Eindhoven Glow 2012

"A forum of light & architecture, 10th to 17th November 2012".

Every year in Eindhoven, during the month of November, the city turns into a forum of interventions, performances & events based on the phenomena of artificial light. Here are a few images from Glow 2012

If you find yourself in The Netherlands around this period in 2013, why not check out Glow for yourselves. For more on Eindhoven, click on the following link Eindhoven

Five photos of real life in Vietnam

In 2009 we spent part of our honeymoon in the amazing country of Vietnam. We took hundreds of photos, here are just 5 of our favourites, showing real day to day life in Vietnam, some of which didn't make it into our blog posts on this lovely country. 

"Scooter" city, also known as Hanoi

Banana seller in downtown Hanoi

Alternative use for a Bic biro in Hoi An

Hello, buy something?

Town(lake) life on Halong Bay

Vietnam is a fantastic destination, the history, the people, the delicious food and the stunning scenary all combine to guarantee an experience you'll never forget.

Ten fabulous views from Chile

Footprint Chile, describes Chile as having "an almost comical geograhical shape and virtually every climate imaginable, this beautiful, memorable corner of the world is a place of extremes and contradictions. Few countries have quite such a split geographical personality. Here, you can often glimpse the snows of the high Andes from the Pacific Ocean, ski in the mountains in the morning and be drinking pisco sours on the beach come sundown".

Los Andes

Lake Caburga

Isla Negra

Villarrica lake & volcano

Santiago de Chile

Coquimbo

Embalse El Yeso

La Serena beach

Matetic vineyard, Rosario Valley

The port at Valparaiso

Footprint Chile, goes onto say that "to the south, the country is hemmed in by thick termperate rainforest, fast flowing rivers, icefields and glaciers, while to the north is the memorable Atacama Desert, with its endless space and pristine skies, and where some places have not seen a raindrop for centuries". After just two trips to Chile, with a lot more to see, I can say that what you will find waiting for you is a beautiful, diverse country, delicious food and wine and a wonderful experience which will leave you wanting to return. 

Five favourite photos from Spain

We've enjoyed many great trips to Spain and it's so hard to decide on our favourite places. That said, here are five of them. Whilst you may know some of the cities, hopefully you don't know them all.

Parque de Retiro, Madrid
The Retiro Park, in Madrid's Jeronimos district, takes its name from Felipe IV's royal palace complex which once stood there. Today all that is left of the palace is the Cason del Buen Retiro and the Salon de Reinos. These days the park is a destination for city dwellers, to enjoy the beautiful open space of the park, you'll see cyclists, runners, roller bladers, walkers and many people simply relaxing & talking with friends and family members. On a sunny day, the Retiro is a fantastic place to visit and watch the citizens of this wonderful city.

Parque de Retiro

Plaza Mayor, Salamanca

This 18th century square in Salamanca, is one of Spain's largest and grandest. On the east side of the square you'll find the Royal Pavillion, decorated with a bust of Felipe V, who built the square. Compared to its namesake in Madrid, it seemed to us more relaxed, less full of visiting tourists and the prefect place to relax with a Cerveza.

Plaza Mayor

Las Negras, Cabo de Gata, Andalucia

To many people, beach holidays in Spain are associated with the Costa del Sol, or one of the islands. Las Negras is a small costal resort, situated in the beautiful nature park of Cabo de Gata. It is an Andalucian gem, this is real Spain. For a nice change from areas such as the Costa del Sol, you won't hear to many English, Dutch or German accents. Enjoy!

Las Negras

The Albaicin, Granada

Perhaps, the main reason for visiting the enchanting city of Granada is obviously the Alhambra. Without doubt, it is a very special place, but if you visit Granada, don't miss the opportunity to wander round the streets of the Albaicin. This neighbourhood, on the hillside opposite the Alhambra, is perhap where you can get closest to the city's Moorish ancestry. Along the cobbled streets stand carmenes, villas, with Moorish decorations and gardens, hidden from the passing eye by high walls. Added to this there are plenty of interesting shops & bars where you can stop to get some much needed refreshment.

Albaicin

The City of Segovia

Just a short trainride on a fast train from Madrid, Segovia is a perfect place to visit if you are staying in the Spanish capital. The city is spectacular, set high on a rocky spur surrounded by the Rio Eresma and the Rio Clamores. The Roman aqueduct, the city's cathedral and the Alczar are just three of the attractions of this compact city. 

Segovia's Aqueduct

To see more about these wonderful locations, simple enter the city or place name into the Search This Blog box and click on the relevant post.

North Holland, Friesland & Groningen

 Earlier this September, we spent a long weekend exploring some more of the Netherlands. Our first port of call in North Holland was Zaanse Schans, which is the heart of the Zaan region. This area has typical Zaan houses, buildings and of course windmills. On a windy day, you'll be able to see the windmills working.

Zaanse Schans

All the houses are built from timber, as stone houses would sink into the soft peat earth. Also, at the time that they were built, wood was readily available from the local sawmills. If you're familiar with the Netherlands, you'll know that Albert Heijn is a major Dutch supermarket chain. A visit to Zaanse Schans will introduce you to the first shop from 1887, a baking museum, a cheese factory was well as a mustard mill.

Many people when they visit The Netherlands, tend to head for Amsterdam and thats it. Zaanse Schans and our next destination, Edam, are easily accessible from Amsterdam, so a great way of extending a traditional city break or long weekend. Having really enjoyed our first stop in North Holland, we had a short drive to Edam, the home of the famous Edam Cheese. During the months of July & August you can visit the cheesemarket and see how they are sold. Edam is a really pretty town, very relaxed, where you can visit the Edams Museum and enjoy the many historical buildings in the town.

Edam

Delicious Edam cheese

From Edam, we had a short drive to Enkhuizen, our home for the night. We stayed at a hotel called De Koepoort, fine for one night, although it felt that it hasn't had any money spent on it since the 1970s. Enkhuizen is still one of Holland's largest ports and its many fine buildings are evidence of the wealth of Holland's Golden age. That evening we had a great meal at the Markerwaard restaurant, whilst the service could do with a polish, the food was delicious and the set menu is great value for money.

Enkhuizen 

Our main reason for staying in Enkhuizen was to visit the Zuiderzee Museum, which has both an Binnenmuseum (indoor) and Buitenmuseum (outdoor). Indoors we visited an exhibition of ING owned artwork along with an impressive collection of boats from the Zuiderzee. The outdoor museum is a a construction of an old Zuiderzee town, fascinating to walk around. Along with Zaanse Schans, we highly recommend visiting this museum. Below are some photos from our visit and you'll find more information on www.zuiderzeemuseum.nl

Zuiderzee, Binnenmuseum (Indoor)

Zuidersee, Buitenmuseum (Outdoor)

From Enkhuizen, we drove across the impressive Afsluitdijk, into Friesland, where we stopped for lunch in the Frisian capital of Leeuwarden. One of the city's claims to fame is that Mata Hari grew up here. As it was Sunday there wasn't too much open, however by chance we parked right next to the museum, Het Princessehof, the former residence of Maria Louise van Hessen-Kassel. These days the palace is home to a unique collection of ceramics of international importance.

Het Princessehof

Our final destination for the weekend was Groningen, the cultural and historical capital of the province bearing the same name. We stayed in the NH Hotel De Ville, a lovely hotel with great staff and a very nice restaurant. If your looking for a great bar for a drink in the evening or a coffee in the morning, look no further than De Drie Gezusters on Grote Markt, a huge place with the feel of an old London Pub. 

Groninger Academie

Groningen is another very nice Dutch city, fun to just walk around and enjoy the lovely old buildings. One thing to remember when visiting The Netherlands, is that generally on Sunday, with the exception of museums, most things are shut. Also on Monday, be warned that shops tend not to open till after 1pm.

Groningen Stadhuis

We had a great long weekend touring these Dutch provinces. If you haven't visited the Netherlands and were thinking about visiting Amsterdam, perhaps now you'll have some more ideas as to how you can extend your stay.

Some of our favourite hotels

Here are some of our favourite hotels from our trips over the last few years. What helps them make it onto this list? A combination of factors, including for example: location, service, atmosphere not forgetting value for money.

Suitehotel Pincoffs, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
Rotterdam is the 2nd largest city in the Netherlands and is perhaps most famous for being the largest port in Europe and one of the largest in the world. We've visited twice, staying in Suitehotel Pincoffs and on both occasions really enjoying ourselves. In the words of booking.com, Suitehotel Pincoffs offers stylishly decorated rooms and suites whilst still upholding its historic charm. Dating back to 1879, this 4-star hotel is a shining example of classic design amidst a city of modern architecture. Whilst the hotel doesn't have a restaurant, you can order some very tasty snacks in the bar. Pincoffs stands out in terms of service, the very professional welcome and the extremly stylish rooms. On the minus side, it comes at the higher end of the price scale.

Hotel Rua, Salamanca, Spain

When we visited the historic Spanish city of Salamanca, we stayed overnight in the hotel Rua Salamanca, which is a matter of minutes from the impressive Plaza Mayor. Great value, good breakfast and the best welcome we've had in a Spanish hotel. The staff are very helpful and only too happy to explain all you need to know about the city. The rooms are spacious and give you the feeling of being in someone's home rather than a characterless hotel. Highly recommended for a short break in this lovely city.

Inside Hotel Rua

Blue Haven Hotel, Kinsale, Ireland

Whilst visiting Kinsale in 2010, we stayed at the Blue Haven Hotel which was great, easily accessible, parking near by, great room and wonderful breakfasts. The only downside is that the hotel doesn't have onsite parking, that said there is public parking just a short walk away. The Blue Haven has a large bar area, a great restaurant and is right in the middle of Kinsale, so the location is ideal.

Blue Haven Hotel

Halong Ginger, Halong Bay, Vietnam

Now for something very different, a floating hotel. Whilst visiting Vietnam on our honeymoon, we spent a night on the Halong Ginger, one of the many boats touring Halong Bay. This was a quite magical experience which we can't recommend enough. Great service, wonderful food, lovely cabin, amazing scenary....I could go on and on. You really have to spend some time on Halong Bay to really appreciate this amazing place, our experience was made even more memorable by the staff and crew of the Halong Ginger.

Halong Ginger

Hotel Calagrande, Las Negras, Spain

Situated in the stunningly beautiful national park of Cabo de Gata, Las Negras is a relatively small and sleepy town with a few bars and restaurants, it also has some of the most beautiful beaches in southern Spain, like Cala de San Pedro which you can hike to from the town. We spent a couple of nights here in 2011, in the lovely Hotel Calagrande which we loved. Whilst the restaurant area lacks atmosphere, the hotel has a great position, lovely clean rooms, great outdoor bar/pool area and only a short walk into the town and to the beach. If you like a great G&T, you'll enjoy those served at the pool bar.

Hotel Calagrande

If you'd like to read more about the town or city where these great hotels are located, enter the name into the Search This Blog box, on the right hand side of your screen or click on the links in blue font which you'll see throughout this post.