Planning
Yes, I'm a total Type A and plan everything about my trip before I take it. There, I admitted it. I'm not afraid to be me. Dive into my crazy pre-trip planning below or skip on over to our first stop in Belgium.
Inspiration & PhotographyCreating a Pinterest board for my trip allows me to start my vacation before I even leave home. Pinterest is a bulletin board-style photo-sharing website that allows users to create and manage theme-based image collections. After pinning an endless amount of canal scenes onto my Pinterest board for photo inspiration during my trip, I decided to take it one step further and create a photo shot list. It allowed me to really think about each of the tour locations and what I wanted to capture. I did pretty well with my list, capturing almost every item.
Photography Shot List |
General
Our hotel rooms before we mess them up Chocolate shop windows Chocolate shop logos/door signs Chocolate Topped waffle Eating a waffle Fries Cheese wheels Each beer I drink Empty beer glass Martta & Neil drinking a beer together Bikes propped up against buildings Cafe tables on squares/quiet streets Clogs Buildings reflected in a canal Boat on a canal Nighttime buildings in a canal A picture of each person/couple in our group Ghent Welcome dinner Guild house details Favorite piece on graffiti street Martta & Neil picture on canal cruise (Pro-Tip: You actually have to sit next to each other if you want to capture this one....whoops!) Pulpit details in St. Baafs Cloisters in St. Baafs Corridors of St. Baafs Gravensteen Castle looking up from the main gate Bell tower at night City square from Gravensteen doorway Brussels Guild halls Guild hall details Evening shot with long exposure "ghost people" in Grand Place My favorite musical instrument at the MIM Manneken Pis - I hope he's dressed! (Sadly he wasn't, but Pro-Tip: you can check out his upcoming attire here the site is in French, but you can figure it out) Art nouveau details |
Ipres
Poppies Headstones Menin Gate Bruges Belfry view framed by window Horse & carriage in central plaza Archway over blind donkey street Hinges on blind donkey street Basicalla of the holy blood outdoor details Lacemaking Swans Damme Martta & Neil biking together Trees along the canal/Water reflections Windmill Windmill reflected in water Delft Delftware Artist painting delftware The Hague Tram Maurithuis front & back The Girl with the Pearl Earring Amsterdam Flower carts in Alsamer Bidding boards Alsamer Red light district signs Begijnhof Central station Flowers in a shop Low angle and high angle perspectives in Our Lord of the Attic Heineken Experience green bottle wall - I couldn't find it! iamsterdam sign Nighttime bridge pictures Canal house roof styles Rijsttafel dinner Farewell dinner |
PackingPacking for the trip is important, you don't want to take too much (and get stuck with baggage fees) or leave behind a key piece....I won't bore you with the story of why I own two identical rain coats, but let's just say the shopping in the Houston airport is pretty good in a pinch.
Lesson Learned. That's why I take the time to lay out what's going in my bag before I head out. There are tons of packing lists available to make sure you don't forget the essentials - check out the Rick Steves packing lists here. For this trip the rain jacket is essential as are loads of layers! Laundry: I did laundry once (Bruges is a great choice for a laundry). This tour is short enough that you might be able to make it without laundry, but for us, this tour was part of a longer trip so laundry was required. Pro-Tip: A non-clothing item that I sneak into my bag for every trip is a few Zip-loc bags. They are perfect for holding a wet clothing item or collecting all your tickets, programs, and museum maps. I also pack two Rick Steves medium flat packs - they are perfect for sorting dirty laundry into lights and darks. I just unzip them directly into my wash machine when I get home. |
The carry-on bag is almost as important as the suitcase! I love my Lug bag and here's what's in it.
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One last obsession to cover before we head off on this trip - find out how I track my steps over in
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