A summer of fun, and now it's back to the grind

Four months later, I can tell you that the adventure didn't stop when I got back from Europe. Even though I started working, the summer weekends were packed with activity. I went to Waterton Nationla Park with Vanessa (still one of my favourite places in the world), three weddings, the Creation Science Museum in Big Valley (hilarious), camped about four times, and went on a 1500km road trip (each way) with my roommates to Yellowknife for the August long weekend (just for kicks).

AND I FINALLY finished my Europe blog!

In going through my journal and reliving all of the experiences as I wrote them down, I thought it would be a good idea to talk about some of the highlights. But these aer all my opinions. You'd have to ask Neil and Amy what they think, but I imagine we're all pretty much close to agreement on most things.

Best Food:
1) France - the most consistently delicious meals.
2) Italy - probably actually tied for 1st. The fresh mozzarella I ate in Positano blew my mind.
3) Prague - earty meals, and it was super cheap.

Best Bread:
Austria/Germany - I don't know what they do, but it's both heavy and fluffy, and soft and delicious.

Best Beer:
1) Belgium - The hands down winner. Taste, variety... it had it all.
2) Germany - Had some good beers there.
3) Prague - The home of pilsners, so they know how to do it. $1 for pints is a nice bonus.

Best (cheap) Wine: (I can only comment on the cheap stuff because that's all we had...)
1) Spain - We did very well on 2 euros for the short time we spent in Spain
2) Italy - Couldn't seem to go wrong in Italy
3) France - Very good. If only it wasn't for that one bottle of "zoo flavoured wine" (Neil's words)

Best Art: (Not that I know what I'm tlaking about)
1) Musee d'Orsay, Paris - Neil and I liked it (and still would have without the wine buzz).
2) Academia, Florence - The David is absolutely incredible. Worth it for sure.
3) Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya, Barcelona - Lot's of steps, pouring rain, totally worth it.
4) Louvre, Paris - "Huge" doesn't even begin to describe the scale of this place.

Biggest Cultural Surprise:
Turkish - We didn't go to Turkey, but it's a very enthusiastic culture that's spread all over Europe. Delicious Turkish food provided us with sustenance on a number of occasions.

Things that are different about Europe that we didn't expect:
1) The street signs are high up on building corners, not on posts on street corners (an important lesson).
2) You can cross against the light, as long as there's no one coming (convenience).
3) Train stations can be very big (but generally extremely easy to navigate).
3) Even within a language there are many dialects, and they aren't always similar.

Best Destinations: (Also the places I'd most like to return)
1) Gimmelwald, Switerland - Absolutely unreal. Heaven.
2) Positano/Amalfi Coast, Italy - Also unreal, a close second. Paradise.
3) Paris, France - I loved it, Amy loved it, Neil liked it.
4) Prague, Czech Republic - Beautiful and cheap (I know there's a joke in there, but I won't go there).
5) Berlin, Germany - A bit of a surprise for us. A very cool city with lot's of history, lot's of modern architecture, and a crazy nightlife that we only barely dipped our toes into. Berlin's a city with a lot of depth, and I should probably go back there.

Best Moments:
1) Drinking for free with the Prince in Liechtenstein - I still can't believe it.
2) Playing soccer with local kids in Gimmelwald - The whole place was an experience, but playing soccer topped it off.
3) Oostduinkerke, Belgium - Ending up there after being shut of of Brugges, sleeping in a shed, and laying on a beautiful beach for two days are memories that will carry me through the harsh Edmonton winter.
4) Neil waterboarding Amy - Neil suggested drinking water upside down would cure her hiccups, and Neil nearly drowned her. Her hiccups were gone though.
5) Seeing a guy in a white Volkswagen Golf listening to Belgian gangster rap while driving around a giant steel model of an atom was really the most ridiculous thing we saw a the ridiculous Atomium.
6) Destroying Neil at minigolf in Oostende, Belgium. I crushed him. Thanks Mr. Waterhazard!

Future

The Reception

Destinations: (In and around Europe, no particular order)
- Budapest, Hungary
- Croatia
- Ljubljana, Slovenia
- Morocco
- Krakow, Poland
- The Baltic countries
- Scandanavia

I hope you enjoyed reading about my adventure. I know I thoroughly enjoyed creating it! I'm already hard at work planning the next one... and the one after that... and the one after that...

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