Category Archives: Travels

Fucking Hotels

Personal, Travels

I have just discovered that the hotel we were going to stay at in a couple of weeks’ time (Malmaison in Edinburgh) doesn’t include breakfast in its rates. This is despite the fact that we’re paying not an insignificant amount of money per night.

This seems to be a growing trend with hotels. Why on earth should they make you spend £20 a head on breakfast – which consists of a few stale rolls, some cheese and incipid coffee – when you’re spending £200 a night.

To be honest, I wouldn’t normally be so annoyed, however in this case Malmaison don’t make it obvious that their prices are "rooms only". If they did, then I certainly wouldn’t have booked with them.

Now it’s too late to cancel and find another room (especially as it’s festival time), we’ll just go out and buy some milk and cereal and take liberties with the tea & coffee making facilities.

Utter, utter cunts.

Grey

Travels

Brussels is grey.

That’s about it, I’d forgotten that Brussels is such a dreadful place that it’s actually fun. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not going to make you cry, it’s just that it makes you glad that you actually live in London for once.

http://www.aerobitches.co.uk/upload/images/2006/02/greybrussels-thumb.jpg
Grey

The plus points were Eurostar, although the security screening at Waterloo left much to be desired – incompetent, surly staff that threw your bags around and then asked whether the magnetometer had gone off as you walked through because they weren’t paying attention.

Oh, and the Atomium looks much nicer, although as it had only reopened after a two year closure the day we were there, we didn’t bother queueing to go in again.

http://www.aerobitches.co.uk/upload/images/2006/02/atomium-thumb.jpg

December in Berlin

Travels

We’ve had a really great week in Berlin, very relaxing, and lots of fun. The pleasure was hightened by the fact that it was nice and warm with working heating and hot water, which is more than can be said of the miserableness of our flat here in London (stupid broken boiler).

At least we did have snow in Berlin, so no need for fake snow flocking on our tree:

http://www.aerobitches.co.uk/upload/images/2005/12/yuletree-thumb.jpg

We had Christmas dinner at an exceptionally expensive restaurant (I don’t think I’ve ever spent €300 / £200 on dinner before, although a third of it did go on a single bottle of wine). Food was fabulous; all 7 courses of it.

At the other scale, we have Fritz & Co. (Currywurst and Pommes) in Wittenbergplatz which comes in at an order of magnitude less in price, but (dare I say it) just as nice!

http://www.aerobitches.co.uk/upload/images/2005/12/pommesfritz-thumb.jpg

Warsaw Roundup

Travels

wilanow lake
click for more

Having just spent a weekend baking in the heat of Warsaw, here are some ideas of what to do over there in the summer:

  • Lazienki Park
    • Vast park near the centre of Warsaw, very popular. Has lots of cafés an ice cream shops as well as red squirrels. Few toilets though!
  • Wilanów Park
    • The palace of Wilanów was built in the French style with lots of fussy gardens. It’s nice and cool in the summer and has rowing boats you can hire out to go out onto the river with. The best part is the branch of Wedel’s café outside the gates.
  • University Biblioteka
    • Why does Imperial not have a library with a roof garden as awesome as this? Go and enjoy then have lunch in their cheap, but excellent, cafeteria. Open to all.