Silver Lions at the Rosenborg

Gorgeous day out, looking at the Rosenborg Slot from the garden, Copenhagen. Dec 27, 2011.

It was kind of interesting that Copenhagen wasn’t a huge city, but they just kept on building castles there. Rosenborg, Christianborg and Amalienborg…How many castles do you need in the Indre By? Out of all three, I thought Rosenborg was the prettiest completed with a garden. It has a very linear structure with a Dutch renaissance flair. Right, the castle’s exterior, especially at the top, did remind me of the canal houses in Amsterdam.

Museum hopping in Berlin

Pergamon wasn't flooded with tourists on Christmas. Berlin. Dec 25, 2011.

On the day of Christmas, there was one topic particularly popular in the breakfast room: “Oh, it’s Christmas, everything is closed. What can I do? …and what are you going to do?” Then you would hear: “I’m going to visit the Museum Island. I heard it is open today.” So right, if you’re “stuck” in Berlin for Christmas with no friends to visit, it seems that museum hopping would be one of the very few choices, and that’s exactly what I did. Surprisingly, the museum wasn’t flooded with tourists.

Life in DDR

It was a popular car. DDR Museum, Berlin. Dec 24, 2011.

Located right across the Berliner Dom on the River Spree, it was the playful DDR Museum where visitors can have a hands-on experience to see how life was under dictatorship. I’m sure this museum isn’t interesting for someone who lived through his childhood in the East Germany, but for me, it was a really fun place to spend a few hours… and it was also one of the few places that opened for business on Christmas’s Eve.

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.

The enchanting world of Mucha

Lots of beautiful original prints of Mucha's posters lining up on the wall of Mucha Museum, Prague. Dec 16, 2011.

I don’t even know how to express the joy of seeing a Mucha lithograph up close. After I got off the train from Vienna, I checked in and grabbed a bite for lunch. Then I ran over to the Mucha Museum which was not far from my stay. This museum wasn’t huge, but it houses a great collection of Alphonse Mucha, a Czech Art Nouveau painter and decorative artist from around the turn of the century.

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.

Just look at the ceiling!

Ceiling details at dome Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna. Dec 13, 2011.

I was very looking forward to see Cellini’s Salt Cellar at the Kunsthistorisches Museum. It was one of the first few art pieces I learned about during my art history class in college in California. My teacher played a slide show of this little golden sculpture, I remember thinking that this was just beautiful, and it was made to hold salt and pepper?! However, when I finally had the chance to visit, I couldn’t find it after walking around the whole place. What a disappointment! I might have missed it but I was too tired to ask or walk anymore. So I end up not seeing this great piece. However,my visit at the Kunsthistorisches Museum was still very enjoyable.

The building itself is already a work of art. Once I stepped in, I couldn’t stop tilting my head to admire all those intricate details on the ceiling. Every corner of it seems to have a different set of patterns. I literally stood there and just looked for a good 15 mins (while my mom was busy taking pictures with the camera and then her cell phone…)