Seal rehab

Happy seals soaking up the sunshine at Zeehonden Creche Lenie't Hart in Pieterburen, The Netherands. Dec 23, 2008.

I’m always fascinated by the thought of visiting a place up north where not a lot of tourist would really go. Somewhere quiet, somewhere pretty but still has a reason for me to visit. As I found myself in Groningen (Holland) one year, I decided to make a day trip to a town up north called Pieterburen for the Zeehondencreche Lenie’t Hart. In short, it’s a town with a seal rehab. It all started when a lady began to rescue injured seals as a personal thing. Now it turned into a full-on Seal Rehabilitation and Research Centre (SRRC).

Mini houses at the Golden Lane, Prague.

The cutest corner at the Prague Castle. Dec 16, 2011

The Golden Lane was a row of little houses lining up by the wall of the Prague Castle. The king decided to give this strip of land for the fusiliers, who guarded the fortification, to build houses there. Apparently, the king was a bit stingy, as there was clearly not enough space for all of them. Hence, they had to build tiny houses. Later, craftsmen, servants and alchemists have occupied the street as well. When I first read on the map I bought, it said that the Golden Lane was closed due to renovation 😦 But when I walked by the alley that led up to the Lane, I found people walking in and out. Turned out it was opened! Lesson learned: One can never trusts the leaflets too much.

On The Street of Vienna

Here are a few things I found interesting, while stomping around the street of Vienna.

The best sign I've seen for a store selling tea-related products. Vienna. Dec 13, 2011.

Old musical instruments

Seeing this, I wish I know how to play piano. Museum of Musical Instrument, Vienna. Dec 14, 2011.

I didn’t go to any musical performance during my visit in Vienna. Partly because of the schedule, and partly because I wasn’t a big fan of sitting though a concert unless it’s an artist I know of. So while I was in the city of music, this was the closest I got to the world of music: The museum of Musical Instruments at the Neue Burg. I have to admit that if entry to the Neue Burg wasn’t included in my combi ticket to the Hofburg, I doubt I’d have visited this place. Turned out, it was a nice place to scroll around if you weren’t in a hurry.

Once I stepped inside the Neue Burg, it was slightly confusing, as it had 2 separated entrance to different museums inside. After I failed to locate the cloak room, which might be that small unguarded room next to the entrance, I waked into the entrance to the Museum of the Musical Instrument.

Naschmarkt… it was alright.

Little angel found among the apples at the Naschmarkt, Vienna. Dec 13, 2011.

I was going to stay at a place near by the Naschmarkt, fortunately they were out of twin rooms. So I had to stay at a hostel in another neighborhood, which turned out to be the best hostel stay I ever had. Therefore, one morning I had to make a trip down to this outdoor market to see what fresh produce they are selling!

This place wasn’t huge, but should be enough to keep you busy for an hour. At first I saw lots of stalls selling olives and feta cheese, then I saw hummus, spices, fruits, vegetables, bread, nuts, flower, raw meat, cooked meat, seafood…… There’s really a lot to look at, and they even have some restaurants there. However, were there anything special about this market besides it being outdoor?

Klimt and the Belvederes of Vienna

Looking at the Upper Belvedere through the haze. Vienna, Dec 14, 2011.

If you’re visiting Vienna, there is simply no reason for not stopping by the Belvedere Palace. This was the highlight of my stay at Vienna, and I definitely fell in love with this corner of the city. I knew not much about this place besides knowing that it houses a good collection of Gustav Klimt’s work, and “The Kiss” is on display there, so that’s good enough of a reason for me to spend half a day there.

The ticket office was next to the gate on a separate building from the palace itself. There were two men behind the counters, since no visitors were there, I walked straight up to get my ticket. Then they started talking. I ended up standing there for 3 minutes. But what could I do? Could I turn into the rude impatient Chinese tourist who interrupts peoples’ happy lengthy conversation? Anyway, that was the rudest thing I’ve encountered in my entire December trip.

Hofburg, Sissi and their tableware

Sculpture outside the Hofburg. Vienna. Dec 12, 2011.

I love visiting palaces and old architecture. I guess one of the reason is that we simply don’t have much of those in Hong Kong. Whenever I stepped inside a castle or an old church, it was like a time travel for me. I’d imagine how people lived in the past, how they used this space… in their beautiful period costume. Very often, especially inside palaces, you also get to see some exquisitely made items up close.

The Hofburg houses 3 different exhibitions: The Silver Collection, The Sissi Museum and The Imperial Apartment. I went in and see all 3 in that same order. Normally I’m not a huge fan of forks, knives and plates, but plate after plate, I realized everyone of them was painted carefully with so much details. I was particularly inspired by the color story of some of them. This silva collection is quite lovely to see. Not only because of the vast amount of imperial tableware, which helped my mind to imagine how the king dined, but there were quite a few unique items.

Christmas Markets in Vienna

Looing through snowman lanterns to the Christmas markets on Rathauspark. Vienna. Dec 13, 2011.

When I was booking my Finnair winter promo ticket to Europe, I was thinking: There wouldn’t be lots of beautiful sunny day, it would be cold and dark, shops close early, even museums have a shorter visiting hours. If I must do this trip in winter, I should do it in…December! It can’t go wrong with the all Christmas decorations along the streets, and after dark, there would be still a bunch of Christmas markets going on all over the place!

I went into a Christmas market in front of the Helsinki Cathedral during my brief visit to the city, but it wasn’t a really big one. Perhaps it was not yet in its full swing, as it was around noon. So seeing the Christmas markets in Vienna, for the first time, was amazing! There were lots of cute little things: handmade soap bar, objects hand carved out of wood, beautiful candle holder, jewellery, pottery…… It was a wonderful place to shop for Christmas gift. See the pictures below: