"I think sometimes we conceive trips or journeys as an escape and my hike was the opposite, it was a journey back into myself." - Cheryl Strayed talking about her hike across the Pacific Crest Trail.
I never really knew how to verbalize why I've always been drawn to the idea of travel until I read that quote. Last summer after stepping away from Aloha Sunday, I was feeling a little lost, a little disappointed, and a lot confused. As timing is everything, my two good friends Haley and Jess also needed to take a step back so off we went to jaunt across Europe.
Our trip took us through seven countries and thirteen cities in nine flights, five buses, six trains, and endless taxis. We had a wonderful time and we expect to be back soon. For awhile, I simply looked back at what a great trip it was: fun, breathtaking, and memorable but nothing life changing.
But only now, almost a year later, as I sift through the photographs, I realize how transformative it really was. You can't spend 18 days straight with the same people sleeping in the same room, eating at the same table, and drinking from the same bottle without really getting to know them, yourself, and ultimately what you value in a friend. Honesty, reliability, and loyalty.
You always hear about it how its harder to make friends as you get older (I'm only 23 does that count?) but I've found it's easier. It's easier to tell if I'm compatible with someone or not, a talent I've only recently acquired. There might be less of them but they are stronger and deeper. The bullshit is lessened and the connections strengthened.
Riding House Cafe, London - This spot served as our daily base camp. Fast and free wifi for the win! A delicious flat white doesn't hurt either.
Trafalgar Square. Tourist stuff but worth it.
We spent a good portion of the day looking for Big Ben. At this moment we had no idea it was behind us. We went on a pub crawl that night that ended with a midget flashing the group. Off to Spain.
Seville was incredible, I'm sure it was a combination of dehydration, exhaustion, and jet lag but we were so blown away by the beauty of the city we were literally speechless at times.
Flamenco guitarist, this guy looked like he was in heaven. I loved this moment.
Cathedral of St. Mary in the background. We didn't know that at the time, we planned the transportation of the trip down to the T but did not plan a lick of activities which means most of the time we had no idea what we were looking at. There was a lot of "that's cool! what is it, why is it important?"
A pair of Spanish gentlemen arguing, it sounded like a beautiful dance.
Alcazar - The Royal Palace of Seville. Like the dumb americans we are, we walked around Seville for about an hour searching for the entrance...which we had walked by at least five times. Anyways, once inside this place was unbelievable. Although it can see up to 8,000 tourists a day, it's so massive, we found a spot where we didn't see anybody else for twenty minutes. Photos do not do it justice.
This was someone's bathroom.
Jess made a friend.
Royal Garden Maze selfie.
Hotel Casa Romana - We stumbled onto this gorgeous hotel roof bar. If there was one pivotal moment in the trip it was this night. The sun was setting, the lights were swaying in the wind, and the staff was charming and impeccably dressed in such a classic European fashion. We talked about our dreams and family and love. We promised to be one day come back to the same rooftop and drink the same capirinhas.
Off to Malaga for our first dip in the Med.
Check out the 'do!
Malaga streets.
Off to Milan for twelve hours to catch a train in the morning to Cinque Terre.
Ristoranti Pizzerie Maruzzella - We were so exhausted when we got to Milan, we needed a good dinner and a good dinner was had. Nobody does dinner like the Italians. We looked so ridiculous when the food came out all the regulars were laughing at us. We always ordered the house red wine (vino rosso della cassa) which was delicious 9 out of 10 times. That's a real calzone which was mindblowing. Haley and Jess had trouble deciding if it was better than sex. I was too.
So unknown to us our seats were in the corridor of the train. The seats fold out from the wall. The train ride was four hours.
Monterroso al Mare - Freedom! We ran to the beach, dropped off our luggage, stripped and jumped in the water. The Italians do the beach so damn well. There are essentially beach clubs and for a small fee you get a lounger, lockers, and facilities.
Corvara - We had no idea but our hostel was in a small village half an hour up the mountain called Corvara. There are less than a hundred people that live here. There's one church and one hotel. We walked around and everybody had there doors open and the idea of "locking" your house seemed foreign to the residents. Even the hostel owner tells us don't worry about not having locks on the door, that's not how they do things in Corvara. The hostel owner asked us to name his newborn kitten, Jess said "bubba" and so now there's "bubba the cat" now. I wonder what he looks like now. On the last night I got drunk and wandered off into the one hotel to drink some more. The family who owned it was staring at me as I ordered vino rosso della cassa. It was wonderfully awkward and this was the one time the house wine tasted weird. But it was one euro.
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If you travel a lot you know Australians are everywhere and they are nice and you will get along with them and forget you are not best friends. This was true across Europe. We met this couple on the grueling hike from Monterrosso to Vernazza and ended up hanging with them all the way into town. They were following us because they thought we knew what we were doing...little did they know.
Infamous Vernazza
Rome - Colosseum under construction. Haley and Jess pretending to not know where it is. It got to be the running joke because we would walk and walk looking for these landmarks until they were right in front of us.
Rome gelato game on point. Texture, dimension, depth.
Santorini. Heaven on earth. The light and the colors were unlike anything I've ever experienced. We spent four days on the island. Two in Oia and two in Perivolos down at the water. We found a great beachfront hotel with practically empty beaches. Cheers to a not yet fully recovered Greek economy!
We found the smallest little book store, Atlantis Books, started a decade ago by a small group of friends with a love of books and not going home.
Perivolos
Jess and I on the balcony of Meteor Cafe. Some of the finest cocktails I've ever had. The blurriness of the photo gives you a hint as to the atmosphere that night. Off to Budapest.
Budapest was interesting as it was the most eastern European we went too. It felt aged but in a comforting way. We only spent 24 hours here. Jess took the train with us to Amsterdam but flew home from there. Just Haley and me for the last sprint home.
Amsterdam was terrific. People walking, people biking, and people driving all in harmony. They've mastered the art of sharing the roads, something that America has yet to master.
We ventured into Jordan, a quiet and very elegant neighborhood in Amsterdam. Reminded me a lot of Greenpoint but less stuffy.
Anne Frank House - The line was crazy long to get in, so we just breezed past to see it. This was a particularly beautiful moment, The couple of the left is taking a photograph while their children on the right read from the Torah. I'm not sure why this moment was so striking to me but it'll stay with me forever.
Cheese. I had no idea Gouda was a place in Amsterdam. The Dutch are very proud of their cheese making heritage. There were cheese shops everywhere, all with free samples. Free samples. Haley and I were ok with that.
I love old people. But what I think I really adore is the ability to carry on through the wrinkles with grace and quiet confidence. So much of youth is marred with insecurity and anxiety.
This is a great scene outside of a classic European cafe, so much life, spirit, and ease. The dapper man in the middle saw me taking this photo and looked straight into the camera. I loved it. I've always said my favorite bar is the one where I'm the youngest.
I'll end it with one of the rare photographs containing all of us. This was taken on the top of Oia, Santorini. Yes, we all coordinated wearing white. Yes two out of three of us had to buy something that afternoon. I'll let you guess who.
Thanks to Haley and Jess for putting up with me and my snoring. What are you guys doing in July?