Stadium Tour: Some Photos

Last week we were privileged enough to have been taken on a tour of the football stadium followed by lunch in the press box! (as you can see, Miranda took the only opportunity in her life to stand in the showers of the football team's locker room)

Mike ventured out of his "comfort zone" and was one of the few student's who got to ask the Athletic Director a question during his Q&A session after lunch. Mike's was the last question, so he just snuck in there!

Mike: "Will there be any opportunities for us, as MBA students, to involve ourselves in athletics here at Notre Dame?" (oh, that's a good one!)

AD: "Absolutely! There are lots of opportunities and if you have any ideas for us I'd be happy to hear them. We love it when our business students involve themselves in athletics, especially if they're not interested in compensation."

Stadium Tour!

South Bend, Indiana.

If you are reading this, you're probably a really important person in our lives and we hope this blog will help us to stay connected. We are feeling more and more at home as we spend time in South Bend. The people at Notre Dame are welcoming and genuine and the campus looks gorgeous in the summer. Our house is quickly shaping up as Miranda works her magic on it, and I am getting orientated, motivated, and terrified all at the same time. It's going to be a lot of work! We will start updating this blog again with photos, videos and stories of our life in the states. For insights into what I am learning, which you probably don't care about, you can check out my MBA blog at www.thembajourney.com

Finally!

We made it on another trip! We did end up in Mexico for Jen and Shawns wedding last April, but this was our first excursion alone since our world journey... and it was a short one!

Our trip to Indiana was a whole lot of fun! We drove a good 7.5 hours on Friday night and ended up sleeping in Kalamazoo! I was excited just for the name of the town. We had dinner at Big Boy Burgers just over the border and were treated to a classic US fast food dinner. The next morning we took off for Chicago and spent the day walking all over the city. We had a some delicious deep dish pizza from Lou Manalti’s and took half of our small order back for dinner too! The architecture in Chicago is breathtaking, from the Sears Tower looming over the skyline to the highly entertaining cloud gate (otherwise known as the bean). We took a 2 km hike out to Oprahs fortress, I mean, studio. We quickly learned that outside the city core, Chicago is not that inviting until you reach the suburbs. The transit system had above ground, steel train tracks running on top of city streets. They were not welcoming at all, we should stop complaining so much about the TTC! We capped off our visit with a Blues show at Blue Chicago, where Charlie Love put on an entertaining set.

On the Sunday, we head to South Bend to check out the town around Notre Dame. It took us all of 10 minutes to realize that the town is severely lacking in character and that the school is the only reason to go! But what a reason, the campus is gorgeous. It was an awesome experience to sit in on a Notre dame Class, tour the campus with a current student and interview for their MBA program. Studying at such a legendary place would be an epic chapter in my life.

After a dinner at Olive garden and another at Cracker barrel on the Monday, we made the long drive home, arriving at 1 AM. It was great to be back on the road with my wife, I have missed that!

Number 28

Our trip is finally coming to a close... sad but excitng times, for now we get to come home and see everyone again! We fly home in a week, on Septemebr 11th and hopefully we can see anyone who takes the time to read this soon after that.

For our last country, the 28th in the past year and a half, we visited Slovenia. Our good friend Matt hails from this beautiful and under-rated land. Off of most travel itineraries, the small country offers so much! We have enjoyed the vibrant life of Ljubljana (the main city) and the more relaxed life at Lake Bled. The lake is just gorgeous, complete with a mountainous backdrop, crystal clear water and a picturesque church situated on a tiny island in the middle. Rope swings and overhanging trees to jump from were everywhere!


We believe this will be the final post of our world adventures! We´ll see you all very soon!

A River Runs Through It...or two or three...

We were told by many people that Venice is a city in Europe not to be missed. It is unlike any place you will ever see. The crumbling brick and peeling paint is something most locals find to be a drawback about the city, but as a visitor these things give it so much character. The maze of canals running through the city are so unique and create such beautiful photographs! (Jill, we couldn't help but think what an amazing place this would be for you to visit. You and your camera would LOVE this city!)
We ate pizza, pizza, and more pizza. You can buy what they call "draught wine" at the restaurants for a few Euros per litre!
This is a city in which to almost completely ditch the map, head out into the labyrinth of streets and just get lost. And get lost we did. Many times. Per hour.

The Austrian Alps

We had seen most of Austria and so decided that we should take a glimpse at the mountains. Our plan was to go to Innsbruck for 3 days before heading south to Venice. On arriving, we decided to try out the free hiking program they offered there. They gave us boots, drove us into the most beautiful valley and guided us on a 5 hour hike... all free! We fell in love with the Alpine scenery and could not pass up the free hikes... so we stayed 16 days! We went on 10 guided hikes (enough to get a gold medal in the prgoram!) before we felt confident enough to take on a mountain. On our last day, we climbed to die Hafelekar Spitze. It took 5 hours to climb and another 4 to decend, although we stopped for beer, strudel and espresso!

Pilsen, Prague, Budapest and Bratislava....

We need to try and keep up here...our pictures are running away with us. We have now decided to do blog-combo deals. Four cities for the price of one!
We had ten days in these cities and they were quite beautiful. We went to Pilsen for one reason only...the Pilsen Urquell brewery. This is where the beer we all enjoy and love, the Pils, was born and raised. We did the obligatory tour and were quite impressed with it!
Prague was gorgeous. The main square was probably one of the prettiest we've seen. I think all of those tourism dollars have done the city well!
Budapest was also quite spectacular! Not as busy with tourists and as a result not as restored. However, still some of the most amazing buildings we've seen. We're beginning to get a little 'catherdraled out' so to speak. Every city has dozens of them, and after a while they all begin to look the same. But, St. Stephen's Basilica in Budapest was our absolute favourite. Just stunning. We also found a hostel here for six euros each a night! We had to share the room with ten other people, but still...can't beat a twelve euro sleep! Too bad Mike's pocket was picked at the train station. Bye bye wallet! That was a sad moment for us.
And finally, Bratislava. The weekend getaway for all the Viennese. It is a quaint, small city with lots of little cafes, laneways and cute shops. We only spent one night in the city but, if we had a little more money, would have liked to spend more time. Next day, we hopped on a express boat back to Vienna, back to Eggendorf and straight to the local 'gasthaus' for some schnitzel and beer!

Early July in Brussels and Paris

We are definately falling a bit behind with these blog entries. Here´s one from early July: Brussels and Paris! We had a great time in Brussels enjoying all that is Belgian... Waffles, Chocolates and Good Beer! What an underated country! The scenery was pretty nice too!

Paris lived up to our expectations, which was really hard to do. Maybe we were just hoping for romance and so we found it, but the city has a magical feel. A highlight was definately enjoying a picnic of wine, cheese, meat and bagguettes on the eiffel tower lawn! We also enjoyed numerous cafes and bought the most expensive espresso of our lives (4.5 euros!).

Those 10 Days in Austria...

In all our travels, all the beautiful countries we've seen, all the people we've met, never have we enjoyed ourselves as much as in Austria. To begin with, it had been ten months since seeing the Head family, so the reunion was so full of joy and excitment. Our hosts, Bruno and Hedi Murkl, are probably the most hospitable people in the world! There was never a shortage of food, wine, Gosser or conversation! And who, may I ask, actually has room to house six people comfortably? Um...Bruno and Hedi.
We also must mention Bruno's son, Christian, his wife Suzie and their daughters Laura and Melissa. Christian, the chef and grill master of the house, kept us well fed and well entertained with his fabulous voice. Suzie always had time for coffe and conversation. We learned so very much from her about Austria, as she is a history and language professor. I knew upon first meeting her that I would like her very much. Our nightlife expert, Laura, took us to some very hip bars in Weiner Neustadt. She is probably the most well-spoken, mature sixteen year-old we have ever met! And Melissa definately won our hearts as well!
We also met with Tante Elizabeth and her son Rudy in Graz. We were, again, blown away by the Austrian hospitality. Graz was a very special city to visit as this was the city my grandparents lived in before coming to Canada. All the landmarks were so familiar to my sister and I. It was a little emotional to see it all in person.

I could write a book about this trip we took together. There isn't enough time to get all our thoughts down. I will say one thing to my family, who I know is waiting in great anticipation for this entry. The time we spent together in Austria was so special to us. It is not often that a family can share something like that and we are so grateful that you four came. It will never be forgotten. Danke.

Another day in London

I know that there are a few people waiting patiently for an Austria update... and it is coming soon! We are experiencing some delays uploading our photos...

After flying in on an overnight flight from Singapore, we landed at 5 am London time. With an overnight bus already booked to Belgium (what a tiring few days!), we had our sightseeing work cut out for us. This was our second day in London in the past year, so we were able to skip Buckingham Palace, Big Ben and a few others. This time we headed down to St. Pauls Cathedral and took in a Mass (we really are budget... Mass is free but admission to the Cathedral is 10 pounds otherwise!) We cruised around Old London Town before grabbing some fish and chips (just like last time). One of our favourite sights was the free pianos they had located in public parks... anyone was allowed to go up and play! It was a great day, followed by a terrible overnight bus to Brussels...

Done in Asia

We left the coast of Malaysia for some hiking in the Cameron Highlands. After walking for 4 hours through the jungle and a tea plantation, we stopped to sample the local drink. That´s when the rain started and we realized we had to walk all the way back to our hotel! So wqe tried our hand at hitchhiking... with a sign and all! A wonderful family picked us up and took us all the way home, on the way realizing that the father and I have had the same shoulder injury... hence the shirtless pic!

After a couple days in Kuala Lumpur, I left for a week in Australia and Miranda moved into a gorgeous hotel (see pictures!). She moved on her own to Melaka, where I met up with her. It was nice to be reuinted!

Singapore was a bit of a bur in which we mostly stayed inside, as we weren´t feeling all that well. That picture of Miranda and her luggage is the best photo we have!

Soon.... Europe! (and for anyone that is interested... I finally got a new passport!)

Seperation

It's been a long time since we've posted on here... and so much has happened! We've been through Malaysia, Singapore, London, Brussels, Paris and Austria! However, we're having some trouble uploading new photos, so all that will have to wait. Here's some pictures of My second visit to Brad and Byron Bay. I left my beautiful wife stranded in Kuala Lumpur and went off to the surf and sand for a week (her idea, I swear!). I had an amazing time with Brad, surfing twice a day and enjoying the BBQ... I even tried Kangaroo! Miranda survived as well, stayed in a fancy hotel and even managed to do a bit of shopping.

Malaysia... stop 1

After leaving our new found friends, we headed south to Malaysia. We were hoping to take a train to the east coast... but strong warnings and recent murders convinced us to skip that area of Thailand. So instead we crossed over on a ferry to the Island of Langkawi, where we lounged on our final south east Asian beach. Oh well... it's been fun. The highlight of the Island was definitely the night food market, where we sampled all kinds of Malay dishes and rolled home so stuffed! Leaving the island was very disappointing, as our sandals and board shorts were stolen on the last night...

West Coast Thailand

After having such a great time in Koh Pha Ngan, our group could not bear to go our separate ways... so we didn't. We travelled en mass to the west coast and Railay Beach. It had to be one of the most stunning places we have seen to date and was the classic Thailand postcard. For 3 more days, we lazed around the beaches, got stung by jellyfish (Monica), and hung out at nights.
With us all about to disperse across the country in the morning, the last night seemed destined to be one to remember... and it did not disappoint. After most of the town shut down, our little party was just getting started. In fact, the Norwegians really raised the bar when they "treated" us to a few bottles of Moet and Chandon. For those of you that want to know the rest of the details, remember to ask us next time we see you. It's a doozy!

Norway, USA and East Coast Thailand

We ended up spending most of our time on the beaches of Thailand with an amazing group of people! We checked into our little bungalow on Bottle Beach (aka. THE BEST BEACH EVER!) located on Koh Pha Ngan. Flanking our place were two Norwegian girls on the right (Monica and Therese) and two American boys on the left (Tim and Brian). For a fun-filled ten days we bathed in the sun. Well, Brian from New York, lurked in the shadows after a mean sunburn. Poor Guy. In the meantime the Norwegians were baring enough skin to make up for our missing American. We shared meals, drinks and swam in some GORGEOUS phosphorescense in the early hours of the morning. We also experienced the debauchery that is the FULL MOON PARTY. That's Tim and Miranda in the picture with the bucket. That's what we drank out of...buckets. Good to experience, but never again.
We miss our new friends...but not to worry. More adventures with the group in the next post!

26 in Bangkok

What a great place to have a birthday! My lovely wife got me up at 6:30 am and rushed me off to an internet cafe first thing. When I got there, there was a whole party waiting for me via skype. As I was talking with our Toronto friends, Miranda snuck off to get what I assumed would be coffee. Nope. A large beer at 7 am. The party was followed by a delicious American breakfast. The cafe just opened, and they were so great, giving me a homemade candle as a present! (That's the owner and cook in the picture) We then checked into a nice hotel for a change but left our camera in the cab! That brought the mood of the day down for awhile and is the reason we have very few pictures! I ran out later to buy some custom leather shoes to match my vietnamese made suit and we hit the town for the evening. English pubs, rooftop patios, and super trendy clubs were on the ticket.

I've included some shots of the train south since we had no pictures in bangkok...

Saigon

What is officially Ho Chi Minh City, but still known to the people as Saigon, is full of mopeds, sketchy wiring, and history. We spent 5 days in the area and thouroughly enjoyed having Air-con and a TV. The vietnam war is still a vivid memory for the locals and we spent a day visiting the war museum and Cu Chi Tunnel system. The tunnels were insane... consisting of a 200 km network of crawlspaces, kitchen rooms, air vents and boobytraps. We crawled through one of the original tunnels for about 50 m and almost panicked from the claustrophobia. During the war, people lived in them!

DISASTER!

Our beautiful little camera spent the day sightseeing around bangkok on its own yesterday. Left in the back of a cab... #$&*

We spent just under a week in Cambodia. After an overnight, 22 hour journey from Northern Thailand we made it to Siem Reap, home to Angkor Wat. The temples were stunning and we thoroughly enjoyed bicycling though the vast complex.

From there, we made our way to the capitol city of Phnom Phen. We met up with a Canadian we had met in Bangkok and he introduced us to a little community of expats (mostly teaching english). At the killing fields and S-21 museum, we were shocked to learn what the country had been through in the late 1970's. The picture of the tower-like structure is a monument to all the Cambodians who were killed during the genocide and it is actually full of 8000 skulls. We ate omelette's on baguettes with Cambodian coffee (we loved the french influence!) every morning at Veasna's litte restaurant near our hotel. He enlightened us more on life in Cambodia and we had a great time talking to him. He is definitely one of the nicest people we have met.