Tag: Life abroad

In Bruges

As a foreigner in Belgium visiting Bruges is a must. Everyone told me it’s very pretty but even more touristy. And that’s what it is. Walking around in Bruges almost feels like walking around in an outdoor museum and I don’t mean that in a bad way. There are cute little medieval houses and churches, framed by the canal, very picturesque. If you’re into carriage rides, Bruges is the place to go. Just foodwise maybe not the best place to go, most of the cafes and restaurants I would consider to be tourist traps (20-25€ for a mediocre meal?) However, that didn’t keep us from having a good time!

Love this grandma puppet sitting in the window!!

The Atomium

The next day we did some sightseeing, obviously. I had never been to see the Atomium myself, it’s not very close to anything and there is nothing else there but some touristy museums. But it had to be done 😉 After a seen that done that, we went back into the city to explore the city centre and to get some sweet overkill Belgian waffles at Maison Dandoy! Good times!

It’s gin and tonic time!

I was very much looking forward to this day!!

My best friend came to visit me in Brussels and we had an amazing time together. I picked her up at Brussels Central Station after work and took her to Châtelain market where we got some delicious street food and a glass of wine. After, we went for fancy gin tonics at De Haus, a really cool place with a huuuuuge gin menu.

De Haus
De Haus
De Haus

Czech Street Party

Different people told me separately about the Czech Street Party and I must admit, it was really fun 🙂

They had different stands for each region with free food trials, free beer and Czech liquor. Also very interesting music and then there was this guy who advertised the amazing Mendel University  in Brno. Apparently they have their own brewery and make their own wine 😀 Check it out! Amazing guy, we asked him for a photo after his speech

Mendel University fovever!!
I was super afraid we would fall 😀

 

Exploring Antwerp

One good thing about Brussels is that almost every other destination in Belgium is just a one hour train ride away. On the weekends the ticket price for a return trip is 50% off – so I thought, why not go to Antwerp just for the day?

 

Antwerp Central Station
Antwerp Central Station
The famous castle of Antwerp
…hidden passages…
Antwerp Central Station
City Hall
Antwerp Cathedral
…tiny backyards…
really loved this piece of art
Beautiful botanical garden
Beautiful botanical garden
Restaurant in a hidden passage

I did one of the free walking tours to learn some things about the history of Antwerp and mainly to get an overview of the city. I discovered this amazing food truck market where I enjoyed a delicious Quesadilla right at the waterfront:

Veggie-Quesadilla

Bienvenue à Bruxelles, Malin!

Hey guys,

I just decided to “re-open” my blog! Last year I wrote about my time in the US, this year I will tell you the story of my time in Brussels, the capital of Europe. Enjoy 🙂

I got arrived in Brussels almost two weeks ago and I’m already in love with the city. It’s very lively and welcoming. Before I came here I thought, well there are the institutions of the European Union, so it’s probably a place to work and nothing else. It is very much more than that. In Brussels you will meet people from all over Europe, from all over the world in fact. I have the impression that everyone around here speaks at least two different languages fluently, many people three or more…

In everyday life I have the opportunity to practise my French, at home I speak English with my lovely Greek roommate with whom I share a tiny apartment in the Flagey area. At work we also speak English. For those who don’t know why I’m here, I am doing an internship with the European Commission, DG Economic and Financial Affairs, where I’m a lonely lawyer amongst all the economists 😉

On my first day of work I attended a very interesting conference here in Brussels, the Brussels Economic Forum. George Soros held a most interesting and inspiring speech on his perspective of the (economic) future of the European Union.

My first days in Brussels:

 

 

Brussels, I’m coming!!
George Soros @ Brussels Economic Forum
Getting used to Belgian beer 😉
my new home
exploring Brussels: Chocolaterie Pierre Marcolini
And all that jazz…
Exploring Brussels: Palais de Justice

DC at its best…

…and now it’s time to say goodbye 😦

I’m back in Germany and this project has come to it’s end. I hope you enjoyed reading all my bullshit and if you have you might get the feeling for why I’m super sad that I had to leave. It’s been one of the best summers of my life, I met so many great people who shared all these amazing experiences with me and to whom I will always be grateful!

This is my DC:

Jazz in the Garden ❤
Mount Pleasant nights
Driving through DC
The steps from the Exorcist
Geogetown Canal
Hanging with the ladies 🙂
Georgetown Waterfront Sunset Cinema
Georgetown Waterfront Sunset Cinema
DC nights
Air or Space??
Hangover breakfast at Ben’s Chili Bowln Diner
Watching Hillary’s convention speech
Fellow at the zoo
Chilling elegantly
One last selfie… No tears!!
This artwork shall promote awareness for keeping the ocean clean
The everyday view from our porch
Representing Germany at an EU meeting 🙂

 

#PorchTimes
#GeorgetownCanal
#GeorgetownCanal
#DCwaterfront
#DCwaterfront
#DCwaterfront
#OurBar
#DCmetro

So the porch is just in front of my house, we sit there all the time, have a drink or coffee in the mornings.

The bar (second last picture) is called “The Raven”. It’s the place to go here in Mount Pleasant where I live. It’s just next to the laundrymat, one reason why we go there quite some times 😉

The DC-metro-picture gives you an impression of the troubles they have with the DC metro all the time. It has not been taken care of for quite a while and there are fires in the tunnels every week… I try to avoid it whenever I can.