Washington D.C. Future Metro and Streetcar Lines

As a local Washingtonian, many people talk about politics and government but one of the main topics of conversation is "where is development heading?"

The map I created below has the future silver line and the future ("proposed") streetcar lines.  There are more proposed rail lines in the area, but I wanted to focus on the ones primarily in the DC area.  Generally for people who want to buy a new house/ apartment in the Washington D.C. area they want to be close to rail/ public transportation.  Arlington's orange line, Ballston-Rosslyn corridor has benefited from the metro line.  Unlike the bus, a rail line brings businesses and improves the living conditions of an area.  Currently the H Street streetcar will be the first finished streetcar system in Washington D.C. Other streetcar systems, such as the Columbia Pike streetcar will be finished in a few years.
There are many proposed streetcar systems in the area and it may take a few years to a few decades to see all the streetcar lines be built.

Key to Map:
CIRCLES (Metro Stations):
Yellow Circles: Current Metro Stations
Light Grey Circles: 1st Phase of the Silver Line, "Opening Soon"
Dark Grey Circles: 2nd Phase of the Silver Line and Open in 2018, but it will probably be 2019 since metro is always late with construction.
White Circle: Proposed Metro Station

DIAMONDS (Streetcar stations):
Dark Brown Diamonds: Constructed Stations (Currently only on H Street Line)
White Diamonds: Proposed Streetcar Station

Lines:
Yellow: Yellow Line
Red: Red Line
Green: Green Line
Blue: Blue Line
Silver: New Silver Line
Purple: Proposed Purple Rail Line (streetcar)
Pink: Streetcar Lines

Brussels Transportation Map

This is a map of Brussels, Belgium and the surrounding area.  I used to live in Brussels and thought I would upload some major sites, transportation networks, restaurants, and stores that I liked.

This map is good for tourist who are interested in the city but also for people who might move to the area.  

Map of University Fribourg, Switzerland

Below is a map of Fribourg, Switzerland.  I am currently studying at the University of Fribourg and made this map for future students or people that are interested in visiting city/university or attending the university.


Key:
Red Star: Train Station
Red Squares: Additional Information
Grey Polygons: University Buildings
Green Diamond: Park
Green Polygon: Park/Green Space
Purple Diamond: Bar/Club
Red Circle: Student Organization
Purple Polygon: Shopping
Yellow Diamond: Restaurants
Blue Star: Immigration Office
Black Circle: ATM/Bank
Light Green Square: Grocery Store
Purple Square: Tourist Site
Light Blue Square: Ski Resort

Photos from London

Some photos below of London you all to see.

Camden Town market area, this area was great to hang out on a sunny day.  Relax near the river, look at the venders and shop, eat wonderful food and meet new people.

Camden Town market - its a mad house, so many people are on the street.  Its a fun area, you will love the people watching and the experience.

This was the London Ice bar, it is marked on my map. I am sorry it is not the best photo of the bar, but it gives you an idea of how it looks.

Regent's Park- very close to the hostel I was staying in.  After a day in camden come here to lay out and relax or have a picnic!

This was the fish box order from the Sea Shell Restaurant (http://www.seashellrestaurant.co.uk/)
This restaurant has a fancy restaurant area which is over priced and it has a take away area which is the same food but a fraction of the price.  I think the fish box was around 5-6 pounds it was a lot of food! Fish and Chips!

Tower Bridge - Bring good shoes for London, you will be doing a lot of walking! Great views from this bridge. 

Photo of London

I loved walking down this street

My photo: follow my Instagram: st572

Great Map of London, Some Food, Sites and Drinks

I was in London a few weeks ago with a few friends and we stayed at the Phoenix Hostel, which is the star on the map.  The map I created is centered around this hostel since it was were I was staying.  I marked the bus stops and Tube stations that are around the hostel.  The hostel was okay, I would give it 3 stars for a hostel.  It was clean, the people who worked there were not the most friendly but okay, the bar in the hostel was cheap, the beds were nice, rooms were a little cozy.

On the map I made:
I marked a few of the places I went to, the hostel, some of the major tourist sites, some markets, bars, clubs and a few parks.

You must see: Camden Market! (best vender food I have ever experienced) & SOHO (loved this area!)

You must buy: An Oyster Card (for the transport system in London, only buy for zones 1 and 2)
its around 40 pounds or so (for zones 1 and 2), if you are there for around a week its great! It will save you money if you will be taking the tube or bus a lot.  Its good for the night buses too! Everything within the zones you pay for.

London has so much to see and do!

I was only there for 6 days and didn't see half the city.  Take your time here and stay for as long as you can as London has so much to offer!

If you want to know anything else, please comment.

Below is the link to the overall London transportation website:
http://www.tfl.gov.uk/

Below is the link to the transportation around Phoenix Hostel (located on 6 Daventry Street):
http://www.tfl.gov.uk/maps?Input=6+Daventry+St&InputGeolocation=-0.166677102446556,51.5213317871094

Getting to Maastricht, Netherlands from Aachen, Germany

Take Veolia Bus 50 to Maastricht it only costs 8 Euros roundtrip for the entire day (more information at www.veolia-transport.nl).  This is a great price and is the same throughout the week so this is a great trip to take during a weekday and go to Belgium on the weekend to be cost effective.  The bus station we took the bus at was Aachen Schanz train station.  There are other bus stations in Aachen that the bus travels to so look on the Veolia website to find out more details.

Some Photos of the city. 

This city is great for shopping, eating and biking.  

Here are some photos of the city that I took:  

Weekend Trip to Liege, Belgium - Cheapest Trip from Aachen

This past weekend I went to Aachen to visit a few friends and went on a few day trips to nearby cities within easy commutes from Aachen.  We went to Liege on one of the days and found a very good weekend travel deal to Liege, called the Euregio weekend ticket. The ticket we bought was a two-person ticket that cost in total for the two of us 18 Euros (more details at www.euregioticket.eu).  The two-person ticket included all day travel between any part of the Aachen, Maastricht, and Liege area.  The ticket also included local public transportation in all these areas.  This is a great deal and you can take full advantage of this ticket if you start your day early.  During the weekday, to go to Liege it would have cost 18 Euros per person so when you go on the weekend it is half the price. In Belgium, you are able to travel to Liege, Spa, Hasselt, Tongeren, Eupen and town in between these cities.

            Go to the main train station in Aachen (Aachen Hbf) and ask the people at the ticket office for the Euregio ticket to Liege.   This ticket is best for two people and will allow you all day travel.  The train to Liege runs every two hours.  Look up the train times on the www.euregioticket.eu, www.bahn.de.  We arrived at the train station in Liege and walked down the stairs to the bus station area.  We took the bus in the direction of the Opera.  We went to the last bus station and walked to the city center from there.  Other major buses to take are bus number 1 and 4 to the city center.  We took bus 4 back to the train station in the evening as it runs more frequent. There are two train stations in Liege, you will arrive and depart from Liege-Guillemins. 

The Montagne of Bueren - there are 374 steps along the staircase - beautiful views from the top

Place du Marché - Perfect place for a Belgian beer and people watching

Croque monsieur with fries and a beer - a perfect snack in Belgium

Lifesaving Map of Nice Airport to Nice Center Bus 98

I made this map on the bus that will take you from the Airport to the Center of Nice.  It takes about 40-45 min to get to the city center from the airport and it cost €6 per person each way.  Its an easy bus ride and during the day you will get to see all the beaches Nice has to offer.  I hope the map is helpful.

A Local Berliner's Travel Map of Berlin, Germany - Tourist Spots - Beaches - Hidden Places - Great Clubs

Key for the Map:
Red Circles: Major Sites
Light Blue Circles: Shopping
Green Circle: Parks/ Green Space
Blue Square: Lakes
Purple Diamond: Club/Bar
Yellow Square: Resturant
Yellow Star: US Embassy/ Consulate

I lived in Berlin for two years and I love this city so much.  I have marked a few places on the map.  I will be adding more places to see and do as well as to eat in the next few days.  I thought I would share some places now to you all.  Berlin is a great place to visit. I would say come here for however long you are able to stay.  I lived here for two years and did not see everything.  Its a big city with a lot of history.  The city has many activities to do during the day and during the night.  I will be adding links to helpful websites that will be useful.  If you have any questions or would like to see anything else useful to you please leave a comment.

Menton, France Current and Up to Date Photos of this Quiet Beach Town

I was last week in Menton and I really enjoyed this town on my trip to Nice.  I wish I had spent a longer time here as the town had a more Italian atmosphere then Nice and the prices for food and drinks were cheaper.  This is a lovely place to walk around, relax at the beach, eat and drink.

Above: Plage des Sablettes, this is a perfect place for an ice cream and to relax with friends.  You are close to the restaurants and town center.

Above: A small fort on the boardwalk

Above: View of the boardwalk from the beach

Above: Plage du Fossan

Above: The view from le cafe du vieux port, I was enjoying a coffee as I saw people pass by.  Great people watching and nice view of the mountains and sea. 

Monaco, Menton: Side Trips from Nice, France that you will Never Forget

On my last trip to Nice, I went to Monaco and Menton.  They were very nice places to visit and I wanted to share some of the information I learned from going there.  The cities are worth going to! Menton is very Italian and has many good restaurants and coffee places.  Monaco is very beautiful and has many amazing boats in the port that you must see. I hope this map helps!

Monaco: Quick Trips from Nice, France - Current Spring 2014 Information

Quick Trip to Monaco and Menton:

Bus Guide: http://www.lignesdazur.com/ftp/lignes_FR/100%20hiver.pdf

Take a trip from Nice to Monaco and Menton in a day.

Wake up early and go see both these beautiful cities in a day.  Some people may want to visit both of these places in two separate trips because there is so much to see in both.

My friends and I only had 3 days in Nice so we wanted to squeeze everything into one day.

Monaco:
Take Bus 100 to Monaco for 1.50 euro one way and get off at the Office of Tourism stop.  It's the 4th stop in Monaco and it drops you off at the office of tourism which is in the center of the country.  You are able to collect a few maps of the city and any other information you wish to have.  You are within walking distance to everything so you can start by walking to the Casino.  Walk along the water toward the Port and you will be able to see the amazing boats in the port.  You will get to see the famous race track in the city walking this way as well.
head to the Palais Princier to see the famous palace.  You can walk through the narrow strips that are full of vendors and shops till you reach the cathedral.  One of the most famous sites in Monaco is the Musee Oceanographique et Aquarium, this aquarium had a large line outside.  I did not go in because it was not in my budget but it had a long line and from what people told me it must be good.

This was about it, that I saw in Monaco, it is not the entire city but it was lovely.  We walked through a few parks and a long the water before we left for Menton.  I ate a panini in one of the shops in the alleyways around the palace and the cathedral.  My panini was 3.90 euros.  It was pretty good too!

We walked back to the bus stop, Office of Tourism and waited for the next bus to Menton.  We had to pay another 1.50 euro for the bus.

Above: View of the harbor

Above: View of the city

Above: the casino

Above: The palace 

Map of the major sites to see in Nice, France

This map shows the major places in Nice,France.  I was told by many people in Nice of where to go and what to see.   This is a summary of where I went.  I hope this is able to help some people.

Nice, France Trip

The last couple of days I was in Nice, France on a short trip with a few of my friends. We were on a budget and found a great hostel and side trips to take that were well in our budget. We flew from Geneva to Nice using Easyjet and the flight was only $84 roundtrip (http://www.easyjet.com/en/).

The hostel we stayed at was called:

The Hostel Smith ( http://www.hostelsmith.com/) 

This hostel was really nice. The people who worked there were very friendly and helpful with explaining the city to my friends and me. The price of the hostel was very cheap for the location. I paid around €50 for 3 nights. The location was the best part. We were in the center of the city and only 3 min from the beach.  There were many bars in close proximity to the hostel and we could walk everywhere. The hostel was clean and there was very good wifi.  My friends that stayed in the all female dorm did not have a strong connection in their room.  I stayed in the 6 person mixed room and had good wifi and felt that the room was clean.  The showers were very nice, good temperature for he water and water pressure.  The shower rooms are coed on the floor I was staying in.  There are a few plugs in the hostel so when you find one claim one! The free breakfast in the morning is not really a breakfast, it is coffee and tea with toast and jams.  Its free and is from 9:30 to 10:30.  

The beach was spectacular. Be warned, the beaches are rocky so bring sandals or your feet will hurt. I loved the beaches. It's the middle of April and it was sunny around 23C or 75F. The water is a little cold but if you are used to cold pacific or cold Portugal water you will be fine. Jump in and move around and you will be fine. 

Photos:

Above: The beach closest to the hostel. 3 min walk.

Above: This area was near the Port of Nice and it was mainly cliffs and small beaches.

Above: This beach was called Beau Rivage Plage. It was close to the hostel but most importantly near the bathrooms and showers. It was also close to the nearest Spar (a grocery store). I was on a budget here and buying food at the Spar was really nice to have nearby.

Above: The port of Nice. Amazing boats and many nice restaurants are in this area.

Above: View from the Parc de la Colline du Château. Great place to hang out with friends. Also very cheap postcards at the top. I bought post cards for 30 cents each and if you want to buy 7 postcards there is a deal for €2 = 7 postcards. Also come here to see the waterfall.

Above: The city center area. I liked this area because of the ice cream place. It was a little expensive. Around €2 for 1 scoop/ boule and €2.80 for 2 scoops. The flavors were interesting. They had everything from Rose flavored to beer flavored. 

Introduction:

Smart and easy maps, interesting thoughts, and adventurous experiences.  I have traveled a lot in my life and have lived in many different cities and countries.  I am currently living in Switzerland now and want to share some basic travel information to any one that would want to know.

Follow my instagram for more updated photos of trips I am on: st572




Follow my instagram.

There will be more maps and summaries of places I have been.  I will be writing about Berlin, Dublin, London, Brussels, Prague, Bratislava, Vienna, Geneva, Zurich, Switzerland as a whole country, Washington D.C. and many other places that I have traveled to or lived in.