Germany Road Trip - Day 3

Our first stop was the Deutches Museum, which is the largest science and technology museum in Europe (and perhaps the world?). We had gone there the year before with Andy's parents, and thought that it'd be a great thing to revisit with my parents, especially since Carsten would enjoy it more. On this visit, we discovered that there was a kids play area that Carsten could play in, and play he did. There was a water area, and I'm glad we had extra clothes along because we did need them - although the museum did have a dryer (which we did use) and extra clothes to borrow for those who didn't have an extra set. Carsten wasn't quite as impressed with the rest of the museum, but he did enjoy the space to run around. My favorite part was finding an early steam engine boat (parts of it were from Michigan!) named NATALIE. We had lunch at the museum cafeteria before heading home for naptime. Here's some photos:

Mom and Dad on the U-bahn

The Swiss Huismans on the U-bahn

Dad reading about the U-boat.

Carsten and Andy with a 'HELICOPTER!' I'm surprised we got him to look at the camera here.

The Natalie. 

A huge guitar in the play area.

A VERY wet Carsten. He was seriously dripping everywhere. I'm glad we had his rubber boots along.

Happy buddy in dry clothes!

During nap, Andy drove my parents to Schloss Nymphenburg where they went through the palace while Carsten was sleeping. After Carsten woke up, Andy took Carsten and I to the palace grounds where we met my parents. We enjoyed wandering around, and Carsten enjoyed the rocks in the paths. Andy and I had packed a picnic supper for all of us, which we enjoyed on a bench within the grounds. After that we tried to wear Carsten out by making him walk a bunch, and then we headed back for to the apartment for bedtime. Here's photos of Schloss Nymphenburg:

Schloss Nymphenburg has one of the longest facades. 

Pretty.

Andy and Carsten with the palace.

Andy was trying to text with my parents. I probably should have been taking care of Carsten instead of taking this photo. Sorry Andy!

'Look at that Daddy!'

'Duck duck!'

Mom had Carsten sliding on the railing. Pretty cute :).

Weight training.

Germany Road Trip - Day 2

We got up, had breakfast, and then headed out on the U-bahn (only 2 blocks away!) into the city center where we were headed to see the Residenz Palace. It was fussball (soccer) quarter finals and Germany was playing, so we got to see lots of people who were painted gold and red (see photo). We were in town a bit early, so we took our time and eventually found the entrance that we were looking for (treasury and palace). First, we headed into the treasury and oooed and awed over the amazing religious and state treasure, including some beautiful crowns. One seemed made for me :). Here are some photos of our first glimpses of Munich and the treasury:

red and gold soccer fans

The Residenz

The Residenz, Carsten, and Andy

Love this photo. The pavilion to the left was where Hitler made a speech and was an important place for the Nazis. The yellow church was basically destroyed in the war, but they rebuilt it.

Queen Natalie :)

After seeing the treasury, we wisely decided that we didn't have enough time to go through the palace before the glockenspiel would go in the main square. So we wandered down to the main square, and watched it :). It was much more pleasant for me this year since last year the noise seemed to really upset Carsten so I couldn't watch most of it. This year he just ate Cheerios and we all got to enjoy it :). Please see photos of the glockenspiel below:

The glockenspiel

Mom and Dad in Munich!

Preparing for the glockenspiel to go

The knight is down!

Watching

Next, we wandered down to a square where there was tons of food and beer (a biergarten). Also there were horses pulling many kegs of beer and people were dressed up in traditional Bavarian costume as well. The atmosphere was quite fun :). Since it was now naptime, Andy and I headed back to the apartment while my parents stayed to enjoy the Bavarian fun. After naptime, Andy, Carsten, and I headed back in to meet Mom and Dad at the Residenz where we went through the palace. The palace was much larger and grander than I expected, so we spent quite a bit of time wandering and enjoying the palace. We actually got to take some photos inside the palace, which isn't always permitted, so here's a LOT of photos:

They had us use their stroller, and we were not allowed a diaper bag. Good thing we didn't need it... :)

Huge hall used for banquets.

See that green blur? It's Carsten. :)

Andy lives for these photos.

Love taking pictures in old mirrors.

An early upright piano. Seriously.

We let Carsten use the ipod so we could all enjoy the palace. He watched "Bob the Builder" and we got to see history. 

Rooms in the 'long tour'. Totally worth it! :)

Andy and Carsten :).

Huge ballroom.

Even the hinges and doorways are exquisite. 

Group photo!

Pretty hall.

Hall of Ancestors. 

Carsten and Andy trying their best to mimic King Ludwig II. 

Being loud is fun after all that quiet time! 

Grandpa and Grandma with Carsten :).

We elected to go back to the biergarten we were at earlier in the day to have supper. This was a great choice as the atmosphere was still fun, but I wouldn't recommend the currywurst. Not my favorite. Everyone else's food was good though :). After supper we headed back to our apartment so we could put Carsten to bed. All in all, it was a great and fun day! Here's a few photos of our suppertime at the biergarten:

Best. Hat. Ever.

Carsten wanted to see Andy's beer. And then before anyone could do anything about it. He dipped his sausage in Andy's beer. Whoops. :)

No harm done. Promise.

Our u-bahn stop was at Zurich St. and Limmat St. (the Limmat is the river going through Zurich).  So ironic. :)

Germany Roadtrip - Day 1

Andy was able to take the day off on Friday so we could get an earlier start on our way to Munich. We had a delicious breakfast to start off our day, and then we packed up our car and drove to Konstanz, which is a German town on the Bodensee about an hour from Zurich. We enjoyed walking in the Old Town area, and then we ate our packed lunch by the Bodensee in the shade where we enjoyed the beautiful view. After lunch we stumbled across a little park where Carsten could play before we headed back out in the car again. Here's some photos of us in Konstanz:

Dad's first time in Germany!

By the old city wall gate

Love this photo

Mom and Dad with the pretty church in Konstanz.

We found a small play thing where Carsten could play.

Jewelry store. Tee Hee :).

Our view of the Bodensee as we ate lunch.

Pretty flowers in the park.

Playground time!

He was having SO much fun in the swings (we don't have a baby swing near us). 

Can's WAIT to take him to a rollercoaster park some day.

Having fun with Daddy.

We loaded up into the car around 12:30 pm and then headed out the long way to Munich. Our GPS kept routing us through Austria, but we didn't know how much the toll roads were, so we chose to take a different route that skirted north around the Bodensee. However, this route was full of construction and detours, so it took us AGES to get to Munich. Carsten fell asleep after a long time, and then only took a 30 min nap, so all in all, it was a LONG car ride to Munich from Konstanz. I also had the wrong address for the apartment we were staying, so that didn't help matters when we got to Munich. Everyone was very glad to be out of the car once we got to Munich, and Andy was a champ with all that driving. Once we got into our apartment, Andy and I headed out to get groceries for supper and breakfast while Mom and Dad played trucks with Carsten. Our apartment was quite nice and had 2 bedrooms, but both bedrooms were very small (it was difficult to fit Carsten's crib in our room). Carsten actually did not sleep that well while we were there and he ended up sleeping in our bed for a couple of hours most nights. Not really ideal, but we managed :).

Sleepy buddy.

All in all, Konstanz was a big hit, but next time we need to do some route planning before we head out so we can avoid a SUPER long afternoon in the car.

Hoogeveens in Switzerland!

My mom and dad were able to come out at the end of June and spend 2 wonderful weeks with us. I woke up early to meet my parents for their flight (6:30 am arrival which means leave Egg EARLY), so I got to see the sunrise. Here's a photo:

sunrise in Egg

They arrived on June 21 after a long day of travel, and after waiting a while for their plane to land, we finally got to give them hugs. It took a little while longer to get our car rented, and then we said goodbye to Andy (he went to work) and then Dad (while jet-lagged) proceeded to drive us home to Egg. Go Dad! Once we got home, my parents opened the suitcase with stuff for us, and Carsten immediately played with his new train set. Just a note: it's 3 weeks later and he still LOVES playing with it. Love it when that happens.  My parents took a pretty good nap while Carsten napped, which worked out pretty well. They were still sleeping when Carsten woke up, and despite the fact that he was playing right next to them, they kept on sleeping - champion sleepers!! We spent the rest of the day getting everything ready to go for our roadtrip to Germany which we started the next day. Here's a photo of Carsten and Grandma playing with the new train set: