The Week My Life Became A Fairy Tale

Train Station in Film GrainI'm late in posting because it's been my fall break for the past week. During this time, I've had the chance to travel outside of London to Amsterdam, Brugge and Paris. All 3 of those cities seemed completely unreal and fairytale like. Let's start with Amsterdam.
Amsterdam is known to many people as the place where marijuana and prostitution are legal. For that reason alone, people make treks to the Netherlands. There is more to that country though, and it comes in the form of cheese, clogs and windmills. As my guide told us, “if you don't like windmills, there is something immensely wrong with your personality.” Our journey to and from Amsterdam was a fairytale in itself. After nearly missing a flight to Dublin the week before and journeying in the pouring rain, the sheer idea of not having to deal with airports was great. My friends and I took a tour that took us by bus and ferry to Amsterdam. Going this way means you don't have to even show your passport until the return trip. No check in. No baggage restrictions. No security check line. In other words, the easiest trip ever. Once we got to Amsterdam, this fairytale got even better (is that even possible?). The houses are beautiful; the people tolerant. We stayed in a hotel (not hostel, a real hotel) which had one of the best breakfast buffets ever. The nightlife...is, well, what you'd expect. Fascinating, oftentimes overwhelming, yet fascinating. And the food? Chocolate covered waffles at nearly every corner made it better. Of course, the discovery of the Heineken Brewery on a rainy day just added to the surreal feeling I had of the city. The guide put it best: “Amsterdam can't exist anywhere but Amsterdam.” There is something about it that doesn't seem real; how can a place be so tolerant, so beautiful and have nothing really hidden under the surface? My friends and I tried to find flaws but seemed to only find dead ends. The only flaw I could really find with it was that it was small.
2 days in that surreal place led to a day trip to Brugge, yet another fairytale. We got to watch the movie “In Burges” on the way to the actual city (I highly recommend the movie). Brugge is a picture perfect city. It is a city still in its medieval form. Streets are still cobblestone and with the leaves in their fall colors, you couldn't ask for a more gorgeous place. We got to go to the top of the Belfry Tower which gives a bird's eye view of the town. Standing there, you can't help but think that you're in a movie. Where in the world can you find a city that has kept its charm and original form and yet evolve with the passage of time? It seems like a movie concept: stuck in a time period yet with modern trappings. Also, Brugge, as is Belgium, famous for chocolate and beer, a fantastic combination. In fact, you can get chocolate beer (pretty good actually). Who doesn't love at least one of those two things? There is no end to either. Walking throughout the town makes you feel like a kid in a candy store.
And finally, Paris. Paris is a city known for its beauty. People spend years studying art and fashion there and once you go there, you see why. Every building contains beauty and is inspiring. The monuments are stunning and you expect nothing less of the city. But even the houses are gorgeous. They are the typical Parisian style, recognizable for their elegance. It's easy to see why artists come here; there is so much to get inspired from. It is this beauty that makes Paris fairy tale like. The beauty is everywhere; there does not seem to be a place in Paris that isn't beautiful. Even when I went to Versailles Palace which goes through the suburbs of Paris, the suburbs, though not as elegant as Paris, still have beauty. It's an undeniable beauty too. What I mean by that is in NYC, there are places I find beautiful that others would argue are not (i.e. St. Mark's Place). However, these places in Paris would be beautiful to almost anyone. Anytime you get a place that people can agree upon, that's magical in itself. And lastly, the journey to and from Paris? Eurostar makes that incredibly easy. 2 ½ hours in comfortable chairs and you can go from one country to another. The security and customs checks are quick. There's no worry about checking anything in. No restrictions. No issues.
And what better way to have a fall break than one free of issues?