It was our supreme good fortune that James chose to come to Europe for 8 weeks this summer and travel around with us. We haven't spent this much time together since he was in high school. Every day kind of togetherness. Where one went, we all went. We, of course, had hit the lottery with this arrangement, but James didn't mind at all having a skilled navigator in the car while he zoomed down the autobahn or travelling with someone with enough French and German to handle most communications. We all did things together we wouldn't have done on our own. Win. Win.
James' goal was 5 countries in 8 weeks. We crushed that ... especially if you count driving from Germany to Austria to buy beer before the World Cup game.
#1. France. Paris. 6/10-6/17. Done. (see previous post on Paris).
Great weather in Paris. Rail strike in Paris. A busy 6 days. Bike tours. Eiffel Tower, Louvre, more bike tours, more museums, 3days with friend, Tom Thai.
#2. Germany. Since home base was in Bavaria, by far the prettiest part of the country, there were many places to visit using the Bavarian train ticket that allows up to 5 people unlimited travel by train, bus and metro throughout Bavaria for the day. Since the train stopped less than a mile from our home in Freihung, we made several trips throughout Bavaria.
- Garmish Germany. June 18-19. Craig and James hiked to an overnight hut in the Bavarian mountains. They traversed through woods and snow and steep inclines for a beer and a good night's sleep at the top of the mountain. It was something James came to Europe to do. Done.
- Bamberg, Germany: July 1. Another one of 10th century towns scattered all over Europe. Its historic city center is a listed UNESCO world heritage site. A 2-hr train ride for a day of sight-seeing, and more important, sampling their famous smoky dark beer. Since James' likes dark beer, and I've since discovered that I, too, like dark beer, this was the place to see.
We were babysitting, so Molly came too!
Entering the altstadt -- old town Bamberg.
Lunch is much for fun with a beer!
Last beer stop of the day.
- Fussen, Germany: July 2-July 5. James came to see "castles and old stuff", so we took a road trip to Fussen, Germany, home to two castles, thanks to Ludwig and his dad, Maximilian II, both kings of Bavaria, in the early 18th century. It also included 4.5 hours of primarily autobahn driving, with James behind the wheel. Check that off the bucket list!
yeah, we were there!
Fussen is home to not just one but two really cool castles.
Hohenschwangau Castle. Hunting shack for Ludwig's dad.
It's easy to see why they liked this area so much.
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Fussen is also just 5km from Austria, so when we need beer to watch the World Cup, we drove to another country to buy it!
It's called the John Lennon Wall.
Prague did not suffer a lot of damage in WWII as Hitler had big plans for the city.
James proved to be a very adventurous eater. If it was kinda weird and the specialty of the region, he'd order it. Surprisingly, his biggest disappointment was probably German brats.
Kinda boring. No wild rice brats. No cheddar brats. Same ole. Same ole.
Snails in Paris
Steak tartar in Bruges
Grilled pig's knuckle in Prague.
Prague. Goulash in a bread bowl. BEST.
Astronomical clock. ... installed in 1410 ... the oldest one still working
From Prague, we drove north for an hour to reach Kutna Hora. Home to the Bone Chapel. The chapel contains the bones of about 40,000 people who died of the plague in 1318 and during the Hussite wars in the 15th century. They were originally buried at the church cemetery. When the cemetery was closed at the end of the 15th century, the exhumed bones were transferred to the chapel and compiled into pyramids
The Bone Chapel. It is real chapel upstairs. But downstairs ....
The things they did with bones.....
Definitely creepy.
Lots of rain but that didn't keep us off our bikes or off the streets!
Biking thru the Rijksmuseum
Nothing beats travel days when the sun is shining...
Our place is on the left. With a balcony.
#5. Belgium. Ghent and Bruges. July 11-14. Just another 3 hrs on the train takes you to a new country and a whole new selection of beer. Since Amsterdam is kinda limited on beer choices, the change into Belgium is refreshing!
Ghent ... one of the coolest castles right in town.
Like I said, LOTS of beer to chose from in Belgium!
And lots of really good chocolate.
And a new classic James discovered that is good morning, noon, and night.
4-layer Irish Coffee. Whiskey, Kahlua, coffee, frothy cream.
Yumm.
(James drank his fill trying to replicate this drink in Freihung. No luck.)
And lots of really good chocolate.
And a new classic James discovered that is good morning, noon, and night.
4-layer Irish Coffee. Whiskey, Kahlua, coffee, frothy cream.
Yumm.
(James drank his fill trying to replicate this drink in Freihung. No luck.)
Canals are a common theme in this region.
How's that for a view from an outside bar?
Day trip by train to Bruge.
Nice to have sunshine to show off this beautiful city.
Just can't get enough of these canal views.
#6. Switzerland. Interlaken. July 18-21. Much debate went into plans for this weekend because it was James' last hurrah in Europe AND it was the weekend of both kids' birthdays. With birthdays 2 days apart, we've usually celebrated with some kind of family outing. But we haven't been together for a birthday for several years. And we've never done anything like this! Michelle got reservations at a historic Swiss hotel that was used in the filming of Band of Brothers as well as reserved kayaks for 1/2 day on Saturday. This was destined to be the best birthday ever.
Michelle said to be ready to go when she got home from work ....
It was a 6 hr drive in the Camry. 3 adults in back. 2 adults and one dog in front.
Hotel de la Paix Interlaken
I will miss the window boxes of Europe most of all.
And the crazy things they do with their roofs ....
Saturday was predicted to be our best weather day, so we were up early to make the most of it.
1/2 day kayak rental. Best idea ever.
Nice to be young and think swimming in a glacier-fed lake is "refreshing"
We drove to Grindelwald for the afternoon. A cute touristy town known for it's mountains, it's mountains and it's mountains. Wanna buy hiking poles? this is the place. Wanna buy anything Swiss made? This is the place. Dan's souvenir was a new Swiss Army Knife.
Birthdays two days apart means you get two awesome birthday dinners.
BBQ ribs have been a family tradition so Craig found a place in town that specializes in just that.
Dinner #1 ... ribs .... sangria ... mojitos.
Sunday was cloudy and cool. We didn't much care though since we were checking into the GrandHotel at 3pm. Interlaken was an adorable town. Love places that create a lovely walkway along the river that runs through town.
And when it rained, we stopped for Irish Coffee ... something we all agree is a good choice any time to day. Notice how they make the drink in 3 layers.
Except for Michelle that is ... why let alcohol get in the way of an iced café with ice cream!
Finally, it was time to check into the hotel.
WOW! this place definitely did not disappoint.
Grandhotel Giessbach.
Michelle and I hiked to the top of that waterfall.
While the boys sat on the patio, smoked cigars and sipped scotch.
Pricey are crazy expensive in Switzerland, but for a 3-day birthday weekend, nobody cared!
James ordered the only Swiss scotch on the menu and really liked it. He liked it even more when he learned that it was only distilled at the small brewery where we had lunch yesterday. No buyers remorse bringing home a bottle of that treasure!
Birthday dinner #2
Michelle scored a major win by reserving, in advance, a 4-course dinner at the hotel. The average entrée alone was half of what we paid for 4 awesome plates of food! And we even got to make our own selections from their menu.
Pricey are crazy expensive in Switzerland, but for a 3-day birthday weekend, nobody cared!
July 22. Back to Nuremberg
End of the line brought James back to Nuremberg where he spent the night before his flight back to the states on the 23rd. Hard to see him go. Best. Summer. Ever.
Last walk to the train station.
Last view of home in Freihung.
The autobahn was cool, but no traffic when traveling by train.
Final wave goodbye in Nuremberg.
Someone misses sharing this bed.....
What's next for us?
James' trip marks the final phase of our stay in Europe. Now, it's just a matter of time until Craig gets his next assignment that will take them back to the states; just a matter of time until we lose our home base; just a matter of time until we too book a flight back to Minnesota. Probably from Brussels (maybe from London). Probably mid September (maybe early October).
Either way, the end is in sight. Best. Year. Ever.
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