Day 1 of the Europe Adventure

I guess its time to actually start writing about my trip! At first I wasn't going to do this chronologically, but since I'm struggling with gaining some momentum, I figured Day 1 is a good place to begin.

After I drove down to the big city with my Oma and Opa, I stayed with my Aunt and Uncle in Langley. My uncle works at the Vancouver Airport as an air traffic controller, so he offered to take me up to the tower and take a look!

It was pretty cool to get a view of the whole operation, as well as a tour of the tower. He explained what he does and how the computers work, but I'm not going to lie...I glazed over after the first couple minutes! Its pretty complicated.

Thanks for letting me take your picture and embarrass you in front of all your co-workers, Uncle Bob!

I was fascinated with this button though. I was almost afraid to be around it. What if I suddenly developed a nervous twitch, or dropped my camera, or tripped and fall on it?
I used my zoom to maintain a safe distance, you know...just in case.

My flight for London left at around 1pm (uncle was already off duty by that time, so I didn't get the intercom shout-out I was hoping for :p), and it was very...very...very...veeeerrrrrryyyyy loooooonnnngggg. At least it felt really long. I'm not totally sure how long it actually was. Probably between 8-9 hours. But it felt infinitely longer. I won't get into the many annoyances and discomforts that I experienced, but I have decided I actually don't like flying as a method of travel very much. Don't get me wrong, its very fast, and I enjoy the take off and the landing, but frig is it ever uncomfortable! Maybe if I traveled first class I would feel differently.

Kings Cross Station...which is super close to St Pancras,
and always fills me with delight thanks to the Harry Potter series. 

Anyway, we actually got into London early, and my bags were one of the first out on the conveyor belt so I busted outta there pretty quick, and caught the first train to St Pancras Station. Ahhhh...I love train travel. I really do. Why doesn't Canada utilize this swift, dependable, convenient, and comfortable form of transportation more often?? The Greyhound wouldn't stand a chance.

The British Museum hadn't lost its charm

I met up with Brit at her hotel (she had just finished her nursing practicum in Lesotho, which you can read about over at her blog) and we chilled in London for while...visiting the British Museum, and catching up in a random park.

For suddenly I saw you there...and in foggy London town,
the sun was shining...everywhere!

We didn't stay in London very long. In fact we caught the Eurostar to Paris around 4pm. Another train ride! Hooray! Ahhh...I love trains :)

We arrived in Paris 4 hours later...but I've decided to save that for a separate post! I've had fun looking through the pictures again though! I'm sure I'll be updating again soon...

EDIT: that picture may or may not be the British Museum....embarrassing. That's what I get for not sorting my photos, I guess!

A Few of My Favorite Things

(The one good thing that came out of our Salzburg trip was a new appreciation for The Sound of Music)

I thought today I would ease up on the writing and show you a couple favorite moments/photos.  Mostly because my brain is fried. And there has been a severe lack of pictures on this blog.

You may notice a lot of them are food-related.
That is just how its going to be around here.

London:

A Quick Trip to Hogwarts

Paris:

Watching the Eiffel Tower light up

Mt. St. Michel:

Exploring a Medieval island fortress

Florence:

Surreal views

Lucca:

Delicious picnic dinners on the city walls

Pisa:

Taking very necessary/cheesy tourist pictures

Viareggio:

Seeing the worst speedos ever, worn without shame

Venice:

Relaxing by the water in the evening and enjoying the view

Munich:

Eating the biggest meal/beer/pretzel of my life. Loving it.
(Also wearing cheesy tourist shirt!)

Fussen:

Hiking to fairytale-esque castles

Salzburg:

Taking necessary/cheesy Sound of Music reference photos

Prague:

Panna Cotta in the sweetest hippie restaurant ever!!

The Netherlands:

I have no words to express how much I love this photo...

And that is all for now...
Photo Credit: mostly Brittany Willems :)

Featured Blog: Places I Left My Wallet

There are few things I love in this world as much as food, travel, and a good read.
Which perhaps explains why I became instantly addicted to "Places I Left My Wallet", the fun and often hilarious travel diary of a Canadian living in England.

Rachel and her husband Chris are friends of friends, and moved to London just over a year ago to pursue their careers, and "weekend in Paris" on the side. I firmly believe they are living The Dream, and can hardly cope with the jealousy I experience every time I read about her latest holiday to Belgium/Italy/Egypt etc! The blog allows me to live vicariously through her.
Not only has she traveled to pretty much everywhere in Europe, but she has also been able to experience the British way of life like a local...for instance, choosing a (mandatory) hat to wear to the Henley Royal Regatta, celebrating the Royal Wedding in Trafalgar Square, and watching a real live Rugby match at Twickers. What I love about this is how even though she lives like a local, as a Canadian she can write about the funny British quirks she comes across, like learning to speak English. After my experiences in Ireland, there is so much I can relate to!
On top of all this she loves delicious food, eats it, and blogs about it. She has even convinced me that sandwiches might not be just a dreaded bag lunch, but a collection of delectable ingredients gathered together in one divine stack. That, my friends, is an achievement.

Rachel's reasons for moving to England are pure, her goals admirable, and the frequency with which she loses things (including her wallet) that are returned to her intact is quite astounding. I know you will find this blog very, very, very entertaining, and the pictures are great! Go read!

And as always, don't forget to leave a comment for her! We bloggers love the comments....