Euro Trip Take 2

Bonjour Blog

It's been a while since I have written but I assure you that it wasn't due to a lack of desire but more so due to a lack of subject material. I know many of you are probably bitter, bothered, bedeviled and perhaps even a touch bewildered. I painfully realize that your love for me can only be stretched so thin without anything in return and for this I am truly sorry. However, I am elated to say that there will soon be more blogs. More blogs than you will soon be able to handle. Blogs in the morning, blogs in the evening, blogs at supper time, when you have blogs on your bagel...oops sorry, had the pizza bagel commercial stuck in my head. What is the inspiration for this resurgence you ask? Why do my fingers once again tickle the keyboard? "Stop the foreplay and get to the nasty" I assume you are screaming.

Well my friends (and i use that term lightly) as you know last year I went off on a journey halfway across the world that I can only describe as epic. I'm talking Exodus to Bablyon-like proportions. It was me vs Europe for a month and I am proud to say that I was victorious. That trip left me with many things: a sense of courage, confidence, culture, a newfound respect for architecture, art and nature. But the biggest thing it left me with was a giant itch. No it wasn't the infamous traveler's bed bugs, it wasn't fleas, it wasn't lice, it wasn't gonnorhea. No it was so much more. Such an itch that not even Gold Bond medicated powder could assuage it. I was bit by the travel bug. Ever since I have returned, I have been trying to get back. And back I am going (that sounded quite Yoda-esque). On the evening of June 2 my bags will be packed, I'll be ready to go. I won't be standing there outside your door hating to wake you up to say goodbye but I will be on a plane to Europa!!!

I know many of you were a bit wary of me traveling last year. Unlike Liam Neeson in the movie Taken, I have none of the specially acquired skills necessary to travel Europe alone. I reluctantly yet unashamedly admit that I can barely read a map, have no sense of direction, have trouble walking on sidewalks, and don't speak any other languages. I tend to trust strangers way too much (aka asking strangers to take out money for me at the ATM or inviting prostitutes up to our room for some pizza). And i don't always make the best decisions after I have been drinking (such as the infamous fence impalement in the church in Paris last year). But I am feeling much more confident this time after surviving last year's adventure.

I plan on keeping a daily blog (that means a blog that I write every day) on all my antics while I am across the pond. Mostly so I make you jealous and so I can remember these events years from now but also so you all can sleep at night knowing that I am still alive. Plus, I will admit that last year it really made my day when I woke up and saw all your posts and words of encouragement/ridicule so keep them coming this time.

The most exciting part is that I'm not going to be alone the whole trip this time. Britt will be joining me in Spain for the last lag of my trip. I can only begin to imagine the shenanigans that Piskal and Biskal will encounter. I really don't think Europe is ready for that combination yet. It will be beyond glorious.

I have just finalized my itinerary and am relieved that it is now complete (I only have a thousand other things to plan now). I will keep you posted on further details but for now, this is where I'll be going this year.

Day 1: Wed June 2
9:50 pm: Leave Toronto

Day 2: Thurs June 3
9:55 am: Arrive in London, UK

Day 3: Fri June 4
Leave London early morning and arrive in Vienna, Austria in the late morning

Day 4: Sat June 5
Leave Vienna at night

Day 5 Sun June 6
Arrive in Ljubljana, Slovenia first thing in the morning

Day 6 Mon June 7
Leave Ljubljana early morning
Arrive in Budapest, Hungary in afternoon

Day 7 Tues June 8
Full Day in Budapest

*Day 8 Wed June 9
Leave Budapest early morning
Arrive in Zagreb Croatia at noon
Leave Zagreb in early evening

Day 9 Thurs June 10
Arrive in Zurich, Switzerland in the morning

Day 10 Fri June 11
Leave Zurich late afternoon
Arrive in Lausanne, Switzerland
Leave Lausanne late at night

Day 11 Sat June 12
Arrive in Gerona, Spain early morning (meet up with Britt)

Day 12 Sun June 13
Leave Gerona in the morning
Arrive in Barcelona, Spain around noon


Day 13 Mon June 14
Full Day Barcelona

Day 14 Tues June 15
Leave Barcelona early morning
Arrive in Madrid, Spain mid morning

Day 15 Wed June 16
Full Day in Madrid

Day 16 Thurs June 17
Leave Madrid at night

Day 17 Fri June 18
Arrive in Lisbon, Portugal early morning

Day 18 Sat June 19
Full Day in Lisbon

Day 19 Sun June 20
Leave Lisbon in the morning
Arrive in London, UK in the afternoon

Day 20: Mon June 21
11:45 am: Leave London
2:55 pm: Arrive in Toronto