The past month has been full of
joy! Prepare
yourselves for a long post with lots of photos!
Firstly I got to enjoy the
company of primary school friends for a hen do in Amsterdam. I had never been
before and would love to go back. It was so pretty and I loved walking around
and seeing the canals. On our first night we decided to
go for some drinks and have a wander around the red light district to say that
we had seen it. I really don’t know how I feel about it but I guess one word to
describe the experience would be enlightening. The next day we attempted to go
to the Anne Frank museum but the queue would have taken hours to go down so we
decided to go to the body worlds exhibition by Gunther Von Hagen. It was based around the theme of happiness and
human specimens were used to show the different aspects of resilience and
vulnerability within the human body. It was interesting but did make me feel a
bit squeamish!
We then went onto the House of Bols cocktail workshop which I
would definitely recommend people visit. You get to learn about how each
different flavour is made and get 5 cocktails included within the price.
Our visit here was then followed
by a few drinks in the ice bar! While this was good I must say that the
experience wasn’t quite what I expected. You basically get shoved into a room and you
feel like you have been locked in a freezer but I liked the big coats! The next
day we visited the sex museum and a boat ride around the canals. It is such a
beautiful city and I recommend that people try and visit there at least once!
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My attempt at a jellyfish shot!
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The following weekend was a music
festival hosted by Radio 1 in Glasgow. I got to see some amazing acts including
Pharrel, Bastille, Calvin Harris, Twin Atlantic and as much as I hate to admit
it I even enjoyed One Directions set. It was such a good day, the sun was
shining, friends were together and the atmosphere was awesome! I only attended
the big weekend on Saturday as I was flying to New York with my dad on the
Monday. We were heading to Winnipeg for a family wedding and thought we would
treat ourselves with a trip to the Big Apple on our way.
When we arrived we went to the Rockefeller
centre to get a decent view of the city. My mind was blown, I was running about
the top of the rock like a child. Finally getting to see everything I had seen
on TV and in films all in one place. Central Park, the Empire State Building,
Lady Liberty, Brooklyn, The Bronx, you name it you could see it from here.
Truly spectacular and one of my favourite parts of the trip!
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| Lady Liberty |
We then went for a walk around
central park as I had wanted to find the Balto statue that is shown at the
start of the Disney movie. I was so happy when we found it as it was one of my
favourite childhood films. We then went on a bus tour of Downtown New York and
got to see all the famous spots such as Macys, Times Square, the flat iron
building, Wall Street and the new Freedom Tower.
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| Balto |
The next day we visited ground
zero. The designers have done a fantastic job in creating something that is
respectful and somewhat peaceful amongst the chaos. It was emotional standing
where the twin towers had once stood and placing yourself in the area where it
all went so wrong. We could not visit the memorial museum as it was so busy but
I have heard that you hear stories from people who were there which I imagine
to be an emotional experience.
We then visited Grand Central
Station and went to the Statue of Liberty from there and walked up to her
crown. I imagined it to be a large platform but it was a small landing in which
you stand on and look out onto the New York skyline. It was pretty spectacular
but scary as I do not feel 100% comfortable with spiral staircases. We had a
quick visit to Ellis Island and then went to a Broadway show in the evening. We
saw The Book of Mormon and I have to say it was hilarious. Definitely not for
the faint hearted as they touch on some sensitive subjects but I laughed a lot
and the songs were fantastic.
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| The staircase of horror |
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| View from the crown |
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| Inside the statue of liberty.Can you see her eyes? |
The following day involved a
delayed flight, an unexpected trip to Minneapolis airport and arriving in
Winnipeg much later than expected. We had 12 days in Winnipeg and it was all
very relaxed for us as guests! We visited garden centres, family meals, ice
cream parlours, restaurants, malls, shops, Tim Hortons, bars, a trip to the
zoo, birthday parties and BBQs.
Of course the main reason we were
there was to attend the wedding of Adam and Stacey! I was so pleased to be a
part of their beautiful day. Everyone looked great and I loved the blue and
yellow colour scheme. We had family from Calgary and Kelowna there too so it
was great to have everyone together. The speeches were funny and heart warming,
the drinks were flowing and we danced the night away, including a wee boy in a
kilt who stole the show by dancing to some rock and roll tunes! I would like to
say congratulations once again to the newlyweds and Stacey welcome to the family
:D
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| Photobomb from Aunt May |
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| Bringing a bit of Scottish flair to Canada |
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| My family know how to have a good time :) |
By a strange turn of events I
managed to meet up with a couple that I met while in Madrid. I had the pleasure
of being included in Christines birthday celebrations and surprising Michael
with my presence in their hometown! We had a fun night and it was amazing to
actually be able to meet up!
Winnipeg is set to open shortly a
new human rights museum and it looks amazing from the outside and is set to be
a huge hit for the city. This is also the area known as the forks and is where
the Red River and Assiniboine River join together. As a geographer I found this
interesting but my interests also lie with animals and I was excited to get
lots of photos of the excessive numbers of Canadian Geese in the area. At this
moment dad had a fall while trying to get a photo of the rivers and ended up
with broken ribs! But what is a trip without a bit of drama, he is on the mend
now and his spirit was not dampened for the rest of the holiday. We managed to
catch up with friends from Scotland who live out there and I am being slowly
convinced that my next move should be to look for jobs in Canada or Australia.
I am seriously tempted by this and as I have been bitten by the travel bug this
year I feel it may not be a bad option.
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| Got to chill out in the sun with these guys! |
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| The forks |
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| My attempt at being arty at the zoo |
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| Wee family! |
After a day of further delays
trying to get home and an overnight stay in a questionable motel in Chicago, we
made it home! We were met by the newlyweds who were in Europe as part of their
honeymoon and they were shown around Scotland while I slept off my jet lag. This weekend I was at Alton
Towers with some friends from high school and we had the best time. Our favourite
ride was one called the sonic spinball and although it was in the kids section
I would definitely recommend it!
I would like to thank all the
family for having us and for making our trip so enjoyable J and I would like to
thank my friends for keeping me busy while I try to sort my life out.
Until next time!
-Laura xox
-
ll
