The Trip That Gave Me The Travel Bug

Like most people, I have always enjoyed going on vacation. Time to get away, relax, spend time with family, see new sights. But it wasn’t until the spring of 2016 that I officially caught the travel bug!

I always had this dream of going to Italy, but somehow that vacation never seemed to happen. Life always got in the way.

Not enough vacation time.

No extra money in the budget.

My kids are little and I need to be home with them.

No one to travel with me.

The list of excuses was endless.

But when I got remarried in 2012, my husband Brent promised he would take me to Italy one day. And a few years later, he made good on that promise.

We spent about 8 months planning our trip, both of us diving into travel books and websites, learning everything we could.  Brent and I discussed and debated our destinations. Italy was a must for me, but there were other countries Brent wanted to check out as well.

We went back and forth on whether to purchase a packaged trip where everything was planned for us or to create our own adventure. In the end, we chose the latter, and it totally worked for us!

We said to each other over and over, “This is our ‘once-in-a-lifetime trip to Europe’ so let’s pack in everything we can!”

(Little did we know that shortly into our “once-in-a-lifetime trip” we would be bitten by the travel bug. We hadn’t even left Europe before we were mentally planning our return!)

With only so many days we could take off from work, we settled on a 10 day trip to Europe.

3 Countries. 5 Cities. 1 Epic Adventure.

Leaving the United States the last week of March 2016, we traveled to England, France, and Italy. We spent just 2 nights in each city. It was a whirlwind trip, to say the least!

I could easily write 20 blog posts about this epic trip (and someday I will!), but here is the highlight reel.

London

London was the perfect first stop since everyone speaks English, and we didn’t have the culture shock of a language barrier.

Since we weren’t planning to rent a car, we also didn’t have the challenge of learning to drive on the other side of the road. We quickly navigated the public transportation options.

Mind the Gap!

I especially enjoyed riding the double-decker buses. Sitting on the top level at the front of the bus gives you an amazing view of the city.

We did quite a bit of walking as well and the weather was pleasant. During our whole trip, the weather really was just about perfect, which added to our positive travel experience!

We rode the London Eye and took in the 360-degree views of the city.

Since we had limited time, we opted not to go into the iconic attractions in London, but we did admire many of them from the outside and took plenty of selfies with each! Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, Parliament, Westminster Abbey, Piccadilly Circus, and Tower Bridge.

We dined on fish and chips and meat pies and visited a few pubs to people watch while throwing back a pint of beer. Actually, Brent enjoyed the beer, and I stuck with wine.

We ventured beyond the city to check out Abbey Road Studios and walked in the footsteps of the Beatles as we crossed this infamous street.

My favorite part of England was shopping and strolling through Notting Hill.  We took even more selfies as we stood in the same spot as Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant in the famed movie named after this charming neighborhood.

Paris

Just a few hours on a relaxing train ride and we were in Paris!

As true tourists, we hit all the Parisian hot spots during our 2 days in Paris. We were in awe of the massiveness of the Arc De Triomphe and enjoyed strolling down the Champs Elysees. It took a while before we could actually pronounce this famous street with ease.

We spent a few hours in the Louvre Museum, making sure to check out the most iconic works of art,  Mona Lisa, Winged Victory, and Venus de Milo.

The Mona Lisa may be one of the most famous pieces of art, but we found it underwhelming. Yet we were still excited to cross that off the bucket list and say we saw it. I found the huge painting of the Wedding at Cana on the opposite wall to be much more impressive.

We admired the Notre Dame Cathedral, sat at cafes, and dined on cheese, bread, and wine. After a dinner of questionable sausage that was a bit too gamey for our taste, we stuck to French pastries. The macarons and crepes alone are worth a trip to the City of Lights!

The real highlight of Paris for me was the Eiffel Tower. There is just something about seeing this iconic structure in person!

We admired it from ground level and took in the sights from the very top. But the best part was after our descent.

It was dark by this time, and as we dined at a food vendor along the river, we discovered why Paris is called the City of Lights. The Eiffel Tower not only lit up the night sky, it sparkled and glittered! Paris is definitely for lovers, and the twinkling Eiffel Tower is the perfect backdrop for a romantic evening.

Venice

One more short flight and I was finally in Italy!! Venice was our first stop, and it proved to be just as idyllic as I had always imagined.

Venice is easily my favorite city in the entire world because it is really like no other place I have ever been.

What makes Venice so unique is the lack of cars. No garages, parking lots, vehicle noise, exhaust fumes, and unsightly automobiles to obscure your photos. The only traffic jams you will encounter are among the many types of water vessels that transport people and goods to and around this charming island city.

A gondola ride was another bucket list item that I was ecstatic to experience. It was the perfect way to see the beauty of Venice.

We spent a few hours touring Doge’s Palace and walked across the famed Bridge of Sighs. A visit to Harry’s Bar was also on my must-do list. Drinking overpriced Bellinis in the same location Earnest Hemingway once dined was an unforgettable experience. It also put Bellinis at the top of my list of favorite adult beverages.

We dined along the Grand Canal, admired the Rialto Bridge, and shopped for Venetian masks and blown glass.

One of my favorite activities was getting lost in Venice. Since Venice is an Island, you can’t really wander too far. And it is so much fun to explore all the tiny passageways, crossing quaint bridges and discovering unique shops and restaurants around every turn. When we got tired and needed to find our way back to our hotel, Rome2rio got us there with ease.

One day I’d love to spend a month in Venice and truly take in the beauty of this one-of-a-kind city.

Florence

Another train ride and we found ourselves in the center of Florence, Italy. This city has modern conveniences and familiar stores amid artwork and architecture created centuries ago.

While we did not tour any of the famous art museums, we did admire the beauty of the massive Duomo and stroll across the famous Ponte Vecchio bridge.

One activity we planned prior to our trip was a visit to a Tuscan Villa for a 5-course dinner.

We joined several other Americans as we drove into the countryside and completely filled our bellies with delicious pasta, bread, and wine while learning all about the process of making olive oil.

In Europe, you don’t just eat, you dine!

We decided to take a short excursion to visit Pisa to check out the famous leaning tower. Riding the trains in Italy is easy and fairly inexpensive, so we wanted to take advantage of this opportunity to see another landmark we’ve only admired in photos.

We found the grounds around the tower to be pristine and couldn’t resist taking all the typical touristy photos!

The most memorable part of our visit to Florence was our time spent at Piazza Michelangelo. After climbing the hundreds of steps required to reach the piazza, we rested while we enjoyed the amazing views of the city.

We lounged on the steps with the other tourists and numerous college students who were studying abroad as we all soaked up all the ambiance of this amazing city.

The icing on the cake was when a local musician played “Stairway to Heaven”. Sipping on wine and admiring the landscape, I was pretty sure Heaven was a lot like Florence.

Rome

Our last stop on our whirlwind trip was Rome. This was actually our least favorite city on the trip, most likely because it was our last stop, and we had already seen so many impressive sights.

We found Rome to be a bit dirtier than the other cities we had just visited, and there was quite a bit of construction that sometimes obstructed our photo opportunities.

But we still enjoyed our Roman adventure, and I can now say I have eaten pizza in Rome!

We toured the Vatican Museum and admired the handiwork of Michelangelo in the  Sistine Chapel.

The Roman Colosseum was just as I had imagined. After making the decision not to tour the interior, we admired the Colosseum from the outside, while listening to a Rick Steves audio tour about the famous ruins.

Brent and I both agree, the best part of Rome was the Trevi Fountain. We enjoyed the beauty of the fountain during the day and returned again at night. And like all good tourists, we tossed a coin in the fountain and made a wish to return to Rome one day.

After this epic trip, it was undeniable that I had been bitten by the travel bug. And there is no cure!

So I’ve simply chosen to embrace my newfound wanderlust, and make travel a priority. And if the travel bug is contagious, then Traveling Tanya would be happy to infect you too!

To commemorate this epic trip, I had a vintage style poster made by Just Go Travel Studios from one of the photos I took, and I absolutely love it!

It is the perfect souvenir of our perfect trip.

Have you been bitten by the travel bug? Comment below to share how you were infected and how it has inspired your future travel plans!

 

Wherever the road takes you, make it a joyous journey,
Traveling Tanya

 

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