Dinant, Belgium (February 2007)

Dinant is one of the towns in Belgium Ardennes that most people will visit. From there on, you can visit nearby towns such as Namur (Namen), Liege (Luik) and Spa. As a base for your Ardennes exploration, Namur probably serves better due to its location and size.

Walk along the river, starting from the Cathedral (not much to see inside) with the high-rise rock background. There are quite a few restaurants along the river, with the main ones near the ticket counter for a boat cruise. The view is basically the same along the river; it was actually quite a mundane walk along the river. Luckily, the day we were there, there was some sort of festival that most children dressed in some creative clothings (see pic).

  

You can end your walk nearby the Cathedral where you will find the ticket counter for Citadel of Dinant(Fortress). The price is 6.50 euro/person, including the lift to the top. You can also reach the top by car, however the entrance fee is practically the same. Get the lift for the experience, if you don’t mind waiting for the lift.

There is an obligatory guided tour every 20-30 minutes to see the Fortress. Go to the meeting point (mark as #1), in front of the smal cafetaria. The tour is in Dutch/French with minimal translation to English. If you don’t speak Dutch/French, your best choice is to read the short explanations in each room and get a small leaflet (free) from your guide. Unless, of course, you come with such a large group of only English speaking tourists, which is atypical.

The tour group is rather big, ~25 tourists, per guide, making the guided tour not easily followed (not to mention the language). Each section of the fortress is rather plain, with some tools to help the imagination, but they don’t seem to work well on me.  The guided tour ends with a recreated section with slanted floor, similar to those you found in carnivals. Don’t forget to tip your guide at the end.

Do the tour if you have time, but probably not worth it if you have seen other fortress during your trip.

 

Avoiding line for the Colosseum, Rome

During the high season, there is always a long line for the ticket to Colosseum. If you are standing in the line, you will see tour guide offering group ticket. The group ticket comes with guided tour and quick access to the Colosseum. This way you can enter Colosseum without spending an hour waiting in the line, which is not atypical during high season. By all means, avoid buying group ticket, unless you are really interested in the guided tour.

What you need to do instead is to head to nearby Palatine Hill. Here is the logic, the Colosseum ticket gives you free entrance for the nearby Palatine Hill, so vise versa is true. Hence you can buy your ticket for the Palatine Hill and get free access to Colosseum. Of course the Hill is much less popular, and hence alomost no line. I did that twice (I was in Rome twice) and during the highest season I have less than 5 people in front of me. 

Now, you can dicth Palatine Hill and head straight to Colosseum. Skip the line and try not to wave your ticket to the exhausted tourists who will waste their hours standing in the line. Palatine Hill is just 3 minute walk from Colosseum, in the Forum area. Just follow the arrow.

As for you who are interested in the guided tour, consider that you can always eavesdrop. Just make sure that you are not too obvious . Think of it as free guided tour, and you can ditch your guide if you don’t like him/her and move to the next one. Smart, isn’t it?

City Hopper in Western Europe

If you are wondering what is the best way to travel within Europe, here are a few tips for you. As you probably know, rail is probably one of your best option. Definitely check out Rail Europe. Choose the appropriate Rail Passes. There are many of them, so you should invest time to find one that suits best your interest. For 26 and under, you probably should check out Youth Rail Pass. For the whirlwind backpacker, Eurail Global Pass is the way to go.

However rail is not the only way to travel. Flights and Bus are competitive enough. Be sure not to miss Ryan Air and Easy Jet, along with other no-frills and low-cost carriers. Eurolines is a good alternative if you like traveling by bus. It takes longer, but could be a cheap alternative to train. Paris-Brussels is best with Eurolines, just make sure your order your ticket early enough to benefit the promotional price.

Hongkong (2004)

Hongkong, you got to admire the buildings, the people and the food. There are so much to see, but so metropolitan. You got to see what a big city is, and guess, big cities are alike. Nevertheless, who won’t love Hongkong.

The tall rising towers, the lights and the hustle and bustle of constant flow of people. Spend your time in the main island, but don’t forget to visit the more secluded area. When in the main Island, don’t miss the International Finance Center (IFC 2) building, the tallest building in Hongkong. You must have noticed it from Tomb Raider: The cradle of life. You must notice the Bank of China Tower as well. If you look closely, you might think that the building next to is the box that the Bank of China Tower came with.

To travel in Hongkong, take buses and trains. Ferry is good to cross to Kowloon, to admire the city panorama. It’s best at night. Don’t forget to get your Octopus card, a smart RFID card to pay your trips. Note that you can pay your lunch in some places with the same card. Talk about cash-less society.

Take the bus to The Peak Tower; alternatively, you can take the Peak tram. You are heading to the Victoria Peak to reward yourself with the magnificent view of Hongkong skyscrapers. Taking the bus to the top can be a thrilling experience. If you do, do please take the double decker. Sit on the top level and at front seat. You sure appreciate the thrill.

For religious experience, go to Lantau and visit Tian Tan Buddha, it’s the tallest bronze Buddha in the world. Climb the stairs. At the end of your visit, don’t forget to visit the cafetaria, offering many vegetarian meals that are common to the Buddhist monks. They are delicious – being vegetables. They sure beat those raw leaves some call salads!

For remaining days/hours in Hongkong, you have choices to visit the shopping area and enjoy elbowing thousand of shoppers, or you can go rural. Do the latter. Enjoy Hongkong without the hustle. See the villages, admire the neighbors playing Mah-Jong, and be sure that you can say that you have seen the both sides of Hongkong.

Waterloo, Belgium (2007)

Waterloo. Known mostly for the Battle of Waterloo. Napoleon’s last battle. It’s about 12 km from Brussels, it makes a rather interesting day trip from Brussels. You need to be interested in history, and better in Napoleon. Otherwise, the place is rather boring. The view from the top of the lion is not breathtaking but worth climbing if you have a bit of imagination.

You probably need to drive to reach the place. Again, nice to visit for a relaxing day-visit, but definitely not for whirlwind backpackers. Go to the visitor center located just at the foot of the lion-hill. Pay your entrance fee for 6.50 euro. The tour with bus is less interesting unless, again, if you are a fan of Napoleon. Make sure to take the benefit of student discount.

Visit the cyclorama. Go to the museum across the street. When time is appropriate, get into the show (two parts), via the entrance next to the place you pay for the ticket. Manage your time well so that you won’t end up waiting for the show while you can be elsewhere.

In the cyclorama, make sure you have the imagination. Otherwise, it will be boring. At very least, appreciate the paintings.

   

After the show, don’t forget to step out and climb the stairs to the top for a view of the battefield. The Lion Monument is accessible from the visitor center, after entering the waiting room for the show. So, don’t forget, otherwise you need to explain why you need to reenter. It is rather unfortunate that the monument is not free.

  

Is Waterloo worth visiting? Yes, if you love history. No, if you don’t have much time and prefer spending your time reading books on Napoleon.