Journeys and destinations...

Skogafoss waterfall Iceland is one of the most beautiful places on Earth. Due to the reach of the internet and the traveling bug caught by most of us it is on everyone's bucket list now. However before landing in  Reykjavík it is useful to be aware of a few things. The smell!!! The tap water in Iceland smells (A LOT) due to sulfur. From what I had read only the hot water is supposed to smell and not the cold water but in our rented accommodation even the cold water in the kitchen had a distinct smell. Nothing can really prepare you for the odor.  The water is heated  naturally  b y geothermal springs, pumped from the ground and  supplied directly to each home.  The locals swear by the health aspect of the pure water and highly recommend drinking it however I found it really difficult to get comfortable with the smell .  Icelandic air  smells as well although it is very pure and clean. The smell is stronger if you are near a geothermal plant or a natural spring like this

Hello readers, Me and husband did a 3 day trip (3 nights, 4 days) in November 2019 to Bruges from Düsseldorf. Some people will say that's a lot of time for such a small city. For us it was a city break over a long weekend and we did not want it to be hectic and hence spending time doing nothing and wandering around the streets aimlessly was also part of the itinerary 😄. Expectations versus reality Expectations - As always I had done my research on Tripadvisor, Youtube, Google and talked to friends who had visited Bruges and hence knew what to expect. We had already visited Gent and Brussels few years back so were aware of how things work in Belgium. Belgium is famous for beer, waffles, fries and chocolate. So having all of these was definitely on the agenda. High expectations for these 'must-haves'. The weather was going to be rainy, cloudy and cold but I am now used to such weather in Germany so we were not going to let weather spoil our enthusiasm. Rea

Hey fellow travelers , I have been living in Germany since 2013 and have traveled  in Europe at every opportunity I got. Along the way I have gathered some experiences which can be helpful for first time travelers  to Europe. So, here is a list of the lessons I learnt while travelling across Europe: 1.       Not spending enough time at one place If you go city/country hopping too fast everything will look the same . You won’t be able to distinguish between cobbled streets or churches if you don't spend a good amount of time in each city. 'Good amount of time' could be variable on your interests but the point is to take in the specifics of a place instead of just checking it off a list. To really understand the culture and history of a city I have started relying on walking tours . Normally in this format a local guide takes you around the city they love on foot for about 1.5 to 2 hours. If you ask, they also give you great tips about places (restaurant

Sometimes you look at a photo and strongly feel the urge to visit the place. It happened to me when I was scouting for a place to spend three days on a long weekend. The photo which captured my heart was of the riverbank of Ghent. Love these buildings! When I read further about the city I found that it was exactly what I was looking for. Not too touristy, not too difficult to reach or explore by public transport and not too far away from Düsseldorf (my home away from home). Ghent is located in the Flanders region (north) of Belgium. People speak mostly Dutch but thankfully they also speak some English. Ghent is called a medieval city and its apparent as soon as you reach the city centre. But it is not locked in a time capsule, the old and the new go hand in hand here. So in the city centre you will find horse carriages (for tourists) as well as trams running seamlessly on the roads. Riding bicycles is also preferred by the locals. Owing to the Ghent University