Screen Actors Guild Awards 2017

So another award show is just around the corner and of course I must give out my predictions for the show.

SAG 2017:

Italics- My Guess
Bold- Winner

Film

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role 

Casey Affleck- Manchester by the Sea
Andrew Garfield- Hacksaw Ridge
Ryan Gosling- La La Land
Viggo Mortensen- Captain Fantastic
Denzel Washington- Fences

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role

Amy Adams- Arrival
Emily Blunt- The Girl on the Train
Natalie Portman- Jackie 
Emma Stone- La La Land
Meryl Streep- Florence Foster Jenkins

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role

Mahershala Ali- Moonlight
Jeff Bridges- Hell or High Water
Hugh Grant- Florence Foster Jenkins
Lucas Hedges- Manchester by the Sea
Dev Patel- Lion

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role

Viola Davis- Fences
Naomie Harris- Moonlight
Nicole Kidman- Lion
Octavia Spencer- Hidden Figures
Michelle Williams- Manchester by the Sea

Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture

Captain Fantastic
Fences
Hidden Figures
Manchester by the Sea
Moonlight

Outstanding Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Motion Picture

Captain America: Civil War
Doctor Strange
Hacksaw Ridge
Jason Bourne
Nocturnal Animals

Television

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie 

Riz Ahmed- The Night Of 

Sterling K. Brown- The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story 

Bryan Cranston- All the Way

John Turturro- The Night Of

Courtney B. Vance- The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story 

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie

Bryce Dallas Howard- Black Mirror

Felicity Huffman- American Crime

Audra McDonald- Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill

Sarah Paulson- The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story 

Kerry Washington- Confirmation 

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series

Sterling K. Brown- This Is Us

Peter Dinklage- Game of Thrones

John Lithgow- The Crown

Rami Malek- Mr. Robot

Kevin Spacey- House of Cards 

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series

Millie Bobby Brown- Stranger Things

Claire Foy- The Crown

Thandie Newton- Westworld

Winona Ryder- Stanger Things

Robin Wright- House of Cards

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series

Anthony Anderson- Black-ish 

Tituss Burgess- Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt 

Ty Burrell- Modern Family

William H. Macy- Shameless

Jeffrey Tambor- Transparent 

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series

Uzo Aduba- Orange is the New Black 

Jane Fonda- Grace & Frankie

Ellie Kemper- Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt

Julia Louis-Dreyfus- Veep

Lily Tomlin- Grace & Frankie

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series

The Crown

Downton Abbey

Game of Thrones

Stranger Things 

Westworld 

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series

The Big Bang Theory 

Black-ish 

Modern Family

Orange Is the New Black

Veep

Outstanding Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Television Series 

Daredevil 

Game of Thrones

Luke Cage

The Walking Dead

Westworld 

Golden Globes 2017

So here we go, award season begins with the Golden Globes (on Sunday) and I am really excited. January and February are the best months of the year, specifically because of award season. I look forward to it all year round and thoroughly enjoy watching them (even if they are 3+ hours). I just love the movies, the TV shows, the acting, and the stories. It's amazing what can be conveyed in a 2 hour movie or a 1 hour episode of a show. For every award show, I will be creating a list of who I think will win and then afterwards go through and see how well I did. So here we go:

Golden Globes 2017:

Italics- my guess
Bold- winner

Movies

Best Motion Picture- Drama

Hacksaw Ridge
Hell or High Water
Lion
Manchester by the Sea
Moonlight

Best Motion Picture- Musical

20th Century Women
Deadpool
Florence Foster Jenkins
La La Land
Sing Street

Best Performance in a Motion Picture- Drama

Actor

Casey Affleck- Manchester by the Sea
Joel Edgerton- Loving
Andrew Garfield- Hacksaw Ridge
Viggo Mortensen- Captain Fantastic
Denzel Washington- Fences 

Actress

Amy Adams- Arrival
Jessica Chastain- Miss Sloane
Isabelle Huppert- Elle
Ruth Negga- Loving
Natalie Portman- Jackie

Best Performance in a Motion Picture- Musical or Comedy

Actor

Colin Farrell- The Lobster
Ryan Gosling- La La Land
Hugh Grant- Florence Foster Jenkins
Jonah Hill- War Dogs
Ryan Reynolds- Deadpool

Actress

Annette Bening- 20th Century Women
Lily Collins- Rules Don't Apply
Hailee Steinfeld- The Edge of Seventeen
Emma Stone- La La Land
Meryl Streep- Florence Foster Jenkins

Best Supporting Performance in a Motion Picture- Drama, Musical or Comedy

Actor

Mahershala Ali- Moonlight
Jeff Bridges- Hell or High Water
Simon Helberg- Florence Foster Jenkins
Dev Patel- Lion
Aaron Taylor-Johnson- Nocturnal Animals 

Actress

Viola Davis- Fences
Naomie Harris- Moonlight
Nicole Kidman- Lion
Octavia Spencer- Hidden Figures
Michelle Williams- Manchester by the Sea

Best Director

Damien Chazelle- La La Land
Tom Ford- Nocturnal Animals
Mel Gibson- Hacksaw Ridge
Barry Jenkins- Moonlight
Kenneth Lonegran- Manchester by the Sea

Best Screenplay

Damien Chazelle- La La Land
Tom Ford- Nocturnal Animals
Barry Jenkins- Moonlight
Kenneth Lonegran- Manchester by the Sea
Taylor Sheridan- Hell or High Water

Best Original Score

Nicholas Britell- Moonlight
Justin Hurwitz- La La Land
Johann Johannsson- Arrival
Dustin O'Halloran & Hauschka- Lion
Hans Zimmer, Pharrell Williams & Benjamin Wallfisch- Hidden Figures

Best Original Song

Can't Stop the Feeling- Trolls
City of Stars- La La Land
Faith- Sing
Gold- Gold
How Far I'll Go- Moana

Best Animated Feature Film

Kubo and the Two Strings
Moana
My Life as a Zucchini
Sing
Zootopia 

Television

Best Series 

Drama 

The Crown

Game of Thrones

Stranger Things

This Is Us

Westworld 

Musical or Comedy 

Atlanta 

Black-ish

Mozart in the Jungle 

Transparent

Veep 

Best Performance in a Television Series- Drama 

Actor

Rami Malek- Mr. Robot

Bob Odenkirk- Better Call Saul

Matthew Rhys- The Americans 

Live Schreiber- Ray Donovan

Billy Bob Thornton- Goliath 

Actress

Caitriona Balfe- Outlander

Claire Foy- The Crown

Keri Russell- The Americans

Winona Ryder- Stranger Things

Evan Rachel Wood- Westworld 

Best Performance in a Television Series- Musical or Comedy 

Actor 

Anthony Anderson- Black-ish 

Gael Garcia Bernal- Mozart in the Jungle 

Donald Glover- Atlanta

Nick Nolte- Graves

Jeffrey Tambor- Transparent 

Actress

Rachel Bloom- Crazy Ex-Girlfriend

Julia Louis-Dreyfus- Veep

Sarah Jessica Parker- Divorce

Issa Rae- Insecure

Gina Rodriguez- Jane the Virgin

Tracee Ellis Ross- Black-ish 

Best Performance in a Miniseries or Television Film

Actor

Riz Ahmed- The Night Of 

Bryan Cranston- All the Way

Tom Hiddelston- The Night Manager

John Turturro- The Night Of

Courtney B. Vance- The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story

Actress

Felicity Huffman- American Crime

Riley Keough- The Girlfriend Experience

Sarah Paulson- The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story

Charlotte Rampling- London Spy

Kerry Washington- Confirmation 

Best Supporting Performance in a Series, Miniseries or Television

Supporting Actor 

Sterling K. Brown- The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story

Hugh Laurie- The Night Manager

John Lithgow- The Crown

Christian Slater- Mr. Robot

John Travolta- The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story

Supporting Actress

Olivia Colman- The Night Manager

Lena Headey- Game of Thrones

Chrissy Metz- This Is Us

Mandy Moore- This Is Us

Thandie Newton- Westworld 

Best Miniseries or Television Film

American Crime

The Dresser

The Night Manager

The Night Of

The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story

So now that the Golden Globes have ended award season has begun and the awards will be dished out. With the first award done and dusted it begins the domino effect of movies and TV shows that will be adorned with awards that will catapult shows into stardom and will cement the popularity of other shows. My score for this evening was:

10/24.

Definitely not a good start (lol) but of course award season is long and I always get better. I definitely enjoyed the show, specifically Meryl Streep's speech and her award. She so deserves everything good that has come to her and will come to her and her speech was so important.

Until next time...

Watercolour Map

Maps have always been a huge fascination for me. And now that I have actually travelled outside of North America, it made sense to get a map that would showcase the places I have travelled and the places I have yet to go. This watercolour map was a perfect gift for my sister, as it shows where we have been together and will show the places she will end up going, whether with me or without me. It is an amazing representation of the world we live in and it also demonstrates how big this world really is and how small we truly are.

2017 Award Season has Begun...

Award season officially began last night with the Critics Choice Awards in Los Angeles. 'La La Land' was the big winner taking home 8 awards. Quite a surprise for me as I didn't think the movie was good enough to see, obviously I was wrong and now I must go and see it.

As most people who read this blog know, I love my TV shows. However, I also love my movies. And award season, for both movies and TV shows is literally the best time of the year for me. December through February is the best time of the year and I always become so enveloped with award talk. This year I have taken it upon myself to watch every movie nominated and make education guesses for the culmination of the Oscars.

Tonight I will begin with Hacksaw Ridge, one it looks like a phenomenal movie and being a history buff, you automatically become a war buff as well.

Let the Awards begin!!

The Rock

Our families have been coming to this little rock island for almost an entire decade now. No matter how busy all of our lives have become we always manage to take one weekend off during the summer to get together for an amazing and unforgettable time. These weekends always consist of amazing food, laughter, story telling, and new memories. It's the little things. We always have an absolute riot when we are all together and this video is just a small indication of this. 

Music: Smooth by Florida Georgia Line 

Enjoy! 

Master's Decision

History is one long, epic adventure with battles to be fought, royal scandals to be gossiped about, wars to be waged, politics to be discussed, human rights to be protected, and stories to tell. It can be comic and tragic, and it exhibits the very best and the very worst of human nature. History is all about seemingly ordinary people doing extraordinary things, and that is why we all want to be remembered by it. And I think, one day history will remember them as well. History is one of the most fantastic things in this world. Everyone has a history and everything has a history. It is us historians who must look at these people and these items and find out what their history is and to write it down and bring it to light.

So, I have begun a new academic journey this year. I graduated last year with an HBA in History and this year I have taken on the daunting task of doing my masters. A lot of people have asked "what are you looking at?" or "what will your specialization be?" and for a majority of the time I really had no idea. I would always tell them I was interested in European history because a majority my family is from Europe and it's history spans a majority of the world. They have been everywhere and done everything imaginable. At first I was curious about monarchies, how they run, their institution, how they continue, why people may/may not like them. Granted I am still interested in monarchies, but not to the point where I would study them. But, I have recently watched a few documentaries on Netflix about British and Irish castles, and a new show called 'Outlander' that deals with Scotland. I have become increasingly interested with the history of all three of these countries and how they have continuously throughout history interconnected. Another issue that sparked my interest in furthering this study is that my grandmother's, on my father's side, family came from Ireland. They were farmers that moved from Ireland between 1847 and 1858 and moved to Canada. They moved because of persecution because of their Protestant faith and because Ireland did not have the land that the family needed to continue to farm. Obviously there were other reasons, but this is all I have found as of late. But now that I have this foundation in my studies, my trip to Ireland and Scotland in May has become even more important to me, because now I really get to see my roots.

I hope to one day find the original villages that my ancestors came from and see where they really came from. I find it to be the one thing I really want to do in the near future. I have found where some members of my grandmother's family have originally come from, but now the search must start for my grandfather's family. His family was from England and I know we have a family tree and I'm sure on it it states the village in which they first came from. I hope to go there one day and see exactly where they came from and maybe see the homes they might have lived in. One day I will find my family history, and my journey begins now.

On The Road Again

They say once you go on one trip to somewhere new, the travel bug bites and the urge to travel again never leaves you. For me, this is so true. The second I came home from Europe I began planning another trip back. I had a few choices on where I wanted to go. I knew I wanted to go back to Europe and travel the whole continent, but there are so many choices and places I have yet to be it made it difficult to try and narrow it down. There was Iceland, Finland, Sweden, Norway and Denmark, and Spain and Portugal and Greece. The places are endless, but I eventually decided on Ireland and Scotland. My family is from Ireland so it is a way of me getting back to my roots but also I wanted to see what this beautiful country had to offer.

I've had friends and a couple of cousins go to both countries and every single one of them have said those were two of the countries they would 100% go back and visit. Not just because of the beautiful scenery but because of the people, the locals were so friendly and amazing to be around. They told stories about the history of Ireland and I have heard nothing about good things. I cannot wait to experience these two beautiful countries and of course to come back and visit again.

I feel like the photos you see online everywhere of both countries, of course they are beautiful, but they just do not do the countries justice. It's also very different to experience it yourself rather than just seeing the photos. As I realized earlier this year, its the emotions you feel when you are there and the way you see it through your own eyes. It's the stories you come back with and the experience and the memories and the photos you took yourself. That is what travelling is for and I cannot wait to continue my travels through Europe!

Paris

We ended this incredible journey in the city of love and light and it really lived up to it's name. I was taken aback by this beautiful city but it was also bitter sweet. This was the last city our group was spending together and after twelve joyous days we would be going our separate ways and back to our different countries and different cities. Everyone always says Paris is super dirty, but I didn't find it to be dirty at all. I actually found it to be incredibly beautiful. We walked the Champ De Elyeese, which is much longer then I thought it would be. One thing that absolutely surprised me was how far away everything actually was from each other. In most other cities we could walk to almost everything, but in Paris we had to take the metro almost everywhere, which was quite easy. 

We saw everything you would want to see: the Notre Dame, the Arc Di Triomphe, The Louvre, and of course the Eiffel Tower. I think seeing the Eiffel Tower in person is so undesirable. It is just a feeling you get and it is very hard to describe that feeling. It is a magnificent architectural feat. You may think you know how big it is just from photos but to actually see it in real life is one of the most magnificent things you can ever experience. Going up the Tower was breathtaking. To be able to see all of Paris from the tower was beautiful, I was speechless. Photos and videos just do not do it justice and it is something every person should see in their life. 

One of the things I quite enjoyed about being in Paris for an entire day where we could walk around and do what we wanted was that a group of us spent the day walking around. We ended up going to a cafe called Angelique's and it had some of the best pastries I have ever had. Then we walked over to the beautiful Tuileries Garden. I loved spending time and just walking around at the how immaculate it was. One more thing that impressed me so much was the architecture. Every building was built essentially the same, but the architecture was so impressive. I just couldn't believe it. 

There is just so much to say and then nothing to say. There are so many words to describe it but then when someone asks you about it you just trip over your words because you are not sure what words to use or how to even say it. 

This was really a trip of a lifetime and I honestly cannot wait to get back to Europe to experience more. 

Lucerne

Switzerland stole my heart, and my money, but mostly my heart. I could not believe the beauty of this country and just how imaginative this beautiful place is. Also, Switzerland is incredibly expensive and I was somewhat thankful that we only spent about eighteen hours here, although I do wish that we could have stayed maybe one more day. And again we stayed in a converted jail and it was, umm, interesting to say the least. We also took a lake cruise around Lake Lucerne which was a lot of fun. We got a lot of photos together and a lot of memories were made. I loved the lake cruise because we started it when it was light out and finished it while watching the sunset and the hotels along the lake starting to light up. Really, really beautiful. 

Going up to the top of the Swiss Alps was so beautiful. I loved going up on the train it was really cool experience. And of course actually going up to the Alps by the only roofless motor car. It was really awesome to stand up at the top and see the Alps as we moved closer and closer. One of the girls on our trip, from Australia, had never seen snow before and so I am very glad to have been able to be a part of that memory with her. She was very excited about seeing snow for the first time, especially when we were heading up to the Alps and it started to snow a little bit and she finally saw snowflakes fall in real life. 

The hotel was really cool, although at first everyone was a little creeped out by it. We were staying in a jail that literally had been closed down in the 90s. It was a women's prison who had committed petty crimes. The doors for the room were still the old jail rooms and you needed a passcode to get into each room. The WIFI situation was not that great, but it created a funny environment for us, we would spend a lot of time hanging out in stairwells and down in the lobby trying to stay connected. 

Random point: the top of the Alps has excellent cell phone service and the WIFI is impeccable up there. 

Florence

Oh gosh, what is there to even say about Florence. It was so hot that day and sunny and perfect that it made walking around the small and beautiful city even better. What I liked the most about Florence was it wasn't too busy and yet there were still a lot of tourists. It wasn't as congested as Venice and Rome, especially Rome, but it still had a lot of people. I liked the views and easiness of getting around. I liked just walking around and seeing the architecture was really beautiful. I think the best part, again, was the walking tour. I liked that we were walked around the city with the tour guide and she was able to give us little tidbits of information (none which I can remember now of course!).

The one thing I absolutely loved, which I'm sure everyone else did as well, is the view from Piazzale Michelangelo. Just seeing it was absolutely beautiful. How amazing is the view, how amazing is it to see absolutely everything in Florence and to be able to see it all in one look. Panoramas do not do this place justice. One of the unique things we were able to do here was get a group shot, which is one of my favourite things that we got on this trip. It's a way in which I can have a photo with every single person from our trip. It's a very nice memento to have.

Rome

Oh Rome, what a place to visit. It is a must see place, you have to visit Rome. It is really the centrepiece of Europe and the beginning of everything. The Roman's came, saw and conquered and boy did they leave their footprint everywhere they went. I enjoyed Rome, only for the history aspect. I loved seeing the Coliseum and the Roman Forum and the beautiful cobble stone streets. It really was breathtaking to finally see the buildings and the stories I have read about and studied for years. The Coliseum was just awe-inspiring, you would never think that something could be as big as this place. The sheer size of the Coliseum was amazing, but also seeing the building and the place where everything played out like the gladiator fighting was amazing. To actually see where they stood and how far people would watch it. It was just eye-opening. 

The Roman Forum was another beautiful place to visit. Granted the day was very very hot, but it was definitely better then rain. I loved seeing the buildings, or what was left of them, just to see how big they built these buildings. It's not like the Romans were giants compared to us, but they built buildings that were so big they intimidated any person who would have to walk into them. And the fact that some, if not most, of these buildings are still standing, or at least most of it is still standing. The pillars I think were the most fascinating to me just because of how tall they were and the fact that every single one of them that I saw did not have a crack or any sort of decay among them. I was surprised and shocked to see that these pillars had literally stood the test of time. 

Would I go back to Rome? Probably not. Do I think you need to see Rome? Yes, 100%. Rome is a city in which every person should visit at least once in their life. 

Venice

Oh Venice! What a place to be. Granted the entire day we were there it rained and it literally poured. The only time it stopped was when we took our 30 minute gondola ride and the minute we stepped out of the boats it began to pour again. But aside from the rain, Venice was a beautiful city full of history and beautiful architectures. I could not believe the canals. I have seen photos of them and I have heard about them, but there is nothing compared to actually seeing them and taking a boat through them. Also I got conned into feeding the pigeons and ended up having to pay 10 euros for it. Not fun, I would recommend running from the men with the bird seed. 

One of the these I loved was a really cool walking tour with a local guide. It did rain for the whole day and I of course didn't pack a rain jacket or thick sweater, so I only had my thin sweater. Aside from my atrocious clothing choice, I really enjoyed the walking tour. It was a way to see the city through the small walkways and random little shops. Another cool thing about Venice was the dinner we had that night. It was optional but almost everyone chose to go to it. Our trip manager told us to grab masks that were quite popular in Venice  during the 16th century. We all bought little masks from stores around the city and at dinner took photos of our Venetian masks. It was a really unique experience.  

One question I do have: do/can people swim in the canals? Or is that something people just don't do? 

Austria

We drove then on to Austria and driving from country to country was one of the best parts of the tour as we were able to see small villages and towns and the landscape of all of these beautiful countries that you just would not see flying from place to place. It also gave a lot of time for sleep or just relaxing time before hitting up the next city. In Austria we went to Innsbruck and being there just felt like a dream. It just didn't seem real, the landscape and the beauty of Austria just didn't look like it was really there. The best way I can describe it is that it looked like CGI animation, pretty much green screen. But it was real and it was beautiful and inspiring and breathtaking. 

Also, Austria has some of the best dessert, especially the apple strudel, that I have ever experienced. I am not ashamed to say that I had it three times in the 18 hours that we were in that beautiful country. The group went white water rafting, and I was not so keen on it, so my sister and I decided to just hang out with some of the other group members. This was nice as it was a chance to get to know some of the other people on the trip and hearing the stories and seeing the videos afterwards was really cool. 

Coming home, people asked me what countries I would definitely go back to, and Austria is one you can never see enough of. Granted, every single one of them is like that, but there is something about Austria that just pulls at me to come back. 

Munich

Munich I think is a very underrated city. It had a few tourists but it was not busy compared to the cities we had been to previously and the cities we were going to visit. It was such a sweet city to be in and very calm compared to the other cities we would see. We had the option to go on a bike tour but as my sister cannot ride a bike I did not go without her and we merely walked around the city and enjoyed the day. It was very relaxing compared to the crazy days that were ahead of us. We did a little bit of shopping but mostly walked around the city and just took it all in. I think what I enjoyed the most about the city was how easy it was to get around and the people were quite nice. I loved the mixture of the old buildings with the new buildings and being able to see the difference in architecture. It is very interesting and beautiful to see how architecture has changed over many years.

We didn't make it to the English Gardens or any massive churches, but we walked along the streets and just enjoyed it. Germany has now become a country in which I will definitely go back to. We utterly enjoyed being in a city that is so beautiful and so old and yet so overlooked by people visiting Germany. 

Trail Time

Used multiple mounts to capture this video. Love the different ways of using all of these mounts and how the videos come out. They are absolutely incredible and I enjoy looking back on them and seeing the trails in a different way.

Music: This Girl by Kungs & Cookin' On 3 Burners

St. Goar

I had never heard of St. Goar before this trip and I didn't realize we were actually staying somewhere that was so off the beaten path that we barely had wifi service or anything at all. There was barely any vehicles driving around, absolutely no emergency vehicles (unlike London) and it was so quiet and peaceful. There was a point where a few of us just sat down by the water and listened to what was going on around us and there was literally no sound, just the chirping of crickets and mosquitos flying around. I think it was one of the most beautiful and picturesque places we visited, and we went to a lot of beautiful places. It was definitely really nice to go to a place to calm and quiet compared to the bustling and busy cities of Amsterdam and London. It was a nice way to sort of see what was around us and just to take it all in. It was also really nice to breathe fresh air that literally came off the turquoise river right in front of us.

One of the things I particularly enjoyed about this place was our ability to walk around the town and not have to worry about being hit by cyclists or cars. The streets were completely empty aside from us and there were no other tourists around. It was perfect. The night was cool, but nice to walk the town. It wasn't too hot which made site seeing that much more enjoyable. One of the things we noticed was how all of the stores were family owned and the cafes were kept open later then usual only because the owner was socializing with people who were sitting outside. They were so nice and greeted you as you walked by.

St. Goar is a place in which I had never heard of but now I will never forget.

ATV

New mounts for my GoPro and a brand new helmet means more videos and way more fun! I know ATV videos can get boring especially if it's the same thing after awhile, but honestly I love it. I love the new ways in which I can use my GoPro and the new mounts I can use. There is so many ways in which to capture amazing videos with GoPro that using it for just one sport or one activity is still as enjoyable as using it for multiple sports and activities. Thanks for watching and I hope you enjoy watching them just as much as I enjoy making them!

Music: Right Here Right Now by American Authors

Victoria Monument

During our illustrious trip to Europe we had to go and see Buckingham Palace. It is a must see for any tourist in Britain. Of course the Victoria Monument must also be on this list, of course it is right outside Buckingham Palace and it is a monument dedicated to one of the greatest monarchs in British history. When I saw this monument, one I couldn't get over how large it really was and two, the likeness of statues to Queen Victoria was incredible. Now that I have seen multiple countries throughout Europe I cannot get over how well their statues look like the real person or thing. It is amazing to think someone sat and created this statue and designed it. Anyway, I had fun walking around the statue with my GoPro trying to get a 360 degree view of this amazing monument.

Amsterdam

Amsterdam is a beautiful and free wheeling country. I had never thought Amsterdam was like this and I even have family who lives here! Unfortunately I did not get to see them, but the trip somewhat made up for missing out (though I will see them this summer). The day we were there was so hot and sunny it made our day there even better. We spent a mere 20 hours in Amsterdam and it was a beautiful way to start the trip. We had a walking tour with our trip manager and even went to visit the Red Light District.

Now because we were in Amsterdam on a Friday it was incredibly busy. I had never felt so claustrophobic in my life and it was definitely tough to walk around. We walked all the way around the District and learnt the history of prostitution in Amsterdam, which to every single person on the trip was a bit eye opening. We couldn't believe how proud these women were standing in their rooms showing everything off. But, hey, kudos to them! The one good thing about the walking tour with the entire group was that we were able to get to know people who were on the trip. Which was really nice because the next day we ended up spending our free time with a majority of the friends we had made the night before. We even had a beautiful canal cruise and were able to see the city from the canals that are used oh so much in such a small country. I think what I loved the most about Amsterdam is that you can literally tie up your boat in the canal and then drive around, in your boat!! It's crazy! And houseboats!? They are crazy popular and some of them were so intense and beautiful and super modern. So surprising.

The next morning we had a few hours of free time where we went to the Van Gogh museum, which showcased his work from his sane days until he was deemed insane. The paintings changed so dramatically and it was really different and amazing to see how they progressed. We sort of walked around the canals, which were just absolutely stunning and it was so nice out that it made the day that much better. Amsterdam was an incredible place to visit. I cannot wait to come back and visit.

London

The first place we landed when we flew to Europe was London. It was my first taste of Europe and it was one of the best tastes of Europe I could have had. What a way to begin our trip. We saw all the sights every tourist must see: Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, London Eye and the British Museum. We walked amongst the streets in Britain (which are absolutely amazing) and we went to a good old English pub. The architecture was something I could barely even believe, it all just seamlessly fit together and every building looked like fit together. 

The first day was probably the hardest as we had just been up for about 30 hours trying to fly to London and we arrived at 7am, an hour before we were suppose to arrive. So we almost fell asleep on the tube on our way to our hotel and when we finally got into our room we slept for about two hours and then headed to the British Museum. Now, most museums you can walk around aimlessly and be able to see everything you want to see. The British museum is one where you definitely need a guide or you have studied the map so well you know exactly where you are going. I know we didn't see everything, but what we did see (mostly Egyptian and Greek monuments) were extraordinary. I had never seen pieces so big and historic before in my life and it was amazing to be able to see that part of history that everyone knows about. 

The rest of the day we spent walking around London and then went to the London Eye as we had tickets for that day. The funniest part of that was when we came off the train Big Ben was literally right in front of us. It was perfect considering the next day we were going back down there to see all the places you want to see in London. The London Eye was really cool, especially to see everything. And the picture above is actually taken from the London Eye. 

I think one of the most surreal things for me while we were there was the fact that we were actually in Britain. I had studied Britain for so long in my history courses and just in general and it was fascinating for me to stand on those streets and in front of buildings like the Tower of London that has been so monumental in British and World History. I feel like Britain has been so huge in history as a whole, not just Canadian, and to finally have gone there and see it and experience it was something you cannot really explain to people. 

One day I will go back to London and maybe it won't be for just a visit.