The gorgeous highlands with the indigenous shaggy little cows

Street scene in Edinburgh

See the sights from a hop-on/hop-off bus!

Flying into Prestwick airport, the Ryan Air airport near Glasgow

The UK does junk food so well.

Millport is a tiny island about an hour away from Glasgow. I thought it was called “Milhouse” for ages.

It’s well posh.

Yes, this really happens in Scotland.

Scotland is littered with adorable seaside towns.

Even the symbols button up in chilly Scotland.

Oban is the home of a famous Scottish whiskey. This is just a pretty wee house.

Sure, Edinburgh Castle is nice and all. But if you want to see where all that Braveheart action went on, just go half an hour west of Edinburgh to find the old stomping grounds of William Wallace and Robert the Bruce.

Much as my Glaswegian husband hates to admit it, Edinburgh is gorgeous.

We visited this pretty Swiss city during my Topdeck experience.

We stayed in this amazing “hostel” (more like a chalet) as part of my Topdeck tour, on Mt. Rigi. You could only get up there by taking this cog railway—the oldest in Europe!

This is in Lauterbrunnen; I was there as part of my Topdeck tour.

I never would have known about this gorgeous wee town if it weren’t for my awesome Topdeck experience!

From Lauterbrunnen, you can take a train up to Jungfraujoch—the highest train stop in Europe, and get these extraordinary views. This is an optional excursion with Topdeck.

During my Topdeck trip we stopped here on the way to Munich. Very upsetting but ultimately necessary to see.

We stopped in Munich during my Topdeck trip—did a city tour and then straight to the Hofbrauhaus!

They’re just pretty…I saw these when my Topdeck trip did a pit stop.

Ah, the Rhine Valley. I got this picturesque little photo as the Topdeck coach made its way to Sankt Goar.

When you’re in the Rhine Valley, you gotta drink Reisling, right? Lots and lots of Reisling! I loved my whole Topdeck trip but this night was the most fun, hands down.

Katie was the coolest! This is her in high spirits on the Night of the Reisling. If she or Kosta are leading your trip, you are in good hands.

The Topdeck coach stopped here in Germany before going into the Netherlands—you can get a bowl of pasta and fresh squeezed orange juice at German rest stops…awesome!

Topdeck has an optional excursion to the Moulin Rouge in Amsterdam…let’s just say it was the least sexiest thing I’ve ever seen. Very funny though!

While not everything about Hans Brinker is perfect, their nightclub is pretty cool.

I took this picture as we drown into the Old Town…from the sun roof

Wales

Irn Bru, which tastes like bubble gum, is the most popular soda in Scotland (yes, more popular than that one you’re thinking of). They are know for their cheeky ads—this one says “There’s nothing better than Irn Bru when you’ve just been laid.”

So much friendlier sounding than “Watch out!”

...people are dancing

Panama’s capital has charming architecture in its Old Town.

We were lucky enough to arrive when this boat was passing through, so we could see how the whole thing went down. Quite complicated, actually

Sadly, this doesn’t do justice to the wildly painted buses that make up the transportation system of Panama.

There’s nothing I can add—I love this picture

Part of a parade in Hiroshima, Japan

One of many evocative statues dedicated to the people who lost their lives to the atomic bomb

The Taiwanese have interesting tastes in swimwear

Taiwan’s beautiful beach town

One of the many winding alleys in Lukang

Lukang is chock-a-block with temples—on Chinese New Year it’s the place to be

Don’t mind our gimpy faces, look at the pretty door

I don’t even know where this is—we were making a long train trip and made a random connection here

The best food in Taiwan is always from the street vendors

A woman in white gloves carrying strange food? Check. McDonalds? Check. Neon lights and bustling crowds as far as the eye can see? Check. This is Taiwan.

There are many roadside temples throughout Taiwan; here the cigarettes and Taiwan beer are an offering to the ancestors—my kind of people.

This is a neat little seaside town with these fantastically weird sculptures created naturally by the sea against the rocks.

This is where the kings would bathe.

If you cross into Cambodia from Thailand overland on your own, be prepared for some serious poverty.

Siem Reap is a great little city in its own right.

Just outside the Killing Fields memorial, life goes on

Hoi An is reknowned for this unique colonial style (and fantastically cheap tailors)

Nha Trang is a gorgeous beach town; it also has great things to visit like this enormous all-white Buddha

Every day it was this beautiful.

great snorkeling here

When a store is closed in Taiwan, they offer a suggestion of what you can do while you wait for them to re-open.

Alfons Mucha, the father of Art Nouveau, contributed liberally to the design of this example of the Czech Revival architectural style

This building is an example of the Czech Revival style—well worth it to take the tour (students get a discount with an ISIC!)

This building is just a bank. I was lucky enough to tutor someone there when I lived in Prague—the inside is even more beautifully detailed

Baroque style architecture—one of the many different kinds of buildings beautifully assembled in Old Town Square (Staromeski Namesti in Czech)

Eiffel Schmeiffel. Prague’s got it’s own tower, at the top of Petrin Hill. The views from the top are fantastic, and the park the tower is set in is great for a day out.

One of Prague’s original city gates

This is on the side of St. Vitus Cathedral

Kafka lived in one of these wee houses

That’s a giant silver statue of St. John, who is holding a tiny Jesus on a cross in his hands

This is the baroque exterior to a 1,000 year old church inside Prague Castle.

I stayed here with my mom in one of their apartments—you cannot beat this place for price, location, or service. It is the standard to which all other hostels aspire.

They know how to cut costs where it matters

The staff are very friendly and helpful, and there’s free internet!

We stayed in one of the apartments, which is on the top floor. We could see Old Town Square from our room!!

When everyone’s doing it, pom-poms on your shoes appropriate.

That’s my cute hubby.

crazy awesome shopping in the center of Athens

Those people were standing there for three hours before the sunset. It’s spectacular, yes, but maybe not worth developing melanoma for.

Poseidon hates toilet paper

This is just a tiny corner of what used to be one enormous temple to the big guy