And then we took Berlin!

Its been a whirlwind trip here in the big city of Berlin! There is certainly a lot to do and see in this city. Although most of the buildings are from various ages of Germany and Berlin's turbulent history. It certainly has a more immediate feel of what has happened here in this city. After the fall of the wall in November of 1990, there are still amazing stories and monuments to what happened in this city not all that long ago. The city has become fully modernized, and has its fair share of North American chain stores but there are also the unique monuments to this city's past such as Checkpoint Charlie. When you walk into the museum and see the wall (there is a small section of it still standing), you get a real sense of what happened here. Our tour guide spoke vividly about their experiences when the wall fell, and it made the past really come alive. Also we drove to Potsdam, for those who aren't familiar with the history, this is where Stalin, Churchill, and Truman decided how Europe was to be split up. We were in the very room where the three superpowers met that eventually gave rise to the Cold War. A thrilling feeling! In the same area are the great palaces of Frederich the Great who built some tremendous buildings in this scenic location.

From Berlin we travelled to Dresden to see the sights of this wonderful little city. It has a small square in old town which has a beautiful protestant church and beautiful gardens and museum. We had a short time there to have lunch and shop and then we made our way back onto the bus to drive to Prague. Can't wait till we arrive there! It is one of our most anticipated stops on this tour. BTW we have made some nice friends from Toronto, who are on this trip as well, and we've been hanging out on the trip. I'll post Berlin Pics soon and you'll have to check back to be sure you have seen all the pics. I'll keep posting!

On into Norway!

We had a wonderful cruise from Denmark over to Norway. Norway is a beautiful country, so much like the West coast of Canada. We took our coach up to the top of one of the beautiful fjorrds of Norway. Here there is one of the power plants which was to be used the Nazis to start their nuclear programme. we learned about how some Norse commandoes stopped a shipment of heavy water which may have turned the tides against the allies during the WWII. The plant is situated on a deep gorge with a tiny bridge to cross. However, our bus took a small road even further up the mounatin to our hotel. We really love the misty landscape round us which is more of the nature scenery we were hoping for. Also, the temperatures are much cooler here than in the cities we have visited. It is a great relief.

We took a ferry to Flam which is located in Sonjenfjord. The ferry ride was fantastic and the scenery was spectacular!. Since Sharon and I had some extra time before supper, we changed quickly and went out sea kayaking in the fjord. It was beautiful, and it allowed us to get in close to some of the falls that line the fjord. We were about two hours in total on the water and everything was going well until my right leg cramped up in the kayak. Problem was that I was the one steering the boat. The larger tandem kayaks like we were using have a small rudder which is steered by foot pedals while you use the paddles for forward motion. Thankfully sharon could padle us forward back toward the beach and I could steer us with my paddle. Needless to say we worked up quite the appetite while we walked back to the hotel. Following the stay in Flam we took a scenic ride up to Oslo.

Oslo the capital of Norway is another bustling city, with an international feeling similar to that of Copenhagen. There is a lot to see and do here, such as walking on the roof of the Opera House (great views of the harbour and downtown from up there!), the many pedestrian streets lined with every type of shopping imaginable, to visiting the viking ship museum which has three nearly intact viking ships on display. You can also enjoy the boardwalk at ayers brygge which is very upscale and trendy. However, Sharon and I enjoyed touring vigalund park which houses all the work by this artist. It is filled with beautiful sculptures, a unique monolith, and gorgeous fountains. Everything in the park was designed by the artist.

We also visited the Nobel Peace Center, which is a museum of all the Nobel Peace Prize winners. The prize is awarded in Norway, and the other Nobel Prizes are awarded in Stockholm, Sweden. The Nobel Peace Center is quite unique in that a majority of it's installations are quite interactive and it really is a combination art gallery/museum.

We had our last group meal with the tour, and as we said our good byes it was sad to see some of our new friends go. We both thought that at the beginning of the trip that because of the huge age difference that we wouldn't have much in common, but there were many interesting people with wide diverse backgrounds who we met on the trip. We'll certainly have some people to visit if we are ever in Wisconsin, that's for sure. Ah well on to the next leg! (P.S. Stay tuned to the slide shows because I will add some more photos than these!) Sorry for the delay!

Playin Catchup!

Hey all!

For those of you are reading of our adventures and misdaventures, I will catch y'all up when we get to Budapest. We have arrived into Prague and are enjoying the sights. Will let you know what happned in the rest of the trip soon complete with pics!

Keep in touch!

Lee and Sharon

Copenhagen

First impressions of Copenhagen is that the city is dirty and covered in grafitti compared to the relative order and cleanlieness of Stockholm. That being said Copenhagen has a lot of old and new world charm. Upon arrival we toured the city by bus where we were treated to the various historical and architectural landmarks of the city. We even had a chance to tour inside the royal palace and parliament which is only allowed to those groups with special permissions. I guess it would be the equivalent of visiting the Buckingham Palace in London, however the palace is also a working parliament where politicians come together. Queen Margaret holds no power over the country but holds the official title of Queen.

The palace itself is very impressive but unfortunately we weren't allowed to take pictures in any of the rooms. We also toured the city by boat because Copenhagen has an extensive canal system and many people live in boats in the city. Also, bikes are a major form of personal transport and you will see many bikes parked in the city with no locks on them!

For all the beer lovers out there who have tasted Carlsberg beer, you will be happy to know that you are contributing to the Arts and Sciences of Denmark. Nearly fifty-five percent of the profits made from the sales of Carlsberg goes back into funding the Arts and Sciences. Of course, the Danes do quite a bit of contribution to the Arts and Sciences.

During the evening, Sharon and I spent our time in Tivoli Gardens. It is an amusement park/garden that has a number of restaurants, stages, and ride for the people of Copenhagen. Its like having Canada's Wonderland in the heart of downtown Toronto. For all of its hustle and bustle, it really is quite neat place and there is usually a lot of live theatre and music playing in Tivoli. Most residents have season's passes and will use this spot as a common meeting place or to go for a date. Also, Copenhagen's Jazz Festival was just starting so live music can be heard throughout the city. It was a great time.

Happy Canada Day from England and Sweden!

Hey folks this is going to be a catch up entry for this post! We didn't spend too much time in London the second time as we went to the British Museum. It has an extensive collection of artifacts, mummies and treasure! That being said I'm not going to bore everyone with a ton of photos of things I saw at the museum. However, Sharon and I did get a chance to see Spamalot in London's West End. It was brilliant and funny. For those of you who are fans of Monty Python, it is a must see!

The next day we woke and spent our time at Heathrow while we waited for our flight to Stockholm. The city is absolutely beautiful, and the people are very friendly. We walked around Galmastan which is Stockholm's Old Town. Like many European cities, Stockholm is a walking city which means that you can reach pretty much anywhere by foot. However the city is built on 14 islands which means you can use thee local ferries to get to your destination even faster. Over our time here in Stockholm we have taken in the beautiful scenery, the grand scale of the buildings, and the some of the local attractions. Stockholm is certainly worth visiting a second time!

Sorry to trouble everyone with two slide shows this time! ;)

Bath-Spa the original health resort!

We've spent a couple of wonderful days in the city of Bath Spa. This city is one of the first settlements made by the Romans because of the natural hot springs found i the area. Although people who have read about Bath or are familiar with it know about the huge Roman bath for which the city is named, however there are actually three natural baths and it wasn't until about five years ago that the city started using the heated mineral water springs to open the Thermae Bath Spas (include link for photos). It is located next to the original Roman Baths which provides a nice contrast with the classical and the modern within this world heritage city.

Sharon and I have both been here before in Bath and we really enjoyed the architecture, the small narrow streets and alleys, and how around every corner it really seemed like you were making a fresh new discovery. On the other side of the coin, Bath's green spaces with their large trees make these areas seem grand by comparison.

Now that the background info is done, our first adventure into Bath may not have happened t all. We arrived at our hotel to find out that our reservation wasn't held. However, when we checked the booking we made it for the end of July instead of the end of June. Thankfully, the hotel had accommodations for us but they were not as grand as our first nights stay in London. We had two twin beds with barely enough room for us and our luggage. By the way the toilets didn't work very well in this building either and we had to schedule when to use the facilities. It didn't matter though because we didn't spend much time at the hotel. The great thing about Bath is that everything is within walking distance. You could probably walk from one end of the city to the other in a couple of hours.

We didn't venture too far from Bath Abbey (which is a beautiful church as well) to take in the local markets and shops. We did the guided walking tour of the city (which is free!) and something I would recommend everybody do who visit the city. We had high tea in the Pump Room which has been a tradition for visitors from all over the world since the late 1800s. We also had Sally Lunn Buns which is a traditional bread that originated here in Bath. These small round breads were used before plates and bowls were commonplace and that is how food was served. Anyways, on our last night we went out for a bite to eat,and to watch the Euro Cup final. We managed to discover the Coeur de Lion, the smallest pub in Bath. The crowd in the pub was friendly and it was a great place to watch the match. We ended up talking with this great old British couple Helen and Stuart. They were your stereotypical British couple who were arguing back and forth, who loved to chat and actually dominate the conversation. They were quite nice and even bought us a drink at the end of the evening! They sent us on our way with a hug and a kiss. The pub was like being on the set of Coronation Street. This ends the Bath adventure! If you want to visit England and see something other than London you can't go wrong visiting Bath.

P.S. if you want to check out the new spa we went to Thermae Bath Spas.

London Calling

Well today was quite the journey across the pond. We arrived at Pearson early this morning to check into our flight only to be delayed by Air Canada itself! We used the computerized ticket terminals to check in, let them know how many bags we were carrying etc. and we still stood in line about and hour and half before we even managed to get our luggage checked in.

Seeing as we were going to be away from Canada we made our last Timmy Ho's run before we boarded the plane. The flight itself wasn't too bad, Pretty smooth, the usual airplane food, but the service could have been more hospitable. However, the flight entertainment system was pretty good and Sharon and I had lots of movies and shows to watch on the trip over.

Finally arrive in Heathrow and we made it through customs, picked up our bags pretty quick and boarded the express train to central London. After picking up some sandwiches at the airport, we cabbed it to our Hotel. The Hilton Metropole. After waiting another 45 minutes in reception (the Brits do queues really well, however Canada may overtake them soon), we finally got a key to our room.

We get up to our floor and Sharon opened the door to our room to find some man laying in his underwear on the bed. So we went back downstairs, to get ourselves a new room (minus unwanted squatters :) ). Te staff were pretty apologetic and we were upgraded to a full on suite. Which for London is pretty impressive. You'll see the pics below. It has its own separate sitting room and bedroom, and a good size bathroom. Now if we could only get room service to work here... I'll end it here today and post again soon!

Toronto!

We arrived in Toronto yesterday, early on in the afternoon. My little brother owns this nice condo downtown, so he let us crash there during our stay in the big city. Once we had ourselves settled at the apartment, Sharon and I went out in search of food, because both of us were starving by the time we arrived.

BTW if you are travelling out of Edmonton, don't go to Montana's for breakfast. Don't get me wrong, the service was good but the portions were tiny for the price you paid. Total waste anyways! Rest of their menu is usually pretty good!

Kev (my bro) lives pretty close to St. Lawrence Market. This is a huge building filled with various craft and food vendors. We decided to have some crepes when were there and did some walking around the market. Sharon and I really enjoy browsing through venues like this because they are pretty unique.

We then had a tour of Kev's building, which I must say is really quite posh! It has some great facilities in the building for its residents and the terraces on the upper floors provide some great views of downtown, and the lake. After that we needed some down time so we hung out in the apartment for a bit while waiting for our friends Todd, Tanya, and Cale (formerly of Cold Lake) to meet up with for supper at the Old Spaghetti Factory. Kev and Sonja, my brother's girlfriend, joined us a little later. It was great to catch up with Todd and Tanya, I know we miss them back in Cold Lake.

As an added bonus, I was able to visit with Ania and her son Nico, and Helen Siemaszko, both of whom I haven't seen in a while. Tracy Lundstrom McKenna also came into the city for a visit and a drink with Kevin, Sharon and myself. Thanks to everyone who made that special effort to come and see us. Hopefully we will be able to spend more time with everyone in the future.

Finally Departing! Phew!!

So I am finishing up the last of the things on our list to get ready to go when I accidentally locked myself out of the house! Sharon had everything buttoned down pretty tight. I checked all the doors and windows seeing if by chance I or Sharon had left something open so I could sneak back in. No luck to be had there, so I sheepishly went over to the neighbour's house to use the phone.

My neighbour was good enough to give me a ride to the office to pick up our keys so I could get back in. Crisis averted. I figured that this wasn't going to be the best way to begin the trip. Long story short we were able to get everything done! Now we are in Edmonton resting up for the big flight to Toronto! We visited with Chris and Leah and Rose. Here are some pics of everyone below:Sharon and Rose checking each other out!

Leah, our bestest friend and cab driver! Just kidding! You and Chris are awesome!

Cute personified!

Less Than A Week to Go! Yikes!

Well the time keeps on countin down till when we have to go. So much to do, so little time yet here I am typing away. On the flip side, school is done! Yay! Not much left to do there except some small paperwork and cleanup. I still have to pack and Sharon has everything picked out she wants to wear for the trip. As for myself, I haven't really thought much about my wardrobe choices, I guess it'll depend on how much room is left in the bag for me! Just kidding!

Final Countdown has begun!

Well its getting down to the final days of school. The kids are in the midst of doing their provincial exams as well as participating in the last few school events of the year. Sharon and I have both been getting the house ready and just making sure we have everything order before we leave.

We spent all day Sunday doing yard work and Sharon has her plants in the ground. Things are starting to shape up. As for me, I just have the year end field trip for my class. We are off to see the Royal Alberta Museum and Telus World of Science. Class is kinda lukewarm to the idea but they are happy to be going somewhere.

Sharon has our docs ready, and a plan of things she would like to do once we are over in Europe. Ah well, only 14 days left till we board the plane. I haven't been excited about the trip yet but now that the end is in sight I am looking forward to going.

Getting Ready!

Well thanks to the lovely wife (aka trip coordinator), we now have most of our documentation to go to Europe! 

We aren't able to go to Greece like I wanted, but Sharon is treating me out to Bath Spa in England as an alternative. I'll let you know what its like when we get there! 

This is my first blog so I'll end todays post here. If there are any suggestions for places to visit let us know! Cheers!