Author: Penelope

  • Belfast

    Belfast

    The best place to start your visit of Northern Ireland is in its capital city, Belfast. This city has a varied and very dramatic history that provides the visitor with many things to do. It’s located along the water and is considered the main port city for Northern Ireland. It also happens to be the place where the RMS Titanic was built. Nowadays, Belfast is increasingly becoming known as a movie town with many movies and television shows, like Game of Thrones, being shot here. In fact there is a movie studio located next to where the Titanic was built.

    Belfast is known for its street art throughout the city. Practically anywhere there is an empty wall, someone will paint a mural on it. This makes for a very colorful visual presence. The area I found must moving was in the Falls Road area of Belfast. This was an area known during the so-called troubles. So many of the murals, like seen in this photo below, were political in design. This just shows that Belfast may have moved on, but everyone still remembers the rough times.

    Belfast Street Art, Northern Ireland

    The Parliment Building, also known as Stormont, is located on an estate outside of Belfast. The long avenue that leads up to the building provides quite the view. It’s almost like you are coming up to Windsor Castle in England. This building houses the government of Northern Ireland.

    Belfast Parliament Building, Northern Ireland
  • Amsterdam

    Amsterdam

    Amsterdam is the capital city of the Netherlands. When one thinks of Amsterdam, so many things come to mind: canals, bicycles, marijuana, and the red light district to name a few. But there is so much more to this city that it’s impossible to visit it all in one trip.

    Located all around Amsterdam you will find canals. Besides getting around the city via a car or bicycle, many people travel the waterways to get around town. There are also many who live on house boats found around the city.

    Canal in Amsterdam Holland
    Canals of Holland

    Synonymous with tulips in the Netherlands are windmills. You’ll find them located outside of Amsterdam as well as further out in the countryside. Many of the windmills today are used as museums or beer and/or cheese bars.

    Windmill, Holland
    Windmills, Holland
  • Tulips

    Tulips

    If one is lucky enough to visit the Netherlands during the months of March through May, then one will most likely be provided with gorgeous views of the thousands of tulips growing throughout the country. As seen below, the tulip fields provide quite the array of colors making the landscape almost look like a painting.

    Tulip Field, Holland

    Besides all of the tulip fields, you can also visit the flower markets where all of the flowers are sold as well as beautiful gardens, like the Keukenhof Tulip Gardens as seen in the photos below.

    Tulip Garden, Holland
    Tulip Garden, Holland
    Tulip Garden, Holland
    Tulip Garden, the Netherlands
    Tulip Garden, Holland