No ifs, ands, or buts about it

This will be the last post in 2013. I'm on vacation right now and I took this photo in front of the Riv (the Riviera Hotel and Casino) in Las Vegas, Nevada, the United States of America. It seems like lots and lots of passersby from all over the world have been rubbing buttocks of the sexy bronze sculpture. See, only their buttocks shine out like stars. Passersby have been rubbing seven women's buttocks in the same way, haven't they? I don't see any unshined buttocks there. No ifs, ands, or buts about it (pun intended). I'm wondering how come many other parts of female back are not tempting.

Popular photo spot

The photo shows an obelisk which is stands in front of the Luxor Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada, the United States of America. I'm no expert, so please don't quote me, but the obelisk seems like having Egyptian hieroglyphs on the surface. When I visited Memphis, Egypt, I've seen real ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs which were carved in gigantic stone. The stone looked very old, but the hieroglyphs were still unweathered and could be seen. On the other hand, the obelisk of Luxor Las Vegas looks like a brand-new obelisk, but still. This is one of the popular photo spot along the Vegas Strip.

Limo

I took this photo in Las Vegas, America. A limo was parked in front of a gigantic hotel's entrance. I've never seen limos outside of Vegas, but when it comes to Vegas, I see limos quite often. It's hard to estimate the exact number, but say, I see limos at least two or three times a day here in Las Vegas. I've never gotten on, though. By the way, it's been 11 days in Vegas. A couple of days ago, I've finally gotten a great idea of the places to have rice in Vegas. Buffets. Why I didn't think of that? Anyways, I think it's better late than never. Rice is my staple and I really love rice.

Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas sign

I'm on vacation and am in Las Vegas, USA. This is my second time to visit Las Vegas. One of the landmarks in Las Vegas and I didn't go to see during my last trip was the Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas sign. So I went to see the sign the day before yesterday. The sign is located at the southern tip of the Vegas Strip, and my hotel is located nearby northern end of the Vegas Strip. It took about four hours to get to the sign and come back to my hotel on foot. The sign was huge and tall, far more than I expected. It was good to see it.

I feel like something spicy

I took this photo at my favourite restaurant in Las Vegas, America around a week ago. I felt like something spicy on Saturday night and ordered their Loaded Chilli Cheese Fries for dinner with a bottle of Corona with a lime wedge. The loaded chilli cheese fries was this huge. For a lack of better word, but it looked like a small mountain which is way bigger than a molehill. Come to think of that, one of my American acquaintances had ever told me that it is often said that everything's bigger in Texas. I've coined a new phrase that everything's bigger in Vegas too. Overall, I love the loaded chilli cheese fries. It was spicy just right and went very well with Bottles of Corona.

Fremont Street Casino District

I took this photo in the Fremont Street Experience in downtown, Las Vegas, NV, USA a few days ago. There was a huge Christmas tree in the Casino District. On top of that there was a little "Welcome to Fabulous Downtown Las Vegas Nevada" sign. From my point of view, the atmosphere of Fremont Street is very different from the heart of the Vegas Strip, but I kinda love it. I will definitely go again. What will happen to the tree after a Christmas Day?

A Christmas Day in Sin City

Hey guys, Merry Christmas. I'm still in Las Vegas, USA and I just came back to my hotel room with a large cup of coffee to wake me up. I went down to the casino floor just to buy some morning coffee, but I realised that today is something different. A lot of hotel's staff members and some guests are wearing Christmas costumes. I especially like the Christmas costumes of cocktail waitresses. They really know how to rock that bad boys and they definitely look like sexy Santa Claus. Well done, Vegas, well done. I'm really enjoying to be here.

Eye-in-the-sky

I took this photo at the highest bar in Las Vegas, USA around 11:00 pm near the midnight. Right after I had a huge lunch included a lot of veggies, somehow I felt really sleepy and crashed out. I woke up around 21:30 and went to Strotosphere Tower to view the city from above at night. It was breathtaking as you can imagine. I enjoyed to watch some people got up to "Sky Jump" from 108 story, and also enjoyed to have a white bottled Budweiser and a cocktail with rum at the bar. While I was looking at my photo in my room, I realised that there was an eye-in-the-sky right above me. Hello, there!

A Little White Wedding Chapel

This morning I went to a post office in downtown, Las Vegas, NV, USA to send some postcards to my family, friend, and some acquaintances. On the way to the post office, I happened to find a Little White Wedding Chapel on the right. It was about 10 to 15 minutes from my hotel on foot. I don't have any maps, and I think I don't need a map in Vegas, so I didn't have any idea of it was there. Anyways, a Little White Wedding Chapel is world famous, because a lot of celebrities tied the knot right here just a quickie.

Christmas is coming

I'm in Las Vegas, the United States of America right now. Actually, this is my first time to spend Christmas Day and New Year's Day abroad. So everything I see is interesting and will be more interesting. So far I've been taking lots and lots of photos in Sin City, Las Vegas. I took this photo in front of a restaurant where I had dinner last night. The Christmas Tree was decorated in Coca-Cola signs and pretty red ribbons. There were several gift boxes at the bottom of the tree. What will happen on Christmas Day?

Bar in the air

I took this photo at the highest bar in Las Vegas, the United States of America. The bar is located on Level 108 of Stratosphere Tower. You can see the strip and the whole city from above with a bottle of beer or a glass of cocktail in one hand. It is definitely one of the best points to view the Vegas Strip from above. Note: only hotel guests are offered unlimited admission to Tower as a comp, the others have to pay 18 bucks each to access Stratosphere Tower.

I'm not jet-lagged

I could return to America after such a long three years and two months and am in Las Vegas, Nevada right now. I took a Condor flight from Frankfurt, Germany and flew in Vegas directly. At the Frankfurt Airport, a Condor staff asked me if I was interested in to upgrade my seat in such a good deal. To be honest, I don't really care about seat actually, but premium meals in the sky sounded really tempting. You know I love eating. So I upgraded my seat to the comfort class. The seat was comfortable had more leg room, meals were absolutely fabulous. By the way, I took this photo in my hotel room. It's huge and has a extra bar room behind the gigantic TV. I stay here until January 5th, 2014.

Christmas Markets 2013

Last night I went to Romer Square in Frankfurt am Main, Germany to see the Christmas Market 2013 and Germany's tallest Christmas tree. I've been visiting several Christmas Markets in Europe so far this year; Amsterdam, Holland | Lisbon, Portugal | Zagreb, Croatia | Ljubljana, Slovenia, and I'm now here in Frankfurt, Germany. Through my Christmas Market-hopping in 2013, Frankfurt's Christmas Market is the largest and the most crowded one. Yesterday, I had Potato Pancakes with sweet Apple Sauce and Mulled Wine. It was really nice to have something special for this time of the year in a sea of light as well as a sea of people. I love being in the middle of everything. The photo shows a Merry-Go-Round. There were more than one in Frankfurt's Christmas Market.

Was in a thick fog, now in the sunshine

My flight from Zagreb, Croatia flew in Frankfurt, Germany yesterday around 10:30. Even though, Zagreb Airport was covered by a thick fog. When the plain made a crash take off on time, I was just confused whether I should be happy or scared, but it was all much ado about nothing. I flew in Frankfurt safe and sound. From the huge high-tech airport, I took a S bahn train to Hauptbahnhof (Main). My hotel is located kind of in front of the station, so it was a piece of cake to spot my hotel.Yup, I got a good start here in Germany. By the way, the photo shows Eurotower. How I can take a better photo of this 40-story skyscraper with the sign?

All's fair in love and war

The photo shows "bad memories eraser" which I bought at the Museum of Broken Relationships. There are so many museums and galleries here in Zagreb, and this is the only museum that I've visited. The museum is located in the upper town of Zagreb, Croatia. The things you can see in the museum are memorable left overs from broken-hearted people. The point is each one of them is displayed with a good and then bad story. Sometimes it was a bottle opener, sometimes it was a clock, kinds of those used to be very important for someone else. Time goes by, you may know it is what it is - Love. By the way, the museum was awarded as the most innovated museum in Europe in 2011. All's fair in love and war.

Go ham

The photo shows my third day's breakfast here in Zagreb, Croatia. The temperature was freezing like below zero, so I decided to have breakfast at my hostel's restaurant. I asked if I could have some bread, ham, fresh salad and a cup of coffee with milk. Then, a waitress brought me such a gorgeous breakfast exactly like the photo shows. The chef must have gone ham. Thanks a lot. By the way, I could pay for it in 30 Croatian kuna or 4 Euros. Actually, I had already exchanged my currency for Croatian kuna, so I paid in kuna. 30 kuna equals out 4 Euros lately.

Old Man Winter is coming

I took this photo on a street near the main railway station in Zagreb, Croatia. It looks like a crisp autumn day, but I'm sure winter is coming here. The low temperature will plunge to a couple of degrees below zero early in the morning, and will reach 5 to 7 in the middle of the day. Speaking of below zero temperature, a couple of days ago or so when I was walking on the streets here in Zagreb, my lip balm was kinda frozen and was stuck inside the tube.

Good hair day

I took this photo yesterday while I was exploring Zagreb, Croatia. The flag of Croatia looked very nice from the bottom of the building at that moment. Thank wind. Speaking of yesterday, I had an appointment to get a haircut at 14:00, so I had time to explore the city until then, but didn't have so much time. I'm on long vacation, and it's been 50 days since I departed. Then I thought this week would be time to have a haircut to make everyday a good hair day. Never ever a bad hair day.

Towel Warmer

The photo shows a Towel Warmer (a.k.a. Towel Dryer). I took this photo in the bathroom of my hostel room in Zagreb, Croatia. This device is absolutely fabulous. Have you seen this before? I've seen some photos of them before, but actually I saw the real one for the first time here in Zagreb, Croatia. If you see this for the first time, now you might think what do you use this for. It's simple. Hang your towel on the rails. With that, the rails keep your towels warm. So after taking a shower, or washing your face, you can use warm and dry towels. It's so cozy and is way more comfortable than any of the others, especially such freezing winter days. That's awesome, isn't it? Who innovated this? You are a genius. By the way, as a trial, I hanged my shirt and cardigan before I change my clothes in the morning. The Towel Warmer kept my clothes warm and cosy as well as towels. I don't know much about Towel Warmer, so I probably used the Towel Warmer the wrong way, but the point is I felt very happy to wear a warm shirt and a cardigan.

Hanging on wires

I took this photo in Ljubljana, Slovenia. There were some wires across the street and many shoes were hanging on wires as well as some stunning umbrellas. I didn't exactly know what was happening there, but the shoes and umbrellas got all my attention, so I took a photo first, and later on googled it. Come to think of it, nowadays I think it's funny that if I don't know something, and want to know it, then google it to know, and I know somebody already asked the Mr. Google exactly the same question about it.

Zagreb, Croatia to Ljubljana, Slovenia by train

Yesterday; on the 6th of December, I visited Ljubljana, Slovenia from Zagreb, Croatia with a day return ticket. I took a train at 06:50 from Zagreb and arrived in Ljubljana at 09:06. Minutes after train started to run, a Croatian railway officer came into a car to check passenger's ticket. Since Croatia is not a Schengen country right now, there was passport control on the train. When the train stopped at Dobova, Slovenia, several Croatian police officers came into the train and checked passenger's Picture Identification. I got a departed stamp on my passport. Shortly after this happened, several Slovenian police officers came into the train and checked passenger's Picture Identification. Then, I got a land stamp on my passport. After a while a Slovenian railway officer came to a car to check passenger's ticket. The reverse process had done on my return trip. I took my return train at 14:45 from Ljubljana and came back in Zagreb at 17:13.

A view from Zagreb Eye

Today I visited Zagreb Eye which is located in downtown of Zagreb, Croatia. What's Zagreb Eye? It's a fairly new landscape of Croatian capital where you can see the stunning city centre from above. It's on the 16th floor of a skyscraper in the heart of the city. You can borrow a pair of binoculars at the check-in counter to see the details of the famous churches or buildings and so on. The good point is you can re-enter to the observation deck as well as in the evening to enjoy night view or something, if you still keep the ticket that you purchased at 20 HRK since then.

St. Mark's Church, Zagreb, Croatia

The photo shows St. Mark's Church in Zagreb, Croatia. After I saw a photo of this pretty nice roof of the church on the Internet, I really wanted to see this church with my own two eyes and today I was finally there. To be honest, I planned to visit the church yesterday, but like I wrote in my previous post, the sun set a little too earlier than I expected, so I just couldn't. After I left Amsterdam, Holland, It's been being perfect sunny days for 13 days in a row. The weather can make or break a trip, so I think luck seems to follow me.

The sun set ten past four or so

It's been four and a half hours in Zagreb, Croatia. This morning I took a TAP Portugal Airlines flight TP 862 from Lisbon, Portugal and flew in Zagreb via Bologna, Italy. Landing on Bologna, Italy was a technical stop, so I was not allowed to get out of the plane. I was just sitting on my seat for 45 minutes or so. Then, finally. The photo shows my hostel room. I will spend for 13 nights from tonight until 16th in Croatia. The outside temperature is much colder than Portugal, but my hostel has a central heating system as you can see on the photo, so it's very warm and totally comfortable. One thing I was surprised pretty much was the sunset time. It was around ten past four here in Zagreb. Isn't it too early? I was so confused and thought if I forgot to fix my watch from Portuguese time to Croatian time, but it wasn't like that. The sun sets early. All I could do today was just went to a local super market to buy a bottle of water and six-pack of Croatian tall boy.

Pão

I personally believe that Portuguese bread is the best in the world. I mean in the countries where I've been to so far. I'm talking about this kind of simple bread exactly like the photo shows. It is often served with soup or main meals in Portugal and goes really well with a lot of fabulous Portuguese cuisine. It tastes like so bland, and the texture is a little bit hard outside, and very soft inside. I took this photo at my favourite restaurant in front of Rossio Railway Station. This time, I chose a hotel near Rossio Station just because going to the restaurant many many times. Tomorrow morning, I will take a plain to Zagreb, Croatia. Now, it is about time for dinner. What I'm gonna have for my last dinner in Lisbon? Oh, my goodness. Everything is so tempting here in Portugal.

Walk toward a UNESCO World Heritage Site

Yesterday, I visited Belem district in Lisbon, Portugal. It was sunny and warm perfect day, so I decided to get to Belem on foot and I did. It took about a couple of hours or so to get there from my hotel near the Rossio Railway Station. I must admit, but there are so many options to get to Belem; bus, tram, train, taxi and so on. I chose walking on the boardwalk along the port and marina. The photo shows a part of Jeronimos Monastery (Portuguese: Mosteiro dos Jeronimos). It's a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

There is no little enemy

I took this photo at the Castle of São Jorge in Lisbon, Portugal. The castle is visible from a huge square nearby my hotel, so I thought I could get there very easily without a map. Then, I started to walk toward the castle above. But it wasn't exactly easy to find a way to the castle. People who had a mobile map also had gotten lost and asked me a direction. Many tourists had the same question; Do you know how to get to the Castle of São Jorge? I think it sounds like a nice castle. It is often said that there is no little enemy, so the very complicated way to the castle seemed like protecting the castle from enemies.

A cannon overlooking Belem, Lisbon, Portugal

I flew in Libon, Portugal last night around 21:00. It was less than an hour flight from Porto. Lisbon Portela Airport is not too far from the city, so I took a cab from the airport to my hotel nearby Rossio railway station. After check-in, I just dropped off my luggage in my room and made a beeline for my favorite restaurant next to Rossio Railway Station. I chose my hotel to go to the restaurant many times during my stay. This morning, I visited the Castle of São Jorge to see Lisbon from above. This is a cannon overlooking Belem district.

Rio Douro Cruise in Porto, Portugal

I've been having lots and lots of fun here in Porto, Portugal. Actually, I want to expand my stay, if I could, but I have to keep going. My next destination will be Portuguese capital Lisbon. I will fly in Lisbon tonight, so I have some more hours to explore Porto before I will go to Francisco de Sa Carneiro Airport by metro. What I'm gonna do for the rest? I'm so excited. By the way, I took this photo while I was taking a river cruise on the Douro River. It was a 50-minute audio guided cruise. I took so many beautiful pictures during the cruise.

Port wine, Fado, and twilight view of Porto

I took this photo a few hours ago or so in Porto, Portugal. This evening, I visited a wine cellar in Gaia district and tasted a couple of glasses of 20-year-old Tawny Port Wine with fabulous Fado. It was my first time to listen to Fado in a live. Could you please paint a mental picture? So let say, you are in Port, Portugal where is the home of Port wine and are in one of the Port wine cellars in Gaia district. You have a glass of 20-year-old Tawny in your hand, and there is a stunning Fado singer right in front of you and she smiled at you... How impressive, right? After Fado, I returned to Ponte de D. Luis I (a.k.a . Dom Luis Bridge). Lucky for me, it was around twilight, so I could see this outstanding view from there. I really love Portugal. Really.

Porto from above

This morning I crossed Ponte de D. Luis I (a.k.a. Dom Luis Bridge) over Rio Douro (the Douro River) and visited Via Nova de Gaia, Portugal. The bridge is a very beautiful metal arch type, and is walkable. I took this photo while I was walking on the bridge. As you can imagine from the photo, the bridge is very high, so if you are afraid of heights, it will be a bit of scary experience to go there, but the view from there is just breathtaking. I think you'd better go to see this stunning Porto from above.

Porto, Portugal; must see is the city itself

I flew in Porto, Portugal last night; on the 22nd of November around 23:50. It was a little bit late arrival to get into a new city, so I made a beeline for my hotel by taxi from the airport, then passed out. This morning after breakfast at my hotel's dining, I got out of the hotel with a map and started to exploring this beautiful city. It is often said that one of the must-sees of Porto, Portugal is the city itself. Yep, now I know what the saying means.

The Heineken Experience in Amsterdam

I took this photo at the entrance of  the Heineken Experience in Amsterdam, Holland. It is kind of like a museum about the Heineken brewery, but is not even remotely close to the stereotypical many other museums where I have been. Even though the Heineken Experience is known as a museum, it's more like an amusement place. From my point of view, the Heineken Experience is sort of like a themed bar or something. The entrance fee includes 2 drinks at a bar; of course your drinks gonna be Heineken beer, 1 free gift at the Heineken Brand store. Plus, you can see a lot of interests relative to the Heineken brewery. The crews are extremely cheerful, radiant and have full knowledge of Heineken. Check it out. I'd highly recommend to go there.

I decided to see something very beautiful

The photo shows my very first beer in Belgium; Stella Artois, my favourite lager beer of all time. I went to Antwerp, Belgium the day before yesterday. Actually, I was teetering between Brussels or Antwerp to visit one city in Belgium from Amsterdam, Holland. Brussels is the capital where you can see the world-famous Manneken Pis (a.k.a Little Man Piss). Antwerp has the stunning central railway station which is often described as the most beautiful railway station in the world. I decided to go to Antwerp at the end. It was less than 15 minutes before my departure.

Antwerpen Centraal

Yesterday; on the 18th of November, I visited Antwerp, Belgium from Amsterdam, Holland by train. My ticket was Superdagretour which means Great Day Return in English term. I could take any trains on that day except for Thalys. It took two to three hours or so to get to Antwerp and I transferred trains at Rotterdam, Dordrecht and Rossendaal. The photo shows inside of the train station Antwerpen Centraal. The station is often described as the most stunning railway station in the world. I totally agree with the opinion. It was breathtaking.

Looking for something more dodgy

The photo shows view of a street in Amsterdam, Holland at night.  I took this photo in the area called Leidseplein (a.k.a. Leiden Square). The square is located at the southern end of Amsterdam  Canal Ring and is 30 minute-walk or so from Amsterdam Centraal (the Central Station). There were so many people walk around in this area from morning to night. Almost all of them just looked like they were looking for something more special, something more exiting, something really unknown or dodgy. To be honest, I was there as one of them.

Dutch souvenir; wooden shoes' slippers

This is a photo I'd love to share. I wrote about my exploring experience in Amsterdam, Holland yesterday and added a story a little bit about Dutch souvenirs that I bought. The photo shows the wooden shoes' slippers. Version: cow print. They are not made of Dutch traditional wood, but they are so cute and warm. There are a lot of different design, colour, and size available. I'm sure you can find your favourite ones. The Netherlands is famous for its dairy product, especially delicious cheese, so cow or cow print design is one of the popular souvenir items. As I bought them, I could cover two famous parts of the Netherlands; wooden shoes and dairy. Killing two birds with one stone.

Amsterdam Centraal

This morning I went to see Amsterdam Centraal. It's the central railway station of Amsterdam, North Holland. When I look at a map of Amsterdam, it seems like everything starts from this place. So I went there to get to know the lay of the land. After that I shopped around souvenir shops and bought Dutch souvenirs included a pair of wooden shoes' slippers. They are made of warm cloths, but look like the famous Dutch wooden shoes. They came in handy immediately. I'm wearing them right now.

Heineken with a city map; I amsterdam

I flew in Amsterdam, Holland around 10:30 this morning and checked in to my hotel around 13:00. I got to my hotel by Schiphol Hotel Shuttle from the airport. When I arrived in Amsterdam, it was rainy, but it's okay now. First of all, I had to choose my first place to drink and eat in this attractive city, then I found a large Heineken pub nearby my hotel. Their menu is quite simple, Heineken (Large), Heineken (Medium), Heineken (Small) or something like that. The photo shows my today's first beer in Amsterdam, Holland; Heineken (Large). I should have taken this photo from a side of Heineken logo on the glass.

Dead Sea Cosmetics made my eyes lit up

The photo shows my hotel's toiletries in Tel Aviv, Israel. Even though I'm on vacation in the country of the Dead Sea, I did't expect that I could use the Dead Sea Cosmetics as a hotel's toiletries. I'd really appreciate it. There are luxury shower gel, shampoo, hair conditioner, body lotion and Rich Mineral Soap. The Dead Sea Minerals are in the middle of a fad, but its products are relatively a bit steep. So my eyes lit up when I saw them, you can imagine.

My wish was to touch my zodiac sign, but...

I went to explore Old Jaffa in Israel yesterday. The area called Old Jaffa is located about an hour walk distance from my hotel. One of the must-sees in the area is wishing bridge. The bridge has a tempting myth; When I stand on a bridge facing the sea, and touch my zodiac sign of the bridge, it makes my wish will come true. Unfortunately, the bridge was closed yesterday, so I took a photo of the bridge from Jaffa hill (a.k.a. Tel Yafo). I have three more days in Tel Aviv. Should I go again?

The Dead Sea Resort

I took this photo while I was sitting on a chair under a resort-ish beach parasol like the photo shows. Where Was I? I went to the Dead Sea Resort yesterday via Jerusalem, Israel and came back to Tel Aviv at night. In Israel, temperature is 27 degrees in Celsius around this time of the year, so it's kinda hot, but sea water temperature is getting a bit colder. But, no one leaves this place without floating in the Dead Sea, you can imagine, so obviously I enjoyed floating. It was such a special experience.

Am I green?

I flew in Tel Aviv, Israel safe and sound on the 7th of November at around 19:00. After I got a green light from immigration, I took a cab from the airport and checked-in to my hotel slightly before 20:20. I then went out in 10 minutes to buy some postcards and cans of Gold Star. Gold Star is an Israeli dark lager beer that I really love. I'm glad to have the beer again after a long three years. On the way to my hotel from a shop, when I looked up a traffic signal, I kinda realised that the green man is wearing his pair of underpants. Look closer, if you would like.

Take the Egyptian Escalator @ Harrods

The photo shows the world's most luxurious department store Harrods located in Knightsbridge district, London, England. I visited there through Hyde Park from Lancaster Gate in Paddington district on foot. Even though, I don't have enough money to spend at a high-end department store like Harrods, but I think it was worth going and seeing. To be honest, I just wanted to take the stunning Egyptian Escalator and that was it. But, Seeing is believing. Check it out, if you would like.

Four lions are detailed to guard a monument

I took this photo in Trafalgar Square in Central London, England. There is Charing Cross Tube station right under the square. The public square has Nelson's Column which is guarded by four bronze male lions and the photo shows one of them. I visited the square three times. When I visit there for the first time, the square was used for a political demonstration and was packed like sardines. So I visited there again for the second time and I could take this photo.

Sunday Roast

The photo shows Sunday Roast that I had at a pub near Paddington station in London, England. I went to the pub on my first Sunday of this vacation to have my very first Sunday Roast with good beer. One of my English acquaintances had ever told me about a British traditional meal Sunday Roast that is only eaten on Sundays, normally for lunch. The contents of  the meal change every week, but basically it doesn't dramatically change. Staples are roasted meat, potatoes, veggies, Yorkies and gravy. I was totally in a food coma after I had this delicious Sunday Roast. Luckily, my hotel is a minute away from the pub. Thank you London. Yay!

London Paddington to Oxford by train

On the 2nd of November I visited Oxford, England for the first time. I took a First Great Western train from London Paddington at 9:50, and arrived in Oxford at 10:44. My ticket was Standard Off-peak Day Return, so again it was my day-trip from London. There was a tourism centre in Oxford railway station and I was able to get a very useful free map from there. At the end of my visit, I had a pleasant surprise at a Lebanese restaurant on Park End Street. Their cuisine was absolutely fabulous. By the way, I took this photo in front of a fancy hotel in Oxford city centre. The Union Jack looked really nice.

London Waterloo to Alton, Hampshire by train

On the 1st of November, I went to Alton, Hampshire as a half-day excursion from London, England. First of all, I took a tube: southbound Bakerloo line from Paddington to Waterloo to get to a National Rail station: London Waterloo. Next, I purchased a Standard Off-Peak Return ticket from a vending machine by a credit card, then checked the train information boards above. The platforms are shown 10 minutes before the departure, so a lot of passengers were looking up the boards in the station. I did the same. It was my first experience to take the National Rail in the UK. Alton is the terminal station of the Alton Line, South West Trains, so there weren't any concerns to get there. Just buy a ticket, take a train, and get out of the station. That's pretty simple, huh? My train departed London Waterloo at 10:53 and arrived in Alton at 12:10.

Changing of the Guard gets all attention

As you know, Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace is one of the must-sees and definitely a featured attraction in London, England. Around this time of the year the ceremony doesn't take place everyday. So first of all I checked the schedule and of course checked the weather, then next checked the directions from my hotel. I arrive to the palace around 10:10 on foot. Even though the ceremony starts at 11:15, there were already so many people. It seemed like the ceremony got all attention of tourists who stay in London.

The ceilings look like a piece of art

It's Halloween today, I was thinking to shop around and walk around some famous streets in Greater London, England but it's a gloomy day, so during the breakfast at my hotel's dining, while I was sipping a cup of hot chocolate, I looked up the sky once, and then twice and I kinda realised that I need a plan B that a thing I can enjoy inside of a building. Then I chose to go to the British Museum. The photo shows the Queen Elizabeth II Great Court and the ceilings. It looks nice, doesn't it?