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Europe Adventure
  • katsreader
  • katsreader

Europe Adventure

Our first trip off of the North American continent! It's Rick Steve's 21 day, Best of Europe tour. We'll be arriving in Haarlem a day early, and will stay for 2 extra days at the end, in Paris! Read more
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  • katsreaderEurope AdventureTraveler

    The Statue of David

    June 12, 2018 in Italy ⋅ 🌧 26 °C

    We got to see Michelangelo's David. Wow! At dinner we all celebrated Kim's birthday and Al and Sissy's anniversary (both on the 13th, but we weren't going to eat together then.)

  • katsreaderEurope AdventureTraveler
    John
    They got the fresh mozzarella and tomatoes on after pulling the pizza out of the oven.My pretty purse!

    Florence - day 2

    June 13, 2018 in Italy ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C

    We had a free morning and early afternoon. We enjoyed rising slowly, eating a leisurely breakfast, then wandering the streets of the Mercato Centrale. They sell mostly leather and scarfs. I found a cute purse, (€20) and a rainbow colored scarf (€5). We went inside, upstairs to the pizza place Andy Steve's recommended and wow was it good! A gentleman from Hong Kong started a conversation with us that was fun.Read more

  • katsreaderEurope AdventureTraveler
    Our local guide RicardoThe hotel

    Florence, Uffizi

    June 13, 2018 in Italy ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C

    We met up with our guides at 3 and went to the Uffizi. The tour was was way too long for my tastes, bit there were some amazing works.
    Later we had dinner on our own at the Mercato again. This time Gnocchi, which I loved. John wasn't as thrilled. We had popsicles after. I think they were basically a firmer gellato.Read more

  • katsreaderEurope AdventureTraveler

    Christian Rome, part 1

    June 14, 2018 in Vatican City ⋅ 🌧 19 °C

    The Sistine chapel was smaller than John had imagined. I had no expectations. I enjoyed the contrast between Michaelangelo's work on the cieling which took 4 years, and his work on the walls a few years later. You can see how he had matured as an artist.
    You can see our awesome local guide Paulo in one of the pictures. Of course we couldn't take pictures inside the church.    Read more

  • katsreaderEurope AdventureTraveler
    Fried zucchini flowers. One of several courses at dinner.
    A dessert wine that I actually enjoyed.The PantheonThe PantheonI loved this violinist's rendition of Hallelujah. That's the Pantheon behind him.Trevi FountainJohn throwing a coin into theTrevi FountainJohn throwing a coin into the Trevi Fountain.

    The end of day 1 in Rome

    June 14, 2018 in Italy ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    Dinner was great. We walked by the Pantheon and I stopped to watch a fabulous musician playing Hallelujah. The Trevi Fountain was absolutely gorgeous.
    We finished the evening with a group gelato and walk back to the hotel.Read more

  • katsreaderEurope AdventureTraveler
    ForumAn piece of an original marble column that was decorating the Roman buildings.Love the real Italian Bruschetta

    Rome, day 2 continued

    June 15, 2018 in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    We saw the Pantheon, which, since it was a church, was better preserved than most of the other ancient buildings. Most of the other buildings we're basically ransacked for materials to build other things during the 'dark ages'... Including the Vatican!
    We were celebrating Cellerina's birthday with fresh fruit, whipped cream and no bowls. Lol
    After saying goodbye to our wonderful guides, we found a restaurant in a large Piazza and had a great lunch. Mine was cannelloni with a cheese and spinach filling. John had Hawaiian pizza. John's wasn't so good. Mine was great.
    We got quite lost, tried taking a bus and vended up at the Vatican (opposite way we intended to go.) We found our way to the metro with the aid of a map and found our way back to the hotel. We settled for Chinese food for dinner because the restaurant was close to the hotel and easy. Food was good. Service not so much.    Read more

  • katsreaderEurope AdventureTraveler
    Too this pic so I could remember how to get back to the bus
    The Piazza where we are lunch. There were preparing for the horse races. Huge event throughout the areaOnly thing cute about the place we had lunch was the nameOur Anniversary momento from ArrezzoNectarine and something with chocolate chunk in itBest Gelato so far. Mine was Lemon, apricot and nectarine (which she said was peach...translation problem 😉)Kim is the photographer in the group. She snapped this for our anniversary.Aaron, Renee and their son NickKim and Virginia

    Anniversary day, heading to Cinque Terre

    June 16, 2018 in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    Met up with the bus after breakfast. We stopped in the hillside town Arezzo. The bus driver, Derrek suggested it. First time there for both Andy and Colleen. I was grumpy because we found ourselves with a twisty uphill climb, and frankly the mdds makes me feel like crap sometimes. Lunch was okay, even though I didn't get what I ordered and service wasn't so good. Things were looking up afterwards when we found a cute plaque to celebrate our anniversary, and the best gelato of the trip. I forgot to use a restroom, but ran into Renee and Darren at a bakery, who told us there was one inside. So we got some yummy pastries then headed back to the bus.Read more

  • katsreaderEurope AdventureTraveler
    Cinque Terre
    OctopusMy dinner ,- chicken!Andy and the chef (he also owns the hotel we're staying at.)Anniversary pictureChocolate mousse cakeCinque TerreCinque TerreCinque Terre

    Cinque Terre anniversary dinner

    June 16, 2018 in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    Great evening. Arrived early evening, took the train headed to our super cute hotel. Had a great group dinner where they sang Happy anniversary to us and gave us pieces of chocolate mousse cake. The main dish was a fresh seafood stew, which John tried and really liked. I had chicken. I tried a bite of octopus which really wasn't bad. The pesto noodles were amazing as well as the tomatoes and mozzerella salad, the after dinner biscotti (almond) and the cake.
    We enjoyed a gorgeous evening walk back to the hotel.    Read more

  • katsreaderEurope AdventureTraveler
    Drying clothes on our beautiful little patio
    Our new kitty friendJohn cooling off in on room

    Cinque Terre, Vacation from our Vacation

    June 17, 2018 in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    Today I stayed in till early afternoon. Did some laundry, refilled pills and rested. John explored Monterosso, where we are staying, finding the cemetery and church he was looking for. In the afternoon we went out and had a yummy lunch at a place by the water. Then spent the rest of the afternoon strolling around Monterosso. We decided not to explore beyond this town and just go slow. It's such a charming place. It was not overly crowded, maybe because it was Sunday. Families were out and about. Kids were playing. Sun bathers were enjoying the beach. Everyone was enjoying to sun. I found a sweet kitty just hanging out in the sidewalk. He didn't seem to be concerned about the strangers walking around him.Read more

  • katsreaderEurope AdventureTraveler
    Cinque Terre hotel bathroom
    Clothes still dryingPicked the kit kat up at the first ready stop and noticed that the wrapper had Hugarian on it!Hungarian and Italian ingredients list

    Leaving Cinque Terre

    June 18, 2018 in Italy ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    Some last minute doors of the pretty hotel bathroom. All the bathrooms in Italy had a bidet in them. In about 36 hours my clothes still we're not sure dry, so finally took than down in the morning just before heading out.
    Oops! I set the alarm for 7:25 instead of 6:55. So had to do double time to get finished packing, grab some coffee and be in front of the hotel by 8:10. To our credit we did it with a couple minutes to spare!    Read more

  • katsreaderEurope AdventureTraveler
    The part of the hotel we're staying in
    A Swiss Alps water fountainAll the sheep and cows wear bells herePara gliderAbout a third of the way on our trailCairnsCows

    Stechelburg

    June 19, 2018 in Switzerland ⋅ ☀️ 14 °C

    This morning we had several options, most of which included going way up into the hills via a gondola moving on cables... No, thank you!! Neither of us were inclined to torture ourselves. We made our way to breakfast at 9:30, then decided to walk on a trail to Lauterbrunnen.Read more

  • katsreaderEurope AdventureTraveler
    I think this old cook stove would be expensive at home.
    Lunch at Trümelbach falls, where we got our souvenir cowbellA giant mirangue for me. An apricot, flan pie for JohnOur bus stop to head back to the hotel.Caught a clip of a skilled paragliderSheep

    Along the trail

    June 19, 2018 in Switzerland ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C

    Loved our walk. Probably about 2.5 hours. Sunny and pleasant with a slight breeze. I didn't take that many pics of the scenery because it's too beautiful to really capture in a photo. We saw some skilled paragliders and some less skilled. One appeared to be hurdling to the ground and flailing, but we didn't see any emergency personnel heading that way so I guess he got down okay.
    I thought the vending machine with wine, cheese, fresh jam and sodas was genius.
    At Lauterbrünnen we stopped in the Coop grocery store, then took the bus back to the hotel. at 5.20 Francs each.    Read more

  • katsreaderEurope AdventureTraveler
    John giving it a tryTwin beds either attached or pushed together is the norm in European hotels.The toilet room and shower room were in this hall. This was the only hotel that we had to share the bathroom. My favorite junk food in Europe

    Nice evening in Stechelberg

    June 19, 2018 in Switzerland ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    Had some fun in the evening with an Alpenhorn demonstration. We all got to try it, and I did better than I thought I would.
    We had dinner all together after. The dining room had lots of flies. One thing we never saw in Europe were screens on windows. It was only a problem at this hotel. They said it was because of all the cows in the area. It was a minor annoyance to me and didn't detract for the incredible beauty of the area.Read more

  • katsreaderEurope AdventureTraveler
    Love that smile
    Lovely old hotel. The halls and staircases were wreaking havoc on my MdDSMusee de l'Hotel-DieuMusee de l'Hotel-Dieu,Musee de l'Hotel-Dieu,Musee de l'Hotel-Dieu,Leisurely dinner at an outdoor café French style.Best dessert of the trip, a Raspberry Macaroon, at the outdoor café, after dinner.

    Beaune, France!

    June 20, 2018 in France ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C

    We've entered the 7th and final country of our whirlwind tour! We only spent part of a day and one night in Beaune, in the Burgundy region of France.
    The Hospices de Beaune or Hôtel-Dieu de Beaune is a former charitable almshouse. It was founded in 1443 by Nicolas Rolin, chancellor of Burgundy, as a hospital for the poor.Read more

  • katsreaderEurope AdventureTraveler
    Throughout the trip we each had a pair of seats on the bus. It was quite comfy and Derrek, the bus driver, was
    The back door, rest room, and the mini fridge where we were able to purchase drinks.Our final hotel stopEven this mozzerella was better than what we can get at homeI had many brands of 'soft' cheese along the way. This was one of the very few brands I recognized from home.Once I discovered there were opportunities to get liverwurst I tried a few. In France it was duck liver. Even

    Last day on the bus, headed to Paris!

    June 21, 2018 in France ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

    Last bus ride of the trip. Our bus driver was quite skilled and made us feel very comfortable. There was plenty of room to spread out. I got some down time here and there, although our tour guides, Colleen and Andy liked to entertain with history or language lessons, mood music fitting the next place we were headed, and often chocolate or other treats that they shared!
    The other pictured treats were goodies we bought at a local store to have a picnic dinner in the room. We did that a few times at the end of a long day. Sometimes we were just too tired to decide on a restaurant and then deal with the language barrier. Plus it was an opportunity to see what the local grocery stores were like. They were a place to see a bit of local culture and get and inexpensive easy meal or treat.    Read more

  • katsreaderEurope AdventureTraveler

    Touring Paris

    June 22, 2018 in France ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

    Our last full day of the Rick Steve's tour started with a fabulous private bus tour around the city. Then we were introduced to The Louvre where we wandered for a while. We stopped and had lunch there and wandered through the shops. We used our museum pass to spend a bit of time in a couple other museums in the area.Read more

  • katsreaderEurope AdventureTraveler

    Eiffel Tower and museums

    June 23, 2018 in France ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C

    Highlight of the day was going up in the Eiffel Tower. The sky's were clear and I could see for miles from the top. An added bonus was that my MdDS stopped as soon as I stepped onto the first platform, and didn't start till I stepped onto the ground when exiting. So while everyone else had vertigo I was solid. What an amazing experience! John and I went through some of the museums in the area.Read more

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