Holy Crap. Booking hotels is not fun. I have been doing research for quite a while and I thought I had it all under control. First things first, the hotels that we have points for are not worth it or out of the way. By not worth it I mean that Ryan uses the points to book hotels for his Masters weekends and a few points gets him a nice place, so the places in Europe would have to be low points for an expensive place to be worth it. To make a long story short Ryan has figured out how many points per Euro each of the hotels is worth and his hotel in Vancouver is still the best use of points. So we have to pay for all the nights. Not that bad but it takes a lot more research to find a great location, air conditioning and breakfast included for an average price of $100-110.

I know I know you are thinking what a princess. She could stay at a hostel or a pension for way less. I admit it I am a whimp. I feel pretty brave for going to foreign countries where dumplings are king and having a wheat allergy. Some of you might have experienced my oh so patient mood when I can't find food. We run into this problem quite a bit. Ryan can go forever and I am stubborn and proud and suffer in silence until it is too late, the bitch has arrived. Having a minimalist hotel on top of this makes things not so fun. (There are tears) (I told you I am a whimp)

So I spent from 8:30 - 4:00 parked in front of the computer doing research. The TV didn't even turn on, for those that know me well they know that the TV is always on. I don't really watch it it is just on. I stopped a few times to get food and take the dog out to pee. Kosmo was kind enough to force me to leave the house for a short trip but running through the raspberry fence at the back and heading out into the grasslands, by himself. Chasing him down was a 20 minute diversion but then back at it (Kosmo only got to be in his run to be outside)

So I spent all of this time and only got half the hotels booked. I won't fool myself into thinking that I have it all under control. It is agonizing to actually book. Is it the right place, is it too far away, is the tram/metro easy to use, did every one on trip adviser lie and the place is really a dump, is it actually going to work or am I going to show up and have no room. Then once booked there is the sudden panic that I booked the wrong dates, or that the room has no amenities etc. I know I am a freak but these are all things that went through my mind.

Now it is 11 pm and I am sitting back with a glass of wine looking forward to doing it all again tomorrow.

I am also sitting here worrying about Ryan. He called me as he sat in his car at the border at 9:45 and lets me know that the car is having electrical problems and that he had to get it jumped to get is started. We think it is the battery, the car runs well as long as his foot is on the gas. The line at the border was fun. He calls again and then I begin the search to find a 24 hour Walmart as close to the border as possible. No Go. I then search near his hotel in Surrey but they close at 10. I do find one in Langley that is open until 11. Pedal to the metal baby. I sit here now just waiting for the call about the results. Then I am going to bed, long day ahead of me.