Norway

Norway 

Background of Norway:
Norway located in Scandinavia, and neighbor to Sweden. The coastline and 150000 offshore islands become a special fjord scenery of Norway.

Sight spot -- Four great fjord and ski resort:
The Geiranger fjord in southwest of Norway is one of the most beautiful and mysterious fjords in the world. In this amazing fjord, there is also a beautiful waterfall. Such as "the groom's veil" and "seven sisters".

The Sogne fjord in Norway is the biggest and longgest fjord all over the world;

The hardanger fjord in west of Norway, near the famous leisure resort -- Black swans' Aaron;

The Lyse fjord in south of Norway, which is 42km length. Traveler can also take the sightseeing boat tour in this fjord;

Holmen mountain is the famous ski shrine in Norway. Since 1892, every year in March, the world famous ski competitions are held in here.

Dishes:
Salmon;

Geitost and Flatebrod;

Hotel:
Thon Hotel Astoria located in the Karl Johans street of Oslo, just 250 meter walking distance to the station;

Traffic:
Norway's traffic system is quite convenient, In the rail way station, traveker can be a free guide: NSB Togruter, there have train timetable detail and bus transfer information. This guide is very useful to travelers.

Review by other travelers:
Beautiful country;
Beautiful lakes;
Too expensive;
Taking a Cruise across the fjord.

By Crystal

Poland

Background:

Poland is one of the world's ten top tourism countries. And the tourism has become the main source of income. Such as some major cities: Lodz, Poznan, Krakow, Szczecin, and Gdansk. 

Sight spots:

The Baltic Port;

The Carpathian Mountains;

Poland Salt Mine;

Dishes:

The traditional Poland dishes are pasta. Poland people are love to eat baked, boiled pasta and drink coffee and tea, especially add a slice of lemon while drinking tea.

In north of Poland, lots of dishes are fish. In south of Poland, there are acid cabbage soup and goat's milk to finish and cheese. 

Alcohol culture:

Palikotowka, pure Vodka, cattle grass wine, GorzkaZoladkowa, and Goldwasser. For example, the name of the GorzkaZoladkowa is bitter taste, but the real taste is quite sweet.

Hotel:

Hotel Royal located in the old city of Krakow, near the Wawel Castle;

Hotel Polonia is near the rail way station;

This two hotel is very nice to the backpackers and students.

Review of other travelers:

Warsaw -- beautiful;

Friendly people, nice place to go again. 

By Linda

Brussels, Belgium

Places to visit:

1. Grand Place

Based in the central part of Brussels, it is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the city. Previously voted ‘most beautiful square in Europe,’ the Grand Place is open to the public and has been serving as a market since 1959. The features of the society and culture of this region of Brussels is blended through the use of architectural and artistic styles within Grand Place. The main part is made up of several houses which have mostly been conserved of the original features however some of the ground floors have been ‘converted’ into cafes and shops. The City Hall is also based here which is made up of a courtyard with buildings all the way around.

2. City Hall

Situated in the Grand Place, this Gothic building dates back to the Middle Ages. It is famous for the rich interior filled with sculptures, paintings and much more!

3. Mini Europe

The name is pretty self explanatory. The park allows you to take a trip around Europe within the span of a few hours! Travel from the Big Ben in London to the gondolas of Venice. The park allows visitors to interact with and control historic events like the fall of the Berlin Wall. The process of developing the Mini Europe Park was long but the end result is definitely one to see with each one of the buildings being scaled 1 to 25. With over 300,000 visitors each year, Mini Europe allows you to see the whole of Europe without going out of your budget!

4. Atomium

Located next to Mini Europe, Atomium is another popular tourist destination. It was built for the 1958 World Fair of Brussels as an icon of Expo58. It was designed and constructed to stand for the democratic will to demonstrate 3 key points: maintain peace throughout all nations, faith in progress and positive vision of the future and a better life for humans. Standing at a height of 102m, Atomium consists of 9 spheres which illustrate the elementary iron crystal and the top sphere allows visitors to get a panoramic view of the city!

5. Cathedral of Saints Michael and Gudula

 

This Roman Catholic Church has a history which extends over 12 centuries. It is the primary church of the country and holds all royal weddings and christenings. This gothic architectural Church features beautifully stained glass windows which have all been designed by various artists.

 

Travelling around the city:

Getting around the city has been made so easy in Brussels as they use the same company for the metro, buses and trams. This means that the ticketing system is the same therefore you can make transfers quicker and purchasing tickets isn’t such a hassle!

Other methods include travelling by train. Brussels has 3 main train stations which have trains travelling to other cities in Belgium and throughout Europe. You may wish to catch a taxi from time to time which is readily available at taxi stands or you may want to rent a car however this will be more costly.
 

Recommended hotels:

Sofitel Brussels Le Louise
Made in Louise
Suite Home Stephanie
Aloft Brussels Schuman Hotel
Hotel Housing
 

Review:

Brussels seems like the perfect place to go if you want to see historic sites and buildings. I have never been myself but it looks like such a beautiful place from looking at the pictures! A few friends of mine have been and they all strongly recommend it..even if it is only for a day trip into Brussels!

 By: Aman

Florence,Italy

Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore 

Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore, located in Florence of Italy. It is claimed that this is the world's third-largest church. This is a Gothic building, 106 meters high, and its external construction design in green, white, and red marble decorative, application architecture, geometric principles. Duao Mo Cathedral , San Giovanni Baptistery, Giotto's Bell Tower and the octagon with a large square, one of three large buildings, extraordinarily magnificent.

Campanile di Giotto

82 meter tower construction next to Church which is place began in 1334 by the architect Giotto columnar. The appearance is a square tower, pink, dark green and cream colors, geometrical color blending, and the flowers next to the church is very harmonious, at the bottom there is a fine relief, internal stairs up to the top of a total of 290 order.

Palazzo Vecchio

 This defense inside the palace was the residence of McGrady odd family (Medici), Michelangelo's "David" from 1873, has been waiting at the door on the left, but is a pastiche. The large hall on the second floor is a large conference hall of the Government of the Republic of Michelangelo's masterpieces "victory" on both sides of the wall. The Royal Palace Florence the most lively the Plazza della Signoria, the father of the “motherland "Kexi Mo. Medici's equestrian statue of the arrogance of the audience. The meeting house adjacent to Loggia dei Lanzi, and there are many ancient and Renaissance-style marble statues.

Many European and American backpackers will choose a youth hostel and a Guest house, which is not expensive and just show the reservation form. All can online booking and pay for fee, typically includes breakfast, Most Shared, travelers can contact different countries understand the multi-culture. 

Uffizi Guesthouse

it is located in the centre of Florence, just 200 metres from the historic Pontevecchio bridge. 

It offers free Wi-Fi throughout, a spacious terrace, and modern rooms.

Lampredotto

Review

Italian tipping habits not as much as Americans high weight , in a more upscale hotel or coffee shop, you need to pay 2 Euros, this is voluntary, not mandatory

By Linda 

Istanbul, Turkey

Istanbul is a famous city where is Located in the junction of Europe and Asia. It was the capital of the Roman Empire, the Byzantine Empire and the Ottoman Turkish Empire, there are a lot of monuments.

1. Blue Mosque

The Blue Mosque (Called Sultanahmet Camii in Turkish) is an historical mosque in Istanbul. One of the most notable features of the Blue Mosque is visible from far away: its six minarets. This is very unique, as most mosques have four, two, or just one minaret. None of the exterior is blue, the name "Blue Mosque" comes from the blue tiles inside, because the high ceiling is lined with the 20,000 blue tiles that give the mosque its popular name.

       

2. Hagia Sophia

The Church of the Holy Wisdom, known as Hagia Sophia (Άγια Σοφία) in Greek, Sancta Sophia in Latin, and Ayasofya or Aya Sofya in Turkish, is a former Byzantine church and former Ottoman mosque in Istanbul. Now a museum, Hagia Sophia is universally acknowledged as one of the great buildings of the world. Famous in particular for its massive dome, it is considered the epitome of Byzantine architecture and is said to have "changed the history of architecture."

 

3. Dolmabahce Palace

Dolmabahçe Palace on the European shore of the Bosphorus in Istanbul is a fitting symbol of the magnificence and decadence of the 19th-century Ottoman Empire. It was the administrative center of the late Ottoman Empire with the last of Ottoman Sultans was residing there.

  

Hotels:

1. The Ambassador Hotel

2. Hotel Nena

   3. Angel's Home Hotel

                                                                                                             By: Devon.