to the hotel, cause our battery of our cameras was about to die and we were a bit tired.
The ride to our hotel took so long. We were back at the hotel at 4.30 pm. After a short rest, we headed back to the city for dinner and some more sightseeing by night.

We went to the Spanish stairs and the shopping area around it. The Spanish stairs were crowded but the ambiance was so good. I must be beautiful in the summertime.

IMG_8589 Spanish stairs

The shopping area around the Spanish stairs are expensive. Think about Louis Vuitton, Lanvin, Miu Miu, Chanel, Versace, Salvatore Ferrogamo etc.
In the middle of two shopping streets there was a big Christmas tree. What a beautiful sight!

IMG_8596Christmas tree

Our second and last day we first went to the Colosseum and the “ancient city”. The Colosseum is absolutely beautiful! It was enormous, it was exactly what I espected it to be like. I suddenly love history. I imagined what it was like to be there for a gladiator game or something like that in 800 b.C.

 IMG_8688The Colosseum

IMG_8689 The Colosseum with a random ‘gladiator’

P1020755 The Colosseum

After that, we went to the Vatican. I don’t have even words to describe the Vatican. It is enormous and so beautiful!

DSC_1044    Vatican

DSC_1040 Sistine Chapel

DSC_0960 Inside Sistine Chapel

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After the Sistine Chapel and an bit of the Vatican, we went out for dinner. We had to be quick, cause it was Christmas day. A lot of shops and restaurants were closed at 4 pm. We found a restaurant that was open and ate there. I had some scampi spaghetti with vegetables. Italian people do eat a lot and they give you big portions as well! It was delicious and it was a good way to end the city trip in Rome.

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I definetly want to go back to Rome. I haven’t seen much of Rome, cause we only stayed there for 3 days. Next time I want to see everything in the Ancient Rome and again the Vatican.

Have you been to Rome?

Love,

Karin

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Christmas market in Düsseldorf

Hi Everyone!

On saturday December 7th, I went to the Christmas market in Düsseldorf with my lovely friends Noor and Suus. Last year we went there as well. It’s almost a tradition for us 🙂

Christmas markets in Germany are a big thing. It is all well known worldwide.
They say that the best Christmas market is in Cologne, Germany.
You can get anything at the Christmas market. All kinds of comfort food, jewelry, decorations, accessoires, and last but not least: the famous glühwein!

We took a stroll down the stands and we drank glühwein and I bought a lovely Tiger eye pendal, a ring and two salt stone candle holders.

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Have you ever been to a Christmas market?

Love,

Karin

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Coffee break

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Hi Everyone!

Have you ever had that feeling that when you wake up in the morning and everything spins around? Well, this morning is for me like that. I had a great night out and I didn’t stay long, but still, I’m tired and really need a good coffee.

I often go for a Latte Macchiato with a shot of hazelnut at the Coffee Company, which is a huge café chain in Amsterdam.

A good coffee is sometimes all I need for a good start of my day 🙂

What do you guys order?

Have a great weekend!

Love,

Karin

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Food food food

Hi Everyone!

You may know that I love food! I post a lot of pictures of food on Instagram or on this blog. I like to try every kind of kitchen. My favorites are Asian cuisine, Italian and Mexican.
What you never going to see is me eating french fries or order a big big Mac at the McDonalds. I hate fastfood and I don’t eat red meat.
So, that said, here are some pictures of my recent restaurant visits.
Enjoy! 🙂

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Munich:Cold and dark

Hi everyone!

I forgot to tell you this, but two weeks ago I went to visit some friends of mine in Munich. I stayed there for 3 days. It was the second time for me in Munich. I’m going to be honest… I think Munich is boring. There wasn’t a lot going on and just the energy of the city gave me a weird feeling. If it wasn’t for my friends, I would never go to Munich for fun. They say Munich is fun in the Oktoberfest season.
Well , I don’t know. Cause I’m not planning to go to Munich soon.

Love, Karin

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Cologne, Cologne

Hi everyone!

Today, I’m in Cologne for a one day citytrip. I always love these short trips to lovely cities.
The Dom is still in renovation. Poor thing… I remember when I was 8 years old, the first time I went to Cologne, the renovation was already a several years in process. And in this 10 year time, it hasn’t made any process what so ever.

Have you guys been to Cologne before?
And what do you guys think about the Dom?

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Love, Karin

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Sushi time!

Yesterday I had dinner with my lovely friend Mei Xin. We ate sushi! I love sushi. It’s so healthy and light. Salmon and tuna has so many good ‘fat’. It’s good for your health, skin, heart and brains. Keep than moist :p

You guys like sushi as well? 🙂

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Mum and daughter day

This week, my mother came to Amsterdam to visit me. She stayed at my place for a few days.
I had to show her an other side of Amsterdam, not the usual sightseeing things like the Dam Square or the Red Light district. It’s not the first time for my mother in Amsterdam. When I was younger we went a several times to Amsterdam, the capitol of our country The Netherlands. My parents didn’t like Amsterdam that much as I do. But since I live here, I wanted to show them the ‘real’ Amsterdam.

The first day my mother and I took a stroll in the Vondelpark. The weather was nice and it was quiet. My mother found it very calm.
Right next to the Vondelpark, the famous and expensive street ‘ P.C Hooftstraat ‘
We went shopping and had a lovely lunch at Bagels&Beans

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Bagels&Beans.

After lunch we went shopping again through the ‘Negen Straatjes’. These streets have lots of lovely boutiques such as COS, Verlour, lots of secondhand shops and lunchrooms. If you looking for alternative clothes and ‘real’ Amsterdam, go check that out!

After a long day of shopping we ate dinner at Oriental China in China town.
That was very tasty.

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Food at Oriental: Chicken feet. Very exotic.

I planned to go to the cinema after dinner, so we went to see ‘ About Time ‘.
Lovely movie with Rachel McAdams and Bill Nighy and Domhnall Gleeson.
The film was so lovely to watch. I like those cheesy love stories.
The movie was allright, a bit too long I think for a romantic love story. It was 123 min long. If it was me, I found that 100 min. will do.
After the movie, we went back to my room in Amsterdam.
We had a long day after all.

The next day we went to the famous warehouse ‘ De Bijenkorf ‘. I introduced my mother to some of my collegues and friends.
After that, we took the train back to Breda.

It was a lovely 2 days with my mother and hopefully she can come more often.

Love,
Karin

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Too much food!

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This was all my food… I eat a lot. :-p

Yesterday, I was in Düsseldorf, Geenany with my parents for their birthday. Well, it’s their birthday today, but we celebrate it yesterday.

We had dinner at Maredos. It’s a Mexican restaurant and we come there very often. I really love the Mexican kitchen as well as the Japanese, the Chinese and the Italian kitchen. I really like food, as long it is healthy. I don’t eat red meat and tru not to eat fastfood.

I ordered my favorite dish there: Vegetarian Fajitas with a mixed salate. And I was very hungry, so I ordered a side potato dish as well 🙂
It was very tastefull! Next time I’m not going to order the side potato dish!
In Germany they are very generous with food. They give you as much as possible!

So, now I’n curious, what is your favorite food? Do you like Mexican food as well?

Let me know!

Love, Karin

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Onvergetelijke zomer: Kopenhagen

Hallo iedereen!

In mijn voorgaande blogposts kon je lezen over de avonturen van mij en mijn twee beste vriendinnen in Praag en Berlijn. In deze post ga ik het hebben over onze laatste stad: Kopenhagen.

Na onze geweldige verblijf in Berlijn zijn we met het vliegtuig naar Kopenhagen gevlogen. We dachten dat onze vlucht ongeveer een uur zou duren, maar het was slechts een vlucht van 30 min.
Eenmaal aangekomen in Kopenhagen hebben we snel een buskaartje gehaald richting ons appartement. Mijn eerste indruk van Kopenhagen was dat het echt een heel schoon en geordend land was. Alles zag er netjes uit en de mensen waren vriendelijk en konden allen heel goed Engels! Dat in tegenstelling tot de Tsjechen.
Eenmaal aangekomen bij het appartement zagen we dat dat ook erg schoon was en alles was van de IKEA ( Mooie Billy-kast ) Ver zoeken naar een supermarkt was niet nodig, want er zat gewoon eentje onder ons. Super handig natuurlijk. Als iemand van ons wat nodig had, gingen we dat even snel halen.
Het appartement was dit keer een stuk groter dan die van Berlijn. Het interieur oogde ook veel frisser en veel moderner dan die van Berlijn. Maar geen van allen kon aan het appartement van Praag tippen!

Alles in Kopenhagen is duur! In het supermarkt vonden we niet een dingetje wat een beetje voordelig was. Zelfs de lokale producten waren 2 keer zo duur als in Nederland. We hebben geprobeerd zo voordelig mogelijk boodschappen te doen in Kopenhagen. Dus “echt” Deens hebben we niet kunnen eten met ons budget.

We hebben fietsen gehuurd tijdens ons verblijf in Kopenhagen. Het scheelt niet heel veel met een voordeelkaart voor de OV, maar toch hebben we voor de fietsen gekozen. Fietsen is immers zo gezond en goed voor het milieu. En als je toch een beetje Deens wil doen, ga je fietsen.
Hieronder vertel ik met behulp van foto’s wat we iedere dag hebben gedaan.

Dag 1

Kopenhagen 2013

Kopenhagen 2013

Prachtige rivier de Soren

 

Kopenhagen 2013

Kopenhagen 2013

Nyhavn

 

Kopenhagen 2013

Kopenhagen 2013

Kopenhagen 2013

Kopenhagen 2013

The Little Mermaid

The Little Mermaid viel een beetje tegen. Ik had haar veel groter verwacht, maar de naam zegt het al: “the LITTLE mermaid”.

Dag 2

Mälmo 2013

Mälmo 2013

Mälmo

We gingen nog een dagje naar Mälmo, Zweden. Geweldige

Mälmo 2013

Mälmo 2013

Mälmo Stadshuis

Dag 3

Op dag 3 gingen we naar de paleizen. Amalienborg en Rosenborg. Amalienborg is het verblijf van the Royal Family. Wat was dat mooi zeg! We gingen ook naar het museum van Amalienborg. Helaas mochten we daar geen foto’s maken, dus heb ook geen foto van Amalienborg.

Kopenhagen 2013

Kopenhagen 2013

Rosenborg

Daarna gingen we naar Rosenborg. Rosenborg is een oud kasteel met juwelen van het koninghuis en oude schilderijen en beelden.

Dag 4

Kopenhagen 2013

Kopenhagen 2013

Tivoli

Op dag 4 gingen we naar Tivoli. Het pretpark lag midden in het centrum van Kopenhagen. We gingen op een doordeweekse dag en ook toen was het druk. Het heeft een hele fijne sfeer en alles was heel idyllisch en zag er Deens uit. Het is de Efteling van Denemarken. Tivoli was erg gezellig en leuk! We zijn een hele dag daar gebleven en zijn in allerlei soorten attracties geweest. Aanraders zijn: The Dragon, The Demon, The Monsoon en The Star Flyer.

Kopenhagen 2013

Kopenhagen 2013

Tivoli

Tips voor Kopenhagen:

    • Heb veel geld om uit te geven
    • Even lekker aan het water bij Nyhavn. Zeker een aanrader in de drukke stad.
    • Winkelen in Stroget is altijd een feest. Wel oppassen dat de prijs hoger ligt dan in Nederland.
    • Ga eens langs bij Joe & the Juice voor lekker gezonde sapjes ( en mannen 😉 )
    • Dagje Mälmo is ook altijd leuk. Al moet ik zeggen dat je niet echt een beeld van Zweden krijgt. Het is wel een stuk goedkoper dan Kopenhagen.
    • Huur fietsen. Wij hadden voor 5 dagen fietsen gehuurd. €43,-

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Al met al was Kopenhagen een hele toffe stad. Het is een hippe stad en ontzettend milieuvriendelijk! Als je veel geld hebt om uit te geven, is dit een fantastische stad om te blijven. Toch is er veel minder te zien dan de wereldstad Berlijn.
Maar dat maakt het niet minder leuk!

Hopelijk heb ik jullie nieuwsgierig gemaakt naar Kopenhagen!

Liefs, Karin

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