Spontaneity is Key

Well....our plan was to make it to Barcelona Spain and it didnt work out. We were on a ferry for 11 hours then spent the day on the train with no air conditioning and arrived in Milan at night. We couldnt get a train to Spain that night so we decided to sleep in the train station and leave first thing. That was a nightmare! Train station closed down and we found ourselved at McDonalds very smelly and discussing sponge bathing in the handicapped bathroom. We had until 1am and then we didnt know what we were going to do... Then came the rain and HAIL!!! That was the last straw and I spent money I don't have so we could put a roof over our heads. We definitely hugged the wall when we got there and took worlds longest showers. There was actually a point where Keely told me how bad I smelled and my nose was plugged but I bet she smelled peachy too. The next day we made it to Nice in the French Riviera and were told it would be over 24 hours before we could get to Barcelona which would give us only a few hours there. Executive decision then became to stay in Nice and enjoy the south of France and the Mediterranean Sea. We leave tomorrow morning for Paris and are going to spend the evening drinking wine in front of the Eiffel Tower since we regretted not doing it before. Sunday morning we are headed back to London and looking forward to two days there before heading back to the states.

Corfu, Greece

Well we arrived safely in Greece about 3 nights ago. It is really easy to lose track of the time here because we have had so much fun! The first day we arrived on the ferry at 6 am and the Pink Palace shuttle came and got us from the port. When we arrived, they gave everyone a shot of ouzo (tastes like cherry nyquil-eww!) and it was definitely on an empty stomach for me. That night was the traditional toga party and it got crazy! Keely and I met a ton of people from our ferry from lots of different places and they have kind of been our crew since we got here. The toga party was crazy- they were smashing plates on people's heads and pouring ouzo down their throats. THe next day we spend on the beach with some people we met from New Zealand and we had a paddle tennis competition in the water. The view here is just amazing and the water is crystal clear and so blue/green. It is breathtaking!

Yesterday we took a kayaking tour and went cliff jumping and snorkeling. Keely and I were pros at communication and figured out our kayak routine really fast! When we went cliff jumping, I definitely lifted a leg up and my whole back left thigh looks like someone beat me with a paddle. OUCH! Having a sunburn doesn't help either. Greece was an awesome adventure and we met so many cool people it is amazing! Today we are headed out on a 1 am ferry to Italy and then 24 hours on trains to get us to Barcelona. Can't wait for that...

When in Rome...

We are still in Rome and enjoying ourselves. Today we went to the Vatican and toured the Sistine Chapel. We also saw the Spanish steps. Our crazy move of the day was visiting an old burial ground that a bunch of monks created. When they fled Naples to come to Rome, they brought the bones of old monks and allowed the poor to donate their bodies and they used them to DECORATE the walls of this cemetary crypt. It was pretty intense and we couldnt take pictures so I got a postcard. We ate lots of pasta and gelato too! We were also able to lay out in the sun and relax today, which was nice. It will be a nice preview to Greece, where we are headed tomorrow. From Rome, we take a train to Bari, Italy and then an overnight ferry to the island of Corfu. We will be arriving there on Saturday mid morning (our time) and will be 7 hours ahead of EST. We are staying at the Pink Palace. Cant wait!!!!

Interlaken, Switzerland to Rome, Italy

Well it costs my life to use the internet in Swiss land so here is a good update. Interlaken was the most beautiful little town and our hostel was in the middle of the Swiss Alps on a small lake. It reminded us both of Traverse City because it was very clear and there were boats everywhere. SO BEAUTIFUL! We met up with our two new friends from Munich and spent some time teaching them American traditions (euchre, beer pong) and they taught us many new ones as well. It was amazing to us how the English phrases were so different so we kept a list of all the different terms for things. Yesterday we took an 8 hour train ride from there to Rome. It was a pretty ride through the Italian countryside. Rome itself is very dirty, like New York City, but it has great food. You just have to watch your stuff like a hawk and there is security all over the place. Today we ventured out and made wishes in front of the famous fountain (name escaping me right now) and then we toured the Colosseum and the Palatino (ruins). It was SO amazing to see the architecture. Right now we are staying in a small campground in a bungalow. It has a bar, restuarant, entertainment and everything else we need to not have to be on the scary streets at night. We love it!!! We are off to Greece on Friday and we cant wait to bask in the sunshine on the island of Corfu. More to come later...

from Munich to Zurich, Switzerland

We had a great time in Munich! Yesterday we visited the concentration camp of Dachau. It was very intense and hard to really take it all in. Similar to the Anne Frank house, it seems very surreal. We took a lot of pictures...most of it has been torn down and monuments have been added to remember those that died there. We stayed at a great hostel and we met a few cool people and we went out to a pub crawl for our last night there. We went to the Hofbrauhaus and sang karaoke at an Australian pub. Yes, karaoke. It was so much fun! We ended up getting separated from the pub crawl at the last bar and had to find our own way back. It was 1 am when we left the pub and we returned to our hostel at 5 am. On our way back we ended up playing the most amazing game of hide and seek in an empty beer garden that we had to crawl under a gate to get in to. We really dont know what was going through our mind at the time and we lost track of the time so when it started to get light we realized it was time for bed... We learned a lot of cool lingo from "down under" from our new Kiwi (New Zealand) and Aussie friends. It was really entertaining to be speaking English and not knowing what was going on... We drank a lot of "piss" which is Australian for beer. All in all we really enjoyed Munich. This afternoon we took a train to Zurich, Switzerland. It is the most beautiful place we have seen so far!! Also, the most expensive. Our dinner was a burger, fries and salad for 24 francs (equivalent to US dollar) and a water and a coke cost 10 franc. We split it but it still hurt a little bit...Tomorrow we are headed to a small town in southern Switzerland called Interlaken. It is a little place on a beautiful lake surrounded by hills with green "carpet". We are looking forward to it!!

Munich, Germany

Last night we took an overnight train from Amsterdam to Munich. We thought it would be tough to sleep on the train but we had no problems! We arrived here at 8 am and explored the city. After getting lost trying to find our hostel, we went to the English Gardens and took a nap. It is a park similar to Central Park only there is a section of it for nudists!! When I say nudists, I mean 50+ men who like to sunbathe naked. We also stumbled upon a part of the river that creates a wave for surfing. After our nap, we went to a beer garden and had a beer while we sat near the lake in the park. It was a beautiful day. We are going to Dachau tomorrow and are thinking about doing Neuschwanstein Castle (Sleeping Beauty's castle) instead of Garmeish. Still undecided...

Amsterdam

Another thing I remembered...
When we were on the train from Paris to Brussels we met two guys from Colombia. One of them had been to Florida around the Tampa area. We got to talking and he said he has family in, of all places, PASCO COUNTY and that is where he was before coming to Europe! Crazy what a small world...

Today was a great day in Amsterdam! We actually had a crazy start to our day. We went to the train station to book our overnight trip to Munich (to save on a hostel!) and we were evacuated after sitting there for an hour and a half because of suspicious luggage. Luckily, the place didn't blow up and we went back later to get our tickets. Then, we rented bikes and rode all over the city. We went to the flower market and saw all the tulips and flowers. Then we

ate our first sit down meal in Europe (we are saving!) outside overlooking a canal. After lunch we went to Anne Frank's house. It was pretty amazing. There are really no words to describe being in that place and seeing how they lived as they hid from the Nazi's. We weren't able to do the Heineken experience because it is being renovated. This evening, we were able to walk through the red light district. We heard a "rumor"that it didn't exist anymore. That rumor is FALSE! There are definitely hookers everywhere in windows, live porn shows, and several hash bars. We did not indulge in any of the above (thank goodness) but it was interesting to see! Tomorrow night we are headed to Munich, Germany for two nights. We are planning a day trip to Dachau to see the concentration camp and then we are headed to Garmiesh and Zurich, Switzerland.

Brussels and Amsterdam

One more Paris detail I forgot to share...
There are all these Bosnian women who walk around. They all have the same note that says their father is in the hospital and ask for money. We finally just kept telling them we spoke Spanish because they are persistent and annoying. One day we were at the ATM and they came from nowhere and would not stop. They were all up in my face and finally Keely just reached out and pushed the chick. It was hilarious. Paris is everything you expect. Also, I got a great souvenir- a garter for our wedding! WOO HOO! Now, we are officially in country number 4!! Yesterday we left Paris and took a train to Brussels, Belgium. We really dropped the ball and didn't book a place to stay until yesterday but it turned out awesome! We got a hotel room for 60 euro (30 a piece) and it was BEAUTIFUL! We have been spoiled I guess. It was a long distance from the center of town but we took the metro and it was good. We have now mastered the metro in every country. Also, I found the biggest Pepsi ever and I definitely carried it around all day. Today, we explored the city, had Belgian waffles for breakfast, went to a brewery and had Belgian beer and then we got Godiva chocolates before we got on the train to Amsterdam. Our train to Amsterdam was crazy! Someone committed suicide by jumping in front of the train so we had to switch trains. Then, the train we got on was too full so we had to sit in the aisle for the 2.5 hour ride. Then, we had to change again because the engine died on our train when we pulled in to a stop. Luckily, no one came around to validate our pass so we got a free ride (erasable pens baby!). We arrived in Amsterdam at 10:30 pm local time (it is 12:17am right now). So far we have just walked around the part where we are staying but tomorrow we are going to rent bikes (there are bikes EVERYWHERE and the signs say that there is at least one for every resident of Amsterdam) and ride around. We are going to go to Anne Frank's house and the Heineken Experience to check out the brewery and drink. We are here tonight and tomorrow night and then we head to Munich. I will keep on posting as much as possible...

Mom and Dad-thanks for writing me! Miss you and love you!
Jeremy- I took a picture of the Amsterdam Apple Store for you! Nice pic in the paper you dork:) I hope it was worth it.

Paris

Hi everyone
The keyboards here are funky so bear with me. We arrived in Paris yesterday and checked into a cute little hostel that is really a hotel. We went right to the Eiffel tower and took a nap in the park. Then we went back to our hostel to get ready for the Moulin Rouge. It was so AWESOME. We really enjoyed getting to go around the city on the public transportation and now we have it mastered and we are off to Belgium tomorrow. Today, we took one of those silly bus tours but it was worth it because it was one where you could get off whenever and catch another one later. There is so much to see in Paris so it was the only way to go. We saw the Sacre Couer, Notre Dame, the River Seine, got in free at the Louvre and saw the Mona Lisa. It was a busy day!! Then; we went back to the Eiffel Tower and climbed a million stairs to the 2nd story. It was high enough!! Jeremy, you would have hated it!!! While we were up there, it lit up and we climbed down to see it sparkle at night. It was a busy couple of days and we are still adjusting to the time difference but we are moving on to Brussels tomorrow... Quote of the vacation so far "Ah Lloyd, the French are assholes!"

London at last!

Keely and I finally arrived in London today after a very uncomfortable trip of sleeping upright. We are looking forward to sleeping horizontally this evening :) We spent the whole day in the rain in London trying to avoid getting sleepy. It was cold and wet but we saw the Houses of Parliament, the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace and Westminster Abbey. We also saw a crazy lady calling the British government parasites on the street corner. We already got free beer today and we realized that the English people are straight up the friendliest people!!
We are looking forward to tomorrow. We head to Paris at 5 am London time to spend two days in Paris and we are seeing Moulin Rouge tomorrow night!! Stay tuned...our first hostel experience is this evening...

No promises...

I am going to try and do this whenever we get a chance to go on the internet so you can all see what we are up to (probably no good!). I can't promise anything though...