Auf Wiedersehen

I like to keep a list of all the things we have done in the "area" where ever we move.  One, I can look back and see all the things we have accomplished.  Two, others can browse through and get ideas. And three, I like lists.  I already have a few things to check off in San Antonio!

Black Forest, Triberg waterfall, bought cookoo clock

Prague (bone church)

Berlin

Tropical Paradise

Eagles Nest (want to hike someday)

Salzburg 

Berchtesgaden

Lake Konigssee

Phantom of the Opera Musical in London

Dachau 

Auschwitz-Birkenau

Brussels, Brugge, Ghent

Hiked Zugspitz

Bastei Bridge

Devils Bridge

Polish pottery shopping in Boleslaweic x3

Rhein falls, Lucerne, and Lauterbrunnen

Kuekenhof tulip festival (maybe later in the season)

Hofbrauhaus & Munich

Nuremberg rally grounds and castle

Neuschwanstein, Linderhof, Nymphenburg, Herrenchiemsee castles

Ettal monostary, cheese making 

Ring tour and Rudesheim

Ludwigsburg Pumpkin Festival x2

Straubing Fest x3

Highline 179 and ruins

Innsbruck

Belgian waffles and chocolate

Lake Bled & Vintgar gorge, Slovenia

Ski in Austria x 1

Guteneck Christmas market x2

Dresden Christmas market

Hike Jenner Mountain

Kranjska Gora, Slovenia and snowshoe to waterfall (drive up the road made by WWI POW)

Nurnberg Christmas market x2

Hike Appenzell, Switzerland 

Thurn taxis Christmas market

Buy Holland shoes and see the windmills

Kuhstallcafe Christmas market

Sicily- Catania, Taormina 

Partenkirchen gorge

Kuchlbauer Tower tour and Christmas market

Stonehenge

Parsberg Christmas market

Lupberg Christmas market

Playmobil 

Cologne fasching

Neumarkt Christmas market

Bath, UK

Dietfurt Chinese fasching x2

Liverpool, UK

Munich 10K, glockenspiel, English park surfing

Nurnberg color run 5k

Berglegenfeld Christmas market

Pottenstein, Germany

Waldwipfeldweg

Rothenburg- Christmas market and night watchmen tour

Vienna and Bratislava

Half marathon in Vienna, Austria

Kristall Palm Beach

Rome, Pompeii, Herculeneum, Capri 

Wunseidel Rock Labyrinth 

Parkstein inactive volcano

Lake Garda and Verona

Ronda, Nerja, & Malaga Spain

Hiked Caminito del Rey

Würtzburg 1/2 marathon

Snow White Castle in Lohr 

Gibraltar (tour of the caves)

DB museum, Nurnberg

Heidelberg, Märchen Paradies

Luxembourg City, casemates, American cemetery and memorial

Ljubljana dragon bridge and castle

Postojna castle & cave

Croatia: Plitvice National Park, Split, Dubrovnik, Krka National Park, Zadar sea organ

1/2 marathon Füssen

Ice cave hike in Berchtesgaden

Hallstatt, Austria and bone house

Mittenwald and Krün Almabtrieb

Oktoberfest 

Half marathon France

Mediterranean East Cruise- Venice, Corfu, Mykonos, Santorini, Athens

Athens authentic marathon 2016

Anne Frank house, Corrie ten Boon house 

Budapest, Hungary: parliament, Buda castle, St. Stephen's basilica, market square, Christmas markets, old synagogue, heroes square

Vienna Christmas market, Straubing Christmas market, Stuttgart Christmas market, Strasbourg Christmas market 

Skiing Söll, Austria x 3

Fuerteventura, Canary Island, Spain

Therme Erding 

Velburg fasching parade

Disneyland Paris, Eiffel Tower Carousel

Cesky Krumlov girls weekend

Barcelona and hiked up Montserrat

Scotland: Stirling, the Kelpies, Edinburgh, the Trossachs, Isle of Arran, Hadrian's wall

Ireland: Killarney NP, gap of Dunloe, ring of Kerry, Dingle, Cliffs of Moher, Dublin, Burran NP, Book of Kells

1/2 Marathon Karlovy Vary

Beer bath

We have high hopes of returning back to Europe, whether on vacation or another tour with the military.  I still want to visit northern France, do a Band of Brothers tour, and go to Paris as a family.  Of course, there are plenty of other things I'd love to do, but that was high on our list.  We just didn't have time.  Unti   

Croatia and Slovenia

We had such a blast on our big summer vacation.  I know it seems like we are always on vacation, but I have been planning and waiting for this trip all year.  We had lots of beach time, sunshine, and relaxation- which can be hard when you live in Europe and want to visit every city/country.  We spent three days in Slovenia and eight days in Croatia.

 Day 1: We drove to Slovenia and checked out the city Ljubljana.  Spent the night. We have found that bringing Kate's little balance bike is a game changer.  She loves roaming around the city centers and doesn't ask to be carried the whole time. 

Day 2: Drove to Postojna cave.  Super cool cave that is 109km long with a train that goes super fast.  Don't stand up or you might just get hit by a stalactite.  Drove to Predjama castle.  One of the coolest castles we have seen.  It is built into a cave system that will lead out onto the other side of the mountain.  At one point in history, there was a one year siege and the attackers couldn't figure out how the castle dwellers were still alive!

Day 3: Plitvice Lake National Park

 Hiking through gorgeous cascades of waterfalls for hours!





Day 4: Drive to Split for some beach time and then onto Dubrovnik

 Bacvice Beach- the perfect sandy beach for both girls to enjoy!

 Day 4-9: Hang out in Dubrovnik

 Banje Beach- perfect view of the old city

 Amazing food

 View from our apartment

 Walking to the old city of Dubrovnik

 Dubrovnik

 Looking at the bottom of the ocean with these neat boat with a glass bottom.

 View of Dubrovnik from the boat

 

Day 9: Starting our drive back home with many stops

 





We stopped at another sandy beach called Prapratno.  Another perfect beach to build sand castles and splash in the water. 

 We went to Krka National Park.

You can actually get in the water here.  It was surprisingly warm!

 

 

We also made a stop in Zadar to listen to the Sea Organ.  We then drove through the night to Bled, Slovenia (but got stuck in a crazy wind storm).

 

Day 10: Hiking at Vintgar Gorge

Day 11: Finishing our drive back home

 

Slovenia

Over the MLK weekend, we packed up our little VW golf and headed to Kranjska Gora, Slovenia.  This is country number 9 for our little Kate.  We were hoping to see more snow so we could go skiing and snowshoeing, but the weather was not cooperative.  Above freezing the whole time, plus rain = slush and ice. We got a little house about 200m from the ski resort, which would have been perfect, but it didn't turn out.  You can never rely on the weather here in Europe. 

 The first day we went snow hiking around Lake Jasna.  We didn't need snowshoes, although they might have prevented us from slipping.

 The second day it rained ALL DAY long, so it was very cold and wet.  We traveled to Lake Bled and toured the castle, the lake, and ate the famous Bled cream cake.  We didn't take the ferry to the island with the church because it just wouldn't have been fun and I heard it's pretty pricey.

Instead, we went to the Vintgar Gorge.  It was closed, but that didn't stop us.  That is until parts of the hand rails and boards were missing from rock and ice slides.  We turned right back around.  Don't worry, there were others there doing the same as us.  Trying to see the waterfall at the end of the gorge.

 The third day we attempted to take the car up Vrsic Pass.  It is a road built for a military purpose during WWI by Russian POWs.  It has 50 cobblestone hairpin turns (24 up and 26 down) through the Julian Alps.  We only made it to turn 15, as the road conditions were a little dangerous.  We reached about 1200 meters and I think the top is 1600 meters. The views were incredible and the mountains are jagged.  Maybe next time, if someone wants to come visit! {hint, hint}

 Bryan and the Julian Alps.

The third day we also went snowshoeing to the beautiful 52 meter waterfall Pericnik. In the summertime you can actually go behind the waterfall.  Another reason to visit Slovenia again!