

Sunset in the Italian Dolomites

Lofoten Bridge road

4x4 Roads in Sardinia

Sunset in the Italian Dolomites
Hello, Hei, Ciao. Bonjour, Hola.
We're Alana + Jonny, and we drove from Canada to Europe
But more often than not, you're going to hear from me - Alana.
I write the way I talk, and talk the way I think; honest, and often highlighting the humorous things in life. My big, happy, rescue family (the dogs, not my husband) and I are on a year-long road trip across Europe.
We built out a custom 4x4 van, (his name is Wylie) in our hometown of Squamish, B.C. Drove him across Canada to Halifax, then shipped him across to Antwerp, Belgium. Two weeks later, the rest of us boarded a plane for Europe to meet him. We have no set destination other than hiking and exploring the hidden gems of Europe for a year - all while embracing our inner van-life sense of adventure.
I may be the ring leader, but Jonny is the brains behind the operation.
However, together, our friends know us as a couple that is always up for an adventure. We rarely say no and are always on the go. We strongly believe in quality vs. quantity in life. This isn't the first (and likely won't be the last) time we have left the comfort of our home to hit the road. Previously, we spent six months traveling through the U.S. and Mexico in a built-out custom 4Runner with our dog, Quinn.
This time for our year-long overland adventure, we have converted a van that has more room to accommodate our additional furbaby, Hank.













![It’s taken me a while to post this, but here it is.
Two months ago, I caught an edge I couldn’t recover from while skiing down The Saddle on Whistler Mountain. I fell hard.
Honestly, it’s all a blur. I remember being grateful when I finally stopped and realized I wasn’t in immediate pain. I took a moment to collect myself. I was embarrassed. Grateful I hadn’t hurt anyone else. I declined offers of help from complete strangers because, in that moment, I felt fine.
I pulled myself up and mentally said, “Just get to the bottom of the run and you’ll be fine.”
So I did.
I pointed myself downhill, but as soon as I went to make my first turn, I knew I was in trouble. There was nothing in my knee. No strength. No stability. My whole leg failed me in that moment—for the second time in 30 years.
I fell again.
This time longer.
Harder.
When I stopped, I was in disbelief. I haven’t fallen skiing in years, and now I’d just done it twice, back-to-back. Embarrassment washed over me so intensely until anger took over.
I kicked my skis off in response. I was upset, full of adrenaline, and desperate to get the mountain. This time my brain told me, “Let’s walk down instead”.
So I stood up. And instantly fell.
That’s when the tears came.
I still felt no pain, but I knew something was very wrong. My legs have always been my greatest strength, and in that moment, they were made of rubber.
Long story short, my husband dragged me off the run. We called ski patrol. I was taken to emergency. X-rays showed nothing, but the MRI a week later revealed the extent of the damage:
Bilateral ACL tears (one complete, one barely hanging on)
Grade 2 MCL tear
Torn meniscus, with one flipped (on my right knee only, thank god)
Multiple additional ligament and muscle tears
For the first week I was in denial.
I dreamed of waking up healed.
I dreamed of walking, hiking, even kicking a snake (don’t ask 😂) only to wake up a nerve twitch followed by intense agony.
[story continued in comments ⬇️]](https://scontent.cdninstagram.com/v/t51.71878-15/722703812_1972834387439211_8501700033764951761_n.jpg?stp=dst-jpg_e35_tt6&_nc_cat=106&ccb=7-5&_nc_sid=18de74&efg=eyJlZmdfdGFnIjoiQ0xJUFMuYmVzdF9pbWFnZV91cmxnZW4uQzMifQ%3D%3D&_nc_ohc=fX4_w6IHwUgQ7kNvwGbo0Jn&_nc_oc=AdqUPi0dgiQWW_Ss9d-w8nlst3UnsyizGLJSmZabOcpSBnC2hGYEPH07J3v3eK93fGQ&_nc_zt=23&_nc_ht=scontent.cdninstagram.com&edm=ANo9K5cEAAAA&_nc_gid=WijtoTCI66a11Sa5o-H9AQ&_nc_tpa=Q5bMBQFYkCCS17y_dmfdAxTvYvqvVjhbSUFN3lxvSYXcFO_LGQBrJ5fW31NLRVT0glgNPUSRXvbhNmJI&oh=00_Af__q4uavd-lXaH-NeAzyhsMSkGNF8JU69dcphXOGeXUGA&oe=6A329543)


































