The place where tree goddesses keep Buddha company; where a Zen Buddhist temple invites you to spend time in peace and quiet; and where you can actually hug a pelican. Pairi Daiza in Belgium is not an ordinary zoo. It is a special place where the contact with animals is made much more exciting by the unique atmosphere of the place.

My main trigger to go there were the pandas. And the snow leopards. And of course, the koalas. But the place offers much more than that.

Make sure you go there early – it is not a small zoo, so it`s best to have more time to enjoy it without rushing. And there are plenty of restaurants with great food, so you can effortlessly spend a day there. If you go late, you also risk not seeing all the animals, as the chances of them napping in the afternoon are high 😉

More information about the place and how to get there – https://www.pairidaiza.eu/en

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I hope you`ve enjoyed my post about the Black Forest from last week! If you need a refresh :  http://funandinterestinglife.com/the-black-forest-part-1/

And here is the second part.

Fun in the sun

Mountain coaster (a gravity driven amusement ride with bobsled-like cars ) and downhill carts are one of the really fun things that you can try in the beautiful mountain setting (http://www.schwarzwaldhochstrasse.de/64-1-freizeit–und-sport-zentrum-mehliskopf.html) – I personally enjoyed them a lot!!! The height differences in the mountains are also used in many places for hang-gliding and paragliding.

The SPA

Baden Baden is one of the most famous spa resorts in the world and it should not be missed! My day in Baden Baden evolved around the Caracala spa center (http://www.carasana.de/en/caracalla-spa/home/) where I spent a super relaxing day. Tip- if you want to have a massage/treatment it is highly advisable to book in advance as there are usually fully booked on the day when you go.

Driving around

The beautiful scenic roads making driving around in the Black Forest a super enjoyable experience and there are many people who go there especially for this. Especially scenic is the route Schwarzwaldhochstrase from Baden Baden to Freiburg. You can enjoy a video summary of our rides at https://youtu.be/UJwy_1oli3U.

Sightseeing

Once again, there is plenty to see depending on your preferences! Here are some sightseeing attractions that I can recommend:

• The Black Forest open air museum- a great place to see how people in the Black Forest lived back in the years
• The source of the Danube
• The ruins of Allerheiligen – beautifully set in a valley surrounded by lots of green. Can also be combined with the Allerheiligen waterfall.

The Black Forest is pretty big and my advice would be to have a base around the center and/ or stay at different places throughout your stay, so you can explore more parts of it. I stayed in two hotels, with the second of which I was super happy and can totally recommend – http://mummelsee.de/berghotel/en/

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