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Category: Travel

Off to Berlin!

Published on 10 September 2020

Wait, what? Straight to Berlin? What happened to Wien and Budapest? Well… because Hungary suddenly closed its borders for tourists, I had to change my plans a bit. The sleeper train adventure has been put on hold for now, and on this trip I will only visit Berlin and Hamburg, meaning I’m going straight from Brussels to Berlin. I’m still keeping it classy though: first class tickets all the way!

As usual, I had to change trains in Köln, giving me the opportunity to quickly grab something to eat. Don’t be afraid to ask them to put your order in your own reusable packaging, even abroad! No time to grab my usual coffee in the coffee bar just outside the station, so a train coffee had to do… Really nice of Deutsche Bahn to serve it in proper cups, at your seat!

Now just a couple more hours of podcast listening—I was running behind a bit anyway—and enjoying the view, and I’ll be back in Berlin!

?̶?̶?̶?̶?̶?̶?̶?̶ & Berlin Trip

Published on 23 August 2020

It’s—finally and hopefully—almost time to take another trip!

The recent reinstatement of the direct sleeper train from Brussels to Wien was too good of an opportunity to pass up, and a very convenient—and safe—way to get to Budapest, the main destination of this trip. Of course I will also spend some time in Wien itself, and I’ll be taking the long route back, spending a two more nights in Berlin, and a couple of hours in Hamburg.

Not surprisingly, this trip I’ll be collecting a couple of new stamps in my BrewDog Beer Visa again—at BrewDog Budapest and BrewDog St. Pauli—but this time the first stamp in my Mikkeller Passport as well. Of course, wherever I go, I’ll try to visit some local breweries and beer bars, and enjoy the the local specialities as much as I can!

Camping Misery

Published on 2 August 2020

On the first day of August, Misery Beer Co. opened. It’s a bit hard to get to by public transport, as a lot of places in the Ardennes tend to be, so it was very convenient there was a special bus going from Brussels to the manor of Misery.

Due to the ever changing COVID-19 regulations, the opening party was a bit smaller than envisioned, and spread over two days. Once there, all necessary measures were taken to let us see the brewery and enjoy their beers in safety. And enjoy them, I did!

Continue readingCamping Misery

Scotland Trip: Postponed

Published on 22 May 2020

Under normal circumstances, at this exact moment, I would have been on a Eurostar leaving Brussels, and after dinner at the Great Nepalese Restaurant, I would board the Caledonian Sleeper in London later this evening, which would take me to Scotland overnight…

As we all know, circumstances are far from normal right now, and I had to cancel or change all the arrangements I made, some already a year ago! I must say though, even if it was quite a bit of work, I can’t complain how all affected companies handled my requests! Everything has either been rebooked—Travelodge, easyHotel Glasgow, hub by Premier Inn, and even the BrewDog brewery tour—or refunded—Caledonian Sleeper and ScotRail. The odd one out here was Eurostar, where the only option was a voucher… Luckily I can use that for the postponed trip anyway, but I feel sorry for the people who had to cancel their trip altogether.

The only thing I couldn’t cancel, were the days off I had requested… I held up hope for so long, the work planning for May was already final by the time it was clear no international travels would be allowed this month. Luckily I still have some days off later this year, but I’ll be using those for a trip I had already planned to a completely different destination.

So, sadly no Scotland for me this year, but early 2021, I’ll be heading for the—then probably slightly colder—Highlands again!