My first trip to Europe

It seems like ages ago and I guess in a way it was. The very first time I travelled to Europe was in my senior year of high school in 2008. It was supposed to be an Art and History trip. I just wanted to go to Europe but this trip only served as a small taste of Europe and of travel that left me wanting more.

This trip was the very first time I had been outside of Canada. We drove from Powell River, stayed the night in Vancouver before flying to London. It was all a very quick run around.

 We visited Piccadilly Circus, Trafalgar Square, Camden Market and a few other places in between. We strolled past the National Gallery but did not have time to enter it which sucked as it was free but we were forced to keep walking. We were only in London for two days before we crossed the Channel on a ferry and headed to Caen in France. We went to the war museum there and explored the Juno Beach war memorial. After Caen we travelled onwards to Saint-Malo where we stayed in a small charming hotel.

I would say that Saint-Malo was one of my favourite parts of the trip. We stayed in the older walled part of the city and were given much more freedom then the previous days of the trip. The history of the town was intriguing and I would like to return and visit one day.

We went to see Mont St. Michel which was amazing and I was able to cross that off my bucket list.

Our last stop of the trip was Paris. We enjoyed the Louvre where we spent lots of time checking out the art. We stormed up the Eiffel Tower and even took a bus tour through the city. The bus tour was a glimpse of all the things I wanted to experience but could only look at from afar like the Arc de Triomphe, Champs-d'Elysee, The Place Vendome Column and many other buildings. We finished off the trip with a day spent by the Notre Dame and river cruise.

I will always remember this trip as my first time in Europe, giving me the glimpse of things I needed to go on to have a second trip. I will remember the times with Stephanie, my best friend, the dark haired girl in these pictures. We enjoyed fish and chips in Camden together, ran around Saint-Malo along the walls when the bells chimed, we explored Paris. I wish we could do it again.