Europe Getaway

Since I usually do not recall the names of the places I visited after a few months, here’s a list to help me remember:

Places visited

London
Tower Bridge
London Eye
Big Ben
Buckingham Palace
Trafalgar Square
Hyde Park
Canary Wharf
Sloane Street
Harrods and Selfridges
Leicester Square (Chinatown)
Windsor Castle
Stonehenge
Georgian Bath
Heathrow, Gatwick and Luton Airports

Favorite: Tower Bridge – My first jigsaw puzzle was a picture of the Tower Bridge taken at night. I was 16 years old. Ever since then, I’ve always wanted to visit the Tower Bridge. My wish finally came true 13 years later.

The jigsaw puzzle still hangs proudly in my living room.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Manchester
Manchester Chinatown
Old Trafford
Manchester shopping district

Favorite: Chinatown. Oops, I mean Old Trafford, of course! I caught the 1-0 win against Middlesborough.The atmosphere in the stadium was awesome with everyone singing and chanting in unison. I even learned a few songs myself.

"City's going down with a billion in the bank, a billion in the bank, a billion in the bank."

"Viva John Terry, viva John Terry....Could've won the cup, but he f**ked it up. Viva John Terry!"

The following day, I went on the Old Trafford stadium tour (Tim's second tour). I was amazed by the number of people that went for the tour. There are at least 35 people on each tour and the tour starts every ten mins. Imagine the amount of money that the club earns from these tours! This is not even taking into account the revenues generated by the mega store. Everyone that goes into the store after the tour (the tour's last stop. Smart move!) bought something. Even I couldn't resist and bought a Man U tshirt. Great marketing and branding by the club.



Interesting tidbit: We stayed on the second floor of a gay and lesbian motel which has a pub on the ground level that played loud pop music throughout the night. Kylie Minogue was definitely their hot favorite. Why? No prize for making the right guess.

I didn’t know it was a G&L motel when I first got in. No wonder the receptionist looked at me weirdly. Really! Tim can attest to that.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Paris
Sacred Coeur
Champs-Élysées
Arc de Triomphe
Grand & Petit Palais
Eiffel Tower
Musée d'Orsay
Notre Dame de Paris
The Latin Quarter
Pont Alexandre III
The Louvre
Les Invalides

Favorite: Eiffel Tower – It was the first of all the attractions we visited in Paris. I always thought that the Eiffel Tower is just a puny man-made structure that was never meant to be on display for long. But when I first saw the huge tower standing tall in front of me, I was awestruck by how magnificent it is. Maybe it was because I wasn’t prepared to see the tower immediately after I got out of the Trocadero Metro Station which made the first impression even more impressive and long lasting.

I simply love the symmetry of the tower!


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Barcelona
La Sagrada Familia
Park Guell
Casa Battlo
Las Ramblas
Gothic Quarters
Picasso Museum Gift Shop
Montserrat
Camp Nou
Magic Fountain of Montjuic

Favorite: Gothic Quarters – A district in the heart of Barcelona with medieval gothic buildings. There are many quaint little shops and cafes which radiate a very European feel. I expected to see the same in Paris but was disappointed.

Of all the cities I visited during this trip, I love Barcelona the most. It is an affordable city with so much liveliness!