Girl's Getaway to Cologne, Brussels & Amsterdam

The cathedral in Cologne

"a-a-A a-a-a-a-A A-A-AAAA" (Think Little Mermaid) THE CHOCOLATE MUSEUM in Cologne

Enjoying our chocolate drinks at the chocolate museum

The famous Cologne Cathedral

Belgian Waffles & Le Manneken Pis

A canal in Amsterdam

I love the Amsterdam architecture

DANGER ZONE!! We gorged on the cheese samples

   

The Amsterdam flower market

Back in Brussels!

This past weekend my friend Emmy & I went on a girl's trip to Belgium and Amsterdam. J and his friends also went to Belgium to do a battlefields and beer tour. I've seen enough of the Belgian battlefields, so we spent our time enjoying the scenery, eating Belgian waffles & chocolate and Dutch Gouda!! (J came home with a ton of Belgian beer gift packs & I came home with tons of tasty treats).

We spent the first evening in Cologne on our way to Brussels. We spent the morning there checking out the cathedral, a renowned chocolate museum & doing a little shopping. I forgot how much fun it is to shop with friends. Then we drove into Brussels and checked out the main sights that evening.

The next day we trained it to Amsterdam and walked a few miles all around the city. I just love the architecture of Amsterdam. I try not to let all of the drugs and sex everywhere ruin the beautiful city for me. We went to the newly renovated maritime museum, but I'd say the highlight was just walking down the canal roads. We found a hidden church which had some great history, and had such a good time we almost didn't get home. The trains all run differently Sunday nights, so we had a few mishaps and ended up missing our train from Antwerp to Brussels by TWO minutes. Yeah, the LAST train to Brussels. Thankfully, there was one that got us about 30 minutes away..and thankfully someone else was trying to get to Brussels too, so we ended up sharing a taxi the rest of the way. A little pricey, but definitely better than sleeping on the train station floor.

Our last day in Brussels we walked through some of the ritzier parts of the town, and then the place that used to contain all of the lepers, Marolles. There is some much to see in Brussels, and so many different areas, it's hard to tell when you are leaving one neighborhood and entering another.

The trip ended with a stop at a furniture shop. A Belgian woman once came to a Bamberg bazaar on post to sell her beautiful handmade furniture. A few of my friends bought pieces last time she was there, but J & I missed out. I have been green with jealousy ever since, so I just went directly to the source and got a beautiful kitchen island. I'm in love!! (And J doesn't hate it much either).

Emmy left for America the morning after we got back, so that was our last hurrah until I am back in the states. There is a good chance we will be stationed relatively close, so here's hoping!!

This weekend J & I are going to a medieval fest, so look forward to pictures! I hope you have a great weekend.