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The kindness of stangers.

We were just given a free 60-minute double-decker tour bus ride around Amsterdam. All 3 of us. What an unexpected treat!

But imagine this: You’re going away for 4 nights. You’ve been in email contact with strangers from another country coming to visit your home town. You invite them over, hand them keys to your apartment and say “Stay here free of charge while I’m gone and enjoy the neighbourhood.”

Would you be that trusting? That giving?

People are. Our adventure is proving it time and again. We are so grateful for the kindness!

Beach Day! Warning: semi-indecent exposure.

We got happily lost wandering the streets of Barcelona, marveling at the epic architecture when we ran into something completely unexpected!

Food poisoning.  Cash shortage.  No home.

When people tell me that they wish they were doing what we are doing, somehow I don’t think that this is quite how they picture it:)

Hemmed in by challenges we took a break from it all and hiked up a mountain.

Barcelona began to reveal a hint of her beauty to us.

When problems arise…

Barcelona, it’s been fun but its time for us to go.

We’ve settled in, we know the city, we’ve seen the sights.

Special thanks to Maite and Colin who put us up in two lovely neighbourhoods with very different flavours!

I considered a local job opportunity but there are so many other countries to see!

Also, I miss CrossFit gyms.

It is hard to get out of Spain.  Everything is expensive when you multiply transit tickets x3.  And car rentals are ridiculous.

Car leases are better value but we need to get to Nice in order to get one.

Considering the travel, accommodation and feeding hassles we’ve experienced and their associated costs we’re going to Amsterdam to try to find a camper van we can buy.

We’ve splurged for a flight out tomorrow.  This time we booked our first night accommodations in advance.  A one-star hotel.

The price of ignorance is high and we’ve paid through the nose this first week.  If we can’t find a real deal on a dependable camper van, we’ll soon be walking from country to country and sleeping on the roadside which is very paleo:)

Barcelona adventures will be up tomorrow.