I remember on my way to Amsterdam back in June, the flight attendants were updating the passengers on the ongoing scores of a Stanley Cup finals game – and later, while watching a Dutch news broadcast in Rotterdam, I saw the post Canucks loss riots and chaos on the streets of Vancouver. Throughout the past two months touring around Europe, when telling others that I am Canadian, I often heard comments such as: “Oh your Canadian ‘eh?’ and from Vancouver area? Well don’t worry you`re safe here, there won`t be any sports riots…”

The power of sports and their ability to form an unparalleled sense of community seems to be universal. In Manchester one of the easiest ways to spark up conversation seemed to be to simply mention Manchester United or Manchester City ‘football’ (Canadian translation: soccer) teams. It was the same case in Barcelona and of course in London as well; talks about the upcoming Olympics or of course Wimbledon always triggered conversation.

This similarity in the ability for sports to create mutual respect amongst diverse groups of people provides a transition into some other comparisons between my home country and those countries I visited while in Europe. While remembering what some of these comparisons are, I decided to count out all of the different cities and countries I’ve been to… not bad for just seven weeks:

CITIES:
1. Amsterdam
2. Hendrik Ido Ambacht
3. Rotterdam
4. Den Haag
5. Beekse Bergen
6. Arnhem
7. Dilburg
8. Manchester
9. Edinburgh
10. Prague
11. Mlada Boleslav
12. Barcelona
13. Nimes
14. Grenoble
15. Avignon
16. Lyon
17. Paris
While in Paris, France I reported live for 100.7 Giant FM (www.giantfm.ca) click here for the full raw interview!
18. London
19. Dublin
20. Wolverhampton
21. Coventry

COUNTRIES:
1. Holland
2. England
3. Scotland
4. Czech Republic
5. Spain
6. France
7. Ireland

In Holland, I love that just about everything including large corporate buildings, roads, houses and much more is made of brick. Having a bike and riding it whether you’re in a dress and heels or sweats and sneakers is as common as driving a car is in Canada.

In England, they call french fries: chips, they call chips: crisps, they call soccer: football, they call popsicles: ice lolli’s and they say “You alright? (British Accent Emphasis)” instead of “How’s it going?”

In Scotland, the men wear the skirts and the women wear the trousers!

In the Czech Republic, which was a communist state about twenty years ago, good customer service has yet to become priority, or for that matter, common. You also have to pay for your water and bread (both complimentary in Canada) when eating out, careful!

In Spain, the renowned architect, Antoni Gaudi designed just about everything!

In France, at least TRY to speak in French, even if you only know a little, just try = ) Also, expect more than half of the menu at any restaurant you go to, to consist of wine.

In Ireland, their definitely known for their beer and drinking. So, if you’re like me and don’t drink, well… you’re not in the right place! Just kidding. There are beautiful sights to see in Dublin and a lot of interesting history to learn about. The Irish accent is awesome too, very unique!

I studied abroad and learnt all about the History of Europe including that of the European Union, the Eurozone and relating it to current events and tying all of that in with business. I listened to lectures taught by British, Czech, Spanish and French professors. I got to enjoy many educational and eye opening company visits such as: Skoda Car Factory and Museum in Prague, Mango Headoffice in Barcelona, Xerox in Grenoble, OECD in Paris and more! I visited family, some of which I hadn`t ever met before, and of course, I met amazing people from around the world and made lasting friendships.

Well Europe, this was my first time visiting you, but definitely not the last. I won`t say goodbye though, because in just a few hours it is not the end of this dynamic European adventure… rather, it is the beginning of a brand new one.

Gus Boersma and I love to volunteer at Children's Fest and have done so together for a few years now!

It’s a time for kids to just be kids. Full of workshops, games, activities and performances of all kinds, Rotary Okanagan International Children’s Festival took place at Okanagan Lake Park. One of the performing groups was Yvon Soglo AKA ‘Crazy Smooth’ and his crew of break dancers in the group called ‘Bboyizm.’ I introduced Bboyizm and decided to show the kids my attempt at being a ‘B girl’ noting that what they were about to see is one hundred times better than the stall they saw me do.

Break dancing is often perceived as just tricks and often times people forget it’s a form of dance. It orginated in the ’70′s and is now well known worldwide. The company ‘Bboyizm’ brings together some of Canada’s top street dancers.

For more on ‘Bboyizm’ check out their website !

These elementary school students don't have a school janitor as they take their shoes off as soon as they enter the school and change into 'indoor shoes.' They also clean after themselves regularly. They make and distribute their own lunches and compost what is not eaten, any recyclable juice or milk containers are put into the recycling and the food is eaten on real china which the students wash after eating. This is no special case scenario, this is their everyday. Oh yes, and I should also mention that is one of Ikeda's 'less funded' schools in comparison to other institutions which may be considered more 'high class.'

Perhaps ‘life’ in the title of this blog post is an exaggeration, in fact, it is just that. However, after just ten days of living with my host family, the Tsuji family, back in 2008, I felt as though I had lived as a local in Penticton’s sister city, Ikeda. With a delegation of over twenty members from the city of Penticton, I traveled to Japan and experienced big city life in Tokyo as a tourist but the best was yet to come. Absolutely everyone I met was incredibly accomodating and nice in Ikeda, Japan. My host family went out of their way every moment of everyday to ensure my stay was nothing short of an amazing experience. I quickly grasped onto and fell in love with Japanese culture and strongly believe that the rest of the world could learn alot of valuable lessons from Japan. The nation’s honour system is just incredible; I heard a fact while there that something like over 90% of the crimes in Japan are committed by ‘foreigners.’ This didn’t surprise me as in the largest and busiest shopping centres in Tokyo, I would see people leaving their bikes unlocked outside of a store and coming back to seeing them there. It was the same case with Umbrellas which are frequently used and left in special ‘Umbrella’ holders outside of shops. Thankfully Ikeda was not directly affected by the recent earthquake in Japan but my heart goes out those who were and to Japan as a whole.

Just accross the Canada/U.S. border on Highway 97 stateside was the Annual Oroville Mayday Parade yesterday. There was a great turnout both in terms of audience and parade participants. Although the Penticton Royalty didn’t have it in their 2011 parade schedule, the Kelowna Royalty were there after having done a few parades already this year.

Check out my full raw interview with Miss Kelowna, Lady of the Lake, Breanne Cleland and Kelowna Princess, Juliet Kaczmarek.

Part of how Giant FM spends summers is by visiting cities all across the coverage area which spans the Okanagan Valley and just beyond the U.S. border including Oroville. That is where we had our first parade of the summer season this morning with a great interactive crowd of all ages. It was great to see so many people out to enjoy the day’s events despite morning rain and some continuous cloud cover before things cleared up during the parade. Stay tuned for interviews and more details from the parade.

Bittersweet is probably the best word to describe my last shift after four years at London Drugs. Not just London Drugs, rather, London Drugs Store #070. *not just a drugstore I tell ya* This location in Penticton, B.C. is filled with knowledgable, friendly, hard working and most of all supportive staff. Over the years I took on various jobs but London Drugs is the one employer that remained consistent as I couldn’t give up a job where I loved every shift and was surrounded by staff and customers that always made me smile and laugh. From cashier to service specialist. From cosmetics to floor staff. From morning crew to team leader. My experience at ‘LD’ is so diverse it’s like I had six jobs in one and throughout them all I felt intrinsically motivated to contribute to the overall betterment of the company and sticking by the company’s mandate to provide every customer with a ‘superior shopping experience’ everytime. London Drugs is ethical both on the corporate and international level and also in the local community of Penticton, B.C. and I’m so proud to have worked there. Thank you to everyone who made my experience at ‘LD’ such a big part of my life and overall development.

Check out the website for more information. You can also follow London Drugs on twitter @LondonDrugs

If you’re a student at UBC Okanagan and are looking into going on a Go Global trip, haven’t heard about it and are interested or are considering it – I haven’t even left yet but can already say that I STRONGLY reccomend it. Stay tuned this summer for more on my Go Global Adventures.

Make your step the one that ends Multiple Sclerosis – Register for the 2011 Soctia Bank MS Walk! It’s on Sunday, May 1st in Penticton at the Adidas Sportsplex on Eckhardt Avenue West (or in Kelowna same day/time at the Kinsmen Field House on the Mission Park Sports Fields) check in is at 8:30am and the event starts at 10am. You can register online aswell.

Just as I did last year, I’ll be there representing both my employers (London Drugs – always so involved in the community) and Giant FM. Dennis Walker and myself will be on site emceeing, doing live cut ins and participating in the walk! If you can’t make it out to the walk – you can still contribute by stopping by and donating at the event or online.

The walk starts at 10am and I’m going to be on air at Giant FM at 11am-enough time? Hm, maybe I’ll be running it this year! ha! Hope to see you there