Colombia was never on our ‘ travel list’ until we watched a very nice Dutch travel program about the country and of course after seeing the hit series Narcos on Netflix.
Colombia has truly surprised us with its majestic nature and versatility. Bogota and Medellin were quite interesting cities. Delinquent neighborhoods have recently transformed into vibrant areas due to ‘democratic art’ and social projects developed by the Colombian government. Take a tour with locals and you’ll find out about both cities’ past, best spots to have lunch and the meaning of all the amazing street art scattered around town.
The most impressive part of our trip was Tayrona National Park with its gorgeous beaches and beautiful jungle trails (hike fanatics will love it)! Then there’s also the fabulous coffee region near Medellin in the province of Quindio. Discover amazing landscapes around the village of Salento, in the very heart of the coffee region! Get on your horses or mountain bikes and experience life in the Colombian country side. Cowboys included. Don’t forget to visit a coffee farm and enjoy a cup of ‘ tinto’.
Liefhebbers van de 2.0 cultuur kunnen sinds vorig jaar hun hart ophalen in het MIMA. Het is een eigenzinnig museum op een bijzondere locatie in Brussel. Het Millennium Iconoclast Museum of Art kan je als een ontmoetingsplek voor actuele kunst beschouwen. Denk aan grafisch design tot graffiti en street art, muziekcultuur, film, strips en zelfs tattoo art. Eigenlijk alles wat zich rond de millenniumwisseling wereldwijd heeft ontwikkeld.
Loop vanaf de Antoine Dansaertstraat of metrostation Graaf van Vlaanderen langs het kanaal richting het MIMA. Je komt meteen al in een ‘street art’ stemming. Hier prikkelt ook de industriële omgeving je zintuigen.
A few years ago I visited Malmö for work. It was my first time in Sweden however, you probably know it’s often difficult to have some spare time to explore a city when going on a business trip. Then finally in 2016 I made my first trip to Stockholm for leisure. I was quite excited and didn’t really know what to expect. I only had a slight idea of what Sweden looks like through travel programs. Or films like Millennium and my previous supersonic visit to Malmö. Yet Stockholm still remained a mystery to me.
Biking in Stockholm
Let me introduce you to Stockholm by taking you around the city by bike! Using the excellent system ‘Stockholm City Bikes’ was a cheap and easy way to explore this stunning Scandinavian highlight. Enjoy our travel video and don’t forget to scroll down to my personal tips for your perfect Stockholm citytrip.
CityJet’s inflight magazine ‘Velocity’ recently held an interview with blogger Natalie Siereveld from OrangeSpots.nl. In the January 2017 Velocity edition you’ll read about Natalie’s passion for travel and her favorite hang outs in her home town Rotterdam. Read the full article in this blog and get to know Rotterdam’s must visits according to Natalie!
LIVE LOCAL – ROTTERDAM
Velocity Magazine – January 2017 edition
I’m Natalie Siereveld, a 31 years old passionate traveller, foodie and sports fanatic. Born in Peru, my family and I moved to Rotterdam (the Netherlands) in 1991. What am I doing for a living? I’m a Press Officer for Flanders (Belgium) based in the Hague for 5 years now. It’s great to promote Flanders as a travel destination amongst Dutch journalists. Why? I get to sample, discover and taste the best of Flemish cuisine, beers, culture and heritage! My hobby’s? I have a passion for photography. During my spare time I love to wander through the streets of Rotterdam and capture the magic of the city.
The world’s most amazing fish market:
Tsukiji Fish Market in Tokyo
When you think of Japan, one of the first things that comes in mind is sushi, sushi, sushi! When we visited Japan in 2015 for the first time, our number one activity on our to-do list was trying some delicious maki’s and nigiris! And so we did… Lots of them. And some new sushis we never tried before, of course. Since we are such big sushi fans, we couldn’t resist visiting the world’s most amazing fish markets. Yes, I’m talking about the Tsukiji Fish Market in Tokyo. This is the market which starred at the art house movie Hiro dreams of sushi, one of my favorite food documentaries. It is highly recommended to watch this film if you’re a true sushi fan and you want to know everything about how the fish is selected and prepared. ‘ Cause Hiro knows it all…
Located at 3500 meters of altitude, La Paz is dizzying in many aspects. Once you step out of the airport, the altitude, warmth and the noise grabs you by the throat. Give yourself a few minutes to get used to the initial chaos and stop worrying: La Paz is a safe and actually a very laid-back city.
When visiting La Paz, plan at least 3 days to explore the city. There is so much to see and do that you can stay for 2 weeks and still will not be bored. In this blog I will guide you through the must do’s and must sees of La Paz, so that you get the maximum out of your visit to this extraordinary city! Below you’ll find my top 5. But first, watch our travel video for a cool impression:
Toen ik hoorde dat het culinair festival Antwerpen Proeft weer zou plaatsvinden op een toplocatie aan het water, moest ik er geen twee keer over nadenken. Ik sprak met vrienden af om op een zondag in mei op culinaire ontdekking te gaan. We namen de bus vanaf het station in Antwerpen die ons op ’t Eilandje afzette. De zon scheen volop, de sfeer was goed en we kregen een lekker biertje bij onze entreekaart. We proostten en nipten aan een Duvel terwijl wij ondertussen onze ogen uitkeken bij het zien van de ‘menukaart’. Het was lastig kiezen tussen al die culinaire topgerechtjes van de deelnemende (Antwerpse) chefs en restaurants.
Dear all, since we came back from our round trip through Asia and South-America we’ve become more conscious of the food we eat. Our food experience in Japan made us realize we don’t need much meat to make a good meal. Healthy and savory vegetables combined with noodles or rice makes a delicious combination which fills your stomach sufficiently. In South America we ate lots of fish, seafood and vegetables. In the mornings we enjoyed breakfast with porridge and fresh fruits, papaya juice and sometimes we had bread with avocado. Day after day we felt more healthy due to the food we ate. Many say that pure food is the key. I think this is true! In addition to healthy food, we spent lots of time being outdoors, walking and doing sports. Yoga and stretching made our bodies more flexible and we had a healthy dosis of sun every day. We’ve never felt so good before!
Back in Holland we realized we had to continue this lifestyle. At least a for a part. Healthy food would be our top priority! A good friend gave me a great recipe for home made granola. Most of the store-bought stuff is high in sugar and not quite good in taste. She told me granola was easy to prepare some at home and quite healthy and nutrient. Also, it would safe me some money (organic home made granola is expensive). I could either have the granola with milk, yoghurt, dried fruits an/ or fresh fruits like banana or apple.
I’ve prepared some great home made granola several times and I would like to share this recipe with you. I’m sure you’ll love it!
For a long time, I’ve been longing to visit the highest navigable lake in the world, the famous Lake Titicaca located between Peru and Bolivia. At 3856 metres above sea level, this lake is said to be bigger than Switzerland! During our world trip (Orange Spots on Tour) in 2016, we finally took off on a breathtaking tour to the Uros Floating Islands at Lake Titicaca. Also, we enjoyed a nice hike on the island of Taquile. Enjoy the ashtonishing views, breathtaking landscapes and the colorful clothing of the Uros people living on this immense lake!
During our 7 month trip through Asia and South America we’ve stayed in over 70 different hotels. For each city and country we had a tight hotel budget, all hotels we booked where in the low to midrange price of the available hotels in the specific city. We always looked for a hotel with a special ‘feel’ : small boutique hotels or guesthouses with a personal touch. We encountered some real gems during our many stays, however, the hotels described below are our absolute favorites:
1. Miyajima Guest House Mikuniya – Miyajima (Japan)
Why go: Hospitality, Unique experience, Beautiful rooms with unbelievable views
The Island of Miyajima is one of the highlights of Japan: the beautiful scenic views attract loads of tourists during the day, therefore we recommend you to stay at least one night on the Island. In the afternoon, when the tourists go back to Hiroshima, the island becomes more tranquil and mysterious. We chose to stay at Guest House Mikuniya, a short walk from the world famous Itsukushima Shrine and it’s huge Torii Gate. The small Guest House is beautiful in every detail: decorated with Japanese art and furniture. There is a lounge where you watch DVD’s, read a book, learn how to make origami or enjoy some Japanese tea. However, you will likely not be spending too much time here. The friendly owner Mr. Masaharu Terazawa treats his guests like friends and adds a personal touch to the whole experience.
We already were in love with the place without having seen the highlight of the Guesthouse, our room. We stayed in a beautiful traditional Japanese style tatami room with a stunning sea view. It’s amazing to wake up in the morning, opening the window blinds and see the huge red Torii Gate staring at you. It doesn’t get much better then this in life.
Address:
327 Chue-machi, Miyajima-cho, Hatsukaichi City, Hiroshima, Japan, 739-0523 http://miyajimamikuniya.com/
La Paz, the capital of Bolivia has quite surprised us with its magnificent views over the city, colorful markets and local traditions. Sure, the altitude knocked us down and caused us some uncomfortable nights. But it was definitely worth it! La Paz has so many things to offer: stay for a week and you still don’t get bored. Besides exploring the city by foot and cablecar, we chose to go for a ride just outside the city. We experienced the Death Road mountain bike tour which was one of the coolest things we’ve ever done!
If you happen to be an adventurous type and you’re in La Paz (Bolivia) by any chance, you can’t miss out riding down the World’s Most Dangerous Road on a mountain bike! Sure, you really need to know how to ride a bike in order to do this safely. By no means this is a challenging ride. When we heard about the existence of the mountain bike tour down the risky Death Road, we had to think twice. We asked around for advice at several tour operators and mountain bike specialists. We made up our mind and decided we should just go for it!
