Day five (or is it six?)

New leaf still successfully overturned, minus the following tiny indiscretions:

• The most sumptuous three-course meal at Don Pedro’s on Wednesday night – totally worth it. I highly recommend this brilliant little spot for a romantic dinner or a great meal with mates.   
• A Chicken Burger at Quiz Night at Fireman’s while finishing a disappointing 13^th out of 21 groups. Sad face.
• Too much wine (but I would be setting myself up for failure if I thought the new leaf was wine proof) – perhaps the wine and the 13^th place are inextricably linked. Hmmmm.

Otherwise the week has been filled with one or two gym visits, tons of stairs at the office (which I like to see as mini workouts) and some great home–made healthy meals. I tried out Quinoa for the first time and it was not gaggingly gross as I had expected. It was actually rather yummy – probably helped along by the 80:20 ratio of everything else to Quinoa. Steamed fish, chicken & zuchinni wraps and a few salads here and there rounded off the week. All and all it has not been a bad first week of “being better” (most of the time anyway).

And now that’s its 4:36am on Saturday and I have woken up from such a warm, cozy bed for no reason whatsoever, I thought perhaps it’s time I post something about my recent European Adventure. I think I’m ready to look at some photo’s without pining for Sangria and Tapa’s, so here goes…

We started off in Amsterdam and spent one wild weekend at St Christophers Hostel, a vibrant abode in the middle of the red light district and a short walk from Centraal Station. This place is simply the best – if you ever you are in Amsterdam, I suggest shacking up in the middle of the action. Especially when transport costs and the euro are not your friends.

Chris (the fiance) and I having a beer at the hostel - Image, my own

This was my second time in Amsterdam and equally as fun as the first. Beyond the obvious pass times in this liberal city, there are so many great sites, awesome museums, amazing restaurants, quaint architectural landmarks and hilariously funny people to keep you out of mischief. One such place is Vondelpark. I didn’t explore this green belt the first time around, so I was eager to see what one of the “top 10 things to do in Amsterdam in 48 hours” looked like. And I was pleasantly surprised.

I suppose all cities need an area for its inhabitants to jog, cycle and read under the trees, and as a city girl myself, I love a good bit of nature planted arm’s length from the concrete jungle. From an opera singer practicing in the park’s amphitheatre, to lovers on a bench, this park had it all and was a definite highlight of the weekend for me.

Our arrival at the park - Image, my own

Pretty building across the lake - Image, my own

Other highlights:

Cute Dutch blonde police officers (all in their early twenties and in uniform….)

The friendly people

A litre of cheese fondue

Could have done without:

The blisters from walking through every cobbled street of this amazing city

From Amsterdam, we jetted off to Barcelona…. But its 4:59am, and I need some sleep before the Super 15 Final, so I’ll save Barcelona for the next post.

Night

x