Munich and the Neuschwanstein

Checked out Munich square with it’s amazing cathedrals, old buildings and fancy moving clock. Everything looks so nice floodlit. Our big day out took us to the Neuschwanstein Castle. Driving through beautiful countryside, misty valleys, pine forests, frost and snow. Took the horse and carriage up and down to the castle…we thought we deserved it after 6 weeks of walking. Very relaxing. The castle is impressive, perched on the mountainside, clouds drifting over it. The tour inside is only 35 minutes taking you through elaborate rooms, painted walls and ceilings, amazing chandeliers and decoration. It was only used briefly and never finished. The kitchen was interesting too, almost new as only in action for less than 200 days. Next stop Ulm. Another town with lovely old buildings, an enormously tall tower on the cathedral and canals. The boys wanted to climb the tower but unfortunately it was closed. 737 steps to the top…..Chris and I would have stayed at the bottom…we have climbed enough towers this trip. Had a lovely last meal in Ulm…sad that the holiday is nearly over, but looking forward to a rest!! What an amazing time we have had, the places we’ve been and the sights we have seen. Another memorable trip! 

Spectacular Salzburg

The Sound of Music….von Gambell style. After visiting Mozart’s home our first location stop, Mirabelle Gardens. You can’t run through the arbour at the moment but certainly imagine it. Had a woeful go at singing on the steps. Lots of photos. Walked around old town, so quiet. The cemetery was really interesting, very different and ornate headpieces. Walked through the catacombs, nice view of the city rooftops. Checked out all the squares. A beautiful day for a walk. Visited the gazebo…you are 16…and the von trap house from across the lake. Then we took an amazing cable car up the mountain overlooking Salzburg. Snow at the top…usually this time of year the city is covered in snow…a very mild winter at the moment. Spectacular views. Bit slippery on the snow, makes your heart race as there were sheer drops…took it very slow, my boots not made for alpine walking. Had a very enjoyable time at nearly 2,000 feet. Drove to a lake at sunset for more gorgeous views, so still. A magical place.

Prague to Salzburg

We left our spacious royal residence in Prague with our over eager butler wanting to pack our car, but we explained it is a fine art wedging our cases in...we have also found a secret space in the spare tire well that has proved invaluable. Drove to Cesky Kromlov, a UNESCO world heritage village with lots of wonderful baroque style buildings set in a valley with a small river flowing under wooden foot bridges. Had lunch sitting admiring the view then the boys skipped stones in the river. Very peaceful, even with about 6 tour groups passing through. We drove on to Sal;zburg passing picturesque villages, fields full of solar panels, rolling green hills, small farms and snow capped mountains. Beautiful scenery. Arrived in Salzburg as the sun was setting over the mountings. Our car is parked inside the mountain! Went for a walk to the river, lovely reflections, and over the bridge to the old town. The castle looks lovely all lit up. More cobblestone streets full of shops and restaurants. So quiet here compared to Prague. Saw Mozart's birthplace, which also had a monument to the Anti-Nuclear Power Movement next to it. Lots of spacious squares in old town with fountains covered in glass pyramids for winter. An ice rink had one family of young skaters pushing penguins and bears around...so cute. Music playing, very peaceful. Lovely to walk around with no crowds, everything flood lit, no wind...really nice.Tomorrow...Sound of Music locations......the hills are alive!!!

Prague

What a glorious winter’s day we had in Prague. Blue skies and sunshine. Fabulous day for a walk around this beautiful old city. Cobbled streets, small alleyways, crystal chandelier shops and ancient buildings. Walked across the beautiful Charles Bridge. Very wide, a string quartet and lots of people…in winter!! Saw yet another ‘padlock’ section, again no padlock on us! Walked up the steep cobbled street to the castle. Visited the cathedral, which had the most beautiful stained glass windows..full of colour, and the imperial rooms.  Climbed the 287 steps up the bell tower for magnificent views over Prague. The slate roofs of the palace set in pretty patterns. The Golden Way in the castle was fascinating. Tiny terrace houses all set out inside as if from days gone by.  Walked back down to the river for a wonderful boat trip under all the bridges as the sun was setting. Lovely colours. Walked around the Jewish quarter and on to Wenceslas Square, which still had it’s Christmas market going. Even the bagpipe player we saw last night was there. Had a traditional Czech tea, potato pancakes and huge kebabs, then walked home via the trendy shopping streets. Such a perfect day for walking, clear skies, no wind and very mild. Lots of fresh air thoroughly enjoyed our day in Prague.

Nuremberg Castle

Woke up to lovely sunshine, had breakfast in a sunny room, a bright start to the day. Met Suzie at her place…waving outside her 2^nd floor window. Was so nice to see her flat with her assortment of tin toys and real Christmas tree sporting a koala. We walked to the Nuremberg Castle which overlooks the old town. Ventured in and wandered the rooms describing the Imperial Castle’s history. Lots of medieval weapons and very ornate poleaxes plus the gorgeous crown covered in jewels. We all climbed the 100 steps of the tower for fabulous views..just a little bit breezy. Photographs around the tower depicted the town pre war and after world war II. Nuremberg was the most damaged city in Europe. After the war the Americans quickly rebuilt the city, old and new side by side. Much of the castle was rebuilt so everyone can enjoy it today. After our exercise we had a lovely lunch in a local café. I did enjoy my german steamed pudding with cherries & vanilla sauce. So we said farewell to Suzie. Our Nuremberg guide who met us laden with goodies and remedies plus a treasured scrap book from my family over 100 years old. My Great, Great, Great Grandmother’s…Incredible.

We then drove on to Prague. Settled into a lovely apartment in the Royal Residence. Both the boys bedroom and our bedroom are enormous…much bigger than our lounge room at home and each with a chandelier!  Walked to the old town square, just 1 minute away, for the Christmas market’s final night. So lovely. A giant Christmas tree covered in lights and dripping icicles. Market stalls and food stalls plus a very pleasant busker playing easy rock music. The Tyn Church has gorgeous turrets and looks fabulous all lit up at night…as did the whole square. Watched the astronomical clock chime 9 o’clock on the old town hall. Figures move around through windows and a skeleton rings the bell. Climbed the clock tower for fantastic views over Prague at night..like fairyland. The castle on the hillside looking spectacular flood lit. So lucky it wasn’t windy or raining, just a wee bit chilly.

Rothenberg - Nuremberg

After another traditional german breakfast of cheeses, bread and cold meat in our medieval hotel sitting in a wooden bench booth we walked around gorgeous Rothenberg on cobbled streets, soaking in the sights. Lots of wonderful buildings, Christmas displays in the shop windows, narrow streets and lovely metal signs overhanging doors. Visited the Christmas museum and learnt about the origins of Christmas trees, Santa Klaus and decorations. Many displays of old ornaments, some of them I remember on our tree as a child and a few I have from Gran. Had a little shopping spree in the shop...so many to choose from. Decided on a traditional treat I have shipped back. We walked the walls...always enjoyable....up the old worn stone steps and along the wooden platforms. Views across the rooftops. Found a lookout on the edge of the old town overlooking the valley, river and double bridge. Lovely. Such a beautiful old town. Drove on to Nuremberg and met up with my mum's cousin, Suzie. So nice to catch up and what a treat to have a 'local' show us around the old town. Walked past the old town walls, lots of interesting buildings. Then to our surprise the most beautiful sunset..just for us. Had a super view from the castle overlooking Nuremberg. Suzie pointing out all the landmarks. Wonderful having a private tour guide. Stopped at the ornate monument built over a wishing well to rub the ring for good luck...so the legend says. On to the oldest sausage restaurant in the world, built in 1419. Full of character and old world charm. The chef cooks over an open flame in the main room. Enjoyed traditional sausages and strudel with a lovely bottle of wine from the Castel winery..relation of Faber Castel, the pencils..which are from Nuremberg. A wonderful night.

Heidelberg Castle

After a lovely breakfast overlooking the Rhine River…we were the only ones in the hotel so felt very special….we boarded a car ferry across the Rhine and drove to Heidelberg. The castle is on the hillside overlooking the town. Fabulous views. Walked around the castle which is half ruin, half buildings. In the cellar is the largest wine barrel in the world, over 9 metres high, enormous. They also had a 6.5 metre one too which looked pretty big. Made our boys look small! (pictured below) They also have an apothecary museum which was interesting. The history of pharmacists…fancy that. Germans discovered morphine among other useful medicines.  Lots of old herbal jars and the old lab. We were lucky with the weather, just grey, but poured while driving to Rothenberg. Had a wonderful walk around beautiful, quaint and ancient Rothenberg..plus a little Christmas window shopping in the lovely shops. Bought some traditional snowballs..pastry dessert. Tea in our hotel…and what a hotel. Full of character and jam packed with unusual objects, stuffed animals with an old world charm. Our suite, complete with couch area and canopy bed is wonderful, exposed beams and everything.  Just the job for another rest. Enjoying my choccy on my pillow and the snowball.

Rhine River

So...I have finally caught up....today, yes today, we drove from Cologne to Rudesheim along the river. Castles at every turn. A very fast flowing river that takes journeys hours longer up stream. No river cruises in winter but still had an enjoyable day stopping here and there, where ever it took our fancy. Enjoyed a traditional kebab (like a yiros in a round turkish roll) on the banks of the river. Lots of cargo boats going up and down, a busy 'road'. Parts of the 'car' road have had landslides into the river so reduced to one lane in parts with traffic lights. Boys click happy snapping every castle and interesting building. Drove to the massive monument overlooking Rudesheim. Reminisced about our time there in 1998. Seems so long ago. Boys remembered the rock group that were singing then (in summer) as it was very noisy. Fabulous views. Enjoyed wandering the narrow streets, listening to the old bells chime and a bit of shopping...more luggage to squeeze into the wagon!! (Not mine I add.) Finished the day off with another traditional German meal in a local restaurant then an early night in our hotel. Time to catch up on my blogs and shake this cold. Chris has got me some German horse tablets to knock it off. Hope they work tonight. Tomorrow we head to Heidelberg Castle. Good night x

Cologne Cathedral

Oh my goodness...it is so tall. Said to have the tallest spire and is the 3rd tallest cathedral in the world. No kidding. Just a shame pollution does it's worst and most of the outside is blackened. Still seeing it floodlit at night was lovely, as was the view from the railway bridge over the Rhine. As in the Cinque Terre the chain link fence was full of padlocks...we never have one handy when we come across these. Had another lovely local meal, more wine and chit chat on our travels. Boys enjoying tasting traditional home cooked food. The waitress was really nice too!! The next day we viewed the cathedral during daylight...still black and tall. Inside massively tall with 3 pipe organs and ornate statues. We visited the treasure rooms full of gorgeous gold and precious jewel religious pieces. The most important artifact being the arc carrying the crowns and clothing of the 3 wise men. It has been restored in full, parts of the original decoration are on display in cases. Also impressive are relics of St Peters chains and other saints bones encased in religious objects. The Bishops rings were lovely. You can see why churches were robbed...a lot of wealth then. An interesting display and well worth a visit. Just down from our hotel was part of the original town wall, cool, and bizarre bridal shops selling all manor of coloured puffy wedding dresses...each to their own! They boys wondering what my problem was...I guess I am a traditionalist!

Belguim Chocolate..mmmm

Another day in Brussels. After a big breakfast Belgium style...complete with cold meats, cucumber, hot chocolate, eggs, cereal etc..we walked back to the Grand Place area to see the famous Manekin Pis fountain. Nice bronze statue..a surprise, thought it would be stone. Wandered the cobbled streets tasting and buying Belgium chocolate..as you do. More photos in the square admiring the beautiful buildings and large nativity. Walked to the park where a huge ice sculpture exhibition was on. Ventured in..lots of cool life size sculptures of super heros, Asterix and Tin Tin of course. Very cool..but not too cold temp wise also. More admiring of buildings and monuments plus a delightful mature busking string trio complete with double bass playing one of my favourite classical pieces in one of the old squares. Surprises around every corner!

Happy New Year Brussels

Arrived in Brussels to a very swish hotel with lovely big rooms, modern architecture in the atrium and as usual a lift that only takes 3 of us at a time...they are rated to 5 but when we all get in the alarm goes off!! We haven't gained that much weight! We could take the stairs but as we request high floors for the views and no street noise this is a bit of a challenge after a long day walking!
So Brussels...full of monuments and buildings with character both big and small. Our first day was spent at a brilliant model village depicting countries from the EU. A 1:25 scale meant the models were very large and very detailed. They had interactive buttons so you could make the Berlin Wall fall down etc. A fun morning. the boys wanted to go up the Atomium...wasn't bad, nice view and lots of info about innovation and inspirational innovators. We then headed to Waterloo. Climbing the 300 odd steps to the top of the mound a bit of a challenge for me..still trying to shake my cold. At the top..fantastic views of the battlefields..and blowing a gale on one side...freezing! Saw the Panorama painting...360 degrees inside a huge circular building. Impressive. Depicted the battle scenes with sound effects. Can't imagine what it would have been like for all those young men. Back  in Brussels the boys found a comic store full of Tin Tin and other comic memorabilia. Nice to browse! Walked to the Grand Place...amazing. Beautiful tall buildings with gold decoration, then to our surprise chamber music started playing and a light show started on all the buildings. It was very cool. So lovely. Had tea in the Comic Cafe, traditional food in an old building with Tin Tin paintings. Adam enjoyed the Tin Tin books free to borrow during dinner. A great night.

Chateau de Pierrefonds

On route to Brussels we stopped off at Pierrefonds, a delightful french village/town in a valley. Our purpose..to see 'Camelot', the castle used in the BBC Merlin series. It didn't disappoint. What a castle. It had been severely damaged by war but has been lovingly restored to a complete beauty. Felt like being on the set. Explored the chapel, main rooms with their huge fireplaces and ornate carved features. The crypt was full of tombs with full figure statues on them plus standing statues. They had coloured lights and music playing..quite an atmosphere. You can't climb up to the parapets but there are wonderful views of the town on the walk up. We loved our time there.

Paris...city of love xx

Love the eiffel tower all lit up at night, love the impressionist paintings, love the view from our hotel room, love the language, love the little restaurant we ate in.....
The eurostar trip to Paris was smooth, fast and much easier than flying. The car hire at the train station very convenient, however they did not have the car we ordered so were given an upgrade. Knowing nothing about cars we said ok. Got to the car to discover it was a mercedes wagon complete with hood ornament. A huge beast but our luggage only just fitted in. We had no option but to take it. Chris has done a fab job of manouvering our luxury car and working out the stick auto. Lots of getting out with 4 of us at each corner for carparking...a challenge!
So, we made it to paris...headed to the notre dame. Had planned to climb the towers but the line was huge so settled for lunch sitting in front of it admiring it's magesty. Headed to the museum of invilides. Fantastic range of weapons, guns, swords, armour. The tomb for nepolean was incredible. A massive church with paintings in the dome ceilings, then a massive circular crypt for his tomb, which was enormous. Quite amazing. Enjoyed a delightful dinner at a local restaurant near our hotel then a beautiful walk to see 'the tower' all lit up, plus the xmas markets, river and ice rink. Magical. Next day we visited the museum d'orsay for art and sculptures set in the lovely old railway station....scene for the movie hugo. Delighted in seeing fav paintings and delighted to discover new fav artists. And we didn't have to queue..got tickets on line...bonus! A lovely time in gay paris x

Flight of the Concorde

Forgot to mention on our last crazy day in the uk we managed to squeeze in a tour of the Concorde at Manchester Airport. What a beautifuly engineered craft, zooming through the air like a supersonic swan. So amazing to see up close. We all got to sit in the cockpit, this one being the first commercial concorde. Shame they stopped the service, due to 9/11...businesses refused to fly commercial and chartered jets. In it's heydey you could get a joy ride for 200 pounds, our tourguide said money well spent! Anyway a big thrill for Adam to see one up close and was pretty cool watching the regular planes take off and land too since the hanger was right next to the runways.