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!

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. 

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. 

Eiffel Tower 2016

So during my European adventure we went to see the Eiffel Tower. We had a reservation to go up to the second tier of the Tower to look out at the rest of Paris. When walking up to see this magnificent beast of steel I lost my breath because of it's beauty. You really have no idea how tall something is until you are standing in front of it trying to take a photo or even just trying to take it all in while staring at it.

I am slightly afraid of heights to going up the second tier of this tower was difficult but I was beyond excited that I did it. It is something you go to Paris to do, it is something you should do no matter what. You can never see a city so beautiful better then from the view of the Eiffel Tower. There are really no words to explain how beautiful and incredible this experience was, I hope in some way this video can show a little bit of it.

Enjoy!

Music: Middle by DJ Snake ft. Bipolar Sunshine

A Place of Paradise

Treasure Island has been in my family for so long that it is hard to try and gather a memory that does not include the island in some way. My great aunt and great uncle bought the island a long time ago and my grandfather worked on the island as a child. He actually met my grandmother at the island, so it really does have very special meaning to us. I remember going to the island and the beautiful boat ride we would take to get there is one of the best. It's just the anticipation of coming over to the island to see everyone and spend an entire week together.

There is so much to say about this irresistible place that I just don't even have the words to explain it to you. It is the reason I look forward to summer, it is the glue that holds my family together (aside for love of course), and it is the history that continues to grow with every trip back to it.

It is a part of my family and no matter what happens to the island it will continue to be a member of this family.

Christmas Day 2015

Summer 2015

Boat Ride

My Absence

I apologize for a two month absence of not posting anything. School became incredibly tough obviously considering it is fourth year. If it was too easy I would be concerned. On the bright side though, I have an entire month off of school to recuperate and relax, somewhat as I will have to work almost every day.

However, my school is going well; semester is done, masters application is almost done just have to wait for my transcript from my school and then it is all complete, applied to graduate and just have to set up my graduation photos. Other than that everything is pretty much going well.

Europe trip is still on the go and I am beyond excited. I've pretty much planned several other trips afterwards and hopefully I will be taking my masters next year, which will keep me out of the workforce for another two years haha. On the bright side I will have a masters degree in history and hopefully be able to get a job unlike my schoolmates who will be forced onto a waiting list  to teach in schools.

That's a little bit of what is happening in my life currently, but hopefully this winter break I will be able to post more often.

Thanks!