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Europe 2022
  • Martine Nyhof
  • Martine Nyhof

Europe 2022

A 63-day adventure by Martine Read more
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  • Trip start
    August 5, 2022
  • Martine NyhofEurope 2022Traveler

    Coffee stop

    August 6, 2022 in Ireland ⋅ ⛅ 9 °C

    First oopsy!!! Asks for $3.30 dollars in change for the bus. Lady goes "we don't have dollars we only have euros"😂😂😂

  • Martine NyhofEurope 2022Traveler
    1

    Various Spots

    August 6, 2022 in Ireland ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C

    -guinness store
    -146m tower with no historical or political purpose
    -monument in Pheonix park
    -heineken
    -trinity college
    -book of Kells
    -dolier chambers
    -four courts
    -christ church Cathedral
    -dublin castleRead more

  • Martine NyhofEurope 2022Traveler

    Day 1

    August 6, 2022 in Ireland ⋅ 🌙 15 °C

    Well well...I guess this is the start of my adventure :) Dublin is quite the tourist spot. People were packing the streets and street musicians on the go. The city has tons of history and the architecture is amazing. Many buildings that date back to the 1800s with beautiful stone work. My first hostel was good! Was in a 16 Mixed Dormity and many people were going to bed at 3 am. Starting to learn the lingo and introducing myself. The first time is a little nerve racking. Had a man go on and on about my legs as I ate chickpeas...was quite weird. Met a fellow Canadian on the hophonhhophoff bus tour from BC! Was very nice to chat with and was fun to have along. Doing the whiskey tour distillery was probably one of my highlights. Our tour guide named Emily was a character and shared some laughs with some fellow travellers! I also really enjoyed the U2 music room in the Little Museum of Dublin. It was very fun being in the town where it all started! At the end of the day was I was HAPPY to climb into bed after sleeping an hour and 45 min before my flight (driving home from The Bay) then hopping on a plane at 1pm, landing at 5am and going non-stop!

    Next stop: Killarney (Western Ireland)    Read more

  • Martine NyhofEurope 2022Traveler

    Killarney!

    August 7, 2022 in Ireland ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C

    So plan B was taking the bus to Killarney because I mistakenly thought the train would go on a Sunday. Anyhow the bus has been great. It's been really nice to get out of the city and see the countryside. It has been quite flat but coming into Killarney I see the MOUNTAINS in the distance!!! Yay!!! But man. I'm also thinking we're coming into town and it's VERY small town vibes. Many many cows and farms. I've done a complete 180 from Dublin!Read more

  • Martine NyhofEurope 2022Traveler

    Day 2!

    August 7, 2022 in Ireland ⋅ 🌙 13 °C

    Day 2 that's a wrap!

    So I'm kinda loving this place. It's a tiny town in the middle of nowhere and I'm staying at the hostel in an alleyway with I swear no outlets. Buttttt every place has live music and the streets are just filled with wholesomeness. At the hostel, met Angie from Argentina and these 4 French dudes from France!! Nicest people and were great to hang out with! Also, had a truly Irish experience with witnessing the bag pipes and green all around #stpattysdayRead more

  • Martine NyhofEurope 2022Traveler

    St. Mary's Cathedral

    August 8, 2022 in Ireland ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C

    Another wicked building!! Was just wondering around town before the Ring of Kerry Tour and entry was FREE! So pretty and gorgeous stained glass

  • Martine NyhofEurope 2022Traveler

    Ring of Kerry

    August 8, 2022 in Ireland ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C

    Views: 10/10
    Weather: 10/10
    Driver Dave: 10/10
    Tourist Level: 10000/10

    What a day!!! Today I did a ring of Kerry bus tour :) left from Killarney and headed out to the coast. Gorgeous views and the water was so blue!!! Driving all around the mountains just made me want to hike them :(( the driver was super kind! Surprisingly has been to Canada and Killarney Ontario!!!🤣 Also talked to some fellow France girls and a fam from the UK! Also peek at the painted sheep🐏🐑too many sheep for farmers to keep track of!! Finally, I also learned that usually Ireland doesn't have the best weather so I'm really lucking out here!Read more

  • Martine NyhofEurope 2022Traveler

    Day 3

    August 8, 2022 in Ireland ⋅ ⛅ 13 °C

    Day three you were beautiful. The ring of Kerry was a day well spent with magnificent views and getting out to the coast of Ireland. Tonight at the hostel I continued to meet new people. 3 girls around my age from the Netherlands, a couple from Berlin, and a father and daughter from Germany hiking in Kerry for 2 weeks!! Admittedly I was quite impressed by the 18 year old daughter who is set out to HIKE the Pacific trail for 5 months by herself!!! They were lovely to talk to :)) everyone is so happy to pull out their maps and show me their journeys and plans. As this is my last night in Ireland, I had to go out and have a Guinness! Honestly probably one of the better beers I've had (considering I am not a fan of beer!)Read more

  • Martine NyhofEurope 2022Traveler

    First time on the Train back to Dublin!

    August 9, 2022 in Ireland ⋅ ⛅ 17 °C

    It's get up and go time! Tonight I have my flight out of Dublin to Portugal! Honestly leaving this hostel was hard because I had so many people to say bye too! I had my France guys, my Berlin friends, Netherland girls, fellow solo women from Argentina, and my biker squad from France! Gotta say my biker squad has inspired me to get my motor cycle licence (sorry mom thought I'd never say this) because what better way to travel the coast than on a bike! These guys have taken two weeks to start and the south and bike all the way up to the north! HOW COOL! I roomed with this group of 7 for two nights and one women in particular was so sweet. She said good morning every day, pulled out her map and showed me their itinerary, and said bye and gave me a parting apple sauce 😭

    Next time: Ireland, I will be back because I have got to do the dingle off of Killarney, hike Carrauntoohill, and do the cliffs of Moher, and maybe Cork and Galway on the side :)    Read more

  • Martine NyhofEurope 2022Traveler

    Suprise!!!

    August 9, 2022 in Ireland ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    Oh. My. God. Houth is a town just a train ride outside Dublin on a peninsula and wow. So pretty. I'm finding these pictures do not do justice! Today I was expecting to be a bit of a write off with my flight and heading back to Dublin from Killarney. I didn't want to spend another day in the city so I looked at Google maps, found Houth, looked kinda cool, was within my timeframe, and said hey why not cover more grounds! Wow! Soso pretty! The water was SO blue and I got to walk out to a lighthouse from the train station! 10/10! TripAdvisor nor google websites were recommending this one!

    Also. That gelato was delish. Can't not have one when you're on the water front!    Read more

  • Martine NyhofEurope 2022Traveler

    Arrival in Lisbon, Portugal!

    August 10, 2022 in Portugal ⋅ 🌙 19 °C

    Helloooo Lisbon!! Wow. Getting in close to midnight was really an adventure...kinda sketchy and maybe not something I'd recommend as a first-time visiting solo traveller but hey!!! It worked out!!! And mannnn did I ever luck out at this hostel! It is called Good morning Solo Traveller Hostel and located RIGHT in the middle of the city! At first it is VERY hard to find because the main entrance is probably 8ft wide because once you go in, you go straight up! Many of the travellers are infact solo and everyone is down to meet! The people here on entry were fantastic! People high fiving me left right and center and I met a new girl from the Netherlands! On my walk in from the bus stop, I passed so many high end bands like Cartier, Rolex, Gucci...honestly I care more about the statues I passed that were also phenomenal! One statue probably every 100m and they are TALL! Finally, I was kinda panicking all plane ride because as my bag was being taken away, I realized she put the bag tag on a loose strap! Tbh I was saying goodbye to my bag and thinking of all the worst case scenarios BUT, no need to worry because my bag made it 😎 Lisbon here we go!Read more

  • Martine NyhofEurope 2022Traveler

    Free Walking Tour of Lisbon

    August 10, 2022 in Portugal ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    Put on your walking shoes and it's time to explore the city on foot! This walking tour was great. 11pm-1:30 with guide Antanio who was energetic and very informative! Probably the best part was doing it with these two girls I met from Ireland! They were super cool and ended up going for coffee after the tour :) some interesting things I learned is that everything is built from tiles. Why is that? Because they last decades and the concrete/paint lasts about 10 years! Also, when you see a statue with a man on a horse, if both legs are down they died of natural cause, if one leg is up, they were wounded in battle and died later on because of that, and if both legs are up, they died in battle. Kinda cool!!! Also learned quite a bit about the earthquake, tsunami, and fire storm that occurred which wiped out the entire city other than Alfama because of its elevation. After the earthquake, they rebuilt the city with wider streets so people could escape in the case of another earthquake which apparently they are due for! After the trip...I put on sunscreen. Oopsy. Probably a big mistake but didn't happen as I was rushing out the door!Read more

  • Martine NyhofEurope 2022Traveler

    Alfama Afternoon!!

    August 10, 2022 in Portugal ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    Alright, sunscreen is now on, ready to go! So I mentioned Alfama in my previous post but it is an original city in Portugal dating back to the 11th century! All the streets are cobblestone and SUPER narrow with steep stairs. Very beautiful because it is higher in elevation. And peak at the classic Portugese building made out of tiles! Took a peak at the Lisbon Cathedral, Church of São Vicente de Fora, and many more squares. It was amazing how many squares there were with monumental statues in the center! Amazing day with great weather.Read more

  • Martine NyhofEurope 2022Traveler

    Grandma Gift

    August 10, 2022 in Portugal ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    Okay so buying this was pretty tacky and felt it was definitely something my grandma would buy if she were travelling. BUT. It felt so fitting because EVERYTHING here is built of tiles and trams and EVERYWHERE. (hot tip: if you're ever in Portugal and taking the team, don't take 28, the locals take 12 because it is basically the same route and way less busy - tip from Antonio). So here we are. Filling the shoes of grandma :) thought some people would relate and enjoy this post🥰Read more

  • Martine NyhofEurope 2022Traveler

    Learning the lingo

    August 11, 2022 in Portugal ⋅ 🌙 19 °C

    Okay everyone is saying "it's so fab". I'm going to get with the lingo.

    Tonight has been soooo fun. I've met at least 20+ people from Africa, Brussels, USA, so many Aussies, Netherlands, Norway, and Canada?!?!? And many more!!! So cool!!! #sofab this hostel is honestly the best. Lovely every minute and having a blast😭😝Read more

  • Martine NyhofEurope 2022Traveler

    Sintra Pt 1

    August 11, 2022 in Portugal ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C

    Today I took the train from Lisbon to Sintra!! It was so good I have to make two posts. Omg. Sintra is the town of castles. I visited the top 3 but there were 8 or so in total. Sintra is also beautiful because the city is on a mountain so if you're high enough, you can get a full landscape view!!! I started at the Castelo dos Mouros. This was probably my favourite because I loved walking along the castle. Many many steps! After, I went to the Palace of Pena. This is for most the number one stop. The castle is full of vibrancy and the highest point. I only walked along the outside with the pillars because the line up to get in was ENORMOUS (I also heard it's totally not worth it) so I made the best out of it! Finally I ran by the Quinta da Regaleira. This is the number one stop on Trip advisor. Again, I'm more of an outside person so I did a quick walk by and that was good enough for me. All very magnificent buildings and stunning views. To finish off with the castles, I had a Portuguese tart. Oh. My. God. It was SO good. Right out of the oven and just mushed in your mouth. Amazing. But just you wait for the best part. Sintra pt 2!!!Read more

  • Martine NyhofEurope 2022Traveler

    Sintra pt 2 JACKPOT

    August 11, 2022 in Portugal ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    Just wow. This was the most west point on the European border. I don't even know what to say because it just kept getting better. Could not have asked for a better time. Originally I was like yeah I'll follow the oath out to the point. Then there was another point and I was like yeah let's keep going. And then this dude was like oh you can keep going! So I kept going until I got to the water and boy was it worth it. There were just some Italian guys chilling out but nobody else. None of the other tourists brought their walking shoes and boy did they miss out! Such a great time. Getting down was a little sketchy at one point when you had to use a rope to get yourself down but it was all good. Perfect weather. Perfect day. Perfect place. I love it. Portugal you are beautiful. Oh and might I add there was yet another castle but who cares about that when you've got the Atlantic ocean! (Sorry to those who disagree). What a day.Read more

  • Martine NyhofEurope 2022Traveler

    Pub Crawl with the Irish!

    August 12, 2022 in Portugal ⋅ 🌙 18 °C

    I will forever love these gals. My new besties. I met them on the walking tour yesterday and we booked tickets to do the pub crawl together and we stuck together. I was thankful that they had my back when I am a solo traveller so we could all have a good time safely. The pub crawl itself was meh. I just wanted to dance but they walked us around to a lot of TINY bars so most times we were sipping on the street. As for my fellow crawlers. There was A LOT of male energy. A lot. I will say the second bar we went to, there was this Italian lady who was absolutely hilarious. She was probably around 40 and said she didn't work there but was just talking to every single group, asking where we're from and if we're single. I said I was single and she matched me with a German guy. Good conversation tbh. My other Irish friend said she was engaged and the lady said she was attending the wedding. Every time she introduced us, we were from a different country, California, UK, etc. 😂😂 She was also the controller of the music and man, She needs to get with the vibes and the times. Finally, the last place we went to had a sign saying "you never know what you've lost until it's gone - toilet paper". And I can tell you they did not have toilet paper 🫠 all in all, grand time and happy I did it!Read more

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