Iceland

When we first planned this trip, Iceland was not on our radar at all. It wasn't until we started looking up flights between Europe and Canada that the idea came to mind. To boost tourism, Icelandair has started offering free layovers of up to 7 days in Iceland. That means if you fly with them on a transatlantic flight, they will let you extend your stay without having to pay for two separate flights. We decided to take the bait!

We knew it would be cold in Iceland but we didn't expect that it would be so windy. Since most of our clothes were packed for warm countries, we only really have one warm outfit each... which we had to wear 7 days straight. 

Iceland is an expensive country. We met a couple who brought 15 pounds of food with them from Bulgaria just so they wouldn't have to do groceries in Iceland. We researched all of our options for travelling around the country on the cheapest budget possible and we found that renting a small van was the best choice. Cars were technically cheaper but then you have to pay ridiculous amounts of money to stay in hotels each night. With our van we were able to camp almost anywhere we wanted without having to book in advance. This gave us a lot of flexibility. We also bought a small gas bottle so we were able to cook our own meals and avoid the pricey restaurants. 

We rented our van from Kuku Campers because they had new vans at a cheap price. They converted their vans into mini campers by placing a foam mattress in the back and building a small storage unit for food and kitchenware. We were also able to rent sleeping bags from them which we were very grateful for during the cold nights. 

We had the brilliant idea to buy a small coffee maker while we were in Italy. Whenever we needed a break from driving or just wanted to get warm we could stop on the side of the road and make a coffee. 

We considered renting a GPS but when we saw a map of the country we realized that that was unnecessary. There is one major  highway that is 1400 kilometres long called the Ring Road that circles the entire island  All the main attractions are either directly on the highway or can be reached on smaller side roads. 

Our first stop was Reykjavik, the capital of Iceland. It's a small city with a population of less than 120,000 people. We loved the small town atmosphere and the great coffee shops. This church is the main attraction in the city and can be seen from almost anywhere in the city centre. 

Everything is beautiful in Iceland. During the first two days we were stopping at almost every lookout spot to take pictures. Everywhere you look there are waterfalls, lakes, glaciers, volcanoes, bright green fields and cute farm houses. The only problem is that you can't always stop on the side of the road. The best thing is that all of these sites are free. Since we were there in summer we were also blessed with endless hours of daylight. The sun was up until 11 pm and was back up at around 3 am. You can visit as many places as you want and all you have to do is pay for gas (although it does cost you $2.19/litre). 

 Once we reached the North of the island the wind made it almost unbearable to walk around. We had to quickly jump out just to get a few pictures. It also would have helped if we had appropriate clothing.  It's hard to believe that this is their summer!

A river running through a crack between the European and North American continental plates. Aaran went on a two dives in this area in zero degree water. I stayed warm and dry on land. The plus side of diving in cold water is that the visibility is great. You can see perfectly up to 100 meters underwater. 

The dive tour setting up in a parking lot near the river. This was the first and probably last time that Aaran got to dive while looking at snow on mountains. 

The Great Geysir erupting in Iceland. The boiling water can reach up to 70 meters in the air. The best part is waiting as the water slowly starts to form a giant bubble which eventually bursts into the air. 

A beautiful waterfall on the side of the road. Some people were dressed in full rain gear and were able to walk right up to the waterfalls. For us it wasn't worth getting our only warm clothes wet. 

Another amazing view from the top of a waterfall.

A black volcanic sand beach.

Tiny puffins resting in the rocky cliffs on the coast of Iceland. 

Because of Iceland's high volcanic activity the country has very unique rock formations. 

We came across this amazing sight by complete surprise. We were looking at the glaciers on the distant mountains when these small icebergs came out of nowhere. There were seals swimming among the ice and puffins flying around. There are two small puffins in the picture if you look closely. 

Icebergs breaking off from the large glacier. 

One of the small fishing villages that we drove through on the ring road. 

Just another beautiful waterfall on the side of the road.  

One of the most amazing places in Iceland. You can see this waterfall from both sides but you have to drive a long way around. 

Sulfuric mud pools. The ground was smoking all around us.

We could barely stand to walk around this area because the smell was so bad. We've smelt sulfur before but this was ridiculously bad. We had to try and stay on a certain side to avoid the wind blowing the smell directly into our noses. 

Iceland was easily one of our favourite countries. It's probably tied for top spot with Turkey and Italy. There is so much diversity that you could easily spend a month driving around without getting bored. It's one of those places where we would happily move to... maybe for just a couple of years. If it was this cold in summer I would hate to live through their harsh winters. 

Hungary, Slovakia, Czech Republic

When we first set out on our trip it felt like Europe was an impossibly distant dream. For a while it felt like we would never be able to escape the heat and chaos of Asia, but somehow we made it. Although it feels like we haven't had a minute to spare since we entered Europe in May, we feel much less tired then we did during the first part of our travels. There is an easiness to travelling in Europe that we hadn't expected. 

We've had a very busy itinerary for the past 2 months. This is mostly due to the fact that we only have a 90 day visa and the list of countries we want to see is a bit greedy. Because of this, some of the places we've been have become a bit of a blur. It doesn't help that the Eastern European countries we went to all looked similar and had mostly the same cuisine. 

While in Eastern Europe we visited more castles then we can count. Most of them look quite modern and usually still house royal families. Our favourites, though, are the ancient castles that are barely standing up on top of a hill.


Our first stop was the city of Budapest in Hungary. The city is actually divided into two major districts, Buda and Pest which are separated by the Danube River. It was very easy to get around on foot, the only time we took a train was to get in from the airport. Other than Greece, this was the first European country we had been to and we were amazed by the architecture. It was also our first taste of European prices... ouch. In Asia we became use to living like Kings with a small amount of money. As soon as we set foot in Hungary we felt out budget suffer, and it's actually a cheap country by European standards. 

Churches are everywhere in Europe and the best thing about them is that they are usually free. We love looking at the elaborate stained glass windows that are incredibly well maintained. It's really amazing to see that these delicate works of art were able to survive years of war and carnage.

A beautifully decorated dome in Budapest's Basilica. 

One of the amazing buildings that seem to be everywhere around Budapest. This one was in the middle of a park where a Renaissance fair was being held. 

An elaborate fountain in the palace on Castle Hill. 

Budapest's Parliament building seen from the top of Castle Hill. 

Mattias' Church was my favourite attraction in Budapest. I loved that it looked like a Disney castle. 

A beautiful tribute to victims of horrible violence. Shoes representing innocent people who were killed on the Danube river. 

A typical Hungarian snack food. Fried dough topped with garlic, sour cream and cheese. I managed to eat half of it before giving the rest of it to a very happy Aaran.


The next stop on our itinerary was Bratislava, Slovakia. The trains and buses make getting around Europe so quick and convenient. Being from Canada and Australia, it's always amazing to us that you can get to another country with such minimal effort. The transport also ended up being a bit cheaper than we had expected. Bratislava quickly became one of our favourite cities. This is mainly due to their great beer and coffee. The city felt really young and had a great vibe.

Aaran quickly became a huge fan of the artisan coffee scene around Europe. Most of the times the brewing process looks more like a science experiment than anything else. 

There was a lot of beautiful graffiti around Bratislava. This old church was livened up by paintings placed in its boarded up windows. 

The very unique Blue Church was close to our hostel and was a refreshing sight after seeing cathedrals that always look exactly the same. 

The main square in Bratislava is full of these unique statues. This is one of the things that makes this city special. 

One of the best things about being in Europe is being able to buy groceries. Hostels usually have shared fridges where you can store some food. We wouldn't have survived if we were forced to eat in restaurants at every meal.

On our last day in Slovakia we took a bus to Devin Castle. Although it is mostly in ruins, its beautiful location on a hilltop makes it look spectacular. 

A reconstructed part of the Devin Castle ruins. 

Next on our list was Prague, Czech Republic. Once again the main attractions were castles and churches. We did, however, manage to find an amazing museum that helped change the pace a little. Because it was National Children's day, it was also free! The title of the main exhibit was Noah's Arch. The huge room we entered had every animal we could possibly think of, all organized by continent or geographical area. 

Part of the Noah's Arch exhibit.

Another day, another pub meal. What the picture doesn't show is the 1 litre of beer Aaran ordered.

All the buildings are so amazing it's hard to know what to look at.

We became addicted to special artisan coffee and all the cute coffee shops around Prague. 

The colourful streets of Prague. I love how all the buildings are so different. 

Another day, another church. The line to enter was so long that we contented ourselves by walking around the outside. 

Something new! A giant astronomical clock in one of Prague's busy squares.

After spending time in Western Europe we now realize how cheap and relaxed Eastern Europe was. We probably didn't quite appreciate this fact at the time. The cities were beautiful but there was no pressure to see 100 sites before leaving. Another great thing was that the tourist areas weren't too crowded. Looking back, these countries really had the ideal travelling conditions. This is something that we desperately needed after being completely exhausted by the harshness of Asia. 

Greece

You know you've been travelling for too long when sleeping on the floor in public places has become normal. Our trip to Greece included a 7 hour layover in Istanbul after a red-eye flight from Dubai. We were tired. We probably could have resisted the urge to sleep if it wasn't for the conveniently located vacant area behind a large beam. We claimed our prime piece of airport real estate, put in our earphones and took a 3 hour nap. 

Our first home in Greece was the small island of Paros, a 4 hour ferry from Athens. We decided to spend the majority of our time here to recharge before starting our rushed itinerary around Europe. Our guesthouse was in the town of Parikia which is where the main port is located. The best thing about this location is that everything is within walking distance. We spent our first day walking around the charming streets and quickly found a restaurant with a friendly owner to become our regular spot. The architecture on the island is beautiful, some of the buildings dating back to the 17th century. The area is small so after a few hours of walking around we saw all the spots that were of interest in the town.

The beginning of our Greek adventure!

One of the tiny streets in the town of Parikia, Paros Island. 

An old and adorable church in Parikia. The entire island is filled with small churches almost everywhere you look. Some of them only have room for a handful of people. 

One of the original windmills around Paros.

The Church of 100 Doors, the oldest building on the island of Paros. Apparently only 99 doors have been found.

To make the most of our time on the island, we decided to rent a car for the remainder of our stay there. This was very convenient because the buses where running on a low-season schedule and were not very frequent. This was Aaran's first time driving on the right side of the road, luckily there was very low traffic on the island so he had plenty of time to get use to it. The island is small, so during our 3 days on driving around we saw nearly everything on the island, and some things more than once.

Driving around the beautiful island of Paros. It felt amazing to be in control of our own transport for the first time in months. 

Restaurants on the island where a bit expensive for us. We decided to take advantage of a small grocery store we found and assembled a picnic for our trip. 

The daily catch drying next to the boats in one of the towns we visited for a coffee break.

The water around the island was such a beautiful colour and absolutely crystal clear. Aaran had the chance to go diving on a shipwreck and visibility was at 40 meters. 

We pretty much had the small roads of the island to ourselves. We paid for a full tank of gas and were determined to get all of our money's worth!

Walking on one of the hiking trails spread around the island. 

One of the amazing views seen on our walk. 

After spending so much time in Asia, all we wanted to do in Greece was eat vegetables. In countries like Vietnam and India it's not a good idea to eat anything that hasn't been properly cooked, which means we went 4 months without eating a raw vegetable. When we got to Greece we were ordering huge Greek salads for almost every meal. It helped that the tomatoes were fresh and tasted amazing. Another thing we ate almost every day was kebabs. The meat was irresistibly juicy every time.

Our favourite kebab from a small restaurant on Paros Island. 

A Greek salad the size of my head with the most delicious feta cheese I've ever tasted. 

After spending a few days on Paros we took the ferry back to Athens for the obligatory sightseeing of Greece's most famous archaeological sites. We bought a city card which was valid for 3 days and gave access to 7 different locations, all within walking distance from each other (if you don't mind walking a few kilometres). As expected most of these locations were completely packed with tourists, but we weren't disappointed with the beauty of each site. Somehow the crowd enhances the experience because it helps you imagine how hectic these places would have been thousands of years ago. 

Greece's most famous archaeological site, the Acropolis. 

Almost every time we've visited an archaeological site it's been under construction. It's no surprise when you realise just how old these places are and how much maintenance it takes to keep them standing. 

The morning before our flight to Hungary we decided to visit the National Archaeological Museum of Athens. We gave ourselves 2 hours for the visit, thinking it would be more than enough time to see all the exhibits and have lunch before our flight. Before we knew it, we had been there for nearly 3 hours and had to rush back to our hostel. There was so much to see it was almost overwhelming. 

The range of objects and artefacts at the museum was incredible, including items from 6000 BC.

I think it's safe to assume that Greece will make the list of our favourite places at the end of this trip. How can you not love a place where you can get a double espresso for 1 euro and a kebab for 3 euros? We also loved how laid back the people were, especially on the island. One evening walking back after dinner we saw a dog walking down the street that looked like our guest house owner's dog. We quickly rushed to go tell him that his dog had ran away. He kind of laughed and told us not to worry, the dog had gone for his evening walk.