Washington DC is better than its reputation: It is said to be a cold city populated with politicians and all kinds of parasites that come to live off them. That's not necessarily a bad thing: To visit White House and Capitol Hill, to see where the decisions are made that shape so much of international politics, that's very educating.
Also, I met plenty of regular people and experienced a vibrant city, for example charming old houses, excellent shopping and all kinds of exotic restaurants. Why not try Brasilian cooking at the charming The Grill from Ipanema high up in the hills of Adams Morgan or Vietnamese at trendy Bangkok Joe's in Georgetown?
And another thing: What's wrong with museums and monuments? The monuments in Washington commemorate people and events that have not only shaped the USA, but most of the word -- for better or for worse. And the museums are world class. The museums of The Smithsonian Institution have a prominent place at the foot of Capitol Hill and house wonderful collections of art and history. They store objects of beauty, symbolic value, religious significance, and historic reference. If you love museums, you have to spend time in the Smithsonian.
I'm catching up on my blogging: Here are my impressions from a long weekend in Prague in August of 2007. To state it bluntly, Prague is everything it's cranked up to be :)
People come to Prague for the history, the architecture, the beer. And these are all good reasons to make the journey. The Old town was my favorite. The narrow streets are basically unchanged for centuries. Whenever you come around a corner, there's a fascinating facade, an ancient church, a hole-in-the-wall restaurants. Granted you can find a more affordable meal elsewhere and many of the shops are tourist traps. So what -- just walk past them and marvel in the beauty and charm of the Old Town.
Another thing to enjoy in Prague is the food. There are plenty of excellent restaurants and compared to prices in Western Europe, they are still quite affordable. We had both dinner and lunch at the strangely named Cowboy Restaurant. This excellent restaurant inhabits several buildings that climb the hill beneath Prague's ancient castle. The view is great and so is the food. I was especially impressed by the tuna tartare.
If you drink beer, make sure to sample the Czeck variety. You get good beer all over town, but why not try a micro brewery? U Medvidku and Klasterny Pivovar are both in or close to the Old Town.
I'm testing Pictobrowser, a cool tool that lets me add photos from flickr to my Vox blog (the flickr badges don't work on accord of a CSS conflict). Here are more of my best Berlin photos:
I visited Berlin during the last days of November. The weather was cold and clear and even though I was there to attend a conference, I had the chance to take a day off and see some of Berlin's sites.
Some of the highlights were lunch in the cool new dome of the Reichstag, people watching in Prenzlauer Berg and strolling in the Christmas market in the Gedänknis Kirche square at night
Today, when I was out for my Saturday walk, there was ice on the fjord for the first time this year. That means it's time to brace for winter by delighting in summer memories.
This summer we visited Thailand for the first time. It was one of my best holidays ever:
Here are some highlights in a short yet colorful video:
I have more photos online here.
My friend Tor has a great blog, Enjoy Food & Travel, where he blogs about recipes and food stories, travels, hotels, sights and more.
Tor lives in Oslo and being a historian, he knows things about this city that many other people don't. In his blog, he tells a lot of interesting stories about sights and historic spots that are well worth reading.
This week, he posted a collection of links to all his Oslo stories. The stories are collected in these categories: Historic sites, restaurants, shopping and nature/landscapes. If you are curious about Oslo or ready for some great armchair traveling, check it out!
Tor also has some great travel stories from New England, where he often goes to spend time with his relatives.
He is also a great cook and his recipes and food stories are deffinitely worth a look. Tor is a prolific blogger. To make it easier to find what you are looking for, he has a page called Enjoy A - Z where he collects related posts in useful categories.
]]>Are you taking a vacation this summer (or this season)? Where are you headed and who's going with you?
My husband and I are going to Thailand. 3 weeks! We'll spend a whole week in Bangkok first. Then we go south to Koh Samui to relax after what we have heard is one of the world's most exciting and exhausting cities.
In Koh Samui I will spend a lot of time snokrling and perhaps I'll even learn to scuba dive. That's a dream I have had for a long time. I love the ocean and I am convinced that I will have a great time diving.
We are both fascinated with Buddhism and we are looking forward to what will be our first visit to a buddhist country.
Thai food has been one of my big favourites for years and years. Now I have a chance to try the real thing: The fire of the chillies, the sweetness of the fruits, the great noodle dishes... I can't wait!
This will be our second time in Asia -- we visited Bali in October 2005. I haven't posted on Vox yet about Bali, but that is a good idea, now that you mention it ;)
Well, I love Paris whatever the season, but here's a little show -- impressions of the colors and moods of springtime Paris -- from snaps I took when I was there in April.
The photos are from my walks on Montmartre, in Passy and along the Seine. When I see these pictures, I can almost smell the roasted chestnuts that the street vendors sell on Montmartre.
Enjoy Paris magic!