We are off for a fun adventure together this time. Mike and I will be traveling to a few places we’ve never been before, along with a favorite we’ve visited previously. I’ve been to Europe solo two times since our last European trip, Pre Covid. I’m happy we get to be together on this one.
Our flights are convoluted at best, designed to ensure we travel in relative comfort while keeping the trip affordable. (Thank you, credit card miles and points.)
Our itinerary looks something like this: Sacramento to Vancouver, stay the night in Vancouver. Vancouver to Istanbul, Istanbul to Zurich. Spend the night in Zurich, visit the Freitag store, and then head to Zermatt. Spend a couple of nights gazing at the Matterhorn before taking the train to Pisa and Lucca. Check out the Leaning Tower and the city of Lucca, then head to Cinque Terre. Spend four glorious nights in Vernazza before catching a plane to Brussels and heading to Bruges. After a few nights in Bruges, we’ll begin the journey home: Bruges to Brussels, Brussels to Portugal, and Portugal to SFO. Whew.
Mike says this is a chocolate tasting trip where we will be comparing the chocolates of Switzerland, Italy and Belgium. I knew I married him for a reason.
In sticking with the chocolate theme our first European hotel is the Swiss Chocolate Hotel in Zurich. They have a chocolate fountain in the reception area. I’m kind of looking forward to that…
I am most looking forward to the Cinque Terre. If you haven’t heard of it, google it. If the costal villages are 1/2 as cute as the photos, I will be a very happy man.
Mike and I are both thrilled that the trip is starting with a 24 hour layover in Vancouver. We are both coming down from a very busy season and both of us had a ridiculously busy day today. Mike had an interview of a new teacher for his department and I had two live-stream performances of The Three Little Pigs. Add getting the house ready for Rachel (she stays with our dog while we are gone…THANK YOU RACHEL!!!) and we can both really use a day to downshift and do nothing. perfect way to enter into what I think will be a relaxing trip.
My Top Ten “Looking Forward To’s” (in no particular order.)
- Sunsets in the Cinque Terre
- Seeing the Matterhorn (and going on the ride. It has a roller coaster in it, right…?)
- Focaccia in the Cinque Terre
- Pesto in the Cinque Terre
- Seeing the Leaning Tower of Pisa
- Spending time with Mike
- Gelato
- Bike riding in Brugge
- Visiting the Freitag mothership
- Enjoying the vibes of the places we’ll visit.
Our flight to Vancouver was smooth despite the rainy weather in Canada. (They are thrilled to get this rain in late May since wildfires have been a real problem in Canada. ) In keeping with our plan to do nothing for these 24 hours, we grabbed a bite at a yummy fish place at the airport before catching our shuttle to the hotel. We were given a late check-out thanks to our hotel loyalty status so we will leave here at 2:30pm to catch our 6:25pm flight to Europe.
Thanks for following along. Next stop, Zurich.
Art’s Travel Adventures 