Chocolate, Cruise & Sweat

We spent the last few days in Cologne Germany. Andrew and I both had a cold for the first couple of days so we took it easy at the beginning of the week.

July 6, we took a spin around the city and book our next couple of weeks in Germany.

We walked along the Rhein River and went to the "Hohenzollern Brucke". It is a bridge with a bunch of locks on it. Couples come to the bridge and attach a 'love lock' to it and throw the key in the river. Romantic, i guess... if you're into that kind of thing. Some people went all out and got their names engraved on the locks, while others used permanent markers.

July 7 we were feeling better and so we took the city by storm. We climbed up the cathedral (near 500 steps) to get a better view of the city.

Then we went to the Lindt chocolate factory. WOW!! Upon entry we got a free chocolate and then we got to taste chocolate out of a huge chocolate fountain, Andrew and I managed to sample the chocolate fountain twice. It made me miss the chocolate chip muffins we were getting in Ireland from Dunnes!

Then we went to a big city park to read/nap (me/Andrew... he always seems to be napping, actually he is trying to nap on the train right now as I am writing). The park was huge and really beautiful.

Afterwards we went to find a pub to watch Germany vs. Spain. All the pubs were really busy and everyone was dressed up in Germany colours, jerseys, etc. We ended up finding a pub and spent the night cheering for Germany and enjoying German beer (a little too much)... though nothing compares to Guinness. We were sad that Germany lost, but now we have a reason to watch the game Saturday (for third place). Plus, I really want the Netherlands to win the Cup on Sunday. After the game we walked back to the hotel. We passed the cathedral and Andrew managed to snap some good pics (some were a little blurry, I suggested that this was because of too many beers, Andrew prefers to think that it is because of the slow shutter speed of the camera).

July 8 (yesterday) we took a river cruise along the Rhein from Rudesheim to Koblenz... which was free with our train passes, which made us REALLY happy!

A lot of the time Andrew and I look around and feel really out of place. We always seem to be doing things that people aged 60 or 70 + are doing. So of course we were on this river cruise with people aged 60 or 70 + and to top it off they were all southern Americans, to make it even worse... they were TEACHERS (like Brian, ewww!!!). The southern Americans are usually quite entertaining... in small doses. For example one of the ladies would yell out: 'Castle alert' when we would see a castle (which was every couple of minutes). Also they seemed to be extremely confused about which stop they were suppose to get off at and kept talking about it (in their southern accents of course, which Andrew is getting pretty good at mimicking). I'm pretty sure some of them were so worried about which stop they should be getting off at that they forgot to enjoy the view. Others were entertaining because of their wardrobe selection. I am not one to be critical of what other people are wearing, considering I am wearing sweatpants (or maybe even worse, lululemon outfits) everyday, but oh my god!!! All of these people (mostly women, although some we couldn't tell their gender) were wearing ugly visors, their pants were pulled up to their nipples and of course they were wearing monstrous fanny packs (the ones that hold multiple water bottles). This is what we were dealing with:

The castles were really beautiful and there were a ton of them!

We were on the cruise for 4 hours, and by looking at the pictures it looks like it was a nude cruise.

My excuse: I really am wearing clothes, but I was working on my tan so I had my dress pulled up and straps down.

It was very hot out yesterday (around 30 degrees), but being on the river we were enjoying the breeze. It wasn't until we docked in Koblenz that I noticed the heat. Most days it is so hot that when we get back from being out and about we are totally disgusting and need a shower. Yesterday was no exception.

In order to save a few bucks of course we opted not to take the bus from the dock to the train station. So we are walking (for about 20-25 minutes) in the crazy heat and just dripping. We looked especially bad yesterday because we put on sunscreen. I thought that once we got on the train we would cool down because the majority of the trains have AC, but of course, not the one that we caught! So on the train we continued to get more disgusting.

It is important to note that nobody else seems to be affected by the heat, or at least not as much as we are. People on the train were wearing jeans and shirts and didn't appear to be sweating at all.

Too much information? Probably! Andrew and I were reminiscing today about how I was cold in Ireland. What I would give to be cold again! I have begun to take cold showers in the evening and even then I don't cool down enough. Hopefully we will have AC in the room in Berlin, which is our next stop!

The Sleep Of Our Lives... And Rouen

We spent May 22 and 23 traveling. We left the hotel in Galway (May 22) at 5pm and went for a 6km hike carrying all our gear... to Galway city center for our last pint at An Pucan. We left Galway at 10pm for the Shannon airport and slept at the airport (not very well, I might add). We woke up nice and early (4am) to make sure we wouldn't miss our flight to Beauvais, France (departed at 6:40). Once we landed in France we had to figure out a way to Rouen. We hopped on a bus, then a train, then walked through Paris for 3km carrying all our gear... to another train station and then FINALLY to Rouen (we arrived at 4 pm), where we hiked for another few km carrying all our gear...

It was really hot in France, so we were disgusting from our trek with our packs and when we checked into our hotel we had a shower and then left to go and see the city.

Here is a really old cathedral and according to Andrew "you could probably fit the church we saw in Galway inside of it".

Some half-timber buildings, which Rouen is known for... according to Andrew.

When we got back to the hotel we decided to plan our route to Vimy Ridge and then we discovered that it was going to be extremely challenging to get there because yet again it is another bank holiday (these Europeans always seem to be on vacation!). So we decided to leave that for another day.

We went to bed last night at 9:30pm and woke up at 12pm. We couldn't believe how late it was... I guess we were just making up for lost sleep the night before.

Once we actually got up, we went on the hunt for a grocery store ("un supermarche") and went to look at some of the sites the city had to offer. Me on "La Seine", which runs through Rouen.

We went to "Jardin du plantes", a park. It was so hot out (ok it was only 25... but compared to Ireland it was extremely hot) I was considering going into the kiddie pool.

We finally found a grocery store (the very last one on our list of 5) and so we got supper and went to the area where Joan of Arc was burned to eat supper. Once we got there we found another supermarche so after supper we went and got a bottle of wine for 1 euro and 50 cents.

Here is Andrew drinking some wine in our hotel room (we would have been drinking it out of glasses, but both of our plastic cups in the hotel are broken).

It is weird to have everyone around us speaking in French and I am now responsible for talking to everyone. I am now Andrew's translator... we will see how successful this will be. If Andrew is not nice to me he will be cut off and have to suffer the consequences... me refusing to ask people questions he has!

We are (ok Andrew isn't) a little home sick for Ireland and Guinness, and our drinking buddy Jack (mom only drank wine) and for the B Team's company but we are already enjoying the French wine. 

We Did It!!!

After 8 years, we finally got married!

When we first started talking about a wedding in Ireland we decided to have a very simple wedding. So I bought a dress online and Andrew was going to wear the suit he already had. When the online dress finally arrived it turned out to be really ugly!! So onto plan B, it being April 30 (the busiest day for accountants and the day before we left) I got Mom to go shopping for me and we decided that if she found something she would call me and I would go out to meet her. So she called and she thought she found a dress. When I got to there I pulled a few dresses and fell in love with one. I think it is the complete opposite of what I thought I was looking for.

So because I had a beautiful dress, Andrew went and got a new shirt and tie.

Jim Slipp (an old partner from BDO) had sent an email of Ashford Castle to me when he found out we were getting married in Ireland. It has to be the most beautiful castle ever, but because we had decided to have a simple wedding we decided not to get married at a castle.

Two days before the wedding we decided that it would be nice to get a few professional pictures of us. So we found and booked a photographer. His name was Ik (pronounced "Ick"). Then we (me and Mom) decided it was a good idea to get someone to do my hair, because I am hair challenged.

Mom also suggested that we go to Ashford Castle for dinner and to spend one night... I had said no before, but she wore me down. Plus I would have felt a little awkward going to a pub in my dress, as this was the plan until now. So we booked a room at Ashford.

The day before the wedding Andrew was doing his laundry and decided he was going to wash his new white shirt. Unfortunately he also decided to wash his blue jeans with his shirt (I can't blame him, the day before my white tank top turned blue because I washed them with my jeans). So now Andrew has a blue-ish dress shirt. We laughed about it and just thought, oh well who cares (I think Andrew was secretly trying to look like Brian on his wedding day because Brian had a baby blue suit - gay or not gay?).

The morning of the wedding, we decided that I needed a bouquet, Andrew needed a flower for his suit and I needed a flower for my hair. So at 9:30am we went walking and we found a flower shop downtown Galway. 

After the flower shop stop, I went to go and get my hair done and picked up Andrew's (we thought we would try and get it dry cleaned to see if it would come out). The blue didn't come out. Then it hits me that his blue shirt is really going to look blue because I'm wearing a white dress. So when Jack came back from picking up the flowers at 2pm (wedding is at 4pm and I need 20 minutes to get into my dress at the hotel) Andrew and Jack went on a mission to get a white dress shirt. They ended up going to a suit store that Pierce Brosnan apparently shops at.

They made it back just in time to pick us up, drive to the hotel and gave me just enough time to get into my dress.

The whole time I was adamant that I was going to wear flip flops with my dress because nobody will ever see my shoes anyways so may as well be comfy. Right before the ceremony, Mom left to go and get Andrew and Jack into the ceremony room and I decided that if nobody is going to see my flip flops, nobody will notice if I don't wear them at all. So I left barefoot and walked down the isle to marry the man of my dreams.

After the ceremony, we had professional pictures taken and then we went to Ashford Castle to have dinner and where Andrew and I spent the night.

The day was perfect. I have been cold pretty much ever since we landed in Ireland and for the first time on May 20 the sun came out and the clouds disappeared. Naturally, Andrew and I were complaining about hot it was because now we were too hot. It was the nicest day we have had since we got here and it made it really for picture taking, etc.

Here a few pictures of Ashford and us on the grounds.

The B Team.

Me and Mom.

Drinks at in the Prince of Whales room at Ashford... a bride drinking Guinness (what they call Irish wine). Classy hey?

At the piano bar at Ashford. (When we were having supper a couple bought us a bottle of champagne and then another couple at the piano bar sent us glasses of wine)

Our room in Ashford Castle... it also happened to be the room Brad Pitt picked to stay in when he stayed at Ashford. Andrew said it was the closest he would ever get to sleeping with Brad Pitt - gay or not gay?

The bathroom.

The next day we decided to go for a walk on the grounds before Mom and Jack came to pick us up.

George V dinning room, where we had supper.

Inside the Castle.

Thanks so much Mom and Jack for coming to Ireland for our wedding and for making it really, really special.

Andrew and I have now decided that the best way to get free stuff is to wear our wedding gear. So we are now backpacking with my wedding dress and Andrew's suit (ok, we aren't really traveling with them, but we thought about it!).

The B Team has now left us, which means Andrew and I are now returning to roughing it. Two nights ago we stayed in Ashford Castle, then last night we stayed in a beautiful hotel, Mom and Jack leave and tonight Andrew and I are going to sleep in the Shannon Airport on the floor or on a couch if we are lucky.

Andrew and I will be leaving tomorrow morning for Rouen, France for a couple days then to Bayeux and then to Paris.

Catch Up In Galway

Well we finally arrived in Galway (on May 13) and during our first walk (on May 14) we noticed the lack of dog poop. Then we noticed this sign. The sign seems to be working... or there are no dogs in Galway because this is the cleanest city we have been in so far.

Andrew and I went for a walk along the bay. It is a beautiful city.

On May 15, the B Team met us in Galway. After we met them at the airport, we got groceries and went to check out the place we rented. Mom and Jack had a quick nap and then we went out to our new favourite pub in Galway (An Pucan) for some drinks and to listen to live Irish music.

We didn't give the B Team any time to rest. May 16, Andrew and I planned to take them to the Connemara National Park. We didn't really plan on it, but we ended up hiking up a mountain (for us Albertans, it was more like a very large and steep hill) which took most of the day.

Even though they must have been really tired from the flight the previous day, the B Team made it up the mountain too.

Since we were all tired from the hike the day before, May 17 turned out to be a relaxing day. We spent the day walking around Galway and showing Mom and Jack the sights around the town. We went for drinks at Kennedy's Pub (where President Kennedy went when he visited Galway in 1963), then we went to Robin Hood at the Omniplex in Galway. Afterwards we went back to An Pucan for supper and to listen to some more live music.

Then yesterday we took another road trip, this time to 'The Burren' and 'The Cliffs of Moher'. The Burren was really neat to see up close and walk across.

The Cliffs of Moher were totally beautiful... even in pouring rain. These cliffs are 8 km long and 210 meters high and definitely something we had never seen before. It was actually really nice that it was pouring because it seemed that most people opted to stay inside the visitor centre instead of going out to the cliffs for the view.

I'm sure the cliffs would have been great to see when it wasn't grey out... but it seems fitting that it was raining, it being Ireland and all.

And tomorrow we will be getting married... I almost feel grown up.

A Dream Come True

Yesterday was the best day EVER... ok not ever, but it was just what I needed.

Yesterday morning I researched where we were going to stay for the next two nights and some things to do in and around Paris (our next major city).

Andrew sewed Canadian flags onto our backpacks (twice, because the first time you could see the white thread). We were sick of people assuming that we were American.

Then for our afternoon getaway Andrew and I went to the Dunnes grocery store and we got chocolate chip muffins and we came back and watched Glee. This lead to a discussion where Andrew informed me that he was a part of Notre Dame's High School Glee club. When I told him he could never get into a glee club he proceeded to show me some of his moves (I believe he was singing Sweet Caroline). 

(I'm actually surprised how well these pictures turned out considering I was laughing so hard I was crying.)