[travel] My day trip to the magnificent Brussels, Belgium

I’m back from my epic trip to Maastricht and Brussels;v; It was tiring, but exceptionally fun and awesome. I still have a stack of Maastricht photos to sort out, but I can’t wait to share my Brussels photos right now. Such a gorgeous, gorgeous city. It is the heart of Europe for a reason lol. Though I didn’t appreciate the fact that the streets were a whole lot dirtier and people seemed to speak worse English than in the Netherlands, the sights I saw, the foods I tasted, the experiences I had were simply amazing.

[travel] Maastricht: first impression

Greetings from Maastricht–the capital of the province of Limburg, the birthplace of the European Union, of European citizenship, and of the euro. I remember reading about this city when I was 13 years old in my Geography text book and was fascinated by it. Little did I know that I would be here for real.

I took a 2-hour train ride from Utrecht to Maastricht, arriving at 5pm. The weather was fabulous so my friend took me out for a walk for a few hours before we headed back to her room to plan our travel itinerary tomorrow. Guess who is going to Brussels in 10 hours? xDDDDD But lemme share some snapshots of Maastricht today first.

Three Great Places… My photo featured on Oryx Magazine

Nothing awesome/major, just that my photo of Jacoby’s Burger was chosen to be featured in an article on Oryx–Qatar Airways’ in-flight magazine September edition.

I love Jacoby’s Burger for their wholesome fare, and was really glad to see it featured on this great magazine (Oryx is among the better quality in-flight mags I have read I must say). And of course, I am happy to see my photo published in real life, not online, lol.

For the full article you can either 1, fly with Qatar… or 2, check here.

[eat] Pastries for life: reviews of Tastoe & Bond en Smolders @ Utrecht, the Netherlands

Just realized that I haven’t posted for a longggg while T-T So today is a combined post of two cafes in Utrecht for your delight. Both have awesummm pastries and both made my tummy very happy >v< This afternoon I went to Tastoe–a small cafe (like most cafes here) famous for its delish cheesecake. Any cafe with good cheesecake is a cafe worth going to, I tell you. Last week I randomly popped into Bond en Smolders because I couldn’t resist the sweets on display T-T Little did I know that it is also one of the most popular bakery cafes in Utrecht xD
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[cafe] Korean traditional tea at 수요일 @ Insadong, Seoul

As much as I am a big fan of tea, Korean traditional tea had never really been on my must-try or favorite list. For sure I had tried few times before, but more often than not I’d  found Korean tea rather bland and not exactly…tea. Unlike the usual tea made from leaves, in Korea they also make tea from wheat, dry seeds and various fruit herbs which until now, still sounds incredibly weird to me because those kinds of tea don’t have the distinctive flavors we find in this classic drink. Nevertheless the trip I made to Insadong a while ago definitely stirred something different in me and gave me a more positive viewpoint about Korean traditional tea.

[leisure] A day spent in Buamdong aka How I precelebrated Chuseok all by myself

To most of you who are reading this post, today is just another day spent in front of the computer screen (((like me))) (((I guess))) but to those who are in Korea right now and actually celebrate the holiday, Happy Chuseok!

[travel] My day trip to Amsterdam, the Netherlands

3 weeks of living the Dutch life and I finally managed to go to Amsterdam for only 7 hours :\ Albeit in my limited time there, I got to see a panoramic picture of Amsterdam by taking the whole day hop on/hop off cruise trip. Amsterdam means canals (well, among other things…) so taking a boat ride was the most sensible way to get a first taste of the city. Of course I wanted to see Anne Frank’s house, Rembrandt’s house, the Van Gogh museum, the Rijk museum, the Red Light District and etc etc. but I was totally satisfied with my short time in Amsterdam. In any case, Amsterdam is just a 28 minute train ride from Utrecht xD So you can expect more posts about this gorgeous capital in the near future.

[eat] Incredible breakfast at De Bakkerswinkel @ Utrecht, the Netherlands

De Bakkerswinkel is a highly popular bakery/bistro with branches located in several major Dutch cities. I felt in love with it the moment I came across the Utrecht’s branch’s photos on the Internet. My tutor, likewise, only has compliments for it xD As a serious food blogger, I had no choice but to check it out.

[eat] Delectable fried chicken at Chir Chir (치르치르) @ Hongdae, Seoul

When you go to Hongdae you can literally find a chicken hof every second minute of walking, be it on the main road or small alleys. However, the chance of finding a good one is one in a million. You will find either the restaurant is too noisy, the food is too bad, or the service is not up to your expectation what with the price that you have to pay. From the experiences that I’ve been through, I have promised myself not to randomly barge into any chicken restaurant without second thoughts and proper food researches anymore.

I was in Hongdae the other day, all exhausted and famished, to the point I could eat anything laid in front my eyes. However, being a responsible blogger as I was, I held my ground and decided to spend the leftover energy I didn’t know I had in me searching for a place for chicken because who doesn’t want chicken when hungry? My friend and I were torn between numerous options, all of which sounded equally appealing before we found Chir Chir (치르치르) and the rest became forgotten history.

[eat] Healthy yummy yoghurt at Yoghurt Barn @ Utrecht, the Netherlands

Who doesn’t love yoghurt? Let me tell you, bad people. We, healthy, angelic, health-conscious girls need yoghurt in our life. And Yoghurt Barn in Utrecht is a perfect place for everyone to enjoy a tasty cup wholesomeness at a reasonable price.