Blablacar is a mix between Uber and hitchhiking. People who are planning to drive from Point A to Point B, post open seats that are available in their car on blablacar.com, along with a price per seat. It helps drivers recoup money spent on gas, and provides a cheaper method for travelers to reach their destinations.
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Playing Game of Thrones in Seville
After the hustle and bustle (and humidity) of Barcelona, Seville was a welcome dose of sophistication and affordable food. Andalucia’s capital city is a vibrant town, full of culture and history. Apparently founded by Hercules, it became the major port of Spain after Columbus sailed to America. Columbus’s remains now rest in The Seville Cathedral, which is the 3rd largest in the world. Interestingly, the Dominican Republic also has a set of bones, which it claims are those of the explorer.
Sharing a room with 16 people is a Bad Idea
So for some reason, I decided Barcelona was the place we should stay in a 16 person shared hostel room. I don’t know what the Hell I was thinking. Here we are, a married couple in our 30s, sleeping in separate bunk beds, in a room with 14 guys in their early 20s. And one of them would not stop coughing.
I guess I was unaware of Barcelona’s huge reputation as a party city. I mean, I figured we would go out a bit, but both of us were shocked at how intense the partying is. Our first night there, we got back to our hostel at 1am, after enjoying a pleasant dinner and beer, and our roommates were getting ready to head to clubs. We were the old married couple getting ready to go to bed while everyone else was still prepping to go out.
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Amsterdam as adults
We kicked off our trip in Amsterdam. I had been there when I was 22, and wanted Paul to experience it. Additionally, I wanted to visit the sights I was too poor to visit when I was there before. In hindsight, this may not have been the best decision, as our budget was so tight, we really didn’t get to do what we wanted. Plus, if you’re traveling to Amsterdam for the “fun” aspect of it, you shouldn’t do it at the start of your trip when you’re jet lagged.
Don’t get me wrong, we had a great time: we caught up with old friends in The Hague; we visited a cheese museum where we ate free cheese samples for lunch; we discovered the glorious food called bitterballen (think mashed potatoes, shredded turkey and gravy, crumbed and deep fried, like thanksgiving dinner in a bite).
In fact, sitting by a canal, drinking beer and eating bitterballen, may just be the most peaceful way to waste an afternoon.
It’s just that Amsterdam is a lot more fun when you’re younger, or have more money to blow.
Taking the plunge
Off we go. Since we met nine years ago, we have been talking about taking a round the world (RTW) trip. We would say things like “Oh, when we take our RTW trip, we will go to Turkey”. Or, “Yeah, we’ll see that when we do our big trip”. But life (vet school, jobs, buying a house) got in the way. That’s not to say we weren’t able to travel frequently. We were fortunate to have been able to do quite a bit of traveling in that time, but generally for no longer than our 2-3 weeks of vacation time allowed us. Still, in vague terms, we continued to discuss the monumental trip, never letting go of the idea. [Read more…] about Taking the plunge