Appreciating History and Nature while in Europe

My family planned a trip to Europe where we were there for a couple of weeks! We got on the plan bright and early and didn’t arrive in Amsterdam until late that next day because of the time difference. Stepping off of the plane you literally are placed into a new world, new culture and different views in architecture and how the currency and transportation works.

We stayed in Airbnb apartments throughout our stay in each country in Europe. Which Airbnb is highly recommended because it is cheaper and instead of living out of a hotel for a couple weeks you are placed downtown where the locals live. As I walked around Amsterdam I was astonished by the canals that ran through the city. The Anne Frank museum also opened my eyes on her story about the holocaust and how she had to hide and live.

Transportation in Europe is just like it is in New York or any big cities that run an underground subway to get from city to city. They also have trains that take you from country to country within hours. That was very incredible to me that we jumped on a train and a couple of hours later we arrived in Paris. While walking around Paris, you could clearly see that locals are very into fashion, that’s where most new trends and styles comes from.

My brother-in-law and sister had been to these places before (Amsterdam, Paris, Switzerland, and Rome) so I never felt lost because they knew where our next destination would be. Whether it was to the Eiffel tower, the Louvre, or cathedral in Rome. All these places have fascinating architecture and a ton of history behind it that intrigues me. It is one thing to read about a place, event, or sculpture but it is another thing to witness it with your own eyes. It was incredible to feel the atmosphere while viewing these buildings and events that had happened.

Switzerland was definitely the outcast in comparing these countries because the other 3 were mainly looking at sculptures and architecture whereas Switzerland was more of a nature experience. Riding a train through this mountain into the city of Interlaken which is surrounded by the Alps was the most breathtaking experience I have ever been a part of.  We drove a fairy around the Alps as well as walked this beautiful river. These experiences help me to take a step back and be grateful for this incredible world that we live in.  It inspires me to see all of it and to get the most out of traveling the world and to open my mind to a greater understanding and appreciation of this earth and my life.

Cruise to Grand Cayman Islands & Jamaica

I’d never really been outside of the country other than visiting relatives in Canada, until I went on my first cruise to the Grand Cayman Islands and Jamaica about a year ago. We took off from the port in Miami, Florida and our first destination was the Grand Cayman Islands. Right after you exit the ship you are basically bombarded by all of the locals with different extravaganzas/tours.

My group chose to get on a private boat and cruise out to a sand bar in the middle of the ocean to swim with stingrays. We jump in a taxi bus and scurry on the opposite of the road over to the boat dock, jump on the boat and as we drove out to the sand bar I had never seen anything like it, the water was pure blue-like turquoise color. The water was clear as day and you could see deep down into the ocean. After driving for about 15 min on the water straight into the middle of the ocean where the water is extremely deep, up pops a huge sand bar with hundreds of stingrays swimming around. The locals took care of us by bringing goggles as well as food to feed to the stingrays. Thing I loved about hanging with the locals was listening to the way that they talk and their slang that they use. They were very personable people and wanted us to enjoy the experience fully.

I thought getting off the boat in the Cayman Islands was bad, the locals in Jamaica were all straight salesman, from taxi, to gift shops to lady braiding my long hair, and boat rides. It was interesting to see that these countries literally live off of tourists. Most of the locals there really wouldn’t have jobs if there weren’t so many tourists coming through purchasing anything and everything because they are in Jamaica!  

Background behind the passion

I’m extremely excited to start this blog because the events that have happened in my life have given me so much passion about this topic. Ever since I was a little kid I always have loved traveling, whether it was to go visit my relatives in Canada, going to Hawaii and California to see the beach for my first times or even going on road trips to attend my little league sports tournaments. This love grew and grew each time I traveled or went on any vacation. But as a kid going on these trips I was only focused on the fun things to do at each destination, just on the immediate pleasures that were right in front of my face rather than taking a step back and acknowledging my surroundings. My eyes were first opened to this when I served a mission for my church, it carried on when I started working for my Dad at KT tape where I was traveling every other weekend to a different state to sell athletic tape and tape up the athletes. I then started working for a company called DishOne where the company throws out trip incentives for hitting numbers and winning competitions against other teams. Throughout my life I have traveled to the majority of the states and have been out of the country quite a few times and throughout the duration of this blog I am going to give tell stories and give examples on how traveling has changed my view on the world immensely. 

What I mean by creating your personal perception of the world is to see as much of the world as you can with your own eyes and actually experience it. It’s one thing to read the history of a country or place, or read about ancient buildings or historic sites (which I highly encourage before going) rather than being there in person, interacting with the locals and feeling the atmosphere there, as well as experiencing a different culture. When I received this knowledge and passion about how important it is to observe my surroundings and cherish all of my experiences in the world, not only to observe but to learn and grow from different cultures, people and events. This has brought a whole new meaning to traveling which is to create your own personal perception of the world.