JordEntures

06/13/2023

04/29/2023

Royal Delft Museum & Exhibits followed by the making process! We can totally understand why delft is so expensive!

04/22/2023

Just over here in Belgium 🇧🇪 trying all of the beers 🍺

03/25/2023

What a wonderful world, it’s almost time to come home and I can’t wait to share so much more about the places we explored! The long sleeve has been a staple in my wardrobe with the Irish winds and changing weather, so comfortable and stylish.

03/18/2023

Burren National Park, a hidden gem not far from the cliffs of moher!

03/14/2023

Danniifree long sleeve and toque keeping me layered up in the bone chilling winds experienced in Iceland!

03/12/2023

Glacier Explored ✅

02/25/2023

Concluding the 1st European Adventure (Part 3)
Strategically I left off in Slovenia just to have the chance to talk about it one more time before we wrap up! I can't say enough about the stunning Lipizzaner horse farm that our hotel was situated on, they had a great restaurant where once again my wine was cheaper than Des' water (sorry Des)! This hotel also had a casino - we checked it out but didn't gamble.

Another quick one night, Slovenia, we wish we had more time with you! As we were leaving and to our surprise we stumbled upon this local excursion.. Postojna Caves (https://www.postojnska-jama.eu/en/) an unexpected but amazing excursion for us as it was both of our first time to see caves in this capacity! The ticket took us on a train ride through the caves followed by a hike!

They had quirky names for some of the formations - pictured here is the "wedding cake." I do recall another one of them named "the chicken."

This tour was 100% worth it, I believe the castle was under renovation when we went and that is why we only did the caves, it is possible that we only had time for the caves as well!

And here's one more shot with Des and I, behind us is what they call drip stones. Drip stones grow about 1 cm every 100 years!

After this tour, it was time to leave Slovenia, back to Italy - ultimately back to Rome! But, not before we made a couple stops along the way. We drove straight from Lipica, Slovenia to Bologna, Italy (a quick stop to spend the night). Our restaurant in Bologna was VERY Italian and our waitress did not understand us at all.. we only wanted a glass of wine, she gave us a bottle, so out of not wanting to make her feel bad we bought the bottle..(we thought she might cry because her English was so limited). It also felt like a 'business' dealing was happening in the back which made us want to hurry up, eat and get back to our hotel...I mean it is Italy right?

Along the way we bought a little cake at a bakery which we left in the fridge in our hotel to enjoy after dinner.. much to our disappointment this was an ice cream cake and it was a puddle by the time we returned to eat it... oops...

Rimini Beach, a world famous beach.. a little bit cold this time (March) of year but still beautiful. We rode the Ferris wheel and dipped our toes in the Adriatic Sea and just took in the view! This place would be SO busy and so fun in the Summer time.

San Marino, our next stop on the way back to Rome.. and finally a mountain road we intentionally drove up! The view and the weather were amazing, I highly recommend this stop if you are driving, don't miss it.

After taking in the beautiful Rimini Beach and the sights in San Marino (which counts as another country) we headed straight for Rome. Only stopping one last time for gas and snacks. This stop is a vivid memory as Des had slept for a while before we got to this "pit stop' and after the stop we were heading into a mountain tunnel.. over 10kms inside of a mountain...no radio service, just silence. As we entered the tunnel Tracey Chapman's "fast car" was playing. It's funny how our memory holds onto this things.

It was a very long day of driving - and arriving at our hotel on the outskirts of Rome was the best feeling. This hotel was a spa hotel.. one of those "treat yourself" nights for sure!

If you are going to rent a car in Italy, be prepared to drive like an Italian... We took a drive from Rome to Naples followed by Sorrento. This is in the general area of the Almafi coast. It is SO beautiful and so blue.

It was a spur of the moment decision to drive down the coast but it was worth every minute.

This trip was before the technology level of cars and GPS's today we did this with my Mom's old Tom Tom GPS & Europe version downloaded onto it.. At this point in the trip we had named the GPS Lindsay, (Lindsay vs. Des & I) we weren't really friends... well today in particular we weren't thrilled when she sent us to the ghetto of Naples. We still don't really know how that happened and thankfully we lived to tell the story!

Parking and Cars were insane in Naples.. most vehicles are missing one or both bumpers so driving our nice rental really made us stand out everywhere (especially in Naples).

This was our ride! Thanks again Locauto: EuropeCar, rentalcars.com made this part a breeze!

Back in Rome, we have reached the last full day before we fly home. We wanted to catch a few sites we had missed our first time around and we were very happy we did! The weather was so nice (even though the locals still wore winter coats) the Canadians wore tank tops and t-shirts! Pictured here are the Spanish Steps.

Imagine a crowd like this in a new country again!? Covid-19 it is time for you to move out this girl wants to travel again!

A friendly note to all is that Rome, and well cities in Italy overall have a lot scammers.. Just ignore them, they can be really pushy and annoying, don't try to be nice. I had read about this but never really understood until we experienced it.

This here is called the "Mouth of Truth." Said to bite the hand of a liar.. Thankfully we both survived this one too.

I am sure that there was so much more to see and do in Rome (and there is more that we did see and do that I haven't even touched on). But sadly our trip has now come to an end.

Our rental car had 13kms when we started and we ended with 4386.8kms on it! What an amazing journey, thanks for joining along!

02/24/2023

Europe Adventure (Part 2)
Well, I left you in Venice, Italy and now I will take you with me to Ljubljana, Slovenia! We simply passed through this beautiful city on route to our destination of Bled, Slovenia.

Ljubljana (Lub - Lee - Awn- A) is the capital city and largest city in Slovenia. The cobblestone roads and unique scenery downtown was enough to make us wish we had a few more days for our adventure.

Both Des and I totally underestimated the sheer beauty of this country and did not allot for enough time to spend here. It would be a dream to go back and take a slow and scenic tour.

Bled, Slovenia was our destination for the night. Bled is host to Bled castle which is said to be one of the oldest known castles in the country. Our hotel was a slice of heaven and one that I will never ever forget! The views from our window.. the breakfast and the friendly ducks and swans right out front! If it had been a little warmer they also had canoes that you could paddle to the island which is host to the Bled Cathedral.

Just take a minute to take in this VIEW!!! If any of you reading this have ever thought about a Europe adventure and have not considered Slovenia - DO, look it up and go!

The next morning we went to the castle; check out these views!!! Truly a magical place.

From the castle you can see the Bled Cathedral which is on the island - only accessible by boat. To the far left of the second photo you can see our hotel. The castle sold wine.. which I still have to this day! I will likely keep it unopened forever just because!

If beautiful views like this are not your thing then skip over this next photo.. one more of this beautiful lake and its surroundings.. I can't help myself!

Our hotel is still going strong and it is searchable online and on hotels.com It is called: Pr' Matjon - Pension, Bled.

After a short 24 hours in Slovenia we were back on the road! A fairly long driving day was ahead of us. Our destination... Budapest, Hungary! This was one of the longer driving days we had in the course of the trip but it was well worth it. We covered A LOT of ground in a short time and this was definitely our intention.

Budapest, Hungary... where do I begin? Let's start with this photo of Buda and Pest at night.

Travis (my fiancee) read my first blog and said he wanted to see more pictures! So the extra pictures from now on are to make this more exciting for those of you who love the photos and not just the stories!

Now, let's talk about budget for a minute. On this trip we had made a plan and a rough budget before we went. We knew what we had to spend and where we could spend a little extra or where we would have to cut back. So in Budapest we spent one night at a cheap (I am talking $35 CAD cheap) hotel followed by the Corintha Budapest for one night.. if you have never heard of the Corinthia hotels you HAVE to check it out... It is another life goal to stay at each and every one. (to date.. April 2021 I have stayed at two). For now check out the one in Budapest here: https://www.corinthia.com/budapest/ Secretly or not so secretly... I would love it if the hotel saw this and chose to sponsor me to travel! Our other two nights in Budapest were even less expensive (about $25 CAD per night). It is all about balance. Spoil yourself and do things that you know you may never do again. But, have restraint to know where to draw that line.

We chose to dress up fancy at this amazing hotel! Our dinner was at an all you can eat and all you can drink (YES basically free WINE) restaurant.. we ate at this place 3 times during our stay in Budapest because it was just that good (if it helps one of the times was at a second location).

We also discovered the many many flavours of Somersby Cider.. this is long before Canada had anything other than apple and blackberry so we were beyond excited.

This is me, Jordan. And this pose, well, it is my signature pose. If you follow along this is just what happens to my arms in photos and I can't help it.

But LOOK at the beauty of this hotel. It is pure luxury and the TV had my name on it.. who had even heard of that (remember this was 6 years ago)? It read.. Welcome Miss Jordan Johnston. Des and I were both mind blown!

Budapest has so much to discover. And while we spent about 5 days there it still feels like we could have seen and done so much more. Perhaps I will approach Budapest at another time with a full itinerary! So for now some highlights will have to do, like us in this ICEBAR (pictured above).

We went to different bath houses (a must in Budapest & no, they were not n**e). They are each unique and so beautiful (Gellert was our favorite). There was this older man there who told us some of the health benefits and how to use the different pools and temperatures. He spoke English and 6 other languages. It is funny to think of this memory and the state of our world amidst this pandemic; people barely speak to strangers let alone a strange man in a bath house.

The zoo, although unique to see in another country was quite sad.

Rules and regulations vary drastically from here in Canada. The quality of life that those poor animals have is not exactly where it should be.

We did see a special exhibit and fed these birds seeds from our mouth. An experience that's for sure.

We toured the Buda Side and the Pest Side (they are separated by the Danube River). The Danube has become something that I strive to take photos of and with in each country that I enter that also has the Danube pass through it.

The Buda Castle was stunning but man, these European countries sure do love their stairs! And steep stairs at that. The most rewarding part of our castle touring was getting my first taste of mulled wine! YUM.

The Pest side of Budapest has the parliament buildings. Pictured below is me with my arms doing their thing in front of Parliament.

02/23/2023

The First European Adventure (Part 1)
Travelling, something I had always wanted to do and I never really understood how much; how much I wanted and needed it until I got the first taste of the 'travel bug.' It was 2015, now 6 years ago, my Bestie Des and I decided on a European adventure.

Neither of us had been outside of Canada or the United States (and our USA trips had been pretty limited and pretty close-by so it is hardly a real 'trip'). So this ticket to Rome, Italy was huge! It was a step into a life we had not yet experienced and we really couldn't wait!

I am going to flop back and forth between past and present tense as I am writing this, my first blog, now 6 years after my first real trip - mid way through a world-wide pandemic - and in a place in my life that I never knew I would be. We are at a time in the world that the world didn't even see coming. New adventures, especially abroad are nearly impossible and if possible they likely aren't worth the risks involved, testing needed and exuberant costs involved in returning home and having to quarantine. After all who can take two more weeks off after traveling for however long? And well if you can I am particularly jealous.

How it happened? Traveling can be hard work - and finding someone you can travel with can be even harder work. I am thankful Des was up for so much and together we were able to plan and take a pretty epic trip that both of us were happy with in the end.

There were weeks of searching flights, hotels, cars and more. We were on a budget - me, fresh out of university and Des looking for work between jobs. But, budget aside we were making it work and we were going to get there!

Weeks of searching for the perfect flight paid off - to us, it was budget friendly and it had the least amount of layovers in order to get us to that ideal destination. We flew British Airways and for having no international experience we had no idea what to expect. The flight and staff on the flight were awesome. We will forever remember the one flight attendant who gave us champagne and OJ to make mimosas as he heard that this was our first ever trip across the ocean. So giddy with excitement this was the perfect start to our journey.

Back home we spent weeks planning out our perfect trip. It was a total of 21 days that we were spending in Europe and I think our parents were equally freaked out for us to go off on our own. Don't worry Mom and Dad.. we're smart ladies and we made it home in one piece.

Once we had thought out our route we decided on a car rental to get us where we needed to go. Rentalcars.com .. worked out great; we found a great deals and it was through EuropeCar that we made our arrangements. After an absolute nightmare at the Rome Airport and trying to get our car we finally wound up suited with a spiffy new vehicle - only 13kms on it to be exact.

It was dark and quite late by the time we had collected ourselves and got out of the airport. It was Rome, we had our car - we were alone, no proper GPS, no idea where we had to go for our hotel (or food) - two young ladies embarking on this amazing adventure. It was a taste of freedom like never before - this was happening and I couldn't believe we had actually made it!

Our first couple of days were spent in Rome, Italy. I recall sending messages home and talking about the beautiful 15C weather in Italy compared the -33C at home.

So many delicious foods and beautiful sites; taking it all in and lapping up all of the history was so amazing. To experience another world first hand it was so hard to believe it was real life.

We were very excited to gain access to the Vatican City inside of Rome. During our visit the Sistine Chapel was open for viewing and it had been closed for great lengths of time and was going to be closed again. We felt special and privileged to be able to see within the walls of the Vatican. It was amazing to see the sites and all of the old architecture within those walls. Canada just does not have the history that these European cities have and it is so amazing to be able to learn and take that all in.

After taking in many of the typical 'tourist' sites Rome had to offer we ventured off to Pisa.

We had to take the typical tourist shots holding up the leaning tower before venturing onward to Florence.

Florence for me is such a dreamy city. It holds a special place in my heart and one day I vow I will be back to truly embrace all it has to offer. While we were there we explored all of the local sites and the famous market. We climbed the bell tower and saw some of the most stunning views that we had seen over the entire trip.

I must stop to mention...I consider myself to be a foodie. More so now than this trip 6 years ago but I still had a passion for the tastes and flavors then it has just really grown larger over the years. All of the breads, meats and cheeses that we gorged on - not to mention the wine for me! I love any place that the wine is cheaper than water and Italy did not disappoint here. We had so many pizzas, gelatos, pastas, pastries and all of the traditional feasts including espresso (this was new for me, I know you can easily get it in Canada but I never had).

We left the lovely town of Florence stopping in Verona. Verona hosts the balcony for Romeo and Juliette so it was something fun to see. Driving through the mountains is a site to see if you are able to drive - its fun to be able to stop and see what you want to see on your own timeline. By the end of the day we ended up in Venice.

Notes from my trip talk about all the little bridges, small roadways and stairs. I comment on the amount of stairs and how we had seen enough for one trip (little did we know there would be A LOT more walking to come in the other countries ahead). But that's ok.. it is good for us to walk and to walk off all the extras we had been eating.

Venice certainly has its charm. Of all the places we went it was our least favorite city. It was pretty touristy which takes away from the old style and beauty. We also found there to be many scams which is not particularly fun when you are just trying to enjoy and take it all in.

Italy was a country that before I went I always wanted to go. I will repeatedly say that I would go back. It truly is beautiful and I know there is so much more in that country left unexplored. Having experienced more travelling now, I would skip many of the touristy places and hit the back roads but our itinerary was great and we did see a lot in a short amount of time we had. Nothing about our trip is a regret. I don't regret doing things the way we did even if some things would better a different way now. We saw and we learned so much and we had an amazing time doing it together.

I hope you enjoy a little insight into my journey and will follow along to read more as I go. I have so many stories to share and adventures to discuss and I cannot wait to share them with you.

02/08/2023

Did you know that unlike Canada, trees in Costa Rica don’t get rings?! In Canada we have a dormant season thus causing the rings in our trees. Costa Rican climate doesn’t have a dormant season! Oh the things you learn when you travel 🤩♥️

02/02/2023

Peurto Vallarta, Mexico☀️🌴 beach, taco, tequila repeat. A beautiful sunny vacation and out of my comfort zone to be at a beach resort but this was the perfect way to celebrate a family wedding and spend time exploring a beautiful countryside of Mexico while recharging and reconnecting.

02/02/2023

Peru 🇵🇪 alarmingly beautiful landscapes and cities in every direction. Vastly different history and architecture. Of all the places I’ve been I feel so strongly that there is something for everyone here in Peru.

02/02/2023

Buda & Pest; The name Budapest consists of the names of the cities which united to form the Hungarian capital. This city is one of the most underrated European gems I have visited and when planning a European trip this is a must! With the thermal spas, beautiful architecture and delicious foods who needs the beach?!

02/02/2023

Tell me something on your travel/adventure bucket list!!

02/01/2023

Hey! I’m Jordan! I started this page (on Instagram) a long time ago but recently discovered my ambition to really make this a fun project! Follow along if you’re interested in travels both near & far, past and upcoming!