I love Amsterdam!

Sunday:

We woke up and went to Hillsong church... I have now been to Hillsong in Sydney, London, Cape Town, and Amsterdam! :)  We also took a tour of the Anne Frank house which was one of the main reasons I wanted to come to Amsterdam in the first place! It was well worth booking 2 months in advance because standing there, seeing the bookcase that hid the family, and walking through each of the rooms was incredible. They give you an audio tour that is quite informative and you see some artifacts throughout as well.

Took some night pictures after dinner:

Monday:

We woke up today and decided to try out a little scavenger hunt thanks to my friend at big city hunt! I always thought the concept of these things were so neat so I was extremely excited to try it out! Basically, you download the app, enter your code and start the search! You have to start at a certain place in the city and the app will guide you to different landmarks, tell you interesting facts, and ask you questions along the way to see if you’re really paying attention! ;) They also give each person a special role with different tasks to complete along the way. We only had one phone so that part was a little tricky! I think if we had more people and everyone had the app on their phone it would have made the “special roles” aspect better. The app itself was super easy to use and again, a great way to see the city! It reminds me of the Amazing Race. :)


We had signed up for (what I thought) was a windmill and tulips tour, but there was some confusion so long story short, we went to see the windmills and left the tour early to go to the Keukenhof Gardens! This was the other HUGE reason for wanting to come to Amsterdam (and the reason why we came when we did!) the weather was  absolutely perfect and the gardens were so beautiful!! They have 7 million tulips and about 2 million visitors during this 7 or so week period where the tulips are in bloom!

More from Switzerland!!

Amsterdam. Day 1

Ah, where to begin...

First and foremost, the night before we left we got a call informing us that one of our friends had passed away. It was sudden and unexpected... very hard to focus on anything that night. Our thoughts and prayers are with our friends at home and we are sorry that we can’t be there with you all during this time.

Second... we had a 4 hour delay (and the flight was almost cancelled!) out of DC to Amsterdam. Not cool. Originally when we were thinking it would be cancelled, United told us we wouldn’t be able to fly out for another two days. HECK NO!!!!

Thankfully, they got us a new plane and all was well.

Third... this was one of the greatest flights I’ve ever had!! I didn’t get sick the entire flight!!!! I also, for the first time ever, actually slept quite a bit!!! Thanks for your shoulder, Mike!! Also for the first time ever I arrived in my destination ready to go... I didn’t feel sleepy or wanting to go rest in the hotel. (This also might have been in part because I wanted to be reunited with my sister!)

Day 1:
Arrived in Amsterdam and met up with Carla and her sister at Upstairs Pancakes. It’s the smallest restaurant in Europe and only has 4 tables... we had strawberry pancakes which were delicious!!!

We then, by chance, wondered into a free walking tour with the help of Carla’s pleading skills. :)  Freedam tours was wonderful and so informative... we all learned a lot!

We took a couple wrong turns after that, but we finally made it to I Amsterdam and the canal cruise.

I was also reminded of why I love traveling with Carla so much... she makes everything fun! She had us all laughing so hard with her constant picture taking and strict rules for taking the perfect photo.

I'm OBSESSED with the buildings here in Amsterdam. I love taking pictures of the houses and businesses along the canals.

That's all for now! :) Will write more tomorrow!!

PRE-TRIP

I'm BAAAA-AACK. 

Welp… I’ve had quite a range of emotions in regards to this trip.

For starters, this trip isn’t quite what I’m used to since it wasn’t all hand picked by me. LOL The main purpose of this trip is, in part, for my dad to see Miniatur Wunderland… he wanted to see more of Germany and Switzerland as well so everything has sort of stemmed from there. Don’t get me wrong- I enjoyed Switzerland and Germany last time I was there (and I did say that I wanted to go back again!) …but I probably would have arranged things differently had it been back in my old solo travel days. (i.e. see other cities, spend more time here, less time there, etc.) But it is what it is and I am still looking forward to this adventure! (And the people accompanying me!)  YAY FOR NO MORE TRAVELING SOLO!

One thing I am NOT looking forward to however is the flight. I don’t think people realize how much I HATE flying… not only do I get antsy sitting for long periods of time, not only am I NOT able to sleep on planes, but now I also get very sick on flights as well. All of this = not a good combination. Plus… does anyone else know that feeling when you arrive at your destination and you’re super tired? You feel gross because you haven’t showered in 24 hours and it’s just an all around nasty feeling…. Yeah, I hate it. Most of the time hotels won’t let you check in until the afternoon so you have to go around feeling bad for the first part of the day until you get a nice shower. BLAGH

Side note: I can’t believe it has been 13 years since my FIRST trip overseas/FIRST trip to Europe. HOW CAN THAT BE?!?! On the right, you can see one of my first pictures of Europe... VENICE!

One thing that I love about travel is that even though a particular destination might not be your first choice to visit, it’s still unique and it’s a chance to get away from the everyday routine! The sites, the smells, the culture… everything is different so how can you be bored with that?! Whether you’re a foodie, an artist, an adrenaline junkie, a history lover… there’s something for everyone everywhere.  

I’ve had a new continent to visit for the past 3 years and now I’m taking a break and heading back to Europe for the 4^th time!  One thing extra special about this trip is catching up with my sweet German sister!

For those of you who don’t know Carla….

Carla is from Germany and her and I met online back in 2013. (so it’s kind of perfect we’re meeting up for our 5 year friendiversary!) …. We were both interested in traveling around New Zealand and didn’t have anyone to travel with us. We ended up both using a site called helpx which is a volunteer based organization that allows you to work in peoples homes (cleaning, gardening, housework) in exchange for meals and accommodation. We met up in New Zealand, traveled over a month around the country together, and then a couple years later we decided we liked each other so much we met up again in Spain! We’ve kept in touch through the years and whenever we get together we have such a blast and laugh our heads off… she has been the best and longest online relationship that I’ve ever had and I can’t wait to be reunited!! :D 

Another special thing about this trip is that Mike’s parents are going to be meeting up with us in Berlin! (Hi Mike’s parents!)

Will write more when I arrive in Amsterdam!

Euroventure coming soon!

My dad likes trains. A lot. He likes trains so much that he has an entire business built around them.

He has talked about Miniatur Wunderland in Germany and how neat it would be to go there. My dad is someone who has always helped me fulfill my dreams and bucket list items. Now it's his turn!

Miniatur Wunderland is the whole premise for the trip. Since we're over there...my dad really wants to see more of Germany and go to Switzerland. I, on the other hand, have been wanting to go to Amsterdam to see the Anne Frank House and to see the tulips in bloom. Guess that means we're doing it all! :)

Scheduled itinerary:
Amsterdam
Lucerne
Interlaken
Hamburg
Berlin

Unlike most trips I've been on, this one (should) be far more chill. No wake up calls at 5am or anything crazy like that... we're on our own to explore Amsterdam and Lucerne and we will be doing a biking tour of Interlaken. It will be nice to have a little bit more of a slower pace and I look forward to not have to do anything crazy- no shots, no visas.... just a normal trip!

I'm also very excited to travel with my husband and my dad, to have my husbands parents meet us in Berlin, AND to catch up with my sweet German sister!!


.... more later!

Something different

This post isn't necessarily about travel, but it's about something near and dear to my heart.

I'm not going to lie... I've had a bit of a dark cloud hanging over my head this past month. My grandma, who has Alzheimer's, was recently diagnosed with breast cancer. She hasn't been herself in quite some time now....

The wedding, of course, was really rough on me -not having her there. I always thought that if my grandparents were alive they would be at my wedding...but my grandma is not the same person now. Sometimes I don't understand how that's possible. I don't understand why my grandma doesn't know who I am or why she won't talk to me... or why she wasn't there to celebrate the birth of her great grandchild or my wedding.

I know, obviously, but it's hard not to go back to childlike questioning. If you knew my grandma at all, you would know that THIS ISN'T HER. She used to playfully smack every single person that would come across her path and make us all laugh like crazy... and now she can't even form a coherent sentence. How is this her life now?

In addition to these thoughts, this means now my grandmas on both sides have had both Alzheimer's AND breast cancer. I'm a bit of a pessimist so sometimes I can't help but think, great this is what I have to look forward to.

Honest truth: I was having this pity party for myself as I was driving home from work one day and a peppy. upbeat song came on the radio... it changed everything. I don't even know what the song was about, but it made me want to take control of the things I have control over and not to worry about the other stuff. I have no control whatsoever as to what's going to happen in the future, but I can control what's happening to me now. I have a life to live. I have things I want to do; things I want to see. I want to travel and live happily until... I can't anymore.

My grandma has lived a good life. And I want to do the same.

#EndAlz

The homebody that likes to travel

I'm an introvert. I'd much prefer a night in than going out somewhere. I LIKE STAYING HOME.

I described myself to someone the other day as being a "homebody." The person just laughed and said, "What about all your travels?" ... oh yeah, that.

I'm a homebody that likes to travel. I don't know how it works, but it does. I will gladly take an adventure across the ocean, but not want to explore my own city. Maybe it's because I know my home is here and I know it's ready and waiting for me to come home and curl up on the couch. (that sounds so nice right now!)

Any-who...here is a list of places that have gotten me off the couch ;)
*'s indicate personal favorites

Austria
Czech Repulic
England*
France
Germany
Ireland*
Italy*
Northern Ireland
Spain*
Switzerland
The Vatican
China
Japan
Canada
USA
Brazil
Chile*
Peru*
Australia*
New Zealand *
South Africa

I still want to go to Antarctica, Greece, Egypt, Morocco, and of course back to NEW ZEALAND and AUSTRALIA. I'd also like to do more travels across Europe and central America.

The travel bug has died down a little bit, but it won't ever leave me. It's always nice to get out of your routine and go somewhere; to take a break and experience something new... and I'll always be ready for it. :)

Passport Please!

I'm going to go total travel nerd on you for just a second... look what I found the other day:

Yes, I just found my very first "passport" which dates back to when I was in the 2nd grade. My class made their own passports and collected stamps from different places we learned about. Notice Antarctica was my first stamp!
I haven't forgotten...I'm still coming for you!  ;)

In other news... I've officially changed my last name to my new married name, which means I had to get a new passport. I was a little nervous sending my old one in because I didn't know if I'd get it back. It was full of stamps I've collected as well as this little guy.  (who has been kept safe in the pages of my passport for the past 5 years!) My Aussie guide found this heart and gave it to me when we toured the Blue Mountains and I've kept it there ever since!

CHRISTMAS MIRACLE! I got my new passport right before Christmas and my old passport (complete with my heart leaf!) right after Christmas! Easy Peasy!  I was honestly impressed with how quick and painless the process was! My passport(s) hold such sentimental value to me and I couldn't be more thrilled to have them back in my possession-I'm even more thrilled to be able to start filling the pages of this new book in just a few short months!!

That's right... Heading back to EUROPE! This trip will include Amsterdam, Lucerne, Zurich, Interlaken, Hamburg, and Berlin.  More information to come, but I'm excited to once again be traveling with my husband and having my dad there too! There's a specific reason for this trip which I'll write more about later....

That's all for now!