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A 29-day adventure by mjnandy Read more
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  • mjnandyEuropean Vacation May 2016

    Ready, Set....almost "GO".

    April 28, 2016 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 16 °C

    A year of planning and getting ready for our European Trip. We've been packed for weeks. Changing from two large suitcases and two carry ons to one large bag with wheels.
    Never really knowing what type of weather we're to encounter we know that we'll be covered no matter if it's cold, hot or raining.
    The folder is ready (you know me) itinerary, hotel info, air info and tickets, contact phone numbers etc.
    We are beyond excited to take this JOURNEY that we remember talking about on our first date! Something we both wanted to share with a special person. We originally wanted Italy to be our Wedding location but decided we wanted our family and friends to be with us. Therefore, Camarillo, CA it was. We planned our trip around renewing our vows in Italy. We are so excited to share that moment just us two.
    Just a few more things to buy, do and get ready for mom.
    Rob will be dropping us off at LAX Sunday and we will be on the plane to fly out at 10:30pm    Read more

  • mjnandyEuropean Vacation May 2016
    Day 3

    Ready to FLY

    May 1, 2016 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C

    Slept in and excited to know that tonight we'd fly out to arrive at our first destination Prague, Czech Republic.
    Decided to have Rob, Kalyn and Kenzie pick us up at 5pm instead of 6pm. As always traffic on the way. Hunger setting in. Thankful Kalyn had some left over jolly ranchers and vanilla wafers from her Disneyland outing the other day. LIFE SAVER! Kenzie later broke out with her stash of MINI MINI CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES.
    Arrived at Bradley International Airport 6:45pm. Got in line only to find out they moved the check in area. All good cuz there was no line. We were then told that we needed to have 2 suitcases instead of one that totaled the same weight. PROBLEM? No. The guy was so nice and said he'd take care of it. Then John started a conversation with him only to find out the guy is working towards being a paramedic. So.....the firefighter in John gave him some advice. We saved $180 cuz the staff was so helpful and nice.
    The line to get through security was longer than any line at Disneyland but seemed to move at a good pace.
    Arrived at our gate at 8:20pm. Grabbed a sandwich (to share) and waters. Hoping my headache will go away.
    Sitting here waiting to board and enjoy the flight to our first transfer in Oslo, Norway.    Read more

  • mjnandyEuropean Vacation May 2016
    Day 4

    Arrival in Oslo, Norway

    May 2, 2016 in Norway ⋅ 🌬 8 °C

    Our flight was smooth, relaxing, enjoyable and comfortable. We sat by the emergency door which gave us plenty of leg room. Dinner was beef, couscous, some type of bean salad and a cute jar with lime cake. John watched Star Wars (the new one) I watched Burndt. Loved having direct access to the screen in which you pick whatever movie, tv show or documentary you want. Norwegian made everything easy to access and request.
    Our beautiful flight attendant Faye from Thailand was very nice and pleasant. Shared info about herself, her job and experiences. Love hearing and sharing stories.
    It's now 7pm and 30 degrees. I didn't bother walking out to see what 30 degrees feels like.
    Waiting to catch the next transfer to Prague.    Read more

  • mjnandyEuropean Vacation May 2016
    Day 4

    Arrival Prague, Czech Republic

    May 2, 2016 in Czech Republic ⋅ ⛅ 12 °C

    🛬Arrived at Prague Airport. Very empty only our passengers. Luckily our bag came up very fast. Norwegian was a great experience.
    We were greeted by our hotel driver whose sign read "MARY & NADY". We laughed and figured that had to be US. The driver a nice young man who spoke great english. He had spent 6 months in England as a bartender. The car...a beautiful BLACK MERCEDES which was very clean. Arrived to the red carpet at our beautiful hotel. Our room was nicer than we thought. Rose pedals on the bed, champagne bottle and a very nice welcome card. Our view...."AMAZINGLY GORGEOUS". I can't believe how green everything is.
    Had our champagne and toasted to the Beginning of a Trip that we will remember forever❣    Read more

  • mjnandyEuropean Vacation May 2016
    Day 5

    Prague on Foot

    May 3, 2016 in Czech Republic ⋅ ⛅ 11 °C

    Woke up early, not by choice. Time change is tough the first day or so. WE HOPE! We decided to walk as everything looks close by. A hundred miles later (so it felt like) we had breakfast at a beautiful breakfast cafe then walked, Walked and WALKED. The buildings here are breathtaking. You can't help but want to take pictures of all of them. The beautiful flowers and trees amazing. We ended up seeing everything that was on our list to do tomorrow. We also saw some sights for today. Tomorrow it's off to the train station to get our tickets for Munich. Prague is certainly on top of my list for a country we'd visit again. Unfortunately, some places are being renovated so we weren't able to go in. Guess we'll have to return. We couldn't of asked for better weather. Around the mid 60's, great walking weather.
    I'm posting only a few pictures here. You may find all pictures on our FB page.
    Tomorrow we continue to sightsee possibly by car and an early evening cruise.    Read more

  • mjnandyEuropean Vacation May 2016
    Day 6

    Rain in Prague

    May 4, 2016 in Czech Republic ⋅ 🌧 7 °C

    Woke up to rain today. That's not keeping us from getting out and about. Walked in the rain to the nearest shopping mall. Had breakfast there at Starbucks. John had to buy what he forgot.
    Took taxi to Old Town Prague for some souvenier shopping. Still quite a bit of people walking around.
    As we're shopping around we bumped into an "ICE BAR". Had to return in 25 minutes. Only a certain amount of people taken in at a time. We were lucky there were only 3 of us. Met a nice lady from No. Carolina. She even gave us her business card and said if we were ever in the Carolinas we could stay at her small place. She originally is from Venezuela. She was alone cuz her friend didn't want to go out in the rain. (Oh brother). Had such an amazing experience. Especially for a gal that doesn't deal with COLD weather very well. Our glasses were ICE as well. I'd do it again! It's sharing these once in a lifetime adventures with hubby that makes my life so AMAZING!
    We continued to walk on St. Charles Bridge got taxi back to our hotel. Took more pictures of course, but this time in the rain. Later it's off to dinner for some Czech food and tomorrow morning off to Munich, Germany.    Read more

  • mjnandyEuropean Vacation May 2016
    Day 6

    Ginger And Fred Restaurant

    May 4, 2016 in Czech Republic ⋅ 🌧 7 °C

    Our last evening in Prague. Still raining, cold and a little breezy. Decided to walk across the bridge to the Ginger & Fred Restaurant. The building was designed after a photo of Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire.
    We took a walk up to the bar area of the restaurant in which you walk outside to view the city. Absolutely amazing! Took some pictures and headed downstairs to the restaurant. The restaurant a round about room that had windows all around. Some views magnified so you could see them closer and much bigger.
    We loved the fact that we had the restaurant to ourselves. The service and waiter were both great.
    Started off with some bread, butter and a small (shot glass) dessert of an Apple Mousse that was tart yet sweet. (Think this is just to get our pallets ready for dinner)
    We both had a glass of different Czech wines. Both very good. I chose spaghetti for dinner which had shrimp and octopus and the best pasta I've ever had.
    John chose Wild Boar with pureed red cabbage. That was delicious as well. Dessert we chose sorbet with red sauce and a hint of chocolate. EXCELLENT VIEWS, SERVICE, WINE, FOOD & DESSERT.
    Light rain on our walk back to the hotel. Took some awesome pics on the way. PRAGUE definitely one of my favorite places in Europe. Hope to visit again soon. We will cuz we come back on the 21st for 1 night when we start heading home.    Read more

  • mjnandyEuropean Vacation May 2016
    Day 7

    Prague to Munich in 3.5

    May 5, 2016 in Germany ⋅ ☀️ 16 °C

    Today a bittersweet day cuz we have to leave beautiful Prague. John wakes up at 2am. Therefore, I wake up at 3am. Got on our tablet and bought our bus tickets for Munich. Packed the night before so we will head off to the bus station at 9am. Breakfast at the hotel first.
    Arrived to the bus station to to find we had no clue where to go. Always feels like a scavenger hunt. I stay put with the luggage and John does the SEARCH. LoL. We have time for a coffee and pics at the train station.
    Our bus was 2 decks. We of course on the top front side. I get window! Ride was ok problem was it was hot inside. The A/C is not to working well. We slept some and took time fanning ourselves. Scenery was so pretty. Arrived in Munich 3 hrs and 45 minutes later. Walked to our hotel which was a couple of blocks away. Got in our room which overlooks some of the city. (Not as impressive as Prague). We leave again to pick up the rental. Again, we walk...luckily just across the street to the train station. We pick up the JAGUAR which is parked across the street behind the hotel...we walk again.
    Drove to the center of Munich (Marieplatz). Walked around saw a few of the sights on our list. Dinner was good at a very nice restaurant. Yes, Beers. Needed after the WALK. Back to our hotel by 10pm.
    Off to sleep morning drive to Neuschwanstein Castle and sight seeing along the way.
    Weather was nice around 54 degrees. Happy that it's not raining.    Read more

  • mjnandyEuropean Vacation May 2016
    Day 8

    Castle, Tiara, Motorcycles & Cars

    May 6, 2016 in Germany ⋅ ☀️ 9 °C

    Woke up to a beautiful morning in Munich. It's off to the Castle 2 hour drive than hoping to be back in time to visit BMW Welt and the BMW Museum. Cuz John and Robert working at BMW is just not enough! LOL
    Our drive was beautiful. The drive on the outskirts is breathtaking. We past so many small towns. All look the same yet each one has its own unique look. I kept wondering if the 1st thing they build is a CHURCH with a steeple. Hmmmm....
    John kept thinking we were going the wrong way but GPS said that was the right way as did my MAPS app.
    I kept looking around for the best town to live in. I mean who wouldnt want to live in the midst of greenery, flowers and hills. Certainly love the outskirts more than the city.
    As we got somewhat close the beauty of the snow capped mountains (Bavarian Alps) the snow on the mountains reminded me of icing on a cinnamon roll. I mean a TINY bit.
    We stopped close to arriving to the Neuschwanstein Castle to take some pictures. (With our camera) My cell decided to STOP working 20 minutes into our drive. That's why you didn't see postings or check-ins yesterday.
    The pics I'll be posting are not great. I took pics of the camera screen. We are hoping to get better WIFI today to upload to Facebook.
    John had a great time driving on the AUTOBAHN. Loved driving "FAST" !!! Having a fast car certainly helped. Therefore, we arrived back in Munich to visit BMW ontime.
    BMW was what we expected and more. Any BMW FAN (like myself) would appreciate it! John appreciated it also considering being an employee of such a huge corporation. The building alone is worth the visit. No charge for BMW Welt but only 10Euros for the museum. Had lunch there and did a bit of shopping.
    I realized I liked the Mini Cabrio Convertible. Would be a great car for Kalyn and Kenzie! Robbbbbb hook us up. Hahaha~
    Turned the car in and walked around to shop for another piece of luggage. YES we need another one.
    Unfortunately, shops and malls close early so John will go get one in the morning before our train ride "First Class" to Salzburg, Austria. Our next country. We are very fortunate cuz the train station is across the street. Many shops...money exchange places, food, desserts, sweets, souveniers and STARBUCKS❣
    Our fast train leaves at 11:15am it's 9:18am now.

    AUSTRIA here we come.    Read more

  • mjnandyEuropean Vacation May 2016
    Day 9

    I ❤ Salzburg!

    May 7, 2016 in Austria ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    Woke up on our last morning in Munich, Germany.
    John left to buy another suitcase. Walked across the street to catch our train.
    The train was very nice, clean and roomy. Got in our comfy seats and off we were. The scenery was nice once we were out of Munich. The train ride was 2 hours but it seemed like 20 minutes. WiFi started to work pretty good but slowed down so only got to post a few pics.
    Arrived in Salzburg to wonderful weather 70 degrees. We were prepared to take the 7 min walk down the street to our hotel. We walked out of the station turned right and there it was. (John said we better slow down cuz it should take 7 min not 3). To my surprise guess what's next door? STARBUCKS!!!
    Across the street are the taxis. Everything we'll need is within 5 minutes. From our hotel room window to the right is the mall. BINGO!!!
    Got checked in and off to the room to unpack, freshen up and go have a little food to sight see.
    The corner cafe was a 7 minute walk. John had a chicken salad and I had mozzarella cheese and tomatoes. We both had a BEER, mine was beer with grapefruit. Yummers. 🍺
    Walked across the street a 2 min walk and got a taxi to St. Peter's. The taxi driver was very friendly and pointed out places of interest. Out of all the taxis in line the one we got was a BEAUTIFUL BLACK MERCEDES. Go Figure!
    The taxi driver drove us by a LOCK BRIDGE. I've always heard of them and had hoped to someday add to one. We found a lock at a store (red) and borrowed a sharpee from the Starbucks barista. I wrote:
    Mary and John
    May 6, 2016
    Until we Return
    John locked it up onto the fence and I threw the key in the water below. Apparently it's to show your love and keep a couple together. Key is thrown in so the LOVE is never to end! We bought a 2nd lock in case we find another fence at another location.
    Saw most of the places I had for the days itinerary. As we walked we saw a rooftop restaurant. We decided to stop and have dinner. We shared a club sandwich and a salad. The White Wine I had was not to share. John had a beer and that too was not a sharing drink. 😉🍷🍺
    We looked at our map only to realize we were close to our hotel. So.....we WALKED back. A taxi to and a nice walk back was perfect.
    We stopped at the train station to the market. (Only minutes from our hotel). Picked up cookies, the Grapefruit Beer and some water for our room.
    Salzburg is a small, beautiful city. I loved it when I was 17 and I love it still years later!
    Tomorrow early tour to the 🎵SOUND OF MUSIC🎶.
    Four hours in total upon our return we will go to the Fortress and see other places we may have missed.    Read more

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