“Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined.” ~Henry David Thoreau
You know that feeling of checking something off your bucket list and having a life long dream come true?
Yah, it is pretty magical!
I recently had the opportunity to travel to Europe. A friend of mine already had plans to go, and well, YOLO*. What began as a half-hearted ‘Let me look into it’ turned into a dream come true. All my life, I always dreamed of being spontaneous, booking a flight to Europe, wandering around, just because.
“Not all those who wander are lost.” ~ J.R.R. Tolkien
Check.
I flew into Dublin and had a 12 hour layover (Dublin was SUPER cheap to fly into). Having only 12 hours to enjoy, I stopped at a nearby pub, made friends with the locals where I learned that Garth Brooks is still popular and taught my newly made friends what an Irish Car bomb is and what *YOLO means.
Then the next day, hopped a flight to Prague to meet up with my friend.
Prague, you win.
It is like a fairy-tale. Very clean, preserved. It’s like walking back in time. I had heard it is a beautiful city. Words don’t do it justice. It’s like walking through a real-like Hansel and Gretel. Although it isn’t a very touristy city (as in comparing to Rome with so many things to see and do) it is a nice, relaxing, walkable city that transport you into a dream. Here are some pics to make you jealous:
Plus the most magical souvenir of all (because I love puns!)
After 2 days (and I do say, 2 days was just enough to dabble in the gloriousness of the city, although 1 more day would have been perfect), it was back on a plane to head to Amsterdam.
This was just as I had imagined. Canals lined with buildings. Bikes galore. Coffeeshops. A tad disappointed upon our late arrival, hardly ANY restaurants were open past 10pm. Why not eat some pizza then…after devouring pizza that would put any pizzeria in Italy to shame, back to the hotel to rest up for the next 2 days of touristy stuff!
From walking throughout the city to shopping to apple pie* to canal cruises to I Amsterdam to Heineken – I’ll be sure to make a trip back (I didn’t do the museums – I know SHAME!). Maybe you’ll understand why – look at this!
*this, THIS apple pie, looking all sweet and innocent. UNTIL I take a bite and boom, raisins. Lets just say, you all probably know how that ended up. Thank you @Chicagoista for rescuing me.
Exactly.
Next up – back to Dublin.
Sorry to report – Dublin is somewhat a dud. I even tried to make a fun pun at customs in Amsterdam…
Border Patrol: Where are you headed to?
Me: You can find me in the ‘Dub (you know, a play off of 50 Cent’s ‘You Can Find Me in the Club’ – note, puns do NOT translate well).
One positive aspect – Guinness.
Here’s a few photos to document our day in the Dub:
Notice a trend…beer in Prague. Heineken in Amsterdam. Guinness in Dublin. My kind of souvenirs.
And that, my dear friends, is a recap of my whirl-wind 1-week-Euro-adventure-to-check-off-my-bucket-list. Until my next trip…
“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” ~Mark Twain
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