Fabulous Antwerp

A girl shouldn't be left to her own devices in Antwerpen. This city is shopaholic heaven. Everything you could possibly think of is temptingly displayed in a shop window nearby. Imaginative, colourful, stylish beautiful clothes, homewares, jewellery. You name it. Sadly, I was on the limit of my luggage allowance before I left home, so I am limited to teensy weensy things - like diamonds!

You might recall I mentioned last night all was quiet on the Russian front. Thought St Petersburg must have been so fabulous that time simply slipped his mind. Not so, you know Murphy's Law? Got a text message this morning telling me he is in hospital and has had surgery.

Called for a doctor yesterday before the sun went down and it all went downhill from there. Johnny will possibly require more surgery tomorrow. And here I am having a wonderful time. I feel a little guilty enjoying myself so much here in Antwerp. However am I going to cope with Bruges?

Headed out about 9 o'clock this morning. I was a bit too early for the locals so stopped to have coffee and a Danish. Then went to find my friendly bus driver to have another city tour. Forgot to mention yesterday that the driver thought I was a student. Check out the ticket! Another reason to love these inhabitants of Antwerp.

Asked the driver to drop me off at the Museum aan de Stroom. The MAS is more than a museum. It is a new city centre, a new meeting place where there is always something to see and do. An escalator takes visitors from the ground floor up 9 levels. Along the way you take in views of Antwerp through the 6 metre-high glass panels - a foretaste of what awaits at the top, a sweeping panorama of the city, the port and the river.

The Museum is a landmark on the boundary between the city and the port. It is a ground-breaking museum that tells the story of people with diverse mentalities who came from a multitude of backgrounds.

The Museum is flanked by two basins of water. The basin on the river side was built by Napoleon Bonaparte to house his fleet before waging war against the English. The Willem dock on the city side is known as an attractive, environment-friendly marina with some 300 berths. Passers-by enjoy the sight of the splendid yachts and the attractive setting of the Eilandje neighbourhood, the former docklands within strolling distance of the historic city centre.

The views from the top of the MAS are fantastic and there are small round holes cut into the glass walls so that you can point your camera through the holes to take photos. What a clever idea.

Pics below. Top: Bonaparte. Bottom: Willem

I didn't explore the Museum itself due to time restraints but there were many poignant photos lining the walls telling the story of the

"Great Exodus" of migrants to America at the outbreak of WWI.

My friendly bus driver picked me up on his next circuit and took me back to the starting point. I then went to visit my two new BFF's, Galia and Alona at Simon Diamond Collection who were exceptionally helpful. I strongly recommend a visit to these gorgeous girls if you are ever at a loose end in Antwerp.

After some serious decision making I went off for lunch in the boulevard around the corner. Really enjoyed the complimentary plate of olives and sundried tomatoes with my egg mayonnaise and smoked salmon club sandwich. Refuelled, I then went exploring in the shopping district. Kept the card safely tucked away in its case. Just took lots of photos, about 150 today. Finding it quite difficult to select just a few for my Diary.

Loved the man busking on his piano. It must be a bit of a job getting that into town for the day. Notice the platform it's sitting on.

Discovered a delightful little shop selling a line called "Springfield". Had to get a pic of that. Continued retracing the bus route and visited the Botanical Gardens which are on the site of an old monastery. This was a beautiful tranquil spot in the city but was probably only about the size of two or three residential blocks of land in Brisbane or NZ. Kiwi's will recognise the toi toi.

Another tree lined boulevard reserved strictly for trams in the centre and other traffic outside the trees.

Weather perfect. I bet you're all thinking "I wish I was in Antwerp with Sharyn" right about now.