Week 1 of our 9 week trip backpacking abroad is already complete! We stayed at the Algarve Surf School Hostel in Lagos, Portugal.  The majority of the time was spent taking surf lessons at Amado Beach on the west coast. The city of Lagos is a chill, laid back place.  We went out to a variety of restaurants and bars with new friends from the hostel.

Week 2 started with a long travel day that started in Seville, Spain.  This was followed by a lengthy layover in Lisbon, Portugal.  Finally arriving in Marrakech, Morocco.  We also spent time in the cities of Essaouira and Taghazout on the Atlantic coast.

Week 3 started with continuing our travels in Morocco.  We both struggled with food poisoning and had to adjust our plans back to Marrakech.  We found some comfort, rest, and plenty of pool time. We did make it out to see the Majorelle Garden.  Following, we had our longest day of travel which included flights from Marrakech to Lyon, France to London, England and finally to Dublin, Ireland.  In Dublin we were reunited with Jordan Jansen and met her friend Mary who gave us a local’s view. Following Dublin, we were met with the Kilps as we made our way to the west coast of Ireland in Dingle.  Nice to see some familiar faces from back home!

Week 4 we spent more time in Ireland on the Dingle Peninsula for breathtaking views of the Atlantic Coast.  Allie and I were even able to meet the most popular Dolphin in Ireland “Fungi” on a boat tour. Following Ireland we headed with the Kilps to Barcelona, Spain.  We enjoyed many of the cities sites and plenty of sangria and tapas. We will miss the Kilps company as they head back home!

Week 5 we headed to Paris and Amsterdam which were definitely some of our favorite days abroad so far. In Paris we were able to see Jack Johnson live in concert. We also made a spontaneous trip to Disneyland for a more touristic day. Amsterdam had perfect weather conditions which made for the most walkable city we have been in.

Week 6 started with a cancelled flight to Munich.  Followed by a new flight with a layover in Bern, Switzerland but we finally made it to Munich.  We drank german beer and walked throughout the city’s parks. We also made a chilling day trip to Dachau Concentration Camp outside the city.   We then traveled south to the Amalfi coast where we stayed in Praiano and enjoyed the Mediterranean Sea. We ended heading to a small town called Ercolano outside of Naples. We stayed at an old school that has been converted into a hostel and had views of Mount  Vesuvius. A very busy week for us!

Week 7 continued in Italy.  We stayed in the old town of the medieval city, Zagarolo, outside of Rome, Italy.  It was a restful place to explore and we got the opportunity to tour a local winery.  Following, we took a flight to Budapest, Hungary. The city’s architecture and sights were well worth the visit.

Week 8 we traveled throughout Croatia, after taking a bus from Budapest to Dubrovnik.  We stayed inside the old city gates and went on a Game of Thrones walking tour and saw many filming sites.  After Dubrovnik we took a ferry to the beautiful island of Korcula, where we took full advantage of the sea.

Week 9, our final week abroad! We stayed in Berlin, Germany in a hostel on the eastern side of the city.  We really enjoyed walking around the different neighborhoods.  On our way back home we had a layover in Iceland, giving us a few hours to wander out of the airport.  Stopping at the Viking World Museum, we took in as much as Iceland as we could.  It was an amazing summer abroad with memories that will last forever.