ENGAGED!!!!!

It's very important news and I'm telling the world about it. Jason and I are engaged and I couldn't be happier.

Before I get into the proposal though, I'm going to share how my journey home went.

It started when I arrived at the Amsterdam Central station about noon, found out all trains travelling to the station I wanted were cancelled because of a faulty switch on the tracks or something.

So the alternative was to take a train to catch a bus to take my Hilversum (the first of my three planned stops to Hamburg).

Once I arrived at the station where I'd be catching the bus, it turns out I wasn't the only one having this inconvenience.

Loads of people were there waiting. So there we all stood at the bus stop in the hot midday sun, each hoping to push their way on to the next bus. Yes, 4 buses had come and gone by the time I was able to get a seat. Apparently they only had about two buses cycling every half hour to hour. Poor planning on their part. And when I say push my way onto the next bus, I mean it was bordering on a mob scene.

Once on the bus we made are way to a different town, where I had to change buses. Not really sure where I was at this point, I asked the lady sitting next to me, if this bus actually stopped at Hilversum (I was told it was going there, but you never know). She said no, but it took as to a train station where I could catch the train to Hilversum, which is where she was going as well. Very helpful.

So around 5 p.m. I finally made it to Hilversum. This was supposed to be a 17 minute train ride, and it had taken me four hours. But I made it to the first stop. I was getting somewhere and that was fine with me.

Once in Hilversum, I checked the schedule, got to the designated platform, and the train to my next stop, Osnabruck... also, not arriving. Just like the one in Amsterdam...

So I ran to the ticket office and asked the attendant how I could get to Osnabruck. I had to catch the next train to Amersfoort, and there I could catch a train, but I had to hurry, the last part emphasized. So I ran back to the platforms and caught the train to Amersfoort and within half an hour was at there.

Finally, I found a train to Osnabruck. I was very, very excited that it wasn't cancelled. Yet, it was stilled delayed, by about 20 minutes. Then 25 minutes. In ended being 35 minutes delayed with two trains that were supposed to arrive after it, come and gone by the time the train finally showed. Didn't matter, it arrived and I was finally on to the next stop.

During the train ride I ended up sitting in gum. That really helped the day along. Thankfully I've been living out of a backpack I had with me! So, it was only a slight inconvenience and I just switched pants in the bathroom. Very in keeping with the rest of the day though.

Made it to Osnabruck, and the train to Hamburg had also been delayed. But this was a good delay because that meant I didn't miss it since the train to Osnabruck had ended up forty minutes late. So after a short wait, I was on a train to Hamburg.

I arrived in Hamburg around 11 p.m. and made it to the airport by midnight. I had planned on grabbing my iPod and headphones, but since I arrived so late and some people sleep and work in the morning, so they are just going to be mailed to me eventually.

So I slept in the airport. Turns out quite a few people do this. Sleeping on my backpack and using my towel as some kind of cushion, I awoke around 4:30 in the morning to a hopping airport. At just after five I decided I would try and check in for my flight four hours early. Not a lot else to do.

Checked in and was informed that there was an earlier flight to Munich. It was at no cost, so I took it. It didn't mean I'd be arriving home any sooner, just meant that I would be sitting around in the Munich airport instead of the Hamburg one. I sat around in the Hamburg airport long enough, I just wanted to start heading home.

After a very short flight I arrived in Munich. Chilled for four hours, grabbed some... lunch. It was probably more like breakfast, but after travelling for almost 24 hours mealtimes aren't really that important as long as I get food at some point.

Oh, I would also like to mention that when I got on the flight to Munich, they were fixing the panel above my seat. Apparently it had come lose and was letting the masks fall down when they shouldn't be. Right above my seat. Thankfully I hadn't had coffee at the point, so I didn't have the capacity to care. It was an uneventful flight, so I guess they fixed it properly.

Anyway, after sitting around the Munich airport for a bit and spending the last of my euros on one more German beer. I was on my way to Toronto.

A long but pretty decent flight. I actually really like airplane food. It is quite delicious these days, and it's a full meal. Some for of salad, choice of chicken, pasta, or vegetarian, bun and a cookie for desert. Oh, and the free wine on long Air Canada flights is awesome. Wish it would've helped me sleep, but I was already content with the fact that I probably wasn't going to sleep for the a 24 hr period of time.

Once arrived in Toronto, a little later than planned (every plane did have a delay of at least 15 minutes by the way), I had just over an hour to clear customs and get to my plane to Calgary. Clearing customs took no time, but the waiting for the bags to come off the plane did take a bit. And when I did finally get my bag, it may have been down a strap. Yes my insanely heavy backpack now had one broken shoulder strap. No time to whine about it though, I slung it over one shoulder and half ran to my connection as fast as I could. Dropped off my bag got to the the connections floor, and not surprisingly, my gate was at the very end. Yea, makes sense about now.

I arrived at the gate, panting just a little from all the hurrying, to find out the plane was delayed. It was supposed to be pulling away from the gate in five minutes, yet it hadn't even arrived. All that rushing for a plane that wasn't there yet. Oh well, time to sit down and breathe.

Once boarded, the train was a little more delayed by an intoxicated passenger that wasn't allowed to board. Thanks to that delay though, they gave everyone a free alcoholic beverage. Yay for wine!

Once the plane was about an hour outside of Calgary, I was basically just bouncing.

So after many long travelling hours and countless delays, I somehow managed to arrive home. I'm actually not sure how I made it at some points, but I really, really wanted to get home, and nothing was going to stop me.

Once down the escalators, I was then proposed to. In the middle of the airport. It couldn't of been more perfect. I'm home safe and now engaged to my wonderfully awesome fiance, Jason Doiron. I couldn't be happier. I said it once I will say it a million times.

Thus ends my adventures through Europe. I'm stoked to see everyone again, and feel like I'm living in luxury right now. I have clean clothes! It's awesome, I don't have to wash things in the sink anymore.

I just want to say thanks to everyone's support and caring throughout the entire trip. I hope you enjoyed my stories. :)

Peace&Love
Chow