How to Say Goodbye

July 28th, 2015

For our second day in Amsterdam and last day in Europe, we took in more sights of Amsterdam. We started the day with early tickets to the Anne Frank House. This meant we were actually let in before the museum opened and avoided the crowds. This was especially useful as by the time we left, we could see the line was a three hour wait!  The museum was a somber experience and it was interesting to see where the family hid and lived. By the time we left, there was a line for blocks which we were told would take 3 hours to get through.  (continue)

It's Time for a Beerseum

July 27th, 2015

When we arrived in Amsterdam, it was raining and chilly. We tried to get around as best we could in the weather, as it would alternate between clear skies and complete downpours. Of course, this does not seem to deter the locals from riding their bikes everywhere. We took some time to enjoy wandering the canals and getting lost around the city. We saw the Rijksmusuem but decided that after almost a month of museums, we were ready to just take in the city without walking around a museum.  When the rain wouldn’t let up we decided to head to the “Heineken Experience.” It was definitely an experience, but we aren’t sure if we enjoyed it as much as others seemed to. (continue)

Brussels Sprouts Food

July 26th, 2015

We were only in Brussels for a day so we knew we had to make the most of it! Despite more rain and cold weather, we walked around the city and it was truly charming. We found the main square and then continued walking to find the Manneken Pis statue, which comes up in every list of top Brussels attractions we could find. We knew we found the 2-foot statue by the crowd gathered around it! It was humorous to see so many people trying to push their way to a better view of this little boy peeing. (continue)

Keep Your Eye on The Globe!

July 25th, 2015

The sun was out and we were happy our last day would have more pleasant weather to fit in everything we could see before leaving London. We began the morning by heading to the Globe Theater. We took a tour and enjoyed the interesting side stories and explanations of the theatre. We learned that the small structure could hold 3,000 people. At the base of the theatre, the pit area would hold all the people who could only afford to pay a penny to stand, crammed together during the performance. Then, there were three stories of seating, which held the wealthy people in their elaborate outfits. (continue)

It Rains in London...?

July 24th, 2015

It rained today. A lot. When we first checked the weather, it said a light rain all day. Apparently this means something entirely different in London because it was a steady, down pouring of rain that never let up. And it was about 50 degrees.

We began the morning by heading to the Westminster Abbey. We have seen quite a few churches, so by this point we are feeling a bit done with touring them, but it was interesting to be able to actually see where events through time and that we have seen on television have occurred. We could picture royal weddings and coronations taking place on the massive alter. This church also has the tombs or memorial plaques of many people, including royalty but also many authors and poets. (continue)

A Horse and Carriage to Tower Bridge

JULY 23RD, 2015

We wanted to try to see the Changing of the Guards at Buckingham Palace but after looking this up online many people said it was too crowded and turns out to be an awful experience. Instead, many people had suggested going to the Horse Guards Parade to watch the changing of those guards. We arrived to a much smaller crowd than would have been at the Palace and had a good view of the back of horses. We watched them change the guards and then sit for a good twenty minutes, before more horses arrived and they rode off. A bit anticlimactic but still interesting to see such a long-standing tradition, that occurs every day here. Side note, the changing of the guard became a tradition when Queen Victoria found that her guards were drunk and gambling and needed to be inspected every day. (continue)

The World Museum

JULY 22ND, 2015

We began the day by grabbing our first double decker bus! Although it was only a couple stops we found some top-level seats and enjoyed the ride to get to the British Museum. As we got off, we were also very excited to see the red telephone booths, many of which are now being converted to wi-fi hotspots. We walked through a park to the British Museum. On the walk, we enjoyed the charming look of the city and parks. The British Museum is massive and the room you enter into is very extravagant in the size and light entering it. Apparently the rotunda you first enter is larger than a football field! (continue)

Mind the Gap

JULY 21ST, 2015

After realizing that last minute train tickets from Paris to London would cost us about 260 euro when you wait until the last minute to book, we decided it would be a good idea to take a bus to London instead. An 8-hour bus ride. Actually it was supposed to be that long, but we are in Europe. So naturally a strike was bound to occur. We were actually making excellent time, about 45 minutes ahead of schedule, when we hit traffic. We could see black smoke ahead and assumed it was a bad car accident.  (continue)

Au revoir Paris

JULY 20TH, 2015

Our final day in Paris was a little sad, as we loved the city and also realized that we only have a week before we have to go back to reality. That is, before we start our next adventure in August. Anyway, we started our day early at the Eiffel Tower. Luckily we got tickets beforehand and didn't have to wait in the massive line, and we were one of the first people up there. It was a windy morning but the views were good except you didn't get to the look at the Eiffel Tower while you were on it...Oh the irony...(continue)

Deux Days

JULY 18TH-19TH, 2015

We had another early morning to try to get to Versailles early. The first sight of the palace is truly astonishing for a couple reasons: 1. The fact that people actually used to live here and built this and 2. The incredible number of tourists coming to see it today. We walked through the rooms of the palace learning how each was used before moving onto the gardens. We could have easily spent the entire day just walking through the gardens! We found an ice cream stand and sat by the canal for a bit, enjoying the music they were playing throughout the garden. We walked down to the other palaces, including Trianon, the one where Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI decided to call their main home instead of the larger palace. (continue)

You don't d'Orsay?

JULY 17TH, 2015

Despite all the sites we had already crammed in, we woke up early to try to beat some of the crowds to Notre Dame. Of course, we grabbed coffee and croissants on the way, and Anna realized this is a breakfast we could get used to. We got there to, what we realized later, a small line, got in to finally see inside Notre Dame. What’s interesting compared to other cathedrals we’ve encountered is that Notre Dame was mostly built by the people for the people, which also meant it took quite awhile to build, some 200 years. The iconic exterior is slightly more interesting than the interior, mostly due to the significant flying buttresses. (continue)

In Louvre in Paris

JULY 16TH, 2015

We woke early and grabbed some espresso and croissants before heading to the Louvre. We probably arrived by 8:30 and a line had already formed. We entered and decided to immediately try to find the Mona Lisa before the huge crowds gathered around it. We thought we were off to a great start as there was nobody around us, until we realized we were in opposite wing of the Louvre! The plus side was that no one was where we were, so we had this wing of the museum to ourselves for a brief time. We began to realize where the Mona Lisa would be as soon as we saw the crowd again. We saw the painting through the crowd and Chuck much more enjoyed the version he saw at the DaVinci Museum in Florence, life sized and up close. (continue)

Opening Our Eyes to Paris

JULY 15TH, 2015

We woke up tired but excited to check out more of Paris! We wandered around a bit near the islands of Paris and found our way to Notre Dame. The line was too long so we decided to do another walking tour of the historic area. We explored the outside of Notre Dame, St. Chapelle, and the Conciergerie (the old prison) and visited their Holocaust Memorial which was tucked away on one of the islands. We also walked by Shakespeare and Company, where many authors had their starts (at a previous address) and learned that the apartments upstairs continue to be rented at a low cost to writers today. (continue)

Bastille in Paris

JULY 14TH, 2015

After a 6 hour train ride we arrived in Paris! Just the few streets we walked to get to our hotel are as charming and ideal as we could imagine. We dropped off our luggage and hopped across the street to a café for lunch. Of course, neither of us could really read the menu and both ordered what we thought were white wines, Chuck ended up with a dessert wine and Anna with wine liquor. It made for an interesting start to an afternoon lunch. After beer and schnitzel all over Bavaria, Anna was looking for something lighter and ordered a salad, but without being able to read the description, ordered a salad with prosciutto, cheese, toast with goat cheese, creamy dressing, egg, fried potatoes and just a bit of lettuce-probably the most unhealthy, delicious salad she has ever had. (continue)

Last day in Deutschland

JULY 13TH, 2015

On our second and final day in Munich, we decided to head to Dachau to visit the site of the first concentration camp and memorial. After reading about these locations and all their awful histories, it was difficult to walk the same roads and enter the same locations that the prisoners did. We started near the train tracks that the trains took the prisoners and then walked through the gates that read “Arbeit Macht Frei” (work will make you free). (continue)

Munching in München

JULY 12TH, 2015

Arriving in Munich, after Salzburg and Berchtesgaden, the cities could not be more different. Munich feels a bit more “cold” and because the majority of the buildings were rebuilt after the war, it doesn’t have the same charm as some of the other locations we have been. We started the morning with a walk from our hotel to the English Gardens. On the way we found that almost any area where water flows can be turned into a beach of sorts. It seems everyone was out enjoying the beautiful weather we were having. We continued on our walk until we reached the park and saw a crowd by the first bridge. We realized that we were at the bridge where people use the stream to surf! It was fun to see a variety of age attempt to surf and the crowd hoping each one succeeds. (continue)

Nature's Majesty

JULY 11TH, 2015

We woke up a little sad to leave Salzburg, but knew that we still have more amazing places to see. We packed up and grabbed a bus to Berchtesgaden in southern Germany. On the bus ride over, the views just continued to get more stunning as we passed and we knew we were in for a treat. The town itself is a bit of a resort town so it was a little gimmicky but still worth the visit. We headed to the Eagle’s Nest that was Hitler’s resort home (although apparently he rarely went there). The only way up is a private bus and this took us up to the base, where we then had to take an elevator to the top. The building is located at over 6,000 feet. The views from the top were unbelievable. We hiked around a bit although we were both wearing flip-flops and not prepared for this at all. From the top we could see Lake Konigsee, which even from over 6,000 feet was emerald green! (continue)

The Magic of Salzburg

JULY 10TH, 2015

We woke up early hoping to get to some of the main attractions before the crowds of tourists. Our hotel has a terrace so we were able to enjoy our breakfast overlooking the mountains and city. We could get used to this view every morning! We headed to the Hohensalzburg Fortress and took the funicular up to the top. When we got to the top we decided to walk in the opposite direction of the main entrance where everyone else was headed and made our way to the terrace facing away from the city itself. We were greeted with the most spectacular view of the Alps and towns all around us. It is hard to describe how truly breathtaking Salzburg is, and there were some views that looked straight out of a movie. We sat here and enjoyed the most spectacular view for quite a bit before our tour group caught up with us and the selfies began, we knew it was time to move on. (continue)

Overnight to Austria

JULY 9TH, 2015

After an overnight train ride with rain and storms most of the night, we woke up to the beauty of Vienna in the morning. Originally we planned on a quick stop here for breakfast before Salzburg, but the train was late so we ended up staying here for lunch and it was worth the detour! We took a tram tour around the city to get a quick snapshot of the main attractions. Everything from the Opera House, Imperial Palace, and Belvedere were stunning. While on the tram we passed the plaza in from of the Rathaus (City Hall), which turns into a lively outdoor beer garden during the summer and decided this is where we would go for lunch. (continue)

Furnaces of Venice

JULY 6TH-8TH, 2015

We took the train in to Venice and arrived on another ridiculously hot day. The first sight of Venice is truly unique. It is hard to understand that it is a city practically being held up with stilts. After climbing the stairs of our first bridge with our duffel bags, we wound down a side street to find our hotel. The charm of Venice quickly disappeared when we saw our room for the next couple of nights. Aside from just being gross, the room was so humid that everything was slightly damp, including the bed that we would get to sleep in. We decided we didn’t want to spend any more time in the room than we had to so we ventured out to explore Venezia. We wandered around the winding streets, over canals, and onto the various islands, trying to grasp the layout of the city. (continue)

Friends in Firenze

JULY 4TH-6TH, 2015

We arrived at our second Italian stop, Florence around noon and of course it was already close to 100 degrees again. With the suggestions of Steven and Pedro, from Rome, we found a pizza spot for lunch before walking to the Santa Maria Novella Bascilica. Anna was reminded that it is required to have shoulders and knees covered to enter a church to show modesty, not the easiest thing in the summer to get used to. We had already booked our tickets to the Uffizzi, and walked through the red-roofed streets until we found our way there. (continue)

Going Below the Grandiose

JULY 3RD, 2015

On our final day in Rome, we decided to finally have an early day and try to get to sites before the temperature crept up to 100 degrees, and all the tourists and selfie-sticks arrived. We began by visiting the Vatican and St. Peter’s Basilica. Walking into St. Peters in probably one of the most astonishing sights, the atrium itself would make a massive, beautiful church, let alone the rest of the Basilica. We seemed to arrive at the perfect time, as the light was shining through the windows perfectly. (continue)

Friends and Food

JULY 2ND, 2015

After our late night out, we ended up sleeping until 1pm today…whoops. Once we finally dragged ourselves out of bed we headed toward the Spanish Steps in 100-degree heat. They were beautiful but with no shade we decided to grab pasta from a nearby shop before venturing up them. We tried a place that was suggested to us, and they only make two types each day, so we went with one of each. That meant Chuck actually ate pasta with mushrooms! (continue)

Rome is Still Great

July 1st, 2015

On day 2, we woke up early to visit the Coliseum. When we emerged from the train station we were greeted with the amazing sight of the coliseum (in addition to way too many tourists with selfie-sticks…again). It is astonishing to see today, but to then imagine seeing it when Rome was the center of the world would have awed anyone. It amazed Chuck to see it again, to him it seemed larger and grander than previous memory...(continue)

We have Arrived...

JUNE 30TH, 2015

Hello All! We have arrived...6 days ago...

Sorry this has taken so long to post but we have had no internet access.

After a long flight that neither of us could sleep through and almost losing our luggage (the airline only sent our bags as far as Dublin) we finally landed in Rome at around noon on Tuesday.

We opted to get picked up by our hotel from the airport, which was Anna’s first taste of how Italians view driving...(continue)

Keeping our Experiences Alive

JUNE 24TH, 2015

Not many times do we get to experience how others see the world, but we're lucky enough to get the opportunity to see 8 different cultures over 7 weeks.

This is our way of sharing the adventure with you as well as a keeping our memories alive, and from Rome to Peru, there will be a lot of memories.

The journey begins June 29th!

Chuck and Anna (Now do you get the Channa??)