We Have Learned . . .

Between the two of us, we could rattle off a thing or two about kitsch Christian material culture and competing theories of Internet regulation, and maybe even make it half interesting. But the final papers have been submitted, and we’re not opening a textbook until 2016. This retrospective look at the things we’ve learned, the tips we’ve picked up from Amsterdam to Croatia and beyond, are the ones that are free of academic jargon and footnotes—and, maybe most importantly, they’re the ones that we’re most likely to remember.

So, here we go. We have learned:

• Sometimes, no matter how you hard you try to avoid it, you’re going to flood the bathroom.

• Always watch for bicycles! 

• If you’re going out for the afternoon in the Netherlands, bring an umbrella. Pay no heed to the forecast or the clear blue sky—bring that umbrella.

• Bring cash with you to Greece. And Croatia. The rest of the time, be prepared to be told that your Canadian bank cards will not work when, in fact, they do. 

• Send postcards to everyone you know, but be aware that half of your travels will involve searching for stamps in foreign cities. 

• There’s nothing wrong with having to take the stairs—but try to avoid having to take 500 of them at one time if you can!

• James Corden could (and should) carpool with every musician with a sense of humour. Incidentally, his earlier sitcom, Gavin & Stacey, is something you’re not likely to stumble upon, but totally worth looking for.

•  Privilege is an incredibly dangerous thing, once you get it in your head that you’re somehow entitled to a certain standard of living at the expense of other people. It’s Syrian refugees today, it will be another group tomorrow—has an “us and them” mentality literally ever worked, in all of history?

• Always have coins for the inevitable bathroom fee, lest you'll have more Euro-pee-ing adventures than you want. 

• Sneak a kiss whenever possible.

• And a nap.

• Ideally though (and this is important), not on the concrete floor of Fiumicino Airport in Rome, with dirty underwear as a pillow.

• Faith is a very complex, personal issue, and it’s something that we’ve thought about, discussed, and debated in the past four months. Neither of us are necessarily any closer to a satisfactory answer, but then again, neither of us are complacent either—as soon as you’ve locked yourself in any one box, you’ve done yourself a great disservice.

• A suitcase is never really full—there’s just different degrees of creativity and resourcefulness.

• There’s really only so much you can expect when you ask a complete stranger to take your picture. And by “so much,” we mean “nothing.”

Canal shots are overrated if a third of the picture isn’t a lifesaving device

Ryan, Kayla, and this guy

I can either cut out half of your bodies or half the

building—nope, wait a minute, I can manage both!

Alright, this one might have been partially our fault

Wasn’t there some sort of gigantic monument behind us? 

As in the entire point of us getting this picture?

You want all of Santorini in this one shot, right?

• Apparently there’s such a thing as sweet popcorn (as opposed to salty). On a related note, there should not be such a thing as sweet popcorn.

• Celebrate National Snack Day. Often.

• Drink all the cappuccinos!

• When generic cornflakes taste as good as they do in Amsterdam, it’s probably got something to do 
with the milk. Or everything. Either way, it’s a good thing we can’t read the nutritional information 
on that carton.

• Start planning souvenirs early and methodically.

• There’s nothing like European graffiti for finding your Spirit Animal.

• Cheap wine and Netflix, propped up on a green plastic chair, makes for a deadly night.

• In a small two-room apartment in a strange city where you don’t know anyone else, four months is a  very long time to spend with another person. You want to be as sure as you can be that you’re capable of shopping together, cleaning the bathroom together, shutting the door when you need a break (without getting sulky), and still laugh and dream together. You need to be able to see someone at their worst and still think that you’re a pretty lucky person to be right here, right now.

That about does it for us this fall. We leave on different flights this week, but should both be back in our respective homes by early next week, just in time for turkey and to wear out Kenny and Dolly’s Christmas album.

Tot ziens,

ryan + kayla