Mom and me with Michelangelo’s David
Day Three was a Sunday – the first Sunday of November, sooo all the museums were free! After a bit of discussing, Koen, Tamar, my mom and I decided on Galleria dell’Accademia, most famous for housing Michelangelo’s David. We left early in the morning and luckily the line wasn’t too bad!
Overlooking Florence from the Piazzale Michelangelo
Just got back from spending a week in Florence, Italy with my family! We don’t get to see each other so often, so why not make it even more special by heading to Tuscany for some family time?
Danish breakfast! The big breakfast on the left and the small on the right.
Day three began with another delicious breakfast at Brødflov on the Falkoner Allé in Frederiksberg. We were the only none Danish people in the crowded organic bakery, so we felt like we made a great choice. The staff was super friendly and helpful. Koen ordered the big breakfast that came with your choice of two types of bread – in Koen’s case a sourdough roll and a tebirke. Tebirkes are a sort of Danish poppy seed pastry that are flaky and a little sweet and sticky thanks to the butter and marizipan. In addition to the two types of bread, Koen received three types of Danish sausage, two types of Danish cheese, and a portion of skyr (Icelandic yoghurt).
I ordered the smaller version which also includes two types of bread and chose the spelt sourdough and kanelmonster (giant cinnamon roll). With our breakfasts you’ll see a portion of homemade raspberry jam. As an American I thought it was just to eat on my bread. But then I looked at the girl next to me and realized I was eating my breakfast completely wrong. First of all the bread comes sliced in half and you receive two slices of cheese. So you put one piece of cheese on each slice. Then you put the jam on top of the cheese. Yum! Luckily it wasn’t too late and I enjoyed the rest of my meal the correct way. Both the big and small breakfasts came with a cup of coffee and the fresh juice of the day, which was carrot, apple, and ginger.
Birthday Breakfast – kanelsnurre and a double latte!
Koen and I are just back from a week long vacation in Copenhagen, Denmark. I can’t say enough how much fun we had! Exploring, eating, drinking…just relaxing.
Breakfast at Gather – 2 cups of coffee, a lemon muffin, and an egg and kale sandwich with caper mayonnaise
For our last full day in New York City, Koen and I wanted to visit a museum. We only had time this trip to fit one in, so after a lot of thought we decided on the American Museum of Natural History. Last year we visited AMNH and loved it. This time we also wanted to take in the special exhibitions – Dark Universe at the Hayden Planetarium, IMAX: The Great White Shark, and Pterosaurs: Flight in the Age of Dinosaurs. We started our day with breakfast at Gather in Park Slope before taking the train to the Upper Westside to AMNH. Luckily at the museum you’re allowed to exit and reenter. So we visited the Hayden Planetarium first for the Dark Universe show and then headed to Shake Shack for lunch. I did not want to leave NYC without visiting Shake Shack! After lunch we visited the last two exhibitions – the IMAX show and the Pterosaurs exhibit. We ended the day in Park Slope. First we had dinner at Beet II and finshed with wine at Brookvin. A great last day!
Watermelon Gazpacho
I love experimenting with soup and was excited to try the Watermelon Gazpacho from Green Kitchen Stories. It was a relatively warm summer day in Antwerp and a cold soup sounded refreshing. Although the soup tasted delicious, it was a bit much as a main course. I think it would be better as a starter – strained and served in drinking glasses for a party, perhaps with a shot of vodka.
Zuid Café
Last week and this week we’re experiencing our first bout of Spring weather! Luckily the warmest day, 66 degrees, was yesterday when Koen and I were both off from work. I think all of Antwerp was outside, enjoying the warm sunny weather! We took the opportunity to take a long walk to the South of Antwerp and enjoyed our first terrasje, or outdoor café, of the year at the Zuid Café. Because we had already had lunch, we only ordered drinks. After seeing everyone else’s food we definitely want to go back to try the food – everything looked so delicious!
Opening my Christmas gifts from my parents!
Koen and I celebrated Christmas Eve and Christmas Day in Roosendaal, first at his Aunt Maartje and Uncle Sjaak’s house and then at the Brörmann house for Christmas. Unfortunately Nikki, Brigiet, and Sofie could not make it to Roosendaal to celebrate with us – Nikki and Brigiet were in Friesland and Sofie was surfing in Spain! Christmas Eve, we all made special dishes – Koen and I made two types of meatballs – and enjoyed an evening with lots of laughter and delicious food. The next day began with Christmas brunch. The entire afternoon we took turns in the kitchen preparing for dinner. I made macarons for the first time! Oma joined us for our delicious dinner which included a game where we guess what Dook is thinking. Koen and I were the winners guessing Roy Donder’s huispak and Oma’s pearl necklace! After dinner we facetimed my family in the States where they were also enjoying Christmas dinner! Also, special thank you to Barbara for the beautiful photos from Christmas!
My surprise for Dook!
In case you don’t remember from last year, the “surprises” are homemade gifts tailored to the likes and hobbies of the person whose name you’ve drawn. This year I drew Dook, Koen’s dad. Because Dook is the biggest wine lover I know, my surprise had to do with wine. I fingerpainted a map of the world, then created a pathway through the major wine countries. Starting in California, Dook had to answer questions about wine to move forward. After successfully completing the game Dook was able to open his gift!
American Museum of Natural History, Theodore Roosevelt Equestrian Statue
I was lucky enough to celebrate my birthday during our trip to New York City! We decided to save the American Museum of Natural History for the occasion. I had no idea the museum is so big! Luckily you can leave the museum and come back, so we spent a couple of hours in the morning exploring before taking a break to have lunch in Central Park. After spending a few more hours at the museum, we went for a birthday cupcake in Soho followed by a delicious Italian dinner from Di Palo. To end the evening, Koen, Christina, and I went for cocktails at Apothéke, a speakeasy in Chinatown.
An American in Antwerp 