BITS AND PIECES
Our hotel room in Stockholm, Sweden overlooked the Kings Hops Park where hops were grown in the 18th century for the royal brewery. We walked to the town center ending up at King Garden Square. Five hundred years ago it was the king’s kitchen garden where he raised vegetables. Now surrounded by the Sweden House, NK dept store and the harbor front, it is a great place for people watching.
**************
The staircases are ubiquitous to Quebec City, Canada and a reminder of the city’s past,. At one time as many as 25 such staircases connected the two parts of the hilly city. Upper Town was the home of dignitaries, religious and political leaders, where Lower Town contains the oldest neighborhood in North America. Once crowded with traders, workers and the disenfranchised, now it is a delightful restored smart shopping and historical area.
Breakneck staircase is the first staircase built in 1893. The 170 steps are built on the site of the original 17th century stairway that linked the town. Today shops and cafés can be found at various levels. We walked sections of the staircase at various times as we wandered around the city as a means to get where we were going but did not climb it all at once just for the sake of doing so.
****************
In Italy a bar is an open-air sandwich shop. Food is consumed while standing at a small high table. Sitting for a meal is pretty much for tourists and in 1992 cost $2-$5 for the privilege of sitting. We did find a chain restaurant, which had very good food at a reasonable price, and where we could sit for free. I learned Italians were not big on condiments on their sandwiches. On my next trip I’ll think about carrying some packets of my favorite condiments with me!
*****************
The Carnivore Restaurant, located in the Nairobi outskirts is a popular and famous tourist restaurant. A large cooking pit is in the center of the restaurant where all kinds of wild game are cooked. Waiters come to the table to serve you and tell you what the meat is and you can try any or all of it. The food was good, although I’m not much for exotic dining. It was certainly a different dining experience. The view of the tropical landscaping was lovely from the dining room. Our interesting lunch was something one should do once and we both were game (no pun intended) to at least try everything.
No comments:
Post a Comment