Posts tagged International travel
Travel With Me: Brussels, Belgium (Day Five of Our Christmas Trip)
Travel With Me: Brussels, Belgium (Day Five of Our Christmas Trip)

There were several Christmas markets centrally located in Brussels: La Bourse de Bruxelles Market, Place de Brouckère, and Marché aux Poissons Market. We visited these markets, ate some raclette, and despite me being fluent (or at least being fluent at one time) in French, I made Ryan order everything because ~ anxiety ~. This did hilariously result in Ryan convincing some stall-owners he did actually speak French (I would tell him what to say), but when they asked a follow-up question, he’d look so confused that they’d figure out he was American. We also spent awhile watching the chaos of ice-skating, enthralled by the two guys who were evidently in competition to show off their skills and kept almost making a lot of newbies wipe out (and actually did cause a few falls).

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TravelHannah Schultztravel with me, International travel, brussels, Belgium, christmas, christmas market, grand place, la bourse de bruxelles, place de brouckere, marche aux poissons, Friterie Tabora, place sainte catherine, la monnaie de muntComment
Amsterdam, Netherlands (Day Four): Hortus Botanicus, Oude Kerk, & a Day-Trip to Zaanse Schans
Amsterdam, Netherlands (Day Four): Hortus Botanicus, Oude Kerk, & a Day-Trip to Zaanse Schans

We heard about the Hortus Botanicus from our Festival of Lights tour guide, and it didn’t take much convincing for me to add this to the itinerary. The Hortus Botanicus is one of the oldest botanical gardens in the world, established in 1638 by the Amsterdam city council (the Oxford Botanic Garden is one of the few older ones; check out my last visit to it in 2017). Like many European botanic gardens, its collections were initially amassed through imperial pursuits—in this case, largely by the Dutch East India Company. Much of its initial collection served either a medicinal or commercial purpose.

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TravelHannah Schultzamsterdam, netherlands, hortus botanicus, oude kerk, zaanse schans, botanical garden, christmas, cheese, dutch wooden clogs, travel with me, International travelComment
A Half-Day in The Hague, Netherlands (Day Three): Mauritshuis & the Royal Christmas Fair
A Half-Day in The Hague, Netherlands (Day Three): Mauritshuis & the Royal Christmas Fair

On day three of our trip, we trekked to Amsterdam Centraal to catch an early train to The Hague, a city most famous for hosting the UN’s International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court. The city’s name often graced manila envelopes when I worked a summer at an attorney’s office, but I’d not really considered going there until it came up on a list of the best Christmas markets in the Netherlands.

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TravelHannah Schultztravel, travel with me, International travel, the hague, hague, netherlands, mauritshuis, vermeer, royal Christmas fair, peace palaceComment
Amsterdam, Netherlands (Day Two): Rijksmuseum, Van Gogh Museum, & the Anne Frank House (+ Our First Michelin-Starred Restaurant)
Amsterdam, Netherlands (Day Two): Rijksmuseum, Van Gogh Museum, & the Anne Frank House (+ Our First Michelin-Starred Restaurant)

Our first stop on day two, which was our museum-heavy day, was the Rijksmuseum. The Rijksmuseum is the national museum of the Netherlands and is dedicated to Dutch arts and history. It’s the largest art museum in the country, making it a must-visit if you’re coming to Amsterdam. Look out for work by the Dutch masters Jacob van Ruisdael, Frans Hals, Johannes Vermeer, Jan Steen, and Rembrandt. I was also intrigued by one of the paintings I noticed in their collection, pictured below, which is the only known portrait of a Black man in early European painting.

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TravelHannah Schultztravel, travel with me, International travel, amsterdam, netherlands, rijksmuseum, Van Gogh, anne frank house, ciel bleu, Michelin starsComment
Travel With Me: Amsterdam, Netherlands (Day One)
Travel With Me: Amsterdam, Netherlands (Day One)

For Ryan’s 30th birthday, I offered to plan a surprise trip for him. He had some general options to choose from (beach, hiking, city, cold/hot climate), but the rest would be revealed only when we were in the airport on our way there. As a huge Christmas fan, something that Ryan has always talked about has been going to the European Christmas markets, and since his birthday is mid-December, this felt like the perfect opportunity for this trip. He ended up blindly choosing from one of my Christmas market itineraries (among the choices he didn’t pick were Munich & Salzburg, Vienna & Budapest, Vienna & Prague, and Switzerland & Strasbourg). Right after passing my first qualifying exam for my PhD, we were off to experience the Christmas season in two new (to us) European destinations: Amsterdam and Brussels!

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TravelHannah Schultztravel, travel with me, International travel, amsterdam, netherlands, kattenkabinet, christmas market, ice village, canal cruise, festival of lightsComment
Terceira, The Azores (Day Six): Ponta dos Biscoitos & Alto da Memória
Terceira, The Azores (Day Six): Ponta dos Biscoitos & Alto da Memória

On our final day in Terceira, we took a roadtrip to the northern part of the island to check out the natural lava rock pools of Biscoitos. This area of the island is famous for its wine, and the drive took us through lush green pastures and vineyards. The lava pools are along the coast and filled by the ocean but protected from the waves. They’ve built platforms where you can sunbathe (or eat yet another grocery store atum sandwich), and some of the pools have concrete steps or ramps built down into them. The shallower pools/the ones further away from the ocean tended to be warmer, and we enjoyed swimming with some interesting looking fish while being sheltered from the waves. I would recommend having some kind of swim shoes (my trusty Chacos did just fine), since lava rock is deceptively sharp.

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TravelHannah Schultztravel, travel with me, International travel, portugal, azores, terceira, ponta dos biscoitos, alto da memoriaComment
Terceira, The Azores (Days Four & Five): Sightseeing in Angra do Heroísmo, Lava Tubes, & Volcanic Hiking
Terceira, The Azores (Days Four & Five): Sightseeing in Angra do Heroísmo, Lava Tubes, & Volcanic Hiking

On day four, we caught a flight from Ponta Delgada over to another island, Terceira, or the lilac island. It’s one of the largest islands of the Azores, and it’s home to the oldest city of the archipelago, Angra do Heroísmo.

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Travel, HikingHannah Schultztravel, travel with me, International travel, terceira, azores, angra do heroismo, lava tube, hike, misterios negros, algar do carvão, gruta do natalComment
São Miguel, The Azores (Day Three): Hot Springs Soaking in Furnas
São Miguel, The Azores (Day Three): Hot Springs Soaking in Furnas

On day three, we took a roadtrip to Furnas, which is the thermal hotspot of the Azores. The town itself is nestled in a dormant volcanic crater that last erupted in 1630. The residual volcanic activity is still present in the form of steaming fumaroles, thermal pools, and natural mineral springs.

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Travel, NatureHannah Schultztravel, travel with me, International travel, sao miguel, portugal, azores, hot springs, furnas, terra nostra park, pocas da dona beija, cozido das furnasComment
São Miguel, The Azores (Day Two): Dophin-Sighting and Snorkeling at Vila Franca Islet
São Miguel, The Azores (Day Two): Dophin-Sighting and Snorkeling at Vila Franca Islet

Our second day on São Miguel, we booked a full-day whale and dolphin watching tour that included a snorkeling excursion to Vila Franca Islet. We booked our tour through Picos de Aventura, and it was a good experience. The tour left from the marina, where we were given heavy-duty raincoats to keep off the cold sea spray. The boat itself was pretty small, so you got hit by a lot of spray. The seats were fairly comfortable on the ride out to the island—you were essentially horseback riding the cushion, with each space for a passenger separated by the seat back. On the way back, my thighs and butt were definitely feeling pretty sore from this position and the up-and-down motion of the choppy waters.

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Travel, NatureHannah Schultzsao miguel, portugal, azores, travel, International travel, dolphin, snorkel, vila franca islet, ponta delgadaComment
Travel With Me: São Miguel, The Azores (Day One)
Travel With Me: São Miguel, The Azores (Day One)

After our overnight flight to PDL, we decided our first stop would be to see some nature before checking into the B&B. The Jardim Botânico António Borges was founded in 1861 by a wealthy citizen of Ponta Delgada, and it is now a free public park. There are tree species from across the globe, caves, and a viewpoint that you can access at the top of a restored cistern. This introduction to the island did remind me of Hawai’i, as that was the only other place I’ve ever seen Moreton Bay fig trees like the one pictured above.

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TravelHannah Schultztravel with me, International travel, azores, islands, portugal, sao miguel, ponta delgada, botanical garden, Jardim Botânico António Borges, Pópulo beach, Forte De S. Caetano, Lagoa das Sete Cidades, Vista Do Rei, Boca do InfernoComment
Travel With Me: Rome, Italy (Day One)
Travel With Me: Rome, Italy (Day One)

Our first day started bright and early at 8:30 a.m. for the Roma Antica Tour through Context Travel (this tour was a Christmas gift from my mom, and it was one of my favorite parts of the trip!). Our guide, Valeria, was an archaeologist who had studied at UC Berkeley and Oxford, and I learned more about Roman history than I could ever hope to retain. We began the tour by skipping the (incredibly long) line to the Colosseum, as Valeria explained that the holes in the walls we often saw in ancient Roman buildings were spots for metal clamps, as most of these ancient structures were overlaid with marble.

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TravelHannah Schultzrome, italy, travel with me, International travel, united, flight, blue roma, san giovanni, colosseum, colosseo, context travel, tour, palatine hill, romulus, remus, ancient, forum, trevi fountain, spanish stepsComment
Paris: Une Affaire du Coeur
Paris: Une Affaire du Coeur

Thomas Jefferson wrote in his autobiography, "So ask the travelled inhabitant of any nation, In what country on earth would you rather live?—Certainly in my own, where are all my friends, my relations, and the earliest & sweetest affections and recollections of my life. Which would be your second choice? France."

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TravelHannah Schultzparis, france, travel, International travel, thomas jefferson, heart, history, louvre, musee d'orsay, sacré coeur, l'arc de triopmhe, notre dame, cathedralComment