Bruges (BELGIUM) - shoot first, sightsee later

Bruges (Belgium)
14 March 2016

Irish contract killers Ray & Ken are sent to the medieval town of Brugge (Bruges) following a botched hit in London. Eight years later Inga & Henry show up in this fascinating ensemble of architecture, representative of multiple phases and periods within the commercial and cultural biography of this town. Funny how a movie can lead to someone else's alternate reality.

Antwerp station - Belgium

Have not seen a station as grand as Antwerp - quite impressive

Antwerp station - Belgium

Brugge - Belgium

Brugge - Belgium

It was the movie that brought us here, plain and simple. In Bruges which stars Colin Farrell is the reason that I had already become acquainted with the beauty of this town prior to visiting. The movie In Bruges  is one of those black comedy style of movies, in the elk of Burn After Reading. Not to say that Bruges is in any way of the mould of a black comedy, the town itself is more the foil to the main story but in a way personifies  or embodies the actual subtext to the plot. Beautiful, mysterious and honourable. The setting classically supports the characters and the ideals of honour and friendship in a world of oddly inept criminals. Side by side, the movie and the town do justice to one another.

From Amsterdam its approximately 3hrs one way to Bruge. From memory the connections were to get there went something like Amsterdam - Antwerp - Ghent - Brugge. It became a  six hour break from our Amsterdam getaway which allowed me the time to essentially go and see a movie. So the question, was it worth it? Absolutely, Bruges has golden offerings, in spades.

The Belfry tower - Brugge - Belgium

A glass of Chimay in the square

Brugge - Belgium

Brugge - Belgium

Brugge - Belgium

The town is spectacular. Another contender in its own right for the moniker of being the Venice of the North, it competes along with its Dutch soulmate Amsterdam. The waterways of Bruge however offer something different again to that of the Dutch capital. An architectural time warp, a treasure trove of medieval structures that all seemed to fit perfectly within the whole make-up of a desperately beautiful town.

I had some expectations of Bruge, Inga had none. Now we were here, in the midst of the shadows of the mighty Bruges Belfry tower located in the Markt of Bruges. On this particular day we find ourselves a large slice  of luck for a day in mid-March, the sun is out, its pleasant in the direct sunlight and the restaurants are full of people soaking in both the atmosphere and quality suds. Even as a non-beer drinker it didn't take much arm twisting for me to get into the Belgian stuff. I know it's good, too many Belgian Beer Cafes in Sydney & Melbourne haven't allowed me to make any sort of argument against that fact. Chimay, Kwak, Duvel, Stella, Hoegaarden. All familiar names and all wonderfully delicious but particularly so when partaking of the precious liquid in their country of origin.

Brugge - Belgium

Brugge - Belgium

Brugge - Belgium

Like Venice & Amsterdam it would also be difficult to walk away from the town without allowing ourselves the small indulgence of taking a canal cruise.. Offering a different perspective yet again, viewing the town whilst navigating the sometimes challenging twists and turns of the, in part, small canals, only sort to give Bruges another dimension of charm and beauty that is equally evident by impressions garnered fromwondering through its streets and lane ways. I couldn't say that the beauty of Bruges suprised me, because in a large way it was expected, but even the lofty expectations that I did have were surpassed by some distance.

Savouring as much as we could off the day also meant that we ended up at a place called the Beerwall in order to decompress and reflect on what we'd seen. The Beerwall itself occupies pride of place on probably the prettiest section of the Dijver Canal, one of the main canals of the town. It wasn't hard to see why so many people were holding up their phones in the immediate vicinity, and also, why so many bad photos were being taken. There's only so much artistry that can be afforded to mediocre photographers after downing the local amber ales. It has to be told with certainty, what they have in Belgium is priceless. This product, this drink that they make, it's like beer without frontiers, beer that is so egalitarian in its fine quality that even the most ardent Baptist would succumb to the wiliness of the collective offerings.

Brugge - Belgium

That's the Beerwall - what a great place to have a drink!

Brugge - Belgium

No fears for a Kwak or six

Inga & I spent a few hours in the Beerwall, for most of that time in the company of a chatty & cheeky Englishman, along with his silent Thai partner. He was one of those cocky, amusing types. One of those that could easily turn you off but somehow became more engaging with every additional drink in each passing moment. In fact we did find ourselves getting to a point in our stay where we realised that we were running a bit late for the last train out of Bruges and found ourselves literally having to run a few kms on the back of a gallon of good 'ole Belgian beer in order to make an ignominious exit.

Train boredom - somewhere in the Netherlands

The boredom continues

And that's how we made our exit, something churlishly making our exit without so much as a thank you or a tip of the hat to our most gracious of hosts. So to you Bruges I say, thank you, spending the day with you was just like being in a fucking fairytale!

Amsterdam (NETHERLANDS) - the monkey is coming out of the sleeve

Amsterdam (Netherlands)
10 March - 15 March 2016

The Dutch, their cup simply runneth over. You've got to ask questions about the lucky Dutch. Are they in fact plain lucky or is it something else, is the thing we see as luck something that they've allowed themselves to earn?

Inga and I arrived in the land of the giants. A population of tall, svelte, nubile people. All moving within their picture perfect capital city, effortlessly gliding without acrimony on their two wheeled transport vessels, their birthright. Walking from the Amsterdam Centraal we bypass a squall of earnest pedlars, mostly well dressed, flowing naturally through their unashamedly beautiful city. Damn you Dutch people, I've been here 5 mins and already I envy everything about you.

Dragging our luggage down Singel street, directly adjacent to a canal, I was already in admiration of the set-up. Beautifully manicured ordered streets, possessed by meticulously groomed individuals going about their day, treading along intricately paved paths in front of equally gorgeous canal houses, which are in fact, as tall, svelte and attractive as the people around here. You quickly ask yourself, 'were these buildings made in the image of themselves' or was it the other way around, somehow? Standing tall, slender and proud, each building in its place, as correct and beautiful as the next. Once again, 'damn you Amsterdam'.

Overlooking Singel canal - Amsterdam - Netherlands

Amsterdam - Netherlands

Amsterdam - Netherlands

Our home for the next few days was the top floor of one of these buildings overlooking the canal. We both thanked our genetic make up upon entry as we discovered that what also goes with these tall, thin houses are equally as impressive staircases that you literally need to climb like a ladder. Some are so tight and have such a pitch that you wonder how the an man of average height (which here is 1.83mtrs) would be able to manouevere in such a space.

Now when people think of Amsterdam within two logical steps they get to the  concept of the famous 'coffee shops', 'sex shows' and so to the inevitable commentary on how liberal the Dutch are seems to bubble to the surface. First, its true, the coffee shops are hidden in plain site and much the same as sex workers, obvious but hidden. The way in the Netherlands, it appears, is that things operate with reason. The Dutch are pragmatic for the most part and also appear to have level of tolerance to most thing, driven by their pragmatism. To me it make sense, and to rational people this philosophy makes sense. Overt interference by the state can come unnecessarily. With a lot of things that other countries attempt to regulate and suppress, when the state is overprotective and attempts to interfere unduly with personal choice then those choices simply get made in other ways, with less openness. Unreasonable interference only means loss of control and loss of the ability to inform, the alternative therefore, is tolerance with openness, information and the ability to actually regulate. To me it looks like the perfect combination. What you need to be available is there, you don't have to be subversive in your desire to access these things and thus there exists a society where all is cool Hunny Bunny.....once again, damn you Amsterdam.

 Amsterdam - Netherlands

Amsterdam - Netherlands

                                                               Amsterdam - Netherlands

Amsterdam - Netherlands

The canals of the city are amazing. They form a labyrinth of intriguing water ways that gives this city a totally different dimension. Aside from the 'chilled' sense of the streets, as traffic in the city centre is more occupied by a fleet of cyclists than cars, the canals provide an additional layer of calm and serenity whilst allowing the town to be framed in a way that's very different from other place. With over 100kms of canals in the city Amsterdam is known as the Venice of the North, but to say that it somehow relegates the city to a position of inferiority. This place is just more 'epic' and makes much more of an impression than Venice. That's a simple fact.

                                                                 Amsterdam - Netherlands

Amsterdam - Netherlands

Amsterdam - Netherlands

Amsterdam - Netherlands

Amsterdam - Netherlands

Inga loves Amsterdam and it didn't take me long to completely understand why that is. It a gorgeous place. Of course, we both contemplated our love, several times, a few of the many cool coffee shops that punctuate the city. I have to say...not problems from my side, puffing up a level of tranquility in a city like this just seems to be as fitting as having a glass of Malbec from your favourite asador in Buenos Aires. I recall on one particular evening as we made our way back to our canal house on Singel that I became acutely aware of my own personal frame of time in the greater context of time, as perceived by individuals around me, or should I say, as I perceived that individuals around me would perceive my acts within their own framework of time. To put it in plain English, the MJ had messed with my motor skills and I felt kind of wasted, although I had a huge hankering from some fries! And man, fries are on every opposite corner here, and right next door, more often than not, a place that makes waffles!

Amsterdam - Netherlands

Amsterdam - Netherlands

On one of the days we actually left the small village feel of Amsterdam and spent a day in the surrounds of another small village, Leiden. Inga has a sister that lives there and we spent the day cycling around the area within what I believe was the national park (Nationaal Park Zuid Kennermeland) near Haarlem, finishing off our day in the town of Leiden for a tour, some red hot bowling and even better apple pancakes. So for that I have to give a big thank you to both Veronika and Wouter for being our guides for the day.

Haarlem - Netherlands

Haarlem - Netherlands

Leiden - Netherlands

                                                                  Leiden - Netherlands

Again, Leiden, like its big sister Amsterdam, is another gorgeous town. Once again, my pangs of jealousy abounded when I started to realise that all of the Netherlands could quite possibly look this way, and there I was, sitting back with only Belgrade to support me, realising that it indeed is much more than luck that can bring you to this position. In Serbia everything is a problem, its either difficult, not worth doing, not as good as somewhere else or there some type of rort happening. Serbians defraud themselves. Luck only really follow those that work for it, those that earn it. The Dutch, it appears, have earned it, and to that you can only give them credit and say, your luck is my respect.

Vienna (AUSTRIA) - Budapest (HUNGARY) - Real life version 2.0

Vienna (Austria) - Budapest (Hungary)
25 January 2016 - 29 January 2016

Thinking back to the moment when it dawned on Inga that she may need to move to Belgrade, and that period of time would be in the vicinity of 2 years now,  it sometimes for me brings on feelings of extreme sympathy. Not only was I asking her to leave Riga but I had no chance of talking up the qualities of Belgrade, for sure it couldn't be dressed up as being an upgrade. For anyone making short visit to the Serbian capital will find that its very Balkan, in a post Communist, overtly nationalistic, historically challenged kind of way. It doesn't give you any sort of tingling sensation, in the loins or otherwise, and my goodness, TWO YEARS sounded like a death sentence when it came out of my mouth. It was however my best and final offer.

Vienna and Budapest were like the teaspoon of sugar, the dangling carrot that needed to be engineered as the entree to our real live, version 2.0. I call it a 'real life' as we had lived together for three months whilst travelling, we had lived together for three months in Australia, but none of it was really domestic bliss now was it? This was 'living together' in a real world kind of way and it was going to be taking place in a city that I only had a small idea of and Inga has no idea about. Let the canned laughter ensue.

Vienna - Austria

Vienna - Austria

Vienna - Austria

Vienna - Austria

Vienna - Austria

We were getting good at meeting in airports, Buenos Aires, Stockholm, Belgrade, Riga, Sydney, Vienna - it became unexpectedly familiar. For a while we became one of those couples that you'd see reacquainting themselves after an extended time apart. It was nice, in an odd way, but this time it was 'hello, I missed you' with the caveat that we'd be staying together, and that in itself was something to celebrate.

A day earlier Vladimir and I had busted out of Belgrade bound for my rendevous point with Inga at Vienna International. After having spent a few years with my cousin, living virtually next door, there's a couple of things I've gotten to know about him. He drives recklessly, so much so that it makes me feel uneasy. Do I think he's a good driver? Yes, but do I like the chances that he takes unnecessarily? No ....and do I think he jeopardises the welfare of his passengers? Yes, and I hate that and whatever bravado or machismo goes with that aggressive/reckless form of driving. I'm called him out on it a few times and called him out on it on this occasion too. Another thing about my cousin, he's particular. He doesn't like crowds but by that I mean he won't like venue if it is vibrant and has plenty of people, that just isn't his thing. That has challenges in itself and in some way negates a large part of freedom and enjoyment on my part. Thankfully in Vienna on this occasion it posed no challenges.

Inga arrived in Austria on Australia Day, in a city with no kangaroos but plenty of bratwurst and schnitzels for the offering. That's not really a comparison other than to simply pass commentary on the situation that Australia Day in Austria is bemusing.

Australian pub - on Australia Day - Vienna - Austria

Schonbrunn Palace - Vienna - Austria

Vienna or rather Wien, wow!  Just a wonderfully sophisticated, engaging, elegant city. Every time I visit I fall a little deeper and harder for it, and of course, walk a little taller as this was my grandfather's hometown. Heinrich Elisher, my namesake was from here and I like to imagine that by walking through the city I'm stepping on the paths, on the stones, in some of the gardens the he did. I like to imagine looking at this city through his eyes and think somehow, in some way that he can see me strolling through his backyard. Sometimes those ancestral echoes ring louder when you're closer to home.

Apart from being known as the City of Music, it's also known as the City of Dreams because it was also the home of the worlds first psychoanalyst, Sigmund Freud, and again, when I look at the timeline of when my grandfather was alive and living in Vienna its very likely the two would have crossed paths on the odd occasion.

We spent a few days in Vienna, just walking around the city and also seeing Schonbrunn Palace, a place that at one time was the Summer residence of the Hasburn rulers. Considering it was the end of January we were relatively lucky with the weather also, navigating our way through without so much as a bout of rain, snow or sleet.

After a few days in Vienna we headed down to Budapest via a brief stop in the capital of Slovakia, Bratislava. 

Now the great thing about Europe, which is totally different to countries such as Australia or the US, is that you can travel a mere 60-70kms and be in another country and capital city, which was the case here. Only a 70km, 1hr drive from Vienna and there we were, still on the Danube but having lunch in the old Czechoslovakia, experience something totally different in terms of geography, language, culture and food.

Budapest - Hungary

Budapest - Hungary

Budapest - Hungary

Later that day we arrived in Budapest. A city which in some odd way, being so close to Belgrade, I felt as though I should know more about, but in actual fact knew nothing about. Additionally, and somewhat embarrassingly, there had always been that ingrained Serbian prejudice in me that somehow Budapest was inferior, to what exactly I'm not sure. Inferior to everything. It's a very Serbian view, everyone else is inferior but they know nothing in their country is of quality either - so essentially, in their mind, everything is crap!

Budapest - Hungary

Budapest - Hungary

 Budapest - Hungary

Budapest - Hungary

Budapest IS NOT crap, in fact its wonderful and one of the great highlights of Europe. The unfortunate thing was that it took so long for me to discover our next door neighbour and that also, on this trip, we would only be staying the night. Never the less, Inga & I gave ourselves the opportunity to wonder around. 

Budapest - Hungary

On the Serbian border - three passports - all awaiting entry

Starting at the Liberty Bridge we walked down one side of the Danube in front of Gellert hill to the Rudas Healthy Spa, essentially making a small circuit. Unfortunately we didn't have time on our side but from what I saw and experience of Budapest I knew that it had to be placed high on the list for a return.  Considering Budapest was now going to be a neighbour there was no reason that we shouldn't start up a friendship.