John and CB's Most Excellent Adventure

Shortly after Lucy’s graduation, John’s cousin Kaitlyn graduated from high school in Stuttgart, Germany.  We made the trip over for the ceremony and were able to spend an extra day there with family.  I had a great time and I know John enjoyed the break from studying 😉

Kaitlyn graduated from an American high school on the base there.  She heading to the US Air Force Academy this fall (actually, this summer for training).  We are proud of you, Kaitlyn!

John and me enjoying a very German aspect of the graduation.

Graduated!

With the graduate!

Everyone!

The next day, we were up bright and early and off on our next adventure:  a Rhein River cruise.  Well, I say we were up early.  Most of us got up and into the van and went back to sleep while Aunt Linda drove us to the port.  We got on the first boat out and cruised up the river to Boppard.

So pretty!!!

Aunt Linda, Jake, and Kaitlyn enjoying the ride!

Leaving Boppard–such a cute town!

Then we stopped in St. Goar to check out some cool castle ruins and hit a few shops, including a shop with the world’s large cuckoo clock and beer stein!

Exploring the castle!

Aunt Linda with the world’s biggest cuckoo clock!

After visiting St. Goar, we hopped back onto the boat for a final time to head back to the port where the van was waiting.

One final glance down the river…

It’s hard to believe we spent less than 48 hours in Germany this trip–we saw and did so much!!  We had such a great time, Sanborns.  Thanks again for having us!!!!

Our latest adventure was a trip to Krakow, Poland.  It seems random, but we found a great deal online and had a bit of time, so off we went!

The gate at Auschwitz which means "Work Results in Freedom"

Our first day there, we signed up to take a tour of Auschwitz and Birkenau–concentration camps just an hour’s drive from Krakow.  In fact, most of Krakow’s Jewish population ended up there.  The bus ride to the camps included a documentary on the liberation of the camps, so it really helped set the scene for what we were about to see.

Guard House

We stepped off the bus and there it was:  Auschwitz.  I read Night by Eli Weisel a couple of times when I was in school.  It was humbling to be visiting the same place where he suffered so much.  The craziest part was knowing that literally a million other Jews suffered in a very similar way, but didn’t live to tell their stories.

Auschwitz is now a museum dedicated to telling the stories of the victims.  We saw suitcases marked with names, eye glasses, shoes, human hair that was shaved from the victims.  We even saw a piece of cloth made from the hair.

Suitcases...

After chemical tests were run on the cloth, they found traces of the gases used to kill the women.  What was most striking was how much the Jews believed they were being relocated for jobs–not to a death camp.  This was evident in what they brought:  shoe polish, combs, suits, etc.  The people marched into the gas chambers believing they would come out.  We saw the death wall, where more than 10,000 people were shot execution style.  There was also a small jail within the camp, which included standing cells (up to 10 people would be kept in a tiny room, with no way to sit down) and a cell with no ventilation where people would suffocate to death.

Gas Chamber

The most eerie part of our tour of Auschwitz was actually walking through a gas chamber.  Knowing we were standing in a place where tens of thousands of people died was very powerful.  Looking up, I saw the openings in the ceiling where the gas was administered.   On the way out of the “crematorium,” we passed by the ovens where the bodies would have been burned.  Our tour guide told us that her grandparents lived about 30 km away from Auschwitz during the war and on windy days, they could smell the flesh burning in the fires at the camps.  Horrible.

Tracks leading into Birkenau

Our second stop on this tour was Birkenau a much larger camp.  Birkenau had 4 crematoriums (gas chambers) all of which were destroyed around the time of the liberation.  The train tracks still run through the camp, complete with an original cattle car that was used to transport the victims to the camp.  We took a quick lap around this large camp, saw a memorial, and then headed back to the bus.  It was quite a sobering day, so we grabbed a late lunch, and wandered about the city square, which has been around since the 13th century and houses a beautiful market full of all kinds of local crafts.

Main Square

The next day, we were off to explore the city of Krakow.  In the morning, we took a free city tour (highly recommend if you go to Krakow) where the tour guides make their living off of tips.  The city tour lasted 2.5 hours and included everything from the main market square, to the medieval city walls, and even the Wawel Castle where the Wawel dragon once lived.  The tour was a lovely overview of the history of Poland and of Krakow.

In the Jewish Quarter, in an area used to film Schindler's List

We grabbed a local lunch (delicious) then headed back to the meeting point for another free tour:  their Jewish tour.  This tour took us to the Jewish quarter of town, which was full of synagogues, cemeteries, and traditional Jewish restaurants.  Then, we made the walk over the bridge (just like the Jews did in the 1940’s) to the Jewish ghetto.  It’s worth mentioning at this point that Schindler’s factory from the famous movie Schindler’s list was located in Krakow.  As a result, most of the movie was filmed in the city.  We walked over the bridge the Jews walked over when they were made to move to the ghetto and saw where many of the horrific scenes were shot.  Some of the wall around the ghetto still remain.  Although Schindler’s factory is no longer standing, we went to the sight where there is now a museum.

At "Singer"

After that tour, we had a drink at a bar where all of the tables are Singer sewing machines, then had some local “Jewish fare” at one of the local restaurants then went to listen to some jazz.

The next morning, we were off to Wawel Castle!  This is where the elected Polish king reigned and it is home to one of the most outstanding collection of tapestries in the world!  We toured the State rooms, the royal private apartments, and even had a peak in the chapel.

John with St. Mary's in the background

Then, we were off to St. Mary’s–the flagship church of the main square.  You can also see the inside of the church in Schindler’s List.  It was beautiful–and it imagine it was built in the 1200’s–amazing!!

After some Polish tapas including some amazing pierogi, we were on the way to the airport to head back to London.

Thanks for reading everyone!!

Less than a week after Steve and Lindsey left for the US, we had another visitor:  John’s younger sister, Lucy!!!  Lucy turned 18 a few days before arriving in London, so we had to celebrate in style!  We went to the Lion King in the West End (London’s version of Broadway) and then to an Italian dinner, since Lucy claims she is very much Italian.  The show was amazing–if you haven’t seen it, go see it for the costumes alone.  Brilliant!

John getting into the art at the Louvre

The next morning, we were up and off again this time on the Eurostar (via the Chunnel) to Paris!  Lucy and I had never been to Paris, but we knew it was going to be amazing.  We even got to meet up with Aunt Linda and Kaitlyn once we got there.  The five of us were about to embark on Extreme Paris, 2012!

When we got to the Louvre, we each got a Paris Museum Pass.  If you ever go to Paris and are planning to see a lot of sights you MUST get one!  It’s good at over 60 museums and attractions (including Versailles) and costs 54 Euro for 4 days.  We would have easily spent twice that if we had paid an entry fee at every site we saw.  It was brilliant!

Lucy at the Louvre!

So, we spent our first few hours at the Louvre.  This museum is massive!  There are so many beautiful paintings, sculptures, and you even get to take a peek at Napoleon’s apartments.  We also managed to fight through the crowd to see the Mona Lisa.  After the Louvre, we took a stroll down the Seine to the Eiffel Tower where we enjoyed some Crepes, cheese, and crackers in the park (no wine allowed, unfortunately).  We did buy a bottle and had a restaurant uncork it only to find out we couldn’t drink it in the park.

The whole crew on top of the Arc de Triomphe

After our picnic in the park, we took a lovely night cruise down the river and ended our evening with a beautiful evening view of Paris and the Eiffel Tower from the Arc de Triomphe.  After the long walk back to our hotel, we passed out.  Great first day!

Gorgeous Sainte Chapelle

The next morning, we woke up bright and early, had some croissants, and went to La Sainte Chapelle, a beautiful 13th century church with breathtaking stain glass windows.  They are in the process of cleaning the windows now, but they truly are brilliant.  The windows tell stories from the Bible.  It was nice to sit in a chair and just stare at them, watching the stories unfold.

Beautiful ladies on top of the Notre Dame

After Sainte Chapelle, we headed to the Notre Dame.  The inside of the Notre Dame is beautiful, albeit a bit touristy.  The amazing part of the Notre Dame is the rooftop, where you can get up close and personal with the gargoyles and enjoy amazing views of the city.

Notre Dame

We also had a chance to visit the bell tower, where Quasimodo is said to have lived.  It would have been very lonely and extremely loud up there.   After the Notre Dame, we headed underground to view the first known ruins of Paris!  The first part of the settlement was on the island where the Notre Dame is today.  It was pretty cool to see the original remains of a now world renowned city!

Gorgeous walk along the Seine

After a delicious lunch of Croque Monsieur, we did some shopping along the Seine.  There were beautiful paintings, posters, old books, and lots of Paris souvenirs.   John and I found a lady doing water color paintings on the spot!  We snapped one up to add to our collection.  Eventually, we made our way to the Musee D’Orsay, another large art museum full of Monets, Reniors, and Van Goghs.  No photos were allowed inside, but I can assure you it was amazing.  I’d seen a lot of these paintings at various points in my education, but seeing them in person was awesome!

Beautiful Basilica

After the Musee D’Orsay, we took the metro up to Montmarte, a hilltop over looking the city to watch the sunset.  Unexpectedly, we were entertained by a delightful singer and a few guys twirling and breathing fire.  We even had a chance to tour the church, The Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Paris, at the top of the hill.

The next morning, we were up early again and off to Versailles!  (Being from Kentucky, it takes every inch of my brain to pronounce it with a “sigh” at the end instead of a “sails”.  If you’re not from KY, there is a town there called Versailles, but pronounced Ver-sails.  Don’t make fun–it’s the way it is.)

Sibling buddies at Versailles!

The Palace of Versailles was something else.  The opulence alone was breathtaking and to think of all that occurred there was extremely fascinating.  We stood at the gate where the peasants revolted against Louis XI and Marie Antoinette.  The inside of the palace was immaculate, no detail left to chance.  My favorite part was the Hall of Mirrors (mirrors being a sign of wealth).  Simply stunning.

Playing around in the gardens

We also had a chance to roam around the gardens, which were still very nice, although not in bloom, and see two other “palaces” on the property, the Grand Trianon and the Petite Trianon.  These were like summer homes when they tired of Versailles.  Amazingly, they were walking distance from the palace.  The Petite Trianon was Marie Antionette’s favorite where she had a village recreated close by so she could be among the people.  I remember something about her having the sheep died to match her hair color (i.e. pink).  Of course, this was all a very expensive fabrication.

Eiffel Tower: on stair 4 of 668.

After a quick lunch, we grabbed a train back to the Eiffel Tower.  We still needed to go to the top!  We decided to be adventurous and take the stairs– 700 stairs to the second tier.  It was quite the journey, but we were able to pull it off.  🙂  The view from the top is gorgeous.  There are no other buildings in the city that even come close in height, which allows you to really take in all of Paris, well, except for the Eiffel Tower, since you are in it!

Under the Eiffel Tower

After some time at the top, we headed back down and caught the Metro to Aunt Linda’s favorite sight in all of Paris:  The Pompidou!

The Pompidou is a neat building with the outside of the building resembling what the inside should look like (pipes, etc.) and the inside resembling the outside (brickwork).  The Pompidou also houses a modern art museum.  John and I enjoy these museums (not because all of the art is beautiful, but a lot of the statements made by the artists are interesting).  The rest of our crew didn’t find this museum as interesting as we did…enough said.  🙂

John enjoying some modern art!

After our quick trip through the museum, we had a delicious French dinner.  I had beef with shallots on top and ratatouille and some red wine–DELICIOUS!!!  After our nightly crepe, we headed back to our hotel.

The final morning in Paris, we had a couple more things to knock out.  First we went to the Musee de l’Orangerie to view the large Monets.  By large, I mean four paintings take up an entire massive room.  They are simply marvelous–his masterpiece.

The ladies at the Opera!

Then we went to the Opera Garnier–the opera house made famous by the Phantom of the Opera.  This opera house was grand–some parts even beating out Versailles in opulence, I have to admit.  We did not see the Phantom, though, which was a bit of a disappointment.

Next, we grabbed our bags and headed to the Eurostar to come back home to London.  Lucy stayed a couple of more days and we hit the Tower of London, the British Museum, Camden Market, etc.  It was a very busy week.  It was so great having Lucy here!!!  🙂  Come back anytime–we’ll have another adventure!

Thanks for reading, everyone!  More to come soon.

So glad you came, Lucy!!!

We’ve had a whirlwind of visitors lately, the first being John’s brother Steve and his girlfriend Lindsey who joined us in London for their spring break!  They were able to do a ton of sightseeing around London and we even managed to squeeze in a three day trip to Barcelona!

In the square, ready to explore!

Of course we took the 7am flight out of London to maximize our time in Spain, so when we arrived, we were feeling pretty sleepy.  Fortunately, we were staying on La Rambla, a busy pedestrian street in the middle of Barcelona, so we were walking distance from most places!  Our first day, we had a nice Spanish breakfast, headed to a delicious food market that we would frequent several more times during our holiday, and went to see the Cathedral of the Holy Cross and Saint Eulalia, a beautiful 14th century Cathedral in the gothic quarter.

I found the chocolate in the market!!!

This cathedral included a rooftop walk where we could take in beautiful views of the city–from the Mediterranean up to the hillside.  By this point we were ready for our siesta (when in Spain…).  We then enjoyed a delicious Spanish dinner, including squid cooked in it’s own ink, some interesting jazz and headed back to bed.

The next morning began with delicious parma ham sandwiches and fresh fruit juice from the market.  After an hour of wandering around trying to figure out Spanish Ticket Machines (grrr…) we started our day of sightseeing with the Picasso Museum (a huge museum dedicated to Pablo Picasso’s work).  I had no idea how diverse his work was.

Picture taken through the glass on the staircase. Looking through the glass makes you feel like you're underwater!

The museum was set up chronologically, and you can truly see his growth and maturation as an artist.  After this museum, we headed to the Casa Batllo, an apartment building designed by Antoni Gaudi.  Gaudi certainly had a unique vision, this building taking the form of something you would find under the sea.  The lines were all curved, tons of blues adorned the walls, and you could find seashells almost everywhere you looked.  After this, Steve and Lindsey went to another Gaudi sight while John and I had a snack.  We then wandered down La Rambla, found some great artwork, had some paella and sangria.  Then we met Arenaldi who so kindly directed us to an Irish pub where we spent the remainder of the evening.  You can’t make this stuff up.  🙂

After some yummy paella and lovely sangria!

Up and at ’em early the next morning.  I ran to the market to grab us some breakfast and then we piled into a taxi to view Gaudi’s incredible unfinished masterpiece:  Sagrada Familia.  Gaudi began work on this in 1883 and it was a quarter of the way finished when he died in 1926.  The expected date of completion is 2026–the centennial of Gaudi’s death.

Sagrada Familia

The cathedral is simply breathtaking…we spent more than two hours there, admiring the facades (every side of the building is the completely different, each telling part of Christ’s narrative), taking in the interior (it looks like something out of Willy Wonka), and marveling at the sheer creativity required to create something this grand and this unique–especially almost a century ago.  To top it off, Gaudi is buried beneath this cathedral, in a small but grand chapel.

At Gaudi's Park

To complete our Gaudi tour of Barcelona, we ventured to the Park Guell, a whimsical park designed by Antoni Gaudi that offers brilliant design as well as amazing views of Barcelona and the Mediterranean.  Each area of the park seemed to have a different theme and the mosaic work was extremely impressive.  The highlight of our trip to the park, however, was a band called The Mananers.  They are a reggae band, who put on an amazing show in the park.  John and Steve were so impressed, they bought the CD.  🙂

After our adventure in the park, we had a bit of time before our flight to do some exploring.  First we went to another cathedral in the Gothic Quarter, the one that inspired Gaudi’s work in the Sagrada Familia.  It was neat to see the inspiration that led to the masterpiece.

Beautiful Barcelona!

Then, John and I hit the Museum of Contemporary Art, while Steve and Lindsey strolled down Las Ramblas and did a bit of shopping.  After that it was off to the airport to catch our flight!  What a whirlwind of a trip, but we saw a ton!

Steve and Lindsey spent a few more days in London with us after our Spanish adventure!  We got to tour the Houses of Parliament (amazing!) and even fit in some time at a Speakeasy.  That was definitely a great week.  Come back and see us soon, you two!  🙂

On Saturday morning, we woke up bright and early and took a flight to Stuttgart, Germany where John’s Uncle Russell, Aunt Linda and cousins live.  They live on the Army base there–Uncle Russell is a Marine and is currently posted in Germany.  It was so nice to have family so close to visit!

Aunt Linda and me at the Palace

Aunt Linda and Olivia picked us up from the airport–we were ready to go go go!  We dropped our bags at their home, then took the train with the rest of the family to Ludwigsburg Palace where we saw over 70 rooms including 3 throne rooms, two beautiful chapels, and tons of baroque and classical architecture and decorating schemes.  Our tour was mostly in German, but that just added to the authenticity of the experience.  Obviously, the palace was massive–it was so cool!

Vineyards and Villages

We then wandered around the palace grounds, saw Rapunzel’s Tower (where during summer months, you can call to her and she’ll let down her hair), and downtown Stuttgart.  Stuttgart is a very new and progressive city.  Many of the buildings were destroyed during the second world war, but were rebuilt to maintain their historic character.  Others are very modern.  After having some noodles and ice cream, we headed back to the Sanborn’s where we chatted into the wee hours of the morning.

One excited guy.

The next day, we went to church at the International Baptist Church of Stuttgart.  Amazingly, the minister there was formerly the minister of International Baptist Church of Singapore, where John and I attended while living in Asia.  He left the church before we got there, but we knew many of the same people.  Very cool.  🙂

After church, we were off to the Wurttemberg Mausoleum, a beautiful mountaintop burial place that a husband built for his wife.  It offered stunning views of the vineyards that surround Stuttgart and of the city itself.  Then, we headed to the Mercedes Benz Museum where we spent most of our afternoon.  John is a real car enthusiast and, actually, the museum had lots of interesting exhibits for the girls as well.  It followed Mercedes Benz’s development and how the company reacted to social, political, and cultural events.  Of course it was full of cars which made John very happy.

Kaitlin and Aunt Linda exploring the museum

After exploring the museum, we enjoyed a wonderful German dinner in a house turned restaurant.  I had a delicious salad (regular salad and potato salad together), snitzel (fried pork), and spaetzle (a German version of mac and cheese).  Honestly, this was one of the best meals we’ve had in Europe.  The flavors were spectacular and the meal was very filling.

After a DELICIOUS Dinner

We even got to try some German beer and a Riesling wine from Germany.  It was an excellent survey of delicious German cuisine.  With our bellies nice and full, we were off to bed to rest for our Autobahn Adventure!

Early Monday morning, Aunt Linda and I set out with John to enjoy his Christmas present:  renting a nice car and driving on the Autobahn.  We ended up with an Audi A4 (just like Audrey, Rev!) and off we went towards Munich.  Contrary to popular belief (at least, what I believed) the Autobahn isn’t a complete free-for-all speed wise.  There are places of unlimited speed, but most of the highway is regulated.  Needless to say, John found these areas and took off.  He was very safe though.  😉  The picture is in kilometres per hour–not miles per hour.  Don’t worry Mom!

Autobahn Driving

While driving around, we visited the Andechs Monastery where we saw a beautiful church and tried the beer the monks make on site!  I’m not a beer drinker and actually it was pretty decent.  Complete with beautiful views of Bavaria, the monastery was a hit!  We got back in the car, drove a few kilometers to a pretty lake that was frozen over, had some tea and cake and then sped back to the airport to try to make our flight.  (We arrived only half an hour before scheduled take off time…but we made it!!!)

Monastery Beer--very nice!

A big thank you to the Sanborns for making our time in Germany so amazing!  Uncle Russell, Aunt Linda, Kaitlin, Emily, Olivia, and Rachel–we really appreciate it!!!  And–we missed you Jake.  🙂

Thanks for reading, everyone!!