Thankful

Budapest was beautiful. I arrived Wednesday night around midnight and fell asleep immediately after getting to my Airbnb. Thursday morning I got breakfast at a nearby cafe, stopped at a souvenir shop, and did a free walking tour of the town. Our guide told us all about the incredible history of the city, its famous inventors, and all of its hidden secrets. After the tour ended I visited the famous Széchenyi Thermal Baths and finally got some real sunshine, followed by the Jewish Quarter walking tour, visiting a ruin bar, and getting dinner and gelato at places recommended by my tour guide. I finished off the night by watching the sunset while riding the Budapest Eye and FaceTiming Garrett while he ate lunch. Friday was more of a half day since I needed to be at the airport around 2:30pm, so I woke up and had an early breakfast and then visited the shoe memorial along the river dedicated to all of the Jews who were murdered during the Holocaust. I walked about 30 minutes from there to the central market to do some last-minute shopping, and then ended with a late lunch at the Cat Cafe (with 15 cats running around) and hopped on the airport bus.

Saturday morning I went to the gym and then returned to the airport to fly to Cardiff, Wales. I met Genna there, but arrived about 3.5 hours before her, so I had some time to wander around the city and see the castle. I met Genna at the train station, we dropped our bags off at the hostel, and then we walked around. We ended up going to a 5:30pm mass at the Cardiff Cathedral and went to get dinner directly after. On our way to dinner we encountered a fight in the street which I, and several others, phoned emergency services about. Since our adrenaline was now pumping, we walked to one of the only restaurants open, which just happened to be a Mexican place. For Mexican food in the UK it was pretty good. We finished the night with cookies and ice cream and went back to the hostel to get absolutely no sleep.

Luckily, we had planned to go to Stonehenge on Sunday, so we had 2.5 each way by train to nap. Stonehenge was neat, but it really was just a bunch of rocks out in a field. I'm glad I can say I saw it, but I'm not 100% sure I'd return. Upon getting back to Cardiff, we walked to Mermaid Quay and had a lovely dinner by the Bay, saw the Millennium Centre, ate some ice cream, and watched the sunset. Again, no sleep at the hostel, so we were ready to be back in Edinburgh on Monday.

Monday was spent shopping, leaving a walking tour because it wasn't too great, getting ice cream made with liquid nitrogen, and visiting the National Museum of Wales. Overall, a neat place I'm glad I visited, but I probably won't be returning soon.

We celebrated my birthday yesterday (Tuesday). Sarah had an exam, so I got up and went to the gym, and then the three of us met up at Loudon's for brunch, went to Mary's Milk Bar for gelato, got cupcakes from my parents delivered, and shopped the afternoon away! We ended up at Bread Meats Bread for dinner, and Mac (one of our Scottish friends) showed up to surprise me! We went around to a few speakeasies after dinner, met up with some other friends, and had a fun night. This was the first time in 4 years I've celebrated my birthday on the actual day, and it was a great time!

This has been the adventure of a lifetime. The only word I can really use to describe how I feel is "thankful," the reason for the title of this post. Traveling all over Europe and experiencing a plethora of cultures has been better than the experience I dreamt it would be. But I think it's about time I return to the dogs, my family, my fiancé, baseball, Chick-Fil-A, graduation, and having a set place to call "home" for more than a few months at a time. I'm thankful for the experiences I've had, the people I've met, the lessons I've learned, and I'm sure for things I don't even know about yet. Prayers for safety as I travel home tomorrow would be much appreciated, and I look forward to seeing everyone and catching up the next few weeks. Less than 24 hours until I'm home!