How to Fall in Love in Europe: A Travel Guide

I fell in love with a stranger in England! Just kidding, but I did get proposed to and smooched in Canterbury by a nameless man. It’s been a while since we last discussed life, so let’s get right back into it… happy Martini Monday! There’s something so refreshing about walking through the city streets and hearing “you alright?” while simultaneously smelling the faint stain of cigarettes in the air; spotting double-decker buses and multitudes of Adidas trackies. Traveling somewhere you’ve been before is a conscious balance between revisiting old memories and creating new ones along the way. Back in the summer, I can’t remember exactly when, my friend Emma and I booked flights to London after a bottle of wine and a few episodes of Naked Attraction. Fast forward to November 5th, we flew out of Buffalo to begin our European Extravaganza- to England and the Netherlands.  It’s always shocking when a trip you plan and pay for becomes reality, as you sit for eight hours on a plane trying to get comfortable. Though I couldn’t sleep, I did watch Challengers and Notting Hill. Following a safe landing at the Heathrow airport on November 6th, my friend Emma and I struggled to push our luggage throughout the airport out onto the uneven cobblestone and uphill roads to begin said European Extravaganza. Over nine days we traveled to Amsteradam, Canterbury, London, and Salisbury. I had previously been to everywhere except Salisbury while I was abroad, but this trip couldn’t have been more of a different experience. This time around I was at least familiar with the public transportation and general directions when navigating the city, but there will always be subtle culture shock immediately landing in London because of how the English maintain order on an escalator. I am going to try and keep this blog rather brief while offering details into my trip in case anyone wants recommendations. So as always, grab a drink and get comfortable, may I offer you a cocktail of choice for this read… a Dry Gin Martini, or a Pornstar Martini perhaps.

One thing about me is I am easily overwhelmed and overstimulated when traveling, however typically all I need to cure my attitude and anxiety is a caffeinated beverage and a seat. It’s very important when traveling with anybody that you discuss your typical style, luckily both Emma and I are early birds who enjoy a mid-day nap, making it easier to plan our days and our eating schedules. Not to encourage unhealthy habits, but we typically woke up and had a coffee or croissant and would only eat a big meal for dinner to save our pretty pennies. Our trip kicked off making it to London, hangry, so Emma and I grabbed a bite to eat, and a cocktail, at Darcie & May (they had a delicious avocado toast and quite the refreshing mimosa). When booking trains and planes were often ambitious, and then on the day we realize that perhaps a five hour layover or 5am flight were not so smart- even if they save you several dollars. Next thing you know you’re sitting in a Costa for three hours catching up on work because walking with a 30 lbs suitcase and a migraine is unbearable, but you’re still in England so you can’t complain. That was how we spent the afternoon before heading back to the airport, Gatewick this time, to fly to Amsterdam. 

Amsterdam is one of my favorite cities in the world. It has such beautiful infrastructure, each building has a unique character. I love trying to dodge bicycles on the road, great cheese, great coffee shops wink- just overall a wonderful place to experience. We landed at Schipol and took the train towards Bijlmerplein where our hostel was located, just an 8 minute walk from the train station. I have spoken at length before about how convenient and affordable hostels can be which you can read about here, but this specific hostel just unlocked a whole new level of comfort and convenience. We stayed at a women’s only Hostelle with the most beautiful decor, vanity bar, kitchen, and garden. We spent the following day bouncing all around the city center, grabbing coffee, window shopping, and getting tattoos- it wasn’t as impulsive as I am making it seem. We also went to see the Anne Frank House, unfortunately it was booked up months in advance so we couldn’t get a tour, but it was nice to see and experience the respected silence that occurred outside and around the building. If anyone is in the city looking for good fine line tattoos for a reasonable price we went to Ink drinkERs tattoo studio, I got a star and Emma got a cute little love letter. I have three tattoos and none of them hurt to get, and yet I still had a mild panic attack before the needle touched my skin because I was scared it might hurt this time around- it didn’t. After getting and quickly forgetting about the permanent ink, we went back to the hostelle for a brief nap before we headed out for our fancy dinner. My cousin Jessica, an avid traveler herself, recommended a lovely cheese and wine restaurant where you sit at a bar and watch plates of various cheeses roll across the bar on a train line conveyor belt- truly innovative. It was called Kaasbar Amsterdam and I highly recommend the water buffalo cheese with white chocolate and a glass of crisp Sauvignon Blanc. We did make a reservation for the bar, and as soon as we got there the service was fantastic- almost as fantastic as the cheese itself- and we ended our meal with the richest espresso martini I’ve ever had. Slightly buzzed walking around, it was really a beautiful evening and a great cap on Amsterdam. We then headed back to our Hostelle to hang out before we went to bed, a 7am flight the next morning meant a 4am wake up call. A 4am wakeup is usually no problem, but a 4am wakeup when you’re sharing a room with eight other women trying to sleep is a minor problem. I was trying to be so quiet and discreet I left a bunch of stuff in my suitcase that is not permitted in checked luggage.

An early flight is an excuse for a nap, or a solid attempt at a nap, but not this time! We got to the airport and checked our bags (with a $50 fee from easyjet which is a joke in my opinion because I already paid to have a bag in the cabin, I just needed to change it from a carry-on to a held bag… even the workers at the airport though that was highway robbery). But while I was passively checking our bags, the attendant asked me if I had any batteries in my luggage to which I responded “no” and brushed it off like nothing. Then as we stood in the security line I realized that there was indeed a battery in my suitcase, from a shitty portable charger that I never even touched on the whole trip. After a minor panic attack and a qucik Google search I was told that the best course of action was to alert a worker on the airline so I could remove the battery from my suitcase- in my mind if I didn’t alert someone ASAP I thought the plane was going to spontaneously combust mud air. Through security, running through the airport, finally making it to our gate (thank god for speedy boarding, one good quality from easyjet) I finally alerted a security worker about my major dilemma, and she couldn’t have cared less. My heart was beating out of my chest, I gave myself such panic that my stomach was hurting, and all I had to do was tell her what my suitcase looked like. A minute later she came back in with the bag, I took out the portable charger, and that was that. Unfortunately my heart rate didn’t slow down until we landed back at Gatewick because I wasn’t entirely convinced that I didn’t jinx the entire safety of the flight. We made our way from Gatewick to St. Pancras International for our train Canterbury, however our train wasn’t until 2pm and it was 9.

Please enjoy this short journal entry I wrote on the train to Canterbury:

“I arrived in Canterbury for the first time on January 8th 2023. Today is November 8th 2024 and I’m headed there again. A lot has changed since my time abroad, I now prefer square nails to almond and my hair is significantly shorter, Ive graduated college, and started this blog. But one thing remains the same, and that is the feeling I get when I think about the time spent in Canterbury and how it forced me to be myself. Moving to a new country alone to attend school and travel the world, no longer anchored by the burden of pleasing my peers and making myself smaller to be likable. College is an entirely different coming-of-age story than high school. Especially when it’s the spring semester of your junior year, your first time living anywhere other than your parent’s house, and the year you turn 21. Now 22, I can reflect on the time spent in Canterbury and appreciate how it became my home away from home, and I’m proud I’m able to return so soon. This short trip won’t be anything like my time there a year ago, and that’s okay, that’s actually preferred. My dad once said to me, “stop trying to recreate memories and make new ones.” As someone who struggles with change, this is a testament that I hold tight to my chest as the train draws closer and closer to the station.”

We got to Canterbury on a beautiful day; I cried; drank a delicious and reminiscent iced latte at Wilding; took a long, cozy nap; went to a fabulous dinner at Wildwood; then began the night of too many cocktails. So here is the list of bars we hit up that evening, and what I ordered:

1. The Pound (amazing pornstar martinis and cosmos)

2. Cricketers (vodka soda with lime)

3. Cozy Club (pornstar martinis)

4. The Cherry Tree (pig fuck*er)

5. The Cuban (vodka soda with lime)

6. Club Chemistry (vodka soda with lime)

While out and about Emma and I met a group of men, lovely gents, who took us out to the ‘club.’ I say that with quotations because it wasn’t really a club, it was more of a city-bar vibe, not a crazy club. However, the one guy did fake a proposal with me which was quite nice. I wish I remembered his name, what a shame. After staying up till 3am, way past my bedtime, Emma and I spent the following day in aching pain from a devastating hangover. Walking all over the city then heading to a calm dinner at The Old Weaver House, followed by a cosmo at a rooftop bar called Socialite (and of course we had to have a nightcap at the Cherry Tree). The following day we left and headed back to London where we stayed with my cousin, Chad. That evening after another long, refreshing nap, Emma and I went to Pizza Union where I devoured an entire pie, which I had to then walk off. A walk that led to a movie theater where we spontaneously decided to see The Apprentice- which was absolutely fabulous and I posted a Tik Tok review about it already. The next day we pranced around the city, seeing the sights, window shopping, and of course patiently awaiting dinner and a show. We went to see Cabaret on the West End after dinner at The Alchemist (which you can read all about here). Seeing this show was really an endearing experience, and certainly a great way to start the week. Then we’d go to Salisbury to see Stonehenge and back to London to miss the Royal London Gladiator II premiere by mere minutes- this will haunt me for eternity. Meeting up with my cousins Chad and Jessica and her friend Tanya, we went to a secret spy bar inspired by 007. Oh, right and the real Aston Martin from No Time to Die was in fact inside the bar. The first leg of our trip was full of fun and surprises, good food and great naps; art, music, dancing, and plenty of cocktails. It seems like I’m just rattling off my itinerary, but truthfully the trip flew by so fast that it feels impossible to describe the beautiful little details.  So, I’ll spare you the rest of them cause this is getting a bit too long. I’d like to remind and thank those that made it this far, if you’d like to see more from my trip or anything at all you should follow my social media (that’s so embarrassing to say). But anyway, I am so incredibly grateful for the opportunities I have been afforded to travel and explore with friends. Every time you leave the comfortable confinements of your home, you are forced to learn something new and indulge in new cultures; meeting new people, and reconnecting with old ones too! I am so passionate about connecting with others in yours and surrounding communities, and traveling like a tourist is a great way to begin. 

Like I said before, stop trying to recreate memories and make new ones, allow yourself the ability to get outside your comfort zone. Spend quality time with friends, including naps and getting tattoos. Travel if you can, or don’t. Do what pleases you, learn to love the world around you or work to create a better one. I fell in love in London, and will continue to do so anytime I return. Amsterdam and Canterbury are two of my favorite places on earth, I’m running out of things to say now because I’m missing being there so bad right now. Let’s wrap this up, not for my sake, for yours. If you're still curious how to fall in love in Europe use this travel guide, you gotta just get out there. Go somewhere new regardless of whether it's near or far. Go to the movies, go see a show, go outside, go to a bar, go for a walk. It doesn’t matter what you do, just that you do- do something that makes you feel inspired or excited. Have a cosmo, not a pornstar martini cause those nearly killed me. Till next time, stay flirty, stay thirsty, and share a kiss with a cute stranger in a new city! More to come on that… maybe.

See you soon,

Paige B.