rememberwhenwe123@gmail.com
John and Shelly’s 2023 Adventures
Listen to John and Shelly’s playlist on: Spotify
What a memorable year full of love, adventure, and cherished moments with family and friends! We couldn’t be more grateful for the incredible people who’ve enriched our lives and the new connections we’ve made along the way.
Our travels began in Barcelona, Spain, where we marveled at the breathtaking La Sagrada Familia. From there, we stayed with our friend Mellisa in Valencia before embarking on a car camping road trip. We explored castles in Toledo, picked cherries and enjoyed accordion music on a bridge in Castilla y León, hiked in Asturias, biked through Cantabria, greeted sheep in Aragón, admired cliffs in Basque Country, and ended with sangria and beaches in Cadaqués.
In Italy, we indulged in pastries in Milan, hiked all five towns of Cinque Terre, climbed rocks in Calci, wandered through San Gimignano, soaked in hot springs in Tuscany, revisited our favorite city, Florence, biked around Lake Garda, and rode horses in South Tyrol. A rainy stop in the Italian Alps led us to Innsbruck, Austria, where we hiked and napped—until some cows woke us up!
From there, we headed to Munich to visit the English Garden, our favorite park in Europe, and flew to Berlin, where we danced in the rain at a Jack Johnson concert. Friends we met in Cadaqués invited us to Salzburg, Austria, where they generously hosted us with nightly feasts, scenic hikes, and a city tour. Next, we visited old friends in Vienna for music video dancing, wine hikes, and more biking adventures.
When John’s family visited Felixstowe, England, we headed to the UK! In Edinburgh, Scotland, we rented a car for another road trip, touring castles, distilleries, cliffs, and rolling hills. We visited the Isle of Skye, Loch Ness, and Stirling before wrapping up in Clyde Distillery (a must-visit, given John’s dad’s name!).
A quick flight took us to Paris, one of our favorite cities, where we indulged in croissants, marveled at the Eiffel Tower, and enjoyed sunset picnics in the parks with friends. Despite a bike crash (Shelly’s mishap), we made it to see the Mona Lisa just in time. Back in Felixstowe, we continued the tour of museums— but in this one John’s great uncle was there. We dove into local traditions—cottage pie, toad in the hole, scones with clotted cream, bocce ball—and spent precious time with John’s family.
Next, we stayed with friends in Malmö, Sweden, exploring both Sweden and Copenhagen, Denmark. John embraced Nordic culture with a daring dip in icy waters, while the rest of the trip was filled with biking, dancing, funky trees, and plenty of coffee.
Our return to the U.S. began in New York, Shelly’s first visit. We stayed with friends, enjoyed free park concerts, took in views of the Empire State Building, and caught sunsets from ferries. From there, we visited Shelly’s family in Idaho, fed cows, gardened, and soaked in Idaho’s sunsets.
In Washington, we reconnected with friends, explored Chelan, Leavenworth, the Olympic Peninsula, and Mount Rainier. The trip ended with a wedding celebration on the eastern side of the state.
