We have completed our first European leg around Central and Eastern Europe and are now in Southern Europe starting in Rome, Italy.
8 countries and 13 cities in just under a month. Now that's some heavy duty traveling! Our trip around Central and Eastern Europe was quite an adventure. Read the logs below for details. We are now off to Rome, Italy to enjoy a few months traveling the Western and Southern parts of Europe.
March 18, 2014.
In Frankfurt, Germany. Well, we started out in Frankfurt just under a month ago, and here we are back again! Through that time we drove through 8 different countries (Germany, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Slovenia, Austria and Czech). It was probably a little much, but we got to see some incredible sights along the way. After leaving Prague, we headed westbound through Germany and stopped in Wurzburg, once again. We really enjoyed Wurzburg when we first stayed here a few weeks back. Wurzburg at night is incredible! There is a beautiful old bridge over the Main River that gives you an excellent view of the Marienburg Fortress and at night, it all lights up. Going back to Wurzburg was an excellent way to round out our visit in Germany as well as our trip through Central and Eastern Europe. The thing I love best about Germany is the Autobahn. Unlimited speed! I was able to get our Hyundai rental car up to almost 190 km/h this time. It is SO MUCH fun driving in Germany. But...it's so safe as well. The best drivers in the world seem to be in Germany. Nobody rides in the passing lane unless they are going fast and passing traffic. You just have to keep a watchful eye out of the side view mirror before entering the passing lane to ensure no cars are coming through faster than you. Our final night in Germany was actually spent just outside of Frankfurt, near the Frankfurt Hahn Airport where, this morning, we flew out on a Ryanair flight, bound for Rome, Italy.
In Frankfurt, Germany. Well, we started out in Frankfurt just under a month ago, and here we are back again! Through that time we drove through 8 different countries (Germany, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Slovenia, Austria and Czech). It was probably a little much, but we got to see some incredible sights along the way. After leaving Prague, we headed westbound through Germany and stopped in Wurzburg, once again. We really enjoyed Wurzburg when we first stayed here a few weeks back. Wurzburg at night is incredible! There is a beautiful old bridge over the Main River that gives you an excellent view of the Marienburg Fortress and at night, it all lights up. Going back to Wurzburg was an excellent way to round out our visit in Germany as well as our trip through Central and Eastern Europe. The thing I love best about Germany is the Autobahn. Unlimited speed! I was able to get our Hyundai rental car up to almost 190 km/h this time. It is SO MUCH fun driving in Germany. But...it's so safe as well. The best drivers in the world seem to be in Germany. Nobody rides in the passing lane unless they are going fast and passing traffic. You just have to keep a watchful eye out of the side view mirror before entering the passing lane to ensure no cars are coming through faster than you. Our final night in Germany was actually spent just outside of Frankfurt, near the Frankfurt Hahn Airport where, this morning, we flew out on a Ryanair flight, bound for Rome, Italy.
March 15, 2014.
In Prague, Czech Republic. We've been able to unwind here a little in Prague, however, my Kingdom for a nanny or babysitter!! I've reached a bit of a limit with Bennett and ohhhhh it would be so nice for someone to look after him for a couple of days to let Tricia and I have some nice adult time. Ain't gonna happen....what are ya gonna do eh? There would be so much to enjoy in Prague, as well as any of the major cities we've seen in Europe, in terms of restaurants, theaters or other forms of adult entertainment (well...not that type of adult entertainment, the one you are thinking that I'm thinking about right now!) if we had someone, anyone, to relieve us just for a bit. Anyways, it won't be long before we have some relief, perhaps, when we meet up with Connor in Rome. Connor, if you are reading this, as part of the price to pay for you coming over, we ask that you look after Bennett for a night or two to allow Tricia and I to get out for a bit. Bennett has been good, but man...does he have some moments. Anyways, we are currently spending our third night here in Prague. Yesterday, we decided to have a relax day where I looked after Bennett for a few hours and took him swimming while Tricia went off to explore and then we swapped parenting and I went out for a bit on my own while Tricia took Bennett out to walk around and also to visit the Lego Museum (which she said was very poor but Bennett enjoyed playing there). The city is amazingly beautiful and has many squares and pedestrian walking areas with very old buildings to enjoy. The Danube River also runs through Prague. Today we visited the Prague Zoo and it was fantastic! One of the best zoos we've been too and as it happens it is rated as one of the best zoos in the world. We saw many animals (the Hippos were especially awesome!) and even though it was cold, the outdoor exhibits still had the animals outside. The Czech People and their adopted animals are a hearty bunch! The weather was a bit miserable and rainy today, but that didn't stop us from exploring. After the zoo, we walked around the Old Town including a stroll over the beautiful St. Charles Bridge which also offers a nice view of the nearby Prague Castle. Unfortunately, we didn't make it up to the Castle, but we have already seen a few castles during our excursion thus far in Europe. We are nearing the end of our current European leg of touring and we will be heading back to Frankfurt in the next couple of days where we will be flying from there to Rome to meet up with Connor.
Tricia: Poor Bart...I COMPLETELY understand where he is coming from. Although we are so lucky to be able to do this trip and explore, we would be so much luckier if Maya could be here with us! Bennett is good but he has a temper and it REALLY shines from time to time. Prague is SO special. It is small enough to explore by foot and big enough to spend several days and not see everything. The town itself is beautiful. Bart and I each took turns exploring on our own which was great. I went to a few galleries and to a photography exhibition. I have been using my student card here and it makes SUCH a difference. Although, people obviously think I am the oldest student alive! The zoo was incredible. I don't even really like zoos, but this one was so well laid out. It was a great walk (in the rain). Anyway, we are on our way to Frankfurt and can't wait to see Connor...time is going by so quick right now! A very happy belated birthday to Granny Meek, Happy 40th to Sue and Happy Birthday to my little brother...(and Happy Anniversary Dad!). xo
In Prague, Czech Republic. We've been able to unwind here a little in Prague, however, my Kingdom for a nanny or babysitter!! I've reached a bit of a limit with Bennett and ohhhhh it would be so nice for someone to look after him for a couple of days to let Tricia and I have some nice adult time. Ain't gonna happen....what are ya gonna do eh? There would be so much to enjoy in Prague, as well as any of the major cities we've seen in Europe, in terms of restaurants, theaters or other forms of adult entertainment (well...not that type of adult entertainment, the one you are thinking that I'm thinking about right now!) if we had someone, anyone, to relieve us just for a bit. Anyways, it won't be long before we have some relief, perhaps, when we meet up with Connor in Rome. Connor, if you are reading this, as part of the price to pay for you coming over, we ask that you look after Bennett for a night or two to allow Tricia and I to get out for a bit. Bennett has been good, but man...does he have some moments. Anyways, we are currently spending our third night here in Prague. Yesterday, we decided to have a relax day where I looked after Bennett for a few hours and took him swimming while Tricia went off to explore and then we swapped parenting and I went out for a bit on my own while Tricia took Bennett out to walk around and also to visit the Lego Museum (which she said was very poor but Bennett enjoyed playing there). The city is amazingly beautiful and has many squares and pedestrian walking areas with very old buildings to enjoy. The Danube River also runs through Prague. Today we visited the Prague Zoo and it was fantastic! One of the best zoos we've been too and as it happens it is rated as one of the best zoos in the world. We saw many animals (the Hippos were especially awesome!) and even though it was cold, the outdoor exhibits still had the animals outside. The Czech People and their adopted animals are a hearty bunch! The weather was a bit miserable and rainy today, but that didn't stop us from exploring. After the zoo, we walked around the Old Town including a stroll over the beautiful St. Charles Bridge which also offers a nice view of the nearby Prague Castle. Unfortunately, we didn't make it up to the Castle, but we have already seen a few castles during our excursion thus far in Europe. We are nearing the end of our current European leg of touring and we will be heading back to Frankfurt in the next couple of days where we will be flying from there to Rome to meet up with Connor.
Tricia: Poor Bart...I COMPLETELY understand where he is coming from. Although we are so lucky to be able to do this trip and explore, we would be so much luckier if Maya could be here with us! Bennett is good but he has a temper and it REALLY shines from time to time. Prague is SO special. It is small enough to explore by foot and big enough to spend several days and not see everything. The town itself is beautiful. Bart and I each took turns exploring on our own which was great. I went to a few galleries and to a photography exhibition. I have been using my student card here and it makes SUCH a difference. Although, people obviously think I am the oldest student alive! The zoo was incredible. I don't even really like zoos, but this one was so well laid out. It was a great walk (in the rain). Anyway, we are on our way to Frankfurt and can't wait to see Connor...time is going by so quick right now! A very happy belated birthday to Granny Meek, Happy 40th to Sue and Happy Birthday to my little brother...(and Happy Anniversary Dad!). xo
March 13, 2014.
In Vienna, Austria. Before arriving in Vienna, after leaving Zagreb, Croatia, we spent a night in Bratislava, Slovakia. Our 4 hour drive to Bratislava took us through 4 different countries including Croatia, Slovenia, Austria and finally Slovakia. I have a bit of a bone to pick with the country of Slovenia. Apparently, they have automated tolls on the main highways in Slovenia whereby you are supposed to buy a sticker for your car which takes care of the tolls. Ok, so we were ignorant in this matter. We spent only about 45 minutes of driving in Slovenia and when we were approaching the Austrian border, whereby you are exiting the "Great" country of Slovenia, we were pulled over by some Slovenian traffic officers. They informed me that because I did not possess the toll sticker that I had to pay a 150 Euro fine. I have no problem paying tolls, and most countries that we've driven through have toll booths where you stop and pay. The fine seemed very punitive for an honest mistake and this is surely not a way to attract tourists with this type of penalty. Ah well...live an learn I guess. I was more than a little pissed at the fine, so I'll say this only once...Slovenia sucks! Ok, enough about fines, I'll get back to my happy place now and say that we quite enjoyed Bratislava, Slovakia. We got an incredible hotel deal while in Bratislava with some very spacious apartment style accommodation (at Mamaison Residence), right in the old town section for a mere 60 CAD. Bratislava is not a huge city, which is nice, and they have a beautiful pedestrian walking area in their Old Town section, which we enjoyed perusing around. We also visited the Bratislava Castle, which was also within easy walking distance from our hotel. Alas, our time in Bratislava was short, and we headed off to Vienna, Austria, which was only a short 45 minute drive away. We patronized our old favourite once again, the Marriott, while in Vienna. Vienna is a big city, with big time history. Similarly to Bratislava and Budapest (as well as many other European cities), Vienna also shares the flow of the Danube River. We took a hop on/off bus tour in Vienna, which seems to be the way to go with big cities when you are not spending a lot of days in the city. We got off at a couple of locations, including Prater Park (an amusement park with many rides including a very famous Ferris Wheel) as well as a stop which allowed us to walk around the Old Town portion of Vienna. There are many high end stores within the walking area of the Old Town, I even spied some jewelry in the Cartier window going for a mere 50,000 Euros. We met up with one of Tricia's friends and former Options Consulting colleague, Melena. We had a great time enjoying a bottle of wine together and then going for a very nice Viennese dinner afterwards. It seems that in Vienna, everywhere you look are incredibly beautiful and well maintained historical buildings. Today we visited the Schonbrunn Palace. The inside of the Palace was, for us, not overly impressive. More impressive was the backyard of the Palace, which is huge and very open, where there a gardens and many monuments. From the backyard of the Palace you get a real sense of the size of the Palace, which is very large. We've decided that we need to slow down a little as we've simply just seen too much over the past few weeks while in Europe. We are next off to the Czech Republic city of Prague where we will spend a few days unwinding a little. Bennett has been a gem of a kid lately and has reached another milestone (on top of his recent ability to swim on his own). He is now able to print his own name. Congrats Bennett!
In Vienna, Austria. Before arriving in Vienna, after leaving Zagreb, Croatia, we spent a night in Bratislava, Slovakia. Our 4 hour drive to Bratislava took us through 4 different countries including Croatia, Slovenia, Austria and finally Slovakia. I have a bit of a bone to pick with the country of Slovenia. Apparently, they have automated tolls on the main highways in Slovenia whereby you are supposed to buy a sticker for your car which takes care of the tolls. Ok, so we were ignorant in this matter. We spent only about 45 minutes of driving in Slovenia and when we were approaching the Austrian border, whereby you are exiting the "Great" country of Slovenia, we were pulled over by some Slovenian traffic officers. They informed me that because I did not possess the toll sticker that I had to pay a 150 Euro fine. I have no problem paying tolls, and most countries that we've driven through have toll booths where you stop and pay. The fine seemed very punitive for an honest mistake and this is surely not a way to attract tourists with this type of penalty. Ah well...live an learn I guess. I was more than a little pissed at the fine, so I'll say this only once...Slovenia sucks! Ok, enough about fines, I'll get back to my happy place now and say that we quite enjoyed Bratislava, Slovakia. We got an incredible hotel deal while in Bratislava with some very spacious apartment style accommodation (at Mamaison Residence), right in the old town section for a mere 60 CAD. Bratislava is not a huge city, which is nice, and they have a beautiful pedestrian walking area in their Old Town section, which we enjoyed perusing around. We also visited the Bratislava Castle, which was also within easy walking distance from our hotel. Alas, our time in Bratislava was short, and we headed off to Vienna, Austria, which was only a short 45 minute drive away. We patronized our old favourite once again, the Marriott, while in Vienna. Vienna is a big city, with big time history. Similarly to Bratislava and Budapest (as well as many other European cities), Vienna also shares the flow of the Danube River. We took a hop on/off bus tour in Vienna, which seems to be the way to go with big cities when you are not spending a lot of days in the city. We got off at a couple of locations, including Prater Park (an amusement park with many rides including a very famous Ferris Wheel) as well as a stop which allowed us to walk around the Old Town portion of Vienna. There are many high end stores within the walking area of the Old Town, I even spied some jewelry in the Cartier window going for a mere 50,000 Euros. We met up with one of Tricia's friends and former Options Consulting colleague, Melena. We had a great time enjoying a bottle of wine together and then going for a very nice Viennese dinner afterwards. It seems that in Vienna, everywhere you look are incredibly beautiful and well maintained historical buildings. Today we visited the Schonbrunn Palace. The inside of the Palace was, for us, not overly impressive. More impressive was the backyard of the Palace, which is huge and very open, where there a gardens and many monuments. From the backyard of the Palace you get a real sense of the size of the Palace, which is very large. We've decided that we need to slow down a little as we've simply just seen too much over the past few weeks while in Europe. We are next off to the Czech Republic city of Prague where we will spend a few days unwinding a little. Bennett has been a gem of a kid lately and has reached another milestone (on top of his recent ability to swim on his own). He is now able to print his own name. Congrats Bennett!
March 9, 2014.
In Zagreb, Croatia. To say that we've seen a lot in the past week and a half, would be putting in lightly. Since February 23rd, we've been to 5 different countries, Germany, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and Croatia. It's actually been a bit of an overload. Overwhelming almost, and it ain't over yet! In the next week, we will also be seeing Slovenia, Austria, and Czech before arriving back in Germany. Traveling can be tough work! I think that the thing with Europe is that it is so compact compared to North America and there is just so much to see and take in. Most normal people would be happy to spend a week in places like Berlin, Warsaw, Krakow or Zagreb, and you easily could. Advanced civilization goes back a millennium and beyond these cities, unlike in North America where only a few hundred years ago there were more buffaloes than humans. We are definitely not normal travelers. We arrived in Zagreb yesterday afternoon while it was still quite light out and proceeded to have a short walk about the downtown area just after checking into our hotel. Our Hotel in Zagreb (the Jagerhorn Hotel) is quite nice, albeit our room is postage stamp sized, but for a mere 65 Canuck bucks a night, we have no problem. We have yet another currency to deal with here in Croatia, the Kuna, which currently trades for one fifth of a CAD. The hotel receptionist, a nice young lady in her 20's gave us a bit of a history lesson with her recollection of the Croatian War of Independence which occurred in the early 90's. She recalls hiding in her home with her family here in Zagreb during the fighting. So hard to imagine, as Canadians, the ravages of War in our modern times. Croatia, like several other countries, used to be part of Yugoslavia, but during the War, they achieved their Independence here, but at a very high cost in human life and major destruction to their infrastructure and economy. When you walk around the town and the surrounding area, you would never even know that a war took place such a short time ago. Today, the weather was very favourable, sunny and mid teens in temperature. As such, we decided to visit a nearby castle. The Traksoscan Castle, about an hour outside of Zagreb, was very nice to visit and there is also a nice little lake at the foot of the castle which offered paddle boat rentals and great hiking trails around the area. On the way back from the castle, we stopped in at an Outlet Mall which Tricia spied along the way. The Outlet Mall had a free kids play area that Bennett loved! Well...it's now 1:30AM Croatia time, so I'm gonna hit the hay now. I will try to get Tricia to update her log in the morning.
In Zagreb, Croatia. To say that we've seen a lot in the past week and a half, would be putting in lightly. Since February 23rd, we've been to 5 different countries, Germany, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and Croatia. It's actually been a bit of an overload. Overwhelming almost, and it ain't over yet! In the next week, we will also be seeing Slovenia, Austria, and Czech before arriving back in Germany. Traveling can be tough work! I think that the thing with Europe is that it is so compact compared to North America and there is just so much to see and take in. Most normal people would be happy to spend a week in places like Berlin, Warsaw, Krakow or Zagreb, and you easily could. Advanced civilization goes back a millennium and beyond these cities, unlike in North America where only a few hundred years ago there were more buffaloes than humans. We are definitely not normal travelers. We arrived in Zagreb yesterday afternoon while it was still quite light out and proceeded to have a short walk about the downtown area just after checking into our hotel. Our Hotel in Zagreb (the Jagerhorn Hotel) is quite nice, albeit our room is postage stamp sized, but for a mere 65 Canuck bucks a night, we have no problem. We have yet another currency to deal with here in Croatia, the Kuna, which currently trades for one fifth of a CAD. The hotel receptionist, a nice young lady in her 20's gave us a bit of a history lesson with her recollection of the Croatian War of Independence which occurred in the early 90's. She recalls hiding in her home with her family here in Zagreb during the fighting. So hard to imagine, as Canadians, the ravages of War in our modern times. Croatia, like several other countries, used to be part of Yugoslavia, but during the War, they achieved their Independence here, but at a very high cost in human life and major destruction to their infrastructure and economy. When you walk around the town and the surrounding area, you would never even know that a war took place such a short time ago. Today, the weather was very favourable, sunny and mid teens in temperature. As such, we decided to visit a nearby castle. The Traksoscan Castle, about an hour outside of Zagreb, was very nice to visit and there is also a nice little lake at the foot of the castle which offered paddle boat rentals and great hiking trails around the area. On the way back from the castle, we stopped in at an Outlet Mall which Tricia spied along the way. The Outlet Mall had a free kids play area that Bennett loved! Well...it's now 1:30AM Croatia time, so I'm gonna hit the hay now. I will try to get Tricia to update her log in the morning.
March 7, 2014.
In Budapest, Hungary. I'm kind of running out of adjectives to describe the cities we've been to. I think I must have used the word "amazing" about a 1000 times now! Budapest is amazing, for sure, but instead, I will describe it as "grand"! I think "grand" suits Budapest because that's just how you feel when you are here. Beautiful buildings are everywhere. One thing that might have really helped here is the nice turn in the weather. Yesterday was so mild and nice out, Bennett was actually running around in his t-shirt. We arrived in Budapest yesterday afternoon after driving from central Slovakia (which we really enjoyed). As you make your way south in Slovakia, the terrain becomes beautifully hilly, almost mountainous. We drove through several ski villages on our way through where there was still some snow and some people skiing. They've apparently had a rather mild winter here, so the amounts of snow and temperatures are nothing like what our home town of Toronto and that area has been getting (which we've heard has been a brutal winter). We again patronized the Marriott while in Budapest and we were not disappointed, as usual. Although the hotel was a Marriott, it was actually called the Boscolo Hotel, located on Grand Boulevard, and grand it was! The outside and lobby of the hotel are incredible. Bennett reached a milestone of his life while at the hotel. He is now fully able to swim without any floatation aids! Congratulations Bennett! I captured this all on video, so be sure to check this out. The restaurant in the hotel is actually one of the attractions on Tripadvisor and it is absolutely beautiful, but very expensive, so we actually didn't eat there. We took a hop on/off bus tour of Budapest, which works out well because the city is quite large and there are many interesting sites to see. The city of Budapest actually comprises two cities, Buda and Pest (pronounced "Pescht"). During our bus tour, we got off at several interesting areas, including the Matthias Church, the Buda Castle and an underground Labyrinth. The bus tour also included a boat ride along the Danube River which runs right through Budapest. During our tour, I snapped many "grand" pictures along the way, so be sure to check them all out. Several people have asked me if we are getting tired of traveling, but I would honestly say no. I think the reason is we are constantly moving around and seeing new and different things. Every new place we go to offers different things, so that keeps it all very interesting. We are still truck'in along and will be doing so for the next 3 or 4 months still!
In Budapest, Hungary. I'm kind of running out of adjectives to describe the cities we've been to. I think I must have used the word "amazing" about a 1000 times now! Budapest is amazing, for sure, but instead, I will describe it as "grand"! I think "grand" suits Budapest because that's just how you feel when you are here. Beautiful buildings are everywhere. One thing that might have really helped here is the nice turn in the weather. Yesterday was so mild and nice out, Bennett was actually running around in his t-shirt. We arrived in Budapest yesterday afternoon after driving from central Slovakia (which we really enjoyed). As you make your way south in Slovakia, the terrain becomes beautifully hilly, almost mountainous. We drove through several ski villages on our way through where there was still some snow and some people skiing. They've apparently had a rather mild winter here, so the amounts of snow and temperatures are nothing like what our home town of Toronto and that area has been getting (which we've heard has been a brutal winter). We again patronized the Marriott while in Budapest and we were not disappointed, as usual. Although the hotel was a Marriott, it was actually called the Boscolo Hotel, located on Grand Boulevard, and grand it was! The outside and lobby of the hotel are incredible. Bennett reached a milestone of his life while at the hotel. He is now fully able to swim without any floatation aids! Congratulations Bennett! I captured this all on video, so be sure to check this out. The restaurant in the hotel is actually one of the attractions on Tripadvisor and it is absolutely beautiful, but very expensive, so we actually didn't eat there. We took a hop on/off bus tour of Budapest, which works out well because the city is quite large and there are many interesting sites to see. The city of Budapest actually comprises two cities, Buda and Pest (pronounced "Pescht"). During our bus tour, we got off at several interesting areas, including the Matthias Church, the Buda Castle and an underground Labyrinth. The bus tour also included a boat ride along the Danube River which runs right through Budapest. During our tour, I snapped many "grand" pictures along the way, so be sure to check them all out. Several people have asked me if we are getting tired of traveling, but I would honestly say no. I think the reason is we are constantly moving around and seeing new and different things. Every new place we go to offers different things, so that keeps it all very interesting. We are still truck'in along and will be doing so for the next 3 or 4 months still!
March 5, 2014.
In Banska Bystrica, Slovakia. Before arriving where we are now, we spent 2 excellent days in the beautiful city of Krakow, Poland. Unlike Warsaw, which we were told had been completely leveled during WWII, Krakow was apparently spared. Reason being was that Krakow become the Capitol of the German Government during the Nazi occupation of Poland. So incomprehensibly evil were the Nazi's, they exterminated the resident population of the Polish people and Jews. Many people were also sent off to nearby Auschwitz, and we all know that story. I have to admit that I almost feel ashamed of driving our rental car, which has German plates, through Poland, given the history between the two countries. Krakow is a definite gem of old world beauty. There is a giant Square in the middle of the Old Town of Krakow, called the Main Market Square, that bustles with life. How lucky we are to live in a time of peace where we can walk freely around the centuries old buildings in Krakow and just admire the architecture and history. Our hotel in Krakow (called the Crystal Suites) was perfectly placed distance wise from the Old Town at only a 10 minute walk away, so we spent a lot of time walking around the Square and also had dinner twice there as well. The prices here in Krakow are very reasonable. Our hotel was only costing us about 185 Zlotych a night (about 65 CAD). The room we had was huge. A one bedroom apartment with a full kitchen and living room area to boot (and very clean)! A short drive away from Krakow are a very popular tourist destination known as the Wieliczka Salt Mines. We decided to visit the Salt Mines as it was a highly recommended place to visit by Tricia's Brother, Kenneth. Well Kenneth....you were right! Amazing place to see! The mines are ancient, dating back to the 13th century (when the price of salt was equal to that of gold) and have only recently been closed for commercial mining. The mines are very expansive at over a 1000 feet deep and almost 300 kms long. You only see a very small area of the mines during the tour but of what you see, it is very impressive. Many famous people have visited the mines over the years and there are many salt carvings and statues within the mine to commemorate the visits. Huge underground caverns are open to the tour as well including a cavern that has been turned into a chapel where you can get married in! Almost everything in the mine is made of salt, including the beautiful salt tile flooring. Our visit was unforgettable and I snapped many pictures and a few videos during our tour, so please check them out. Today, we left Krakow (although we were sad to leave because we loved it there) and headed south into Slovakia, where we currently are now. On our drive through Slovakia, we spied a beautiful castle which we stopped at and hoped to visit inside, but alas the visiting hours were nearly over so we could only snap pictures from the outside. The town of Banska Bystrica, Slovakia, is a half way point between Krakow and Budapest, Hungary, which is where we are heading off to tomorrow. Not really expecting much from the current town we are in, we have actually been pleasantly surprised. The town also has a beautiful Square in it's Old Town area where we walked around a little and had a nice dinner. Our time in Slovakia will be short lived, but we will be back again in a few days when head north and we will stay in Bratislava, Slovakia's Capital and largest city, for a couple of days.
Tricia: I LOVE Krakow. It seriously could be my favourite cities so far! It is spectacular. The history of the city makes it so that you could easily spend a week in the area. I loved the Square...it was like a fairytale. When we went to the saltmines, it was surreal. There is hundreds of kilometers that make up an underground city. Bennett loved the tour (as did we all). Although if you suffered from any sort of claustrophobia, you would have a very hard time! (Jo Stone, you should NOT visit here). This was one of our highlights for sure. Heading to Slovakia, we weren't sure what to expect - you don't hear much about Slovakia...however, we have been really surprised. It is much more rustic than Poland. We head to Budapest today and are excited to see it. Also, we have been doing a lot of logistical planning for the last few months of our trip (boo). It is a lot harder to plan when other people are involved - but we are getting there! We have booked a car for the next 3 months and have almost booked a place in Paris. Yahoo!
In Banska Bystrica, Slovakia. Before arriving where we are now, we spent 2 excellent days in the beautiful city of Krakow, Poland. Unlike Warsaw, which we were told had been completely leveled during WWII, Krakow was apparently spared. Reason being was that Krakow become the Capitol of the German Government during the Nazi occupation of Poland. So incomprehensibly evil were the Nazi's, they exterminated the resident population of the Polish people and Jews. Many people were also sent off to nearby Auschwitz, and we all know that story. I have to admit that I almost feel ashamed of driving our rental car, which has German plates, through Poland, given the history between the two countries. Krakow is a definite gem of old world beauty. There is a giant Square in the middle of the Old Town of Krakow, called the Main Market Square, that bustles with life. How lucky we are to live in a time of peace where we can walk freely around the centuries old buildings in Krakow and just admire the architecture and history. Our hotel in Krakow (called the Crystal Suites) was perfectly placed distance wise from the Old Town at only a 10 minute walk away, so we spent a lot of time walking around the Square and also had dinner twice there as well. The prices here in Krakow are very reasonable. Our hotel was only costing us about 185 Zlotych a night (about 65 CAD). The room we had was huge. A one bedroom apartment with a full kitchen and living room area to boot (and very clean)! A short drive away from Krakow are a very popular tourist destination known as the Wieliczka Salt Mines. We decided to visit the Salt Mines as it was a highly recommended place to visit by Tricia's Brother, Kenneth. Well Kenneth....you were right! Amazing place to see! The mines are ancient, dating back to the 13th century (when the price of salt was equal to that of gold) and have only recently been closed for commercial mining. The mines are very expansive at over a 1000 feet deep and almost 300 kms long. You only see a very small area of the mines during the tour but of what you see, it is very impressive. Many famous people have visited the mines over the years and there are many salt carvings and statues within the mine to commemorate the visits. Huge underground caverns are open to the tour as well including a cavern that has been turned into a chapel where you can get married in! Almost everything in the mine is made of salt, including the beautiful salt tile flooring. Our visit was unforgettable and I snapped many pictures and a few videos during our tour, so please check them out. Today, we left Krakow (although we were sad to leave because we loved it there) and headed south into Slovakia, where we currently are now. On our drive through Slovakia, we spied a beautiful castle which we stopped at and hoped to visit inside, but alas the visiting hours were nearly over so we could only snap pictures from the outside. The town of Banska Bystrica, Slovakia, is a half way point between Krakow and Budapest, Hungary, which is where we are heading off to tomorrow. Not really expecting much from the current town we are in, we have actually been pleasantly surprised. The town also has a beautiful Square in it's Old Town area where we walked around a little and had a nice dinner. Our time in Slovakia will be short lived, but we will be back again in a few days when head north and we will stay in Bratislava, Slovakia's Capital and largest city, for a couple of days.
Tricia: I LOVE Krakow. It seriously could be my favourite cities so far! It is spectacular. The history of the city makes it so that you could easily spend a week in the area. I loved the Square...it was like a fairytale. When we went to the saltmines, it was surreal. There is hundreds of kilometers that make up an underground city. Bennett loved the tour (as did we all). Although if you suffered from any sort of claustrophobia, you would have a very hard time! (Jo Stone, you should NOT visit here). This was one of our highlights for sure. Heading to Slovakia, we weren't sure what to expect - you don't hear much about Slovakia...however, we have been really surprised. It is much more rustic than Poland. We head to Budapest today and are excited to see it. Also, we have been doing a lot of logistical planning for the last few months of our trip (boo). It is a lot harder to plan when other people are involved - but we are getting there! We have booked a car for the next 3 months and have almost booked a place in Paris. Yahoo!
March 2, 2014.
In Warsaw, Poland. Before arriving in Warsaw, we had a full day with Stan, Vanda and Ted. They took us to a small village outside of Gdansk called Szymbark where there is a building that was built upside down. It was quite a trip to go inside as the floor is not level so you feel quite dizzy when walking around inside of it. Along with the upside down house, there is a lot of history told while walking around the village. The history is very dark and, really, quite depressing as it tells the story of how evil the Soviets were to many Polish people. I actually didn't realize how evil Stalin was, he's definitely on par with Hitler. Many Polish people were exported off the Siberia and basically killed. Geographically, Poland was in quite a rough neighbourhood being between Germany and the former USSR, not a great place to be. Our drive to Warsaw from Gdansk also included a lunch stop in the town of Torun where Tricia's Brother Kenneth recommended a great little Polish restaurant to stop at. We had the perogies of course! We are just about "perogied" out now! We arrived in Warsaw late, yesterday afternoon and checked into our home away from home, the Marriott Hotel. Our evening included a free feast at the Executive Lounge at the Marriott (for Gold members only baby!) followed by me and Bennett taking a swim and Tricia off to do a little shopping at the Mall. I also tried my luck at the Hotels on-site casino (I played some blackjack and lost - not too much though!). Today, we decided to take a bus tour of Warsaw. The tour included a lot of walking around a really great park in Warsaw called Lazienki Park as well as a nice walk around the Old Town of Warsaw. Our tour guide was very good and spoke English quite well. Through the tour and the tour-guide, we learned quite a bit about the history of Warsaw. Both the Nazis and the Soviets did terrible things in Warsaw, unspeakable atrocities. The city itself was pretty much completely destroyed during WWII but has been remarkably well restored. There are so many buildings of interest in Warsaw. It's a place where you could easily spend weeks touring around and exploring the different buildings and historical sights. The weather is quite cold right now at around 5 degrees, and it is very damp, so quite bone chilling. Tomorrow, we are off to Krakow, Poland, for some more history lessons. I will get Tricia to update her log in the morning.
Tricia: I'd heard mixed things of Warsaw, but I have to say I have really enjoyed it. The history is absolutely horrifying and amazing at the same time. Our tour yesterday was really great. It was about 3.5 hours and we did a tonne of walking through the city park and the Old Town. It was FREEZING! Our guide was excellent and gave us great information about Warsaw. It is really hard to believe that the town was basically leveled during the war. We also saw an area where the Nazi's lined up civilians and just started shooting. The only reason they stopped was that they ran out of ammunition.The bullet holes were still in the wall. It was terrifying and disturbing and very, very sad. I'm really happy that we saw Warsaw. Earlier in the day I took Bennett for a haircut. It actually looks good although I had to bribe him with a toy truck to actually have him sit still. He saw a man getting his hair shaved and became hysterical! A $10 haircut cost me another $20 for toys! We head now to Krakow and have heard it's amazing...
In Warsaw, Poland. Before arriving in Warsaw, we had a full day with Stan, Vanda and Ted. They took us to a small village outside of Gdansk called Szymbark where there is a building that was built upside down. It was quite a trip to go inside as the floor is not level so you feel quite dizzy when walking around inside of it. Along with the upside down house, there is a lot of history told while walking around the village. The history is very dark and, really, quite depressing as it tells the story of how evil the Soviets were to many Polish people. I actually didn't realize how evil Stalin was, he's definitely on par with Hitler. Many Polish people were exported off the Siberia and basically killed. Geographically, Poland was in quite a rough neighbourhood being between Germany and the former USSR, not a great place to be. Our drive to Warsaw from Gdansk also included a lunch stop in the town of Torun where Tricia's Brother Kenneth recommended a great little Polish restaurant to stop at. We had the perogies of course! We are just about "perogied" out now! We arrived in Warsaw late, yesterday afternoon and checked into our home away from home, the Marriott Hotel. Our evening included a free feast at the Executive Lounge at the Marriott (for Gold members only baby!) followed by me and Bennett taking a swim and Tricia off to do a little shopping at the Mall. I also tried my luck at the Hotels on-site casino (I played some blackjack and lost - not too much though!). Today, we decided to take a bus tour of Warsaw. The tour included a lot of walking around a really great park in Warsaw called Lazienki Park as well as a nice walk around the Old Town of Warsaw. Our tour guide was very good and spoke English quite well. Through the tour and the tour-guide, we learned quite a bit about the history of Warsaw. Both the Nazis and the Soviets did terrible things in Warsaw, unspeakable atrocities. The city itself was pretty much completely destroyed during WWII but has been remarkably well restored. There are so many buildings of interest in Warsaw. It's a place where you could easily spend weeks touring around and exploring the different buildings and historical sights. The weather is quite cold right now at around 5 degrees, and it is very damp, so quite bone chilling. Tomorrow, we are off to Krakow, Poland, for some more history lessons. I will get Tricia to update her log in the morning.
Tricia: I'd heard mixed things of Warsaw, but I have to say I have really enjoyed it. The history is absolutely horrifying and amazing at the same time. Our tour yesterday was really great. It was about 3.5 hours and we did a tonne of walking through the city park and the Old Town. It was FREEZING! Our guide was excellent and gave us great information about Warsaw. It is really hard to believe that the town was basically leveled during the war. We also saw an area where the Nazi's lined up civilians and just started shooting. The only reason they stopped was that they ran out of ammunition.The bullet holes were still in the wall. It was terrifying and disturbing and very, very sad. I'm really happy that we saw Warsaw. Earlier in the day I took Bennett for a haircut. It actually looks good although I had to bribe him with a toy truck to actually have him sit still. He saw a man getting his hair shaved and became hysterical! A $10 haircut cost me another $20 for toys! We head now to Krakow and have heard it's amazing...
February 27, 2014.
In Gdansk, Poland. After our stay in Berlin, we headed off on the road to Poland to stay in the Baltic Sea side town of Kolobrzeg. The City of Kolobrzeg is known in Poland for its many Spa resorts and we happened to stay at a nice Spa type Hotel called the Hotel Leda Spa. The Hotel had an excellent swimming pool area which Bennett and I enjoyed. The Baltic Sea was right in our backyard (well about 200 meters away) and along the coast line was a very nice beach (although it's quite chilly this time of year in Poland so you can only look at the water and not touch or swim in it). Although Poland is part of the European Union, like the UK, they use their own currency called the Polish Zlotych which currently trades at 2.73 to 1 in favour of the Canuck Buck (i.e. 1 CDN = 2.73 PLN). Prices seem quite a bit cheaper in Poland compared to Germany which is very nice for us as travelers. Driving in Poland is not quite as nice as in Germany, no beautiful Autobahns to drive on here. The roads and drivers seem very safe though, quite similar to back home in Canada. After Kolobrzeg, we headed to where we currently are, Gdansk. We have actually met up with our Sister In-Law Kathy's father Stan and his Sister (Vanda) and Husband (Ted). Stan is, coincidentally, visiting his 91 year old Mother here in Poland, he actually lives in Mississauga, Ontario. Not knowing that Stan and his Family had intended for us to stay with them, we had, unfortunately, already booked and paid for a 2 night stay right in the old town part of Gdansk. So, for the past 2 nights, we've been staying at our Hotel, called the Holland House Residence (which was beautiful!) and tonight and tomorrow we are sleeping over with Stan and his Family. We have been given incredible hospitality from Stan, Vanda and Ted, they are excellent company and they have given us guided tours of the all the highlights in and around Gdansk. We have seen some truly amazing buildings including churches (St. Mary's and St. Nicholas), a castle (the Malbork Castle) and a visit to the seaside town of Sopot. Stan is adamant that we stay for a few more days, but, alas, we have to move on as we are, after all, on a mission of travel and have many places left to see. Gdansk itself, the Old Town, is very beautiful with rich history going back over a thousand years ago. As shame, but much of the City was destroyed during WWII, but has been restored so you would actually hardly even know. Tomorrow, we are again spending the day with Stan, Vanda and Ted. On Saturday, it's off to Warsaw.
Tricia: If you don't hear from us in a few days it's because we are bedridden with fat and can't leave this house in Northern Poland. We LOVE Poland! As Bart said, we are currently with my sister-in-laws family in Gdansk and we could not ask to stay with nicer people. Vanda and Ted have been the most gracious hosts (and Stan is an awesome translator!). They have showed us all over the area - castles, churches, countryside and the town. Today we went to a house that has been built upside down. I have no clue how they did it but I felt like I was completely stoned the entire time that I was in there. You literally feel like you are walking on the ceilings. It was amazing. I also went this morning to get my hair done (HOURRAY!!!)...after 7 months. It was too funny though. I went to a salon at 9am with an entourage. Ted drove us, Vanda told the lady what I wanted and Stan translated. Stan knows a LOT about highlights and lowlights now. (I also had him help me pick out moisturizer...he loved it). It took 4 hours (this is why i HATE having my hair done) but it cost me $60! The problem is that we haven't had a break from food in days - schnitzel, perogies, cheese, bread, donuts, LOTS of food. It just keeps coming. And it's all good. Damn you bread and cheese!!! Tomorrow we leave to continue our journey.
In Gdansk, Poland. After our stay in Berlin, we headed off on the road to Poland to stay in the Baltic Sea side town of Kolobrzeg. The City of Kolobrzeg is known in Poland for its many Spa resorts and we happened to stay at a nice Spa type Hotel called the Hotel Leda Spa. The Hotel had an excellent swimming pool area which Bennett and I enjoyed. The Baltic Sea was right in our backyard (well about 200 meters away) and along the coast line was a very nice beach (although it's quite chilly this time of year in Poland so you can only look at the water and not touch or swim in it). Although Poland is part of the European Union, like the UK, they use their own currency called the Polish Zlotych which currently trades at 2.73 to 1 in favour of the Canuck Buck (i.e. 1 CDN = 2.73 PLN). Prices seem quite a bit cheaper in Poland compared to Germany which is very nice for us as travelers. Driving in Poland is not quite as nice as in Germany, no beautiful Autobahns to drive on here. The roads and drivers seem very safe though, quite similar to back home in Canada. After Kolobrzeg, we headed to where we currently are, Gdansk. We have actually met up with our Sister In-Law Kathy's father Stan and his Sister (Vanda) and Husband (Ted). Stan is, coincidentally, visiting his 91 year old Mother here in Poland, he actually lives in Mississauga, Ontario. Not knowing that Stan and his Family had intended for us to stay with them, we had, unfortunately, already booked and paid for a 2 night stay right in the old town part of Gdansk. So, for the past 2 nights, we've been staying at our Hotel, called the Holland House Residence (which was beautiful!) and tonight and tomorrow we are sleeping over with Stan and his Family. We have been given incredible hospitality from Stan, Vanda and Ted, they are excellent company and they have given us guided tours of the all the highlights in and around Gdansk. We have seen some truly amazing buildings including churches (St. Mary's and St. Nicholas), a castle (the Malbork Castle) and a visit to the seaside town of Sopot. Stan is adamant that we stay for a few more days, but, alas, we have to move on as we are, after all, on a mission of travel and have many places left to see. Gdansk itself, the Old Town, is very beautiful with rich history going back over a thousand years ago. As shame, but much of the City was destroyed during WWII, but has been restored so you would actually hardly even know. Tomorrow, we are again spending the day with Stan, Vanda and Ted. On Saturday, it's off to Warsaw.
Tricia: If you don't hear from us in a few days it's because we are bedridden with fat and can't leave this house in Northern Poland. We LOVE Poland! As Bart said, we are currently with my sister-in-laws family in Gdansk and we could not ask to stay with nicer people. Vanda and Ted have been the most gracious hosts (and Stan is an awesome translator!). They have showed us all over the area - castles, churches, countryside and the town. Today we went to a house that has been built upside down. I have no clue how they did it but I felt like I was completely stoned the entire time that I was in there. You literally feel like you are walking on the ceilings. It was amazing. I also went this morning to get my hair done (HOURRAY!!!)...after 7 months. It was too funny though. I went to a salon at 9am with an entourage. Ted drove us, Vanda told the lady what I wanted and Stan translated. Stan knows a LOT about highlights and lowlights now. (I also had him help me pick out moisturizer...he loved it). It took 4 hours (this is why i HATE having my hair done) but it cost me $60! The problem is that we haven't had a break from food in days - schnitzel, perogies, cheese, bread, donuts, LOTS of food. It just keeps coming. And it's all good. Damn you bread and cheese!!! Tomorrow we leave to continue our journey.
February 23, 2014.
In Berlin, Germany. The drive from Leipzig to Berlin would normally be about 2 hours at normal speed limits, but not on the Autobahn with it's long sections of no speed limits! What an incredible way to travel. During our last night in Leipzig, the fire alarm in our hotel burst to life at around 5:30AM. We had to go down to the lobby as it was not a drill. It turned out to be a faulty sprinkler that had erupted in the hotel lobby. Ah well, a little early morning excitement for us which kind of forced us to start our day early, not a bad thing. Our Hotel in Berlin is very good. A nice Marriott in the city center. You just can't go wrong with Marriott's, especially with Gold Status! During our first day in Berlin, we decided to take a hop on/off bus tour of the city. This type of tour is perfect for Berlin as there are so many buildings of interest to see, more than I've seen in any other city. We were actually a little lazy (still a bit jet lagged coming from Vietnam), so we spent a lot of time on the bus and not much hopping off. Most of our pictures of Berlin are taken from the comfort of the bus. We did get off in a couple of places, one being an area where there is a giant needle like building, similar to the CN Tower (not quite as tall though) called the Berlin TV Tower (The Fernsehturm). We also got off to see the famous Brandenburg Gate. Throughout the City, there are remnants of the Berlin Wall which fell in 1989, only 25 years ago! Berlin would have been a much different place when the Wall was still erected and that was always a thought in my head as we were walking around the City. We also saw Checkpoint Charlie which is another very famous landmark in Berlin which was basically a crossing area between East and West Berlin when there was a Wall. Unfortunately, we have yet to have a good meal in Germany, it could be that we have just made bad restaurant picks. The prices are very expensive for just about everything, especially food, alcohol and gas for the car (at around 1.50 Euros a litre which works out to about 2.25 CAD a litre). Today we drove to a nearby city called Potsdam. There is a beautiful and huge park in Potsdam called Sanssouci Park which we walked around for a good few hours. There is also a huge palace in the Park (called the Sanssouci Palace). We didn't go into the Palace, although tours were available, but it was still nice to walk around it and take pictures. Today was beautifully sunny and relatively mild at about 10 degrees, which is much colder than where we just came from in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, but very refreshing. The town of Potsdam also offers great pedestrian walking areas and it's so nice to walk down the old, and very well maintained, cobble stone streets where there were many shops (not open on Sunday unfortunately), cafes, and restaurants. Our time in Germany will be quite short at only about 5 days as we are driving into Poland tomorrow. We are very excited to spend some time in Poland and we see and hear that the prices are also a little more reasonable.
Tricia: Berlin is big. Very big. We could have easily spent several more days here touring the buildings and seeing such incredible history. However, I never really warmed up to the city. Not sure why but for me it doesn't have the charm or good vibes that I have had from other cities (like Wurzburg). That being said, the architecture and the history are absolutely amazing. Also, our day in Potsdam was so good. I LOVED Sancoussi Park. We spent about 3.5 hours walking through it and you just stumble across more and more beautiful buildings. It was a nice crisp and sunny day, so that definitely added to it. I'm really looking forward to Poland and we will hopefully be meeting up with Stan (my sister-in-law's father) who is visiting Poland at the same time! ALSO, (this is for my mum and cousin Margaret who were complaining) - we will be getting our hair cut as well (hopefully)...it's been 6 months and we are all looking a little worse for wear! We have been starting to plan our final leg of this journey and our schedule is filling up (for those of you who said they would meet up with us)!
In Berlin, Germany. The drive from Leipzig to Berlin would normally be about 2 hours at normal speed limits, but not on the Autobahn with it's long sections of no speed limits! What an incredible way to travel. During our last night in Leipzig, the fire alarm in our hotel burst to life at around 5:30AM. We had to go down to the lobby as it was not a drill. It turned out to be a faulty sprinkler that had erupted in the hotel lobby. Ah well, a little early morning excitement for us which kind of forced us to start our day early, not a bad thing. Our Hotel in Berlin is very good. A nice Marriott in the city center. You just can't go wrong with Marriott's, especially with Gold Status! During our first day in Berlin, we decided to take a hop on/off bus tour of the city. This type of tour is perfect for Berlin as there are so many buildings of interest to see, more than I've seen in any other city. We were actually a little lazy (still a bit jet lagged coming from Vietnam), so we spent a lot of time on the bus and not much hopping off. Most of our pictures of Berlin are taken from the comfort of the bus. We did get off in a couple of places, one being an area where there is a giant needle like building, similar to the CN Tower (not quite as tall though) called the Berlin TV Tower (The Fernsehturm). We also got off to see the famous Brandenburg Gate. Throughout the City, there are remnants of the Berlin Wall which fell in 1989, only 25 years ago! Berlin would have been a much different place when the Wall was still erected and that was always a thought in my head as we were walking around the City. We also saw Checkpoint Charlie which is another very famous landmark in Berlin which was basically a crossing area between East and West Berlin when there was a Wall. Unfortunately, we have yet to have a good meal in Germany, it could be that we have just made bad restaurant picks. The prices are very expensive for just about everything, especially food, alcohol and gas for the car (at around 1.50 Euros a litre which works out to about 2.25 CAD a litre). Today we drove to a nearby city called Potsdam. There is a beautiful and huge park in Potsdam called Sanssouci Park which we walked around for a good few hours. There is also a huge palace in the Park (called the Sanssouci Palace). We didn't go into the Palace, although tours were available, but it was still nice to walk around it and take pictures. Today was beautifully sunny and relatively mild at about 10 degrees, which is much colder than where we just came from in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, but very refreshing. The town of Potsdam also offers great pedestrian walking areas and it's so nice to walk down the old, and very well maintained, cobble stone streets where there were many shops (not open on Sunday unfortunately), cafes, and restaurants. Our time in Germany will be quite short at only about 5 days as we are driving into Poland tomorrow. We are very excited to spend some time in Poland and we see and hear that the prices are also a little more reasonable.
Tricia: Berlin is big. Very big. We could have easily spent several more days here touring the buildings and seeing such incredible history. However, I never really warmed up to the city. Not sure why but for me it doesn't have the charm or good vibes that I have had from other cities (like Wurzburg). That being said, the architecture and the history are absolutely amazing. Also, our day in Potsdam was so good. I LOVED Sancoussi Park. We spent about 3.5 hours walking through it and you just stumble across more and more beautiful buildings. It was a nice crisp and sunny day, so that definitely added to it. I'm really looking forward to Poland and we will hopefully be meeting up with Stan (my sister-in-law's father) who is visiting Poland at the same time! ALSO, (this is for my mum and cousin Margaret who were complaining) - we will be getting our hair cut as well (hopefully)...it's been 6 months and we are all looking a little worse for wear! We have been starting to plan our final leg of this journey and our schedule is filling up (for those of you who said they would meet up with us)!
February 21, 2014.
In Leipzig, Germany. Our flight from Ho Chi Minh City to Frankfurt, Germany, was very long at about 13 hours. We are relieved that we are now in Europe! What a difference it is coming from South East Asia to Germany. From our first impressions, Germany is the most advanced civilization that we've experienced, yes, even compared to Canada and the USA (sorry America!). Even the taxi cabs here are Mercedes, BMW and Audi's! Frankfurt is a very charming city. The buildings are beautiful and the downtown area is very clean and there are many places open to just pedestrian traffic. When we arrived in Germany, we hadn't yet set up the European maps for our GPS, so we were kind of blind getting to our hotel. Even with paper maps, it's amazing how dependent one becomes on a GPS to find things. We eventually made it to our hotel, a Holiday Inn which we booked via Hotwire (by the way, Hotwire sucks, as the rate we got would have been the same if we booked directly through the Holiday Inn website...let me say again so Hotwire gets bad on-line press....Hotwire sucks, Hotwire is the worst, Hotwire stinks, never use Hotwire.... ok, that's enough bad press for them.) When we called Hotwire to complain, they explained that the savings you receive are an average savings over all the Hotels they use. Whatever, they stink. We were very jet lagged once reaching our Hotel, so we didn't really see much of Frankfurt as we had only booked a 1 night stay. We were able to get all we needed while in Frankfurt, however, such as a car booster seat for Bennett (we've rented a car to get us around Northern Europe for the next few weeks), updated Euro maps for our GPS (we are no longer blind while driving!), and a cell phone number with a data plan. Our German phone number, if called from North America is 011 49 151 189 15791. We would love to hear from friends and family while traveling here, so please call us any time! Just remember that we are 6 hours ahead of Toronto time. Yesterday morning, we headed off on the road to Wurzburg, Germany. Let me say that you have not lived if you have not done the following. Firstly, driven a scooter or motorcycle in rush hour traffic anywhere in Vietnam, and secondly, driven on one of the Autobahns in Germany! Holy smokes!! Our vehicle is not great, a Hyundai, but I got up to almost 180KM/hour while driving (safely of course) on our trek to Wurzburg and still, other cars were passing us like we were standing still! It's totally amazing and exhilarating to be able to go as fast as you want on a highway and max out the performance of the vehicle you are driving! Driving on the Autobahn in Germany has been a major highlight for me so far, I only wish I had a performance vehicle to do it in. We stayed at a great hotel in Wurzburg, called the Ghotel, which was very clean and located in the downtown area. Although Wurzburg is not a big city, it's beautiful! We visited at place called the Wurzburg Residence which is a palace, constructed in the 1700's. Unfortunately, it was "verboten" (forbidden in German) to take pictures while inside (a shame because the inside was unbelievably beautiful). The outside of the palace was also nice as well which offered a great garden area surrounding the building. We also visited a picturesque bridge, over the Main River. Europeans are so very sophisticated, sipping their wine, consuming beer, and puffing a cigar or cigarette on the bridge, while enjoying the views and watching a sunset. It just seems so unbelievably civilized here! We enjoyed our first European dinner in Wurzburg. Schnitzel and beer of course! Today, we drove further East to Leipzig, Germany, again enjoying the speed of the Autobahn. Leipzig is much bigger than Wurzburg and we find it much less charming. We did visit the local Leipzig Zoo, but because it is still winter, many of the big animals were not outside. What is kind of funny is that many of the animals that we saw in the zoo, in captivity, we had already seen in their natural environments and in their native countries. Examples being elephants, monkeys, kangaroos, deer and crocodiles. Yes....we have seen SO much during our travels thus far! We love Marriott hotels. We've patronized them throughout the world and for me, pretty much exclusively while traveling on business. Once again, Marriott has come through with our current stay in Leipzig. Having Gold Elite status has paid off handsomely as we get to enjoy the Executive Lounge, get free upgrades to our room and enjoy free breakfast (expensive here in Germany) and free internet (again something you usually pay for in Europe and we take for granted in North America). So far, it's a big two thumbs up for Germany and we are excited to be traveling to Berlin tomorrow where we have booked ourselves into, yet again, another Marriott stay. Tricia will update her log in the morning. Bye for now!
Tricia: First off, I HATE flying. Not sure if anyone knew this but I absolutely HATE it.It won't stop me from going anywhere but I am that REALLY nervous flyer who sits white knuckled for the duration of a flight. Enter Adavan. Let's just say, it helps me and makes Bart's life a little easier. Bennett LOVES flying, he thinks turbulence is fun and is happy to sit in his seat and look out the window. Thank God. When we finally touched down in Frankfurt, I could not have been happier. It is such a contrast here vs. Asia that it took a little bit of adjustment. First off, it's cold. Actually, it's refreshing. We have had amazing weather for the last 6 months...usually over 28 and sunny! Here it is about 10 degrees and a little overcast but I like it! Also, it is VERY clean and organized (very, German). And lastly, it's expensive! We are used to paying 50C to $1 for a beer - here, not so much. Bennett is happier too because people aren't running up and touching him. He was hitting his limit and starting to be horrible to people that would even smile at him in Asia! He developed a complex whereby now if people are laughing around him, he thinks they are laughing at him and he gets REALLY mad. (This child has a temper and sadly I think it comes from my family). Anyway, we are trying to convince him to be less egocentric...Frankfurt is a very pretty city but sadly we didn't see too much of it because of jet lag. However, we LOVED Wurzburg. It is magical. It looks like a fairytale town and we had such a nice day walking through the town and going to the Residence and Gardens. Leipzig is not for me. It is very square...that's how I describe it. Everything is boxlike and it is big and just not for me. As Bart mentioned, we are at the Marriott, which is great. But today we were jolted awake by the fire alarm...not sure what happened but there is major damage in the lobby. Quite a loud start to the day! Anyway, we are off to Berlin - Bart's excited as he gets to drive like a maniac...(but it is surprisingly safe). We hope Aunt Tricia feels better!
In Leipzig, Germany. Our flight from Ho Chi Minh City to Frankfurt, Germany, was very long at about 13 hours. We are relieved that we are now in Europe! What a difference it is coming from South East Asia to Germany. From our first impressions, Germany is the most advanced civilization that we've experienced, yes, even compared to Canada and the USA (sorry America!). Even the taxi cabs here are Mercedes, BMW and Audi's! Frankfurt is a very charming city. The buildings are beautiful and the downtown area is very clean and there are many places open to just pedestrian traffic. When we arrived in Germany, we hadn't yet set up the European maps for our GPS, so we were kind of blind getting to our hotel. Even with paper maps, it's amazing how dependent one becomes on a GPS to find things. We eventually made it to our hotel, a Holiday Inn which we booked via Hotwire (by the way, Hotwire sucks, as the rate we got would have been the same if we booked directly through the Holiday Inn website...let me say again so Hotwire gets bad on-line press....Hotwire sucks, Hotwire is the worst, Hotwire stinks, never use Hotwire.... ok, that's enough bad press for them.) When we called Hotwire to complain, they explained that the savings you receive are an average savings over all the Hotels they use. Whatever, they stink. We were very jet lagged once reaching our Hotel, so we didn't really see much of Frankfurt as we had only booked a 1 night stay. We were able to get all we needed while in Frankfurt, however, such as a car booster seat for Bennett (we've rented a car to get us around Northern Europe for the next few weeks), updated Euro maps for our GPS (we are no longer blind while driving!), and a cell phone number with a data plan. Our German phone number, if called from North America is 011 49 151 189 15791. We would love to hear from friends and family while traveling here, so please call us any time! Just remember that we are 6 hours ahead of Toronto time. Yesterday morning, we headed off on the road to Wurzburg, Germany. Let me say that you have not lived if you have not done the following. Firstly, driven a scooter or motorcycle in rush hour traffic anywhere in Vietnam, and secondly, driven on one of the Autobahns in Germany! Holy smokes!! Our vehicle is not great, a Hyundai, but I got up to almost 180KM/hour while driving (safely of course) on our trek to Wurzburg and still, other cars were passing us like we were standing still! It's totally amazing and exhilarating to be able to go as fast as you want on a highway and max out the performance of the vehicle you are driving! Driving on the Autobahn in Germany has been a major highlight for me so far, I only wish I had a performance vehicle to do it in. We stayed at a great hotel in Wurzburg, called the Ghotel, which was very clean and located in the downtown area. Although Wurzburg is not a big city, it's beautiful! We visited at place called the Wurzburg Residence which is a palace, constructed in the 1700's. Unfortunately, it was "verboten" (forbidden in German) to take pictures while inside (a shame because the inside was unbelievably beautiful). The outside of the palace was also nice as well which offered a great garden area surrounding the building. We also visited a picturesque bridge, over the Main River. Europeans are so very sophisticated, sipping their wine, consuming beer, and puffing a cigar or cigarette on the bridge, while enjoying the views and watching a sunset. It just seems so unbelievably civilized here! We enjoyed our first European dinner in Wurzburg. Schnitzel and beer of course! Today, we drove further East to Leipzig, Germany, again enjoying the speed of the Autobahn. Leipzig is much bigger than Wurzburg and we find it much less charming. We did visit the local Leipzig Zoo, but because it is still winter, many of the big animals were not outside. What is kind of funny is that many of the animals that we saw in the zoo, in captivity, we had already seen in their natural environments and in their native countries. Examples being elephants, monkeys, kangaroos, deer and crocodiles. Yes....we have seen SO much during our travels thus far! We love Marriott hotels. We've patronized them throughout the world and for me, pretty much exclusively while traveling on business. Once again, Marriott has come through with our current stay in Leipzig. Having Gold Elite status has paid off handsomely as we get to enjoy the Executive Lounge, get free upgrades to our room and enjoy free breakfast (expensive here in Germany) and free internet (again something you usually pay for in Europe and we take for granted in North America). So far, it's a big two thumbs up for Germany and we are excited to be traveling to Berlin tomorrow where we have booked ourselves into, yet again, another Marriott stay. Tricia will update her log in the morning. Bye for now!
Tricia: First off, I HATE flying. Not sure if anyone knew this but I absolutely HATE it.It won't stop me from going anywhere but I am that REALLY nervous flyer who sits white knuckled for the duration of a flight. Enter Adavan. Let's just say, it helps me and makes Bart's life a little easier. Bennett LOVES flying, he thinks turbulence is fun and is happy to sit in his seat and look out the window. Thank God. When we finally touched down in Frankfurt, I could not have been happier. It is such a contrast here vs. Asia that it took a little bit of adjustment. First off, it's cold. Actually, it's refreshing. We have had amazing weather for the last 6 months...usually over 28 and sunny! Here it is about 10 degrees and a little overcast but I like it! Also, it is VERY clean and organized (very, German). And lastly, it's expensive! We are used to paying 50C to $1 for a beer - here, not so much. Bennett is happier too because people aren't running up and touching him. He was hitting his limit and starting to be horrible to people that would even smile at him in Asia! He developed a complex whereby now if people are laughing around him, he thinks they are laughing at him and he gets REALLY mad. (This child has a temper and sadly I think it comes from my family). Anyway, we are trying to convince him to be less egocentric...Frankfurt is a very pretty city but sadly we didn't see too much of it because of jet lag. However, we LOVED Wurzburg. It is magical. It looks like a fairytale town and we had such a nice day walking through the town and going to the Residence and Gardens. Leipzig is not for me. It is very square...that's how I describe it. Everything is boxlike and it is big and just not for me. As Bart mentioned, we are at the Marriott, which is great. But today we were jolted awake by the fire alarm...not sure what happened but there is major damage in the lobby. Quite a loud start to the day! Anyway, we are off to Berlin - Bart's excited as he gets to drive like a maniac...(but it is surprisingly safe). We hope Aunt Tricia feels better!