Last Minute Trip to Antwerp

Myself and herself decided to have one last hurrah before I leave this week and headed down to Antwerp for the day. At 32EUR return it's an absolute bargain for a train ticket but keep in mind it will take 2 1/2 hours to get there. What better way to celebrate a sixth month trip abroad than going to Belgium for the day?

We got there about 13.00 in the afternoon and the first thing herself decided to do is step in dog poop. I couldn't even look at her for about ten minutes I felt so queasy but she cleaned herself up and we persevered.

I won't be able to tell you much about the city itself or the history. Our intention was to go somewhere neither of us had been before and soak up the feel of the place. Antwerp has a beautiful old town centre. It has elaborate building facades and tall city houses. It wasn't as medieval as we thought it might be but it;s a fabulous place for a day trip.

So, what did we do all day...?

• ate Belgian chocolate (obviously) 
• drank Belgian beer (see above)
• got a tour on a horse and cart (I felt bad for the horses)
• walked for hours through windy city streets
• ate in a Mexican restaurant and were served by a Cork man (as you do)

If I were to go back I'd get a walking tour of the place and spend a couple of hours at the zoo. It's right outside the central stations front door and it's reported to have amazing gardens. Then again, same as with the horses above, I'd probably only feel bad for the animals.

We rounded off the day waiting in the station for our train. I found a cycle station where I could pedal to charge my iPad. It was a bit of hassle though, ten minutes cycling only got me from 5% power to 7%, I thought I'd get a super charge for my efforts. Mentioning the train station, Antwerp Centraal is a beautiful station, one of the nicest I've ever seen. We were walking with our faces towards the ceiling taking it all in when what happens only herself walks into dog poop again. And I had to sit beside her the whole way back to Amsterdam. Grand.

Packing Up

We are now in the midst of saying our goodbyes and packing up. I'm feeling the excitment, finally. My last day in work was last Friday. What a feeling it is to throw out all the crap I've collected in my drawers over the last three years. I didn't even mind giving back my iPhone, not even a little bit. I said my goodbyes to my desk and a few of us headed to Hannekes Boom, a lovely bar close to Amsterdam Centraal station. It looks over the water with a fabulous view of the old customs house and the Nemo Science musuem. Safe to say we didn't recognise the one that was one too many but I do recall saying to someone at some stage that this was the 'tipping point'. It was.

The Saturday night was himselfs going away drinks; a house party. I was seriously struggling from the night before but I made a good go of it. I managed to stay awake and functioning until 3. Although, I do admit I was found around this time curled into a sleepy little ball on the couch cuddling my iPad. I have to say that I admire the way the Dutch think about the gifts they give. Basically, 'the boys' came up with giving himself a care package; a Munich survival kit. He got good Dutch cheese, Utrechtse brewed beers along with a Munich guide book and a first aid kit. I can't imagine Irish men being that thoughtful. Although saying that, they did give him a Playboy and some wet wipes. Boys will be boys I suppose.

Sunday we went cycling over to the pancake house to sure our hangover. The area there, Rhijnauwen, is beautiful and covered in bunkers from both world wars. Himself said the area was an important strategic point to defend from the Germans and that all the bunkers were built here with the Rhijnauwen river acting a natural barrier. It's quite a spectacular place and just twenty minutes cycling outside of Utrecht. It was also nice to just be outside near some nature and animals. Amsterdam is covered in green parks but nothing beats the actual countryside. We were able to cycle past fields of cows and sheep. At one point we stopped to take a picture of sheep walking in single file along a stream. We were talking about how if one sheep gets an idea to do something the rest of them will do the same. Although, being a sheep, you wouldn't get ideas very often so if one of them did think of something, you'd do it like.