In 2010, I graduated from pharmacy school at Purdue University. Just before the graduation ceremony, Sam and I decided to get away and go to Europe! Sam had never been there before, and my experience was only in France.
Narrowing down places in Europe to visit over a 2 week time span was so difficult! In the end, here's where we chose to go:
1. Bern and Geneva, Switzerland
2. Barcelona, Spain
3. Paris, France
4. Amsterdam, The Netherlands
We started out in Geneva, Switzerland. When traveling so far from home, we don't expect to see anyone we know, but Sam's family actually did know someone from Switzerland. Laura was a foreign exchange student that stayed with them when Sam was in middle school. Sam was able to reconnect with her and we met up with her twice in Geneva!
 |
| Sam and Laura |
 |
| Flower Clock |
 |
| Old Town |
 |
| Jet d'Eau in Geneva |
Bern is the capital of Switzerland. It felt a lot smaller than Geneva, but was so quaint and full of character. Everywhere we walked there were old cobblestone roads. It felt so authentic! We were only there for a couple of nights, but we were able to see most of the town.
When Bern was founded in 1191, it was named after the bear, because that was the first animal that was killed in the area. Since then, the citizens of Bern have had a close relationship with the bear. To this day, they still have a bear pit in the middle of town, which tourists visit on a daily basis. The bears used to be kept in a circular pit, but they now roam the land near one of the main bridges in town right next to the river. We think the bear below is Tana. One of the older bears, Pedro passed just before we arrived in Europe.
Albert Einstein also took up residence in Bern. We stopped by to see where he lived and learn about his all of his great achievements.
After Switzerland, Barcelona was up next! We had great weather in Barcelona and a great time exploring the city.
 |
| National Palace |
 |
| Barcelona Olympic Stadium 1992 |
 |
| Castle of Montjuic |
One of the most famous architects in Barcelona was Antoni Gaudi. You can see his signature style littered throughout the city. One of the greatest pieces he dedicated his life to is La Sagrada Familia. The creation of this cathedral started in 1882 and probably the most intricate building we have every seen. The cathedral is still not complete to this day.
 |
| La Sagrada Familia |
 |
| On the beach in Barcelona |
Paris has been my favorite city since the first time I visited at the age of 16. I was so excstatic to be going back and to be able to show Sam how magnificent the city is!
 |
| Notre Dame |
The city I love didn't disappoint! The ambiance was perfect when we were visiting the Notre Dame Cathedral. As we were walking around to the back, a man pulled out his keyboard and started playing on the side of the street. Then a girl walked up to him, picked up a microphone and started singing!
 |
| Stained glass windows in St. Chapelle |
 |
| Place du Terte (The Artists' Square) |
 |
| The Gardens at Versaille |
When we went to the Eiffel Tower, we planned to get to the top right before the sunset. |
 |
| The Louvre |
The day we left Paris for Amsterdam, the weather became really cold! We were only in Amsterdam for two nights, but didn't see as much as we would have if the weather was warmer.
We did manage to make it to the Heineken museum, which we would recommend for everyone who visits Amsterdam.
 |
| Amsterdam Markets |
We didn't make it to the Anne Frank house, which I would make a priority when we visit again. Amsterdam wrapped up our 2-week exploration of Europe. There are so many other places we want to see, but we know we'll be back some day!
No comments:
Post a Comment