Antwerp Diamond Hotel

... Dutch all weekend (except for a few times when things would be in French, which was a more welcome sight than I would have ever thought), I can't tell you how familiar it felt to be back in French train stations! While I was reading a history assignment on Monday night, I realized that I had just been to the building they were discussing the day before in Brussels. I
love studying abroad! I can also say that I have already finished my box of chocolates ...

... really good on our bikes (knock on wood). I really love to ride (we'll see if I still feel this way when the cold arrives). We decided to ride to the beach (yes, they have beaches here). We rode about 14 miles round trip. It's not that far, but it was very fun. The beach was very nice, big, and much like California's beaches. It was a lovely day - I was very tired when we made it home.

... I don't know, I'd be more apt to get the Mickey Mouse pancake or toast maker myself! Antwerpen, or Antwerp (it seemed to be that you could call it either!) is the diamond capitol of the world. Some 90% of the world's diamonds come through here (a stat which I heard but did not verify). And, with that many diamonds, of course you can get them for cheap too. So take that 5k you were going to spend on a ring, and take a trip to Belgium, and use the ...

... a suit and tie. Have a trip to Prague coming up for some magazine article assignment and am currently finishing up a big "Places to Go" piece for a Baby Boomer website. So, on that note, back to work...right after I get another cup of coffee. Enjoy the pictures. Better yet, come over here and take some of your own. There's a cold beer(s) waiting for you in the fridge. Visit Klenske, Ink.

... beautiful Central Station, only to find it under renovation (same as Brussels' Central Station, and as a whole host of other sites seemingly permanently covered in scaffolding... my theory is that it's to encourage postcard sales, but anyway...). Just outside the station, there's a line of fake elephants, which seem random except when you consider that the zoo is right behind the station. There are some really small ones in that line, and it ...

... than I thought. Once I got their however it was quite the experience to say the least. I was told to be there at 9am getting on the water by 9:30am. Well most people didn't show up until closer to 10. Unfortunately it was extremely windy and a very rare occurrence (according to the coach) that they wouldn't be going out. Since the course is a closed canal, the wind rarely gets too strong to go out, but today was an exception. My coach, Guido, took me to ...

... world - it seems pretty clear to me that it should be the case since just about everything is legal there...when you can't arrest anyone for drugs, prostitution, drinking on the street, it doesn't leave you with much left. - Holland won their World Cup match on Friday against Ivory Coast - the Holland fans were crazy, out in full force, decked out in orange from head to toe. - When I was in Germany, I bought a cheap army-style jacket with ...

... around the quiet town, trying to make our way to the famous Antwerp Cathedral. We came to Grote Markt and the Town Hall. Where there are nicely decorated buildings. From here we could see the top of the cathedral. We walked around but did not have enough time to go in there today. We stopped at a chocolate shop. I got some mint chocolate- yes, finally I have been able to find something minty after 2 months!!! Cuaght the tram back to the hostel and ate minty chocolate.

... to be outdoor activities like hiking, biking, and rafting but since it was cold and raining, we took a pass on that - maybe we'll go back in the summer. Following the tourist office, we walked around town and looked around. It was a very cute little town. We decided to head to the castle with the thought that we would walk around once the weather cleared up. So we headed toward the castle (EUR 5 total). The castle is atop a hill, which overlooks the town. While it looked to be ...

... for our 7:50pm flight to Rome (we needed to check-in 2 hours before our flight). Our 2-hour Brussels to Rome flight was a smooth one - I slept for most of the flight (jetlag was finally catching up) while Miki read "The Agony and The Ecstasy", an autobiographical novel on Michelangelo. We landed in Rome Ciampino Airport at 8:10pm. We spent the next two hours checking out luggage, taking the shuttle from the airport ...