Amsterdam lives up to the hype more than most places. No it’s not the maharaja or strippers or nightlife. It is the way you’re in a city that doesn’t feel like a city, the way the canals weave in between the beautiful architecture as bike commuters wiz past you. I arrived in Amsterdam near the end of February in 2018, was instantly fell in love with the feel of it. I spent a lot of my time just walking the winding streets despite the fact is was freezing out. I ended up having to spend a little too much money on a scarf to ensure my nose wouldn’t get hypothermia and fall off.
A few days in to my stay something magical happened, large portions of the canal froze over. People were in their boats renting out skates and selling hot chocolate as tourists and locals a like made their way down onto the ice in awe. I sipped my hot chocolate and I slid around, feeling not so cold anymore.
Me on the frozen canal
A girl about my age came up to me and asked if I could take a photo of her on the ice in front of her house. She had been living there for years and had never seen it happen, apparently it quite a rare event.
So sure, the hot sunny days on a vacation are lovely. Sipping on a cold drink while you lay on a beach, or basking in the sun as you wander around the streets of Rome are also experiences I would never get rid of. However, don’t be afraid to wrap that scarf and venture out into the cold, you’ll be surprised what beauty the snow and ice can bring.
If you’ve lived any sort of good life you have seen Harry Potter. If you have, then you’ve seen the scene where the train is taking all the fresh faces students to Hogwarts almost runs down Harry and Ron trying to fly a car to their first day of school. If you haven’t, watch the video below to get a glimpse of what you’re missing before reading on.
Did you know that actually was not CGI, well, maybe the flying car part was, but the bridge it goes over is real and located in a little town called Glenfinnan, Scotland. Just a flight, a car ride and a small hike away from my home in Canada, and you can immerse yourself in the world of Harry Potter (no fast pass required), and hope that maybe, just maybe, the train passing by picks up hitchhikers.
Ask anyone I know, or anyone who has come in contact with me even for a brief amount of time. The one thing they would all know and agree about is that I, Hannah, love dogs with all my heart. Big ones, small ones, fat ones skinny ones, it does not matter. I will point out every dog I pass by, and will take the opportunity to pet them at any point in time.
By far my favourite dog story comes from Ibiza, Spain. I had spent the night with a large group of Canadians from my hostel, who oddly enough come from a town a mere hour away from my home. We had a great night out, one for the books, but the night truly peaked when, on our way back to the hostel, we crossed paths with a dog.
I would like to take this moment to thank the poor guy who had to stand there for an extra 5 minutes of his walk so I could hang out with his dog.
Without a second thought I sat down and made a new best friend. After a few drinks some people pass out, some need food, others have a few more drinks… but not me. I find dogs, as if i had a radar directing me to the nearest pup I can get my hands on.
Ever wonder if the love of your life is just over the fence next door, someone you maybe did not expect to be the one but who fills each and every day of your life with joy. Someone tall, spotted, grazing on only the best of trees… sorry, did I lose you there? Let me start over.
Everyone meet Camila the giraffe and Charles the kudu, a couple I met while volunteering at an animal wild life sanctuary in South Africa in 2017, and yes I said couple. It all started with Charles decided he had had enough with the life he was living and jumped the fence, entering the “farm” (as they call it).
Regular game counts are conducted as the animals roam freely and live life as they please, so the farm needs to make sure none of the populations are getting too large to sustain on their plot of land, and it was during one of these game counts they noticed a Kudu wandering on his own they did not recognize, he was then dubbed “Charles”. Not long after that people began to notice his attraction to Camila the giraffe, everywhere she went he followed as if he were her shadow. No size or species difference was going to keep them apart, they even frequently tried to make little giraffe-kudu mixes, however i don’t think Charles was quite tall enough to ever succeed.
Camila and Charles lives happily side by side until Charles unfortunately passed away near the end of 2018. Maybe it was for the best, as about a year later Camila gave birth to a baby giraffe, and I don’t know if theor relationship could have withstood an affair…
See the video below (made by Animal Planet) for a deeper look inside the South African love story that was, Camila and Charles.
Last year I went on a solo backpacking trip in Europe, with the plan of traveling around until I ran out of money. Needless to say I could not have been more excited to venture out into the unknown, however my Nonna was 100% sure I was NOT going to make it back alive. I believe the conversation went something like me telling her this is more common now a days and I would be fine, with her responding “NO! You are going to be abducted or murdered by terrorists!” *sigh*. Despite her and many others telling me about all the terrible, horrible, no good people, I would meet on my trip, the majority of people I interacted with, were genuinely good and kind.
One of my favourite stories from that trip happened in a tiny vineyard town in Southern Germany called Bacharach. I was set to arrive in the town at midnight. After a bus and two trains I arrived to my final station, where English was rare, and I needed to make a connection in 5 minutes. Yes 5 minutes. I arrive and run to the board where departure times are listed, however, the train I was meant to take was no where in sight. Thankfully there was an employee standing next to me who spoke a little english, he explained that that specific train had been canceled and I needed to take another one where a bus would be waiting for me to take me all the way in. With no time to spare, I made it to the train and was on my way, now set to arrive at 12:15am.
As I arrived to the station, in the dark cold winter air, in the middle of nowhere, with one small hut lit up by a single street light, I was practically alone with the exception of one man standing at the edge of the street. I wandered around for a minute looking for any sign of a bus schedule but there was nothing. So cautiously I walked back to the man standing on the side of the street, he had on a thick jacket, lined with a bright orange construction vest, a black beanie and a scruffy face.
He did not speak english, but with the help of google maps and some patience, he realized I was stranded a fair distance away from where I needed to be. This is when he said, “My sisters husband drive to me, he bring you”. He was offering me a ride. Was I really about to get into a car with two German men whom I met on the side of the road, or was I going to spend the night in -15 degree weather sleeping under that single street light on a bench. Ride it was.
Bacharach, Germany
As I got in to the car, a small, older, silver Volkswagen Golf, I quickly took a picture of the licence plate and sent to a friend I had met in the town I had left earlier in the day. The brother-in-law spoke a fair amount more English than the man in the orange vest, he offered to take my backpack and put it in the trunk, I thanked him but said it was okay to sit next to me, you know, in case a quick break was needed.
As I sat there anxiously the brother-in-law began talking to me, asking me about how I ended up there, about his 5 year old daughter and the birthday present he had gotten her that day. He told me how he met his wife (the man in the orange vest’s sister), and just like that I didn’t feel so nervous. They ended up being nice, normal, caring people who just wanted to help a tourist down on her luck. When we arrived at the hostel they got out to make sure it was the correct place and that I was safe and sound. I thanked them and we parted ways. I can’t even remember their names, but the generosity of the man in the orange vest and the brother-in-law will stick with me forever.
Good people are everywhere. This is something I can confidently tell you after having spent a total of 5 months meeting new people, in all different situations, from all around the world. Not to say there are no bad people out there and you don’t need to be aware of your surroundings, because there are and you do, however, people tend to want to help more than they want to hurt. And I think that’s pretty amazing.
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