Travel

Euro Tour 2013 

16 days 

76 exchange students 

8 countries 

Euro Tour: The Beginning 

Journal Entry Sunday June 2nd, 2013:

"Today was the start of Euro Tour & to be honest, still now at the end of our first day it still hasn't really sunk in what we’re about to phase. But I have no doubt that as we begin our trip and with all of the excitement surrounding, us, things will really start to pick up and it will be an incredible time."

Our Tutors, who are our #1 during the trip. 

And so it begins! A road trip across Europe with a ton of other exchange students from across the world. 16 days never felt like such a long time, but then also.... it couldn't have gone any quicker. I had such an incredible time during these 2.5 weeks and so many different memories to last a lifetime -- along with the thousands of photos to share! Bare with me as I slowly get through publishing this trip with you via photos & stories. I hope you enjoy everything as much as I do! Xoxo, alisa nicholle.

Our first leg of the journey started at the Viking Line terminals in Turku, where all 76 of us students who've been studying in Finland (or Estonia) for the past year had met. Excitement was in the air and all of us, though clueless what to expect from the trip, were more than eager to get everything started. Although we had to wait for a few hours for us to all gather before boarding the ship, before you knew it we were getting ready to depart from Turku, Finland and go to our first stop: Stockholm, Sweden.

When first boarding the ship we all got our stuff settled in each of our cabins, and then all met to have a buffet dinner on the deck. It was great seeing many old friends and chatting the night away! After a great meal, we all went to the top deck outside where we watched the sunset and took lots of photos. Having fun with old friends and new, the night was filled with smiles and laughter... and the mutual feeling of how incredible not only this moment, but our lives really are. <3 

After the sun was down and we were standing in the glow of the moon, we all decided to head back inside as the wind started to pick up and being outside had gotten a bit too cold. Spending the next hour on the dance floor, listening to a live band playing in the background, we ended our night with smiles on our faces and excitement for the days to come.

NEXT STOP: Day #2

Waking up bright & early to eat breakfast before arriving in Stockholm, Sweden already at 7:30 AM. Immediately after arriving in Stockholm, everyone got unto the buses to drive to our next destination: Helsingborg, Sweden. Spending a couple of hours on the bus (only the first of many more to come) we arrived in Helsingbor where we first went to a "candy store" which was basically just a big candy shop that made their own candies, after visiting there for awhile we drove to a place near by where we had a great lunch on a beautiful terrace overlooking the coast of Sweden! 

     

After lunch we left Sweden and started our way towards our next stop for the day, where we would also be spending the night in: Copenhagen, Denmark. 

        

In the evening we went to a theme park in Copenhagen known as "Tivoli" which is from what I remember, one of the oldest amusement parks in Europe. From old fashion rides, souvenir shops & snack shops the place was a delight to walk around and explore with friends! We even met a few of the locals who were so much fun to talk to! Before deciding to leave the park to explore a bit of the downtown area, we ran into some of the workers of Tivoli and quickly learned that they had a great sense of humor! Being very different in their personality's and culture when compared to Finland, it was interesting to see and compare how our lives are in the two separate countries. Overall, I believe I can speak for both myself and many others when I say that Denmark left a really great impression on me. And this was only our first night here! 

A day spent in Denmark, an evening spent in Germany. 

- Tuesday June 4th, 2013 -

I was surprised by how much I quickly fell in love with Denmark. Before EuroTour, I hadn't known all that much about this country and so therefore I hadn't put that much thought into whether or not I'd like it. Turns out though, Denmark, & Copenhagen specifically, was a city that is nearly impossible to not fall in love with! From nearly the entire city getting around by bikes, the gorgeous architecture, and the extremely nice people it was such a pleasurable place to visit and explore.

In the morning we had a bus tour throughout the city, stopping along the way at different locations. It was a beautiful, sunshine filled day and from being with all of the students & their excitement along with seeing some great sights it was a wonderful morning. In the afternoon we had a little less than 2 hours of free time where we could do our own thing but also making sure we would find lunch somewhere. I had gone off with two friends and we decided to explore the side-streets, avoiding the main tourist attractions. And what a perfect idea that was! We ended up coming across the most adorable cafe that was hidden away on a small street which had the most delicious sandwiches for such a cheap price! The entire atmosphere was simply perfect & the three of us were just so happy to have found such a successful place to spend our time in. 

In the afternoon we had traveled from Denmark to Breman, Germany where we were staying overnight. When arriving we first all had dinner and then got to explore the beautiful village for a couple of hours. Although most of the shops and places were closed, it was incredible to just walk the streets and take in all of the breathtaking sights. I had forgotten my proper lens back at the hotel so I mainly just tried my best to soak in everything that was around me. 

Wednesday June 5th // Holland (the Netherlands) 

Driving through the Netherlands (Holland) which surprisingly looked a lot like the country side of Illinois - only many more windmills and flower fields. Stopping along the way to one of the largest dams in Europe, which really just looked like a huge body of water. It was still neat to see though. Continuing on with our travels we drove for a few more hours until we arrived at a Cheese and Clog factory where we got to see, well, how cheese & clogs were made! I really loved both of the tours both for seeing how the things were made + we got to try all the cheeses, and they guy making the clogs was really attractive! Overall though, I actually really liked Holland.. It wasn't a country I ever had put much thought into before but I just fell in love with the entire atmosphere, much like Denmark. 

Our next stop was in Volendam, right outside the city of Amsterdam. We had our lunch here at a restaurant, but also had some free time to explore a bit of the town -- checking out the local shops alongside the coast. 

For the rest of our day we spent a couple of hours in Amsterdam where we took a boat tour through the city, seeing everything by waterway -- and then we got to visit the Anne Frank museum which was personally one of my favorite museums we visited during the entire trip. Amsterdam holds so much history and it was a really neat experience to be able to see it first-hand. 

Thursday June 6th, 2013

Breakfast in Holland, lunch in Brussels, and dinner in Paris. 

Sounds pretty cool, right? Well it definitely was! For starters, the hotel we were staying at in Holland was absolutely amazing! It was by far the best hotel we stayed at during our whole tour, from beautiful hotel rooms to a delicious breakfast with so many choices that it's nearly overwhelming! All of us totally soaked up the luxuries while we had them. After eating breakfast we all packed our bags up and hit the bus where we had a couple hour drive to the next country: Brussels, Belgium. 

When we first arrived in Brussels we had a 1 1/2 hour walking tour throughout the city with a great tour guide. The city in itself was absolutely gorgeous and it was really neat to see the differences, even when compared to the Holland where we just were a few hours beforehand. Again, Belgium was another country I hadn't known much about before so I was happy to be able to both have a tour and also have some free time to explore what the city had to offer. After our tour we had a great lunch at a nice restaurant, near the cities center. Overall, it was a beautiful day and time well spent in Belgium! 

Some highlights of touring in a bus: 

watching "themed" movies for the countries we visit, ex: moulin rouge; talking & bonding with people old and new; tickle fights, fits of laughter, finding the smallest of things entertaining; naps and snuggles; guitar & music jams. 

We arrived on the outskirts of Paris in the evening, where we had a hotel that we'd be staying at for the next 3 nights. In the evening we hadn't really done all that much, other than venturing out to find something to eat for dinner. A lot of people were really excited to be in France so the spirits were high. After picking up a bite to eat, my friend Shanti (Australian Newbie) and I decided to have a bit of a haircutting adventure. My hair was getting rather long and I was eager to cut some of it off. And despite the fact that neither of us had ever cut hair before, we still decided to give it a go! It was more funny than anything else -- but I suppose it made a really great memory, so hey.. no complaints! 

Friday, June 7th, 2013

The following day we had our first full day in Paris where we had a full schedule of events planned for us. Our first visit was to  the famous castle, Fontaineblem, which was beyond breathtaking! There's so much history that this castle holds and it was really interesting to see the visuals behind all of the story's -- which always makes everything become so alive. We had a guided tour throughout the main parts of the city (as it is so big that it's hard to get to all of it in just a few hours!) I think we were still able to get a great feel of what it had to offer though and everyone really seemed to appreciate what surrounded us. 

After the castle we went to a restaurant close by for a nice lunch and then went to the heart of the city of Paris. We first had a 2 hour bus ride through the city, where we got to see a lot of the famous buildings & monuments and then our tour ended in front of the Eiffel tower. There we all got out and were able to take lots of photos and enjoy the sights of the tower, and then we'd have free time to do whatever we pleased until we had to find our way back to the hotel -- via transit -- in the evening, by curfew. 

   

In the evening we had a couple hours free time to explore the city of Paris on our own, the only thing we had to make sure of was that we found our way back to the hotel by curfew time. I ended up hanging out with one dear Aussie friend, Shanti, where we just went on our own and explored the streets less traveled by -- and we ended up having an awesome night! From walking for hours alongside the river, visiting Notre Dame, and checking out a really neat bookshop named Shakespeer Company (which if you ever happen to be in Paris, I'd highly recommend it!) we discovered a lot of really interesting things. Also, while walking the streets we came across the most  cliche of scenes where a 'french' band was playing typical french music in white & black striped shirts and berets, it was priceless! To end our night we decided to stop by a petite local store and pick up some food for our 'dinner.' Going along with the cliche's of Paris, we got baguettes, strawberry's & nutella.  We took the metro back to our hotel and then indulged in our delicious dinner... which was the perfect way to end such a lovely night. <3

Saturday June 8th, a free day in Paris. 

Sunday, June 9th, 2013: primarily travel day from Paris, France to Grenoble, France. 

Our hotel in Grenoble is located in such a breathtaking spot! There are mountains everywhere and the nature is beyond gorgeous. Traveling to the more southern end of France you can really see the difference in the country. I  simply love this kind of atmosphere. 

Monday, June 10th, 2013

Spending the morning driving through the alps, admiring the beauty that was in every direction you looked (and I'm happy to say -- that it just got even better from here in continuation of the tour!) We stopped in the afternoon for lunch in a small village in the provence of france, named Sisteron. We had some free time to walk around and explore the village, which was beyond adorable! Then enjoying a great lunch on the patio of a restaurant, soaking up the beautiful weather & incredible view. 

Continuing on from Sisteron, we traveled to Nice where we would be staying for the night in a hotel. Before arriving in Nice we visited a well-known perfume factory where we got to see how perfumes were made. I was a bit sick, so unfortunately I wasn't able to smell much of the perfumes but it was still a cool extra-stop to see! :) 

Our last city in France was Nice, and it was a lovely little place to explore before leaving the country. The entire city was alongside the coast, which made both for some incredible views along with some great photo taking opportunities. Our evening was rather relaxed, but mixed in with some adventures & great memories.

Tuesday, June 11th, 2013:

from France, to Monaco, to Italy....

Monaco is I believe what is ranked as the second smallest country in the world, but it also happens to be one of the richest. Residing in between France and Italy, it's what many consider to be a "dream destination" with astounding views, top of the line shops, and the world's most famous casino Monte Carlo  (which YES I went into, and YES it was my first casino I've ever been in.... pretty cool bragging rights, huh?!) 

With a guided tour through the city and also a few hours free time to explore, we were able to get a nice taste of what Monaco had to offer. It was definitely a lot more humid than I had expected but nonetheless, it was still a beautiful day! 

&& to end the day, after arriving in Genova City, Italy I snapped a few photos of my beautiful exchange friends while hanging outside our hotel before going to our rooms for the night. 

Next Stop: Lido de Jesolo, Italy! My personal favorite... 

Italy has always been a dream destination for me, for whatever reasons I cannot really say -- I've always just been drawn to the country. You know how sometimes you dream about a place, and when someday you finally get there it can either be a total let down, or a complete surprise for the better? Well I'm happy to say that Italy was the latter. And luckily, we were to be spending the next couple of days here! 

Our first city tour was in Verona, where the oh-so-famous Romeo & Juliet story was created at. We visited the famous balcony, and even wrote letters ourselves to "Juliet." After viewing this area we had a couple hours free time to explore the city and also grab some lunch. For the first time during the tour I made sure to sit down at a restaurant and enjoy the local food... because hey, it's Italy! After our cities tour we went back to where our hotel was in Lido de Jesolo (where we would be staying at for the next 3 nights) where we spent the rest of our day soaking up the sun on the beach. <3 

the following morning at sunrise, my dear friend Cesar and I had decided to wake up bright & early and try our best to capture the sunrise at the beach. Both of us are really into photography, so we brought our cameras and learned from one another. The sunrise ended up being absolutely perfect & that morning was one of the most memorable mornings not only on Euro Tour, but also during my entire exchange. // listen, too.

Our days plan of events consisted of taking a day trip to Venice. Not only is this city a major visiting destination, but it's also a dream city for many alike - myself included. The city itself was all that I dreamed and more! With the sun shining we were set off to have a great day. Taking a ferry to the city, we had a small tour learning a bit about the history of where we were to spend our afternoon. We had the opportunity to take a gondola ride, eat delicious Italian food (which consisted of lots of pasta & gelato!!!) along with exploring the beauty of the very historical city... it had been such a delightful afternoon! 

Friday, June 14th, 2013 // a beach day in Italy 

Sleeping in; Eating gelato; Shopping with the girls; 

Spending the day at the beach laying out & swimming; 

Saturday, June 15th, 2013 // our last morning in Italy, then continuation of travels. 

Myself and a couple of other friends had decided to try and give the sunrise another shot, knowing that it was our last morning in Italy -- and really, when else can you witness the sunrise in such a beautiful location?! At first it hadn't seemed too promising but quickly things blossomed and it had turned out to be yet another beautiful morning, and a great way to start off the day. 

The rest of our day was filled with driving through the alps, arriving at our hotel located IN the alps, and hiking through the alps. To say that our entire surrounding was beautiful is a complete understatement. By far one of the most breathtaking locations I've ever been in, nature wise. Pictures definitely don't do justice as to how gorgeous it really was... but I still tried my best to at least capture the idea of everything! 

As I had mentioned, our hotel was located directly in the Alps in between Italy and Austria. Nature surrounded us, which resulted us being in the complete wilderness. It was such a nice change of things after being in so many cities throughout the tour. I was more than excited to take up the opportunity to snap as many photos as possible, including some of our dear tutors in the morning before we left to our next destination.

June 16th, 2013 // driving through the alps to Austria, overnight in Germany.

The majority of our day was once again spent in the bus traveling, but as most of us were rather tired... nobody seemed to mind too much. In the afternoon we stopped in a village in Austria, where we had lunch and got to explore a bit and stretch our legs. You could really see the cultural difference, even when compared to where we just were on the Italian side of the alps. Austria is definitely a beautiful country though and I'd love to go back again and spend more time there (like many of the places we visited on Euro Tour)

As we continued our travels from Austria to Germany, we stopped for a traditional dinner in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. With both dinner & entertainment it was a great way to spend our evening! 

Monday, June 17th, 2013 // our last stop: Germany

Our last country on the list in Germany, and here we were! Today was officially the full last day of our tour, as tomorrow we would be flying out of Berlin back to Helsinki. This same day also marked 2 weeks before I flew back home to America (which seemed to bring enough emotion in itself)

The previous night we had stayed in Nurnberg, Germany and this morning after waking up and having breakfast, we headed out to visit a war museum close by. Although we did set aside a couple of hours to tour this museum, sadly it wasn't nearly enough time to see everything which had been a bit of a disappointment. Though, what I did get to experience was that I definitely want to come back to Germany and spend many weeks visiting different villages, cities, and museums. There's just so much history that it couldn't be done in the short few days we were here! 

After visiting the museum we had traveled to our last hotel & stop in Berlin, Germany. Not long after arriving everyone had enough time to unpack our bags and freshen up a bit, before we were to all have a "goodbye party" some of us 'oldies' passed down gifts to 'newbies' a tradition that has been in Finland for generations... and we spent the rest of our night visiting, eating, and dancing. Doing what exchange students know how to do best. <3 

Tuesday, June 18th, 2013 // last day of Euro Tour!

An afternoon spent in Berlin touring the city, 

seeing the Berlin wall, eating great food, and shopping with girlfriends. 

Journal Entry: "Today was the last day of Euro Tour and the thought of that fact nearly seemed impossible to accept. These past 16 days have both felt like a lifetime, but also seemed to fly by with the snap of a finger. I wouldn't have ever imagined that you could both accomplish so much and grow such close friendships in just this amount of time. This tour has been more than I could have ever hoped for, and for that I am eternally thankful & blessed." 

I suppose when I overlook my journal entry, I don't think I could have possibly found a better way to explain how my feelings were at that very moment. I am SO glad that I had the opportunity to go on Euro Tour and I couldn't have imagined it to have gone any other way! Being able to participate in this kind of tour was a once in a lifetime opportunity, and I am so happy that I was able to be a part of it. I want to thank my parents for funding the trip, my rotary for making it happen with all the documentation, but must of all... I want to thank the tutors and anybody else who had put this tour together. I had the time of my life & I am so happy to be able to now share it with you! :)