Well, we've been back for a week and a day now, and nope, we are not even near getting all caught up yet! But, Tad and I wanted to jot down an outline of our trip while it is still so fresh in our minds and the visions are still dancing in our dreams.
We flew down on Saturday the 21st of November. Sandy and Sean met us at the airport. When we arrived at Sandy and Erik's apartment, Thanksgiving dinner was cooked and ready to eat. Sandy did a beautiful job with all of the Thanksgiving dishes. We visited and Sean entertained us with his guitar playing, and we watched the movie UP. Monday morning we were up early and flew from John Wayne Airport to San Francisco, made our way to the International terminal and boarded a giant 747. Sandy had procured us an economy plus seat which allowed us a few extra inches of leg room. Thanks Sandy!. We took up the four center seats of a 10 across row. We were only two rows from a divider, so we had a great view of a rather large flat screen TV. Watched four movies and two TV shows on the way out.
We landed in Frankfurt just a little before 10 am and found our way to the train platform. Took the ICE train, which stands for inter city express. That train books! We found ourselves riding at speeds up to 200 kph. We were all very tired, having not actually slept on the 10 plus hour flight out, but the excitement was like a shot of caffeine. We arrived at our destination, Koblenz in the early afternoon, walked from the train station to our hotel, the Ibis Koblenz. Sandy told us we were going to check in, grab a bite and take a train to see a nearby castle. So, we checked in, ate at a take out sandwich type shop and hurried on to the train station. We rode a short distance to a town called Boppard. As we got off the train we had to climb up a set of stairs that brought us to the street level. If you looked WAY up, on the top of this giant mountain sat this castle. I sort of remember Sandy teasing Tad about getting a taxi, but the reality of the moment is there were no vehicles of any type around at that moment. So we walked, and struggled up this mountain and an additional 700 stairs and toured the beautiful Marksburg castle. We were very fortunate because everyone that was there to tour the castle spoke English, so we were able to have an English tour. After we returned to Koblenz that evening, we walked up town and visited the Christmas market area. Sandy and Erik enjoyed the Gluhwein and Tad and I shared pomme frits and currywurst, only Tad ate the currywurst and I ate the pomme frits, with mayo.
The next day Tad and I woke up at about 4 am. We laughed about the guy in the next room snoring and apparently okay but making these gasping choking noises as he cleared his throat. We all met early and walked down to the Rhine river, then back to the train station and went to Koln. As you get off the train in Koln and leave the train station the first thing that catches your eyes is this magnificent cathedral. Sandy told us it was the best representation of Gothic architecture in the world. We spent a long time walking through and around the cathedral. We also went though a nearby museum with world class exhibits of early Roman life and culture. There again, with unlimited time, you could have spent days in that museum. We had what Tad said was the best meal of the trip in a little underground area of a beerhaus. Tad said what he had was a pork dish, but what it looked like was a mixture of pork, veggies and potatoes and a sauce he thought was really good. I had a variety of cheeses and breads. A funny thing did happen there at that meal. Erik asked for a large beer, and the waiter said, "This is not Munich, we only serve little beers here." So Erik had a "little beer". After leaving Koln we took the train to Bonn. We walked around the town some and went through Beethoven's birth home and museum. We got back to Koblenz late, and Tad stayed at the hotel while Sandy, Erik and I walked back up to the Christmas market.
The next day we were up and out to the train station early. Tad and I had McDonalds breakfast, and Sandy and Erik teased us. Our next stop was Nurnberg. It didn't seem to take to long to arrive in Nurnberg. We checked into our hotel, the Eurohotel. We saw the Albert Durer museum and did quite a bit of walking, and I dragged everyone to the "meat bridge" that I had read about in the Rick Steve's tour book. The meat bridge is the oldest bridge without peers to support it, and by golly, I was gonna see it or else!! We ended up having lunch at a Italian restaurant. We walked around the Castle in Nurnburg, and when we finally returned to the hotel it was after dark. The next day Tad and I went to Rothenburg by ourselves while Erik and Sandy went off to see some of the old Nazi sites nearby. Tad and I ended up taking three trains to get to Rothenburg, but it was well worth it. If you ever make it to Germany, put Rothenburg on your lists, and if you have a whole lot of money, check out the coo coo clocks. We didn't get to go on the night watchman's tour, but we will if we ever go back. That night we saw the opening of the Christmas market in Nurnberg. It is the most famous Christmas market in Germany and they go all out with carols and ending up with a Christmas Angel speaking to the people from atop of a cathedral balcony. It really was beautiful and would have been much better if we had not been surrounded by a throng of on lookers. It was, from that standpoint a little scary.
The last leg of our journey was to Berlin. Once again we boarded the ICE train and headed to Berlin. This took about 5 hours. Berlin's train station is more that awesome. Many many levels and the front is made entirely of glass. Sandy had us staying in the Arcohotel velvet. Now the hotel itself really is different. We walked from a local train though what seemed like a scary section of town, and ended up at our hotel. The entire front wall of this place was a window, and although the toilet was in it's own enclosed space, the shower/bath and sink was way open to the world. I'll never forget Tad pointing out our room from outside and yep, there was our bed..etc..
Sandy and Erik took us to the Pergamon museum right off, located on Museum Island. There again, we were treated to a world class museum. And again, one could have spent a day there and not taken in all it had to offer. That night Tad and I went down to the hotel restaurant and had dessert, and I have to say the taste I had of the chocolate cake Tad had was the best I had ever tasted. The next day Tad and I once again took off by ourselves and rode the train around the city. We later caught up with Sandy and Erik and Erik's sister Johanna and her husband Phredd. They were visiting from England. We walked along the Berlin wall, saw the biggest department store in Germany, they call it KaWeDe for short, Tad and I visited the Jewish Museum, and walked the Unter der linden street. We saw the Berlin Christmas market and ate Australian food and German vegan food. From Berlin we traveled back to Frankfurt and spent the night in the Westin hotel. We ended our German trip walking up town in Frankfurt and eating at the Pizza Hut that Erik and Sandy had enjoyed in earlier trips of theirs. We returned to the Frankfurt Airport and boarded our 747 back to San Francisco and then a smaller plane to Orange County. It was dark when we landed, and I think we were asleep before our heads hit the pillow. The next day both Sandy and Erik had to return to work, so Tad and I took a walk to the grocery store and did what we could to help the kids get caught up. The next morning Sandy and Erik dropped us off at the airport and we returned to our lives. Hope you enjoyed this update. And as the Germans said "Bis Balt" Guten Nacht. Stacy
We flew down on Saturday the 21st of November. Sandy and Sean met us at the airport. When we arrived at Sandy and Erik's apartment, Thanksgiving dinner was cooked and ready to eat. Sandy did a beautiful job with all of the Thanksgiving dishes. We visited and Sean entertained us with his guitar playing, and we watched the movie UP. Monday morning we were up early and flew from John Wayne Airport to San Francisco, made our way to the International terminal and boarded a giant 747. Sandy had procured us an economy plus seat which allowed us a few extra inches of leg room. Thanks Sandy!. We took up the four center seats of a 10 across row. We were only two rows from a divider, so we had a great view of a rather large flat screen TV. Watched four movies and two TV shows on the way out.
We landed in Frankfurt just a little before 10 am and found our way to the train platform. Took the ICE train, which stands for inter city express. That train books! We found ourselves riding at speeds up to 200 kph. We were all very tired, having not actually slept on the 10 plus hour flight out, but the excitement was like a shot of caffeine. We arrived at our destination, Koblenz in the early afternoon, walked from the train station to our hotel, the Ibis Koblenz. Sandy told us we were going to check in, grab a bite and take a train to see a nearby castle. So, we checked in, ate at a take out sandwich type shop and hurried on to the train station. We rode a short distance to a town called Boppard. As we got off the train we had to climb up a set of stairs that brought us to the street level. If you looked WAY up, on the top of this giant mountain sat this castle. I sort of remember Sandy teasing Tad about getting a taxi, but the reality of the moment is there were no vehicles of any type around at that moment. So we walked, and struggled up this mountain and an additional 700 stairs and toured the beautiful Marksburg castle. We were very fortunate because everyone that was there to tour the castle spoke English, so we were able to have an English tour. After we returned to Koblenz that evening, we walked up town and visited the Christmas market area. Sandy and Erik enjoyed the Gluhwein and Tad and I shared pomme frits and currywurst, only Tad ate the currywurst and I ate the pomme frits, with mayo.
The next day Tad and I woke up at about 4 am. We laughed about the guy in the next room snoring and apparently okay but making these gasping choking noises as he cleared his throat. We all met early and walked down to the Rhine river, then back to the train station and went to Koln. As you get off the train in Koln and leave the train station the first thing that catches your eyes is this magnificent cathedral. Sandy told us it was the best representation of Gothic architecture in the world. We spent a long time walking through and around the cathedral. We also went though a nearby museum with world class exhibits of early Roman life and culture. There again, with unlimited time, you could have spent days in that museum. We had what Tad said was the best meal of the trip in a little underground area of a beerhaus. Tad said what he had was a pork dish, but what it looked like was a mixture of pork, veggies and potatoes and a sauce he thought was really good. I had a variety of cheeses and breads. A funny thing did happen there at that meal. Erik asked for a large beer, and the waiter said, "This is not Munich, we only serve little beers here." So Erik had a "little beer". After leaving Koln we took the train to Bonn. We walked around the town some and went through Beethoven's birth home and museum. We got back to Koblenz late, and Tad stayed at the hotel while Sandy, Erik and I walked back up to the Christmas market.
The next day we were up and out to the train station early. Tad and I had McDonalds breakfast, and Sandy and Erik teased us. Our next stop was Nurnberg. It didn't seem to take to long to arrive in Nurnberg. We checked into our hotel, the Eurohotel. We saw the Albert Durer museum and did quite a bit of walking, and I dragged everyone to the "meat bridge" that I had read about in the Rick Steve's tour book. The meat bridge is the oldest bridge without peers to support it, and by golly, I was gonna see it or else!! We ended up having lunch at a Italian restaurant. We walked around the Castle in Nurnburg, and when we finally returned to the hotel it was after dark. The next day Tad and I went to Rothenburg by ourselves while Erik and Sandy went off to see some of the old Nazi sites nearby. Tad and I ended up taking three trains to get to Rothenburg, but it was well worth it. If you ever make it to Germany, put Rothenburg on your lists, and if you have a whole lot of money, check out the coo coo clocks. We didn't get to go on the night watchman's tour, but we will if we ever go back. That night we saw the opening of the Christmas market in Nurnberg. It is the most famous Christmas market in Germany and they go all out with carols and ending up with a Christmas Angel speaking to the people from atop of a cathedral balcony. It really was beautiful and would have been much better if we had not been surrounded by a throng of on lookers. It was, from that standpoint a little scary.
The last leg of our journey was to Berlin. Once again we boarded the ICE train and headed to Berlin. This took about 5 hours. Berlin's train station is more that awesome. Many many levels and the front is made entirely of glass. Sandy had us staying in the Arcohotel velvet. Now the hotel itself really is different. We walked from a local train though what seemed like a scary section of town, and ended up at our hotel. The entire front wall of this place was a window, and although the toilet was in it's own enclosed space, the shower/bath and sink was way open to the world. I'll never forget Tad pointing out our room from outside and yep, there was our bed..etc..
Sandy and Erik took us to the Pergamon museum right off, located on Museum Island. There again, we were treated to a world class museum. And again, one could have spent a day there and not taken in all it had to offer. That night Tad and I went down to the hotel restaurant and had dessert, and I have to say the taste I had of the chocolate cake Tad had was the best I had ever tasted. The next day Tad and I once again took off by ourselves and rode the train around the city. We later caught up with Sandy and Erik and Erik's sister Johanna and her husband Phredd. They were visiting from England. We walked along the Berlin wall, saw the biggest department store in Germany, they call it KaWeDe for short, Tad and I visited the Jewish Museum, and walked the Unter der linden street. We saw the Berlin Christmas market and ate Australian food and German vegan food. From Berlin we traveled back to Frankfurt and spent the night in the Westin hotel. We ended our German trip walking up town in Frankfurt and eating at the Pizza Hut that Erik and Sandy had enjoyed in earlier trips of theirs. We returned to the Frankfurt Airport and boarded our 747 back to San Francisco and then a smaller plane to Orange County. It was dark when we landed, and I think we were asleep before our heads hit the pillow. The next day both Sandy and Erik had to return to work, so Tad and I took a walk to the grocery store and did what we could to help the kids get caught up. The next morning Sandy and Erik dropped us off at the airport and we returned to our lives. Hope you enjoyed this update. And as the Germans said "Bis Balt" Guten Nacht. Stacy
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