Let's start with the title. Originally, when we were booking this trip, we were going to have a 10 hour layover in Amsterdam, between Toronto and Glasgow. We thought it would be fun to pop into downtown Amsterdam, grab some lunch, maybe a whirlwind tour of Anne Frank's house, and race back for our connection. If nothing else, it would make a great title for our travel blog! Long story short - we ended up with a direct flight into Glasgow (which lands at 5:00am, but that's a story for another post) in July, and directly home from Paris at the end of September. Our mission between now and departure day (July 11 th ) - how do we fit everything we need and want into these two, small bags, for a 3 month trip through: Scotland, Wales, England, Italy, Croatia, Slovenia, Spain and France? Suggestions? Tips? Cautions? 3 months. 8 countries. 1 carry-on bag. Each.
We're in Glasgow now. First thing you need to know - we're in a public library that has a fully licensed bar! Oh, and free internet. We've also made our first European clothing purchase! Any guesses what's in the Mark's and Spencer's bag? You're right! Long (thermal) underwear. It's bloody cold here - and rainy, although the sun is trying to come out now. Was this our lack of planning? It is July, right? And we are Canadians... Anyway, we are really enjoying Scotland and are making full use of the 2 day "hop on, hop off" bus tour of Glasgow. Tomorrow we head to Oban, then a week in Iona, where internet access may be iffy. We'll be back online as we head south to Manchester in another 10 days.
We decided to take the train from Split (Croatia) to Ljubljana (Slovenia). The trip from Split to Zagreb was pretty and pretty uneventful. Unlike most trains we`ve expereniced that travel along valleys, this route went over the mountains! We were so high up and the views were stunning. The train was a "tilting" train - the tracks were banked into the ground and the train could sway back and forth in order go faster. Of course it also makes for more motion sickness, so we were glad for an hour break in Zagreb. Slovenia is in the foot of the Alps, so we were looking forward to the scenery for the next leg. Then we experienced the border crossing. Slovenia is part of the European Union. Croatia is not. There was about a 40 minute delay on the Croatian side of the border while the guards checked all our passports, some passengers` luggage and escorted at least one person they didn`t want leaving the country off the train. It was a little eye-opening for us, but we were settl...
i can make summer pimms...winter pimms...whatever takes your fancy. yum
ReplyDeleteYes ... Green & Black's ice cream as well as other products by them are available in Toronto.
ReplyDeleteI will give you a list of vendors when you return to Toronto which we are all looking forward to!
What a relief, now we can come home.
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