Florence

Florence is a really awesome place, a lot different than Rome and much slower paced. Our Hostel is an old Italian Villa which looks like it was build over a hundred years ago. Inside the hostel are frescoes ( wall paintings) from top to bottom and sculptures mounting into the architecture. Also when you first walk in and look up at the ceiling there is a big dome with a painting on that as well...it was really nice to walk into that after Rome.

The hostel was pretty close to the center of Florence in that we only have to take a 15 minute bus ride. We went out the night we got there and off of a tip from a hostel worker we climbed to the top of the Piazza de Michelangelo....hands down, the most beautiful view of the city at night. you could see everything that it had to offer and it was a great view. We then sat in front of a museum where they were doing a dance preformance with a bottle of wine and just enjoyed ourselves.

Florence was just so relaxed. We saw all that we wanted to see but also had some time to ourselves. We stayed at our hostel the second night and were able to talk to some really cool people from all different backgrounds. I believe our table consisted of, a french lady, a columbian (chemical engineer), a brazilian (lawyer) and an english woman (cop)....it was a lot of fun.

Venice is beautful but more about that later!

Rome...Home of the Worst Hostel Ever!

Rome, its an amazing city with a lot of history. There is so much to see and do there and the food is incredible. When we arrived in Rome from our flight from Barcelona is was really late at night and all we wanted to do was go to our hostel and get some sleep. So we did...after a 30€ cab ride.

We wake up the next morning to no breakfast and to find out that to get into the center of Rome where all the good stuff is we would have to take a bus, then a metro and then another metro. In total thats 3 different modes of transportation taking about 1hr out of the day....each way.

While we spent time in the city we got to see all the major sites. The Colloseum, the Forum (really old ruins), The Vatican and so on. Pretty much everything you would want to see in Rome. The Vatican is incredible, probably the coolest site to see in Rome. Every room and hall is decked out from floor to ceiling in artwork and frescoes and statues. The sistine chapple is gigantic and we saw the place the Ewan McGregor burned himself in Angels and Demons and also the place where the elect the popes. We saw the Vatican towards the begining of our trip so it kind of made everything else seem a bit less impressive. We bought a souvenir bottle opener with the popes face on it....we call it the bottle popener.

Basically ran around for several days straight. The food was incredible. It was so fresh and you could just taste that it wasnt from a can or a jar or whatever they use in everything at home. It just didnt have that processed taste that we are all so used to...it was a nice change of pace.

So on the night before we leave we decide to do some laundry. They had washers and dryers that we thought said on 1€ a piece so we got very excited. We put everything in (including the soap) and realize that you need a special kind of coin for the machines that were 3€ a piece! Super fantastic and really expensive! We do our laundry the dryers are done when I (Jil) open my dryer to find used toilet paper with shit on it tumbling around with all of my clean clothes. Trust me, it wasnt mine! After complaining to the people at the desk they gave me money and soap to wash my clothing all over again....it took almost 3 hrs to do one load of laundry.

Once the laundry was done i went to go to bed because i was exhausted...Matts clothes were done and he was hanging out with me and we are both trying to keep our eyes open. So i go to walk into my room only to find that is has been taken by Mexicans. Someone had taken everything from my bed, thrown it in a corner and moved right on in. So i flew downstairs started in on some not kind words and ultimately ended up with a private room for Matt and I which was the least they could do but apparently they thought they should be given a medal for the act. We left the next morning.

We also noticed that every Canadian seem to have a Canadian flag patch on their bag.

So, Rome....great city, a lot to see....Hostel...sucks more than words can describe!

P.S. Matts toe is all better after a lot of Bactracin and band aids ( he slipped off a jetti in Portugal and cut his toe pretty bad, then walk into one of our bags a few days later re-opening it)

Barcelona

We leave Barcelona tomorrow to fly to Rome. So far Barcelona has been pretty cool, very different than Madrid. Its more of a party town (like a better verison of Cancun). we have criss crossed the entire city looking at all the sites.

We went on a pub crawl which was a blast, got drunk for cheap. Learned the 3 rules of a pub crawl in Barcelona.....1. (for women) dont talk to the hookers, they dont really like you and are just going to rob your ass, 2. dont take any beer cans from pakistanies unless you want to pay 165 euros (cause the cops will arrest and fine you), 3. Shut the fuck up!! unless you want the locals to get mad and dump food or urine on your head. It was a good time.

Met cool people and saw amazing stuff. The people in our hostel this time were awsome. So different than Lisbon. First of all it is co-ed which means we can stay in the same room. Second, the girls are super nice which is a nice change of pace from the girls in Jils room last time. These girls were from Australia and we actually went on the pub crawl with them.

They have a maze garden here which Jil and I got lost in for about half an hour. Saw the Sagrada Familia which was amazing. It has been under constuction for over 120 years and isnt due for completion unto 2030. We took a cable car ride up to this castle, which is more of a fort than anything else but it is still cool.

The Metro system so far in every place we´ve been puts SEPTA to shame. Its amazing how easy and cheap it is and you dont have to smell urine and bum everytime you get on or off.

Hitting the beaches tomorrow then Rome at night!

We did stuff backwards and changed our itenerary......

We had our itinerary messed up and booked a flight from Oslo to Amsterdam. Otherwise we would have ended up taking a 24 hour train ride through Northern Europe and Germany and backtracked a lot. We´re now also going to Nice, France instead of Lyon, France. We realized there isnt much to do in Lyon and the French Riviera seems a lot more interesting. We will probably take day trips to Cannes and Monacco/Monte Carlo.


Hope everyones doing well.

Train Rides, Culture Shock and Tapas

So....10 hours on a train, sounds boring but honestly it wasnt, once we got to the train station. We were so pumped that we knew how to work the Metro system in another country, it was a sick kind of confidance. So sincde we were pros we decided to take the metro to our trainstation leaving Lisbon. We asked the people at the hostel where to go and we followed their instruction....yea wrong train station. So then we got back down into the Metro again and asked them where to go, so we go to the other end of the line only to be at THE WRONG STATION AGAIN! Only this time we were able to stay there becasue our train stopped there anyways. Lets just say thank god we left early!

Once finally on the train we met this really nice Indian couple who were travelling on vacation. We spent maybe half an hour just talking to them about the places were going and the places we´ve been. It was nice. Also on the train we met Ricardo...lovely gentelman from Portugal who worked in the cafe. We spend maybe 3 hours sitting at the counter talking about everything from what to do in europe to how do our accents sound to you? It was some real philisophical chatter, but it really was great.

Madrid is beautiful. There is so much history and so much culture. We really enjoyed ourselves there....well, once I (jil) stopped freaking out we did. We were supposed to have a hotel in Madrid but Matt being Matt booked us a hostel because he thought that Hoooostaaaal (picture him saying it like that) was spanish for Hotel. Yea, how about NO! So we arrive at our HOSTEL and its in this building, kinda looked like row homes but on a much bigger street. We get buzzed in, and its dark-as in pitch black cant see a think dark. Personally all I kept thinking was why didnt I watch that movie Hostel so I can know whats going to happen to me now. So we walk upstairs and the reception area is small...very small. Our room isnt ready so we leave our bags are given keys and run. Thats when panic sets in and it takes every fiber of my being to not burst out into tears and try and find a flight home. We couldnt speak the language, we didnt know where we were, and I thought we were going to be murdered....all in all a bad situation.

We walk down the road and find another hostel, it looks the same. Actually, all of them looked the same which puts my mind at rest. Then we go back to go to our room and it is actually really cute and nice. Its also private which was extra nice. After a nap everything kinda worked out and i no longer feared the hostel, not hotel.

In the end we spend two amazing days in Madrid and already want to go back. The food is amazing-we found 2 vegetarian places for Matt! The bars are a lot of fun with some really good beer and the sights are gorgeous. If we had more time we would of liked to of explored more of the surrounding areas but we can leave that for next time.

We just got to Barcelona and Rome is next!

First Day

So today was the first day we spent in Europe. Technically its the second and we havent exactly gone to sleep yet, but time changes are just a technicality anyways. So here we are FINALLY in Portugal. The flight to London was awesome british airways is the shit ( free wine and lots of movies) but the layover made you want to curl up into a little ball and be used as a a prop in one of the many designer stores Heathrow airport has.

So far Portugal has been ok. In a quick time we have become masters of sign language and gesturing. So far its worked out in our favor but we have noticed that many people here do speak English, which helps a lot. We cut our time down here by a day because do to our excelent planning we didnt realize that our 10 hr train ride to Madrid was going to be an overnighter. So, tomorrow we hit the beaches of Portugal and hopefully make it this time and then are on our way to Madrid!!

Just as an FYI, we dont think that were going to be able to post pictures to this thing anytime soon. The computers we use are straight out of star trek-its wierd. But we`ll try and keep you all posted!

And we're off!

Todays the day and we are off. Me (Jil) is packed...Matt is playing with Christian, and isnt packed... anyone suprised by that? Yea, didn't think so! So we just printed out all of itineraries, reservations and flights. Photocopies are currently being made of our personal information and then its time to get some sleep and go. Of course everything is being done last minute, its what we do but at least its getting done.

So, Matts head is shaved, my passport no longer says im a man and all is good with the world and we are ready to hit the sky! It's been really hard to say goodbye to everyone becasue we'll miss you guys so much but we'll be back...whether you want us to or not! :)

Wish us luck and we'll check back as soon as possible!!

One Week to Go

So, its 11: 53 pm on Sunday June 7. That means, in 7 minutes it is exactly one week to go until we leave! Its getting so close and were getting so excited. Thank you to everyone who was at our graduation party yesterday, it was so great. Honest, without you guys we wouldnt have had the time of our lives! So....2 out of the 3 things to do before we leave are done. Jil graduation, done, graduation party, done, Matt graduations left and then we are out of here! This weeks going to be busy trying to get everything together but it'll get done....it has to haha!