Pictures are now available!

Hi Everyone, we are back and unpacked. We have uploaded all of our pictures from our trip to Picasa online:

Pictures:

http://picasaweb.google.com/tony.viviano

New Paris Video (new)

Rome Video (new)

Thanks for tuning in to our 2009 Summer Europe Trip!

Frankfurt to Detroit

We woke up at 7 at the Frankfurt airport Sheraton and got ourselves together for the trip home. Before we left we stopped back at the lounge for breakfast and mimosas! We grapped our bags and had to go to the tickedt counter because Tony couldn't get all of us checked in online. Going to a ticket counter at a international airport is typically a pain and this one was no different. After the ticket counter we had to go through a customs screening and then through a security screening. When Tony went through the metal detector the alarm went off but he had no metal on him. We joked that he got stopped because of the 2 day "terrorist beard" once he got wanded and patted down, which he kind of enjoyed we headed to our gate for yet another line and another screening.


We got in line to board the train and just as we where handing over our boarding passes our name was called over the intercom. We were advised to go to the counter which was yet another line. The good news is that Tony got upgrade however he couldn't get Shelly upgraded. We thought this would be ok because it would open up a seat in the row we were reserved for but they ended up assigning Tony's seat to a big German guy. The plane left on time and arrived on time. We got in line a US customs but we were behind and Asian family of 6 which took forever. We eventually made it out of the airport and we are officially back!

Koln stop

We made it to Koln, Germany where we had a brief stop before catching another train to Frankfurt. We picked up some fruit smoothies and warm pretzels to share. We then went out of the station to have a bier at a cafe near the Koln Cathedral and the train station. It was nice to get some fresh air and get out of the crowded stations. The people in Koln were a lot different than the people we encountered in Munich, Bavaria so it seemed a lot different. After our bier we headed to our track and saw a different train waiting for us. We thought that we were on the wrong track because a different train was there. It ended up that we were just there a early because a few minutes later our train came in. Shelly said that those Germans sure are efficient, referring to the trains. We boarded the train an a hour later we arrived Frankfurt. We walked over to the hotel checked in and had a really friendly bellman take our bags while we went to the executive lounge. The lounge had salad, deserts, cheeses, snacks and drinks. We had plenty and then headed to our room for the night. It was a decent last day of vacation considering we had to travel for over half of it. Tomorrow we go home...Gluten Abend.

Paris Nord Train Station

Once we returned from a morning of site seeing we booked our train reservation for Frankfurt. We had an issue because today is a holiday in Paris and there are not many options. The good news is that we found a train that would take us to Frankfurt through Koeln, Germany the bad news is that we had to pay for it. We got caught up in some holiday rules regarding Eurorail passes (aka the fine print). At this point its no problem we just need to get to Frankfurt so we can catch our plane tomorrow morning.

This means we are leaving Paris. We only scheduled a couple of days in Paris but we wish we had a week, or more. We thought we could get by with just seeing a few sites but we really like it here. Its definately one of the nicest cities we have traveled to. We will be looking forward to return one day soon. Au Revoir Paris.

Eiffel Tower

Today we had arranged a wake up call for 6:30 am and when the phone rang Tony picked up what he thought was the receiver and said "hello" but the phone kept ringing. That was when he realized he was talking into the remote control. We left the hotel and caught a cab passed the Arch de Triumph to the Eiffel tower. We were there early and were one of the first to go up into the tower. The ride and the views were amazing. We took lots of pictures and bought a couple souvenirs.

We left the tower and headed toward the Musee Rodin to see "The Thinker". We stopped along the way and had breakfast a sidewalk cafe and ordered some coffee, baguette and eggs. After breakfast we found the Museum Rodin and checked out some of his impressive sculptures. After the Museum we caught a cab back to the hotel to pack and check out. More to come later
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Paris

It was mid day by the time we got to the Effiel Tower and it was getting hot. We were headed down to the river on the tour boat and our next stop was the Louvre. We walked around the gardens and decided to grab lunch. We had a recommendation for a place called Cafe Vendome which was similar to a diner. We tried our best to communicate with the waitress but we struggled so we asked for the Plat du jour and the Salad du jour. We chatted with a older couple from Scotland while we waited for our food. We had salads and sandwiches with pommes frites and a plate of meat, green beans, potatoes and salad. Everything was good and the staff warmed up to us after we showed the their name in a guidebook. We were walking through the nearby neighborhood and we saw a chocolate shop. We bought a piece for everyone and quickly ate it. The next store we noticed a bakery that had colored/flavored macaroons. We had to stop so we grabbed a apple tart, macaroons and a waffle. Everything was awesome! We realize it sounds like we are eating a lot but we are actually grazing most of the time verses have "meals"

We headed back to the boat but we came across a small fair that had bunge jumping with a trampoline and we sat in the shade while the kids jumped around. We got back on the boat and head to Notre Dame. Mass was going on with incense and everything but they were still letting people tour the church. We went in and listened to a few songs and looked around. The church looked and actually sound incredible. It was one of the coolest we had been to on this trip. Gina wanted to know where the adoration chapel was since we went to one at St. Peters but it was too crowded to try to find it.

We were walking around the Kilometer 0 point or lle de la Cite and we had to stop at a bar to use the restroom. While we were there we ordered a crepe with fresh lemon and sugar, it was really good. After our snack we went to the Shakespeare and Company bookstore and bought the hunchback of Nortre Dame and a couple others. We left the lle de la Cite and caught the tour boat to the Eiffel tower and then to the subway. By the time we got back and showered it was too late for us to head out for dinner (11ish) We decided to go to bed and get up early so we can see a few sites before catching the train (bahn)back to Germany.

More come later. Until then au revior!

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Bonjour Paris

We made it to Paris. The sleeping train was quite the adventure. We shared a compartment with 2 tall French women which made it a bit of a "camp out" We all fell asleep around midnight and all of us woke up just outside of Paris. We caught a cab to the Le Meridian hotel and checked into our rooms. The hotel staff was really nice so our first impression of Paris was off to a good start. The kids were so excited when they saw how nice our rooms were. The rooms are nice and very modern compared to the ones in Florence and Venice. Those were nice too but in a different way.

We grabbed a light breakfast at a nearby cafe and then went back to the rooms to freshen up. We went to the metro to catch a ride to the Eiffel tower, and it is truly incredible! After looking at the tower we headed down to the Seine River to catch a Batobus tour. We are on the bus now so we will send another update later. Until then... Au revior!
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Goodbye Cinque Terre

Today we got up early and had breakfast again on the Terrace of our hotel. We saw the friends that we met last night from the bay area and chatted with them while we had coffee. Afterwards we packed up all of our stuff which was harder this time in that we picked up a few things. Shelly went to the train station and reserved our seats to Milan and Tony and the kids packed the last few items. We took our bags downstairs to be stored while we spent the day in the towns of the Cinque Terre (CT).
We decided to go to the first town of the CT which Riomaggiore. We met a "buckeye" on the train who was traveling with her friends. We learned that one of the was robbed which was good to be reminded. Once we got Rio. we grabbed some foccacia pizza and something to drink. We hung out for about an hour and caught another train to the next town; Manarola. We walked around for a while and window shopped and then watched the cliff divers. Shelly met someone who knew someone we know from Grand Rapids...its a small world. We were thirsty so we stopped at a cool little bar (8 tables). They gave us a menu and based on the food we saw being served around us we decided to get some. We ordered bruschetta and salad and we were glad we did because the salad was one of the best...ever! Tony put on the olive oil and white wine vinegar but the vinegar was incredible. All of us agreed that it was awesome.

Our next stop was Corniglia. This town is different than the rest because it sits up on a plateau. The only way to get up there from the train station is to walk UP or take crowded bus (like how many can we fit into a bus crowded) full of tourists. We decided to scrap it since the kids really wanted to get back to Monterosso to swim. Both towns were nice to visit and had something unique to offer and both were quieter than Monterosso however we were glad we chose Monterosso!

We got back to our hotel and changed into our bathing suits. We rented 4 chairs and hung out at the beach until about 6. We rinsed off at the beach and changed back into clothes at our hotel. We took the short walk to the train and picked up a few snacks for the road. Our train was on time and we found our compartment that had 6 seats but 2 of them had younger guys in them which was fine. The train rolled along the coast and the views of the sea and the small towns is helping the time go by. The train will be heading north (toward Switzerland) to Milan shortly and then we will get into the sleeper car where we will sleep for the night.

The next morning we will be in Paris and our next post will be from there. Until then...ciao.

Beach & Hiking

This morning we went down to the beach and purchased 4 chairs and a umbrella for the day. This set us back 40€ but it was worth it for a spot on the beach and some shade. We set up camp and the kids played in the water the entire time on a couple of blow up rafts that we bought. Gina suit was loose yesterday and sort of rubbed her wrong so she decided to go euro...aka topless. Gina didn't care and either did anyone else. The water was perfect and all of us caught rays on the rafts. Tony decided to go shopping for some lunch stuff and bought some fresh fruit from a truck that was unloading just outside of town. We had pears, yellow plums, grapes with seeds and huge banana's. He also got 2 sandwiches in town; one salami and cheese and another with turkey and cheese both on foccacia. They were soooo good. After lunch we hung out a little longer before packing up around 3 pm.

We left the beach and picked up a couple of items for our hike. We decided to do the toughest leg of the 5 town hike which is also the most scenic. The trail was tough (1 1/2 hrs) but it was worth it because the views of Monterosso and Venazza were incredible. The views were so overwhelming and we were so tired that I forgot to get a picture with my phone but Shelly was "ripping film" so we will have lots to share later. We all worked really hard but I think Gina worked the hardest she said "she never worked so hard".

We instantly fell in love with Vernazza! We asked a couple sitting near the beach for a recommendation for pizza. We stopped to the shop "5 doors down" from the beach. We ordered margharita, red sauce with pesto, 4 cheese pizza and a couple cold beers. We finished dinner, checked the train schedule and shopped around before boarding the short ride back to Monterosso (1 stop) Once we got back we noticed a few kids playing soccer and John decided to join them. They were really friendly and Tony sat and watched while the girls cleaned up back at the room. The sun is setting on another beautiful day in the Cinqua Terra. We have to check out by 11 tomorrow but we have a night train to Paris so we will have a interesting day tomorrow afternoon...Until the Ciao!

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Monterosso al mare, con't

We arrived the small beach town of Monterosso al mare about noon on Tuesday. We were all excited to see the beach and water as we exited the train station. We made a few wrong turns looking for our hotel since they call narrow alleys "streets" it was easy to miss. Our room is a quad which is the first time we are in one room together. The room which is on the 4th floor (no elevator) has one queen and a bunk bed which the kids were excited about! We tried to unpack and get ready for the beach as fast as we could. The town reminds us of Venice with the narrow streets and now cars or scooters. This is a bit of a change for us over Rome and Florence.

We stopped for a light lunch...which include a salad with tuna that was excellent! We picked up a couple of things and headed for the beach. Since we arrived late we were not able to buy beach chairs but we were able to go to the public beach next door. The Ligurian Sea was warm and we all took a swim and caught some rays. As the bell tower struck 6 we decided to leave and go back to our hotel. We stopped at a small store and shopped for a sundress for Shelly and Wine...like you do in Italian Riviera. Back at the hotel Tony and John went on the rooftop terrace and looked at the sea while Shelly and Gina got ready.

Shelly made reservations at Ciak and we sat on the sidewalk eating prawns, seafood pasta, gnochi with pesto and of course Chinque Terre vino. We sat by 2 couples from Milano who spoke very little english but were fun to dine with. We had lots of fun try to talk to each other. To top the evening off Gina sang a song for all of us form "The Aristocats". Everyone clapped and we said ciao to our new friends. After dinner we stopped in the local church and the kids lit a couple of candles. We shopped around to walk off our meal and Shelly bought another dress from a shop near Ciak. All of us laughed when she came out with the dress because the wrapped it up like a loaf of bread. We got back to our hotel climbed the stairs and climbed into bed. We had to move the queen since the AC was slightly dripping on it but it was no big deal.

The next morning Tony woke up first and headed up to the terrace for coffee and to blog.

Today we hike and go back to the beach. We will send a few updates along the way.

Until then...Ciao.

Monterosso al mare

Somebody pinch me. A picture is worth a thousand words. Stay tuned for more later...
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Arrivederci, Roma!

We got up early this morning, had a light breakfast at The Lancelot and left for the train station. We grabbed a cappucino before boarding and we are settled in our seat for the next leg of our journey. Arrivederci, Roma!

http://m.youtube.com/watch?desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D-prQ8AE_nvY&v=-prQ8AE_nvY

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St. Peters

We arrived St. Peters and there looked to be a long line but it actually moved fast at least the kids thought so. We entered the Cathedral and the kids comment right away on how huge it was. It was a sunny day so light was streaming into the Cathedral which made it look different than the last time we were there. We immediately hit the high points including The Pieta, St Peter statue and feet, the crusafixion site and the canopy over St. Peters Grave, St. Peters Throne. We decided to attend the Mass that was scheduled for 5pm. We decided to take the occasion for Gina to make her first communion which was exciting for everyone. We finished the visit by looking at a few more statues and mosaics before wrapping things up with a walk past all of the other Cathedrals that are shown on the center isle. We headed out to St. Peter's square and took a few pictures in from of the fountains. It was still hot out as we walked over to the taxi area and we were all thirsty. The kids got water and we bought a couple of Peroni Beers...like you do when visiting St. Peters. We had a toast to Gina and caught a ride to the Pantheon, which was still open! We looked around inside, took a few good photos and left for dinner. We stopped at a place that was recommended by Rick Steves but it was only ok. We did however feel that the buffalo mozz was the best we ever had. After dinner we headed home to The Lanelot and ended up stopping for our last gelato in Rome. All of us agreed that we needed to stop for a few minutes anyway since our feet are pretty tired. Once we arrived our hotel we requested a 6 am wake up call since we depart Rome tomorrow for Cinqua Terra. One quick note The Lancelot has worked out great...again. We got up to our rooms took showers and packed up for our 8am train. Looking back on our time in Rome its been good visit. The kids opinion is that there are a lot of interesting things to see. That's good enough for us! Next post we be from Monterosso. Until then...Ciao!
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Caldo Roma!

The good news is that this allows you to pack light the bad news is that you sweat regardless. We had breakfast at the Lancelot which was simple and decent and then left for the Palentine and Forum areas. We had to walk in the morning heat to the entrance but once we got into the Forum we shot in and out of shady spots. When we were finished we grabbed lunch including fresh fruit and lots of water. After lunch we decided that we should take a couple hours (including taxi rides) to do a weeks worth of Laundry. We only brought a week supply of clothes for our two week trip. We grabbed a couple more cold drinks while the laundry got done and the kids hung in there. Once we wrapped up the laundry we jumped back in our same cab for a ride to St. Peters. We will be there shortly and we will post again later. Until then...Ciao
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Roma Day 1

After lunch we went to an exhibit called R3 wind which was a tour, movie, and exhibit about what ancient Rome use to be like. It was fun for the kids and good for the adults in that it bought us an hour+ of air conditioning. We left the "tour" and bought tickets at the Palentine enterance for the Palentine/Colosseum tour. With tickets in hand we passed all the crowds and walked right into the colosseum. We spent about an hour walking around and then took off for a aelf guided walking tour. We started at the Pantheon and then to Plaza Narvona, to the Trevi Fountain and then to the Spanish steps. All of us were hungry and luckily we found a restaurant called Aroma. We had a great meal at there but the best part was the owner Frederico who was really friendly. The kids just loved Frederico and asked if we could come back tomorrow...we'll see. On the way to find a cab we stopped at a recommended gellato place. Tony ordered a monster cone that had 3 smaller cones and 6 cookies, 2 mini spoons and decorations. The guy told him not to get it but he said he could "lhandle it". All of us were laughing since it was so big. We had to wash up afterwards since we were all covered in gellato from Tony's cone. We got the heck out of there and finally caught a cab home. Once we got home we all took showers and passed out. Tomorrow we plan to hit the Palentine area and St. Peters Cathedral. We will see if our feet are up to it. Until then...Ciao!
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Roma!

Sunday Morning. We got up early and went to the train station in Florence. We had to reserve seats prior to boarding and we got help from another traveler who showed us how to work the automated machine. We arrived the Rome station 1 1/2 later and reserved out seats for Monterosso for Tuesday. We felt like we were getting the hang of train travel. We walked down into the subway and bought 4€ worth of tickets and rode the subway to the colosseum stop. Before we exited the train station we made the kids promise they wouldn't pee their pants. They asked why but then as we exited the station they stopped in their tracks and their jaws dropped as they were looking right at the colosseum. From there we walked to the Hotel Lancelot. As we were walking behind the kids pulling their bags and carrying their backpacks we told them they were becoming "road warriors". We checked into our hotel, made a few freshened up " like you do" when you travel by train and set off for lunch. We were pretty hungry since we did have breakfast. We opted to go to Le Naunachie where we ate with Dom and Peggy 3 years ago. We had moz and arugula, ricotta and tomato's with honey' roasted veggies with breadcrumbs, pizza margharita french fries (some one else had them and they looked good) and of course Vino. (Are you beginning to see a pattern?). We are going to try to avoid the heat this afternoon and rally for a early evening tour of the sites. We are also considering dinner at the Lancelot later which sounds like Family/King Lancelot style. We will keep you posted. Until then...ciao.
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Firenze Day 2

We slept in today because most of us didn't get to bed until midnight. This was either due to the naps on the train or due to Johnny wanting to watch soccer on television until late. We decided to skip the hotel brunch and find a cafe on the way to Ponte Vecchio and the rest of our walking tour we planned. The cafe was just what we were looking for with fresh pastries, fruit and lavazza coffee. The girls in the shop were great and were off for the day. Outside it was starting to get hot but still nice considering we are in Florence in August. Once we got to Ponte Vecchio we looked down at the river and were reminded just how beautiful Florence is! We walked past dozens of gold and silver shops and joked about getting Shelly a big ring. We then headed over to the Uffizi courtyard to look at the statues and fountain of neptune. We continued onto the Palazza Vecchio and the Piazza della Signoria and soon found ourselves at Orsan Michele Church. We looked at all of the statues outside and the gothic architecture inside. John ask a bunch of questions about presence of God in church and we appeared to of answered them to his satisfaction. He and Gina lit a candle and prayed which was actually pretty heavy. Later that evening John and Gina both said that this was one of their favorite stops of the day!

We then walked down Via de Calzaiudi towards the Cathedral of Florence (Duomo) and the Baptistery. We stood in line to go into the Baptistery and studied the bronze doors while we waited. Once we got in we did a 10 min audio tour which was interesting and just enough information. All of us marveled at the mosaic dome and other art inside which once again spurred more questions and more attempts at answers. After that tour we went into the Cathedral and looked at the fresco s and marveled at the massive space inside. It was after 1 pm and we had 2:30 reservations at Accademia (to see David and other works of art) We decided to grab a light lunch near the Accademia. Surprisingly there were not a lot of options but we found a small place with tables on the side walk and some shade. We had a pannini, pizza and some cold drinks.

After lunch we went to Accademia and since we had reservations we were able to get right in. We immediately went to view the statue of David and Shelly said "he's still got it". We looked at the other works of art which led to questions from the kids about the what the paintings or sculpture depicted. We were happy that the kids were pretty interested in most of the art here. After the Accademia we stopped for cappuccinos and ice cream bars and relaxed are aching feet (and legs) After a short rest we took some time to shop around a pick up a few things.

It started to get close to 7 pm and it looked like it was threatening to rain. We heard that there was a good restaurant on the same street as Mama Gina's so we headed in that direction. We believe we found it: Tipica Cucina Toscan is now one of our new favorites here in Florence. We were given a table tucked into a little cove towards the back of the restaurant. We had a variety of crostini, fresh mozz with truffles, arugula with parm, fresh grilled veggies, pasta with pesto and pasta with fresh cherry tomato's and yes Vino. We finished with strawberries over marscapone, tiramisu, ice cream cake and creme brulee. After dinner it was raining but it soon stopped and we walked home. Once we got home we all took showers, watched more soccer and discussed train options for tomorrow. We are sad about having to leave tomorrow but we are also looking forward to our next stop. Until then...Ciao!

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Firenze

Everyone but Shelly fell asleep on the train to Florence and thank goodness she stayed awake because she woke us up just in time to get ready to get off of the train. We caught a short ride to the Westin and change for dinner. We made reservations for Mama Gina's trattoria. We had pasta, chicken parm, arugula & shrimp and bruschetta. We all had a good laugh when Tony mentioned that it was a TSP (Tuscan stretch pants) meal. Everything was great but we had to pass on desert, we were just to full. We all had a good laugh when Tony mentioned that it was a TSP (Tuscan stretch pants) meal. What we needed was a long walk so we walked over to the Uffizi and Accadamia area. After a while the kids decided to go on a gelato hunt. Shelly's GPA kicked in and she found her favorite place without missing a turn. Of course Shelly got the riso (rice) gelato that she hasn't been able to find anywhere else since 2006. We then headed home to rest our feet for tomorrow. Bonaserra.
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Venice Day 2

Today we slept in comfortable air conditioned rooms which made it hard to wake up early. We had breakfast included with our room so we went down and sat along the Grand Canal and had cafe americano's fresh fruit, smoothies and juice. After breakfast we went back to San Marco square to see if we could get into the famous church but the line was to long and our time was too short. We fell upon a glass making demonstration and saw a master craftsman make a horse, which was pretty cool. We then looked around at the expensive Murano glass in the showrooms. After that we headed to see the famous Rialto bridge. Shelly took pictures and the kids watched the gondolas float by. The Rialto area of Venice was nice and while we were there we picked up a few small souvenirs and Tony bought some shoes (his 3 year old shoes that he wore in Italy last time were shot) The kids saw or more likely smelled a bakery called Pasticceria and we picked up a couple cannoli and a gondola which is a horseshoe shaped cookie that has almond flavor. We decided to take another run at San Marco and the bridge of sigh but we struck out so we headed back to the hotel to pack up our 3 backpacks (we checked our bags at the train station). We decided to stop for a light lunch before leaving Venice so we went to Osteria Restaurant for Mozz and tomatoes, prosuitto and melon, salad, and pasta carbonara (spilt between 4 of us) and of course vino! We wrapped up lunch and jumped on a vaporetti and headed for the train station, picked up our bags and jumped on a train headed for Florence/Firenze. We are on the train now and will be in florence in a couple of hours!

Venice is a special place where everywhere you look its like a postcard. We enjoyed visiting there and the kids enjoyed it too. They especially like the gondola ride last night which they said was cool going through the back alley canals and that it was relaxing and quite. Ciao.
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Venice Day 1 continued

August 6. After we checked into the hotel we went down to Piazza San Marco and sat at Ristorante Caffe Quadri on the square. The square of huge and filled with tourists and pigeons. The kids chased pigeons and we sipped wine and and ate olives. The waiter was very attentive and made the whole experience first class. We walked around trying to get lost and came across Antica Sacrestina. The kids tried the Antipasti including sundried tomateo's, octopus and artichoke hearts. We all had pizza and some of us had more vino. After dinner we wandered around and tried to get lost in the back alleys and side streets. Once it got dark we went on an hour gondola ride which was awesome. We wrapped up the evening sitting on a patio on the water under the moonlight.
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Venice

As we rolled through the last station on the mainland we started to soon spotted water. We slowly went over a series of bridges and laid eyes on Venice for the first time. The closer we got to the Venice station the more excited we were. We arrived the Venice station and Shelly set up our reservation for tomorrow afternoon and Tony and the kids checked the bags at the deposito. We bought tickets for a waterbuses (vaporettos) climbed aboard. Next stop San Marco Vallaresso and the Westin Europa & Regina! More later...
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Austria & Italian Alps

We decided to get up early and leave Munich for Venice. Our original thought was to go to Garmisch but we are excited to get to Italy and Venice. We had a little something to eat at the station before jumping on the train. At this point we have gone through Austria with a brief stop in Innsbruck and we are now in Fortezza, Italy. All of us are in awe of the Alps! One thing about traveling by train is that it is difficult to take a picture (see photo) even though the scenery is amazing. What is difficult to capture are the valleys, mountains' rivers, vineyards and hamlets.



We decided to get something more to eat and the kids had muffins and we had a euro breakfast including breads and spreads. The guy at the dining car helped us with all of our items. Back in our car there is a seating area that has a table that folds out so we dined there. Hopefully this will hold us over until we get to Venice. After our little snack we played some games with the kids however they were a little "slap happy" so we went back to our seats. Despite the kids wackiness they are actually holding up really well.



Back at our seats the ticket collector checked our tickets and determined that we didn't have a reservation so he made us pay 16 €. He gave us the same price that we would have paid at the station and did not charge us for the kids. We learned that you have to pay when traveling "international" or between countries. Shortly there after we had to change trains in Bolozano and catch a train to Verona. This train was much smaller than the other train we were on but we all found a seat. Now everyone is reading their books to pass the time...except me obviously.



Our next stop we will have to catch the train from Verona to Venice (track 4). We are getting more and more excited as we roll down the tracks! We will send another update once we get to Venice.

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Munich Bike Tour

Today after a hardy breakfast with Bavarian sausages we took the underground train back to Marienplatz to the old town tower to join up with Mike's Bike tour. All of us got our bike's and headed off for a day of seeing the sites around Munich. The kids liked the English Garden's the Chinesischer Turm beer garden (more beer and more sausage) and the Izar River surfers. After the tour we went to the Karlsplatz to check out a Toy store where we found a few treasures. Later we took a short train ride to Maxmillian Str. to check out how the other half lived. We stopped at the Brenner grill (no sausage) for dinner and discussed if we should go to the Bavarian Alps or go straight to Venice. We are leaning toward skipping the Alps.

Marienplatz

We headed to the city center and John spotted a soccer store so we got him his favorite jersey: AC Milan. We then stopped at the Viktualien markt where we had a brat and another kind of sandwich which we didn't catch the name of but both were great! We then walked over to the Hoffbrau haus for a couple of XL beers, pretzles and more bavarian sausages. We sat with a German couple who didn't speak english but had fun playing games with the kids. Tony and Gina danced to the traditional German band and everyone had a good time. We finished the night with a gelato and another train ride which turned into a taxi ride. We successfully beat the jet lag on day one and once we got to our rooms we passed out.

BMW World & Museum

Our train arrived Munich and we took a short ride to our hotel. Our rooms were ready so we dropped our bags and headed out to the the underground (subway) We needed smaller bills to use the ticket machine so we had to take to a cab instead. The kids, especially John are enjoying all the different types of cars here. We arrived at the BMW campus and had lunch at their cafe. We parents had salads and the kids had Wiener Schnitzel. After lunch we walked around the BMW World and Museum both of which were very interesting. We are now on the subway (we had smaller euro's) headed to Marienplatz (city center). The kids are holding up well considering what little sleep they have had.

Train from Frankfurt to Munich

We made it to Frankfurt a little earlier than expected. All of us got a little sleep on the plane which was good!


Once at the airport we only had carry-on bags so we went straight through customs and then to the train station. After we got our railpasses validatee we went to Track 4 to wait for our train. Along the way we stopped for a couple of crepes with nutella and banana and a couple of coffee's and juice. Our train arrived 10 mins late and we boarded first class for Munich. First class is much like first class on a plane so it was a good choice for 2 weeks of train travel. John and Tony went to the restaurant car for something to drink and everything there looked delicious. We came back to our car and tried to rest a little more.

Detroit

We made it to Detroit and boarded our plane for Frankfurt today. Everyone is clearly settled in for the ride across the Atlantic. Our next post will be from Germany.

Welcome to our Blog

Hi everyone, we are getting ready to leave on August 3rd for 2 weeks in Europ. Our plan is to travel to the following cities:


Detroit to Frankfurt - NWA

Frankfurt - Munich - Train

Munich - Garmisch Germany

Garmisch - Venice, Italy

Venice to Florence

Florence to Sienna

Sienna to Rome

Rome to Monterosso

Monterossso to Paris

Paris to Frankfurt

Frankfurt to Detroit - NWA (August 16th)

Clearly we are going to be on the move so for this trip we are going to try posting to this blog via Tony's blackberry instead of a computer. If we do get to a computer we will upload photos to our Picassa Picture Album at: http://picasaweb.google.com/tony.viviano

We hope that this will allow us to capture the more details about our trip.

See you back here in a week!

Auf wiedersehen, Ciao, Au revoir