Tag: public transport

Battleship for Beginners

Published on 11 June 2026

A new day in a city I have only hashed and drunk in so far, that means museum time! And of course the ongoing quest to try national dishes and as many local beers and bars as possible…

Sleeping anywhere but home is always a challenge, but after a shaky night on a sleeper train, a night in a completely dark, immovable bed at Citybox Stockholm was pure bliss…

After I finally got out of bed, I went for breakfast at Greasy Spoon: a Classic Benedict, and a coffee by local roastery Lykke.

Breakfast as Greasy Spoon. Yes, it says “Butter me up, maple me down” on her shirt…

Time for the educational part of the day: the Nordiska museet! For once, a museum that didn’t start in the Stone Age, but in the 15th century. Still, there was plenty of history to cover.

Just around the corner was the Vasa Museum, the perfect example of what happens if you prioritise the customer’s wishes over common sense…Still, a beautiful ship!

For lunch I went to Östermalms Saluhall. After some browsing, I had the roastbeef smörgås at Nybroe.

After easing into beer yesterday, I decided to start a bit earlier today, at Omnipollos Kyrka. A high-roofed building like that seems to be made for brewing!

Quite a bit smaller was Ölkemi—I didn’t find the actual brewery—where I soon dominated the Untapped menu screens…

After so many hours without caffeine, it was time for coffee and an almond croissant at Café Pascal.

The next beer bar on my list was UDDA.

At Mikkeller Södermalm they were unable to scan any QR codes, but happy to believe I’m a Mikkeller Running Club member… Oh, and I had the ‘traditional’ Swedish pizza kebab there.

Both Bar Kaja and Oliver Twist celebrated the launch of Repslagargrannar – Sola I Karlstad, but I had it in the first of the two.

The last bar of the night for me was Stigbergets Fot, where I had the Dirty Tots to soak up some alcohol, and a couple of lovely beers.

Sunny Sweden, Rained Out Run

Sunny Sweden, Rained Out Run

Published on 10 June 2026

A new country, a new city, and a newfound appreciation for beer! First impressions of Sweden were great, and as expected, the hashers in Stockholm very welcoming.

A hot shower to start the day in sunny Sweden. Well, it was sunny for about five minutes after I opened the window blinds of my compartment… It was just enough though to enjoy my boxed breakfast in the sun. In the end, the train was even fifteen minutes ahead on schedule, allowing me some extra time—and snacks—in the SJ Lounge at Göteborg Central. Any other week I would not have needed to stop at Göteborg, but track works—announced well in advance—necessitated a transfer there.

Showering on my SJ EuroNight… and it was hot!

After queuing for a bit to get on the SJ X 2000, I found my extremely roomy seat and I was on my way to Stockholm, the original destination of my sleeper. Within minutes a train attendant came to confirm my lunch order, and then later served at my seat at the requested time.

After arrival, and a short metro ride, I was able to check-in to my hotel: Citybox Stockholm. No people involved, I was able to sort it out with just the consoles.

Then it was time for my first proper coffee since Monday, at Drop Coffee, with some pastry from Svedjan Bageri.

But then it was time for a big moment: my first alcoholic beer in a month! In case you missed it: after my birthday brewery crawl, I gave alcohol a rest for a month, so my first proper beer was in Stockholm, in Akkurat, to be accurate. And boy, did it taste good!

I also had some homemade köttbullar there, served with cream sauce, pickled cucumber, lingonberries & mashed potatoes.

My first alcoholic beer in a month, at Akkurat

But a new city usually also means a new hash, so I went back to the hotel to change, and was off to Fruängen—with the underground—for Stockholm Underground H3 #1656 – The Hot Dog Run. A sudden downpour just before the run was about to start, meant not all markings were as legible as intended… We found the drink stop, though!

Big turnout at the Stockholm Underground H3 #1656 – The Hot Dog Run

After circle I headed back to the centre, for the Fjäderholmarnas Bryggeri tap takeover at The Mad Hatter.

To finish the night, I went to Omnipollos Hatt, for some IPAs, and of course a slushie…

Brussels Breweries Tattoo Tour – Quinquagenarian Edition

Brussels Breweries Tattoo Tour – Quinquagenarian Edition

Published on 9 May 2026

When I just had my Brussels breweries tattoo in 2022, featuring my seven favourite local breweries, I celebrated the occasion by visiting them all in one epic taproom crawl… It became an annual event, and since I was turning 50 years old this year—and apparently that is significant—I did the fifth edition of my Brussels Breweries Tattoo Tour a bit earlier than usual, actually on my birthday, on the 9th of May!

The visited breweries were—as always—Cantillon, L’Ermitage, Mazette, La Mule, La Senne, La Source, and Surréaliste. Seven breweries, seventy minutes in each taproom, and at least one birthday beer in each…

La Ville de Lille

La Ville de Lille

Published on 18 December 2025

After easing in to it with just a couple of hours yesterday, today was the day to fully experience the city of Lille! As usual I started with some culture, before drowning in coffee and beer.

My day started with the “Classic” bacon and egg roll at PADDO CAFE. It was definitely more fancy than any bacon roll I’d had before, but certainly a good way to start the day.

For the cultural part of the day I then first went to the Hospice Comtesse. Quite unexpectedly there was security with a handheld metal detector at the entrance, so I quickly had to move my pocket knife from my trouser pocket to my jacket, which foolishly wasn’t scanned or checked at all… Half of the exhibition was dedicated to the history of the building as a hospital founded by Flemish countesses—hence the name—and the other half was about the history of Lille in general.

Since I was still totally uncaffeinated at that point, I went for a coffee and a chocolate peanut butter cookie at Bloom Café.

Next on the programme was the Palais des Beaux Arts de Lille. Again there was security here, but this time even with metal detector gates. The jacket trick didn’t work this time—“Please put your jacket back on and deposit anything metal in the tray”—but luckily my knife is slightly smaller than my phone, so I managed to hide it underneath, and… they didn’t notice!

Once inside, I thoroughly enjoyed the museum. The collection was impressive enough, but I especially liked how the building was made into art as well, only fully visible when standing in very specific spots!

After another coffee at Chido Café, it was then time for my first beers at Sikaru, followed by La Mousse Touch’, and the Bar du Singe Savant.

For dinner I went to Le Broc, specialised in cheese dishes. La Trilogie du Broc definitely didn’t disappoint! I do have to mention though, that a country so proud of their cuisine, it’s funny to see how here in the North they’ve adopted a dish from the ridiculed United Kingdom—Welsh rarebit—and serving as Le Welsh in every second restaurant here!

To finish the day in style, two breweries: Fives Cail and hôp[i].

Pastrami & Pubs

Pastrami & Pubs

Published on 23 October 2025

The second and already last full day in București I used to tick off some more local food boxes. It was also the day that a large number of hashers with the same destination as I arrived, which usually means one thing: bar crawl!

I had breakfast in my hotel: rather unusual for me on any day but the last one of a stay, but since it was automatically included in my booking, I better use it! There I already bumped into another hasher from BMPH3, who had also arrived the day before.

I skipped the coffee in the hotel—it it ever any good anyway?—to try some in the nearby espresso bar Coffee District instead.

Today’s museum of choice was the Muzeul Municipiului București, the municipal museum. I actually had to pay separately to be allowed to take photos, and it cost me more than the museum ticket itself!

After another coffee at the Sfinx Espresso Bar, I headed to the Obor Market to try some mici, as supposedly the best ones are to be found at Terasa Obor. There was a short queue, but luckily not as bad as I’ve seen in some vlogs! Simple but tasty, and that’s another one from the list!

To continue checking off food items, I set course for In House Pastrami & More for something I never realised was originally Romanian: pastrami.

After a last coffee at the rather fancy Sloane Specialty Coffee, it was time to get to the hotel and change, in preparation for tonight’s programme…

And the evening activity was the Bucharest H3 Pre-Lube Bar Crawl! It started at the Hop Hooligans Taproom—which I definitely wanted to visit—but I had no clue where it would lead us after that. Luckily most bars did not feature on my Wednesday itinerary, so I didn’t put my liver at risk by squeezing in all the bars on my wish list for nothing. After QP Pub, Londohome, and PaRdon Pub, we ended up at the Ironic Taproom, where I had been the night before. Well, I thought I had, but apparently the space next door was also part of it, with another thirty different beers!