We have returned from ten days of traveling through Germany and Scandinavia – and it’s pretty difficult to give you a snappy summary of all the things that we saw! We managed to follow the plans we originally made, and it was quite a remarkable adventure.
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Most of the trip went smoothly – Allyson lost a pair of jeans in our Munich hostel, and we lost Caroline for a few minutes, before we even left Vienna – but our trains were almost always on time, our lodgings were consistently nice, and none of our stuff was stolen.
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Life on the train.m
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We rode eighteen trains (for an approximate total of 68 hours), visited four countries, worked with four different currencies, and spent more money than we care to report. We had a lot of sunshine, a couple of rainy days, and a few hours of snow. By the time we reached Vienna, we were exhausted and glad to be “home!”
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Keith's first snowball of the season, near Myrdal, Norway.m
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Favorite moments would include the Neuschwanstein Castle (Germany), a riverboat tour from Mainz to St. Goar (Germany), and a long walk through the city of Copenhagen. The grownups really enjoyed the scenic train ride across Norway, and we all enjoyed the Viking ship museum in Oslo. Favorite meals would certainly include the Hard Rock Café in Copenhagen!
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A lot of our travel information came from Rick Steves, but he didn’t prepare us for everything . . .
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Top 10 True Things That Rick Steves Did Not Tell Us:
10. Old bicycles never die – they go to Scandinavia. m
9. It is impossible to walk a straight line down a European sidewalk.
8. European universities don’t understand the importance of T-shirts.
7. True to stereotypes, Scandinavia has a bunch of blonde men named Sven, Lars, and Thor.
6. Denmark is officially sponsored by 7-Eleven.
5. It is good to preview the channels your children can watch in their German hotel room.
4. You should not expect to enjoy a foreign city until you have been there for at least an hour.
3. Scandinavian restaurants understand the importance of ketchup.
2. If your child is unable to squeeze into a train, it will leave her standing on the platform.
1. Ten days of family togetherness is probably too much.
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Top 10 True Things That Rick Steves Did Not Tell Us:
10. Old bicycles never die – they go to Scandinavia. m
9. It is impossible to walk a straight line down a European sidewalk.
8. European universities don’t understand the importance of T-shirts.
7. True to stereotypes, Scandinavia has a bunch of blonde men named Sven, Lars, and Thor.
6. Denmark is officially sponsored by 7-Eleven.
5. It is good to preview the channels your children can watch in their German hotel room.
4. You should not expect to enjoy a foreign city until you have been there for at least an hour.
3. Scandinavian restaurants understand the importance of ketchup.
2. If your child is unable to squeeze into a train, it will leave her standing on the platform.
1. Ten days of family togetherness is probably too much.
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Bicycles in Copenhagen - a common sight!m
Bicycles in Copenhagen - a common sight!mm
We took over a thousand pictures, and we will try to get them organized before Christmas. For now, we are preparing to take another thousand or so, as we leave Vienna (on Friday) for another ten days – this time to Italy. If everything goes as planned, we will be visiting Rome, Florence, Pisa, and Venice. More on that later!
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Another view of Copenhagen, on a really pretty day!m
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Another view of Copenhagen, on a really pretty day!mm
2 comments:
I like "watching" your adventures like this. Thanks for keeping us updated. Love you guys...
Items 6 and 8 are of critical importance to any European traveler, and should be added as a supplement to every Rick Steves book.
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