Our departure from Lisbon required three stages, starting on a municipal train from our home of Rossio (though not the Rossio Station, rather the Rossio Metro Station, as previously covered), then via reservation ticket to Tunes, and finally a regional train, strikingly similar to Calgary’s C-Train, to our destination of Lagos, in the popular holiday… Continue reading “Obrigado” Portugal!
Category: World Tour 2011
“Olá” Portugual
We arrived in Lisboa tired and haggard from an overnight 12 hour train ride from San Sebastián and therefore took a little longer than usual in finding our accommodations. We had arrived in the Rossio Metro station, and attempted to follow directions from the hostel’s website, which simply said ‘2nd floor of Rossio Train station’. Little… Continue reading “Olá” Portugual
San Sebastián, ES
Sun, sand and sangria pretty much sums up our stay in San Sebastián. We’ve had a very nice introduction to Spain, and very much enjoyed some of the well-known stereotypes, like tapas (called pintxos, said like “pinchoes”) and siesta. We left blue-skied Bordeaux and arrived an overcast grey sky. Christina was disheartened, but there was… Continue reading San Sebastián, ES
Bordeaux, FR
Our ride to Bordeaux was mostly uneventful, as our train coursed through countryside that could nearly have been plucked straight from my Okanagan homeland. Nearly, but for the stone construction of the farmhouses and barns, and massive hilltop estate properties and other “castle-like” structures, which would have looked distinctly out of place in BC, as… Continue reading Bordeaux, FR
Tours, FR (part II)
Our last day in Tours, we took a half-day excursion out to the surrounding areas and visited Chenonceau and Amboise. In Chenonceau, we went into the grounds to look around the “Chateau des Dames”, built in 1513. It received this nickname because its decor and construction was highly influenced by its numerous female tenants. We… Continue reading Tours, FR (part II)
Tours, FR (part I)
The French really know food. While the town of Tours was nice enough for buildings and architecture, the biggest takeaway from this leg of the trip was how much I’ve enjoyed the food. The train ride from Lille to Tours on the TGV has been our best train experience to date. We were on the… Continue reading Tours, FR (part I)
“Dank, danke, merci” Brugge, BE
Waffles, chocolates and beer. That was what we had set out to do when we arrived in Brugge via Antwerpen Station. For a country that has three official languages (Dutch, German & French), we weren’t sure what we’d be getting into. Luckily most people here spoke fluent English. We have spent the past three days… Continue reading “Dank, danke, merci” Brugge, BE
“Hallo & tot ziens” Netherlands
We had an easy time getting out of Edinburgh, journalling on the train platform and then boarding our train on time. We had another pleasant ride through the immaculately cared for scenery, which I believe I will miss. A couple of hours on the train, and a couple more waiting in Newcastle, then we caught… Continue reading “Hallo & tot ziens” Netherlands
“Mar sin leat” Scotland
It’s time to say farewell to the bagpipes and kilts and what better place to do that in the charming city of Edinburgh. For the past two days we’ve explored Edinburgh’s old town and castle, checking out a tartan loom and the stadium where they hold the yearly Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo. Unfortunately, that will… Continue reading “Mar sin leat” Scotland
Stirling, SCOT
We had heard early on that Stirling had one of the better castles to check out in Scotland, so it was always on our list of places to see. The process of getting there started out a little roughly. Having participated in yesterdays Glenfiddich tour, “nosing & tasting”, and the private after-party, I was feeling… Continue reading Stirling, SCOT