Pain, stress, anguish!!! Its all happening here

Arrgghhh. Ok so Im stuck in deepest South Africa so I apologise to all those who want to know if Im still alive. Let me say first “yes I am still alive” but after waiting all week to find out if Collingwood had obtained the Holy Grail I almost had a heart attack when I found out the result. And I still wont be able to watch it next week. I think its great the pies are going so well I just wish they chose a different year. Arrgghh

More seriously though I have finished my 22 day tour around Europe and have finally left the continent. The last half saw me travel through Austria, Germany (Munich & Berlin), Prague and Holland. Munich was by far my favourite part and rivals Switzerland for the top spot. I loved the people, the food and the city itself. It looked like something out of a fantasy. I will miss the adventure of exploring the Western world and its history. Its with a little sadness but a lot of excitement that I move on to whatever I'm doing next.

Praying that all of you are well and that your Faith remains strong. I now journey onto Africa where I will meet and worship with other brothers and sisters of Christ. After my work is done I hope to be with you all when I return on the 22nd of December. Be strong and of pure heart, serve God, the church and each other wherever you see an opportunity. May God guide and bless you until I am amongst you again. (I am currently reading Pauls letters too :o)... and Go Pies

Europe Unplugged part Uno

Words cannot fully explain how amazing this trip has been so far. At the moment I am half way through my 22 day camping trip around Europe. So far I have been to France, Switzerland, Italy and Venice and have 5 more countries to go. This trip has been better than my best expectations and it’s hard to describe the sensation. It’s sorta like a camp that we used to do during summer as a kid except instead of going out and playing footy or doing arts’n’crafts each day we end up in cities looking at the Eiffel tower, coliseums or epic churches with awesome architecture. As well as enjoying the countries I’m loving the people I’m travelling with.

We started with 32 and to date I get along great with all of them. Everyone is here to make the most out of Europe as opposed to drink every night away which is what i feared. Instead there’s about 6 couples, 3 guys and the rest are girls, all hailing from 6 different countries. The best thing is our leaders, the Team Leader/guide is a funny easy going guy who loves his random facts, the chef is one of the funniest chicks i’ve ever met and her food is incredible and finally our driver is an ex-British marine who goes jogging with us occasionally. That's right my group has a bunch of nutters who want to go jogging during their holiday, i’ts sweet as. We get to see the country in ways that few others ever will... and the fitness doesn’t hurt with all the second helpings we can’t resist.

I can’t finish this blog without picking some highlights. So far I have loved Venice and Switzerland above the rest. The Swiss have a cool history and the villages are beautiful amongst their mountainous snowy alp settings. And Venice was a lot of fun getting lost in. With no roads in the city Jason (my tentmate) and I got lost countless times trying to navigate the thin windy streets ending up at countless dead ends trying to find ways over the canals. The French Riviera was a great place to swim and relax in the sun between packed days of exploration. The best thing though is sharing this experience with fellow adventurers. It’s been unforgettable so far and I couldn’t be much happier especially with 11 days to go :o)