Switzerland (summer 2012 - catch up time)

First Stop: Switzerland

Zurich

Zurich

We began our adventure in Zurich Switzerland. It was a
little overwhelming at first. Zurich is a big, busy, and not
so friendly city, but we still decided to explore for the day
before heading to our hotel. The architecture was quaint
and detailed.











The first town we stayed in was
Lauterbrunnen. It was surrounded by
amazing mountains which began with
bright green grass at the base and were
topped with white snow.

I absolutely loved the flower boxes
in Switzerland.  There were many
flowerboxes on houses, as well as
patios, due to the mild
summer weather.

Lauterbrunnen and Surrounding Towns

We went on a 5 hour
hike the first day. At the
beginning of the hike
we saw tons of cows!
They wear cowbells, so
if they are lost you can
find them. It was super
loud, but you get used
to it! We also went by a
cheese/dairy farm (the
smell was quite strong).

The mountains we could view on
our hike were magnificent! They
were bright green at the base and
then snow at the very top!
Gorgeous!

We loved that the signs in Switzerland showed
hiking times. It helped us to determine if we were
on the right track!

Next destination was Luzern! It was a bigger city,
but still had amazing views. It was much more
friendly and slower-paced than Zurich!

France (summer 2012 ...Playing catch up)

Second Stop: France

Our first few stops consisted of the Louvre and Eiffle Tower. We didn't have to pay to enter the Louvre because it was Bastille Day. We didn't have to wait in line either because a friend of Jeff's told him about a side entrance (completely allowed - not really known to most who aren't local). The weather was absolutely gorgeous! In the mid-70's.

The Eiffel Tower was so much fun to visit (but it is
brown- I thought it was black - oh well). Since it
was Bastille Day there was a huge firework show
at 11 pm (which is when it gets dark during the
summer). There were THOUSANDS of people. It
was truly a once in a lifetime experience!

 The next day we continued to explore the city and went to Notre Dame! After breakfast, it
was time to
explore Notre
Dame! We toured
the inside and
then climbed up
one of the towers.
There were 400
steps one way!

Day Three was the most relaxing. We went to Versailles
Palace. The grounds were breathtaking! We spent the day walking the grounds, renting a boat, and eating delicious food! Again, perfect weather! We lucked out!

Germany (last part of our Europe Trip)

Stop Three: Germany

Our main reason for planning this trip was to visit our good friends Cinnamon and Adam. Adam ended up having to go away, so we just got to visit with Cin and the kids, but it was so nice to see them. We hadn't seem them in about 8 months (not that I am counting). Cin and I have been good friends since my first year of teaching (about 8 years ago - wow, where does the time go). I am so glad we were able to spend special time with them while they were living overseas. They should be back this fall! WOO HOO! :) We miss them dearly!


The first day we went to an amazing castle
and then went to
a chocolate factory!

It was such a pretty day! We really lucked out with the
weather! Over the next couple days we explored Cinnamon's
little town of Echterdingen (went to fruit markets, cafe's) and
then we explored Stuttgart. We saw an amazing toy store,
went to a planetarium, and just enjoyed the city (despite the
rain that day). When we were at Cinnamon's we played with
the kids (Jeff played trains a lot) and tried to help her out
since Adam was away. It was nice to have quality time with
them all!