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Our last few days in Europe were spent on land - we tripped around Holland by foot and by train. We added an impromptu day trip to The Hague (Den Haag), the political centre of The Netherlands, and home of many important EU sites.
It is about a 50 minute train ride away from "home" in Amsterdam. Travelling this way showed us alot more of the idyllic Dutch countryside. Rows of farmland, crops, flowers (bloemen), dotted by cows, sheep and the cutest red-roof, perfectly triangular houses.
Den Haag is a large and extremely stylish city, with a balance of old and new architectural wonders. We've added a few pictures to the gallery that show just a taste of its beauty. It's truly a walkable experience - with tree lined promenades, pedestrian streets, open market squares, canals, and lots of shops.
We were so glad that we spent the day discovering yet another special place in - what is becoming - one of our favourite parts of the world!
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After an approx. 8 hour flight, we're home in Toronto, but we're still living on "Amsterdam time".
We always like the final blog to be more of a reflection on our time abroad. So here are a few lists of "top" things we discovered on our Scandinavian trip of a lifetime!
Prettiest harbour(s)
- Tallin
- Warnermunde
Best sea view(s) - natural wonders by boat.
- Swedish archipeligos
- Danish wind farms
- White nights
Hardest language(s) - where we didn't even try...
- Russian
- Finnish
Biggest surprises - who knew we'd like these places so much?
- Tallin
- Helsinki
Best shopping streets - $$$
- "The Walking Steet" in Copenhagen
- Kalverstraat in Amsterdam
Most jaw-dopping rooms
- The Gold Room in the Stockholm City Hall
- The Rock Church in Helsinki
- The Amber room in Catherine's palace (St Petersburg)
Most peaceful moments
- Walking the outdoor museum in Helsinki
- Lunch on the harbour in Stockholm
- The BBQ lunch at the German inn
- Sunny, afternoon naps on the front deck of the ship
We have about a million and a half stories that didn't get published - but we'll always remember our 2 weeks in an absolutely beautiful, and remarkably interesting part of the world. At times, we felt over whelmed, other times, totally at home, and at peace. Seeing Scandinavia, the birthplace of exploration, by boat was quite a a special experience. We fell in love with a great many places along the way, and have made mental notes about the places we need to re-discover in the future.
Thanks for being a part of this with us! In the coming days, we'll add a few more photos to the galleries, so feel free to check them out.
Until we trip again,
Jude and Chris
- comments
Lynn Sharer Your blog was amazing and so was your trip. Thanks for sharing it so vividly with us. Looking forward to hearing the stories in person.