European thoughs and memories

Over several miles of flying, walking and train travel for twenty days, Alx and I have ended what we call our "European Bankruptcy Trip". We have so much and missed so much, it is amazing how much time it takes to do everything that you want and you are forced to miss a few things. We have met quite a few people and made friends with others. Paris, Amsterdam, Germany and Austria WOW!!!! Never would I have thought we would have the opportunity to take holiday in Europe. It took a lot of planning, penny pinching (more than usual), stressing out and several days of just waiting. In actuality, it is not getting the opportunity, it is about making it happen. I live my life by two motto's:

"If you really want something bad enough, you will make it happen"
and
"Live your life to the fullest and make it the time of your life"

Now, we have been bitten by the European bug and when are we going back again? Of course, not anytime soon, but yes we will go back. With our dollar falling to new lows like Bush's approval rating, we will be be going anytime soon.

This trip was about experiencing culture of each country and to fit in as much as possible. We accomplished both. Out of all the places that we visited, Paris was my favorite. It was a city that I felt really comfortable in and it was a city you could move to and live. Yes you would really need to get on the fast track and learn the language, but a very friendly and helpful city. There were times as we looked at the menu, thinking what the hell are we going to do, but that was the other challenge to overcome. Alx and I have travelled to many cities in the US, Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean. All spoke English except for Guadalajara Mexico, since Alx speaks fluent Spanish there was no challenge. Here we do not speak French, Dutch or German, so the translator books that we had came in very handy and definitely got their intended use. Amsterdam is a lot like Las Vegas a good three days is sufficient enough, would we go back, you bet but would be a short trip. Germany was our biggest challenge as the language was not that easy to pronounce, French was a lot easier, but we made it work. We drank several liters of beer in Germany and could actually say we probably drank well over three gallons each for the week and half we were there. Oh the fear, how much weight have we gained? The cheese, the breads, the sausages, the beer oh no. Well with all the walking we did, I lost weight and Alx stayed the same. Whew!!!!
Seeing history over several thousand years old, was so interesting and sight to see. America not that old, so most of our history is on the east coast, where in Europe history is all over.
Getting an outsiders perspective on the United States, our current state of the union and of course our President and his administration was very eye opening. No body holds back on their feelings.
Alx and I have definitely had the time of our lives, and it was great to be able to write about our experiences and share with our family and friends. I hope those that read our blog enjoyed it and all comments were most appreciated.

p.s. yes I will continue to write a blog, I find this therapeutic and enjoy writing about the thoughts, opinions and the happenings in our world.

Cheers.