Shawn & Wyatt's Euro vacation.

Shawn sleeping on the bus

The week after school ended, Shawn & Wyatt headed (along some of Wyatt's classmates) to Europe for two weeks. They had been anticipating this and had been getting excited for this trip for a long time beforehand. Shawn was especially excited to have a chance to revisit his old mission, and brush up on his German skills. Wyatt was excited just to leave and go to a place with such a storied past

Shawn & Wyatt flew all day and night to Frankfurt International, where they met with their tour guide, and climbed on the bus which they would be traveling on throughout the trip. (below is a picture of Wyatt at Frankfurt Int. with his "Can't take you seriously glasses" as shawn called them.)

Frankfurt

Our tour guide was a very nice Australian man named Mark, who was living in Berlin with his wife. Mark is also the singer in a Johnny Cache cover band. He did a fantastic job as our tour guide, and was very entertaining and fun.


We met our bus driver, Xaver, next. Xaver was one of the funnest people to meet on the tour. He was 58 years old, and spoke no English (as the older generation never had the need to learn). This provided an excellent oppurtunity for Shawn to practice his German, and in turn for Xaver to have someone to talk to. Shawn always ate meals with Xaver, and would speak to him when we werent busy with tours. They actually became quite good friends over the course of the trip.

From the Frankfurt airport, we took our luxurious bus to Rothenburg, a beautiful, 900 year old mideaval city. Rothenburg was spared in the WWII bombings due to its historical significance. It is a beautiful city, and one that brought back hundreds of memories for Shawn, as he had served his mission there many moons ago. The city has a huge wall surrounding it, with a picturesque story-book German town inside. It's complete with cobblestone streets, bakeries, and even little tiny "environment saving" Euro-cars. That night, Shawn & Wyatt stayed in a quaint hotel outside the walled city. It offered a great view of the beautiful German countryside, and had what Wyatt called "the best breakfast ever" of rolls, meat & cheese, with Nutella & bread.

Yes, those are real flowers, watered only by the rain!

The next day, Wyatt & Shawn woke up and left for Munich. on their way however, they took a stop at Dachau, the Nazi concentration camp. This was a very interesting stop, as it was the site of one of the greatest abominations in world history, along with the Soviet Gulags (which actually killed up to 48 million more than the Nazi prison camps), the killing fields of Cambodia, and other global acts of genocide. This visit served as a reminder of how lucky we are to live in a country where we are guaranteed the freedom that this will not happen to us, and a country that seeks to give that same freedom to others.

"Arbeit Macht Frei" or By your work you are let free. The Words every prisoner saw upon enterting Dachau.

After leaving Dachau, Shawn & Wyatt drove to Munich and spent the afternoon there. This was an especially nastolgic day for Shawn, as he spent most of his mission days in Munich proper. As we entered "Marienplatz" (a huge European style town square with a thousand year old townhall in the center called the "Ratthouse") Shawn would look and say, "I remember setting up displays right there, and there, and there!"

The Ratthouse in Marienplatz

Marienplatz

"Farmers market" area of Munich, about a block off of Marienplatz. This area is world famous for its Brautwursts and its bakeries.

After a quick stop in Marienplatz, we went to the world famous "Hofbrahaus" which is only about a block away. This beer garden is famous for its high drinking levels and supposedly excellent alchohol. They also have a song which they sing (it's especially fun to watch them sing while they are highly intoxicated) and a traditional Bavarian band playing. They even have lockers for you to put your beer cups in. The tradition is not to wash the cups because it creates better flavor. Due to our personal ethical code, however, we did not drink any beer or alchohol. Shawn had actually never been in this German landmark, as missionaries were not allowed even close, haha.
The Beer lockers

From the Hofbrahaus, we went to lunch in the market square area of Munich, again just right off of the Marienplatz. We had delicious Bratwursts and potato salads. After lunch, we went and took a driving tour of the city with one of the most acceptable tour guides we have ever met. He was extremely knowledgable and really enjoyed giving us the tour. He showed us the key points of Munich, such as the winter palace of the royal family, and other Munichian landmarks.

Site of Hitler's first proganda speech in 1923




BMW world headquarters.

Replica of the arc de triomphe given by the French to the Germans (King Leopold sits atop)

Royal Family's winter palace.

After the driving tour of Munich, we made it back just in time to see the Glockenspiel on the Ratthouse start. The Glockenspiel is more or less a huge kuckoo clock. everyday at 11 a.m., 12 p.m. and 5 p.m., the knight of Bavaria and the knight of Lothringen joust. Of course, the knight of Bavaria wins every time. As the carved figures joust, other carved figures dance below celebrating the marriage of Duke Willhelm.

After this, Wyatt & Shawn went down the pedestrian zone off of Marienplatz, a popular destination for German shoppers and tourists alike as it has many hip and chic stores, and no motor vehicles.

The Munich pedestrian zone. The pedestrian zone is a popular feature in much of Europe. It was rainy the day we were in Munich, however most of the time this is very crowded with shoppers.

After our afternoon in Munich, we went to our hotel (the hotel Rivoli), had a wonderful meal of sweinerbraten (pork roast) and went to bed. The beds again had federdeckers, or huge feather-stuffed blankets, to Wyatt's delight. They also had great internet access here, which Shawn was able to use to work on some of his work projects.

The next day, we awoke, had breakfast, and departed for Neuenschwanstein, Mad King Ludwig's beautiful fairytale castle. On our way however, we got a special surprise stop from Mark and Xaver due to our punctuality getting on the bus. They took us to a Rococo-style church in the German Alps. The church, called the Wieskirche Church, is regarded as the most beautiful Rococo church in the World. It was built from 1745-1755, and cost the Catholic church a massive amount of money.

After departing from this beautiful German landmark, we traveled to Neuenschwanstein. Neuenschwanstein is a very strange castle, as it was built not in the 900's to the 1500's, but in the late 1800's. King Ludwig, the king who orderd the castle built, is considered by most historians to have been severly mentally ill. Ludwig decided that he wanted to go back in time and be a mideaval ruler, at a time when electricity was a feature in most modern structures. Ludwig built the castle on the opposite hillside of the former royal castle. Ludwig's multi-million dollar project nearly bankrupted the country, and this is one reason why many theorize Ludwig's mysterious death to have been a murder, similar in fashion to the murder of Julius Ceaser.

It was dissapointing that we had to have gone on such a rainy, cloudy day, because normally the castle is beautifully backdropped against the alps, and the lake which King Ludwig was found dead in.

The Gate of the castle.



What the view would have been if we would have had a clear day.

After We went to Neuschwanstein, we drove back to Munich, and spent the rest of the day there, after having a delicious Wienerschnitzel at Neuschwanstein. This time, we had a wonderful leisurley day, in which we were free to roam around the Marienplatz, or take the underground to the BMW factory if we chose. We visited the BMW headquarters, and climbed the tower at the church in the Marienplatz, all tree-hundred and five stairs (we counted), to see the incredible view of Munich.

After this, we went to a beerhouse and had a wonderful steak meal with potatoes. After this we went back to our hotel, and readied ourselves for the day ahead.

The Next day was a driving day for sure. We started from Munich, and were to arrive in Venice at the end of the day. We made a short afternoon stop in Innsbruck Austria for lunch, and to shop at the Swarovsky crystal headquarters.

Upon arrival in Innsbruck, we walked into the town center, the "Marienplatz of Innsbruck" if you will. The golden roof is a famous feature of this square. The Swarovsky crystal gallery is another world-famous attraction.

Innsbruck city center. Not quite the size of Munich, yet still cool.

We climbed to the top of the tower in the Innsbruck town, hall, and witnessed the amazing view of this beautiful city set in the Alps. Innsbruck, like many other German countries during WWII, was destroyed by bombing raids. Thus, it was rebuilt. However it was not the men who rebuilt it, as They were all dead or dying. The women were the ones who retrieved the original blueprints and rebuilt the cities of Germany and other German annexed countries.

Innsbruck's olympic ski jumps

Display at the Swarovsky crystal gallery. The crystals here were incredible.

After having a delicious lunch in Innsbruck (Wyatt accidentally got the meat assortment of 5 different Austrian meat dishes! They were all very delicious though.), we took a drive through the incredibly beautiful Austrian/Italian Alps, on our way to Mexico, er I mean Italy.

The Italian countryside


After our long drive, we arrived outside of Venice at out hotel. The hotel was very Italian in every way. When we went to dinner, the restaurant manager misunderstood, and brought us a hamburger patty with fries, with half a canned peach for dessert. Our tourguide (we ate as a group for this dinner) was not happy, and explained this to the manager. The next night though, we were able to get the house special of Lasagna, roast italian chicken and potatoes, and tiramisu! We went for a short walk to the Aegean sea (as our hotel was on the beach) and swam around a bit. After that however, we went to bed.



We woke up, and readied ourselves for our day in the floating city of Venice. Built hundreds of years ago on a swamp, Venice was an independent country until it joined later for protective, economic, and other political purposes. We took a fairy into Venice, and first had a glass blowing demonstration.



This man was making a horse out of glass. It was quite incredible, as they took a giant blob, and within 10 seconds (no exagerrations) they were able to make a man riding an elephant. If they didn't though, the glass would dry, and they would have to re-heat it.


After the glass blowing demonstration, we were free to go through Venice for the remainder of the day. They say the point of Venice is to get lost, and lost we got. The streets turn you around so fast, that your sense of direction is void, and the street signs are in many cases difficult to follow, or wrong completely. With that said, however, it was still a fun time. We had authentic Italian Pizza, Capresi, took a gondola ride (with a fairly rude and inconsiderate gondolier), and simply had fun.

Saint Marks Plaza, the central point of Venice. They claim (like the many other thousands of churches around the world) to have the remains of St. Mark in the church in the plaza.

The Bridge of Sighs. Named because as prisoners walked through into the prison (right side) they would sigh as they looked out at the venetian canal and thought about their lost life.

The Gondola's tip as we ride throught the Grand Canal. Although the ride was fun, and part of the Venitian experience, the 50 Euro pricetag was a little much. And especially when our gondolier was the typical Euro Socialist, trashing President Bush and conservatives the entire time. That was until Shawn pointed out that it was capitalism and Conservative ideals, not socialism and liberalism, which has led the United States to become the most successful and powerful country on Earth, and it is Socialism and liberalism which have stagnated European economies and led to the welfare state which exists there. He then said we should vote for Obama (We later figured this is only because he wants to make America just like Europe, lazy, dependent on government, and taxed into oblivion.)





Space Commander Shawn (note the glasses bought out of desperation in Venice)


After a day of walking and getting lost in Venice, we headed back to our hotel and had the delicious house special, which we mentioned above. That night, Shawn & Wyatt went along the Agean shoreline, for about two and a half miles, trying to find Shawns "special European socks." But to no avail. They did however, find a grocery store with Ritter Sport (Germany's hersheys bar, but with over 15 flavors) for only .80 Euro. They also stopped by on the way back to the hotel and had some gelato (they had a lot while they were there)


Wyatt's hazelnut Gelato outside our hotel.


The next day was again, a long driving day. This day instead of making a stop in Innsbruck though, we stopped in Romeo & Juliet's city of Verona. The city is known first and foremost for being the setting of Shakespeare's most famous play. It is also known however, for being the favorite vacation spot of the ceaser. Another interesting feature was the colliseum, which was only about 1/2 the size of the colliseum in Rome, however it was built to resemble the one in Rome. We ate lunch here, and spent about 2 1/2 hours here.



This is supposedly the courtyard and balcony above from which Bill Shakespeare based the balcony scene of Romeo & Juliet. It is tradition touch the bossom of Juliet for good luck, Wyatt is not just being an obscene perv.

Wyatt's delicious Parmesan, arugala, and Prescuttio salad


View leaving Verona.

After leaving Verona, we drove for a very long time, going to Lucerne, Switzerland. We drove again through the Alps, some of the most beautiful scenery Shawn or Wyatt had ever seen. We arrived at our hotel at around 6 o'clock, and had a wonderful Swiss dinner. The hotel was set high in the Alps, about a half hour outside of Lucerne. The hotel and the village it were in were exactly as you'd imagine the Alps.
The beautiful Lake Como, on the Swiss-Italian border. George Clooney has a house here.


The view from the top of the pass we took to our hotel.

The view from our Hotel. The hotel was right on the alps, in a tiny mountain village.


The next day, we awoke and prepared for our journey into Lucerne to summit Mt. Pilatus (on a cable car haha.) We rode the bus into the city of Lucerne, went to see an incredible sculpture that was a tribute to the Swiss soldiers killed in Napoleon's conquests, and went shopping and looked around. Wyatt even got a swiss army knife from the factory engraved with "Mr. Wyatt James Frasier".


The famous Kappelbrucke, a hundreds of years old bridge across the Reuss river.

Sandstone sculpture commemorating Swiss troops who died defending Napoleon.


After the afternoon in Lucerne, we took a ferry across gorgeous Lake Lucerne, to the base of Mt. Pilatus. When we arrived Mt. Pilatus, we took the WORLDS STEEPEST TRAIN car to the summit of Mt. Pilatus. Mt. Pilatus is incredibly beautiful, and has incredible views of the Swiss countryside thousands of feet below. When we were done with the visit to the summit, we took a ski tram ride half way down, and a ski gondola the other half of the way down.

After summiting Mt. Pilatus and climbing back on the bus, we went back to out hotel, and prepared for what would be our last day in Europe (sigh.) The next day we would drive to Heidleberg, Germany to experience the sights there.

We woke up in the morning and prepared for another long day of travel. We drove a long way, going on our way through the WORLDS LONGEST CAR TUNNEL!!! (sorry no pics. it was rather dark.) We wound through Zurich, and made a stop at the Rhein Falls, and the black forest, home of the Kuckoo clock. We eventually wound up in Heidlebrug, and took a tour of the Heidleburg Castle, home to the WORLDS BIGGEST WINE BARRELL!!! We then went into the town square in Heidleburg and looked around, before leaving to our 1970's era hotel (we're not kidding on this one.) We had a nice dinner, and went to bed, preparing for our long flight the next day.

The Rhine Falls. (for size comparison, look to the large boat going towards it!)



The black Forest

The Heidleburg Castle. Many believe this Castle to be over a thousand years old.

Shawn reminiscing
WORLDS BIGGEST WINE BARRELL!!!!! found inside the castle.

Our 1970s era hotel. We weren't kidding when we said it had missed being updated for quite sometime. But heck, on the last night, We weren't looking for the nicest hotel in Heidleburg. So we settled for the See hotel. (it was next to a large, beautiful lake.)

The next day, we awoke early and left for the Frankfurt Airport. Wyatt & Shawn were both glad that they got a Boeing 7-77, because of the feature of a T.V. in every seat back, with on demand options, rather than forced selections on the cabin T.V. Regardless of the jet though, Wyatt & Shawn still arrived quite tired from their 35 hour day (really) flying half-way around the world.

The trip was fun, and both Wyatt & Shawn had an incredible time. Shawn says that he enjoyed reminiscing on old experiences, and especially reactivating his German skills. He really believes now that he would have started to forget the language if not for this trip. Wyatt loved it, and will definately go back someday in the distant future. We hope you've enjoyed the post!

-Wyatt