Sprouts and chocolate (That's right kiddies, Belgium!)
So... I have this one weekend of time, between sending my dissertation for binding and handing it in. And, as it turns out, Michael's going to be here. We came to the conclusion we should travel. Somewhere. Just because.
That... was an adventure. Ryanair is randomly cheap, and then randomly a lot more expensive, so... sometimes, it's a crap shoot about getting to anywhere interesting, as far as it will cost (as an exercise, yesterday, I found round trip flights to Aarhus for 0.01 pounds each way. With taxes, etc. the total was less than 40 pounds round trip). The best way seems to be to decide where you're starting from (which airport), and scroll through the list of available destinations on the dates you want until you alight on one that is both cheap and sounds interesting.
I am perfectly happy with this method, as it allows me to go "Hmm... I've never been to Milan.... Stockholm sounds interesting..." etc. and just 'go with it'. I think it was driving Michael crazy. We'd been talking about Frankfurt (as it turns out, flights didn't work out for that), and I would remember something Roman said, and go "Hmm... what about Fez..." and Micheal goes "That's not even on the same CONTINENT!" because he thinks that means we shouldn't go to Frankfurt. It doesn't. It just means "Fez could also work, let's see about that, if it's cheaper, etc."
So. After planning and rejecting (for various reasons) weekend trips to: Milan/Bergamo, Italy, Granada, Spain, Stockholm, Sweden, Frankfurt and Dusseldorf Germany and Bath (Michael's frustrated "AArgh! Let's just stay in the Isles"... at which point I went to look at Glasgow, Kerry, Dublin...., and then "London! We're going to London!".... followed by my looking at things in Bath...).... we finally have a winner.
Belgium.
Why Belgium? Any number of reasons. It generates the combination of phrases in the subject line, which amuse me. It's the birthplace of Tintin, and really, what French Immersion kid doesn't want to see that. Neither of us have ever been there, and it's quirky enough to make us want to go, with Brussels (where we'll be) hosting not only a museum made to look like an iron atom called the Atomium, but also a statue of a gleeful little boy peeing. There should be fabulous chocolate and raspberry flavoured beer. We didn't think of this before we left, but as it turns out we both speak the language, and neither of us would need a visa to be there. Oh, and it was really, really cheap.
So... to Belgium we go. (And to see if Samantha's a- going anywhere interesting after my dissertation is due and b- has room for one more, so I can see some of the rest of this continent...)
That... was an adventure. Ryanair is randomly cheap, and then randomly a lot more expensive, so... sometimes, it's a crap shoot about getting to anywhere interesting, as far as it will cost (as an exercise, yesterday, I found round trip flights to Aarhus for 0.01 pounds each way. With taxes, etc. the total was less than 40 pounds round trip). The best way seems to be to decide where you're starting from (which airport), and scroll through the list of available destinations on the dates you want until you alight on one that is both cheap and sounds interesting.
I am perfectly happy with this method, as it allows me to go "Hmm... I've never been to Milan.... Stockholm sounds interesting..." etc. and just 'go with it'. I think it was driving Michael crazy. We'd been talking about Frankfurt (as it turns out, flights didn't work out for that), and I would remember something Roman said, and go "Hmm... what about Fez..." and Micheal goes "That's not even on the same CONTINENT!" because he thinks that means we shouldn't go to Frankfurt. It doesn't. It just means "Fez could also work, let's see about that, if it's cheaper, etc."
So. After planning and rejecting (for various reasons) weekend trips to: Milan/Bergamo, Italy, Granada, Spain, Stockholm, Sweden, Frankfurt and Dusseldorf Germany and Bath (Michael's frustrated "AArgh! Let's just stay in the Isles"... at which point I went to look at Glasgow, Kerry, Dublin...., and then "London! We're going to London!".... followed by my looking at things in Bath...).... we finally have a winner.
Belgium.
Why Belgium? Any number of reasons. It generates the combination of phrases in the subject line, which amuse me. It's the birthplace of Tintin, and really, what French Immersion kid doesn't want to see that. Neither of us have ever been there, and it's quirky enough to make us want to go, with Brussels (where we'll be) hosting not only a museum made to look like an iron atom called the Atomium, but also a statue of a gleeful little boy peeing. There should be fabulous chocolate and raspberry flavoured beer. We didn't think of this before we left, but as it turns out we both speak the language, and neither of us would need a visa to be there. Oh, and it was really, really cheap.
So... to Belgium we go. (And to see if Samantha's a- going anywhere interesting after my dissertation is due and b- has room for one more, so I can see some of the rest of this continent...)