Home Sweet Home

A warm greeting to all!!! We are back, alive, and well from our trip! It has been 25 days since our last post and I am ready to blog. So prepare yourself, for there is much to be said.

We arrived back in Harrogate about 5 days ago. Our vacation was absolutely incredible, but at the same time it's good to be back. There's no place like home, right? I spent the first few days home unpacking and reorganizing... trying to return to normal life. The third day in Harrogate disaster struck. One of the Riggs, who will remain nameless, broke our internet. There's only 2 of us... so you have a 50/50 guess here. If you're leaning towards Brandon being the culprit, I'll just say you're on the right track. :) After 2 or 3 days of utter desperation and distress, we got it up and running. How did I ever live before the internet?! Pathetic, I know. Well, anyways, that brings us to today as I am finally able to sit down and write this blog.

So as you all know we traveled through 10 countries in 12 days. We also took an extra 5 days for Berlin and London. Our conclusion of the trip was that it was so much fun and really amazing, but that there was just too much to see in too little time. That was the only bad thing... we had such limited time we never got really deep into any one place because we had to keep moving on to the next city. However, we both felt that it was a really good introductory trip and that we at least have a good feel for what each place is like. We were able to see the highlights of each city and let me tell you they were astounding! We also now know exactly where we'd like to go back to learn and see more... if the opportunity arises.

Over the course of our trip we took a total of 657 pictures! The last couple days I have been trying to sort through and narrow the pictures down. By deleting the not as good shots and duplicates we now have 415. Yeah, that's still a lot! So... you all are going to be seeing the highlights of the highlights of each place! Just today I finally finished organizing the pictures into chronological order and by country.

A lot of people have been asking us the same question and perhaps you are wondering as well... what was our favorite place. Now, do you realize that this is a close to impossible question for me to answer?! First of all, because each place is so different and very difficult to compare. They all have something special that they're known for that make them really cool and unique. That's like asking if you like the Grand Canyon or Hawaii better. Both awesome... very different. Or it's like trying to compare Ritter's to Jimmy John's. Hello! Ice cream is soooo yummy, but you just can't compare it to the best subs in the world! Who can make such a decision?! I will try to give you the best answer I can that will hopefully satisfy the inquiry.

Let me first of all say that Berlin, was so awesome and wonderful. We both really loved this place, but it wasn't my all time favorite. Things I liked: Being somewhat familiar with the language and culture made it great for me! I loved being able to experience it all first hand instead just learning about it in a textbook. We were also both very interested in Germany's fascinating history. Think about it: The Berlin wall was torn down 16 years ago! Not to mention East and West Germany were JUST reunited only 15 years ago on my birthday!!! So intriguing. However, the country wasn't the freshest place ever. The food got really old really fast. It was always bratwurst, potatoes, cheese ... really heavy stuff. My body was telling me to take it easy on the German diet... I was craving a salad! So Berlin = great, but not #1.

Okay, so back to what WERE my favorite places... Venice, Switzerland, and Paris. There. That's my answer. Why those places you might ask? Venice was very enchanting and magical for me. The canals, the boats, the gondola ride we took... ahh, I loved it. There were lots of great shops too. It was sunny and beautiful and romantic. The lifestyle is so easy going and laid back. Think about the Godfather (minus the killing). Italians make big celebrations, family, savoring and enjoying each day in life, and food their priorities. That's my kind of place! Switzerland was one of the most beautiful places ever! The scenery and nature was out of control gorgeous. Nothing like anything I've ever seen before. Paris: Stunning architecture. The city is full of amazing buildings. Everything is so ornate and grand! The Eiffel Tower absolutely blew me away. Also, great shopping.

Alright, well, I've blabbered on enough for now. I've at least given an overall feeling of our trip and an introductory to the blogs to come. The rest will be in the near future. Until then, Cheers, Auf Wiedersehen, Au revoir, and Ciao!