Last summer (2010 – yep that’s how overdue this post is!) Trixi and I fancied a bit of a road trip, so we drove from Innsbruck to Vienna, then on to the UK (via Amsterdam and Bruges/Brugge), then back through Germany and Wiesbaden. Big thanks to Erik (a friend from ski instructing in Saalbach) who put us up for the night in Amsterdam, and to ‘Joe,’ Trixi’s 21 year Opel Astra hatchback, who made the whole journey with no problems at all, and even turned out to be (relatively) comfortable to sleep in.
Seats down, duvets out, curl up and 'enjoy' a night of mild cramp and light sleep...
Lots of bicycles in Amsterdam...
Trixi posing by a canal in Amsterdam
Bruges was the main highlight of the trip, so much that we spent two days there, and another on the return journey. The tour of the Brugse Zot (Brugian Fool) beer distillery was excellent, and led by the fattest, jolliest and most enthusiastic man I’ve ever met – the free pint afterwards was also one of the best I’ve tasted! Here’s a few pictures from this beautiful historic city:
A Breakfast of imported KrispyKreme doughnuts in the Minnewater gardens
Sampling the local brew in a sunny streetside cafe
Bad-ass chocolate dragon
Darker Stronger Brugse Zot? Yes please!
Tempted by the ace fish market
Unfortunately, with both of us being tax-dodging students, we couldn’t afford to eat or stay in the city, so we drove to a nearby beach for a swim and picnic dinner.
Did someone say... SHARK?!
Fresh bread, cold meat and camembert, washed down with cool white wine... Tasty!
Unluckily our later plans to sneak into a campsite under cover of darkness were foiled, so we ended up sleeping in the car again, in a public car park just back from the beach, before being woken up at 6am by two irate (and non-English-speaking) Belgian policemen… Still, at least we made the ferry on time!
