Live music in Hamburg

If you love live music, you will certainly enjoy a stay in Hamburg! Naturally, big cities are always more frequently visited by musicians on tour, and the north German metropolis is one of the cities in Germany where they usually stop. But there are also some things that are special about Hamburg’s music culture and I’d like to share some of my experiences here.

As far as genres are concerned, there is really something for every taste. Of course, Hamburg is famous as a host to several award-winning musicals and it’s actually the third biggest musical location in the world, only outdone by New York and London. As for classical music, you have the Music hall Hamburg (Laeiszhalle) where both the Philharmoniker Hamburg and the North German Radio Symphony Orchestra play regularly. The Elbphilharmonie Hamburg is still under construction at the time of writing. This massive concert hall located at the harbour in central Hamburg calls itself “Europe’s largest cultural construction site”.

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Eurovision – WE ARE ONE!

The party is over for another year.

We enjoy watching and listening to everything that involves different countries and languages so we are naturally all big Eurovision fans here at Apple Languages!

Here are some thoughts I’d personally like to share about this event.

Each year I like to hold a Eurovision party where all guests represent one of the participating countries, dress up in a traditional outfit or flag and bring a typical dish from that country! Since watching the semi-finals, I thought Greece’s act was brilliant and one of the only songs that really captured my imagination of what the ‘party-mood’ should be like, so I decided to represent that country. Other guests at the party represented Italy, Sweden, Germany, Spain and England, so you can imagine that we had loads of delicious dishes!

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London – a city like no other

The UK is made up of many villages, towns, cities, green fields, rolling landscapes, historic buildings, polite and proper people, diverse regions, accents and cultures… and then there is London! London is the powerhouse of the UK economy, a truly global city matched only by the likes of New York, Hong Kong and Tokyo. As seemingly important for Europe as it is for the UK, it is the world’s most visited city based on foreign arrivals, has the world’s largest city airport system and the largest metropolitan area in the EU!

London may seem a daunting place in which to visit and learn English, but with all our schools in travel zone 1, close to underground stations and tourist attractions, together with all accommodation within easy reach, it could not be easier to take a language course in the UK’s capital city.

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Stockholm in my heart

I just came back from my fourth trip to Stockholm and already I can’t wait for my fifth! Stockholm is a lovely place to be at any time of the year and its location at the coast and the warm Gulf Stream make it warmer than you might expect from a Scandinavian city. This year I went in early May when the weather had just taken a change and all the trees and flowers just started blooming. It was really a great atmosphere in the city with all the Swedish people taking pictures of the blooming cherry trees and waiting in long queues to get some ice cream at lunch break!

A must during any stay in Stockholm is a walk through the old town which is called Gamla stan in Swedish. This part of the city, like all of them actually, is located on an island and connected to other parts of the city via bridges, subways and ferries. Gamla stan is home to the Swedish Parliament House, Royal Palace and Stockholm Cathedral, among others. The medieval architecture and cobbled streets found here are, in addition to its unique waterfront location, one of the reasons why Sweden’s capital is famed for its beauty.

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My Greek experience in Chania!

As a true lover of Crete I just had to visit the islands second largest city, Chania! Chania is a beautiful city divided in the old- and new town, with lots of historical sites in both parts and famous for its lighthouse and harbor.

It was quite late in the evening when I arrived in Chania for the first time. The streets were still very lively and the atmosphere was great. The main square is surrounded by restaurants and taverna’s, where both tourists and locals were enjoying their diner and drinks. We chose to have diner in one of the restaurants near the water, from there we had a perfect view over the traditional and characteristic lighthouse, which lightens up during the evening and night. After having an amazing souvlaki diner and downing the ouzo shots you get if you receive the bill (it is impolite if you don’t drink them, since it is a gift from the restaurant!) we decided to walk around for a bit.

Near the main square you can find an impressive building that has been bombed during the Second World War. In the old town you can find many historical sites that are related to the Second World War. You will also see some Turkish influence, near the harbour you can find a Turkish Mosque that is used as an indoor market and art gallery nowadays.

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Incredible Malaga

It has been quite a long time since we’ve posted about Malaga and although I personally hadn’t visited this historic city before, I thought I knew all there was to know since it is one of our most popular locations – and home to one of the very best Spanish schools in Spain! I certainly didn’t realise how fascinating the city itself was, or how special it is for the visitor that wants it all – great food, historic landmarks, large city nightlife and vast stretches of beach.

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Perfect Pisa

Hello everyone!

If I name the city Pisa, you will probably think about the Leaning Tower of Pisa and all the funny photos everybody takes below it trying to make it not fall down!

But besides this fantastic monument and the famous Piazza dei Miracoli, Pisa is also well known, at least among the Italians, for being one of the best University cities and offering to its students a really amazing night life!!

I have a few friends studying there and every time I can, I go there for the weekend! The city is really pretty and quite easy to get around by bike or foot with two nice bridges linking the two parts of the city together.

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Sevilla tiene un color especial!

If you enjoy watching expert equestrian riders, amazing (but also controversial) bullfighters, flamenco dancers and huge parties, the Feria will definitely not disappoint you!

The Seville April Fair (Feria de Abril) is held this week in Seville, Andalusia. This year we see it taking place from 16th to 21st April, two weeks after Easter Holy Week (Semana Santa de Sevilla).

Officially, this year’s amazing fiesta began on Monday at midnight with the prueba del alumbrado (lighting test), in which thousands of colored light bulbs were lit around the main gate of the city.

The Feria will run for six days and starts with a parade of flower decorated carriages with expert riders, carrying Sevillian dignitaries through the city towards the Spain’s oldest and most unforgiving bullring (La Real Maestranza).

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Discovering Münster

Compared to cities like Berlin or Munich, the German city of Münster has certainly been more of an insider tip for tourists. We Germans, however, know that “Westphalia’s capital” is well worth a visit!

The University City combines the old and the new and is something for everyone who likes a city that is laid-back and safe, but at the same time very cultural and stylish.

Münster has always been one of Germany’s most popular cities for students so it’s no wonder that the city is also one of the youngest in terms of its population.

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Valencia’s amazing zoo!

Anyone familiar with Valencia will know that the city has some amazing attractions. You could spend several days exploring the futuristic buildings of the City of Arts and Sciences, the beach is stunning with miles of golden sand and who wouldn’t enjoy the simple pleasure of enjoying a coffee as you watch the world go by in the sunny Plaza de la Virgen.

What you may not be so familiar with is Valencia’s amazing zoo.  This zoological wonder was opened in 2008, and is built in the gardens created from the bed of the old River Turia.

To simply call this attraction a zoo is really an unfair description, and in my opinion, doesn’t do justice to the either the animal or visitor experience. The ‘zoo’ is in fact a state of the art ‘bioparc’, advertised as being the most advanced in Europe.

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