It was now January 4th, 2007 and we made our way back to the Heathrow Airport on the Nation Express bus to catch our flight home after nearly three weeks of being away. As we boarded our flight back to Ottawa later that afternoon, I had a chance to reflect on our trip. What an amazing experience; we saw so many amazing places and did so much in the short time we were there I could not believe it. I really feel as though we made the most of our time, and that’s so important. I was also really grateful that we had a chance to meet Phil, his wife and daughter, talk a little business and see one of the most important cities in the world. I was also grateful that I got to spend so much time with my little sister. I hadn’t seen her that consistently for over eight years, and having that opportunity at this point in my life was very special to me. Finally, getting so much time to spend with my beautiful wife away from our busy life at home was something I will always cherish. Karla is my best friend, and she made this trip so much fun and so enjoyable… I thank her a million times for her love, patience and adventurous spirit.

A few final thoughts / items I thought I would mention. Perhaps this is some advice someone can use in the future; or perhaps it’s just here for my reflection later on.

Jet-lag
I’ve heard so many different stories about who gets jet-lag and who doesn’t… which is worst, the +5 hours or -5 hours… a bunch of things. All I can say is that it effected me fairly bad on the way there. I don’t think I ever really fully adjusted, then when I got home I was waking up hours before my alarm went off for a week. My best advice: Don’t plan anything in the morning when you get there for at least the first few days. Your body will be angry.

Spanish Coffee & Breakfast
Like so many other Canadians, I’m accustomed to my morning Tim Hortons coffee… well incase you already didn’t know, that style of coffee doesn’t really exist over there. They do have cafe americano, but for the love of all that is holy… it is not what you are used to. My experience has been its a cup full of Espresso. That said, I did see a few “Dunkin Donuts” and Starbucks, so if you’re in need… Starbucks it is.

My other system shock in Spain was no-breakfast! Well not really what I’m used to anyways. They have no “breakfast nooks” with fried eggs, bacon, hashbrowns, toast, orange juice and a coffee… instead its pastries and cappuccino. Ouch, not my idea of breakfast.

Currencies
Everyone knows that the English pound is worth twice as much as the Canadian dollar, but when you’re over there try not to do the conversion in your head or you won’t buy anything. My best story is that I paid nearly $10.00CAD for a glass of Coke for Karla that she wasn’t going to finish. Like hell.

Language Barrier
One of the most difficult problems that I ran into in Spain and even a little bit in England is the language barrier and I don’t just mean the obvious English vs. Spanish or Canadian English vs. British English. What I’m referring to is the ability to read and comprehend vocal tones, personalities and body language. Example, if I say “the hotel is 1000 kilometres away” am I being sarcastic or am I serious? I know you can’t tell when I’m writing, but that’s sort of my point when you’re listening to a Spanish person speak English to you. I found it difficult to read people.

In conclusion, I know this blog post really isn’t a typical blog post, it’s more of a long story but I didn’t necessarily do it for you the reader, more for me when I look back at it in the future. I felt that being thorough was important for memories sake. If you did read the whole thing, wow, good for you. I would be happy to hear any comments you may have, or share any experiences that you had while you were in Europe or else where.

Thanks for reading, be sure to check out my pictures as well!

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