Best of the Best

What's a good whirlwind trip through Europe without a methodical comparison of the cities and countries visited? Well, it may not be so methodical, but we would like to write a list for our own sanity. We visited 7 countries (France, Ireland, Belgium, The Netherlands, Germany, Italy, and Spain) and 12 cities  (Paris, Dublin, Brussels, Bruges, Amsterdam, Berlin, Munich, Fussen, Venice, Florence, Chianti, and Barcelona--maybe a few more on day tours) in 23 days. Let's just say that our first day feels like a year from our last day, yet at the same time it all seems to run together. Also, this might prove helpful for anyone else planning to run away to Europe for a bit. We want to keep this positive, so here are all the bests of the best:

Best city to get stuck in due to a volcanic eruption: Paris, FranceBest people: Ireland (so friendly, humourous, and helpful)
Best landscapes: Ireland (Glendalough, Wicklow, County Clare)/ Italy (Chianti-Tuscany)
Best architecture: Barcelona, Spain
Best nightlife: tie between Munich, Germany and Dublin, Ireland
Best beer: Germany--Austinger beer (sorry Ireland, you are a close second)
Best wine: Chianti, Italy
Best chocolate: Belgium
Best ice cream: Italy (gelato!)
Best public transportation: Barcelona (you can take the metro anywhere and they sell multiple day passes)
Best city to get lost in: Venice (every turn has something interesting)
Best tour guide: Seany (hillarious Irish tour guide for Paddy wagon tours)
Best hostel: Happy Sleep House, Fussen, Germany
Best art museums: Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Best naked sculpture: David, Florence
Best city to witness naked people: Barcelona (see previous blog entry)
Best random city icon--Mannekin Pis, Brussels
Best country for wasting money on tourist gifts: Italy
Best sense of history: Berlin, Germany
Best weather: Barcelona, Spain
Best skyline at sunset: Florence, Italy
Best farm animal: Irish sheep
Best music: Ireland (amazing folk music and pub song tradition)
Best dancing: Barcelona, Spain (Flamenco!)
Best tourist trap: Bruges, Belgium (touristy but amazing)
Best country to live in some day: Ireland
Best...

Ok, I could go on forever, but you get the picture. Keep in mind that we only spent a few days in most of these places, and these are just our personal impressions. We found something interesting and amazing about every place we visited. We may have liked certain countries and cities better than others, but every single one them was worth a visit and many of them are worth a second or third visit in the future. We leave for the States tomorrow morning, and, as with every trip, it is bittersweet. It will be nice to come home to friends and family. It is nice to know that we saw, experienced, and accomplished so much in the past 23 days, and that we can now check backpacking across Europe off of our life's checklist. At the same time, however, it is a little sad to leave knowing that there is so much more we could see. It's also sad that we will go back to "real" life when we return home as if this amazing experience never happened. Luckily, we have all of you to pinch us and let us know that it did happen. We have you to thank for forcing us to record our experience, and we have the loads of pictures that we will do our best to post as soon as possible when we get back.

You haven't heard the last of us yet...

Lori