Christina & Lisa’s Excellent Adventure
Germany, Luxembourg, France, Switzerland, Italy & Austria
Starting out in Short Hills, NJ
Newark Airport – only an hour to get through ticketing, bags, and security.
Good eats on the plane - Chicken
Waiting for bags
June 19th – July 9, 2009
Starting In Gross-Gerau, Germany With Uwe
Last update: Saturday, June 06, 2009
Overall Loop – 2,131.3 miles (3,430 Kilometers)
Frankfurt Airport to Uwe’s – Saturday, June 20th (Day 01) – Arrive 9:25am
Uwe’s Apartment
Going to Frankfurt
Taxis
There was a party goin’ on…
The girls liked the design on the Porta-Potties
Crowded?
Wine and Brownies and Ice Cream oh, my….
Rhine Trip with Bill – Uwe’s to Koblenz - 70 miles – Sunday, June 21st (Day 02)
Uwe’s apartment in the morning
Bikes along the Rhein at the ferry crossing
It was cold in the morning!
Oppenheim
The town square
Church goers…
The cave tour in Oppenheim…
On down the Rhein … vineyards
At the Victory Statue
Castles…
The Loreley
Here comes the rain!
Uwe, playing with the radio…
Going in to Koblenz
Part of the Berlin Wall in Koblenz
Did I mention it was cold!
Frankfurt (#1) to Paris (#4) – 373.2 miles – Monday, June 22nd (Day 03)
Frankfurt to Luxembourg (#2) – 133.2 miles – Monday, June 22nd (Day 03)
Luxembourg – Monday, June 22nd (Day 03)
Luxembourg (#2) to Epernay (Champagne Region) (#3) – 148 miles – Monday, June 22nd (Day 03)
Epernay (Moet et Chandon & Louis Vuitton) – Monday, June 22nd (Day 03)
Traveling to Epernay
Coming into Epernay
Avenue of Champagne
Moet & Chandon – Dom Perignon
Going to lunch in Epernay
Leaving Epernay,,,, on to Paris!
Epernay (#3) to Paris (#4) – 92 miles – Monday, June 22nd (Day 03)
Paris – Monday, June 22nd (Day 03)
Go to the Eiffel Tower and have dessert
Hôtel de la Paix
19. RUE DU GROS CAILLOU PARIS
Telephone: 01 45 51 86 17
Reservations from 06/22/09 to 06/25/09
Breakfast
Lisa on Facebook
Heading out for our 1st day in Paris
Arc de Triomphe in upper left hand corner.
Eiffel Tower in lower left hand corner… ˝ mile from the Hotel
Louvre in lower right hand corner
Walking along the Left Bank
Pont Alexandre III
Louvre & Orsay Museums – 2 miles from the hotel – Tuesday, June 23rd (Day 04)
Walking up the Champs-Élysées to the Arc de Triomphe
Photo shoot of some kind going on.
A mime along the Champs-Élysées
Lisa had no idea he was real…. Even when we said “Look at the mime, go sit next to him and we’ll take your picture”.
As soon as he move, Lisa JUMPED!
Along the avenue
Lunch on the Champs-Élysées
Arc de Triomphe
At the Auto Impound Lot! 130 Euro for the impound, 35 Euro for the ticket.
Heading back to the hotel after retrieving our car.
Cathédrale Notre Dame de Paris & the Quatrier Latin – Wednesday, June 24th (Day 05)
Walking to the Louvre and Notre Dame
Clock on the Orsay (as seen from the outside)
From inside the Louvre
Mona Lisa!
Venus De Milo and a couple of Roman Gods
Dazed and confused
Lunch
Notre Dame
From atop
The Bell Tower
Quasi Modo
The Latin Quarter
Paris (#4) to Chamonix-Mont Blanc (#8) – 366.2 miles – Thursday, June 25th (Day 06)
Paris (#4) to Dijon (#5) – 193.8 miles – Thursday, June 25th (Day 06)
Dijon – Thursday, June 25th (Day 06)
Dijon
Dijon (#5) to Geneva (#6) – 120 miles – Thursday, June 25th (Day 06)
Geneva – Thursday, June 25th (Day 06)
Stop to look at Geneve from the mountains
Geneva (#7) to Chamonix (#8) – 52.4 miles – Thursday, June 25th (Day 06)
Almost to Chamonix
Chamonix – Thursday, June 25th (Day 06) to Saturday, June 27th (Day 08)
Chamonix
On our way to dinner
Fondue!
Our 1st Hotel in Chamonix
Cable Car to Mount Blanc
Mont Blanc
Lunch
Our 2nd Hotel – Hotel Chamonix
Bakery
Hotel Chamonix balcony
View from the Room at the Hotel Chamonix
Hotel Chamonix
View of Mont Blanc from the Hotel
Chamonix (#8) to Provence (#10) – 280 miles – Saturday, June 27th (Day 08)
Heading south to Provence
Vineyards
Driving School… with a steering wheel for the door knob.
Lunch in Provence
We stopped at a local bakery and bought sandwiches on fresh baguettes and ‘meat bread’.
Police don’t like you to cross the solid white line in France… 90 Euro.
Logis Hotel - Le Pont d'Argens, sur N.7. - Les Arcs in Provence
Hotel in Provence – Saturday, June 27th (Day 08)
We couldn’t go to the restaurant I had planned, it looked like it was closed for a private party.
Logis Hotel
It looks a LOT nicer in the picture.
One night in Provence
We found this wonderful restaurant and a some delicious fish.
The dumpy/expensive hotel in Provence
Provence (#11) to Saint-Tropez (#12) – 26.8 miles – Sunday, June 28th (Day 09)
On the way to Saint Tropez
Saint-Tropez – Sunday, June 28th (Day 09)
On the beach of Saint Tropez
Saint-Tropez (#12) to Cannes (#16) – 40.5 miles – Sunday, June 28th (Day 09)
Cannes – Sunday, June 28th (Day 09)
Cannes (#15) to Antibes (#16) – 6.2 miles – Sunday, June 28th (Day 09)
Stopping for a snack on our way to Antibes
Stopping to buy beach towels.
Antibes
Antibes to Menton (Hotel de Londres #21) – 33.0 miles – Sunday, June 28th (Day 09)
Nice – Sunday, June 28th (Day 09)
We bypassed Nice and headed to Monaco and Menton…
Monaco
The Gardens around the Casino
The Casino
Menton, France – On the border of Italy
Swordfish with fried arugula on top… the dinner was great, the arugula was a winner with everyone!
Hotel room in Menton (2 star)
Breakfast in Menton
Menton (#21) to Cinque Terra (#23) – 159.6 miles – Monday, June 29th (Day 10)
Cinque Terra (Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola, Riomaggiore) – Monday, June 29th (Day 10) to Wednesday, July 1st (Day12)
Villa Accini
19016 Monterosso al Mare
Cinque Terra
Our trip to the 5 towns
A quick stop for a Lemon Ice drink and Strawberry Margarita
On a "Lover's Walk" trail called Sentiero dell'Amore, one can stroll through an underpass
graffitied with proclamations of love through various languages, images, and hearts.
Lovers also bind their amore to this region by fastening locks onto the railing.
Waiting for the train…
Dinner
Not a very good dinner, but the owner/chef reminded me of my friend Snarl.
Hotel Accini
Cinque Terra (#12) to Florence (#14) – 136.8 miles – Wednesday, July 1st (Day 12)
Pisa – Wednesday, July 1st (Day 12)
On our way to Pisa
Tourists lined up for “The Shot” in Pisa.
Lisa, getting “The Shot”
American Tourists… can’t read.
Lunch in Pisa
We stopped in Tuscany to stay at a Villa… Castle Montefugoni.
The next day (July 2nd we shopped Florence)
Florence – Wednesday, July 1st (Day 12)
Tuscany!
Montegufoni
Our room from their website:
http://www.montegufoni.it/ Italian Version
http://www.montegufoni.it/en/castle_tuscany.php English Version
http://www.montegufoni.eu/ Italian Version
The three we are looking at to rent in 2010 are:
IL CARDINALE – 5 to 7 people
LA GALLERIA – 8 to 9 people
MONTEGUFONI 19 bis – 6 to 8 people
That’s a total of 24 people for 2 weeks. We can always add another apartment for more.
We stayed in MONTEGUFONI 18
Heading to the pool
Dinner, 1st night in Tuscany
Thursday Morning July 2nd a dip before shopping.
Florence – Wednesday, July 1st (Day 12)
Shopping and sightseeing
Heading to Florence
Florence!
Chalk artists in the street
Leather goods… galore.
It looked like rain… it did rain,
So we tucked ourselves into this little bistro for lunch.
On the Ponte Vecchio
Lisa’s not afraid of mimes now…
Dinner at the Castle Montegufoni
Florence to Mira (Venice) (#15) – 152.5 miles – Friday, July 3rd (Day 14)
Friday, July 3rd getting ready to drive to Venice
On the way to Venice is Lamborghini..
Red 350 GT 1964-66 V12, 320hp, 250kph (155mph)
Kanto Concept Car
Murcieilago R-GT 2004, V12, 540hp, 310kph (192mph)
Orange Diablo GT2, V12, 640hp, 350kph (217mph)
Black Espada 1968-1978, V12, 350hp, 260kph (161mph) – Maroon Islero 1968-1969, V12, 325hp, 248kph (154mph)
Gallardo Spyder concept car
Bronze Diablo
Christina modeling with a Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder concept car
Lunch on the Autostrada
Mira and Venice – Saturday, July 4th (Day 15)
Mira is about 11 miles from Venice
Dinner in the Hotel Vecia Brenta, Mira (outside of Venice)
Miniature snails for an appetizer
Lisa trying to log onto Facebook on a VERY slow internet connection.
Venice – Saturday, July 4th (Day 15)
July 4th!
Getting ready to head to Venice (waiting for Christina)
Downstairs in the Hotel Vecia Brenta in Mira.Address:
The canal leading in to Venice
Venice!
The Grand Canal
Shopping, first thing…
Miniature snails, like we had last night… the girls were NOT impressed.
Ponte di Rialto
From the Ponte di Rialto, looking over the Grand Canal
Shopping on the Ponte di Rialto
Pauline took this picture early in the day,,,
later we had lunch there, and passed it again on the gondola ride.
Piazza San Marco
(St Marks Square)
The girls with the Gondoliers
Greek Embasy
It is now against the law to feed the pigeons.
They’re trying to cut down on the population.
Lunch in Venice
Traffic Jam
Taking a ride.
Another traffic jam…
Peppers and garlic in the square
Finding a place to rest
Hello Kitty!
Door bells and knockers
In the elevator getting the car
Leroy? Really… that’s an Italian name?
Dinner in Mira – 2nd night
Pauline & I walked around Mira, found a Pizzeria and brought back dinner.
Venice (#25) to Garmisch-Partenkirchen (#28) – 234.3 miles – Sunday, July 5th (Day 16)
On our way to Garmisch-Partenkirchen
Garmisch Castles – Sunday, July 5th (Day 16) & Monday, July 6th (Day 17)
Linderhof is about 16.5 miles from Garmisch
Neuschwanstein Castle is about 40 miles from Garmisch
Exploring Linderhof… in a light drizzle
Ludwig’s Grotto at Linderhof
He built this Grotto to be able to stage Wagner Opera’s for his entertainment.
Reminds me of “It’s a Small World” at Disney
This cat was looking down this hole before we went on the tour… it was in the same place when we got done, about 1 hour later.
Swans
Dinner
Chocolate Mousse… for dinner
Weiner Schnitzel
Goulash and spatzel
Christina having fun with her camera and her sister…
Neuschwanstein
Looking down on Hohenschwangau (translated to High above Schwangau)
The original castle was destroyed by Napolean and then rebuilt in the 19th Century.
View from the Castle overlooking the Alpsee
Lunch after the tour
Pizza teeth…
Garmisch (#28) to Rothenburg ob der Tauber (#29) – 186.8 miles – Monday, July 6th (Day 17)
Rothenburg ob der Tauber – Monday, July 6th (Day 17)
Got to Rothenburg just in time for the Nightwatch Tour
After the tour, the Night Watchman told us to “Go to Hell”
So we did and we had dinner.
Heading out to tour Rothenburg the next day
This Hotel is a must stay for this area.
Gastehaus Eberlein
Winterbachstrasse 4
91541 Rothenburg o. d. Tauber
Tel. (0 98 61) 4672
125 Euro, 2 bedrooms, living room/kitchen, wireless internet, Great Breakfast, wonderful hosts Inge and Erich.
It was Inge who told us about the Nightwatch Tour, we’re glad she did!
You can walk around and above the city on the outer wall.
This is a wood shop… looks like making frames for doors and windows in town.
The southern most part of the city is a beautiful park.
Vineyards
Pauline in the Southern, Garden District
This is Hell.
The oldest building in Rothenburg, built around 900.
Actually only the foundation is from back that far, the building is MUCH newer… 1500’s.
The Bell Tower and the Town Square
View from the Bell Tower
Coming down – very tight quarters.
Shop windows
The Christmas Store
Medieval brick-a-brac
Pauline had apple strudel
Chocolate Mousse Cake and Black Forest Cake
Finally, Lisa has outgrown her fear of statues.
Self explanatory