Author Archives: Yannani

This weekend I went to my first ever gaming convention called Gameforce. It was held in Brussels and I got to see and play a bunch of cool things.

We decided to be there around 3 pm, because I figured that 3h seemed to be enough time for us to see everything the event would have to offer. This time we decided to take the subway since it was the easiest and most direct way of transportation. There was one child who cried for almost 6 stops straight, but thankfully they stepped off before us and we could travel the last distance in peace. When we arrive at the area we started going the wrong way because this time the convention was in another building, but we figured it out eventually xD

Walking through the main entrance we instantly could see a bunch of different stalls and almost every single one of them had a gaming area. There were a lot of different companies too such as Intel, Steelseries, Alternate, JBL, Square Enix, Bethesda etc…

The first thing we wanted to do was just walk around to see what was there and then we would head towards some of the stalls to take a better look. There were a lot of people there and some of them were even in cosplay which wasn’t too surprising since this was a convention after all. Most of the cosplays were either league or Genshin related.

We stayed until it was just about to close. At this convention there weren’t a lot of places that sold things so we didn’t get a lot. In total we got a Japanese goodie back and Nathan bought me my birthday present. As for the games I got to play some “Mario sunshine” and try out the demo for the new “A plague tale requiem” Can’t wait until that game releases in a couple of weeks.

On our way home we were unfortunate because the bus we usually take from the city to where we live decided to change the route which meant that we had to get of and walk home which was one thing I hoped to avoid after walking all day and the convention.

When we got home we just collapsed on the sofa. Spent the rest of the evening playing games with friends.

Yesterday I arrived home after my two weeks of vacation. It was nice to be back, but I do wish that I could have some more time to spend with friends.

On my last day in Norway which was on the 29th my mum and I went shopping for some outfits for me. I also went to the hairdresser so that they could just cut the worst ends for me. I got some new pants and tops which both were stylish and practical. Later in the afternoon we met up with a family friend, because she had invited us both for “ladies lunch”. Then afterwards we went to the cinema and saw the new Elvis movie. It was a really insightful movie. All in all it was nice chill way to end my time in Norway. My dad was so kind and drove me to the airport the next day. I almost cried when I said goodbye at the airport.

My next little stop was Denmark since I had a connecting flight to get me to Frankfurt. I met up with a who I met through streaming. It was our first meetup so I was a bit nervous, but it was really nice. We had lunch together at the airport while I was waiting for my next departure and we just spent that time hanging out and getting to know each other. At around 12:45 we said our goodbyes as I headed towards the security and to my next plane. Little did I know that the plane ended up being 1h delayed because of some technical issue, but we sorted everything out and then it was off to Frankfurt.

Upon arrival I just decided to head towards the exit as fast as I could. I took my bags and went outside. Then my friend called me and asked where I was. It took us almost 10 min of walking back and forth with both of us being confused until I realized that was on the wrong floor and had to take the stairs down. Apparently I had exited on the floor for departures and I had to go down to get to arrivals. We had a great laugh when we finally managed to meet up. Then we head back to her place which would be home for the rest of the week.

The rest of the week was really nice and chill compared to Norway. The first couple of days we just decided to chill and relax. My friend was also quite tired the first night since I had kept her awake with my snoring so she ended up sleeping on the couch xD. We just walked the dogs (she and her mum have 4 together), visited her pony and met with her friends who also have 4 dogs. In the evening we played games with our friends. I also tried out VR for the first time and was having a blast playing “Beat Saber”.

On Thursday however we had plans on going to a carnival in the evening that was being held in one of the neighbour city. During the day we walked the dogs and visited a thrift shop cause my friends mum. They had some really nice cloths for a cheap penny. I got three tops and a bag for around € 10. My friend also got a lovely bag and nice denim jacket with leather arms.

At around 6 pm me, my friend and her roommate all went to the carnival together. It was HUGE with a bunch of different stalls and attractions. They sold everything from food, furniture, services etc. We walked around for hours. My friend and I went into “the fun house” as it’s called. Then we all took the Ferris wheel together and the view from the top was amazing with all the lights one. I also did the attraction where you try to knock down a tower of cans. They had a deal where if you nocked everything down with only three shots you could choose any prize. I managed to show of some impressive moves such as only hitting the top can and only hitting the middle can without knocking the dower down. I didn’t managed to know the entire tower, but I won a yellow duck xD We stayed until it was almost 10 pm.

The next day we had plans to head into the other city to go shopping. We went to the City Galerie aka a shopping center. Here I bought myself 4 comfy bralettes, a wallet and something for my pc. It was nice to go shopping with my friend. It’s been a while since I went girl shopping. She helped me find the perfect fit. I also got another pair of nice, comfy pants. After that we met up with the guys and had sushi. It was delicious. My friend and I ordered 3 plates to share and they put everything on one big board in the middle and then we could share it however we liked. One of the guys tried wasabi for the first time and it was a bit funny to watch because he ended up putting on too much. Both me and my friend were so full after that meal. Later we met up with the guys again for our evening walk with the dogs.

The dogs were super sweet. There was my friend’s dogs: Puffy, Lana, Ani and Ricco. Then there were the guy’s dogs: Stella, Bonnie, Coco and Nami. They were super fun to hang out with and I was usually the one carrying the treats which made the dogs go crazy. Ani is the oldest one and she usually spent the night with us. Puffy and Lana were the most energetic and Ricco is a mommy’s boy and barely let me pet him. I really love being around dogs. There energy just rubs off in such a amazing way.

I headed home yesterday. Decided to just take the train all the way back to Antwerp, because it was more chill that way. After our daily morning walk my friend drove me to the train station. We had some McDonalds while waiting for the train. It took me around 6h all together. Nathan met up with me in the city and we decided to head to Wagamama together for dinner. I told him everything and we had an amazing time catching up. On our way home it started to rain and we ended up getting pretty wet. I was met with a lovely surprise when I got home, our new bed had arrived. I tested it out and it was really nice. The rest of the evening I just spent updating stuff on my pc and playing some games with the guys. Tomorrow schools starts again so gotta enjoy the free time while I still can xD

I hope you guys have had an amazing summer as well whether or not you have been traveling or just stayed home and for anyone who is starting or has started their studies I wish them good luck ^^

The trip yesterday went to a place called Blaafarveværket. It’s the furthest we have ever gotten this time. This was my favourite trip by far.

We headed out in the car at around noon. The weather was just as beautiful as on the other days. I shared my playlist while we were driving in the car. The entire car ride took almost 2h.

I really loved the art thats was displayed at “Blaafarveværket” because it were paintings that has been used a lot for norwegian folktales, so I recognised some of the art work. The were art from a guy called “Kittelsen” who is known for is paintings being folktale related.

After walking through the gallery we decided to go and get some lunch since the clock was already around 3 pm and non of us had eaten any breakfast. We sat down at the cafe there and had some waffles. They were really delicious and perfect for as a small lunch.

When everyone had eaten we decided to just sit and relax. Looking out over the small river. We walked around for a bit and I went up to see the giant waterfall.

After a very long day it was time to head home. On our way home I decided to listen to my music by myself. At home we had prawns with spaghetti and sauce for dinner.

Yesterday we had a long day planned here in Oslo. On our schedule we was two museums/galleries, a boat ride and then dinner at a lovely restaurant at the end of the day.

We decided to leave the house around 1 pm, because we had a lot of things to get through before our dinner reservation at 5:30 pm, plus the cleaning lady was still in the house so we didn’t want to be in her way while she was working. All three of us mad our way down to the tram station.

The first stop on our agenda was an open gallery called “Fine art” which also work as a store where people could buy the paintings that were hanging on the wall. The paintings were made buy a guy called Nikolai Torgersen. He had mostly animal paintings and some landscape ones. According to my mum he did have a really rough childhood as well.

After the were done there we made our way over to the National Museum that was just around the corner. We didn’t have that much time so we only visited the top floor were they displayed arts from different rare artists. Some of the art were weird while other were quite impressive. We decided to take a small drink out on the roof since they had put up a small café there.

At 5pm it was off with the boat to Nesoddtangen where there restaurant was. It was called “Signalen” and was located right by the seaside. We got to sit outside which meant we had a perfect view over the fjord. Since it was my parent’s wedding anniversary we decide do spoil ourself with a 3 course dinner.

For starters we had tartar of kalf all three of us and for the main course I had a pizza with truffle salami, salad and mushrooms. Everything was really tasteful.

We enjoyed the view until it was time to go home. We took the same boat back and then it was just to take the tram all the way home. When we got home we watched the last two episodes of Sheerwood

Yesterday spent the entire day in Drammen. Visited a museum, had dinner by the waterside and visited family, It was really fun and great to see family again.

We headed off around 1 pm because the museum we were heading to were only open until 3 pm and it took us around 1h to get there. Since my parents hadn’t been there before we did struggle a bit to locate it, but after driving around for a bit we did managed to get there eventually. The place was called “Drammen Museum” and had multiple departments and this was one of them. Upon arrival it was already 2 pm so the lady said that since it was only 1h left and because they had part of the museum closed she would give is free access, which was really great. There were too buildings with two floors. The oldest things started from the top and got more modern as you walked down. The second floor was my favourite because is was filled with a lot of great things that had so much history behind it.

The second house had a small gallery which I didn’t find that interesting since paintings aren’t really my thing, but some of them were really nice. There were apparently paintings from a lot of famous Norwegian artists.

After we were done with the museum we still had a lot of time to kill before we were visiting my cousin, so we parked the car in the city and took a small walk down by the river side. The weather was beautiful with it being around 25 degrees. We decided to have a drink at Norwegians biggest square that was located in the city. It’s called “Bragernes Square” and it was pretty huge. There was a lovely pub and we decided to have something to drink. I went with a apple cider which tasted really nice. I basically asked the waiter which of the ciders that was the sweetest and he suggested the apple one.

When we had rested our legs for a moments we headed off to a restaurant where we had booked a table for the three of us. The restaurant was located right by the river side so we had a lovely view look out over the river. The place was called “Kawa” and was apparently an Asian inspired restaurant. My dad and I had Chicken Katsu while my mum had salmon sashimi and a chicken salad. For drinks I spotted a Lychee martini and really wanted to try it out. it was amazing. I was worried that I would taste the alcohol and not like it but the sweetness of the drink triumphed that. They also had a cocktail that contained dragon fruit which also sounded tempting, but that’s for next time.

After our delicious dinner we went to the care and headed towards my cousin’s place. She had recently moved into a small house together with her boyfriend. The place was located on a lovely quite hillside. She had talked about it being working project to get it finished and she wasn’t kidding. They had done tons of renovations and they were still not even half way there. She showed us around and explained her plans and it that it most likely will take the rest of the year if not more to have everything done. We all sat down and talked and I told them about my life in Belgium and about the new “ID” card I had gotten. We got to meet my cousin’s new dog called Bitten. She was really sweet and also really playful. Since it was getting late we decide not to stay for too long. We still had around 1h long drive.

As we got home it was time to relax for the evening. We watched a couple of episodes of the tv series together until we all headed to our rooms for the rest of the night.

Today we decided to have a calm day since my mum woke up with a migraine.

Yesterday our adventures took us to a sculpture park outside of the city called “Kistefos Museum”. The weather was lovely and the area where the park was located was really lovely. I had a lot of fun and saw some really cool pieces.

Since the park was outside of Oslo we had a small road trip for around 1h. We listened some music which is always great. I had almost forgotten how beautiful Norwegian landscape is with all the nature everywhere. When we arrived at the park which was located down in a sort of valley we started our day. The park went in a circle so we could just follow the path around it.

Our first stop was a bridge that they had made in to museum and was called “The Twist”. The story behind was that when the park was made they had to make a bridge over a river. There was a competition and the guy who one decided to make a bridge that looked as it had been twisted. Inside there were a bunch of paintings and some other things that made the building really cool. The weirdest part was the toilet, specifically the woman’s toilet. They had installed a projector in the stalls that showed a zoomed in mouth that kept talking to you. I didn’t really like the experience since I prefer just silence, but it was definitely unique

The next place we went to was museum that represented how the old lumber factory used to operate with the help of the water current and a giant water wheel before electricity was invented. The place was really huge and really detailed. You could also interact with the machines which would show you how the process was done.

Then next to the factory they had different houses to show how lived at that time. This house belong to the owner. It was quite big and I loved how big each room was. I honestly wouldn’t mind living in this sort of house today. I defiantly gave me the cottage vibe.

As you walked around in the park you could see bunch of different sculptures that were placed around the park. Some were in the water, some were on the hill side and some even went into the ground. They really did a great job of using the surroundings as a giant canvas. We were there until they closed which was around 5 pm.

When we got home my dad and I decided to get takeaway since we had had a late lunch at the park, but still wanted some form of dinner. We went to a “Bislett kebab” which was a place I used to go to a lot back when I was living here. The place always give such a big potion despite it still being a “small”.

After dinner the whole family started watching a new series together called “Sherwood”. It is based on a true story back when people still worked in the mines. It was really interesting so if anyone is interested in crime series with some history behind it I recommend this one.

Yesterday my family and I decided to take the boat to an island called “Hovedøya”. We used yo go there a lot during the summer when me and sister were growing up, and it was really nice to revisit the place

We had a pretty lazy morning and didn’t head out until around 4 pm, which I didn’t mind at all. When everyone was ready we walked down to the tram and took it all the way to the harbour. The boat that we were going to take was quite popular which meant a lot of people. The boat ride was really lovely with a great view over the Oslo fjord.

When we arrived to the island we headed off to the beach where we were planning on having out picnic. My mother did however forgot her seating mat on the toilet, so I had to go back and get it for her while they found a place to sit. It didn’t take more than 5 min and when I came back my parents were already preparing our food.

On the menu we had burgers which we had prepared in advanced with two side salads. The burger was a unfortunately quite rare, but I ate it anyway since we didn’t have any other food. After food we just sat there and enjoyed the sea breeze and the sun until it was time to head home.

After arond 6 hours we were home and just relaxed for the rest of the evening. I decided to make a bowl of noodles since I was still hungry. Then I just ended my day with talking to Nathan.

I hope you guys are having a great week so far.

Today was my first day of my second vacay to Norway. My family and I went to visit the old farm that was really big and was filled with a bunch of history.

We started our day by just waking up and making some breakfast. Then we left the house at around noon because we wanted to be at the farm before 1 pm. The place we went to is called Bogstad farm also known as a “Herregård”. Back in the olden day it was one of the biggest farms in Oslo area and owned by one of the most wealthiest families at that time. When we arrived to the farm we just got something to drink while waiting for the tour to begin.

The tour was really nice and insightful. We were shown around the main building and got told history behind everyone who owned it through out the 1700 up until the 1800, and let me tell you something. There were ALOT of people who owned it. All from regular people to even royalty. It was really fun to hear about how the family evolved and how the different generations made different changes to the house.

After the tour we decided to sit down and have a late lunch. Everyone went with the same thing, prawn sandwich with some lettuce and mayo. We talked about the tour and just chatted about life in general. When everyone had eaten we decide to check out the garden before we leave, and there they even had a couple of animals such as chickens and turkeys. The also had some beautiful flowers and a small vegetable area. We headed home at around 3:30 pm.

The rest of the evening was left for chill and picking out a tv series for us to watch. Since my mum had a church concert me and my dad had dinner by our self. We had lasagna with garlic bread which was really tasty.

I ended the day with just talking with Nathan and playing some TFT together. Tomorrow is a new day with more outings 😀

I hope you guys are still having a great summer and that you haven’t melted from the heat yet.

Today I was ready to head up to the Netherlands with my friend because tomorrow we are heading to TwitchCon Amsterdam, but the trip didn’t go as smoothly as I had hoped. Everything that could go wrong happened.

After I packed everything I decided to check the public transport to check which trains I needed to take and when. The plan was to take a the train towards Hasselt from Antwerpen Centraal, then my friend would pick me up and drive us both up to her boyfriend’s place in the Netherlands. Well it didn’t turn out quite that way.

To start us off the bus was tram was delayed with around 5 min which caused me to miss my train towards Hasselt. I would have taken the other one if they didn’t only go once every hour. So I had to find a solution, because my friend could not wait 1h. I figured that I’ll get myself to the Netherlands and then they could just pick me up there. It started with having to wait 1h for the right train so that I could take it one stop further.

When I arrived to Antwerpen Berchem I got really confused because online it said that the train would arrive on track 7, but it had operantly arrived on number 8 which wasn’t a big deal because they were right next to each other. Now came the second problem which was that I wasn’t 100% sure that the train on track 8 was mine and it was about to leave. When I tried to talk to the conductor he just shook his head and waved at me to go away. So I was left quite confused, but one thing was for sure and that was that I had missed my main train into the Netherlands. It was time for me to wait yet another hour for the next one!

When I finally got on the train I thought the worst was over. I ended up falling asleep out of exhaustion, and of course when I finally woke up we were just about to leave Breda train station and I didn’t manage to get off. I started panicking because I didn’t know where I was heading next, so I checked the map and it seemed like I was heading to Rotterdam. My next step now was to figure out the best way to get to my location given my new route.

I googled it and figured that the easiest way was to get off on Rotterdam Central and take a train back to Breda and then swap again to the correct one aka the one I was suppose to get one. So I had to wait another 30 min in Rotterdam, but when I got back to Breda I finally managed to get on the right train and from here it was just sit back, relax and don’t fall a sleep xD. My friends met me at the Zutphen and the nightmare was finally over.

I was suppose to only spend 2h30min with public transport and it ended up taking 6h30 min in total with all the waiting, swapping and just the train ride. At some point was almost at the blink of giving up and just head home. I even just wanted to lie down and cry at some point. I do really hope that the trip home goes without ANY hiccups, cause I do not wish to experience this again.

One good thing was that I got to see more of the Netherlands than planned and I got to experience a two deck train for the first time xD

I spent the rest of evening just getting something to eat, hang out with my friends and just relax. I am still very excited for TwitchCon tomorrow and be meeting some cool people. It’s my first time there so I’ll be taking pictures and there will be a post about it tomorrow when I get home.