Croatia...who knew...

It has been a long long time since the last update and so much has happened! A quick recap of each city. Amsterdam was amaying and the best part for me was sitting bz the river sipping some beer, listening to a couple plazing music and interacting with all the boaters going by. Berlin was cut short because of train issues but it was one of my favorite places. We took a tour that was extremely informative and we saw some places we wouldnt have found other wise like the spot where Hitler killed himself in 1945. Prague was super fun! We partied with our American friends for the 4th of July and met some amazing people. Vienna was a beautiful city and even though we were tired for the first day and a half we had a great time and I guess Alan didnt want to leave because he made us miss the train! And Dubravnik....Dubravnik is unbelieveable! It took Alan, Emma and I 29 hours to make it here but it was well worth it! Croatia is by far the most beautiful place I have ever been and swimming in the crystal clear waters of the Adriatic sea has been so relaxing. We have debated canceling other parts of the trip so we can staz here a while but we will see if that happens in the next couple of days. The only problem is that my bedit card was swallowed by an ATM in Zagreb so I have no way of getting money out but hopefully that changes very soon! I dont have much time on the computer but I am excited to tell everyone the stories of all our adventures when I can!

From Paris with Love

The view sure is great from high atop the Eiffel Tower! We spent the day climbing the over 600 stairs just to reach the half way point then took an elevator to the top! It was amazing looking down at the entire city of Paris and spying the Louvre, Notre Dame (Which we were visiting the day before and blew me away) and every other amazing feature of this beautiful city. I am unable to post pictures right now but you can take my word that its beautiful here.

The best thing I have done so far has been a kayaking and snorkeling excusrsion I took with Jonny, Alan, Brenna and Lilly a new addition to our group while we were in Barcelona and now Paris. We tok kayaks out on the Mediteranian and went snorkeling in the coves. It was an amazing trip and the best part was the water is so salty you dont even need to swim the water just holds you up!

Everyone is having a great time and the things I could talk about are endless! I want to write so much more but there is always something going on here. I have to get ready for dinner and then a exploration of the local night life here in Paris!

Obrigado Lisbon hola Barcelona!

Im writing from a hostel in the middle of Barcelona Spain! We arrived this afternoon after a 15 hour train ride from Lisbon. Lisbon was unbelievable, if I were to describe every adventure and cool place we visited this would be a book not a blog. The first three days have taken up over twenty pages of my travel journal. My favorites so far have been the white sand sand beaches in CaisCais and the castle that looks over Sintra, the vacation spot for Kings of Portugal for centuries! Lisbon could not have been better and so far Barcelona is living up to its reputation, we have only been in town for 5 hours and we have already witnessed a massive peace protest in the central square and I just finished eating octopus for lunch. There are still 38 days remaining on this adventure and if they are anything like these first few then this will be one amazing ride!

Updated Itinerary...Croatia? Croatia!

With just one week until we arrive in Portugal our itinerary is finalized! Because half of the group will be separating with a few weeks remaining, Emma to Greece and Jonny and Erik to unknown lands, we decided to make some changes to the rest of the trip. Katie mentioned to me that she had heard nothing but good things about a spot in Croatia called Dubrovnik.  To be honest I couldn't point out Croatia on a map much less think I would ever want to go there. I trusted Katie's judgement and when I got home and searched for Dubrovnik I couldn't have been happier! Dubrovnik is a an old port city packed full of maritime history. It has quickly become one of the places I am most looking forward to visiting. When I mentioned Croatia to my parents my Dad said they recently involved in hostel actions with neighboring countries he scared my Mom quite a bit but after some research all nerves have been calmed!

So the cities we will be visiting over our 42 days in Europe will be:

1. Lisbon, Portugal
2. Barcelona, Spain
3. Paris, France
4. Amsterdam, Netherlands
5. Berlin, Germany 
6. Prague, Czech Rep.
7. Vienna, Austria
8. Dubrovnik, Croatia
9. Cinque Terra, Italy
10. Florence, Italy
11. Rome, Italy

Two Weeks! Well 13 days 21 hours and 5 mins but whos counting...?

I'm sitting at work with very little to do and Europe on my mind. I have just 7 more work days remaining before boarding the plane! It feels like I have a ton to do in very little time but the time is going by so slowly! I am all about making lists and rather then crossing things off, the "travel" list seems to grow each day! Just a portion of the list includes:

• Buy a small camera
• Haircut*
• Find a paper back version of Raptor Red 
• Work on the beach body (its currently 82 degrees in Lisbon)
• Study up on destinations, customs and etiquette

I want to be as prepared as possible so I don't miss out on anything. I continue to get suggestions from anyone who has been to Europe or traveled in general. According to Kathleen I must make sure to have Kender Eggs in Germany, Sarah insists I keep a detailed travel journal and Shanna challenges me to beat the 1,500 photos her and Riley took on their trip! (This should be easy considering I have about a month more time) And of course my awesome parents! Mom makes sure to tell me all of the motherly things like making sure to keep track of all my paperwork, cash and always ends the conversations with an uplifting "You are going to have a great time." And my Dad, who is always good for the lighter side of these type of things, instructs me to watch Euro Trip to see the perils of the Red Light District in Amsterdam! Coming from them all of this information is well appreciated!

As you can see from the list above the haircut is an important piece of the final preparations. When in Vegas Jonny, Mike and myself rocked the "Bro-Hawks" for the trip. Yes, this is extremely cheesy and borderline douchy but it is just another fun thing to do! I have been thinking for this trip I need to step it up a notch and that includes the hair-do! I have a plan for a cut that should be fun and help me fit in a bit better across the pond. I've mentioned it to a few people and the reviews are mixed but I'm hoping I can pull it off! And yes, I am avoiding saying what it is so you will just have to wait and see!

The Wolf Pack!

This trip would be nothing without the people I will be spending it with. I have only had the pleasure of knowing these amazing people for a few years but we have friendships that will last a lifetime. The lovely ladies Emma, Katie and Brenna. There are bound to be beautiful women across Europe but we will taking the best and the brightest with us! And the guys, Alan, Erik, Jonny, myself and from the blockbuster hit movie Gladiator, actor Russell Crowe (we are going to the Colosseum so i'm sure we will see him). Wherever we go, a good time seems to follow and i'm sure this will continue throughout the trip!

One more month...

Just one month from today I will be embarking on a journey like nothing I have experienced before. I will be on a plane destined for Lisbon Portugal with 6 of the best friends a person could ever dream of having. This will be the first stop in a trip around Europe that will cover 9 countries, 42 days, countless miles and endless adventures! (Click the pic for our scheduled stops!)

I had never felt the need to travel and see the world but after spending 2+ weeks in Japan with my family I was hooked. I was ignorant to the fact that there were so many things to learn just from being in a foreign country and immersing yourself in the culture. I thought that anything I would need from a different country could be shipped via FedEx and anything I would want to see I could do so on the Discovery Channel. But after seeing the sunrise from the top of Mt. Fuji with my dad after a 2 day climb to the summit, I quickly realized there are things you must live to truly understand.

You learn more spending a day jumping from train to train with nothing but  hope you will end up in the right place then you ever could in a classroom or from any television program. This trip is bound to be an adventure, not everything will go as planned, the weather may not always cooperate, our feet will definitely hurt and i'm sure we will lose our way a time or two..but those will surely be the best moments!

My mom said it best when she told me that "there are few times in your life when you will be able to travel with people you enjoy traveling with". She has my dad and I have a group of friends that cant be beat. I can't wait to dip my feet into the pristine waters of the Mediterranean in Barcelona, feel the romance of Paris under the Eiffel Tower, enter Berlin through the symbol of the 3rd Reich at the Brandenburg Gate and simply lay my eyes on, in my opinion, the single most astonishing sporting structure ever built, the mighty Colosseum in Rome!