Switzerland and Liechtenstein

This past weekend we went to Switzerland (the close part) and Liechtenstein. There really wasn’t a whole lot to see or do in either place. So why go there, you might ask. One (big) reason is so that Doug can add those countries to his list of places he’s visited. Another, and probably more accurate reason, is that despite their lack of excitement, both places were beautiful and since we’re this close we might as well visit.

We started off in the town of Appenzell, Switzerland, a small town basically known for its cheese. So we went to a cheese factory first. (The picture of Gianna looking excited has cheese being made in the background.) It was fun to see the cheese getting made and it was complete with dangerous playground. (This one actually has a pretty nice slide. Most of the other slides we saw in Switzerland looked like rusted pipes. Yikes!) Unfortunately, this slide was too wet to attempt even with Daddy’s help. Then we strolled downtown Appenzell and went in the shops. Doug has been looking for schnapps. So he was so happy to find this ½ meter of Schnapps…his new pride and joy. After a delicious cheese-heavy lunch, we drove to Liechtenstein. While Gianna napped, our car ride was interrupted (we literally had to pull over) by a herd of cows complete with old men and little girls in traditional garb with sticks to keep the cows in check. It was classic! We were hoping this would happen (we read it was a possibility in our guide book)!

By the time we got to Liechtenstein, the weather had cleared. So we had a nice evening strolling downtown Vaduz (the capital). It is VERY small. So we saw it all pretty quickly. We went in some shops, sat and danced around some benches and artwork, and went in a church where Gianna renewed her obsession with church bells. (“I hear church bells…in the window…by the clock…can’t fly up there.”) By then, we had done it all so we went to our hotel room and were too lazy to leave again for dinner. So Doug got us some (expensive) takeout pizza. I’m pretty sure that’s traditional Liechtenstein fare.

On Sunday we got up and made the very tiring, steep hike to the Prince of Liechtenstein’s castle. From this fortress he rules over his vast country of 35,000 people. You can’t go in the castle, but the views were very nice. We took lots of pictures because it was quite an accomplishment for us to make it up there, Doug with Gianna in the stroller and me, 29 weeks pregnant. (For those of you who are interested, I've included the requisite belly shot. How many people have belly shots in front of castles? So many firsts for us!) We also took a lot of pictures because, well, there was nothing else to do up there! Then we walked back down and drove the 2 1/2 hours home. It was definitely a fun trip.

Visit from Aunt Jenny and Steve

So I’m behind in my blogging for sure! Not last week, but the week before, Doug’s sister Jen (Aunt Jenny) and her boyfriend Steve came to visit us. It was so great to have some familiar faces around and Gianna loved having some extra playmates. They went to Prague soon after they arrived, but when they returned to Munich we did some sightseeing together. Gianna and I joined them on Friday in central Munich for some shopping and yet another trip to the Glockenspiel. (I hope she doesn’t tire of it because it’s a great diversion every once in a while!)

On Saturday we all took a short road trip to Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau castles. The weather was a bit misty, but we never needed our umbrellas, which was great. And I must say, the mist added a certain je ne sais quoi to the atmosphere. Neuschwanstein was by far more interesting. It was the inspiration for Sleeping Beauty's castle at Disneyland. But both castles were very cool. Doug and I enjoyed the other castles we’ve seen (Linderhof and Herrenchiemsee) a little better because they were less crowded and less commercial. All in all, we had a great time and were glad to share it with Jen and Steve.

On Sunday we went to the Englischer Garden’s Chinese tower biergarten for lunch. We stopped on the way at a playground with a little treehouse. Gianna loved sitting in there. Lunch was great. We tried the rotisserie chickens for the first time. And it may have been the best chicken we’ve ever had! We ended the day and Jen and Steve’s visit with a trip to the gelato place on our street. Clearly we treated ourselves to some spectacular desserts! Thanks for visiting guys! It was great to see you!

Jenny and Steve by the lake

Neuschwanstein in the mist (check online for pics of what it really looks like!)

The little yellow building in the background is Hohenschwangau Castle

Gianna and Mommy in the tree house

Gelato insanity

One month down, four more to go

Sorry for the delay in this post. I was having blog issues and then computer issues that were so frustrating it has taken me this long to even want to try to post again!

Last Saturday we took a trip to see another of King Ludwig’s castles, Herrenchiemsee. It was a beautiful day and the castle is on an island in the middle of Lake Chiemsee. It’s known as a mini-Versailles. I’ve never been to Versailles, but it must be amazing because this place was gorgeous and ornate. Apparently, its hall of mirrors is bigger than the one at the actual Versailles. Gianna had a great time exploring the grounds and on the horse carriage ride we took back to the ferry.

That night we went to a biergarten, Augustinerkeller. This one is at the top of many lists. And I must say it was more “authentic” than some of the others we’ve been too. There were lots of locals and lots of celebrating and singing among patrons. And of course, no biergarten is complete without the dangerous playground! Although this one was tamer than some other we’ve seen. If you noticed the picture that has that spinning apparatus, I feel I should mention that the kids on it were going SO FAST and I saw one of those boys throw up in the playground rocks a few minutes later. Awesome.

Gianna thought this littls girl's name was "Danke" because that's what Doug kept saying when the girl gave him rocks. Too funny!

Last Sunday was a bit of a disappointment. We thought shopping in central Munich would be a good way to escape the heat, but alas, nothing was open. We thought at least the touristy areas would have open stores…we were wrong! We made the most of our time downtown though. Doug climbed a church tower for some great city views and pictures while Gianna and I strolled the shady streets. When we met up again, we knew the Hofbrauhaus would be open so we decided to go for a pretzel and to give Gianna the thrill of seeing her favorite German tourist attraction: a tuba. God bless the tuba players at Hofbrauhaus at lunchtime. They are our saviors. You other musicians are good, but sorry, to Gianna you can't hold a candle to the tuba. To escape the evening heat of our apartment we went to a (turns out, equally hot) Chinese restaurant. We weren't sure what we were ordering, but everything was delicious. And it was a nice break from bratwursts and schnitzels!

A cool view of the glockenspiel

What's Gianna saying these days?

This is one of the latest things Gianna says that cracks us up! Well, the way she says it cracks us up.

I suppose I should clarify, she's saying, "I need a diaper change." It's very helpful when she does this, since she reports this information approximately 1 nano second after going #2. We hope it's a step in the right direction for potty training!

Prague...or Frog, as Gianna calls it

We did our first overnight trip with Gianna in Europe. We were only in Prague for about 24 hours, but Gianna was a great traveler: enjoying the sights and sleeping good in a strange place! We loved Prague; it is just a beautiful city. After we got there Saturday afternoon we walked through the old downtown area and across the famous Charles Bridge to the castle area. Unfortunately this involved a walk up a LOT of stairs. Prague is NOT stroller friendly, to say the least! At the top we saw the castle complex and went in St. Vitus Cathedral. It is enormous and has some of the most beautiful and intricate stained glass we've ever seen!

Then we took our time walking back through town to stop along the bridge and in some of the countless shops. We had a great dinner in a place with traditional Czech food. Doug enjoyed pork knee (oh my) and I had pork tenderloin on a bed of cheese (yes, you read that right...and, by the way, Americans should serve more dishes on beds of cheese).

The next morning we visted the Jewish quarter. This is the site of several synagogues which mostly act as museums dedicated to the sad history of Czech Jews. One in particular houses the names of all the Czech victims of the Holocaust written on the walls, which fill an entire building. Of the 120,000 Jews living in the Prague area only 10,000 survived to see the end of the war. From the 1400s to the 1700s Prague's Jewish community had only one cemetary in which to bury their dead. So 12,000 are buried in a relatively small area. It is an unbelieveable sight. We were moved by the displays and the history of this area. Despite the somber end to our time in Prague, we really had a great time and recommend a visit to anyone. Though we suspect it would be even more fabulous without a toddler!

Gianna actually walked up quite a few steps on her own

But, not as many as I would have liked!

Luckily the view from the top was spectacular!

Me in front of St. Vitus Cathedral

Doug in front of the castle gate

Doug on the Charles Bridge

Doug and his pork knee

Doug and Gianna in front of the Tyn Church

Clearly, G would rather run around with pigeons than pose with Daddy in front of the sites!

LONG recap of the last 3 weeks in Germany

This is perhaps a too detailed account of what we've been up to since we left the states. If you're interested, please read! If you're not as interested, feel free to check out our pictures!

Wednesday, July 15

Arrived at Munich Airport. Took taxi to Doug’s office. Met by coworkers, had lunch, drove our car and Mascha’s car to our apartment. Moved our stuff in and got settled. Gianna terrible and crazy tired all day (only slept 2 hours on the flight and then in my arms at lunch) and slept 12 straight hours that night. Dinner at McDonald’s with NKOTB’s Step by Step on the radio: our first night in Germany was like the US circa 1993.

Thursday, July 16

Got more settled did some grocery shopping around our neighborhood. Gianna up at night from 11 to 2…awesome. Schnitzel sandwiches for lunch. Did some touring in the afternoon in central Munich. Gianna loves chasing pigeons. Gelato for dinner…maybe not nutritious, but delicious.

Friday, July 17

Doug to work in the morning. Gianna and I played and went to the grocery store. She was very good...beginning to return to normal I think. More lunch schnitzels. Did some more touring in the evening before a barbecue with Doug’s coworkers on a rooftop downtown. Good pretzels and beer, but we had to leave before dinner because Gianna was too tired (us too!) so pizza on our way home!

Saturday, July 18

Very rainy day and cool. Did major grocery shopping in the morning. In the afternoon went to the mall, which, no kidding, was like Christmas Eve in an American mall…totally nuts with people and dogs! Doug made pasta for dinner…now it feels like home. :) Tried to run the dishwasher…no luck!

Sunday, July 19

Beautiful day in Munich! Overcast, but pleasant in Salzburg where we spent the morning and early afternoon. Saw some Sound of Music sights, but missed a few too. Doug also missed seeing the cathedral as it closed right after I came out. Delicious lunch outside at a small restaurant: schnitzels, but mine was covered in a yummy mushroom sauce! We’ll have to go back sometime. It was a charming little city. Frozen pizza at home for dinner. Not bad actually. I hope you all recognize this picture from The Sound of Music.

Monday, July 20

Another beautiful day! Doug made calls in the morning (man coming to fix dishwasher soon, better internet in 2-3 weeks). I did yet some more shopping. You have to shop every day here! Went to the English Garden this afternoon. Gianna loved the ducks and the playground there. Marinated chicken breasts for dinner. Quite good. Oh and we successfully did laundry…after finding the user manual!

Tuesday, July 21

Hotter today. Took Gianna to the Munich zoo. She LOVED it! And we like it too because the animals were so easy to see. They seem much more willing to contain the animals here than in the US…which is nice for visitors! The orangutans were especially funny and the baby so cute. And much to our surprise, Gianna was excited about petting the goats. They were pretty cute, I must say...if stinky! Later we went to the department store and had a quick schnitzel sandwich dinner so that we could indulge in delicious gelato from the place down the street from us. They make gelato art! We had this great mango sculpture! Below is just a cute picture of her at the zoo and another of her with the goats.

Wednesday, July 22

Hot again today. Didn’t do much this morning. This afternoon went to an art museum. (Gianna does not appreciate fine art.) Then we played in the grass/playground by the museum. G mostly likes to people watch and run through the grass. She made friends with two young women…mostly because they had ice cream, I think! Gianna has also become a huge fan of playing with our map of Munich. I'm sure she thinks we're doing something special with it since we're looking at it all the time. Anyway, here she is, a girl after her father's heart...maybe one day her walls too will be covered with maps!

Thursday, July 23

Very hot today, 33 C. This morning, the dishwasher guy came. Hooray for clean dishes! Doug went and got me a cell phone. Hooray for staying connected! This afternoon we went to the botanical garden. We didn’t see much of it though because we found a playground in it. So we played. Gianna mostly liked sitting on different rocks. Although, upon leaving the rock area we noticed that mostly her legs had broken out in some kind of hives. We were scared to death that it was poison ivy or something, but it was already getting better by the time we go to the Apotheke to see if they had any idea what to give her. They gave us some kind of gel, but we haven’t used it yet since the reaction is almost gone. Crisis averted! Doug found grated parmesan cheese to have on our pasta…a major accomplishment!

Friday, July 24

This afternoon we took Gianna back to the park we went to yesterday…but didn’t let her play in the poison plants! We let her play around a fountain. You would have thought we brought her to Disney World. She danced and ran and jumped like there was no tomorrow.

Saturday, July 25

Today we went to Linderhof Castle and Oberammergau. It was nearly a disaster since it started raining right as we arrived at the castle and we were completely unprepared for the cold and rain. But, with the purchase of a large umbrella and a fleece for me, we were all set. The castle grounds are gorgeous and much loved by Gianna. The castle itself is small but ornate with an especially impressive bedroom. By the time we came out of the castle, the rains had stopped! Below are the fountains at Linderhof, the castle, and the castle gardens.

Oberammergau is a charming town. A little too “cute” for some tastes, but we enjoyed wandering around the shops and had a nice outdoor lunch of, you guessed it, schnitzel! Oberammergau doesn’t have much to boast besides the shops, but it has a beautiful church and is known for wood-carving. Which, by the looks of the shops, is VERY impressive!

Sunday, July 26

This afternoon we headed to the Olympic Park from the 1972 Munich Olympics. The structures are very interestingly (oddly) designed and the surrounding park is quite nice; though it lacked a playground that we promised Gianna we would find! We did climb the tower and got a great view of the city. Doug was able to get crushed pennies (thank goodness ;o) and we got some neat pictures of the view. We could even see where our house is. Below is the tower and then Gianna and Doug at the top.

Tuesday, July 28

We went to the 11 o'clock ringing of the Glockenspiel in the very center of Munich this morning. We got to overhear some of an English tour about it so the young British man leading it kept things quite amusing and interesting for us. The magic of the Glockenspiel is gone for him…he says it’s among the most overrated tourist attractions as not much happens and it lasts for 15 minutes. Nevertheless, it’s a must see if you visit Munich, I think.

Speaking of must-sees, we had lunch at Hofbrauhaus. Turkey ragout with spaetzle for me and a steak thing for Doug (which he’s still raving about). The beer was, of course, good (Doug says). But the highlight was the live music they play at lunch. Gianna was mesmerized, especially by the tuba. Whatever it takes to keep her entertained while we enjoy a meal! I don’t think we’d survive an evening visit to Hofbrauhaus; the lunch crowd is much smaller…and tamer I suspect!

In the afternoon we did some shopping at a department store downtown. There I learned that underwear is expensive and so are toothbrush holders. As a side note, Gianna has been HATING her baths since we’ve been here and she told me that she missed her toy rocket-submarine. And much to my surprise, they had this very toy at the department store. Who knew that any German kids new of Little Einsteins?! Anyway, little did we know that her bath problems could be alleviated by the 1 euro watering can rather than buying another rocket for 10!

Wednesday, July 29

Doug went to work in the afternoon and Gianna and I braved the seven flights downstairs because of a broken elevator to go to the Botanical Garden. It wasn't too bad, she did a couple flights on her butt. Unfortunately, the elevator was still broken when we got home so I had to carry her up 7 flights! Luckily a neighbor graciously carried the stroller up! But he had it easy...G weighs way more than that stroller! At the Garden, Gianna had a great time running around and wasn't even distracted by the nearly-naked photo shoot going on, I'm not joking, inside the fountain!

Saturday, August 1

Went to Nurnberg today. It is a lovely city and a beautiful day. We didn't do any of the historical Nazi sites; we just stayed in the downtown and looked at some churches and went in shops. We had a great lunch of "Nurnbergers" little breakfast-like sausages and potato salad. Doug loved it! Gianna danced like a lunatic to some saxophone and guitar street performers. I asked her what instruments she saw and she said, "Not a tuba." Clearly, if there's no tubas we're wasting her time! We also went to the toy museum there. The displays were not too exciting, but there is a playroom on the top floor and a playground outside. Here are some pics of the playground and this is where we will begin our expose of the dangerousness of German playgrounds :) We don't mind that they're unsafe; They actually look like lots more fun (for older kids anyway) than playgrounds in the US. We just think it's hilarious how playgrounds like the ones here would certainly be demolished in the US! Below is D and G by a statue (G was looking at another photographer), me eating Nurembergers, and scary playground toys (yes that boy is on stilts).

Sunday, August 2

We went to our second English mass today. It's quite an interesting mix of people. Most of the attendees are African and Asian or elderly German women. It's definitely nice to hear English once a week and the people there seem very kind and friendly. Afterward we went to lunch in the English Garden at the Chinese pavilion. It's a huge area, I think there are something like 6000 seats around the pavilion. Anyway, you can get food from a number of stands and then bring it to a table and listen to the music. Doug had fish on a stick (he said it was good) and Gianna enjoyed a giant pretzel (she really only ate part of it). It was a really nice way to spend the afternoon. Gianna loved the music but was much distressed that she could not get closer to her beloved tubas. There's also a (dangerous) playground right next to the food area. Although, this is actually one of the safer ones we've seen and Gianna was able to get up and down the slide on her own! Here are pictures of our food, a scary piece of playground equipment, and Gianna enjoying a giant beer with Daddy.