Journey Home

So after Greece we caught a flight to Germany with a week left in our trip. We began our journey home in Augsburg, Germany and over the week would make our way to Amsterdam. We chose Augsburg to visit our friend Joni one last time.

 We spent one night in Augsburg, visited the Christmas market and grabbed breakfast with Joni before heading out to Heidelberg that evening.

 In Heidelberg, we visited Joni's sister, Katharina who is now studying at university here. Pictured above, we visited the Heidelberg castle as we did in September but this time we were able to see the world's largest keg which is housed inside the castle. Katharina is in between Lexi and I and our friend Nick is on the far left. Nick is an Aussie who was staying in our hostel and joined us on our walk up to the castle.

Nick, Lexi and I enjoying some good ol' fashion Gluhwein (hot sweet red wine) at the Heidelberg Christmas market.

 Lexi, Katharina and I on a morning walk through the old town of Heidelberg after a light dusting of snow.

As in Augsburg, Lexi and I visited for one night in Heidelberg then after our walk around Heidelberg in the morning we boarded the train and headed to Brussels for one night.

Pictured above are the beautiful Christmas markets in Brussels, Belgium. Out of the 3 Christmas markets that we visited over the week I would have to say that the markets in Augsburg were my favorite because of the extent, quality and price of everything offered. It also didn't hurt that it was lightly snowing as we walked through the stands which definitely adding to the Christmas atmosphere making me even more excited for the holidays. 

After one night in Brussels we headed to Amsterdam. My longtime friend Anna has been working as a nanny just outside of the city for the last seven months. It just happened to work out that Anna's birthday was the previous week. So we all got a hostel together and went out on the town to celebrate her birthday. We arrived in Amsterdam Friday night and our flight home was scheduled for Sunday morning.

Pictured above are all of us getting dinner and some drinks. We picked up a random friend, Hadi who decided to join the birthday celebration with us. Lexi and I ordered all you can eat ribs at this place named the Pancake corner, despite the name this place serve some of the best ribs that I have ever tasted. 

We had quite the night exploring areas of Amsterdam and even made it to the red light district...now that was an experience.

The next day we headed out to tour the city. We took our BF photo with Anna at the I AMsterdam sign. We then went and toured the Anne Frank house. Unfortunately you cannot take any photos but this place was very moving, it even had the original bookcase that hid the passage way up to where the families were hiding.

And for our last evening in Europe we finished off the day by going to see the final Breaking Dawn movie, which have surprisingly gotten a bit better in quality. Over the course of this trip we managed to watch all five movies, not for quality necessarily but convenience. The first Twilight book release was in 2005 and this has been a long standing escapade...so it was quite nice finishing this series on the evening we also finish our 3 month adventure in Europe.

The next morning we woke up early, headed to the airport and hopped onto the 10.5 hour direct flight to Seattle.

Woot woot we made it back!!!

Thanks for sharing this experience with us, now onto the real world...

ugg and a job...

The Edge of Water

Hello! So if you have read my previous post, at the end I detailed the effort that it actually took to make it to Santorini, Greece. Quite the effort...I know. However, this was the view that we woke up to in the morning on the ferry after sleeping on a row of seats. It was wonderfully warm air with a ship that sailed under the Greek flag, and Greece in the distance.

For those of you who, like me, are a bit lacking in knowledge of Greek geography, here is a quick lesson of where we traveled.

Once on the island of Santorini (whose proper name is actually Thira but the Italian name just stuck I guess) we stayed in the main town on the island called Fira.

"The present-day crescent shape of the island is a consequence of the activity of the volcano in prehistoric times feeding the myth of the lost Atlantis. Santorini is essentially what remains of an enormous volcanic explosion dated back 3,600 years and which created the current geological caldera; a giant central lagoon, more or less rectangular, and measuring about 12 by 7 km (7.5 by 4.3 mi), surrounded by 300 m (980 ft) high steep cliffs on three sides. 

The mild activity of the volcano after this major eruption has built up two small islands within the caldera, Palea and Nea Kameni, visited by hundreds of people everyday during the tourist season.

The impressive caldera dominates the west part of the island, while the marvellous dry climate and the almost continuous sunshine create year-around conditions which are perfect for observation, photographs and videos under an extraordinary variety of natural lights and colours that give the visitor the exceptional advantage of reaching the interior of the volcano by boat" (http://www.santorini.net/camera/caldera.htm).

So here is the town of Fira on Santorini. This island was made famous by the blue domed roofed houses that are built into the cliffs here on the island most notoriously in the village of Oia (ee-uh).

One day we explored the village of Oia then did an amazing 3 hour hike back to Fira along the cliffs facing the Caldera (volcano).

Gotta love the dramatic feel of this photo in this empty church courtyard. Actually because it was in November much of the island was quite empty since most of it's sustaining economic income is tourism here.

Making our hike back to Fira. The village in the background is Oia.

You can barely make out Fira in the distance. It is not the first grouping of buildings you see but the next one waaaaayyy back there. You can also see the ferry heading out from the port and it just made it past the volcano.

This area is known for it's amazing sunsets, and now I understand why. We saw some mesmerizing views such as the one pictured above.

We also went swimming (and yes we were the only ones). Here at this beach the island was even more like a ghost town but when a local on occasion did drive by, they did not try to hide their shock and commence to stare at us until we were out of view.

Here is a short video from Perissa beach. The photo below is us trying to take a duo photo. Of course I nearly fall as the photo is about to be taken, thankfully Lexi grabs my arm to steady me. What a champ!

Another day we went on an excursion to explore the volcano. The shots above and below are views from this hike.

Below is the view of Fira from the volcano.

 The volcano has created some hot springs which is also a part of the excursion so  we headed there next. It all honesty the term hot in hot springs is more of a subjective term because the water was really lukewarm in parts but is was still cool since it is still a part of the sea.

After our excursion we take a donkey ride up the staircase. The owner of these donkeys placed Lexi on one of the first donkey, once she was on he turned the donkey around gave it a slap on the butt and the donkey literally began to run up the stairs. The hilarious part is that you have no reins, so the donkey just kinda goes where it wants at the pace it wants. Here is a description someone wrote about this experience:

"I got given some great advice before I hopped on my donkey- you aren't riding the donkey- the donkey is taking you for a ride. You have no reins to guide the donkeys, and the donkeys do what they want to- whether it be barrelling straight towards tourists walking down, or stopping to lick the wall or check out the view. Basically they go at their own pace, and decide which donkeys they want to keep up with. Hold on and enjoy the ride and views."

One day we went to the Akrotiri excavations on the island. In the photo on the right is Savas. I met him the day before and happened to run into him again on this day. He is the supervising electrical engineer for the roofing project over the ruins. He and Thamus the technician on the left) walked us through the entire place really bringing it to life.

Here is a bot of information on this place :

The excavations at Akrotiri have uncovered one of the most important prehistoric settlements of the Aegean. The first habitation at the site dates from the Late Neolithic times (at least the 4th millennium BC).

During the Early Bronze Age (3rd millennium BC), a sizeable settlement was founded and in the Middle and early Late Bronze Age (ca. 20th-17th centuries BC) it was extended and gradually developed into one of the main urban centers and ports of the Aegean.

The large extent of the settlement (ca. 20 hectares), the elaborate drainage system, the sophisticated multi-storeyed buildings with the magnificent wall-paintings, furniture and vessels, show its great development and prosperity.

The various imported objects found in the buildings indicate the wide network of its external relations. Akrotiri was in contact with Crete but also communicated with the Greek Mainland, the Dodecanese, Cyprus, Syria and Egypt.

The town's life came to an abrupt end in the last quarter of the 17th century BC when the inhabitants were obliged to abandon it as a result of severe earthquakes. The eruption followed. The volcanic materials covered the entire island and the town itself. These materials, however, have protected up to date the buildings and their contents, similar to Pompeii (http://www.santorini.com/archaeology/akrotiri.htm).

The lighthouse at the southern tip of the island.

I hope these people didn't mind us standing on their roof...but we did get a cool shot :)

After our ten day stay in Santorini we headed back to Athens in order to catch a flight to Germany...next post coming soon

Thanks for reading!

From Barcelona to Rome

So following Dublin we had our first Ryan Air experience flying to Barcelona. We stayed in Barcelona for 3 nights. The country or this city was never in our original plan, but with such a good deal on a flight from Ireland we couldn't pass up the opportunity. Barcelona I think has been my favorite city that we have visited, it is a modern and beautiful place with a vibrant and energetic culture.

Antonio Gaudi is a name you will hear many times if you ever tour this city. He is a world renowned Catalan architect   The two most impressive works by Antonio Gaudi, in my opinion were the Sagrada Familia and the Casa Mila. Looking at each of these buildings was an experience in itself with such creativity and beauty.

The view of the city from the Museum of National Art (MANC).

In front of a beautiful fountain.

Our BFF photo from the Castell de Montjuic looking over all of Barcelona.

Walking on Las Ramblas, we visited the Mercat de la Boqueria, a large and colorful market.

While Lexi explored the city for an extra day I headed off to Montserrat. Here is a description of this magical place from a tourist website:

Santa Maria de Montserrat is the name of the Benedictine Monastery. Santa Maria de Montserrat is a significant religious retreat. It is a custom for young pilgrims from Barcelona and elsewhere in Catalonia to make the overnight hike at least once in their lifetimes to see the sun rise from the peaks of Montserrat Mountain. Today, many travelers visit Santa Maria de Montserrat to listen to the famous boys’ choir. One of the oldest choirs in Europe, the group performs as part of the religious ceremonies held every day at 1 pm.

Montserrat Mountain translates as “serrated mountain,” which is a reference to its jagged formation. Located more than 4,000 feet above sea level, Montserrat Barcelona offers spectacular hikes and views. The unusual rock formations are often what people remember most about their trip. For the best views, take the funicular to the top of the mountain and enjoy one of the mountain walks. Sweeping views out to the Catalonian countryside will make you glad you left the city to see this regional landmark.

During any trip to Montserrat Barcelona, you are sure to hear religious stories. It is believed by some that Virgin Mary visited the Holy Grotto of the monastery. Another popular story tells how the site for the Holy Grotto was chosen. The story goes that during the year 880, a group of shepherd children saw a bright light in the Montserrat mountains. At the same time, the children saw angels and heard beautiful singing. After the children told their parents, the parents also experienced the same phenomenon and interpreted it as a sign from God. Visitors today can walk to the Holy Grotto to see for themselves where this story was supposed to have taken place.

Here is the view from the top of the Saint Jeroni, the highest summit in Montserrat offering sweeping views of Catalonia.

Pictured above and below are a couple of the many churches up in the mountains to be discovered along the hikes. Be sure to notice the crazy rock formations that are in the picture below.

Toulouse, France

Next we headed to Toulouse after Barcelona for a couple nights to visit Kaleigh, Lexi's friend and team member who is an Au Pair for a family here.

Unfortunately I was plagued with an intense 24 hour bug that may have been food poisoning, so I was in bed for the majority of our time here. 

However, Kaleigh showed Lexi around the city and took her to some lovely restaurants  The main highlight I think was just being able to be reunited with a friend from home.

Levanto, Italy

Our next stop would be the world Unesco Heritiage site of Cinque Terre in northern Italy. We would be staying just a 5 minute train ride away from this place in a small town known as Levanto, Italy on a small organic farm. We visited for 3 nights and were blessed with amazing weather while traveling. Of course for all the locals, it was typical winter weather, so long sleeves jackets and pants was the typical attire. And of course being the seasoned travelers, we did our best to blend in with the locals buy sporting t-shirts and capri's. In my opinion, it was a very successful venture ;) (immense sarcasm).

"The Cinque Terre is a rugged portion of coast on the Italian Riviera. It is in the Liguria region of Italy, to the west of the city of La Spezia. "The Five Lands" is composed of five villages: Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola, and Riomaggiore. The coastline, the five villages, and the surrounding hillsides are all part of the Cinque Terre National Park and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Over the centuries, people have carefully built terraces on the rugged, steep landscape right up to the cliffs that overlook the sea. Part of its charm is the lack of visible corporate development. Paths, trains and boats connect the villages, and cars cannot reach them from the outside (wiki)".

Lounging in the sun....ooooooooo yeaaaahhhhh!

Enjoying some gelato in Moterosso

Mhhhhmmmmmmmm gelato (I ate gelato AT LEAST once a day while being in Italy...what?!? It's Italy, it had to happen)

We hiked from the first village to Vernazza the second along a breathtaking trail that meandered along this mountainous region over waterfalls and even through vineyards. It was amazing. (Above)Here is the first view of the village coming down from the trail.

I followed this random staircase up and up until there was no longer any stairs just a trail barley visible and I was rewarded with this view at the top.

This picture gave a whole new meaning to cliff face.... :).

Another amazing sunset and another amazing end to a magical place.

Up next in our travels....

Rome, Italy

Hands down, this train ride had to be the best one of our trip. We got an entire compartment to ourselves for 3 hours from Pisa to Rome, and the landscape was absoutely stellar as well. On this train ride Lexi and I played music, slept, and Lexi even taught me how to french braid my hair. Apparently it was a sight to see because people would literally stop and stare at us as Lexi coached me on my technique. Thankfully these compartments are fixed with curtains so we had complete privacy...ahhhhhhhh.

Exploring the extensive Vatican musuems. Here is one of the many ancient Egyptian statues that housed here. Lexi liked this statue because her nickname this summer during work was lioness. 

These next few pictures are at the Roman Forum. A description of this place will come after the next picture.

The Roman Forum (Forum Romanum) was the central area of the city around which ancient Rome developed. Here was where commerce, business, prostitution, cult and the administration of justice took place. Space where religious activities were conducted and the communal hearth of the city.
The Roman Forum was designed by the architect Vitruvius with proportions 3:2 (length to width). For centuries, the Forum Romanum was the site of the city's most important public buildings, such as the Arch of Septimius Severus, built in AD203 and the Roman Forum Rostra or platforms for public speeches. The reliefs on the triple arch represented many of Rome's victories over oriental tribes and the Rostra was decorated with prows of warships captured during battles. The Roman Forum became the spectacular showcase of the Roman Empire filled with beautiful statues and architecture.
The main sight of the Forum include the Arch of Titus (Arco di Tito), the Temple of Saturn, Temple of Vesta, and the church of San Luca e Martina. These are all linked by the Sacra Via, the main road through the Forum (http://www.rome.info/roman-forum/).

In front of the Trevi fountain.

More Roman Forum...this place is HUGE!

The garden of the Vestal Virgins.
"The House and Garden of the Vestal Virgins (Atrium Vestae) in Rome's Forum is an example of an ancient garden type: an outdoor space for a priestly cult. The garden was both a religious space and a domestic space. The Vestal Virgins, priestesses of the cult of Vesta, lived here from the 6th century BC to the end of the 4th century AD. Their house is located on the Forum Romanum, just behind the Temple of Vesta. Vesta was the Goddess of the Hearth. The Virgins came from Rome's noblest families, serving for thirty years (eg from the age of 6 to 36) and then becoming private citizens again. They tended the hearth and fire and sprinkled them with holy water from Egeria. The planting of roses and the return of water to the basins has revived something of the old character of this peristyle garden" (http://www.gardenvisit.com/garden/vestal_virgins_garden).

Beautiful statues adorning an amazingly beautiful bridge.

One of my favorite experiences in Rome was this pictured above. We happened to be in Rome during the time when the city was celebrating 500 years since the opening of the Sistine Chapel after the extensive efforts of Michelangelo. From the 31 of October to December 7 the government brought out the hand sketches of Michelangelo as he prepared to paint different sections of the Chapel.It felt like such a privilege and gift to be able to see these sketches and gave me a minute understanding as to the impressive theological knowledge, skill and hard work that went into completing this venture. The cherry on top was visiting the Vatican museums which included the Sistine Chapel the next day.

Lexi and I in front of the Pantheon.

The Pantheon in Rome is the Roman monument with the greatest number of records: the best preserved, with the biggest brick dome in the history of architecture and is considered the forerunner of all modern places of worship. It is the most copied and imitated of all ancient works.
Michelangelo felt it was the work of angels, not men.
Where it stands was not chosen by chance, but is a legendary place in the city's history. According to Roman legend, it is the place where the founder of Rome, Romulus, at his death was seized by an eagle and taken off into the skies with the Gods.
But what was it for and what does the name mean?
The name comes from two Greek words pan, "everything" and teon "divine". Originally, the Pantheon was a small temple dedicated to all Roman gods. Built between 27 and 25 B.C. by the consul Agrippa, Prefect of the Emperor Augustus, the present building is the result of subsequent, heavy restructuring.
Domitian, in 80 A.D., rebuilt it after a fire; thirty years later it was hit by lightening and caught fire again. It was then rebuilt in its present shape by the Emperor Hadrian; under his reign, Rome reached its maximum splendour, and the present structure is probably the fruit of his eclectic genius and exotic tastes.
In fact, the Pantheon combines a clearly Roman, cylindrical structure with the splendid outer colonnade of Greek inspiration. Although the new structure was very different to the original, Hadrian wanted a Latin inscription on the façade, that translated means "It was built by Marcus Agrippa, son of Lucius, consul for the third time" (http://www.italyguides.it/us/roma/pantheon.htm).

Our choice for the reprsenative Italy BFF photo was in front of the impressive and iconic Colosseum.


We now head off for Santorini, Greece. On quite a long journey comprised of a 4 hour train ride, a taxi to the port, a run to ticket office (and one of the last people to board) a 16 hour ferry ride, another short bus trip and taxi ride to the bus station for another 3 hours bus trip  into Athens then another hour train ride to the Piraeus port in Athens. Thankfully we slept here for a small break only to be up and out the door at 0650 to catch our 9 hour ferry to the Greek island of Santorini. Needless to say with all this consistent traveling not just over the past 48 hours but the past 2.5 months which can be quite taxing at times. We ended up staying in the same location in Santorini for 10 days...but that will come in the next post.

Thanks for following!