Better be silent

According to the journal La Capitale, the number of parrots in Brussels has grown by 30% within only three years. With about 10,000 exemplars flying and screaming around in Brussels parks, they start to become a threat to the biodiversity of indigenous bird and bat species; says the Environmental office. The region now evaluates countermeasures, including shooting and sterilisation.

Now, I don’t say this is good or bad. Maybe it is even just necessary but what I don’t like is how it is underlined three times that the parrots are noisy. As if they had chosen to come here and be annoying in the first place…

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On rigole bien là

Life is funny if you have my sense of humor.

Besides Blankenberge

Peace and quiet, small villages, old churches, cows and horses grazing, birds flying over the polders, willows along canals – less then 10 cycling minutes from the city center of Blankenberge – exists another, much more beautiful and tranquille world. Over the 33 km long Gentele route, we cycled almost till Brugge before turning back. In a bit less than 4 hours, we hardly crossed more than 10 people but certainly ten times as many cows. It’s a very calm land out there, time seems like suspended and noises coming only from the wheels on the gravel.

A perfect tourist nightmare

aka Blankenberge: Thousands of people, parents scolding whining children, cigarette stubs in the sand, rubbish on the beach, concrete blocks and fat, lazy sea gulls.

Pimp that beer

Despite Belgium being a country known for it outstanding and high quality beer, the current holder of the record “The World’s Strongest Beer” are the Scottish.

This nice – just a tiny bit lecturing – times articles gives some deeeep insights into a micro war between micro breweries getting a maximum of alcohol in a bottle of beer.

The very best of this story though is the video add for the currently third strongest beer: Tactical Nuclear Penguin.

Cheers!

Human being 2.0

Where are my add-ons?

Sometimes I hate

to be right.

Bohinj

After 14 days in Bled and one day to spare, I decided to rent a bike and go to Bohinj. Luckily, I had the good idea to follow the main street instead of somehow trying to find the way as indicated in the cycling guide. Riding on a bike not used to on a hot day in the mountains was challenge enough.

Anyway, Bohinj lake is beautiful. And big; at least compared to the one in Bled. I had to go up to Vogel – a ski resort station, to get the ‘full picture’. The cable car came in quite handy at this moment in time. If ever you do the same, the buses going to Ljubljana stop in Bled as well – and if you ask nicely enough, the bus driver takes the bike along as well.

Un bled qui s’appelle Bled*

Bled is incredibly beautiful. And probably quite boring if you come there for tourism only. But as I had other things to do; I enjoyed very much walking by the lake at the end of the day, going for a swim, and just looking at the mountains.

Things to do in Bled are: rowing to the island – ringing the bell in the church is optional but said to bring luck; rafting, climbing up to the castle, walking around the lake, cycling, walking through the vintgar gorge and relaxing, relaxing, relaxing.

* In French, the word ‘bled’ stands for a small, rather lost village in the middle of nowhere

Ljubljana

All together, I spent 9 hours in Ljubljana – 5 walking throughout the city, 2 watching football, 2 having dinner with friends. It is pretty, it is small, it is lively. Though I probably missed a lot, I still feel like having seen the essentials – the dragon, the castle, the three bridges. Maybe next time with more guidance…