The search for Jamie Fraser and reflections

I feel like Glasgow should change its name to GlasWOW, as that would be more fitting. What an amazingly beautiful city! And wonderfully friendly! Jo, Sean and I arrived early afternoon from Berlin (we got a drive with Chris' friend Detlef, who picked us up from the Berlin train station in his gorgeous Mercedes) to Glasgow where we were helped by lovely people at the airport. I thought Canadians were friendly. Glasgow takes it to the next level! We took a double decker bus driven by a very helpful bus to get to our hotel. In hindsight it wasn't the best decision in terms of price to speed, but it was a great way to see the city.

After checking in to the top floor room of our beautiful hotel (also a great workout to take the stairs!), we spent the afternoon and evening walking around the west end of the city. We walked through the gorgeous Kelvingrove Park near our hotel then through Glasgow University campus. The main building bears a striking resemblance to Hogwarts! We even walked to Ashton Lane, a cute little cobblestone street with nice restaurants for a quick drink and a snack. We finished our afternoon stroll at Oran Mór, a beautiful old church that has been converted to a funky pub. Jo and I took a little nap (one of the little gems with travelling!) before heading out for dinner. After a few attempts, we ended up at a fun spot for dinner. The Scottish accent with some people is wicked strong, and in a loud restaurant it can make for a challenge, but it's also super fun to listen to! Also, we noticed that there seemed to be more men than women... Maybe it was a bar in Glasgow thing!

For our last day on Saturday, we had our tour of Outlander filming locations. The weather was absolutely perfect for our last day in Scotland, with a gorgeous bright sun shining all day. We spent the day visiting Doune Castle, site of Castle Leoch (and Winterfell from Game of thrones), which was narrated for the historical part by Terry Jones, who starred in Monty Python and the Holy Grail. There were a few parts that were narrated by Sam Heughan who plays Jamie Fraser. He talked about the scenes filmed at the castle and some of the behind the scenes stuff, which was super cool. We then made our way to Blackness Castle, the site of Fort William. It was pretty cool but also creepy to walk through the courtyard where Jamie was flogged in Season 1. The castle itself is a fortress built in the 15th century which looks like a ship. We had amazing views over the Firth of Forth Bay. From there we visited Medhope Castle, used did Lallybroch. We weren't able to go inside but it was easy to imagine the scenes that were filmed there. From there we visited Culross, an amazingly cute village that was the setting for Crainesmuir. We had lunch at a super cute pub then saw the house that was used for Geillis Duncan's house along with the Mercat Cross, where a boy's ear was pinned to the pillory. We finished our day in Falkland, which was the set for Inverness at the beginning of the series. The driver of the tour bus did an amazing job of mixing in Outlander info (while playing music from the series) and Scottish history for a full appreciation of the country.

We walked to our hotel from George Square for a quick dinner before going back to pack and get ready for our flights home. Finishing the trip in Scotland with Jo was an amazing way to end it. We had such a wonderful trip visiting different parts of the world and reconnecting with familiar faces! We are so grateful to our generous hosts in Spain and Germany, and for our friends and colleagues for making this trip possible!

Some photos of our last days:

In front of Lallybroch (Medhope Castle):

Fort William (Blackness Castle):

Cranesmuir (Culross):

Inverness (Falkland)-Jo recreating the scene where a man who looks like Jamie looks through the window at Claire):

We even saw Catriona Balfe in the cafe!! (Jo found a mask):

View from inside "Mrs. Baird's" guesthouse

Glasgow University (which definitely looks like Hogwarts!):

The view from one of the windows in Doune castle:

Outside Doune Castle:

(in case you're wondering, I rewatched Season 1 episode 2 on the plane back and it was awesome to watch the scenes that were shot at the locations that we visited yesterday!) 

Taking it easy around Celle

The last couple of days have been very relaxing with Jo and her family. On Tuesday on the way back from Berlin, we stopped at the Krämer mega store, the biggest a tack shop I have ever been in, so I could look at full seat breeches. I walked away with two beautiful pairs of silicone grip breeches that I'm excited to try when I get home!

Wednesday, Jo and I woke up early to do a quick buddy workout, which consisted of a short run around the cemetery near her house, some walking lunges (the house didn't seem that far away when I suggested it but it seemed to take forever to reach our destination!), some squats in her driveway and some core stuff in the Livingroom. We then made pancakes for the family for breakfast, I napped and then we relaxed in the beautiful newly installed sauna they have in their basement. We had dinner at a great Greek restaurant and went to bed early.

Thursday we went for a nice drive to Soltau to do some outlet shopping. Sean is looking all swanky now in his new shoes and jacket! I bought a chocolate bar. That was the extent of my shopping. Chocolate is cheaper here! The breeches were all I wanted! We spent our last evening together relaxing before getting up early this morning to go to Glasgow with Jo for the weekend. We should get in to Glasgow early ish afternoon so we can check out a few things and get settled in for our Outlander tour tomorrow.

It has only been a couple hours but I already terribly miss Chris, Carol, Colja and Audrey. Staying at their place with them was so wonderful. It was an amazing experience to be with such loving and kind people. I also really appreciated not having to worry about the language barrier. There is a lot I take for granted when travelling with locals in a country where I don't speak the language!

Some photos from the last couple of days:

Proud supporters of Rick Tabak Building Services!

My new breeches! I'm looking forward to trying them out!

Family love ❤️

Catching our connection from Hanover to Berlin after a 5:47 am train from Celle. Thankfully Chris bought us some delicious sandwiches on tasty German buns for the train ride! 

A cool train station on the way 

 Going 242 km/hr! 

Remembering the events in Berlin

Greetings from a chilly Berlin! (from a quick check on the Ottawa forecast, the weather seems to be a little bit warmer in Ottawa compared to what we've had in Berlin today. It was about 14 degrees but abreezy cold 14 degrees it seems to go through your jacket!

It was quite the contrast to our day yesterday in Postdam, which is a little under 3 hours from Celle near Berlin. Sean and I, Jo, her parents Chris and Carol, her siblings Audrey and Colja and her boyfriend Paul visited the Sanssouci castle, which is the summer pleasure of Frederick the Great, the King of Prussia. It was built in 1745. We went on an audiotour and visited the various rooms and learned about the history. We toured part of the gardens in the beautiful sunshine up to the Chinese tea house, which was designed between 1755 and 1764.  Afterwards, we drove to Glienicker Bridge, which was the subject for the movie Bridge of Spies. We then visited friends of Chris and Carol for a delicious dinner at a nearby Italian restaurant. It was a little strange to hear German at an Italian restaurant, though I suppose it's no stranger than hearing English at an Italian restaurant!

Unfortunately Paul and Audrey had to work so they returned to Celle right after dinner. We arrived in Berlin later last night, and started the day off early this morning. We first took in a boat tour of the city, learning more about East and West Germany and the importance of different buildings and bridges. Fun fact about Germany: it has more bridges than Venice and is one of the largest European cities in terms of the amount of area it covers. We then walked around the city and saw what's left of the wall. We also visited the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, which covers 200,000 square feet covered with 2,711 concrete slabs arranged on a grid pattern on a field that slopes as you continue to walk down, where the slabs get taller and taller (Sean said that he was tall so would be easy to find. It didn't take long for him to be out of sight!)

We went on a guided tour of the Reichstag, where the German Parliament is housed. It was built in 1894, but it was severely damaged in 1933. It was rebuilt in the 1960s but didn't start being used until the 1990s. The dome where we walked to the top was finished in 1999. While walking around we noticed a number of parts of the street were closed. It turns out its the celebration for Germany's national holiday on October 3rd. Right by the Reichstag and also near our hotel part of the park was closed off for the party leading up to the holiday. The park was separated into various parts of Germany, so it was like visiting different parts of Germany without leaving Berlin! I also discovered glühwein, which we call mulled wine. I am looking forward to making that this winter! I found a great slow cooker recipe too!

Here are some photos from the last two days!

The castle at Sanssouci

Our beautiful international family in the Sanssouci park:

Chinese tea house in the park

Just outside the Brandburg gate, which divided East and West Germany. It was here that on June 12, 1987, Ronald Regan issued his command to his cold war adversary: "Mr. Gorbachov – tear down this wall!". 

At the top of the Reichstag dome just before it started to rain

Right after our tour and on our way to the German holiday celebration

Jo and I catching a photo with the beautiful sunset:

Tomorrow we head back to Celle to relax for a couple days. It's been so amazing to spend time with Jo and her awesome, warm, welcoming family! We are having such a wonderful time on our trip! ❤️

Greetings from Germany!

Sean and I arrived safe and sound in Hanover to meet Jo and her parents, after the train from Amsterdam. We were greeted by Jo and her dad Chris, who made us a beautiful sign. It was wonderful being on the receiving end of a welcome party!

We spent Saturday walking around the beautiful town of Celle, where Jo and her family live. From spending a few days in Amsterdam in a hotel room with just Sean (sprinkled in with visits with family and friends, both old and new), it's a nice change to be surrounded by family in a beautiful vibrant house!

Saturday we spent the day walking around the town of Celle with Jo, Audrey and Chris. We walked through the market and to the French gardens, around the castle in Celle and up the tower. There were some memories of walking the stairs up the castle tower in Segovia, though I'm sure that there were more stairs in the church tower... My legs felt like jelly after! The view from the top totally made it worth it! We had a delicious lunch at a lovely tapas restaurant followed by an amazing nap in the afternooj back at the house. Oh travel life!

Today we are headed to Potsdam to see the castle and the bridge from the movie Bridge of Spies, then off to Berlin for a couple days. Should be cool! Oh, and we spent some time on the autobahn going over 180 kilometers an hour. It was pretty darn cool!

On our way into the Celle market:

The houses in Celle are exactly how I pictured when I think of German houses! 

The oldest house in Celle:

In the French garden:

View from the top of the tower:

Driving on the autobahn:

Familiar faces and new ones in The Netherlands

The last couple days have been relaxing but with a purpose. We have been walking absolutely everywhere, which is a great way to see the city! Other than taking the train to Rotterdam we haven't used public transportation. Our visits with Julian, our former student, and Esmiralda, my mom's cousin, were wonderful! It was so great to catch up with them. With Julian we toured around the markthal, which is a huge food market. The building itself is really unique, with windows all the way up the tall ceiling and apartments along the outside. We checked out the cubic houses, which I hadn't seen since I was last in Amsterdam 20 years ago! Afterwards we saw Esmiralda for dinner at a great Italian restaurant named Vapiano. We both ordered pizza which was ready in no time! Poor Sean's pasta took forever though. Thankfully he was a good sport about it! It gave me time to talk with Esmiralda and reconnect with my relatives on my mom's side. I had last seen her 20 years ago too, so it was nice to catch up and talk about the family.

Sean and I later visited a few bars in Amsterdam including a fun hells angels biker bar in the red light district (sidenote: the bartender was awesome and the toilet paper was lovely and soft. I told him so. He seemed happy to hear the positive review). We also checked out another fun bar and met a nice couple from southern Spain who didn't really speak much English. They seemed happy to meet other people who spoke Spanish, and I was thrilled to have the opportunity to practice!

Yesterday we visited Carlotta, our student from Italy, who is also studying here. It was wonderful to catch up with her and see how well she is doing. From there we walked to my cousin Rosa's house for lunch. She lives in an awesome house in old Amsterdam with 4 other people who are all in their 30s and work. They work together to get groceries, make meals and share expenses. It's a really cool system that allows people with similar interests to share a living space without spending a ton of money. A couple observations about Dutch houses that I had forgotten: staircases seem to be really steep with small steps, and the shower is often separated from the toilet, which is pretty practical if you're sharing a house with a few people!

Last night we went back to the bar where we met the Spanish couple and met an Australian couple. We walked around and had amazing burgers for dinner. Another successful night! Sean is always a lot of fun to travel with. Chatty Cathy as I like to call him enjoys chatting up random people and he has a fantastic sense of direction so it's always a good time!

This morning Sean found a delicious poffertjes (mini pancakes) restaurant for me so I could reconnect with a childhood treat that is very dear to my heart. The staff were super friendly and the Poffertjes were amazing, so a great way to start the day!

We are headed out soon to take the train (first class! Whooooaaaaa) to Germany to visit Jo and her family for a week. At this point we have been travelling for a week and are coming up to the halfway point. It will be great to see her and her family, but at the same time it's sad to know that we are already halfway in and will be winding down soon!

Some photos of the last few days:

In front of Amsterdam Central station:

With Julian and the cubic houses in Rotterdam:

With Esmiralda in Rotterdam:

So much delicious cheese! 

One of the many canals in Amsterdam:

From the Rotterdam port:

So many bikes! And you can park in layers too! 

With Carlotta at Bagels and Beans, a popular franchise (eating here reminded me that North Americans are all about spreads on bread... Butter, cheese, whatever...it's more about the plain bread here!) 

Delicious poffertjes for breakfast and the best cappuccinos we have had in Amsterdam! 

Last day in Spain

Sean and I are currently on the train on our way from Amsterdam to Rotterdam for the day to visit Julian, our former stufent from Colombia, and Esmiralda, my mom's cousin (I'm not sure what that would be to me. My second cousin? I feel like there is maybe some once or twice removed in there?) (side note: I definitely didn't research how much it would cost to get from Amsterdam to Rotterdam. It would have been wayyyy cheaper to rent a car for the day!)

Yesterday we spent part of the day relaxing, then we walked around on our last day in Madrid. We will for sure be returning to Spain! We had such an amazing time visiting with Ana and her parents. The food and drinks are also significantly more affordable than Amsterdam so far. Oh and also friggin delicious. See below for some food porn!

We arrived in Amsterdam late last night, took the taxi to the hotel and walked around. Sean found an amazing hotel that's in a great location. The architecture in Amsterdam is incredibly unique and beautiful, and it's wonderful to connect with a country that means so much to me and my heritage.

Iberian ham needs to be on your list of foods to eat. Seriously. Delicious, fatty and salty, but not too salty.

Cheap beer and food included? Yes please. 

Sean walked about 20 minutes for these coffees. It's not easy to find a takeaway coffee place! Sitting and enjoying your coffee is totally a Spanish thing. Walking around with your coffee to go is not. Like definitely not. 

So. Many. Olives. 

Wee fishies named boqueron. It was a bit of a challenge to figure out how to enjoy them without eating the spine, but it was worth it! 

Blood sausage, mini baguettes, stuffed eggs and bites of pepper and cheese (so spicy Ana's eyes instantly started watering) 

Ana removing the spine off her fish like a BOSS! 

Day tripping in Segovia!

Today was an amazing and action packed day! We had a delicious breakfast of eggs, fruit, cheese and more delicious ham (seriously you need to try Iberian ham once in your lifetime. It's thinly sliced salty dry cured ham made from black hooved pigs who eat acorns). Then we hit the road for Segovia, about an hour from Madrid.

When we first arrived, we were blown away by the amazing aqueducts, built by the Romans over 2000 years ago. It is made up of 166 arches over 17 kms that are held together by gravity.

We walked through the Jewish quarter and passed by the cathedral, which was built in the 16th century, on our way to the Alcázar de Segovia, an amazing castle built around the 12th century originally as a fortress. It was an inspiration for Disney's Cinderella castle. We had a great workout climbing the 152 stairs to the top of the tower for a breathtaking view!

Some photos of our day :)

Walking around on the way to the Alcàzar. I love the cool narrow streets!

 From the top of the the Alcàzar tower  Definitely worth the walk!

 The aqueduct! Sean and Jorge are at the bottom to show how enormous it is!