Embassy of the United States of America in Ljubljana

The photo shows Embassy of the United States of America in Ljubljana, Slovenia. When I walked around beautiful Ljubljana and saw this building, I didn't think the building was an embassy's building. The building was just stunning. When I tried to find out what was the building was, I found a clear sign which indicated the building was Embassy of the United States of America. I've been to America a few times, and I'm talking about only Hawaii, Los Angeles and Las Vegas, but a lot of buildings that I've seen in America were not similar to this building. They looked rather different. So I was surprised in Ljubljana.

Wake up and then eat to start a day

The photo shows one day's breakfast at my hotel's breakfast room in London, England, the United Kingdom. That morning, I chose a cup of hot chocolate, a glass of orange juice, a boiled egg, some sliced cheese, and some brown bread to start a day in London. After having the breakfast, I visited King's Cross Station for the first time in six and a half years. When I visited London for the first time in 2007, I stayed in a hotel nearby King's Cross Station, so the area around King's Cross Station made me feel nostalgia. It was really good to be back.

Beneath a ceiling of Sagrada Família

I took this photo when I visited Sagrada Família (a.k.a. the Basílica i Temple Expiatori de la Sagrada Família) in Balcelona, Spain in 2010. Sagrada Família is one of the most world-famous Unesco World Heritage Sites and this huge Roman Catholic church is still under construction. Even though there were so many construction workers at work, visitors could go inside of Sagrada Família and I could do so. The photo shows only a tiny part of the church's stunning ceiling. When the construction will be fully complete, I wanna visit there again.

Have fun in picturesque wonderful Zagreb

I took this photo in front of my hostel room in Zagreb, Croatia. Every staff member of this hostel was considerate and I especially enjoyed to see a waitress at their fabulous traditional restaurant Sarm. She was really hardworking and was bubbly, radiant all the time. She made my stay at the hostel, I must admit. Since the hostel was named Party Hostel, hectic amazeballs parties were going on at the restaurant off and on. Even so, I could join into the restaurant any time I wanted; breakfast, lunch, afternoon break, and dinner. I was able to enjoy music, laughter, singing, dancing, fun conversations, drink, and then some. Truth be told, I had a blast each one of them. Rub elbowed with the Croatians. Not to mention I enjoyed a wide variety of food at the restaurant. Every food tasted like heaven. The chef had a talent, I think. Don't forget to try Cevapcici when you're in Croatia. I miss the taste even now. I really love it. The location of the hostel was about 40-minute walk away from the heart of the city and its must-sees, say St. Mark's Church. So, if you want to get to the city center on foot, it would be a bit of a trek, but there's a tram station a minute away from the hostel which means you can choose the convenient option as well. Not only that, but there's a shortcut which was not hit off on a complimentary map, but Mr. Google gave me the fine direction. Oh, yes. WiFi worked and was free of charge. I miss my room #4 even now. Thank you Croatia.

Can be in the middle of everything

The photo shows my hotel room in Frankfurt, Germany. It was a very clean and comfortable hotel which is situated really close to Frankfurt Main Hauptbahnhof railway station. Right after my arrival, I realized that how convenient the location was. I could be in the middle of everything. The famous Romer square and its surroundings are 15 to 20 minutes away on foot. The room was very comfortable. The heating was just right. WiFi worked very well and was free of charge. Also, I had a very welcoming check in experience at the moment of my arrival, and after that right till the end of my stay I always felt very happy to be there. Breakfast cost 6 EUR per night, and was worth having. I enjoyed a wide variety of ham, cheese, German bread, yogurt, cookies, chocolates, drink, and then some. Overall, I had such a great experience at this cosy hotel.

Coffee shops

I took this photo in Amsterdam, Holland. Amsterdam is famous for its coffee shops. I took a photo of a crowded one faced hectic Rembrandtplein (a.k.a. Rembrandt Square). So-called coffee shops were spread out all over Amsterdam and they seemed like common tourist attractions in a way. The city contained a wide variety of coffee shops from a real hole in the wall to large ones. Generally speaking, some people stop by a coffee shop not only for a cup of coffee. When I was in Amsterdam, not a few parts of the city smelled like dope or something similar.

Google it in Croatian language, then

I took this photo in Zagreb, Croatia. There was a menu board at the entrance of a traditional restaurant. I think the menu was written in Croatian language, and obviously I couldn't read anything. So I opened my iPad mini and googled many pictures of each dishes to know what kind of food those were. In a lot of European countries, the method worked very well actually. Now I'm wondering that when I visit Asian countries or somewhere else, and the menu is written in their local language, the same method will work out or not.

The hotel welcome their guests in an all-American way

I took this photo in my hotel room of Stratosphere Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, NV, the United States of America. It was a humongous hotel near the Northern tip of the Vegas Strip. There were so many restaurants, bars, and shops inside of the hotel and I enjoyed to visit many of them. When in Vegas, don't forget to have something at Fellini's Italian Restaurant on the casino level of Stratosphere Hotel and Casino. The quality of food, service, atmosphere and all were absolutely fabulous. I was so impressed with all I've experienced at Fellini's. Stratosphere Hotel and Casino is famous for its 1,149 feet Stratosphere tower. The hotel guests receive unlimited free access to the tower as a comp; as a part of the taxable resort fee. In my case, 16.79 bucks per night were added to my bill in the name of resort fee. I chose this hotel as my base in Sin City twice and stayed 20 nights in total.

One of the guardian lions of Nelson's Column

I took this photo in Trafalgar Square in London, England. The photo shows Nelson's Column and its guardian lion statue. Nelson's Column is guarded by four lion statues and the photo shows one of them. Charing Cross Tube Station is an underground station right under Trafalgar Square. One of my Hungarian acquaintances had ever told me that Trafalgar Square is notorious for pigeons, but when I visited the square in October and November 2013, I didn't see any pigeons in the square. So I didn't have to worry about bird poop or something.

Getting there is half the fun

I took this photo in Athens, Greece as my second photo of arriving. I was so excited to view the Acropolis of Athens from below. First things first, I started to walk toward the Acropolis of Athens. I didn't expect before, but the way to the Acropolis was a little too confusing. The world-famous ancient citadel was seen from a lot of places, but a lot of tourists were getting lost and talked each other how to get there. Come to think of that, when I visited the Castle of São Jorge in Lisbon, Portugal, the similar thing happened to tourists. Some tourists looked at a map on their smartphone, but still. Oh, well. Getting there is half the fun.

Rice, rice, rice and some veggies

One of the many things I truly enjoyed in Las Vegas, NV, the United States of America was buffets. I took this photo at the Buffet of Stratosphere Hotel and Casino. It was Sunday and I enjoyed Champagne Brunch there. The Buffet is located on the Casino floor of Stratosphere Hotel and Casino and had a wide selection of delicious international cuisines. Food temperature was kept just right all the time, and several different types of sauces were well prepared around the corner from each section. That day, I took three different rice cooked with various spice. I was so happy having a lot of rice with a glass of Champagne in Vegas.

Do you know what are these?

I took this photo in Zagreb, Croatia. I loved to walk around Zagreb and I took a lot of photos on the streets. Some buildings were fairly old, some buildings were fairly new and I could see those of them one after the other. This building looked like a relatively old building, but it was a picturesque building which was fitting into the atmosphere of the area. I loved the color of the building as well as the little roofs of each window. I don't often see this much decorative windows, so I don't know what is the little roofs called formally.

A hotel on Soi Rambuttri nearby Thanon Khao San

I took this photo in my hotel room in Bangkok, Thailand. The location of the hotel was like right in the middle of extremely touristic area in chaotic Asian capital: Bangkok. The world-famous Thanon Khao San and its bars and eateries were just a stone's throw away from this hotel. Not only that, but Soi Rambuttri where the hotel is was not too different in atmosphere. There were lots and lots of tourists who were taking a stroll around, eating, drinking, loitering and then some on both streets. Everything was streamlined for tourists, so you can find a lot of conveniences in the surrounding area of Thanon Khao San. That area is really chaotic, but the hotel's staff members who I've met were all heartwarming and my room was clean and comfortable just like the photo shows.

A good old British pub in Alton, England

The photo shows the Crown Hotel in Alton, England, the UK. I took a lunch break at their chick and elegant lounge bar. It was a really great place. I ordered a pint of Carlsberg at the beginning, and a half pint of Guinness at the end. Their pub grub was also fantastic. I had butter fried chicken breast topped with tasty salsa sauce and mouth-watering melted cheese. The chicken dish was served with chips and fresh salad. The chef had a talent and a bartender was friendly and helpful. I felt like I came all the way to England just to find a good old British place like there. Overall, I had such a great time in Alton, England.

A trilingual country: Luxembourg

I took this photo in Luxembourg city, Luxembourg. Before I arrived in Luxembourg, I googled about Luxembourg city quite a lot of times and saw this picturesque city through the Internet. Then I managed to squeeze a day trip to Luxembourg in while I was staying in Frankfurt, Germany for three days. Like my imagination, Luxembourg city was so beautiful and I was really glad to see the city with my own eyes. I should have studied a little French before I visit, though. If I could read some French, I guess my trip to Luxembourg was much more comfortable. It's a trilingual country: French, German, Luxembourgish. I don't speak any of those.

Arroz de Polvo @ Beira Gare, Lisbon, Portugal

I took this photo at my all-time favorite restaurant Beira Gare in Lisbon, Portugal. Beira Gare is located directly across from the Rossio Railway Station and is always packed with locals, tourists, foodies and all. I really love the atmosphere of the restaurant. The photo shows one of the very popular Portuguese signature meals Arroz de Polvo. Arroz de Polvo is like a Portuguese version of risotto with octopus. Arroz means rice, polvo means octopus in English term, and some people call this food as Octopus Rice. Not to mention it tastes like heaven. Arroz de Polvo was served in a silver pot at Beira Gare, so I put it on a plate and took this photo before I ate it. I miss the taste even now.

Depending on the perspective

I took this photo in Amsterdam, Holland. After I had a few pints of beer and pub grab at a huge Heineken pub facing the Leidseplein (a.k.a. Leiden Square) I started to walk around the square. Then I found this sign nearby the Leidseplein. The sign looked really Amsterdam. Three Saint Andrew's Crosses were depicted on the upper part of the sign just like the ones you can see in the flag of Amsterdam. Not only that, but the sign looked a little too kinky depending on the perspective. I must admit that I got slightly tipsy on pints of Heineken at that moment.

Good evening and welcome aboard

I took this photo at Vienna International Airport in Vienna, Austria. My flight from Frankfurt Germany to Milan, Italy was a connecting flight and I changed planes in Vienna. My seat of the second flight OS517 (VIE - MXP) was a window seat. I was looking forward to view beautiful Vienna from above, but at that moment Vienna was wrapped in a fog and I couldn't see the night view. By the way, Austrian Airlines was elegant. All passengers were welcome with classical music . Music is not my forte, but I'm sure the music was classical music.

One of the locations with love locks

I took this photo in Zagreb, Croatia. It seemed like this city view point is considered a location for love locks (a.k.a. love padlocks). I've heard that those locks which were affixed to fences or bridges or something similar were normally affixed by lovey-dovey couples. They lock a padlock and throw away the key to pledge their everlasting love. Before Zagreb, I saw some locations with love locks in Amsterdam, Holland. Also after Zagreb, I saw lots and lots of love locks on the Eiserner Steg Bridge in Frankfurt, Germany.

Live and learn

I took this photo in Amsterdam, Holland. I was just confused about the hole position of the john. I still don't know how come the hole was located there. I had to make up by myself which side was front. When I'm abroad, I'm often confused about just something, due to cultural differences. Oh, that reminds me. When I took the Paris Metro for the first time in Paris, France, I was very confused that the doors didn't open automatically. If no one on the same car need to get out of the metro at my stop, I had to be the charge opening the doors to get out of the metro. Live and learn.

A T-shirt, a tank top, and a cardigan

I took this photo in Notting Hill, England, the United Kingdom. I loved the street with many beautiful houses. Since it was Sunday, the area was a little bit crowded with tourists, but it wasn't loud like Oxford Street or somewhere similar. I bought a tight T-shirt, a tank top, a cardigan in Notting Hill and its Portobello Road Market. The T-shirt and the tank top are designed in the image of the Union Jack. The cardigan is designed in the image of the red telephone box. Seeing them reminds me very much of the UK and a picture-perfect day in Nottig Hill.

What a lovely Karlovačko table

I took this photo on a street in Zagreb, Croatia. I found a table outside of a pub which had the logo of Karlovačko. Karlovačko is a very popular beer in Croatia that I can't pronounce. I drank a bottle of Karlovačko Pivo (Pale Lager, Color: gold) or Karlovačko Crno (Stout beer, Color: blackish) almost everyday while I was staying in Croatia. A waiter told me that Karlovačko Crno is a little bit stronger than its Pale Lager. I prefer Karlovačko Crno, but Karlovačko Pivo was also a very good beer. I loved the label as well.

A great little Rice and Curry place in Hikkaduwa

The photo shows Sri Lankan Rice and Curry that I had at a local eatery in Hikkaduwa, Sri Lanka. The location of the eatery was a short distance back from the busy Galle Road. Due to a bit of a hidden location, this great little eatery looks like a place for only Sri Lankan locals, but don't worry. Tourists are welcomed with Sri Lankan great hospitality. The best part of this place is they serve Rice and Curry from early in the morning. One day, I went there to have Rice and Curry for breakfast, and in the afternoon I went there again to have Rice and Curry for lunch. They prepare many kinds of curry and taste varies by its spice. I miss their Rice and Curry very much. Everything was fantastic.

What's on your bucket list?

I took this photo in Antwerp, Belgium. There were picturesque buildings along the street. By the way, one of my acquaintances has written a blog post about the Cathedral of Our Lady (a.k.a. the Cathedral of Antwerp or the Antwerp Cathedral) and a painting named the Elevation of the Cross (a.k.a. the Raising of the Cross) by Sir Peter Paul Rubens. She wrote that she'd read a book named A Dog of Flanders in her childhood, and visiting the Antwerp Cathedral was at the top of her bucket list since then. I didn't visit the Antwerp Cathedral, but I love that everyone keeps different things on one's bucket list and keep trying to complete many of them as much as possible.

Placebo effect

I took this photo in Amsterdam, Holland. When I looked up a building on a street, I saw this much amount of displayed cheese. The lit up windows looked like a transparent refrigerator or something similar and I loved the idea. I love cheese. Speaking of cheese, one of my Italian acquaintances told me that the Italians eat cheese when they drink wine to avoid a hangover. I don't know it is true or not, but I kind of believe it. At least, a piece of cheese and his story have been having a placebo effect on some glasses of wine since then.

Google like hell

I took this photo in Alton, England, the United Kingdom. Getting Alton was about an hour and 20-minute train journey from London Waterloo Station. Back then I was thinking to visit a few more cities from London, but my plans for the day trips were totally up in the air. First of all, three cities sprang up to my mind. Oxford, Cambridge, and Coventry. I googled like hell to find out train timetable, fare, convenience, and then some then finally chose Alton as my first day trip from London. Alton is the terminus of the Alton Line which is operated by South West Trains. The atmosphere was totally different from crowded Greater London and I loved to be there.

A heartwarming hotel in Piazza Aspromonte

Normally, I make a hotel reservation through Bokking.com. My last trip to Italy was my first visit to Milan. I didn't know much about the lay of the land, transportation, hotel names, and all. I just browsed through Booking.com randomly, and went with my gut feeling to book a hotel room in Piazza Aspromonte. The hotel was named after the square, buy the way. It was a very nice, heartwarming hotel about everything. I've never felt bad in the hotel and was always happy to see radiant receptionists and was glad to have nice breakfast to start my days in Milan. To get to the hotel, I caught Malpensa Shuttle with free WiFi from the airport and got out of the bus at the last stop: Central Station. After that, I took Metro Green Line to Loreto. The hotel was just a five-minute walk from Loreto and was very easy to spot. I arrived in the hotel at zero dark thirty, but didn't have to worry about anything. Everywhere was absolutely safe. I couldn't get a bottle of water on the way to the hotel, but there was one with a glass in a fridge as a comp. It was really helpful. By the way, Piazza Aspromonte is an easy walk from Central Station. It'll take 15 minutes or so. If you don't have a map to do that, you can take one from brochure stand for free while you are waiting your luggage at the baggage claim.

Fancy-looking casement windows

I took this photo in Jaffa, Israel. I really loved the fancy-looking casement windows. Jaffa is my favorite part in Israel and is located within walking distance of Tel Aviv and Tel Aviv Promenade. After I took this photo, I turned left and took a walk along the Mediterranean Sea then visited Jaffa Port. Seaside alley of Jaffa was very organized and there were pubs, cafes, and restaurants. When I visited there the whole area was not crowded, the atmosphere was relaxing, the weather was perfect. It was already in the middle of November, but the sun was still sizzling.

I'll have lunch, but first walk around

I took this photo in Oxford, England, the United Kingdom. I found a restaurant where beautifully decorated with hanging baskets full of flowers. Back then, I was looking for a place to eat and I thought this place would be wonderful to take a little break with good food, but I still had some more places to visit in Oxford. So I put lunch on the back-burner and just continued to walk around. By the way when I walk around a city, sometimes I do skip lunch or dinner, but that day was not the case. I wanted to have something memorable, also needed to take a little break.

Can I have some more cheese?

I took this photo in my hotel room in Amsterdam, Holland. The Netherlands is famous for its dairy products and I really loved to eat Dutch yummy cheese. When I drank Heineken beer or something at a bar, I ordered different kinds of cheese as well, but I wanted to eat more cheese. I bought a pack of cheese cube at a nearby supermarket and had it in my hotel room with a can of Heineken. I bought a few different kinds of cheese at the supermarket and was very satisfied with Dutch cheese. There were so many cheese shops in Amsterdam, but the entire block of cheese looked like a little too much for a short-term traveler like me. So I went to Albert Heijn, a supermarket.

I have nothing to hide

The photo shows a ceiling of Antwerpen-Centraal which is the central railway station in Antwerp, Belgium. The station building and its architectural details were extraordinary. Sometimes the station is described as the most beautiful station in the world. I think it is. I just bent down and looked up the ceiling then took a photo of the stunning ceiling. By the way, it seemed like a couple of detection dogs who were at work when I was taking some photos there. I had nothing to hide. The dogs walked past me without even seeing.

When the stars align

I took this photo near Marble Arch tube Station in London, England, the United Kingdom when the stars aligned. I saw radiant Red Telephone Boxes, a double-decker bus, and a Royal Park all together there. It was such a view just how I had drawn a mental picture about London. The Royal Park on the photo is Hyde Park, by the way. It was a picture-perfect autumn day. After taking this photo, I headed Notting Hill on foot. To be honest, it was a bit of a trek, but I had so much fun while I was walking.

A climbing frame in front of the Mediterranean Sea

I took this photo when I visited the Jaffa Seaside Park (a.k.a. Midron Yafo Park) in Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel. There were some playground equipments like a park swing, a climbing frame and then some. The best part of this playground is its location. It's located in front of the Mediterranean Sea exactly like the photo shows. Speaking of which, a climbing frame is also called as a jungle gym or monkey bars. If so, the name of the equipment doesn't fit with the location. Anyway, if I were a small kid, I wanted to climb up the climbing frame, and I wanted to view the Mediterranean Sea from the top of the frame.