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Friday, February 1, 2013

Royal Greenhouses of Laeken

Royal Palace of Laeken

Greenhouse Entrance

Last Picture in Europe

After my return from Ireland and Venice, I spent the next few days relaxing in Lille preparing for my return trip home. There was still one place I had yet to visit; the Royal Greenhouses of Laeken. The Royal Greenhouses of Laeken are a vast complex of monumental heated greenhouses in the park of the Royal Castle of Laeken in Brussels. The Castle houses the Royal family of Belgium. The Greenhouses are a beautiful latticework of metal and glass built in the Victorian style. Even though I was very near Brussels for three months I was not able to visit them until the end of the trip because they are only open for 30 days between the middle of April to the middle of May, when the flowers are at full bloom. It was my last chance to see the complex before I would depart the next morning.

I wasn’t able to get any high-speed train tickets on such short notice so I was forced to ride slow trains to Brussels. I got up that morning but decided to sleep in because I was tired; missing the first train. When I woke up I looked up the next train, but when I went to the station I couldn’t find it. It just wasn’t there. I tried once more to get high-speed tickets but failed. I thought about giving up but this would be my last chance to see it, maybe ever. So I tried getting on one last train and actually managed to find this one. I rode to Gent and transferred trains to Brussels Nord Station. When I got off the train I was in a part of the city that I had never been before, so it took some time to get my bearings. I was still pretty far from the Palace, which is in the middle of a massive park, and had to walk the rest of the way. I was in a hurry, as the only train route with one transfer back to Lille would leave the station in a couple of hours. Any trains leaving after that had at least three transfers.

I jogged most of the way to the park, while trying not to look like an idiot. Eventually I arrived at the gate. The palace grounds were stunning. Groups of people were being directed by guards towards the Greenhouse entrance. I went in paid for my ticket then stood in awe at the inside of the massive glass dome. This was only the first of many structures I would visit. The vast dome was inhabited mainly by tropical plants like palm trees. After I was finished gawking, I made my way to the next part of the tour which took me outside the dome to view the vast rolling hills of the palace grounds. I passed by several smaller buildings and a Japanese Pagoda before entering a new greenhouse which had a series of glass hallways and corridors. The walls of the hallways were lined with beautiful flower arrangements and the ceilings had exquisite vines and flowers hanging down. The space got compressed and resulted in large groups of people holding up progress and distracted from the beauty of the space. Looking past the people I was able to true beauty. I have never seen such delicate and intentional design of flora. It gave me a new appreciation for landscape design.

After snaking my way through various greenhouses and passageways I wound up back in the large dome where I started. I lingered for a little while longer before leaving. I jogged back to the train station and caught the train back to Gent. I had to wait nearly an hour for the transfer because of a delay. Eventually I got back to Lille. In spite of any attempts by the universe to prevent my last trip to Brussels, I had seen the Royal Greenhouse. The structure was a little rusted in spots but the plants were stunning and more than made up for it. If I could do it all again, I would have gotten up on time and caught the first train. Spending more time in the greenhouse would have been nice. In the end my last day in Europe wasn’t spent sitting on the couch; I went out and saw something cool.

The next morning I woke up with my roommates and got on a train to Charles de Gaulle Airport and boarded a flight to Chicago. What was my first thought upon landing you ask? “Wow, what’s with all the fat Americans?”

Wednesday, January 30, 2013

Venezia, Capisce?

First Picture In Venice

St. Mark's Basilica

Piazza San Marco

San Giorgio Maggiore

The Basilica & Doge's Palace

The Doge's Palace

Piazza at Night Arsenale

The line to get into the Basilica Museum

Venice: In Vino Veritas

After a frustratingly long bus ride from the Treviso airport, we crossed the bridge into Venice. I set out to find my hostel and immediately got lost. The alleyways and canals are confusing to navigate until you get used to them. After a bit of reorientation I managed to track down the address. The entrance was an inconspicuous door in a narrow alleyway. The hostel was simply a large apartment with four large bedrooms a couple bathrooms and a kitchen. The hostel manager was a guy in his early 30’s who lived there. It was a really comfortable and relaxed place. After settling in I set out to explore the city. The first thing I did was get a water bus pass for the next few days. I rode the bus around the canals and got a magnificent view of the city. I disembarked at the famous Piazza San Marco (St. Mark’s Square) but decided not to visit the Basilica until my last day (which would prove to be a mistake). My first destination was St. Mark’s Campanile the bell tower of the Basilica. From the top I had an absolutely beautiful view of the entire city. There was a small cluster of storm clouds cutting across the sky and scattering the sunlight over the rooftops. While up there I was nearly deafened by the church bells.

My next stop was the Doge’s Palace, the residence of the Doge of Venice, the supreme authority of the Republic of Venice. The ornate residence sits immediately beside the Basilica. To my frustration, cameras were not allowed beyond the inner courtyard. The inside of the palace was a large and elaborate sequence of rooms and passageways all encrusted with sophisticated works of art. One of my favorite rooms was the “Armory”; a museum of weapons likely used to defend the palace and the city through the ages. The palace even had a dungeon. After exploring the palace the rain had passed and I could further explore the city. I rode the water bus back to the hostel and set out to find dinner. My guide book for Venice mentioned a great little place to eat at a reasonable price but it took me almost an hour to find. I had a pasta dish with scallops and tomatoes that was simple and succulent. I couldn’t speak a word of Italian and the woman working did not speak English but thankfully she was patient with me. After dinner I returned to the Piazza San Marco as the sun was setting. I found that much of the square was flooded by the high tide and people were walking around on wooden walkways that sat above the rising water. It was a peculiar site but made sense considering the city is slowly being overtaken by the ocean.

After getting a view of the city a night (by water bus), I returned to my hostel for the night. While there I decided to read for a bit in the common area before bed. I stuck up a conversation with a guy from England by the name of Pete. Like me, he was traveling alone and we found it nice to have someone else to talk to. We shared stories of home and of our previous travels. I didn’t get much reading done. After talking for over an hour we both decided it was best to call it a night.

The next morning I woke up and had breakfast at the hostel. The sun was bright and clouds were fluffy and white. I set out on yet another water bus ride, this time I rode along the outside of the main island to the small periphery island of San Giorgio Maggiore. I visited the church on the island and climbed the bell tower. Again I got a great view of the city and the bay. I stopped at a café on the island for lunch. After lunch I rode back to the main Island and tried to find my way into the Arsenale di Venezia. A historic military harbor, which I found was still a guarded military base. Unable to enter I spent the next few hours wandering the city and perusing the markets for something interesting. I got on a water bus and rode it around the city for over an hour. The ride was so relaxing that I fell asleep at one point. When I got off I wandered into the historic Jewish Ghetto which was once a place of great suffering. After a long day of exploring I was very hungry and got some cheap pizza for dinner. When I got back to the hostel the owner offered to make us some homemade lasagna if we chipped in a few euros. Even though I had already eaten the offer was too good to pass up. Many of the hostel residents gathered for dinner. The food was delicious and Pete and each drank our fair share of wine. That night I also met Sarah, who had arrived at the hostel that day. Sarah was from Canada and was on vacation by herself as well. After a long dinner with lots of food, wine, and great conversation, I decided to go to bed.

On my last full day in Venice it was raining for much of the morning. I decided to visit St. Mark’s Basilica and got lost along the way. I spent several hours wandering the streets and before long it started to hail. Seeking shelter I wound up in a small pizza place and decided it was time for lunch. With my large slice of pepperoni and bottle of orange Fanta in hand, I went to find a place to eat. After lunch the rain had stopped and the sun had come out. I finally found my way to the Basilica only to find that it was closed for preparations for some religious ceremony. I was not happy. I had put off my visit to the Basilica because I wanted to end my trip on a high note; I thought I had missed my chance. I noticed that the museum in the upper story of the church was still open, but backpacks were not allowed. I tried to find the coat check but it was in an unmarked building down an alley away from the Basilica. I nearly gave up out of frustration. After finding the coat check and leaving my backpack I decided to sneak my camera inside with me. I had nothing left to lose at this point. When I got into the museum I started taking pictures of their models and artifacts out of spite. Eventually, to my surprise, the museum opened into the upper story of the church. I got to see the interior of St. Mark’s Basilica. I spent as much time as I could admiring the view of the golden mosaic ceiling; taking more pictures out of spite… After seeing as much as I could of the interior I went out to the balcony over the Piazza and to get a view of the exterior architecture. After exploring as much of the building as I could, I went back to the coat check content with what I thought would be a disappointing experience.

After St. Mark’s Basilica I made my way to a little restaurant that had an enticing menu for a decent price. I remember eating a modest pasta dish with a glass of wine. After dinner I ran into Sarah, who was looking for a place to eat. We managed to find a place nicer than the one I had eaten at. It was a great place and I was kicking myself for already having eaten because her food looked delicious. We each had a glass of wine and lots of good conversation. After an hour or so we made our way back to the hostel. We said our farewells as it was my last night and I would be getting up at 4:00 a.m. to catch the bus back to Treviso; which is exactly what happened next. No human being should wake up before 6:00 a.m. I managed to catch the bus with time to spare and slept as I rode to the Treviso Airport. I caught my flight to Brussels Charleroi Airport which, like Venice Treviso, was nowhere near Brussels. After a bus ride to the train station, a train ride to Brussels, and a covert high speed train ride to Lille (for which I did not have a proper ticket), I was back in France after traveling alone for nearly two weeks.