Europe 2024
We went to Europe a family and came home a family, success!
JULY 8, 2024
On our last day in Paris, we are trying to both take it easy while also enjoying every last bit of this amazing city. We began with a trip to their botanic garden and zoo. The zoo still uses many of the original buildings and menagerie which was interesting to see. Liam also rode their Dodo carousel, which looked very old and some some interesting animals, all of which are apparently extinct or endangered. We then grabbed some delicious crepes for lunch before headed back to Luxembourg Gardens. (continue)
I’ll put Monet on Paris having a great Olympics
JULY 7, 2024
Today the main thing we have on the agenda is the Eiffel Tower. As we entered, it was so sweet how excited Liam is. When we got under it, he was skipping and running around saying “I can’t believe my eyes!” He enjoyed spotting the people on it from far below and seeing the elevators we will be taking up. We headed up and the views are amazing. We enjoyed trying to spot the places we have visited so far and headed to the highest level of it. Luckily none of us are afraid of heights, which Liam kept pointing out, because it was very, very high up. (continue)
Strolling through Paris…with a stroller
JULY 6, 2024
Today, we headed over to the island to check out the progress on the Notre Dame. It was sad to see if all covered in scaffolding and we are glad we got to see it pre-fire. Liam enjoyed watching the construction and asking all the questions we couldn’t answer about the fire. We then made our way to Ponte Noufe, the end of the island which has weeping willows and peaceful spots to sit and observe the river. Liam was excited to spot the Eiffel Tower from here and watch all the boats pass. While the Olympic preparation and construction is kind of putting a damper on the charm of the river, it will clearly be beautiful when we watch it on TV in a couple weeks. (continue)
We said we would come back with our child someday, and we did!
JULY 5, 2024
As I reviewed our blog from the last time we came to Paris, we ended by saying that if/when we come back we will take it easy and slower the next time. Now that we are arriving here we realize there is no relaxing on this trip, but we certainly plan to rush around less and spend more time sitting in gardens. We arrived just in time for lunch and then realized how close our hotel is to the Luxembourg Gardens. This was one of our favorite things last time we visited and as we planned this trip we looked forward to going with Liam to have him sail the boats in the pond. (continue)
Never thought reading a clock would be so interesting!
JULY 4, 2024
Our second day is set to be another rainy one in Strasborg but we headed out to explore again. Our first stop was back to Notre Dame to get tickets for the astronomical clock show. Once again, coming upon the church is jaw-dropping. It is so tall and each time we see it, there are more details and aspects of it that stand out. Of course, on this walk we stumbled upon yet another carousel for Liam to ride. This one had two levels and of course Liam immediately had his eyes set on a car. He happily took the passenger seat to another boy to make sure he could sit in the car. (continue)
Liam entered Strasbourg with a blast!
JULY 2-3, 2024
So, here starts a new city with even more lovely parenting adventures. Somehow, poor Liam has been sick most of this trip. He has had a bad cold, followed by two separate sets of stomach issues. So of course pulling into the magical city of Strasborg wouldn’t be complete without him getting sick all over again. We will leave the details to your imagination, but we did have to strip him down to clean him off right on the train platform. What a way to arrive. But here we are, ready for another week of travel together. (continue)
Neuschweinstein, waste of the people’s money, but people pay to see it? Well played King Ludwig II…
JUNE 30, 2024
Today we headed to Neuschweinstein Castle! The drive alone was beautiful and we enjoyed seeing the countryside of Bavaria a bit. We did not enjoy the winding roads which led to Liam getting carsick. We had booked an early ticket and got there just in time. Even from the parking lot, we could see how grand the castle is! Sitting in the mountains really makes it seem like an extra special place. We were told the walk up would be 40 minutes which is exactly what we had, but we knew it would be tough to push the stroller up so we opted for the carriage ride. The path up through the forest was beautiful and as we kept climbing we knew we made the right choice to skip the walk. We enjoyed spotting glimpses of the castle as we went along the path. Liam also really enjoyed pointing out how much horses poop, so everybody was happy. (continue)
Who says you can’t swim after München in a beer garden?
JUNE 29, 2024
The main thing we had planned for today was to visit the English Gardens. It stands out to us so much from the last time we were here and we wanted to experience it again. We first walked past the Munich Residence and Hofgarten. Our first stop in the gardens was to see the surfers we saw last time. This time though we first noticed how it was significantly more crowded than last time! There were at least a hundred people crowded around to watch them, and last time there probably less than 20. On much of this trip it seems like everywhere is more crowded than when we last visited. It could be a general change in how many more people are traveling or just that it was a hot summer day in Munich and everyone wanted to be out. (continue)
Liam got to go to Playmobil Funpark and Chuck got to go on the autobahn
JUNE 27-28, 2024
After jamming in all of the old city into the first day, we decided to make this a Liam day. We headed to Playmobil Funpark. It was actually pretty great as it felt like a giant version of all of their toys for kids to immerse themselves in. There was a downpour at one point, but their indoor play space was just as amazing with all of their toys available for play. We made the most of all their water play areas in another hot and humid day, and Anna almost had a heart attack when Liam went to explore in the treehouse area that somehow had more paths and hidden areas than she could have imagined. (continue)
Nuremberg, where crafting lives on, but all the meat we ate did not.
JUNE 25-26, 2024
We said goodbye to Prague and are ready to head to Nuremberg, Germany. We took the train and knew we had a tight connection in Schwandorf, so we were disappointed but not shocked we missed the connection and had to wait an extra hour for the train. This made for a long day of travel. Once we made it and walked from the train station to our hotel, we could already tell we will love it. This city is cute and quaint, but also has a real city feel to it that were weren’t expecting. After checking into the hotel we went to grab pizza and enjoyed them with a viewing party of the Eurocup. As we walked back we came upon a street fest and let Liam ride a few rides. We made a note to try to come back as the tents of sausages smelled incredible. (continue)
Ta-ta Praha!
JUNE 24, 2024
We felt like we had taken in most of the main sites so we were looking forward to a day to take it a bit easier. It was also a Monday and almost immediately we could tell how much less crowded the city was. On the other days, some of the areas we walked through were shoulder to shoulder, today we had more room and it felt more relaxed. (continue)
Prague is physically rich with history, even by European standards
JUNE 23, 2024
Since we missed out on the Jewish Quarter yesterday, we decided to head here first today. This area’s history as a Jewish Ghetto dates back to the 13th century and is currently comprised of six synagogues, the Jewish Ceremonial hall, and the Old Jewish Cemetery. Prague remained untouched throughout both WWI and WWII so it was fascinating to see this original area. These sites also make up what is called the Jewish Museum so we were able to buy one ticket to access all these sites. We knew we wouldn’t get to all of them so we started with the oldest area. (continue)
Where people flock to a clock…a death clock…
June 21-22, 2024
We took a train from Vienna to Prague and were happy to get booked in the family car. We shared it with one other family and it had a little sofa and tv which mean they got to move around and we didn’t have to worry about being loud. The views from the train also offered a little peek at the Czech Republic and there were many cute towns, farms, and rolling hills. It was a beautiful ride. When we arrived, we hopped on a tram to our hotel which is located up the hill behind Prague Castle. As the tram climbed each hill we knew we will be relying heavily on their transit, as this does not seem like a hike we want to take with Liam daily. (continue)
I present to you….King Liam of Vienna
JUNE 20, 2024
Before leaving Vienna one goal was to get a Viennese breakfast. We headed to a traditional cafe for the classic: soft boiled egg, croissants, bread and jam. We then made our way to Schönbrunn Palace. The palace is huge and we have already given up on the idea of trying to do any real museums or tours with Liam. So we opted to check out the children’s portion of the museum and the grounds instead. (continue)
33 degrees celsius is too hot to be attacked by a butterfly!
JUNE 19, 2024
Today was a hot one and we decided to “take it easy”, although we always say that and end up packing every minute of the day and end up exhausted. While we tried to limit what we did today, the heat made up for it and
We slept in a bit so our day officially began by going out for lunch. On the way we stopped to take in the views of the Vienna Opera House. Like every other building here this was another ornate and beautiful place. We stopped into the lobby and admired the beautiful doors before continuing onto lunch. (continue)
Europe! We’re back…with an additional human! Channiam’s Travels?
JUNE 17-18, 2024
We have come to realize quickly (and others keep reminding us) that once you have a kid you no longer have vacations, but are simply parenting in a new location. This has become evident very quickly on this trip. So, our site will become a travel diary as well as anecdotes about how ridiculous traveling with a 4 year old is. (continue)