Final Europe Tour Post

27June2011: Monday

Early that morning, we got up and headed back to the train station. This time, we actually got on the train! We had to switch trains a few times, but made it to Ramstein. Once we got to the passenger terminal in Ramstein, we saw the scores of people that were also trying to head back to the states. We had a plan though, there was a flight heading to Travis AFB, CA later that day.

Do you remember the couple that we helped back in Dover? We drove them to McGuire so they could get back to Ramstein. Well, they live there. So we called them up and told them we were in town. Tom, the husband, came and picked us up and took us to his house so we could get a shower, do a load of laundry and maybe even have time for a nap, before we had to get back to the terminal for the flight to Travis.

So we did all that and Tom came back (he had to go back to work) and took us back to the terminal, where we learned that they were only allowing duty passengers on the flight (which means John could get on the flight but, Sydney and I couldn't). Plan B: the next flights that were going out were early in the morning from another base about 2 hours away. The only problem is... how are we going to get there?

Tom took us back to his house to problem solve. Long story short, we ended up going out to dinner with Tom and Evelyn (had our schnitzel), then hit the road in their daughters car, drove up to Spangdalhem. They would come down and pick up their car in a few days.

When got to Spangdalhem, after waiting around for a about five hours, we boarded a plane heading for Ft. Lewis, WA, with a stop in Dover (not Dover again). As you can guess, the plane broke in Dover and there was going to be another 20 hour delay. At this point, we really didn't have 20 hours to lose. So we made friends with a family on the plane, who gave us a ride to the Baltimore Airport. Once we got our tickets and realized we had some time before our plane left, we took the train into town and got some lunch, saw the USS Constellation (which was an anti-slave ship back in the day) and then headed back to the airport.

At 8:00 pm est, we boarded our plane. At 11:30 pst, we landed at Seatac Airport. And our trip was complete.

On the train to Germany

all tuckered out

Ramstein Passenger Terminal

Eight Months

As each month passes, it's hard to believe that Sydney is getting closer and closer to being a year old.

8 Month Tidbits:

* Still not crawling but very close. Her activity level is really ramping up and I'm getting a little scared for the day when she does figure out the crawling

* Still no teeth, fine with me

* She's eating all sorts of food and is really starting to bulk up

* She is still proving to be quite the trooper, as our life has yet to settle down. The latest was a trip to Oklahoma where we are now. She did a great job on that 3 day trek down here.

* Sleeping has been good and bad this month. We had a great schedule going at G & G Robbins, but since we've been in OK, we're trying to get back on the schedule.

* Her little personality brings us such joy, she is so fun to have around and we're so blessed to get to hang out with her so much!

Hiking Mt. Si with mom, dad, and friends

Meeting my Great-Aunts and Great Uncle John, he's taking the picture

I can be serious, too

Sleepy baby

I still love bath time, especially now that I can sit up and splash around

Having fun at Grandma and Grandpa's

Paris

25June2011: Saturday

When we woke up on the train we were travelling through the French countryside, as I said before. At about 11am we arrived in Paris. Our first order of business was to find a hotel so we could drop our bags. We hopped on the Metro and headed for the St. Germain area (someone had told us there were a lot of places to stay there). Apparently, there was some big to do shopping thing going on that weekend and all the hotels were booked up. Finally we found hotel that was full, but the lady working there was willing to help us find a place and eventually we did.

So we got to the hotel, dropped the bags and headed for the Eiffel Tower. We knew our time in Paris was short, and there were just a few things we wanted to see, like the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, and the Louvre. That afternoon and evening, we made it to the Eiffel Tower, Arc d' Triumph and Notre Dame, mostly on foot. We were a little exhausted after that.

26June2011: Sunday

The plan for the day was to hit the Louvre for a few hours then head to the train station to catch a train to Ramstein Air Base in Germany. Well, the first part of the plan worked out okay. We got into the Louvre, saw Mona and the other various pieces. Sydney spent some time dipping her feet in the fountain outside the Louvre.

Then we headed for the train station, the only problem was that the train we were intending to take, was sold out, as well as the other one that was going out that evening (our back-up plan). So I sat in the train station with Sydney, while John tried to find some internet so that we could figure out our next step. Well, we ended up staying in Paris another night, at a dive of a hostel, but they had internet which was a must at this point. Sadly, we did not really get to enjoy much more time in Paris, as we were madly trying to figure out how we were going to get back to the states.

However, everyone has to eat at some point. So we eventually went in search for some dinner. John and I had gotten in the habit of picking a number and that would be the restaurant we would eat at. So it just so happened that we chose a restaurant that had live music, it was quite good, but a little loud for Sydney. The only thing was that Sydney kept getting hit on by this old, drunk, man. We still have no idea what he was saying!

We went back to the hostel and tried to get some sleep, although the only one who really did was Sydney (which was good).

French countryside

we travel in style

I don't like to brag

waiting for the metro

the tower

Sydney's getting ready to order in French

le Arc d' Triumph

She's just not that impressed

the most romantic bridge in Paris

Notre Dame

The Louvre

Winged Victory

Mona's crowd

the woman herself

Mona & Sydney

the halls of the Louvre

Venus de Milo

Diana of Versailles

the pyramids

playing in the fountain

Rome

24June2011: Friday

About this time, we were realizing that we needed to start getting to a place that we thought we could get a hop home. Germany was probably our best bet. So we took a train up to Rome and were planning to take the night train from Rome to Paris. Which left us about 5 hours to explore the city of Rome. John’s joke was that Rome wasn’t built in a day and it wasn’t seen in a day either. With the time we had, we thought the best way to see the most stuff would be to get on one of the sightseeing bus tours that you can hop on and off of at any stop. So we got on one of those and it took us through the main places of Rome, past the Colosseum, the Roman Forum, etc. We chose to get off at the Vatican City, however with the line being an 1 hour and 45 min. wait, we really didn’t have enough time to get in and see anything. So we walked the perimeter and planned what we'll do the next time we come to Rome.

Eventually we got back on the bus and headed for the train station. We stopped for some pizza where Sydney had a mishap with the cheese and burned her poor little finger, she was not a happy camper. After we got her settled down and she fell asleep in my arms, we headed for the train. I think the night train was a highlight for John. We both enjoyed the relaxation and travelling through Tuscany at dusk and then waking up to the Swiss and French countryside. I guess the only thing we were missing was a bottle of wine to make the evening truly romantic.

yeah, a train ride!

Roman Forum (not a great picture, sorry)

The Colosseum

A special blessing at the Vatican

The Vatican

The bus

Don't worry, she's not dead, just sleeping

Night train from Rome to Paris

Arrivederci Italia

Our Cabin

Sunset in Tuscany

Sunrise in the French countryside

Naples: Pompei & Capri

22June2011: Wednesday

We’re off to Pompeii! From Will and Sally’s house, we drove down to the ruins of Pompeii, quite amazing. Just to think that we were walking in and through structures that were built even before Jesus was born.

Because we are a bit cheap, we didn’t get the audio tour. About halfway through our own tour, we ran into a family that was reading about Pompeii from a Rick Steves book. Great idea, why didn’t we think of this! So we kind of tagged along with them. They were from Portland, so we figured, we’re really neighbors! Getting the commentary, made the time a lot more meaningful.

Mt. Vesuvius behind us

We had lunch at a pizza place in the square, near the entrance of Pompeii. I think I could eat their pizza all day long!

After that, we headed to the culprit of the Pompeii ruins, Mt Vesuvius. We thought that we could drive all the way to the top, but when we were just about there, we got to a parking lot, where we had to pay to park. Then we learned that it was still another hike to the top, and by the way, they charged you $12 to do it. Since it was the middle of the afternoon and blazing hot, we decided that we didn’t not need to pay $12 to hike to the crater (we also talked with some other people who said it wasn’t really worth, unless you’re into geology, which we are not). So we headed back to Will and Sally’s.

Top of Mt. Vesuvius

23June2011: Thursday

Although Will had just had his surgery the day before, he insisted that he join us. So we took a ferry to the island of Capri (I think this was my favorite day). I don’t think I’ve mentioned, but Will and Sally have two little boys, one 2 and one 4 months. We the three little ones, we decided that the best way to see the island was to rent a boat. This really turned out to be a wise decision. So we all hopped in the boat and started heading around the island. It was and absolutely gorgeous day!

One of the main attractions of Capri is the Blue Groto, which is this little cave off the coast of the island. The opening is barely big enough to fit a canoe through it. But once you are inside, it opens up to this large dome. The entire cave is covered in limestone, so when the sun shines through the water, it reflects off the limestone and creates its this crystal blue water that looks like it’s from a Disney movie.

So now that I’ve talked it up, I’ll tell our story of the Blue Groto. We were starting to run low on time, since we only rented the boat for 2 hours. The outside of this place is just covered with little cruise boats and of course, we’re just a boat of 4 people and the guys with the canoes don’t want to serve us because, he might miss out on a bigger boat. Well, eventually we snag a guy that will take, although he continually comments about a tip since he just took John, Sydney and myself (they usually take 4 people). So we get in the boat and this guy starts taking us in, and if you’ve ever been to Italy, you know that you should not be in close proximity and in small spaces with an Italian man. Whew! Did he need some deodorant! We tried to enjoy the experience as best we could. He took us in, went around in a circle and then back out again. The kicker was when he complained that John’s tip of 6 euros (roughly $10, we already had to buy tickets to go in, mind you) was too small and he could even buy a cheap bottle wine with it. John thought it was plenty to buy himself a stick of deodorant!

If you ever happen to be on the island of Capri, you must see the Blue Groto, because, you just have to since you’re there. Just remeremember that it’s a little over-rated and over-priced, and you might want a facemask too!

Yummy pizza, with the whole gang

The Pilots gone Skipper

Sally and Aiden(sleeping)

Armon

Once again, Sydney's the life of the party

If you look carefully at this strange rock formation, there is a house(or something) on top that looks like it's literally unsupported

Our lovely Blue Groto guide

The crystal blue waters

Another interesting cave that we wish we had time to explore

Sydney making friends again