Belgian GP was an event I had not planned for at all in Europe as I wanted to do Hungary GP but a chance conversation at work led me to book tickets and transport to Spa Francorchamps
THe transport was on time but by the time we reached Spa, the first race was nearly done and that is when I realised the reason why people camp there 2 days in advance. By the time the second race got underway, we were inside but struggling to find a place to watch the race from. After much discussion and deliberation, we figured out a spot in time for Porsche Mobil 1 Super cup.
The F1 race got underway a few minutes past 2 and within few minutes we also witnessed the crash of Magnussen in the high speed corner we were watching from. Looks horrible and fantastic at once. He got off without a scratch but the car had to be hauled off by a crane and many laps slowed down due to debris from the crash. Race resumed and got very interesting but from our corner we didn’t have much action. Kimi didn’t do well and so a bit of disappointment but overall race experience was great.
We started making our way out of Spa at 6 but as of this post 5 hours later, I am still an hour away from home because of the amount of traffic and logjams. A detailed post soon
Nik
During my visit to Oslo, i discovered Oslo was pretty unremarkable as city owing to its small size or it is just like almost every other European city excluding its Ski Ramp. However, there is so much to see and do if you use Oslo as a base point for start of travel into Norway.
Oslo can be a starting point to get on to the Scandinavian trains running through some picturesque spots. Or to get to Trolltunga with its jutting rock or to get to Bergen for its promise of Aurora Borealis or to get to Gothenburg in Sweden. One of the smaller excursions from Oslo is the Bærums Verk
Bærums Verk is a small tiny village nestled in the mountains near Oslo with a population of 8000 but was a source of national pride and self-reliance for many centuries as it was a major source of Iron for Norway and used to contain Iron Foundry churning out Cannons to Ovens. Even today, Bærums Verk is reminiscent of the same and not much has changed in the appearance of the place except for shiny shopping centers.
Bærums Verk is also a very nice place for a small hike through the woods in summer when there is a bit of sun and warmth in the air. So if you start off from Oslo towards Bærums Verk via the 168 bus then getting of Bekkestua is a good starting point for the walk. the 7 km walk through the smoothly rising mountains is both amazing and exhilarating. There is not much in terms of being able to get any food or water until you reach Bærums Verk so be forewarned. But the scenic walk is its own reward. At the top, there are nice cafes and restaurants by the river for relaxing and take in the sights and sounds
Nik
We all indulge in instant gratification wherein we do a lot of impulsive purchases or scratch an itch which might be small or not as big as we would have assumed. This behaviour is well exploited by all retailers of all sorts. From supermarket to movie theaters.
In supermarket, there is always candy near the checkout counter to tempt you into buying that one little extra thing during checkout. Or at movie theaters, which screen nice food images during intervals enticing you to step out and pick up that nachos pack which is jacked up 1200%. The list is endless
However, this is not always bad for us, the consumers/customers. Because this very behaviour can be turned against the retailers. The whole point of enticing the buyer is to make a purchase leading to more revenue per customer. Thus if a customer is not making a purchase it means money on the table but not in the retailers bank. If a retailer gives you a nice little nudge in that direction by giving some additional discount or a few bucks worth coupon code, there might be a few who will convert. This behavior of trying to get the retailer to push the price down or provide a different incentive to make a purchase by putting off buying by a small period of time is delayed gratification
Delayed gratification, or deferred gratification, is the ability to resist the temptation for an immediate reward and wait for a later reward. Generally, delayed gratification is associated with resisting a smaller but more immediate reward in order to receive a larger or more enduring reward later.
Source-Wikipedia
This can be observed in ecommerce sites where if you are intend to buy something and buy it in the first go, you might find price tag of X but if you go till checkout and stop before payment, thus abandoning your cart, you might see the same guys, sending you emails or notification advertising additional 5% discount of drop in prices etc
I also used the same behavior to book my Iceland tickets today wherein I had set my ticket price track on Google flights (which if you don’t use, you are wasting time searching through numerous booking websites for the best priced tickets). The ticket prices were initially priced at 168 euros climbing to 178 the next day. Over the weekend, it rose 184 and then to 194. I kept putting off buying tickets as I was determined to wait a while. If I was going to buy, I was going to buy irrespective of the price. Yesterday, I got my price track email informing me it was 168 again. I was determined to wait out one more day to see what would happen. Voilà!!! Today my price track informed me that it was 131 and after booking directly on the airlines site, I was able to snag the tickets for a cool price of 125 euros which gives me a few more euros to indulge in Iceland. Yayyyyy
Nik
When I am travelling, I am not a very picky eater. Veg/Non Veg all become game and depending on what is available, start gorging
And with all things in this world, there are exceptions
Aahaar, when I am in Antwerp, is that
Aahaar is a non assuming sort of place where everything else takes backseat to the food on offer. At 10 euros all you can eat meal being offered, the expectation is somewhat of a not good enough food on offer but that is where Aahaar gets it right. It not only offers a hearty sumptuous menu for its buffet but also very tasty, enough to satisfy hunger and taste cravings at the same time.
Aahaar also offers a wholesome South Indian and North Indian menu to go with the Buffet. The street food such as Sev Puri, Bhel Puri etc is very authentic and delicious. The Buttermilk and Lassis are perfect heat-beaters. The staff is courteous and good.
Overall, too say, Aahaar is highly recommended for lunch and dinner. Just make sure, you are aware of the Opening Time
Nik
We, me, swapna, Ankit and pragya, had been on a trip to Budapest and Bratislava during March 2016. Bratislava was essentially a check box to be checked during the trip.
Budapest offers a wide variety of experience ranging from Prague-esque Castle on the hill to Turkish bath-esque Thermal pools but the most awesomest of them all was Haveli. Haveli was the best Indian restaurant I have ever been to in all of restaurants we have been to thus far and discounting the Italians in their trattorias or Spanish in their Iberian hams.
Haveli is essentially an Indian restaurant in Budapest in its own bubble where everything is Indian about the food like in India. The waiter gets surprised in a wrong way if you tell him to hold back the spice in dal tadka or says it is par to make the biryani a little spicier than normal. Where the pungent spice would make your eyes water because it has no way out and goes into your eyes making you squeamish but also exhilarated about the food to follow. Where the food is so much like in India you start bickering which dish was the best. Where after a tiring day or travel to another country, you only worry about whether you will be awake to eat in Haveli.
Haveli was a pleasant revelation and an unexpected delightful addition to out itinerary in Budapest and would recommend making it part of anyone who is visiting Budapest
Nik
Unbelong to Belong 