Yep, you got it right today it's all about royalty, romance and European vacations. Author, Melissa McClone has a little bit of each to talk about as she stops by on the last day of her virtual tour marking the release of her latest book, "Expecting Royal Twins". Here's a chance to meet the author of that rather intriguing title and get a fun look at a few moments in her life. Leave a comment and I'm sure Melissa will respond. And, there's a double benefit to commenting, Melissa will be making a random draw for a $20 Amazon.com gift certificate to one lucky commenter. Today, instead of an interview, I asked Melissa to write a post about a trip that changed her. On the last day of an exhausting tour, I thought she'd more than likely had enough interviews and in my world, after books, there's nothing better than travel, virtual or otherwise. So here's Melissa's take on the statement, life hasn't been quite the same since...
Welcome Melissa!
Life Hasn't Been Quite the Same Since... I Backpacked Through Europe
I was twenty-one. It was nine days after my college graduation. I was off to spend six weeks backpacking through Europe with my passport, a Eurail Pass, a camera, a Let's Go travel guide and an American Express card to be used only in case of emergency.
My parents wouldn't allow me to go alone so I teamed up with a friend I knew from marching band. We decided on what countries to visit. Our goal was to see as much as we could in the time we had. We had a checklist to make sure we didn't miss a thing.
England amazed me, both London and side trips to Bath, Oxford, Stonehenge and Leeds Castle. More than once, I felt as if I'd stepped back in time. I'll never forget the Beefeater who guided us through the Tower of London. History came alive.
I had so many things to check off my list, but when I page through my travel journal, it's not those incredible places I've written the most about. It's the people. A former roommate who was competing at Wimbledon. The family we stayed with in Kensington Garden. And Gerry. A friend of a friend who took us under his wings and showed us around London.
Gerry had been a tour guide. He gave us the names of places to go on our journey. He was a few years older, light years wiser (not to mention really handsome) and knew what two twenty-one year olds didn't. This wasn't just a checklist kind of trip. Meeting people on our travels was so much fun.
He suggested we modify our ambitious itinerary, spend more time at each place and not wear ourselves out with a non-stop rush of blink-and-you-miss-it-experiences. We were young, but not stupid. We crossed out Capri before we left England.
We headed across the English Channel to Paris. We traveled to Cannes. Wherever we went, we met people. In Nice, we hung out with a guy who not only gave me money when I didn't have enough francs to buy lunch, but also handed us little Canadian flags to pin on our backpacks.
Rome came next--the Vatican, the Coliseum, the Spanish Steps, the Trevi Fountain. When I set off on my own to attend Mass, a group of gypsies accosted me. Talk about frightening. Until a man ran across the street and rescued me. I have lasting images of the grandeur and significance of the historic places we saw in Rome, yet the actions of a kind stranger really made an impression on me.
In Italy, we bumped into more people we knew from school or recognized from our travels. I never expected that to happen so far away from home. I was there to see stuff--old, grand buildings, museums, things I'd read about in my history books--not meet people and build friendships.
A train ride took us to Florence with its spectacular art and architecture. Side trips included Sienna, the perfect setting for a historical movie, and Pisa, where the leaning tower was smaller than I expected. I also fell in love...with Festiva Gelato.
In Switzerland, we followed Gerry's advice and slowed down even more. We made Interlaken our home base as we explored Switzerland and waited for the weather to clear so we could go up the Jungfrau. That was a checklist item, but an important one.
Since we were no longer on an if-this-is-Tuesday-it-must-be-Rome itinerary, we had time to hang out. Friendships blossomed. Plans to travel together or meet up in another country were made. Tips on where to stay and eat, what to do and where we should avoid were exchanged.
When the weather cleared, we realized our wait had provided us with more than a perfect bluebird day for the Jungfrau. Gerry had been right. Seeing the major attractions each place had to offer was great, but slowing down in our travels allowed us to get to know a town and make connections...friends.
In my journal, I wrote about the many places we visited, the numerous stairs we climbed and the delicious food we ate. But in London, I wrote about the people, too. I'm amazed by the detail I gathered about those people, and my joy at unexpectedly bumping into them again. Nothing beats the burst of warmth seeing a familiar smiling face brings when you're far away from home, even if you've only seen that face once while ordering the chocolate mousse gelato in Florence.
It took me traveling halfway across the globe to realize how small the world truly was. And how important a casual exchange with a stranger could turn out to be.
Melissa
We headed across the English Channel to Paris. We traveled to Cannes. Wherever we went, we met people. In Nice, we hung out with a guy who not only gave me money when I didn't have enough francs to buy lunch, but also handed us little Canadian flags to pin on our backpacks.
Rome came next--the Vatican, the Coliseum, the Spanish Steps, the Trevi Fountain. When I set off on my own to attend Mass, a group of gypsies accosted me. Talk about frightening. Until a man ran across the street and rescued me. I have lasting images of the grandeur and significance of the historic places we saw in Rome, yet the actions of a kind stranger really made an impression on me.
In Italy, we bumped into more people we knew from school or recognized from our travels. I never expected that to happen so far away from home. I was there to see stuff--old, grand buildings, museums, things I'd read about in my history books--not meet people and build friendships.
A train ride took us to Florence with its spectacular art and architecture. Side trips included Sienna, the perfect setting for a historical movie, and Pisa, where the leaning tower was smaller than I expected. I also fell in love...with Festiva Gelato.
In Switzerland, we followed Gerry's advice and slowed down even more. We made Interlaken our home base as we explored Switzerland and waited for the weather to clear so we could go up the Jungfrau. That was a checklist item, but an important one.
Since we were no longer on an if-this-is-Tuesday-it-must-be-Rome itinerary, we had time to hang out. Friendships blossomed. Plans to travel together or meet up in another country were made. Tips on where to stay and eat, what to do and where we should avoid were exchanged.
When the weather cleared, we realized our wait had provided us with more than a perfect bluebird day for the Jungfrau. Gerry had been right. Seeing the major attractions each place had to offer was great, but slowing down in our travels allowed us to get to know a town and make connections...friends.
In my journal, I wrote about the many places we visited, the numerous stairs we climbed and the delicious food we ate. But in London, I wrote about the people, too. I'm amazed by the detail I gathered about those people, and my joy at unexpectedly bumping into them again. Nothing beats the burst of warmth seeing a familiar smiling face brings when you're far away from home, even if you've only seen that face once while ordering the chocolate mousse gelato in Florence.
It took me traveling halfway across the globe to realize how small the world truly was. And how important a casual exchange with a stranger could turn out to be.
Melissa
Suddenly a Princess...
It's not every day that a tall, dark, handsome prince strides into your workshop and announces he's your husband! Mechanic Izzy nearly drops her wrench. Never in her wildest dreams did she imagine that she'd become a princess!
Independent Izzy struggles with exchanging her oil-stained overalls for silken gowns, let alone becoming responsible for an entire country! Yet her attraction to Prince Niko tempts her further into the fairy tale. And then two small surprises change all the rules of the game...
You can read more about Melissa by checking out her website at: MelissaMcClone.com
Don't forget, Melissa is giving away a prize to one lucky commenter who will win a $20 gift certificate from Amazon.com.
Thanks Melissa for taking us along on your European trek and for a peek at what looks like a great read!
Ryshia
