NUREMBERG, Germany | weekend city trip

Katja CITY BREAKS, FAMILY TRAVELS, GERMANY Leave a Comment

Our FIRST TIME ever in Nürnberg was short but sweet. We stayed in a nice cosy hotel just about 50 metres from the famous Christmas market in the old town, so we were able to walk around and up to all the major tourist attractions and sights. The CHRISTIKINDELSMARKT being one of the most famous Christmas markets in the world was definitely worth a visit, as well as the castle, churches and some museums in the old town. You won´t stay hungry for too long also, there are many nice restaurants which offer traditional Bavarian & food.

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LONDON, UK | weekend city trip

Katja CITY BREAKS Leave a Comment

Our last visit to the English capital past weekend was most certainly the funniest and craziest one of all the five times I´ve been there! It is 18 years since I´ve visited London for the first time and I remember how amazed I was back then by the size of the city, how cold it was standing in the long queues in front of some museums, how I loved salty butter toast for breakfast, how much we walked (mom, dad, didn´t you know about the tube or were we saving money? :)), how I got my very first CD (which was Nevermind from Nirvana btw!) and how my mom bought me two pairs of expensive cord trousers on Oxford street. At that time I could probably spend 3 full days just gazing at all the shop windows, imagining what all I would have bought, if only I had the money to. Today, I have the money to buy much more than two pairs of trousers, but somehow I seem to be more interested in pubs and restaurants than shops and museums ;).Read More

BERLIN, Germany | weekend city trip

Katja CITY BREAKS, FAMILY TRAVELS, GERMANY Leave a Comment

Either a weekend, 3 days, 4 days or a week! Berlin is worth the visit. Better a couple of hours than nothing at all. We usually go for the weekend and we´ve experienced the summer, autumn and the Christmas time. Berlin is big, so you probably won´t be able to see it all in just 2 days, but with a bit of planing you can still see a lot. It´s definitely a city which you have to visit at least once – but it might take you more than a weekend visit to understand all the historical events and how all that has influenced today´s situation.

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PRAGUE, Czech Republic | weekend city trip

Katja CITY BREAKS, CZECH REPUBLIC, FAMILY TRAVELS Leave a Comment

We decided more or less the last minute to spend the WEEKEND IN PRAGUE, which is a little less than 5 hours drive from our home. So, we drove off Friday after work and were in the hotel by 9PM, which basically gave us almost 2 full days to explore the city. We left the city on Sunday when it was getting dark and were home at a reasonable hour in the evening. Although Prague is quite a big city, the OLD CITY CENTRE where all the major attractions are is easily explored on foot. That´s why 2 DAYS are also enough time to see and experience much of what the city has to offer. And it´s definitely worth visiting the city, it has a very relaxed atmosphere and BEAUTIFUL ARCHITECTURE, everything is cheaper than at home, food is good and the beer is even better.

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MLJET, Croatia | 10 days summer holiday

Katja CROATIA, FAMILY TRAVELS 4 Comments

Mljet is the most southerly and easterly of the larger Adriatic islands of the DALMATIA region and also THE GREENEST and most forested of them all. A big part of it is also a protected area of a NATIONAL PARK. Many come for the amazing nature and are seeking peace, recreation and good food. Some are only coming over on a day trip from other islands in the near, like Korčula and visit the main attraction – the national park. We were lucky enough to spend 10 days in a rented house in SOBRA, just at the beach. Of course we did not only lay around the pool, we also explored most of the islands corners, villages, beaches and hills.

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BOSNIA and HERZEGOVINA | short road trip from north to south

Katja BOSNIA and HERZEGOVINA, FAMILY TRAVELS Leave a Comment

This year, as many before, we planned to spend some days on one of Croatia´s many islands and we decided for MLJET. We tend to go every year somewhere else and usually we want to get there as quickly as possible, driving the highway from Ljubljana first to Zagreb and on to Split and continue towards the south. But this time we decided to take a different way and to explore Bosnia & Herzegovina for a few days, DRIVING FROM NORTH TO SOUTH, ending up in the coastal town of Neum from where we continued towards our final destination, Mljet in Croatia.

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TRIGLAV LAKES VALLEY, Slovenia | day hike from Bohinj

Katja HIKING, SLOVENIA 20 Comments

Triglavska jezera valley is approximately 8km LONG ALPINE KARST VALLEY between BOHINJ and TRENTA, with lakes that occured in the hollows with watertight sediments. The other name for the valley is SEDMERA JEZERA VALLEY, which in translation means „the seven lakes valley“. Allthough in reality the number of lakes and ponds in the valley is actually higher. Some of the lakes are more like ponds and some of them often dry out, this is why the number is discussable.

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MIRAMARE castle, Italy | daytrip from Slovenia

Katja ITALY | SICILY Leave a Comment

Miramare Castle was build from 1856 to 1860 for an Austrian Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian and Charlotte of Belgium. Besides the Castle you can visit the lush gardens and a seashore park which feature tropical species of trees and flowers. If you are coming from the north on the coastal road you have to stop at one of the viewpoints – you can already see the castle rising up and the town of Trieste at the back.

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SINGAPORE WITH KIDS | 4 days with a 3-year old

Katja FAMILY TRAVELS, SINGAPORE

Before coming to Singapore, I read it´s ONE OF THE MOST KID FRIENDLY BIG CITIES, there seemed to be so much to see and do with you children. Being a rising metropolis with many expats living there, I could imagine this was true, but despite everything read prior to our departure we were still surprised once we were there. There are so many GREEN AREAS, ADVENTURE PARKS, BEACH, SAFARIS, GARDENS and PLAYGROUNDS that you probably cannot see them all in a week. From our experience – this really is one of the few big cities in the world where your children might have more fun than you. And since it´s a great starting point for exploring other parts of Asia, it´s a perfect place to stop for a couple of days with your kids.

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Singapore food and drinks - typical Singaporean dishes and what to eat in Singapore

SINGAPORE food & drinks | typical Singaporean food and what to eat in Singapore

Katja FOOD + RECIPES, SINGAPORE Leave a Comment

Singaporean cuisine is a mix of Chinese, Indian, Malay, Indonesian, Thai and even European. Everything what we had was of good taste and the choice is endless. In food courts you can eat for a good price, and it´s not time consuming. The most common dish would be probably chicken and rice and if you head to the Maxwell food centre you will find a long queue in front of the famous chicken&rice stand, which is usually the sign that the food is good, but can also be just a result of having a good reputation and being mentioned in guidebooks. Other than that, we loved the fresh seafood and Indian specialities.

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