Grant's European Adventures

Cinque Terre, Venice, and Florence

Wed, 27 Jun 2012 11:27:54 -0400

After leaving Rome the group took a train to the coastal region called Cinque Terre (meaning five towns). We stayed in Riomaggiore the southernmost of the picturesque towns. The town consisted of bright buildings that were stacked up against a steep hill that dramatically plunged into the Mediterranean Sea below. The water was dark blue and crystal clear. The breathtaking beauty and laid back life style made it one of the most enjoyable places I have ever been too. We spent a lot of time lounging on the rocky beach and swimming. One day we rented a little motor boat and drove down the coast line to a beautiful cove with a waterfall. The next day we hiked to some of the other towns passing through beautiful coastline, vineyards, orchards, and forrest. It was so hard to leave Cinque Terre. We are now in Florence staying with some of Amanda’s friends from school who are studying here. Yesterday we took a day trip to Venice. We saw the Rialto Bridge, San Marco Square, and took a Gondola ride down the Grand Canal by the Doge’s Palace. Today we spent sight seeing in Florence and plan on doing the same tomorrow. Can’t believe the trip is close to coming to an end!

Ciao Italia!

Sun, 24 Jun 2012 03:07:35 -0400

On Thursday morning Emily, Amanda, and I took the train from Delft to Eindhoven to catch our flight to Rome. In Rome we met up with Amanda’s high school friends Shelby and Allie. The first night we went to Piazza Navona and had dinner and a few drinks. It called it an early night because we ha a long day or sight seeing. Much to our dismay their was a strike going on which shut down the Metro and a lot of tourist attractions, including the Coliseum. But we were still able to make to the Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, and Pantheon. That night we went on a pub crawl which made for a fun and wild night. It was sad to leave Delft but I am loving the weather in Italy!

A shot of Riomaggiore

Sun, 24 Jun 2012 02:56:42 -0400

A shot of Riomaggiore

The Coliseum

Sun, 24 Jun 2012 02:55:30 -0400

The Coliseum

Trevin Fountain

Sun, 24 Jun 2012 02:52:50 -0400

Trevin Fountain

Spanish steps in Rome

Sun, 24 Jun 2012 02:51:26 -0400

Spanish steps in Rome

Marienplatz, the central square in Munich

Sun, 24 Jun 2012 02:50:21 -0400

Marienplatz, the central square in Munich

Ben made the mistake of accepting a drinking game challenge from...

Sun, 24 Jun 2012 02:48:46 -0400

Ben made the mistake of accepting a drinking game challenge from a German…he did win though!

Scenic shot of the Bavarian Alps

Tue, 19 Jun 2012 19:17:03 -0400

Scenic shot of the Bavarian Alps

Neuschwanstein Castle from a bridge across a river gorge above.

Tue, 19 Jun 2012 19:05:09 -0400

Neuschwanstein Castle from a bridge across a river gorge above.

Neuschwanstein Castle from below. This place was so beautiful!

Tue, 19 Jun 2012 18:52:43 -0400

Neuschwanstein Castle from below. This place was so beautiful!

Hohenschwangau Castle

Tue, 19 Jun 2012 18:49:39 -0400

Hohenschwangau Castle

On the train approaching the Alps

Tue, 19 Jun 2012 18:48:10 -0400

On the train approaching the Alps

View of Brussels

Tue, 19 Jun 2012 16:15:33 -0400

View of Brussels

Munchen and Bavaria

Sun, 17 Jun 2012 18:45:36 -0400

After leaving Brussels, we caught a train to Munich (or Munchen as the Germans say). We arrived late Thursday night and only explored far enough away from the hotel to find what I have decided is the most delicious beir hall in all of Germany. We again got lucky with beautiful weather the next morning so we made the short trip to Neuschwanstein Castle in the Bavarian Alps. We got of the train in the town of Fussen where we picnicked on the banks of a river in the foothills of the Alps, a beautiful setting. We then ventured on to the village of Hohenschwangau, then up the mountain to the castle. It was quite the trek but absolutely worth it. The mountains the castle rest on are some of the most beautiful I have seen (and still snowcapped in June). The castle is situated on a steep river from the mountain tops above with powerful waterfalls and beautiful pools. I was hoping to be able to swim in this gorgeous valley but the water was completely snowmelt and unbearably cold to even stick your feet in for too long. The castle itself rivaled the surrounding natural beauty. It is inspriation for Disney’s sleeping beauty castle. Each room inside is themed after one of Wagner’s operas. It was truly amazing. The next day we wandered into Marienplatz, the heart of Munich. It was swarming with people and after lunch Ben, Nathan, Amanda, and I met up with my high school friend Bess Rystrom and her friends who are studying in Munich. We went to the famous Hofbrauhaus bierhall, one of the oldest in Germany. We then went down to the river and enjoyed the great weather. The group then went for some delicious dinner and watch the soccer match. The bier hall we had been going to gets pretty rowdy so it was fun to mix it up with the locals. I am now back in the Netherlands getting ready for the last week of class! Pictures to come soon.

Bruxelles

Sun, 17 Jun 2012 18:33:06 -0400

After leaving Heidelberg, we hopped on a train to Brussels, Belgium where we would spend three days. Most of our time was spent at the INSINUME Conference. The conference was a really cool experience. There were engineers and scientist from all over the world there to discuss their research and experiments on different effects radiation has on the natural environment. While a lot of the talks were quite complex and difficult to follow, we had the opportunity to speak with some of the presenters during a poster session where they more thoroughly explained there work its relevance. The conference was very well organized and everyone from insinume was very good to us. While the conference took up a lot of our time, we still made plenty of time for some fun. After one session of the conference, they took us out for a city tour and beer tasting of the delicious Belgian brews. We also frequented Delirium Cafe; a huge bar close to the city center that boast over 2,000 different kind of beers. We of course had to go see Mannken Pis, Brussels most famous landmark which is a disappointingly small statue of a little boy peeing. While Belgium was beautiful, it seems most of the culture revolves around beer, waffles, and chocolate….all of which we were happy to indulge in!

Boating on the Neckar River in Heidelberg with Nathan and Ben

Sun, 17 Jun 2012 12:52:47 -0400

Boating on the Neckar River in Heidelberg with Nathan and Ben

The ruins of Heidelberg Castle

Sun, 17 Jun 2012 12:44:40 -0400

The ruins of Heidelberg Castle

Kings of the castle. What better place for a bottle of German...

Sun, 17 Jun 2012 12:41:10 -0400

Kings of the castle. What better place for a bottle of German Wine than in the cellar of Heidelberg Castle?

So it’s not a great picture but it’s the only one...

Sun, 17 Jun 2012 12:36:52 -0400

So it’s not a great picture but it’s the only one that shows how huge this wine cask was! Note the people standing in front of it.