Going back in time with telling some stories from my diary of the time -- My first real journey ever : Worked in France, met my Belgian girlfriend of the following years and discovered most of Europe!

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About this blog

This relate my exact first backpacking trip to Europe back in 1999; which lasted six months, carried me into 2 different jobs in France and made me route into 11 countries. Being young and unexperimented I bumped into several difficulties or misunderstoods but eh!

Travelling is a good life education and gets us to open our views on many things!

It didn't stop there and more travel will certainly be to come.

• 1

  It was a huge family stress!!   Lac-Sergent, Canada on Jul 12, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 2

  Tired and Psychopathically Untrusting   Paris, France on Jul 12, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 3

  Along the white Cliffs of Picardie   Ault, France on Jul 14, 1999 3 pictures 0 comments
• 4

  French National Day   Ault, France on Jul 14, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 5

  Countryside and region around: Normandy   Eu, France on Jul 20, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 6

  La Somme, the beach and the marsch   Cayeux, France on Jul 22, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 7

  Dieppe Martyr city   Dieppe, France on Jul 24, 1999 2 pictures 0 comments
• 8

  Working contract till its end   Ault, France on Aug 1, 1999 1 picture 0 comments
• 9

  Dieppe YH workers   Dieppe, France on Aug 17, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 10

  Caen and the Peace Memorial   Caen, France on Aug 26, 1999 3 pictures 0 comments
• 11

  D-Day beach   Bayeux, France on Aug 26, 1999 2 pictures 0 comments
• 12

  From Mont St-Michel to St-Malo and Bretagne   Pontorson, France on Aug 29, 1999 3 pictures 0 comments
• 13

  End of the world in Bretagne and many Menhirs   Brest, France on Sep 2, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 14

  Via Nantes with a local family   Nantes, France on Sep 5, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 15

  Back to Paris - Phil arrived   Paris, France on Sep 6, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 16

  Dijon and the Grapes Harvest Labour (Beaujolais)   Dijon, France on Sep 12, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 17

  Lyon Lyon and my love   Lyon, France on Sep 24, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 18

  South of France: Tarascon and Provence (Aix)   After Avignon:, France on Sep 30, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 19

  A first seek into the Alps   Grenoble, France on Oct 2, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 20

  More Alps, Evian Water city and Switzerland   Lausanne, Switzerland on Oct 5, 1999 1 picture 0 comments
• 21

  And now more Swiss   Geneve, Switzerland on Oct 6, 1999 1 picture 0 comments
• 22

  Europass all the way back to Paris   Tours, France on Oct 8, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 23

  Back to Paris for refreshment   Paris, France on Oct 9, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 24

  In the heart of some old History - going east   Reims, France on Oct 12, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 25

  Last bit of France - Verdun and Metz   Metz, France on Oct 13, 1999 2 pictures 0 comments
• 26

  Slightly Germany   Koln, Germany on Oct 14, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 27

  The tiny end of the Netherlands   Maastricht, Netherlands on Oct 16, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 28

  Beloved Belgium   Leuven, Belgium on Oct 18, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 29

  To Gent with Veerle   Gent, Belgium on Oct 21, 1999 1 picture 0 comments
• 30

  Back to Leuven for my love, and her hometown   Leuven, Belgium on Oct 23, 1999 3 pictures 0 comments
• 31

  (GIL) Mechelen-Hombeek and a bad night in Antwerp   Mechelen, Belgium on Oct 28, 1999 1 picture 0 comments
• 32

  An horrible night but new discoveries to come!!   Antwerpen, Belgium on Oct 29, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 33

  A long ride to wonderful Prague -birthday as well-   Prague, Czech Republic on Oct 30, 1999 3 pictures 0 comments
• 34

  Shit in Bratislava :S   Bratislava, Slovakia on Nov 2, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 35

  Hungary!!!   Budapest, Hungary on Nov 3, 1999 3 pictures 0 comments
• 36

  First steps in Croatia   Zagreb, Croatia on Nov 10, 1999 3 pictures 0 comments
• 37

  More south along the Adriatic   Dubrovnik, Croatia on Nov 11, 1999 2 pictures 0 comments
• 38

  Wonderful Ljubljana as switch train stop   Ljubljana, Slovenia on Nov 13, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 39

  Last change for night train: Few min. in Venezia   Venezia, Italy on Nov 14, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 40

  Mom in Paris!! And the Louvres!!   Paris, France on Nov 14, 1999 3 pictures 0 comments
• 41

  Long ride back north to Belgium, to Gil!!   Leuven, Belgium on Nov 19, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 42

  Mechelen at Gil's family   Mechelen, Belgium on Nov 21, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 43

  Mechelen-Leuven-Paris... and back   Leuven, Belgium on Nov 23, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 44

  From Paris to Gent   Gent, Belgium on Nov 24, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 45

  To Leuven with Gil   Leuven, Belgium on Nov 26, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 46

  Shopping in Brussels   Brussels, Belgium on Nov 27, 1999 1 picture 0 comments
• 47

  Amsterdam times!   Amsterdam, Netherlands on Nov 30, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 48

  To Brussels via Rotterdam   Brussels, Belgium on Dec 4, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 49

  Leaving Brussels for few days in Luxembourg   Luxembourg, Luxembourg on Dec 4, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 50

  Back to Brussels and the farewell   Brussels, Belgium on Dec 6, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 51

  Goodbyes and Paris for my flight   Paris, France on Dec 9, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 52

  Friends in Canada and the first days back home   Québec city, Canada on Dec 12, 1999 0 pictures 0 comments
• 53

  Remembrance   Quebec, Canada on Jun 13, 2006 0 pictures 0 comments