Hello all! I am back in Sydney and working on normalizing my sleep again. We had an amazing trip to Europe. We saw and did so much! We ate and drank so much!! As for our 16 countries, we visited: the UK, France, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, Lichtenstein, Austria, Italy, Vatican City, Slovenia, Croatia, Hungary, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Netherlands, and Belgium. What a whirlwind!!

We flew Sydney to Singapore (about 8 hr flight) had a two hour layover, then Singapore to London (about 12 hr flight). Then had three days in London before joining our tour in the afternoon on the third day. Our 22 day tour was with Expat Explore and was titled “The Best of Europe.” We were with Peter, our coach driver and Aaron (surname Rogers- no joke) the whole way. About 24 of us did the whole thing. About 12 only did the Western Europe part of the tour and stopped in Rome, where we picked another 15 up for the Eastern Europe part of the tour.

I wrote our day to day in journal form, mainly for me to look back on, but I am sharing it on here to tell of our trip and help anyone plan their own Europe holiday. 🙂 Enjoy and sorry for the crudeness of writing.

Day 1 Wed/Thur:

Slept until 8. Loaded car and went to pick Nerina up. Weighed her suitcase and arranged both of our clothes in each. Went to brunch at a cute cafe near Five Dock. Had yummy home made juice and food. Brandon dropped us off at the airport.  Really empty and easy to get through check in and security. Wandered by the perfumes, then to the Amex lounge. Yummy food spread and so many drinks. Still so full from brunch, so hung out a bit, then got sparkling and some dessert. Went to gate before boarding- started a bit late. Flight left on time. 7hr 45 to Singapore. Were next to each other in the middle and I had an empty seat beside me. Food ok. Tried a Singapore sling- their signature cocktail. Nerina attacked herself with her knife on her nail bed and was bleeding a bit. Watched some movies and slept some. Got to Singapore and had a bit of trouble finding our flight on the board. Huge airport, but just had to walk down to our gate. Saw a flower display and wing art. Went to the butterfly garden which was outdoor temperature- hot and humid!! Most butterflies were sleeping. Went in a few shops, then sat and waited for our gate to open. Sat next to a cacti garden and Neirna scratched herself while stretching too close to them. Had to go through security to get to gate. Had a stretch and boarded. 12 hr 45 to London. Better food- noodles. Very attentive staff. Sat on the side of the plane.  Nerina’s light kept going on so they finally just covered it. Watched some movies and both slept pretty well. Arrived in London Thurs am.

Arrived to Heathrow. Luggage made it. Freshened up and changed. Took the Heathrow express 15 min to Paddington Station. Walked 30 min to hotel. Very tiring. Left suitcases at reception and ventured out. Took red double decker bus to Buckingham palace. Saw the front, then got in line for tickets. Had a quick brunch. Did the Queen’s Gallery- Da Vinchi exhibit. Royal Mews- carriages of the royalty. State Rooms- Victoria exhibit of making Buckingham Palace a home for the Royal family. Had dessert at the Garden cafe, then walked through the garden out. Got on the Hop on/Hop off bus from Victoria stop. Ran into bad traffic due to a protest. Ended up getting off at Tower stop. Took tube back to hotel. Three changes. Checked in. Nerina on top floor room 17, me lower rm 6. Shower. Walked to find dinner. All middle eastern places in that neighborhood until found a pub. Had supper(split lamb and a burger) and a drink. Walked back to hotel and crashed.