Sweden

The final destination of my European journey was the old standby, Stockholm. When I was in High School, our family had a foreign exchange student from Sweden and we've kept up with his family ever since. I've had the privilege of visiting them three times now.

The primary purpose of the visit was to see friends, but we still did some sightseeing. Here is a shot of a street in the old town. It's a good place for eating and finding Swedish souvenirs.

We also toured the city hall. There are a number of beautiful rooms and it's a beautiful structure all around. This room is of particular interest because it's where they give out the Nobel prizes. Lots of very talented people have hung out here.

Euro 2008 was still going on and Sweden had a big match against Spain while we were there. We went downtown to watch the game on a big screen with a big crowd and endured a bit of rain, but saw the game through to its finish. It was a lot of fun to get caught up in the excitement. Unfortunately, Spain won 2-1, and they went on to win the tournament.
Some of the better dressed fans.

They were handing out free t-shirts and we were all lucky enough to get one. Pictured below are my dad, mom, Stefan, and myself. An interesting side note - the t-shirts were mostly size medium. Good luck getting a free size medium t-shirt at an American sporting event.

On our last full day in Sweden, we left Stockholm and visited Uppsala, home of the Uppsala Castle (not pictured) and the Uppsala Cathedral. Below is a picture of Stefan's parents, Pelle and Britt, with my parents in front of the cathedral.

On the way back to Stockholm we ate at a restaurant near the Stockholm archipelago. Here's a picture of a sailboat traversing the waters of the archipelago.

Prague

From southern Germany, it was off to Prague. Everyone I talked to who had been there raved about it. I'm not sure if I would go so far as to rave, but I certainly did enjoy our time there, particularly the Lobkowicz Palace museum and music at Dvorak Hall.

Here we have our best view photograph. The River Vltava flows right through Prague's center and, as you can see, is crossed by a number of bridges, Charles Bridge (second from the bottom) being the most important.

Here's a closeup of Charles Bridge. It was important to Prague for many years as the connection between Old Town and Prague Castle, now it's an important tourist destination. You can see the vendors and pedestrians being watched over by a number of statues.

Here's another perspective of Charles Bridge, this time with Prague Castle in the background. It's crowned by St Vitus Cathedral (follow the link for lots of nice pictures of the cathedral).

Inside St Vitus Cathedral is the grave of Saint (good king) Wenceslas.

One surprising highlight of our time in Prague was a visit to the Lobkowicz Palace. It was a relatively new musuem that followed the history of the Lobkowicz family, a prominent family in Prague since the 16th century that lost all their possessions in 1948 when the communist regime came to power. After the fall of the communist regime, they regained almost everything and created a museum in the palace. The most amazing part of our visit was the music room, where we learned that the Lobkowicz family had been a primary benefactor of Beethoven, with three of his symphonies dedicated to the 7th Prince Lobkowicz. The museum had on hand original copies of a number of his works, many signed by Beethoven. It was astounding to be able to see such an amazing set of artifacts.

Still today Prague is known as a center for classical music and especially for its most famous composer Antonin Dvorak. We attended a concert at Dvorak Hall that featured an outstanding harpist, which was definitely a highlight of our stay. Below is a picture of my parents with the statue of Dvorak that stands outside the hall.
This is Old Town sqaure. It's a popular tourist destination partly because there's a clock that everyone likes to take a picture of when the hour changes (not pictured), but I think mostly because it's a good place for hanging out. There are a number of cafes to choose from and beautiful old buildings to look at.

One other place to visit that's nearby Old Town square is a house that Franz Kafka once lived in. Below is the obligatory picture. I confess to only ever having read The Metamorphosis.

Germany

After Austria, we spent a short time in Germany. From our base in Munich, we visited the Neuschwanstein Castle and explored a couple Bavarian towns. We actually did not explore Munich at all aside from a quick drive-through. We focus our time on the natural scenery.

The picture below is from a little town called Mittenwald, which is one of those postcard Bavarian towns. We stopped there only briefly, but we enjoyed it, largely because it was our first day in the Alps where you could see the tops of the mountains.

Our main destination in Germany was the Neuschwanstein Castle. It's quite striking because it has all the features that come to mind when you think "castle". There's the turrets, the courtyard, there isn't a moat actually, but there's a creek, and it's clearly very isolated. It was never finished because the guy who started it died before it was done and no one else wanted to continue financing such a large project. That's why it's owned by the state now and such a popular tourist destination. I felt lucky to have such a nice day for visiting.

Here's a view out one of the windows in the castle. Not bad.

Innsbruck

From Salzburg, we drove to Innsbruck, Austria. Innsbruck is up in the mountains and has been home to the winter Olympics twice. It's a true alpine village, as opposed to the "alpine" villages they build next to ski resorts. Unfortunately, the tips of the mountains were covered by clouds the entire time we were there. We enjoyed them nevertheless.

The picture below gives a pretty good idea of what it's like to be in Innsbruck. The streets were especially crowded and noisy because of Euro 2008. It was a very fun, festive atmosphere, which was great until you wanted to go to sleep. I hold no grudges though.

Our hotel was in the heart of the city and its claim to fame was that Mozart had once stayed there. Below is my dad standing next to a sign commemorating his stay. Apparently he wrote his wife saying, "We are in good health, thank God. We are staying at the Weisses Kreuz".

We went on a lovely hike up into the mountains. Unbeknownst to us when we started, the path led to a locally well-knownst restaurant. The cows with very loud bells did a great job of completing the scene.

Salzburg

From Paris, it was off to Salzburg, Austria, the birthplace of Mozart, a center for classical music, and of course former home of the Von Trapp family. It turns out that there are actually Sound of Music tours to choose from in Salzburg. And while it was certainly cheesy at times, it did end being a good way to see Salzburg and the beauty of the countryside surrounding it.

This classic view of Salzburg has the Hohensalzburg Castle in the back up on the hill and the Mirabell Gardens in the foreground. For those of you with an intimate knowledge of the Sound of Music, this is where they sang Do Re Mi.

We didn't just go on the Sound of Music tour, we also walked the streets. Below is the main shopping street. We were there for the opening night of Euro 2008, which was hosted by Austria and Switzerland. This might have been the reason for some rather crowded streets.

This pretty lake and castle also happen to be the spot where the famous canoe-tipping -over scene was filmed.

The gazebo.

It wasn't a perfect day to be in the Alps, but it was still quite beautiful. As you can see, my mom and dad were enjoying themselves.

The tour took us to a town nearby Salzburg called Mondsee, where they filmed the marriage scene. The town was very cute and there happened to be a number of sidewalk cafes selling crisp apple strudel. It was nice to see the locals taking advantage of the cuteness as well; below you can see a real wedding party at the church.

Paris with Mom and Dad

Mom and Dad soon joined me and Paris, and we had a good time seeing many of the classic sights, including a concert at Notre Dame. We also went to the Monet musuem. Unfortunately, due to a memory erasing snaffoo that caught both my dad and me by surprise, we have only a few surving photos.

Below is the best. I think it actually does a pretty good job of summing up the feel of being on the street in Paris.

French Open in Paris

After Amsterdam, it was back to Paris. I got there a couple days before my parents arrived and learned when I got there that it was the middle of the French Open. I also learned that walk-ins were accepted if you got there early enough in the morning. I'd never been to a professional tennis tournament and was impressed by how close you get to sit to the court (if you're not in one of the main stadiums). The highlight match (for me) was Andy Murray versus Nicolás Almagro. Nicolás Almagro won. I shouldn't have been surprised by the athleticism of either player, but seeing them consistently hitting shots I would consider an amazing feat for me to hit just once reminded me that there is a difference between high school varsity and professional tennis and that it's a big one.

Here is probably the best sports picture I've every taken. Note how Andy Murray has the ball at just the right distance from his body to smack the living daylights out of it.

It's not that hard to rationalize, but I still found it a little over the top to have a boy holding an umbrella to shade the players while they rested during the breaks. Why not just have a stationery umbrella?

Amsterdam

Marisa had to return to her schoolwork and job following our stay in London and at this point I was all on my own until my parents came a week later. We were to meet up in Paris and I went there by way of Amsterdam. For a lot of travelers, Amsterdam is considered a party destination. In my opinion, it should be considered a destination for art, city biking, and city boating.

Below is the most characteristic picture I was able to take of Amsterdam. It's a tree lined canal being crossed by a bunch of bike-littered bridges. Amsterdam has got to be one of the most bike friendly cities in the world. Almost every street has a dedicated bike lane and it makes sense: at least in the city center, space is precious, and bike lanes take up much less space than car lanes. It looked to me like biking was a far faster way to get around than driving, especially for the people who didn't slow down for pedestrians and just rang their bells.

Aside from walking down tree lined streets and canals, I really enjoyed the Van Gogh museum. The collection is extensive and walks you through his development as an artist, from beginning to tragic end. While I'm sure some have pulled it off, it's hard not to be a Van Gogh fan after visiting the museum.

This was an innovation I hadn't seen before: a fast food vending machine. No human interaction required. I'm not sure why this hasn't taken off in America. It seems like it would qualify as an industry best practice.

London (again)

From Antwerp, it was a quick Chunnel trip to London, where Marisa's cousins reside. It was my second time hanging out in London and this one had a much different feel because we did more what London residents do, not what London tourists do. We went to the park, we made lunch, we played the Wii, we had tea, we went to the pub, and we also went to the office. I will admit that we left Marisa's uncle at the office and went and did some tourist stuff. It was altogether a pleasant stay with a pleasant family.

Here we have a picture of our visit to a park near their house. You can see cousins Niall and Grace on the swing, assisted by Auntie Clare.

This picture was taken during our tourist part of the visit. Behind Marisa is the Tate Modern. We went to their very well done DuChamp, ManRay, Picabia exhibition.

And this is the wonderful family in its entirety. Uncle Neil is the only one you haven't met.

Antwerp

From Normandy, it was off to Belgium to spend time with Marisa's first cousin, once removed, Robert. Robert is a resident of Antwerp, the town where Marisa's grandparents grew up. He gave us the true insider's tour. We walked the beautiful coblestone streets, relaxed at the cafes, dined in classy restaurants, and visited fascinating museums. At the end of our stay, we were convinced that Antwerp is a top-notch city.

Antwerp is home to some beautiful architecure and a long history. We got in touch with both. Below is a great representative photo. In the foreground is the statue commemorating the legend of Antwerp's naming. From Frommers:

Legend has it that a giant called Druon Antigon levied exorbitant tolls on every Scheldt boatman who passed his castle, and if anyone would not or could not pay up, the big man gleefully cut off the miscreant's hand and threw it into the river. Druon's comeuppance came from a Roman centurion named Silvius Brabo, who slew the giant and (as if that weren't enough) cut off his hand and threw it into the river, thus avenging the boatmen. The Flemish handwerpen (throwing of the hand) eventually became Antwerpen, the city's Flemish name (it's called Anvers in French).

In the background you can see some buildings that provide a pretty good idea of what the older parts of Antwerp look like.

Antwerp has a long history and a number of museums that do a great job of capturing it. Of special interest was the Plantin-Moretus Museum, home of one of the earliest printing presses in Europe. They had a fantastic collection of some of the oldest books ever printed. Below is Marisa posing in front of one of the many presses they had on display.

Robert also took us to a museum in the home of Peter Paul Reubens. It holds a good collection of his works and gave us an idea of what it was like to live as a wealthy 17th century European. Below we have Marisa and Robert in Reubens' courtyard garden. It was lovely to say the least.

Normandy (again)

We were sad to leave Italy, but the means by which we left was a lot of fun. It turns out that night trains often take longer and are more expensive than the discount airlines in Europe, but there's definitely something to be said for experiencing a night train, especially if you get a sleeper car. I don't have any pictures to show you, but I would recommend trying it sometime. Say what you say about Amtrak, but I've also heard it's fun to take a sleeper with them too.

Our night train took us from Florence to Paris. From there we caught a train to Normandy. I was delighted to be able to show Marisa the farm I lived at for two months. The same cast of characters was there.

Here we have Marisa all ready for a day of work. Note the well appointed boots and raincoat.

It's hard not to fall in love with the mommy goats and Marisa could not resist. They more than returned her affection.

Now for some scenery. Here we have the cows grazing on the hill in front of the Chateau.

And here're the pigs, as comical as ever.

Here's Emeric, tending to the young'uns in the herd. There is plenty of energy and curiosity to go around.

Emeric was kind enough to loan us his car and we got a chance to explore a little bit of Normandy and Brittany. We tasted the best crepes of our lives with the best caramel of our lives. We also went for a lovely hike along the coast. Here's a photo well worthy of a Christmas picture. As you can see, we were enjoying ourselves.

Emeric had another guest staying at the farm with him while we were there. He was a french guy who had formally been working in IT and had saved up enough money to quit his job and go hitchhiking-camping around France. We got along with him well. He ended up hitchhiking to Mount Saint Michel the same day we went to visit. We found him on the side of the road pretty close to the entrance and gave him a ride the rest of the way. We decided to explore Mount Saint Michel together. Here we are standing in front of the abbey.

Florence

After the beauty of the Cinque Terre, it was off to the culture of Florence. Tourists go to Florence for the art and the fashion. Our focus was primarily on the art. But we also had the time to visit a lovely park and just relax. That was nice.

Here we have a classic view of Florence. You can see the River Arno at the bottom. Dominating the skyline are the Duomo (on the right) and the tower at the Palazzo Vecchio (on the left). You can see that the Duomo has a dome. But you should know, duomo means cathedral in Italian, not dome.

First on the list when visiting Florence is the Uffizi Gallery. It's home to a world-class collection of art and Marisa did a great job of helping me to understand the world-classiness of it. Below we have one of the more famous paintings in the collection, Botticceli's The Birth of Venus. And while the Wikipedia image gives you an idea of the beauty of the work, seeing it in person is another experience altogether.

After the Uffizi, any self-respecting tourist will make her way to the Accademia di Belle Arti to see Michelangelo's David. Here's another instance where an image from Wikipedia cannot properly do justice to the work. The statue is on a pedestal and towers over you, but you can still get close enough to see how immaculate it is.

After viewing all the art on the inside of buildings, there's also art to be viewed outside. The main attraction is probably the area surrounding the Duomo, where you see the vibrant colors of the cathedral's facade.

Across the plaza from the entrance to the Duomo is the baptistry. The main attraction of the baptistry is its doors. As you can see, there were rows of people making sure they were getting a very nice picture for their blogs. I'm closest on the left.

Here's my favorite shot. I really liked the artist's use of perspective.

Beautiful works of art that are outside are best viewed while eating gelato. Here's a photo of some of the most immaculately displayed gelato we saw in all of Italy.

There's also natural beauty to be enjoyed in Florence. On our last day, we walked away from the hustle and bustle and along this lovely river path. It led to a park that was perfect for observing Florenzians and laying in the shade.