Austria & Germany

Part II of our adventures in Europe!

Salzburg

-The World Dog Show was going on while we were there. There were apprx. 18,000 dogs in town for the competition. They were EVERYWHERE! Luckily we both LOVE dogs.

-We spent most of the day on The Sound of Music Tour (with Bob’s Special Tours) and loved seeing sights from the movie as well as the beautiful hills, mountains and lakes just outside of Salzburg.

-We went to dinner at the local favorite, Die Weisse. The food was spectacular, and boy did they bring out enough food to feed a small village. We were both stuffed beyond capacity and neither of us even finished.

-We went to a German Opera, Wozzeck, at the Landestheater. It was a very strange experience since the plot was bizarre, almost all the chords were minor and it was all in German, however, the performers were spectacular and now we can say we’ve seen a German Opera ;)

 

 Konigsseer (King’s Lake)

-The beauty here is exquisite. We spent the day hiking and rowing around the lake. We also sampled some delicious desserts. The weather was ideal.

 Oberammergau

-This little Bavarian town in Southern Germany was one of our favorite places to stay. The landscape was straight out of a fairytale complete with fields of flowers, enchanted woods, rolling hills, sparkling streams, magnificent mountains and CASTLES, of course!

-Everyone in this little town was so friendly and genuine.  Erich, the owner of the bed and breakfast we stayed at, let us borrow some bikes one day and we rode to Linderhof Castle about 14km away. The next day we saw Neuschwanstein Castle (the one Disney used as his inspiration).

-We became very familiar with the phrase ‘eine kugel bitte’ which means ‘one scoop please’. The Paradise Ice Cream shop in the middle of town was always packed (even after 10pm). Their ice cream was incredible and one big scoop was only 1euro.

Munich

-My favorite site in Munich was the Glockenspiel. Twice a day life size figurines emerge from this large clock tower and dance about to a chorus of bells.

-We had a neat experience visiting Dachau, the first concentration camp. Our tour guide was exceptional. He made the tour personal and brought the history and significance of this place to life without making it a gruesome or depressing experience. We left feeling humbled.

-To be honest, we didn’t care much for Munich, but we did eat a lot of delicious pastries and enjoyed shopping for little Aubrie.

Italy

We both agree, Europe is everything we ever dreamed it would be…and more! The trip was 19 of the most adventurous and spectacular days of our lives. I’ve always been eager to visit Europe, but it was worth the wait (going with Mitch was half the fun). I kept a detailed journal of the trip, so this blog post will simply be highlights from each city. First though, there were a few things we felt made our trip especially successful…

-PACK LIGHT! We each took a backpack with the bare essentials and it made transportation and transitioning between cities dreamy.  Also, invest in extremely comfortable walking shoes.

-Use RICK STEVES, he is a trip planning wizard. It’s worth purchasing his guide book for whichever country you’re visiting. Download all his free audio guided tours on iTunes. Also, if you’re in Seattle go to free classes in Edmonds on Thursday nights and Saturday mornings. The library also has a decent selection of his movies.

-Plan a variety of outdoorsy activities and downtime to mingle in with the museums, tours and churches or you start to get a little nauseous from all the information input.

-Keep a detailed journal every day (save ticket stubs to tape into the journal).

-Go to Europe in May. Not too many tourists and perfect weather.

-Start planning early (we started in January) and do a lots of research about hotels/hostels (made sure lots of people give the place high ratings). Book them in advance and make sure you know how to get there from the train station.

BIG thanks to all the fantastic advice and recommendations we got from friends. We feel this made a huge difference in our planning!

Rome

-The Colosseum .We were so impressed that the Romans could build something this complex and enormous without machinery or computers.

-Sleeping in the Colosseum after being awake for over 24 hours

-The Sistine Chapel – Michelangelo may have been a bit nutty, but there’s no denying his artistic genious. We especially like Rick Steve’s audio guide for the chapel.

-No line at the Vatican when we arrived in the morning. By the time we left hours later the line to get in was a 3-4 hour wait, YIKES! Mitch was impressed by the massive amount of marble in the Vatican. After leaving the Vatican, Mitch was interviewed by a local news station about his experience in St. Peters.

-We discovered Italians (and Germans it turns out) put Nutella on and in almost EVERY dessert!

-Trevi Fountain is gorgeous!

-Making friends with two couples, one from South Africa and the other from Wales.

-Borghese Gallery was my favorite art museum of the whole trip. Remarkable statues and Renaissance paintings.

              

St. Peter's Basilica 

Trevi Fountain

Florence

-We BARELY made our reserved train to Florence. We literally were running down the platform and stepped inside the train roughly 30 seconds before it departed.

-Gelato! We had heard tales of an amazing gelato shop here called Grom. We were in Florence two days and got gelato there 4 times.

-It’s totally worth it to hike to the top of the Duomo, even though there are 463 stairs to get to the top of this huge cathedral.

-Uffizi Gallery was my other favorite museum. There were paintings by Rafael, Da Vinci and Boticelli. It was a huge museum and we took breaks by sitting on the benches in the halls and playing Eye Spy on the immaculate ceiling panels.

-85 degrees

-Boboli & Bardini Gardens at Pitti Palace. We also went to an amazing costume gallery exhibition.

               

Manarola, Cinque Terra

-This was probably our favorite place to stay the entire trip. It was a slice of heaven between gigantic vineyards and the Mediterranean. We enjoyed a few days of intense hiking on the vineyard-covered mountains between the 5 towns here and extreme relaxation on the beaches.

-Reading, writing and enjoying the sun on the natural harbor.

-We decided on a first name for baby girl here, Aubrie

-We met a couple from Seattle who had just gotten engaged.

- Lots of fresh, tasty seafood here.

-Strolling on the Via dell‘Amore on the way to Riomaggiore, beautiful views of the bluest ocean I’ve ever seen.

              

Venice

-This city is so intriguing with its boat filled canals, people-filled streets, and impossible-to-navigate neighborhoods.

-Riding the Vaporetto (little public transport boats) down the Grand Canal.

-Took a gondola ride in the evening. We loved our charming gondolier, Marcus whose father and grandfather had both been gondoliers.

-People and dog watching in the park.

-Venice is most beautiful at night when the crowds have cleared, the orchestras play and the lights shimmer in the water.

-I LOVED browsing in all the mask and marionette shops here. There are some really gifted artists in this area.

-Visited the nearby island of Murano known for glassblowing and sculpting. 

Bumpity Bump: 6 Months

We are so in love with our little girl, AUBRIE (in case you haven't heard). We already get the feeling she is quite the little fireball with a sense of humor. She is such a jumping bean and we just love feeling her roll, poke, kick and nudge us. I really don't know when she sleeps! The first pic is at 6 months in Salzburg and the second is 6 1/2 months (26 weeks) today, roughly the size of a head of lettuce (my uterus is bigger than a soccer ball now).

We bought Aubrie (or Brie for short) some souvenirs on our trip. I can't wait til she fits into the dirndl. Mitch got her the teddy bear from a neat toy shop in Germany and I found the handmade owl rattle in Oberammergau (a little Bavarian town in Southern Germany). We did some reading and preparation for her arrival on our trip too. I'm actually really looking forward to labor and delivery as challenging as it might be especially since Mitch will be coaching me along ever step of the way. 

Drum Roll Please...

   It's a GIRL!   

Much to my shock, amazement and delight she is, indeed, a girl. Let the naming game begin :) She is roughly the size of a cantaloupe now and has made her presence very noticeable with lots of kicks and pokes. I'm 5 months this week, HALF WAY!

HALF WAY!

Arboretum

In addition to the ultrasound we are just giddy about the phenomenal weather here in Seattle! We've done some hiking recently on Cougar Mountain. We also took a nice stroll around the arboretum near UW and enjoyed the lovely springtime.

Cougar Mountain

More Arboretum

Easter

Easter was especially lovely this year. I was filled with such bliss listening to music and speakers centered on the love of our Savior. We spent the afternoon with friends eating delicious food.

On the bitter-sweet side of things this is my last week with Ted and Gav, the boys I've been nannying for over a year and a half. These two delightful boys have brought such joy to my life and I can't imagine a more fulfilling and thrilling job. I will miss seeing them (and their equally incredible parents) every week, but look forward to the next adventure. Knowing I've got a little one of my own on the way is comforting. I smile when I remember this little one will by mine for keeps.

Our take on some recently viewed, local performances...

• First Date at ACT - This new musical was HILARIOUS and the talent was outstanding. We give it two thumbs up, up, up!
• Back, Back, Back at Seattle Public Theater - This play about the ethical dilemma surrounding steroid use and professional baseball players was one of the dullest plays I've ever seen. Pass.
• Jet City Improv - This comedy troupe located on the ave. gave both of us side-aches and watery eyes last weekend. Definitely worth checking out! Watch for half-price nights and Groupons for a great inexpensive date.
• The Art of Racing in the Rain at Book-It - This play based on the book of the same title was told from the perspective of the family dog. It was a unique theater experience and worth seeing, but be prepared it was looooong with a few hit and miss actors (the actor playing the dog however, was BRILLIANT).

Bumpity Bump

Here's the tummy progress thus far. The first pic is at 8 weeks and the second at 16 weeks. Nothing to brag about, but my clothes are certainly feeling snugger these days and I believe I'm starting to feel some squiggles from the little turnip. In other fun news I'll be interning this summer with Seattle Children's Theatre! What a happy adventure that will be. I expect it will help the latter months of pregnancy to go by pretty quick since it's a pretty intense internship (40+ hours a week).  Life is really good!

1 + 1 = 3

If you haven't heard the latest buzz in Seattle we're ecstatic to share some fun news...

WE'RE HAVING A BABY!

We expect to see the little peach in early September.  So far I'm feeling splendid and baby is right on track. I'm pretty convinced it's a boy, while Mitch thinks it's a gal. We'll find out near the end of April whose instincts to trust :) In the meantime it's been fun reading up on the amazing miracle of pregnancy, birth and new babies.  Being on the brink of parenthood is such an exhilarating experience.

I traveled home in February to visit family and friends and share the news!  The visit was everything I ever dreamed it would be.  It was lovely to relax and visit with some of my favorite people. Highlights from the visit include:

Nicklecade with Mom, Dad and Jordan

Dinner & Rifftrax with Lee and Claire

Hot chocolate and biscuits with Katie and Kenneth

Natalie singing in the RMJH Choir Concert 
Shopping with my sis

Eating with the family at ABC (best Chinese food I've ever had)

Hiking and cemetery exploring in Salt Lake with Kody, Dallin and Gifford

Touring Mom's clinic

Walking around Temple Square solo early in the morning and taking in all the beauty

Mitch also did a little traveling last month to Boston for a Physics conference.  He presented on his research and received a lot of positive feedback. He and his lab friends went to a Bruins Hockey game. He also met up with his cousin, Lyndon, and explored China town, ate soursop, and enjoyed fresh seafood (not simultaneously). 

Once we were both home sweet home again we enjoyed a date day of flying kites (with much success) and took advantage of the awesome happy hour appetizers at Matador. We were also quickly sucked into the new Masterpiece theater program Downton Abbey.  We highly recommend checking out Season One on Netflix.  We are anxiously awaiting the second season's release.

Our Italy/Germany travel plans are coming right along, but we're still taking recommendations on what to see and eat during our trip, so feel free to make suggestions.  We will be visiting Rome, Florence, Cinque Terra, Venice, Salzburg, Oberammergau and Munich.

This is the sign we made to share the news with my family.  Natalie, who was already in on the big news, helped surprise the family by decorating with the sign and balloons while my fam came to get me at the airport.