Monday, April 16, 2007

Bikes and Romance

(Tim) So Tim and Tom took a quick detour into France. We arrived in Calais where we figured we'd just make the most of it. So we meandered down the min street and realized that it was 5pm and there may as well have been tumbleweeds blowing down the streets. With this we knew why the vast majority of the people on the ferry were transporting their cars to the other side and not on foot like us. It's because everyone pulls in to Calais and gets the hell out of Dodge because Calais is French for "suck town." However, we still checked in to the nearest hotel with hopes to do something bodacious. We sat in the hotel for approximately 5 minutes before deciding to see when the train to the closest real city would be departing. We found that one was heading to Lille in an hour, so we booked it. No one can ever say we didn't donate in Europe. We paid the full night's rate for five minutes. It was a good decision, unsurprisingly suggested by yours truly, yet part of me regrets not getting a chance to sleep in the bunk beds the hotel provided us with.
So we showed up in Lille in time to enjoy a nice night on the town. We ended up metting two sisters from L.A., and since one was living there, she was able to suggest another bar. But that bar was pretty lame, so she's dead to me. The following day we did a little sightseeing and headed off on the train to Amsterdam.
Ah, good ol' Amsterdam. Aside from the myriad options that are presented and what it's primarily known for, it's actually a really cool city. Apparently it has more rivers than Venice. It was kind of surreal for me because the rivers are parallel and to me, someone with less than impressive directional skill, it was like walking past one street on then coming up to it all over again. I feel I must mention the Dutch and their bicycles, or to put it better, the bicycles and their Dutch. If I didn't know any better, I think that the bicycles were building an army to fight humans. And they'd win. When I walked out of the train station I saw a sunnier version of the human crop fields from the Matrix. Bikes everywhere. The Dutch riding their bikes was the most amusing part to me. They all ride older styled bikes with high handlebars that run parallel with the wheels. So, everytime one whizzed past me I would hear "And your little dog, too!" in my head. So we took in Amsterdam and that's all I have to say about that.
The train ride to our next destination proved difficult once again, as we were supposed to transfer in Antwerp, but had no way of knowing. But we eventually got back on track. On the train the ticket checker stopped to talk to us and mentioned that he is heading for the States next week and that New York would be one of his stops. Tom impressed us both with his intimate knowledge of the city by suggesting lesser-known local hotspots like The Met and Central Park. Wow, no Rockefeller Center, no double-decker bus tour? Anyway, the one place Tom absolutely wanted to see on this trip was Bruges, Belgium. Upon arrival I immediately understood why. Bruges is one of the most romantic cities in the world. What better place for two dudes? Tim and Tom climbed the 366 steps to the top of the belfry for an amzing panoramic view of the town. I thought we should hold hands, but alas, it was not meant to be. We also sampled some famous Belgian chocolates while sitting on a park bench. I'm welling up just thinking about it. We went out for the evening and chatted with some local people while enjoying the best beer I've ever had. There are several varieties of beer that are brewed by monks, and since they only make it to earn what they need (and monks don't need Ferraris), it's very hard to get. At the end of the night Tom sought out to find a phone and left me alone finishing my late-night snack. He proceeded to be a part of what I can only describe as an "O'Hagan-only adventure," but that's his to tell.
That brings us to today. According to our book, Victor Hugo described the Grand-Place in Brussels as "the most beautiful square in the world." But what the hell does Victor Hugo know? Evidently a fair amount because the square is pretty impressive. I'd hate to be an architect and come here knowing that these buildings were built hundreds of years ago, and know how today's work pales in comparison. But, as luck would have it, I'm not an architect. Ta ta for now, blog world.

1 comment:

leek said...

i just spent the last 20 minutes laughing my ass off reading all these blogs. i don't even know tom, but i think knowing tim gives me plenty to go on. i'm glad you're having such a bodacious adventure.