To the wonderful people throughout my travels

One thing I have not yet mentioned is the people that I have met thus far in my travels. I can definitely thank my mother for is the ability to strike up a conversation and make friends with anyone I come across. In the few weeks that I've been gone from Saskatchewan I've met so many very different people from very different backgrounds. If you ask the right questions, you can get to know so much about different cultures, societies, countries and just gain knowledge and life experiences just by having a conversation with the person you're sitting next to. Not that all the people I have met and all my conversations were very serious and insightful, but some of them had some pretty awesome moments. These are a few out of the many people I met that really struck me.

The first person I met was Patrick in Saskatoon airport. He's Quebecois and was heading to Montreal as well so I got to talk to him for most of my travels that day. After originally meeting him during a Happy Hour at Le Relais, to my surprise I learned that he has a PhD in environmental science or environmental engineering. Among other things we talked and explored the subject of higher education and the purpose and utility of master's degree and doctorate. We also discussed the vast differences between the regions in Canada, and how someone from Quebec living in Saskatoon is as good as an immigrant.

In Montreal I met and partied with many people I met through Paul, but the next influential person was Boris, whom I met at Picnik Electronik in Montreal. He is originally from Russia but immigrated to Canada with his family when he was 10. Having this background, Boris speaks perfect French, Russian, and English with a bit of an accent. A very cool, deep, and older spirited individual with some amazing MJ moves on the dance floor. We talked a lot about the vast cultural and societal differences between our countries' generations and the generations divided by the Iron Curtain. Also generally about world affairs and current political events and how much the US is fucking up. It was one of those amazing conversations that made me so thankful for my degree. I don't think I've ever fully realized exactly how much I learned, retained, and applied my education until traveling and meeting all these people.


I also met a lot of other travelers from the States, Australia, Sweden, Germany, Netherlands, and more Americans. The person who I had the best conversation with though was Raj, the front desk manager at my hostel in Paris. We started talking while I was sick and stayed in the main lobby and lounge one whole afternoon on the internet and reading. He also ended up walking me to Gare du Nord to catch my TGV to Brussels and bought me an orange juice for sustenance. He is originally from Tunisia and has been living in Paris for the last 10-15 years. Upon discussion why I was leaving Paris, he talked all about what he loves about Paris and why he decided to move and stay there. We also discussed the many, many differences between The Prairies and Paris. This conversation made me think a lot of emigrating in general, moving to a knew place and your bond and affection for your home country. He really made me nostalgic about Canada.

In Brussels I also met and partied with many people through Tom, and I've already talked about the Russian, Polish and Chek girls. But I also met these two Australian women at the train station and on the train yesterday that were traveling Europe without their husbands or kids. It just struck me not only how friendly they were (reminded me of other Canadians), but how much they had been through on their travels and how much they still loved it. The one woman had gotten food poisoning in Barcelona from fish and ended up in the emergency room for 2 nights and the other one got robbed and lost her cell phone in another city, but they were still just floating from city to city loving the experience and the adventure... and the shopping.

Probably the person that has the biggest influence in my mind was Gisele from Vancouver whom I met at Brussels Airport at a very low point in my day when I was on my way to Amsterdam. It was literally the peak point of a horrific morning when I ran into her in line at the bar next to the gate to buy my juice. She remembered me from in line at the Check in counter and noticed that I was Canadian. She ended up buying me my juice and insisted on feeding me (as it was 2pm and I had not yet eaten that day) and split her amazing Belgian waffle and the equally amazing chocolate covered roasted soy nuts she brought with her from Seattle. She was in Belgium for a friends wedding and loves the country and the lifestyle so much she stayed as long as she could before having to return to work in Vancouver. She was a very strong, outgoing, personable woman who after working a high profile office career for so long up and quit and became a flight attendant. She loves her job but refuses to be labeled by it. Our conversation was filled with her hilarious anecdotes about the ignorance and stupidity of people when they realize they no longer have control while flying, the pleasures and goals of life in general, and the great things you can get and learn from traveling, and how this can rival many of the educations and diplomas you can get at institutions.

Lastly there is Daniel, a Swede who is keeping me company in Amsterdam. We talked at lengths about our two countries, his experiences in the States, the origins of Canada and why we are the way we are, and the many, many differences between the very close geographically European countries.He also made me think about the benefits and values of traveling, and what you can learn from meeting new people. He is largely what inspired me to write this entry.

So I dedicate this rather long post to him, and all the wonderful people I have met so far and all I have learned from them. Hopefully there will be many more to come :)