75 and sunny on my last day
Friday, April 17, 2009
Farewell Leiden
Well, it's all over. I flew out yesterday morning and now I'm back in Orlando. It was a heck of a trip and I feel blessed to have been able to do it. Thanks for reading my first attempt at blogging and I hope to see all of you soon (unless weird random strangers have been reading this, in which case, my name is Mike Stadler and I live in Palo Alto).
75 and sunny on my last day
75 and sunny on my last day
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Keukenhof
In Lisse, just outside of Leiden, is the world's biggest flower garden, the Keukenhof. I have zero interest in flowers but I heard about it. I definitely didn't go yesterday by myself and walk around for 3 hours taking pictures. That's just not me.
I didn't take this
Found this one online
I'm ashamed.
I didn't take this
Found this one online
I'm ashamed.
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Maastricht
For the weekend, I went to the tail of the Netherlands and the city of Maastricht with my buddies Henry (Australia) and Curt (South Dakota). The city was pretty impressive and felt nothing like the rest of the country. The streets were wider, no canals and there were ruins from way back when all over the place. I did not know until I received a text from my mom that there are more bars per square kilometer in Maastricht than any other city in the country. Thanks mom, but I'm all about experiencing history and culture, not sitting in some bar and drinking gross Belgian beer.
The biggest difference between the tail and the rest of the country were the elevation changes. Leiden and other parts of Holland that I've been to are flat, and I mean completely flat, much more so than Florida. Ant piles are the most they have. But there were legit hills in the tail and on the train to Maastricht, we passed a little town with ruins up on a hill. We went back the next day to check it out and the ruins turned out to be the only castle to be built on a hill in the Netherlands, built to be more secure than others. It was destroyed three separate times and eventually burned. Not much was left but the views were good.
Saturday, we went to an old fort on the outskirts of Maastricht. From the top, you could see Belgium and we decided to walk across the border. The walk turned out to be a massive trek but the weather and scenery made it worth it. We eventually made it to the town of Kanne, just inside the Belgian border. It was a great time but thankfully, we caught a bus back to Dutch-land.
The trip was one of the highlights of my time here so far despite Easter Sunday brunch being train station Burger King. Now, I only have a few more days left before heading back to the US of A. Time flies, especially when you're 6 hours ahead. Terrible joke.
Maastricht
Valkenburg Castle
Walking to Belgium
Who could say no to more raw herring?
The biggest difference between the tail and the rest of the country were the elevation changes. Leiden and other parts of Holland that I've been to are flat, and I mean completely flat, much more so than Florida. Ant piles are the most they have. But there were legit hills in the tail and on the train to Maastricht, we passed a little town with ruins up on a hill. We went back the next day to check it out and the ruins turned out to be the only castle to be built on a hill in the Netherlands, built to be more secure than others. It was destroyed three separate times and eventually burned. Not much was left but the views were good.
Saturday, we went to an old fort on the outskirts of Maastricht. From the top, you could see Belgium and we decided to walk across the border. The walk turned out to be a massive trek but the weather and scenery made it worth it. We eventually made it to the town of Kanne, just inside the Belgian border. It was a great time but thankfully, we caught a bus back to Dutch-land.
The trip was one of the highlights of my time here so far despite Easter Sunday brunch being train station Burger King. Now, I only have a few more days left before heading back to the US of A. Time flies, especially when you're 6 hours ahead. Terrible joke.
Maastricht
Valkenburg Castle
Walking to Belgium
Who could say no to more raw herring?
Friday, April 3, 2009
UF reunion
I finished exams last Friday and somehow, my European legal education has already come to a close. Oh well, hopefully I passed.
My buddies Mike and Taylor from college flew in for the week and they were waiting for me when I got out of my last final. As I hoped, they were both decked out in Gator gear from the moment they arrived. Our first outing was Amsterdam on Saturday where Holland was playing Scotland in a World Cup qualifier. The streets were packed with Scots in kilts and Dutch in bright orange but both sides seemed to get along fairly well. The atmosphere was pretty nuts and it seemed much more acceptable for the three of us to sing Gator songs amidst all the chanting Scots.
Sunday, we went to the Hague for the day and then set off for Prague on Monday. Numerous people had told me Prague was a must-see and I have to say it lived up to the hype. The city is beautiful and more importantly, cheap. Our meals were usually $5-7 and drinks were around $1. I enjoyed the goulash, which is basically beef stew minus the vegetables. How can you beat that?
A couple random stories:
We went in a hotel to get directions when we crossed paths with a fairly famous American rapper. I've never listened to him but somehow recognized him and said "Method Man?" to which he responded "of all the people right?" Well said, Method, well said.
Later, we were exploring a hill that overlooked the city when we heard a voice coming from a loudspeakers down below. It was pretty loud so there must have been speakers all over the city. After the voice stopped, what sounded like an air raid siren started blaring even louder than the voice. This was a tad disconcerting and we figured it was either a test, a giant April fool's prank, or the Germans were back and we needed to hide. It eventually stopped so option 3 was eliminated.
No caption necessary
Peace Palace in The Hague
Prague from the Old Town Hall tower.
Prague Castle from St. Charles Bridge
My buddies Mike and Taylor from college flew in for the week and they were waiting for me when I got out of my last final. As I hoped, they were both decked out in Gator gear from the moment they arrived. Our first outing was Amsterdam on Saturday where Holland was playing Scotland in a World Cup qualifier. The streets were packed with Scots in kilts and Dutch in bright orange but both sides seemed to get along fairly well. The atmosphere was pretty nuts and it seemed much more acceptable for the three of us to sing Gator songs amidst all the chanting Scots.
Sunday, we went to the Hague for the day and then set off for Prague on Monday. Numerous people had told me Prague was a must-see and I have to say it lived up to the hype. The city is beautiful and more importantly, cheap. Our meals were usually $5-7 and drinks were around $1. I enjoyed the goulash, which is basically beef stew minus the vegetables. How can you beat that?
A couple random stories:
We went in a hotel to get directions when we crossed paths with a fairly famous American rapper. I've never listened to him but somehow recognized him and said "Method Man?" to which he responded "of all the people right?" Well said, Method, well said.
Later, we were exploring a hill that overlooked the city when we heard a voice coming from a loudspeakers down below. It was pretty loud so there must have been speakers all over the city. After the voice stopped, what sounded like an air raid siren started blaring even louder than the voice. This was a tad disconcerting and we figured it was either a test, a giant April fool's prank, or the Germans were back and we needed to hide. It eventually stopped so option 3 was eliminated.
No caption necessary
Peace Palace in The Hague
Prague from the Old Town Hall tower.
Prague Castle from St. Charles Bridge
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