Location: Bratislava, Slovakia (*Featuring: Amsterdam, Netherlands)
Travel Time: August 18, 2015
After a fun week spent in Croatia, it was time to return back home. Since we all had flown in at different times, we had our return tickets leave out of Vienna, Austria since that was the closest airport to Humberto & Andrea’s house in Bratislava. We made the exhausting drive (due to lack of sleep) back to Bratislava where we just hung out and reminisced on all the fun we had. That night, we deemed it ‘the last supper’ by going out to eat one last time. We decided to split up; boys and girls. The girls went walking around downtown Bratislava and had the most amazing ice cream while the boys went out for a drink.
We all met up later that night at one of the local restaurants. The boys opted for the pork-knuckle one last time but were not at all prepared for how big it would be. The portion was literally the size of a baby’s head! Of course, being men, they had to finish it all. Needless to say, there were a few upset stomachs that night but it was all worth it. We finished off our night back at the Abad’s house for a final round of Monopoly Deal and some unforgettable laughs. Per usual, we stayed up way too late and we were a complete mess the next morning for our flights. But hey, that’s what vacation is for! We are so grateful to Elena for lending us her condo and Lucas for giving us a ride all around town. They really are great friends.
Tj, Rico and I made it to the airport and had our first flight to Istanbul where our trip had began. From there, our flights were back to Chicago, however, Rico had an overnight layover in Paris while Tj and I had a layover in Amsterdam. We flew KLN Airlines which I would highly recommend. The planes were very comfortable and the staff was super attentive (https://www.klm.com/). Normally, we prefer direct flights when traveling. However, this one we didn’t mind as much. Namely because I had never been to Amsterdam. Plus, we had been with friends for the entire trip so it was nice to have one last night as just the two of us. By the time we arrived in Amsterdam, it was late afternoon. Once again, we stayed at the Citizen M Hotel, the same hotel we stayed at on our last night in Europe the year before. The hotel is walking distance from the airport which was great (https://www.citizenm.com/destinations/amsterdam/amsterdam-hotel). They also have a very easy check-in and check-out policy. The metro train to enter downtown Amsterdam is inside the airport so that made it easy for us to see the city while we were there. It was particularly crowded due to it being the first night of the SAIL Amsterdam, an event that only happens every 5 years. Tall sailing ships from all over the world fill the harbor (https://www.sail.nl/en/). It was beautiful seeing all these boats light up the water at night. We then did some walking around and of course had the BEST french fries we have ever had. The Dutch really take their fries seriously! It was fantastic. I will say if you plan on visiting Amsterdam (especially at night), do use discretion. As many know, there are a lot of things that are legal in Amsterdam that are not legal in other parts of the world and the exposure of these things is very frequent (i.e. drugs, prostitution, etc.). That is something I would definitely keep in mind. However, landmarks such as the Van Gogh Museum, the Anne Frank House and the Rembrandt Museum do make Amsterdam a top destination for many people. In the end, Tj and I just headed back to the hotel and called it a night. We couldn’t believe we had finished off another European adventure. It always happens so fast. The second we arrived home, we both said the same thing… ‘Can’t wait until we return!’ I can only hope sooner than later!
I hope you enjoyed the articles. Please feel free to comment in any of the boxes below and let us know what you enjoy about the pages and what you would like to see more of. As you know, Tj and I have plenty of trips lined up for the future and we would love for the blog to be informative as well as somewhat entertaining. And for those we may not see as often, hopefully this gives you a slight glimpse into our lives. Stay tuned for the next article coming soon. Until next time friends!
For the full album, please ‘click’ on the link below:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/Bv7HXnMvuH3dyqm29
Enjoy the photos!
Agape,
Tj & Asia Johnson
Traveling Threefold Cord 