Wow I lovvvvvved this place. Helsinki was so beautiful. I felt like I was in NYC. Parks around the city. People performing, people sitting and reading, people tanning-people everywhere just doing their thing. It was very cool to observe so many Finnish in their indigenous habitats ;). I feel like people in Scandinavia are all outdoor lovers. So many people running, biking, boating-just outside enjoying the weather and exercising. I really admire their lifestyle and their beautiful country. Scandinavia was extremely clean everywhere we went; Denmark, Sweden and Finland.
Nice and clean! But do they pay for it, literally with their crazy-high taxes!
Tuomiokirkko Church, Helsinki/Helsinki Cathedral
Inside Helsinki Cathedral
The Jean Sibelius Monument, Helsinki
My new organ hat- tres chic
Rock Church
What a life :) lucky duck
I love this park, it reminded me a lot of central park, some hustle and bustle spots but also more quiet-calmer areas-a bit of everything, it was right near the large market. Mike and I just hung out and did some people watching, had some ice cream, it was very relaxing :)
Helllllo Helsinki!
In Market Square I got babushka earring and a broche. I am obsessed. I also got some beautiful clay jewelry :) Definitely a great place to go for unique and local finds! :)
Flowers Flowers Everywhere! This was in the market :)
Uspensky Cathedral
Uspensky resting atop a Finnish hill :)
holy guacamole, this was a bit of a hike and it was almost florida hot that day too, but well worth it :)
Uspensky Cathedral :) So beautiful and ornate inside!
Inside Uspensky Cathedral-gorgeoussss but alas with no AC-it was super hot!
:), the market where I got my babushkah pin (on my shirt)
A nice little treat on a hot Helsinki Day :)
Old meets New, around downtown Helsinki
MUST DOs: Helsinki Cathedral Uspensky Cathedral Rock Church Sibelius Organ Park Market Square (buy something :) ) Helsinki's Park Frolic about!! :)
So Belgium, we were only there for a day but I'll never forget the amazing taste of the truest Belgian/Nutella/powdered sugar waffle I have ever consumed. It was literally a piece of heaven (comparable to my amazing large and in charge pancake in Amsterdam) ! Bruges so beauuuutiful!! It's actually a very popular honeymoon destination and looks virtually untouched since 1709--or just really old. There were lace shops everywhere, so delicate and beautiful--and super expensive. So I just stuck to my waffles, I was quite satisfied with that :).
Divinity, in physical form. My Belgian Waffle.
Bruges (photo credit Alana)
Photo Credit Alana
Gorgeous Gothic. Photo credit Alana
Bruges Famous "Markt"
I love canal cities. Photo Credit Alana
Brussels is a very important European "Business" city. However, after seeing Bruges, I didn't really care for Brussels (eh), plus it was rainy and we were only there for a day. So we didn't have much time to do anything in Brussels except hate our hostel and frolick about the city at night, get stuck in the rain and eat. All in all we made the most of our time there. :)
I love them
How can I emphasize this enough..? do NOT stay here, I repeat do NOT stay at Brussel's youth hostel. period. No towels, who knows what was on the floor, and the floor got flooded when we showered so we had to use their cardboard sheets as towels, utter ew, just ew! We even put the sheets in the shower b/c the tile was too questionable.. but definitely made for a memorable experience. ;P
It was rainy, it was gross but it was fun
No umbrella? No worries. Naturally we used our mysterious Hostel sheets.
Brussels Cathedral. Photo Credit Adam C
Again, we were only there for a day, we did as much exploring as we could. I'd definitely love to return to Bruges. Very beautiful and untouched.
Leaving Germany was so sad because Munich had been spectacular. I was starting to feel like a local since our hotel (hotel Maria) was smack dab in the hustle and bustle (truly German) part of town.
Some Krons, you'd think I was rich! but sadly this is the equivalent of about $20 lol but you get around nicely with this.
Me at one of the many Gothic style Cathedrals
The sadness faded away when we realized the fairytale-esque town we were going to be staying in. Now, I can only speak for Prague because that's where we stayed but it was beauuuutiful and also a lot darker than the other cities-literally. It was significantly more cloudy and most of the buildings were very haunting in old town Praha.
Alana and I about to see a movie in Prague (we saw Angels and Demons-complete with subtitles lol that we didn't need)
on the Bridge, touching the golden dog will make your wish come true or bring good luck, one of those! (Alana Bevan photo)
The city is fairly large and can be sort of maze-y. Alana and I had the best gnocchi EVER better than in Italy then leaving the restaurant we got lost, i mean LOST. Separated from our group, no knowledge of Czech or the name of our hotel, no phone-nothing. After about 2 hours of walking late at night in and out of streets/dark alleys/and a mcdonald's (to seek help/refuge)/getting into a fight lol we hailed down a random cab and we happened to have the hotel card in our pocket (but we couldn't read it) and handed it to the driver. The tab ended up being around $20 but it was worth it! We made it back safely.
Charles Bridge Prague
We visited the Daliborka Museum/ Prague Castle (old torture location for prisoners) there we found a curious surprise:
Vin Diesel?! You decide. (Alana Bevan photo)
The next night after exploring the heart of Prague, the astrological clock, walking the bridge, going into even more cathedrals (not helping my chandelier obsession!) we went out, and BIG. :) After taking the subway to another part of the city we arrived at the coolest club ever complete with cheap beer lol called
>Karlovy Lazne night club, a FIVE story club with a different theme on each floor. We all had an amazzzzing time!
The Disco Floor!!!
Starbucks, we will always find you! located in the main square, by the Astrological Clock :) (Alana Bevan photo)
A beautiful Glimpse of the city, you have to remind yourself you're in the 21st century! (Alana Bevan Photo)
