The night of the El Classico was (haha pardon the pun) classic. The match started at 10 and ended at 12 but that was only the start. People were pouring all over the streets, dancing and celebrating as if they had won a title or something. And this party lasted all the way till morning. (I was a bit tired still so retired to my bed early but my hostel mate only came back in at 6) He was beaming all the way and i guessed it was worth his effort travelling down across the Atlantic from Mexico.
Finally realised that the Barcelona cathedral was a major landmark in Barcelona and so took the opportunity to sneak a quick look at it while the girls returned to their hotel after breakfast. Sadly, it wasn't that beautiful for 2 reasons.
1. The cathedral was still under renovation and thus the anterior facade was bleah
2. It was SUNDAY! Yeah and that means the cathedral was open for prayer session and not for tourist so i was unable to visit the place at all
Went to the Picasso museum thereafter. The queue was pretty long but i was impressed at how the museum was hidden among the little calle that lined Barcelona. Quite a lot of Picasso's works were displayed and we were brought through his different stages of maturation and the art form that evolved. Maybe i m not that artistic still so nothing much to say about it. Hehe...
Went to Parc Guell in the afternoon. The instructions said that if we were to take the metro, it would be a long walking distance up the hill to reach our destination. Had a power nap on the bus (was still tired from the late night the previous night) and so was able to reach the place fresh. This visit really showed me the advantage with travelling with people who had done their homework for i would never have thought of visiting this place on my own and i must really thanked the girls for it. Parc Guell was really beautiful. Gaudi's use of mosaic on almost every structure in the park may look weird initially but i can't help but admire his skills as i walked further in. The chamelon is of course the landmark symbol of the place but there are also the pillars, the candy houses and also the porch that overlooked the city. Even the benches there were modelled after his mosaic styles.
Went to chocalate cafe for some nice creamy silky chocolate after that. Once again, i was pretty amazed by their ability to source out the place by just looking at the guide books alone. Quite a good meal (though i must say its quite sinful). Las Ramblas was next. It was just next to my hostel but hadn't explore it yet because of the busy itenary. It was just like the Pasar Malam that we had over here where people set up stalls to sell stuff. Accessories, food and clothing stalls lined up the whole length. There were however a few differences in that people there looked more lively. The street buskers were more interactive while artists were more than willing to demonstrate their stuffs.
Tried out the Sangria for the first time during dinner that night. Tasted not bad but maybe it's just that i m not that an alcoholic person. The fish was true to Barcelona's reputation as a coastal port city. (Oh did i mention that haha the restaurant was actually quite a big one over there and we had to queue for abt 30 minutes before the restaurant had even opened its doors in order to secure seats)
To be continued...
Saturday, 15 March 2008
Tuesday, 11 March 2008
Barcelona -- 31st Mar to 3rd Apr
My only impression of Barcelona prior to this trip is simple
1. It has a football team that used to be my favourite in Spain
2. It had hosted the Olympics Games in 1992
3. It was the city where F4 visited during "Meteor Garden II"
and the reason why i ended up here is because well its the only European place where people i know is going for their post-graduation trip.
Anyway, i guessed it turned out to be a huge blessing in disguise for i fell immersely in love with it after i had gotten to know about it. The day started on a tiring note. Yup dunno whether is it jet-lag or train-lag but the moment i arrived at my hostel, i zonked out immediately after showering. Surprisingly enough though, all it took was an one-hour power nap and i was re-charged again. Took the afternoon to walk around the place and try to find the girls' hotel. True as to my navigation instinct, i actually took the long way round and thus ended up finding the place only after about an hour. Nevertheless, it was a good way to explore the city, making one way (yup, yet again) thorugh a couple of book stores and novelty shops along the way. But then again, i must embarassingly admit, i actually missed out on the giant structure known as the Barcelona cathedral that was standing opposite their hotel ^-^
In addition, alos managed to squeeze in a visit to the Nou Camp. It was the day of the El Classico and thus the way to the stadium was packed with eager fans. The Nou Camp was majestic not because of its size but because of the numerous flag poles that lined its perimeters. What is unique about this stadium is the walkway that leads to the stadium, lined by 2 rows of trees. I can never imagine such a scenic way to line the road to the stadium. The area surrounding the stadium is also no barren land. I believed it is the academic centre of Barcelona for i see the faculty of pharmacy, as well as, a lot of other faculties surrounding the big stadia. And interestingly, there is a club nearby too where queues of teenagers forming up to enter are seen. Haiz, it's a pity that i wasn't in the correct attire =(
To be continued...
1. It has a football team that used to be my favourite in Spain
2. It had hosted the Olympics Games in 1992
3. It was the city where F4 visited during "Meteor Garden II"
and the reason why i ended up here is because well its the only European place where people i know is going for their post-graduation trip.
Anyway, i guessed it turned out to be a huge blessing in disguise for i fell immersely in love with it after i had gotten to know about it. The day started on a tiring note. Yup dunno whether is it jet-lag or train-lag but the moment i arrived at my hostel, i zonked out immediately after showering. Surprisingly enough though, all it took was an one-hour power nap and i was re-charged again. Took the afternoon to walk around the place and try to find the girls' hotel. True as to my navigation instinct, i actually took the long way round and thus ended up finding the place only after about an hour. Nevertheless, it was a good way to explore the city, making one way (yup, yet again) thorugh a couple of book stores and novelty shops along the way. But then again, i must embarassingly admit, i actually missed out on the giant structure known as the Barcelona cathedral that was standing opposite their hotel ^-^
In addition, alos managed to squeeze in a visit to the Nou Camp. It was the day of the El Classico and thus the way to the stadium was packed with eager fans. The Nou Camp was majestic not because of its size but because of the numerous flag poles that lined its perimeters. What is unique about this stadium is the walkway that leads to the stadium, lined by 2 rows of trees. I can never imagine such a scenic way to line the road to the stadium. The area surrounding the stadium is also no barren land. I believed it is the academic centre of Barcelona for i see the faculty of pharmacy, as well as, a lot of other faculties surrounding the big stadia. And interestingly, there is a club nearby too where queues of teenagers forming up to enter are seen. Haiz, it's a pity that i wasn't in the correct attire =(
To be continued...
Sunday, 9 March 2008
Transition point - Aeropuerto de Barcelona "El Prat" [BCN]
My Air Berlin flight landed at Barcelona airport close to 930 am. Despite spending the previous night on the bench of Dusseldorf airport, i was more excited than fatigue for this is where my trip really starts! And it is this sense of euphoria that i feel will make my assessment of the airport unfair. After having hear stories of how dangerous airports can be, i had been busy reading my Lonely Planet book to make sure that i make a smooth exit out of the airport and so i was more busy trying to spot the tourist information counter than taking my time to absorb in the sights and sounds of Barcelona airport. Nevertheless, the number one thing that striked me about this airport is the whiteness of the walls admist the sunlight that was shining into the airport. The ceilings were high and the airport gave a very spacious feel. Haha i know its a bit out of point but actually i was quite engrossed in deciphering the messages that were broadcasted over the PA system. (Yup u could have probably imagined how big my eyes looked when i realised i am actually able to hear Spanish being spoken and i actually understood some of the announcements... )
One thing to mention about this airport is the lack of directions to the main metro station. I actually exited the airport and walked to dunno where in trying to find the metro station. (Well i did try to as for directions but their instructions were not excatly idiot proof...) Wel luckily, i was decisive enough to abandon my plan and hopped onto a bus that happened to stop near me and on top it displayed the sign "to city' =)
Airport rating : 3 stars
One thing to mention about this airport is the lack of directions to the main metro station. I actually exited the airport and walked to dunno where in trying to find the metro station. (Well i did try to as for directions but their instructions were not excatly idiot proof...) Wel luckily, i was decisive enough to abandon my plan and hopped onto a bus that happened to stop near me and on top it displayed the sign "to city' =)
Airport rating : 3 stars
Saturday, 8 March 2008
Transition Point - Flughafen Frankfurt am Main [FRA]
A short mention on Frankfurt International Airport, the airport in which our beloved national carrier has an established hub. Quite a typical intenational airport, true to German efficiency. Why i happened to be here was a long story. I somehow got the misconception that Frankfurt was near Hamburg and so bought a connecting flight from here to my next destination. (Brrr... it was a real expensive mistake and i had to remind myself not to make this kind of stupid error again...)
Anyway, arrived past midnight at the airport. Its such a major airport that the airport actually has a train station which the intercity train stopped, away from the city centre. Thank goodness for that as i shuddered to imagine me carrying my big backpack and trudging all the way from the city centre to this place...
A very quiet and peaceful airport i would say. maybe i had been spoilt by our dear Changi or it could be due to the fact that it was way late for there was no busy hustle or bustle. All the shops were closed also, even the check-in counter for my fight Luckily there was seat aplenty and so i made myself comfortable on one of them and went to sleep. First time sleeping at an airport lobby to make for an interesting experience. Maybe its because i have a lot of faith in the Germans but i did feel quite safe sleeping at the airportthe shops were still not opened yet by the time i left, except for the duty free place which was a couple of small little shops. Nothing much to mention i guess as i connect with my Air Berlin flight to Barcelona
Airport rating : 3 and a half stars
Anyway, arrived past midnight at the airport. Its such a major airport that the airport actually has a train station which the intercity train stopped, away from the city centre. Thank goodness for that as i shuddered to imagine me carrying my big backpack and trudging all the way from the city centre to this place...
A very quiet and peaceful airport i would say. maybe i had been spoilt by our dear Changi or it could be due to the fact that it was way late for there was no busy hustle or bustle. All the shops were closed also, even the check-in counter for my fight Luckily there was seat aplenty and so i made myself comfortable on one of them and went to sleep. First time sleeping at an airport lobby to make for an interesting experience. Maybe its because i have a lot of faith in the Germans but i did feel quite safe sleeping at the airportthe shops were still not opened yet by the time i left, except for the duty free place which was a couple of small little shops. Nothing much to mention i guess as i connect with my Air Berlin flight to Barcelona
Airport rating : 3 and a half stars
Transition Point -- Dubai International Airport [DXB]
Realised i missed out on describing the airport, so i guess this will be a double post today ^-^. Airports are really important places and amazingly, they do affect my impression of the place.
Dubai airport is really a mixed cup of tea for me. The beautiful sands that greeted me as i made my descent reinforced the beautiful image that i had of Dubai from all the aggressive advertising that it had launched. Yup, its not the desert kind of sand that one comes to expect but the soft silky beach-like type of sand.
BUT the scene that leaves the deepest impression on me is not the sands but the customs area of the transit zone. To summarise it in 1 word, it was CHAOTIC. Yes and that is what i meant when i said the airport quality can easily affect the impression. Being centrally located between Europe and Asia, Dubai is no doubt one busy airport but it's no excuse for the lack of ordeliness when faced with a large transit crowd. There was no queue, no directions and people were cutting queue here and there. And to make things worse, the queue were so long that it almost stretched out of the building proper. (Gosh, it reminded me of the scenario at Johor customs... Eeewwwww...) To make things worse, i actually found myself having to walk across the whole transit terminal looking for a toilet. There were only like 3 to 4 toilets and all had long queues forming. (Yes, i m talking about the male toilet...) Yup, so poor me was like almost crawling in my attempt to find a loo to relieve my stomachache =( Nevertheless, on the other hand, i must admit that the cleaners are pretty effective in maintaining the cleaniness of the toilets despite the high turnover. It was almost real-time cleaning for the moment one finishes his business, the cleaner will go into the cubicle and clean the place up. Talked about efficiency, it at least negated part of the unhappiness that had been accumulating.
With nature's call settled, i began my exploration of the airport. Maybe it's because i haven't been to enough airport yet but the transit area really seemed very crowded to me. People were lying on the floor, chairs and everywhere, trying to catch 40 winks as tey await their next flight. Families were like holding a picnic (but without the food). Haha... Went to the duty free shop to take a look. Can't comen much on the price though cos they were all in either local currency or US dollars and i had absolutely no idea how to convert, being a travel rookie. Oh but one ting io realised is that the lonely planet guide book there is slightly cheaper than our local prices, so for people who are going to transit at Dubai in the future, u can always leave the purchase till u reach the airport =)
Airport rating : 3 and a half stars
Dubai airport is really a mixed cup of tea for me. The beautiful sands that greeted me as i made my descent reinforced the beautiful image that i had of Dubai from all the aggressive advertising that it had launched. Yup, its not the desert kind of sand that one comes to expect but the soft silky beach-like type of sand.
BUT the scene that leaves the deepest impression on me is not the sands but the customs area of the transit zone. To summarise it in 1 word, it was CHAOTIC. Yes and that is what i meant when i said the airport quality can easily affect the impression. Being centrally located between Europe and Asia, Dubai is no doubt one busy airport but it's no excuse for the lack of ordeliness when faced with a large transit crowd. There was no queue, no directions and people were cutting queue here and there. And to make things worse, the queue were so long that it almost stretched out of the building proper. (Gosh, it reminded me of the scenario at Johor customs... Eeewwwww...) To make things worse, i actually found myself having to walk across the whole transit terminal looking for a toilet. There were only like 3 to 4 toilets and all had long queues forming. (Yes, i m talking about the male toilet...) Yup, so poor me was like almost crawling in my attempt to find a loo to relieve my stomachache =( Nevertheless, on the other hand, i must admit that the cleaners are pretty effective in maintaining the cleaniness of the toilets despite the high turnover. It was almost real-time cleaning for the moment one finishes his business, the cleaner will go into the cubicle and clean the place up. Talked about efficiency, it at least negated part of the unhappiness that had been accumulating.
With nature's call settled, i began my exploration of the airport. Maybe it's because i haven't been to enough airport yet but the transit area really seemed very crowded to me. People were lying on the floor, chairs and everywhere, trying to catch 40 winks as tey await their next flight. Families were like holding a picnic (but without the food). Haha... Went to the duty free shop to take a look. Can't comen much on the price though cos they were all in either local currency or US dollars and i had absolutely no idea how to convert, being a travel rookie. Oh but one ting io realised is that the lonely planet guide book there is slightly cheaper than our local prices, so for people who are going to transit at Dubai in the future, u can always leave the purchase till u reach the airport =)
Airport rating : 3 and a half stars
Thursday, 6 March 2008
Hamburg -- 31st March 2006
Oh well, to make things simple for an uncomplicated mind like me, i shall adhere strictly to listing out the places in chronological order. There's quite a lot of backdating to do but i shall take my own sweet time. Haha anyway i doubt much people will be reading it also, so it will just be another one of my 虚度光阴 activity :p
Arriving in Hamburg was a major experience and i would say a significant milestone in my life. Yup, the wish of always wanting to go to Europe had finally been realised on my graduation trip (and yes, that's why i was so determined to go to Europe and not join the rest of the gang to Taiwan. Ok , maybe there was another reason :p butthe childhood dream definitely plays a big part ^=^)
Hamburg was definitely not part of my planned itenary. It just happened to be part of an Emirate Airline's offer which i gladly took up. The plan was to go Spain but all flights were full and so i had to think of alternative routes to get to my destination. Ha, well the expenses add up to almost the same in the end too. So much for being smart... Bleah!
Come to think of it retrospectively, i actually began my Europe trip on a note that sets the tone for all my future travels, or simply put it, my Holland skill were there from the start. Haha. Anyway, i had set out from the main train station, using the station map that i was given. I had a good 4 hours to spare before catching my connecting train, so i decided to take a look at the place. The train station was like a divider, which divides the city into 2 districts, the posh and the forgotten. Well, mayb its a bit too harsh to put it as forgotten but the contrast couldnt be felt more. Anyway, it was really an eye opener for i unknowingly wandered into the gay/lesbian districts in Hamburg. It seemed like any other normal neighbourhood and i did not even realise it until i walked into one of the book stores that was on the street. Well, it was kinda reflexive cos i had the tendency to walk into book stores and so there i went when i saw it beckoning to me. Honestly thinking, i really have no idea that it was a gay bookstore because the guy was like any normal guy. I did wonder a bit when i saw the many magazines and books with hunky man on its covers. Plus, i atributed the multitude of books on homosexual topics to the liberalism of European society.. Hehe..
Anyway, i also took a visit to the hospital. Haha its not on purpose and honestly speaking, i was quite horrified when i realised i was standing in front of the hospital because thats when i realised i had wandered so far off from my map!!!!! Its quite a daindy little place with old style European lighting. Not exactly scary but not welcoming either. ha. In addition, it was here when i felt the strong German hospitality. All i did was to stand in the middle of the road when this nice lady actually came up to ask me if i needed help. This was only the tip of the iceberg, for i also had people who didnt know English offering their help.
Haha that's so much to write for one single day in Hamburg. Guess u guys finally realised why i didn't blog any of my travels on my main blog. And i m not ending yet. Yes, i havent mentioned that i actually found a shop selling local products there in Hamburg. (Yes, local products as in the canned longan, maggi mee and the lychee jelly). Oh, and there's also a public toilet where its not exactly that well covered. Haiz, so many interesting sights to see in Hamburg that i doubt my words do any justice to them.
Finally ended the day with KFC for dinner. Was quite tired out by the end of the day to look for anything else. Well , i guess my stupidity was to be blamed also. I actually forgot that i can deposit my bag in the locker at the train station and yes, i was lugging my entire backpack across Hamburg. Stupid me almost destroyed my own trip by being so stupid. Was one tired boy when i finally got on the train to Dusseldorf.
PS: One important thing to note when in Europe is that the cars are left hand drive, so one will have to reverse all that were taught in school on crossing the road. I used my left-right-left and was almost knocked down by a car. Right-left-right from now on! Right-Left-Right... Right-left-right... right-left-right...
City rating : Inconclusive (to be rated again)
Arriving in Hamburg was a major experience and i would say a significant milestone in my life. Yup, the wish of always wanting to go to Europe had finally been realised on my graduation trip (and yes, that's why i was so determined to go to Europe and not join the rest of the gang to Taiwan. Ok , maybe there was another reason :p butthe childhood dream definitely plays a big part ^=^)
Hamburg was definitely not part of my planned itenary. It just happened to be part of an Emirate Airline's offer which i gladly took up. The plan was to go Spain but all flights were full and so i had to think of alternative routes to get to my destination. Ha, well the expenses add up to almost the same in the end too. So much for being smart... Bleah!
Come to think of it retrospectively, i actually began my Europe trip on a note that sets the tone for all my future travels, or simply put it, my Holland skill were there from the start. Haha. Anyway, i had set out from the main train station, using the station map that i was given. I had a good 4 hours to spare before catching my connecting train, so i decided to take a look at the place. The train station was like a divider, which divides the city into 2 districts, the posh and the forgotten. Well, mayb its a bit too harsh to put it as forgotten but the contrast couldnt be felt more. Anyway, it was really an eye opener for i unknowingly wandered into the gay/lesbian districts in Hamburg. It seemed like any other normal neighbourhood and i did not even realise it until i walked into one of the book stores that was on the street. Well, it was kinda reflexive cos i had the tendency to walk into book stores and so there i went when i saw it beckoning to me. Honestly thinking, i really have no idea that it was a gay bookstore because the guy was like any normal guy. I did wonder a bit when i saw the many magazines and books with hunky man on its covers. Plus, i atributed the multitude of books on homosexual topics to the liberalism of European society.. Hehe..
Anyway, i also took a visit to the hospital. Haha its not on purpose and honestly speaking, i was quite horrified when i realised i was standing in front of the hospital because thats when i realised i had wandered so far off from my map!!!!! Its quite a daindy little place with old style European lighting. Not exactly scary but not welcoming either. ha. In addition, it was here when i felt the strong German hospitality. All i did was to stand in the middle of the road when this nice lady actually came up to ask me if i needed help. This was only the tip of the iceberg, for i also had people who didnt know English offering their help.
Haha that's so much to write for one single day in Hamburg. Guess u guys finally realised why i didn't blog any of my travels on my main blog. And i m not ending yet. Yes, i havent mentioned that i actually found a shop selling local products there in Hamburg. (Yes, local products as in the canned longan, maggi mee and the lychee jelly). Oh, and there's also a public toilet where its not exactly that well covered. Haiz, so many interesting sights to see in Hamburg that i doubt my words do any justice to them.
Finally ended the day with KFC for dinner. Was quite tired out by the end of the day to look for anything else. Well , i guess my stupidity was to be blamed also. I actually forgot that i can deposit my bag in the locker at the train station and yes, i was lugging my entire backpack across Hamburg. Stupid me almost destroyed my own trip by being so stupid. Was one tired boy when i finally got on the train to Dusseldorf.
PS: One important thing to note when in Europe is that the cars are left hand drive, so one will have to reverse all that were taught in school on crossing the road. I used my left-right-left and was almost knocked down by a car. Right-left-right from now on! Right-Left-Right... Right-left-right... right-left-right...
City rating : Inconclusive (to be rated again)
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