I have had many requests over the past couple of years to continue my blog. I also often receive words of thanks from friends and family members on social media for sharing the adventures of our travels. Many people will never touch down on the foreign lands that our family has had the good fortune to travel to, and by sharing my experience, I hope you can feel a glimpse of the experience from my perspective. I’ve now lived in Japan for a year and a half. One has to be willing to be open to an Asian culture to not only live here, but to thrive here. Life has gotten away from me lately, but it’s important to me to share our Asian travel experiences with you. May these experiences inspire you to travel to Japan, and if that won't be possible for you, may they give you a glimpse of the glory of the experience......Of course, I couldn't have a nice round number of a top 10 things to know in Japan! Here are 11! 11. Tipping is not a thing. If you leave a tip on a table at a restaurant, don’t be surprised if the employee at this establishment chases you down in the street after you leave. They will think you accidentally left your money behind. 10. The bottom of your shoes are considered filthy. When you walk into a restaurant, shrine, house, school or any establishment, and there is an area for shoes, you are to take them off, and walk in socks, slippers, or barefoot in the establishment. At the pre-school that I work at, there are inside shoes and outside shoes and you are to never wear your inside shoes outside and vice versa. Putting your shoes up on an ottoman, table, or chair, is also considered rude. *Bring socks if you’re not okay going barefoot 9. Some degree of flexibility and balance is required. When you walk into a restaurant and everyone is sitting down on the floor, you will need to get down to eat, and get back up. This includes sitting on the floor for over an hour of dinner. Believe it or not, this isn’t easy for western folks. Also, when you enter an establishment and need to take your shoes off, there is not always a chair to sit in, so you will have to stand to take your shoes on and off. I can’t tell you how many more grunts are heard from our family versus a local Japanese family! Many times, restaurants have some Japanese tables and some Western tables, but often times, the western tables are full. There have been many instances where sitting this way was not a choice if we wanted to eat. 8. There are very few garbage receptacles and there are different categories for disposal. Japan is working on being a society with very little trash. People bring their garbage home with them and clean after themselves everywhere, from a baseball field to their seat on a train. Bring a small bag with you for this instance. At my house, there are 6+ different categories of garbage/recycling and they’re all picked up on different days! It’s insane! However, there are 4 main categories you need to know about for travel in Japan: 1. Combustibles (papers, kitchen garbage, doggy doodoo) 2. Plastic bottles 3. Glass bottles 4. Plastics When you stay at an airbnb in Japan, it is expected that you sort your garbage and also clean it before disposing of it. This is also expected while camping. It’s expected everywhere! 7. Bowing is a thing. Japanese people bow for everything, everywhere, even in the car while driving. The proper way to bow in public is with your arms at your sides, bending at the waist with back and neck straight, feet together, and with your eyes cast downward. Normally, this is accompanied with “Arigatōgozaimasu,” which is ‘thank you’ in Japanese. Even shopping in 7-11, you will experience a bow or two just at the counter for your purchase. When watching two Japanese business people interact, it is completely normal to see 10 different bows from each party. 6. Waiting in line is not a hardship and patience is a virtue. One thing I know about Americans is that waiting in line is something we can’t stand. I know, I’m one of them! Japanese people will wait in line for whatever, for however long it’s required. They won’t roll their eyes, sigh, or lose patience. This has taught me to relax a bit and be more patient. 5. English is not spoken everywhere, even in the city. However, you can get by at restaurants with knowing very little Japanese, but you might be turned away. Many restaurants have ipads for ordering with different language options and there are countless apps for translation, however, some restaurant owners feel uncomfortable with the language barrier. This is not something to be offended about. We are in their country. However, sometimes they will ask if it’s okay if everything is in Japanese (like the menu), because they want to provide a good level of service and want to make sure we are comfortable translating on our own. Google translate does not always do the best job of translating, so I also recommend the ‘Photo Translator’ app in this instance. Below is an example of a poorly translated menu. FYI, Tacos in the Living Room and Horse Cock were not actually items offered on the menu. 4. Toilets usually have a full bidet washlet nearly everywhere. From a rest stop to a hotel to a 7-11 bathroom. The toilets are typically very clean and have buttons for cleaning your bum after going number 2. Some even have waterfall noises and bum dryers. You can feel comfortable in the bathroom anywhere. There are some local toilets with a hole in the ground, but I have never been in a situation, even in the country or camping. In my experience, there is always another stall with what the locals call a western toilet. 3. You are expected to be quiet on the train, on the bus, in many restaurants, in coffee shops, in your hotel room or airbnb, and many other places. There are even signs on the train and bus asking you to refrain from talking, because talking can increase the chances of spreading COVID. I have been on a bus that was packed to the brim with 50 people and you couldn’t hear a pin drop, my friends. I mean it. It’s considered very rude to be loud at places where people are quiet and peaceful. As a general rule of thumb, we gauge the level of noise where we are and determine how loud we will be from that. We work hard not to be obnoxious Americans! If you want to go to a place where you can be comfortable to be as loud as you want, I recommend an Izakaya (a bar with Japanese tapas), or a Yakitori restaurant (kebab). In these establishments, people are more laid back about the noise level! We once stayed at an airbnb in Fukuoka, Japan that had a noise decibel meter. When reading the information for an airbnb, there are constant warnings of quiet hours with consequences if the police are called. Always read the reviews!
2. You MUST experience the onsen and go naked!! Japan is full of mountains and volcanic hot springs! An onsen is a spa-like experience where you can soak in various hot spring baths. These are in many hotels, airbnbs, and even out in nature in the middle of the woods. Typically, the men have their own onsen and the women have their own separate onsen. How to enjoy the onsen:
1. Rules are rules, even if they don’t make sense to you. Japanese people are rule abiders and do not like bending the rules. If you’re in the middle of the city at night and no one is around at a crosswalk, people will still wait for the crosswalk light to turn green. If a restaurant is closing at 10:00 pm, they expect you to have your bill paid and be out the door at 10:00 pm. During covid times, there is a curfew in some towns for the last call for drinks. They will not serve a single drink after that time. During covid times, masks are to be worn inside of every building and outside while walking on the street. In some towns, this is more relaxed, but overall these rules are followed. Let me know if you have any questions about any of these things to know! Next Blog Post: Kyoto, Japan: Arashiyama Monkey Park and Bamboo Forest, Samarai and Ninja Museum Experience, Shrines, Temples, and Pagodas! Oh my!
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Malta is a beautiful island off the coast of Sicily. It used to be property of Great Britain, so driving is on the left side of the road, and the influence of the island is British and Italian due to location and history. I don’t know how much you know about spring weather in Europe, but it really isn’t hot enough in April to get in any water without a wetsuit, even as far south as Malta. Since it was the off season, flights and lodging were dirt cheap, as in less than $30/person for the flight and just over $100/night for lodging right on the water. We went for the week of Spring Break and toured all 3 of Malta’s islands: Malta, Gozo, and the tiny island of Comino. It truly was a great family vacation and the memories of our time there still warm my heart. Malta We use the Chase Sapphire card for all of our regular purchases so that we can rack up credit card points and get free stuff. We stayed at the A/X Sunny Coast Resort and Spa in Malta for free on this stay. I do recommend staying here. This particular resort is a aparthotel, essentially an apartment hotel. Our apartment had a full kitchen and was VERY spacious. There is an indoor and outdoor pool, as well as a spa. Children are only allowed in the indoor pool and spa area during certain hours, parking is limited, and our room did not include breakfast. There was a super cheap diner right next door to the hotel though that offered breakfast and we had our full kitchen, so we didn’t miss it. This hotel is walkable to the aquarium and all of St. Paul’s Bay area. I recommend St. Paul’s over the more popular city of St. Julian’s if you are looking for a more relaxed, small town feel. St. Julian’s is very metropolitan and crowded, but has a great night life, so it all depends on what you’re looking for. ***Insider tip: If you stay in St. Paul’s and you have kids, I recommend you eat at Luzzu. It’s a restaurant with an entire indoor play area. We barely saw the kids during dinner and enjoyed a great double date there with friends that also happened to be in Malta! On our first day, we drove to the ruins of Hagar Qim & the Mnajdra Temples. These ruins date back to 5000-5500 BC. They are incredibly well preserved, due to being composed of Limestone. Limestone holds up incredibly well over centuries. These ruins are older than the pyramids, my friends. We then toured the town of Valletta. Valletta is a beautiful walled city, made completely of limestone. Just walking the city and looking at the old fortifications is breathtaking. From there, we went to St. Julian, walked around, and ate at the Blue Elephant in the Hilton St. Julian.. I highly recommend this restaurant. The inside looks like a Thai village with a waterfall, huts, and the food is absolutely INCREDIBLE!!! The next day we went to the silent city of Mdina. Mdina is called the silent city, because it used to be Malta’s capital. When they decided to change the capital to another city, Mdina was left behind like a ghost town. We also hiked to St. Peter’s pool and hiked to all the scenic points shown on Google Maps. ***Insider tip for Mdina: If you have kids, do the Knights of Malta Tour. It was a self-guided audio tour complete with mannequins and sound effects that acted out the history of the knights that have held and defended Malta for centuries. It’s lively and fun. On our last day on the island of Malta, we planned to take the ferry to the island of Gozo. ***Insider tip: I recommend the ferry to the other islands over the boat tours, simply because it’s SO cheap. It’s less than €5/adult and less than €2 per child to ride the ferry to Gozo, add about €16 if you want to include your car. Near the port, we went to the Popeye Village. This is where the Popeye movie with Robin Williams was filmed. It’s a small park, but picturesque, and we participated in a tourist rendition of the movie. It was fun to be filmed like movie stars and take part in the movie. I highly recommend taking photos at the area overlooking the park. The photos turn out fab, as you can see from mine. Gozo It was a quick ferry to Gozo and from there, we drove to our Airbnb. It is called Gozo a Prescindere Bed and Breakfast and it’s in the adorable town of Nadur. Andrea owns the B&B. He showed us to our room, treated us like family, and made an amazing breakfast every morning. Breakfast included an exotic fruit salad that involved ginger, mint, and lime…..it was sublime. Andrea also made our family homemade dinner one night. He’s an Italian from La Spezia and puts his heart in his cooking and in his business. I can’t recommend this B&B enough. We reserved a timeframe in the on-site spa and enjoyed hot tea and the hot tub (which was warm, but not hot). Andrea also helped us to plan our time in Gozo and gave us great recommendations. While in Gozo, we drove to the salt pans where you can buy fresh sea salt from a shop carved right into the mountain side, hiked the Ghasri Valley and drove around the island. Roads are super slim, often 2-way roads that look like 1-way roads, and they’re all lined with limestone walls. Comino We took a boat ride to Comino, with tickets purchased from Andrea (our B&B host). The boat that took us to the Comino island marina just so happened to be at the famous Blue Lagoon, which is the brightest, bluest water I’ve ever seen, as you can see from the photo below. We hiked around about half of the island, since the island was too small to bring our car, bought a pretty drink near the port, then headed back to Gozo. There’s really not much to do on Comino, but it was a beautiful hike. After touring all 3 islands, we found Malta to be incredibly rich in limestone, full of history from ancient to not so ancient, all of the water we saw was startling blue and crystal clear, and it was beautifully mountainous. The island was perfect for hiking, especially if you enjoy crystal clear water and cliffs. In the summer, it would be great for cliff jumping, but not great for enjoying the beach. We saw very few beaches.
Next post: The Southern Italian Islands of Ischia, Procida, and Capri....hot pools, hikes, and cliffside dining! For this trip, we looked up a list of top European ski locations that won’t break the bank. Kranjska Gora, Slovenia came up on the list! Flying into Slovenia was too expensive, so we flew into Venice Treviso airport, which was not far from the Slovenian border. After further research, we created an itinerary to see as much of Slovenia as possible in a 5 day span. Ljubljana After picking up our rental car, we hit the road! These types of adventures are so fun! We always get a cheap rental car that can fit our backpacks, turn on some local music, and our faces are glued to the windows as we pass all the wonders of the new country. We always make the kids put their technology away and partake in this exploration. They’re so used to it that they don’t complain. It was about a 2.5 hour drive to Ljubjana, the capital of Slovenia. We spent a few hours and lunch in the city. We walked to the Ljubljana Castle, which had views of the whole city, a chapel, an open air prison, and the most beautiful medieval stone walls. There was a gentleman dressed in medieval garb, with a very enigmatic personality, writing the names of tourists in calligraphy for a small fee. Needless to say, we have a whole stack of Calligraphy names as souvenirs and we had a great time. I had lunch of Slovenian Goulash, which came with 2 squares of polenta. I thought the polenta was a nice touch and really showed how close Slovenia is to the Italian border. Lake Bled From Ljubljana, we drove to Lake Bled. I’ve seen a lot of my friends' adventures in Lake Bled in the spring and summer and they typically involve staying in treehouses near the lake and taking a picturesque boat ride to the church in the middle of the lake, but we were there in the winter, so we enjoyed a brisk walk around the lake and that was it. The boats were unavailable, so reaching the island with the famous church was not an option. There were several areas to take great photos on our walk and the sky was clear, so it was a nice way to stretch our legs after our road trip. ***Insider tip: To get the most out of a visit to Lake Bled, visit in the Spring or Summer. Kranjska Gora It was prime time in the ski season when we visited (February), but it was uncharacteristically warm, so snow was mostly manufactured and was melting by 2:00 pm. Any point after 2:00pm, we were skiing on ice. My boys are much less breakable than I am, so we would have lunch every day around 1:00 pm and I would stay and relax at the restaurant at the bottom of the slope, while they continued to ski and snowboard to their heart’s content. I remember it being so warm that I took all of my layers off and got some sun on my arms in my tank top. Lunch at the bottom of the slope was on point. We ordered a meat platter each day that came with fresh veggies, sides, and fresh bread. There were old piles of snow that had yet to melt in the middle of the eating area and kids all met up and made houses and tunnels with the hardened snow. I love moments when my kids play with kids from another culture. They may all speak different languages, but in the end they’re all kids and like to play. The town of Kranjska Gora itself is clean, beautiful, and has a great little ice rink. We stayed at the Ramada Inn with the ice rink in front. This was nice because we were about ¼ mile away from the lift and our ski rentals. It was less than $5 worth of local currency for the kids to borrow ice skates at the rink. In Europe, they don’t bleep out cuss words in music. I bring this up, because the music they played while the kids were skating had very explicit lyrics. It made us laugh when the F word was repeated in a techno song over and over again while young children were skating. I have a video of it that I will not post, but this is a cultural difference to be prepared for! We got a kick out of it, but the locals didn’t even seem to notice. We were disappointed in our hotel, so I won’t recommend it. There are actually two Ramada Inns in Kranjska Gora. They put photos from both resorts on both advertisements, instead of showing photos of the resort you will be staying at. The Ramada we didn’t stay at was right AT the ski lift and had an indoor pool and spa, the Ramada we stayed at was a short walk away from the other Ramada and the ski lift. Our Ramada is where the ice rink is. This doesn’t seem like a big deal, but it is when you want to go to the indoor pool and have to walk in snow afterwards back to your hotel. Also, we didn’t anticipate having to walk with our ski boots on to the lift, because the photos showed the lift was right outside of the hotel. It was frustrating to say the least, but we rolled with it. Predjama Castle On our last day, our flight out of Venice Treviso was in the evening, so we ate breakfast at our hotel and hit the road! When looking for places to stop on our way back to Venice, I found a medieval castle perched on a 123 meter high cliff and all of it is carved into a mountain, complete with caves. It’s called Predjama Castle. Yes please! We were limited on time, so we only got to see the castle from the outside. There were guard towers carved into the mountain on the side of the castle. It was so incredibly impressive to see! There is a romantic legend that a knight stayed at the castle during an army siege for a year. Apparently there is more to the story, including a secret tunnel and a love story, all tied to this magnificent castle. Postojna Cave From Predjama Castle, it was just a few minute drive to the Postojna Caves. It was about $25/child and $40 per adult for tickets to just tour the cave. The subterranean cave system is shaped by tiny droplets over millions of years. We jumped on a train, along a 3.7 km track under ground as part of the tour. Once we made it to the halfway point, deep in the tunnels, we received a tour and walked around looking at the different formations. There was even a ‘baby dragon,’ which is a cave dwelling animal that can go without food for up to 10 years. We got to peak at them in a tank. It was super cool to see! Our family loved our Slovenian adventure. We were sore from skiing, our bellies were full of good, hearty food, and our hearts were fulfilled with our castle and cave adventure! The only thing I would have wished for to make it perfect would be more snow and more time, but we can’t have it all!
Onto the next adventure: The islands of Malta, Gozo, and Comino….hiking, salt mines, and history! There are some locations that we have traveled to that we would return to in a heartbeat. We stumbled upon a resort in Bansko, Bulgaria called Pirin River Ski, Fun, and Family when we were looking for a ski resort to spend New years vacation. This particular resort was much more affordable in comparison to the resorts in the Alps. Reserving in advance gave an added discount and the possibility of free meals included. One of the owners of the resort, Katarina, has such an amazing personality that I couldn't wait to meet her for our trip. She emailed me to nail down every detail of our trip to make sure we didn't have to worry about anything after we arrived. We had such a great experience at Pirin River that we returned the following year and brought even more friends! To get to Bansko, the first year, we flew into and out of Thessaloniki, Greece. The second year, we flew into and out of Sofia, Bulgaria. The hotel shuttle picked us up and brought us to and from the resort for a very reasonable price. It was a 2-3 hour drive from either location, but the ride from Thessaloniki involved a border crossing into Bulgaria that took up some extra time. Bansko, Bulgaria Bansko is an adorable ski town with a ski lodge charm. There are numerous restaurants, shops, bars, and clubs all geared towards ski life. Bulgarian fare includes a lot of delicious meat platters and that seems to be the restaurant focus in town. The ski resort itself is a decent size. I truly think it's perfect for families that like to ski for fun or are looking to learn to ski, due to the great prices for the lessons and rentals. The rentals were not of the highest quality, but served the purposes for our family. Some details of the perks of the resort are below. ***Insider tip: Please keep in mind that late December/Early January is early in the ski season for most resorts. We had a good amount of fresh powder the first year at the resort and a lot of fake snow the second year. Pirin River Ski, Fun, and Family
Thessaloniki, Greece The history of Thessaloniki is vast and interesting. It was once part of the Roman Empire, the Byzantine empire, and the Ottoman Empire. Ancient ruins, marble tile, beautiful sculptures, and delicious food. It was very grand in parts, but also had a lot of graffiti, there was some garbage in the streets, but if you're able to look past that you'll enjoy it, truly. We felt that it was very reminiscent of Naples and Rome. The food was SO flavorful, but different than the greek food I’ve eaten in America.! We ordered a Gyro and it came open faced and our greek salad was chunky with no lettuce and was delicious. The food is obviously very different from American Greek. We stayed at Colors and Rooms Apartments with our Chase Sapphire points. It was a great location, walkable to everything, and had a balcony. We felt safe. We ate breakfast at nearby cafes, since breakfast was an extra charge. I looked up the link for this property to share, but it is permanently closed. I can recommend that area, even if the property is no longer available! We walked the city and saw the white tower, Aristotelous Square, the Hagia Sophia, the Rotunda, the Roman Agora, and toured inside of the Archeological Museum of Thessaloniki. We only spent 2 days, but it was perfect. It happened to be snowing a lot, which made the marble in the city very slippery, but our boys had a blast with having snowball fights with each other and local kids. I highly recommend Palati as a dinner location. The food was freshly made and delicious. Everyone was clapping and singing along to the live Greek music. It was heart warming. We try to always make reservations in advance when we travel and I recommend doing so for this restaurant. It's a true greek experience and not a large restaurant. Sofia, Bulgaria When we went to Sofia, our family took turns with a stomach bug. We only spent a few hours walking the city, but it was a charming city. We walked through the central market and ate lunch at one of the food stalls. We didn't have the best lodging experience in Sofia, but sharing this may prepare other tourists for what to expect out of lodging in Sofia. We stayed at Hotel Anel. It's a self-proclaimed 5 star resort, but our experience was 3 star. People smoke inside the hotel, the birthday order of Prosecco and appetizers I ordered for my husband was not what I ordered, and the hotel itself was just average. I ordered a platter of local cheeses and nuts, drizzled with honey and a bottle of Cuvee Italian Prosecco....we received a bowl with a few fruits, not even chopped, and a bottle of cheap champagne. They amended their mistake quickly though, after I called. The prices in the Balkans though can't be beat, so keep this in mind when traveling to the area. It was only €120 total, for 2 nights, and included breakfast, and this was at their '5 star resort.' We didn't get to partake in the spa. We met up with our friends on the last day and ate at a delicious local restaurant called Moma Bulgarian Food and Wine. We ordered a 3 course lunch for 4 full of Bulgarian specialties and it fed both of of our families! So, for 4 adults and 4 children, we ordered only a meal for 4 people (the value was converted to about $80 total for the food). We even had leftovers! It was delicious and really fun to experience the specialties with our friends and some local wine. Keep in mind if you plan a trip like this, that every experience is different. When traveling, it's best to go with the flow of whatever culture and place you're visiting. Even though we ended up with a stomach bug making rounds during our time in Sofia and the places we visited weren't perfect, we still found a charm and enjoyed our experiences.
Next Blog Post: Slovenia - Ljubjana, skiing in Kranjska Gora, Lake Bled, Predjama Castle, and the Postojna Cave. An adventure full of Wonder. Edinburgh From London, we flew into Edinburgh (pronounced edin-buh-ruh). I expected a big city, but what greeted us upon landing was a gorgeous, historic town. Loads of brick and stonework, ancient buildings, ridiculous charm. It was much smaller than I expected. Our flight arrived pretty late, so we were settled in our hotel room and ready for dinner around 8:30 pm. We were surprised to learn that children are not welcome in restaurants in Edinburgh after 8:00 pm. There was one restaurant that was able to take us in on the recommendation of our concierge, and they seated us in a corner, but the food and service were excellent. These are the types of interesting things that happen, culturally, that we have learned to “go with the flow with.” ***Insider tip: It is not acceptable for children to be at restaurants after 8:00 pm. Plan accordingly or ask your concierge for a recommendation. We did a tour the next day of The Real Mary Kings Close. It was £49 for a family pass at the time for 2 adults and 2 children. This tour is right on the Royal Mile and explores a network of underground rooms, streets, and spaces that have been a big part of Edinburgh’s history from the 17th century. I recommend this tour for anyone, the tour guide is very enigmatic and kept our attention the whole hour of the tour. We explored St. Mary’s Cathedral, walked the streets of the city, and ate lunch at Greyfriars Bobby, where we ordered pot pies and mashed potatoes for lunch. It was filling and delicious. Greyfriars Bobby had a great menu full of Scottish specialties, as well as an extensive drink menu. The restaurant is named after a Skye Terrier that spent 14 years guarding the grave of his owner until he passed away. ***Insider recommendation, we stayed at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Edinburgh City Center. I would HIGHLY recommend this hotel for families. -It’s inside of a castle. -We had a family suite that included a chalkboard, toys, & little bags of toiletries for the kids. -It was VERY spacious. -They had excellent breakfast and a bar downstairs where we enjoyed a few cold brews. -Customer service was top notch. Pitlochry From Edinburgh, we rented a car and drove to the Scottish Highlands to stay in the town of Pitlochry. I had done a ton of research and reserved a room for us in Atholl Palace Hotel. The hotel has a rich history that dates back 130 years to it’s time as a resort and spa, serving as a place of relaxation, a school during the first world war and a school and hospital during the 2nd World War. My honest opinion is that I would recommend a stay here, but I also think the hotel is in need of refurbishment to keep its glory. The grounds are spectacular with an amazing hike that we greatly enjoyed. Pitlochry is SO green and while we were there, there was a dense fog covering the town, so nearly all of my pictures are affected by the fog! I have never seen fog so thick in my entire life! It was beautiful, mysterious, and magical. So, even though the resort smelled like a church and honestly played church hymns during breakfast, it had an excellent indoor pool and spa area that we thoroughly enjoyed, and an old world Christmas charm that I reveled in. The breakfast was very authentic with Haggis, blood sausage, porridge, beans, and other normal breakfast items like eggs and ham. The reason we stayed at this resort was that there was a Christmas party that evening and I reserved spots for my husband and I that included Ceilidh Scotish dancing!! Our tickets included dinner, a bottle of wine, and dancing lessons for the party. I can’t tell you how much fun this experience was! We were called into dinner by bagpipe, the dinner was simple but good, and then we were taught several different scottish dances and danced our hearts out on the dance floor. I was even pulled to the front to dance with the emcee! We were the only people that were not only American, but the only people not from the immediate area of Pitlochry! Haha It was incredible. Afterwards, we hung out in their swanky lounge and enjoyed some drinks with people from the party. They had excellent live music playing in the lounge and the other party-goers were very jovial. **Insider tip: Pitlochry is the home of Heather Gems. Heather Gems are gorgeous pieces of jewelry with a gem of melted heather. Heather is a flower that grows abundantly in Scotland. If you ever find yourself in Pitlochry, check out some Heather Gems as a souvenir. The next day, we hiked around our resort, which included beautiful green, wooded trails, with waterfalls. Afterwards, we drove to the Queen’s View, which was glorious. We used one of our Iphones on a timer to get a jumping photo at this view. I highly recommend this! It was nothing but shenanigans. We thoroughly enjoyed some of the most delicious lentil soup of our lives and cappuccinos at Escape Route Cafe, for lunch. Queen's View En Route to Glasgow On our way to Glasgow the next day, we stopped at The National Wallace Monument in Stirling. The view from the top of the scene of Scotland’s victory at Serling Bridge was absolutely breathtaking. It was £30 for our family pass. There was a hike from the parking lot to the monument, but the hike was full of fun statues and photo opportunities for children and adults alike. Once we arrived at the monument, there were 246 steps to the top with rooms along the way with museum information about the battle and Wallace’s life. William Wallace happens to be the man that the movie Braveheart is about. Glasgow Many things in life are not quite what we expect and I felt this way about the city of Glasgow. Not only did we have a bad Airbnb experience, but the city was a big, metropolitan city with skyscrapers and tons of people. I was so grateful that we had already experienced the beauty of Edinburgh, Pitlochry, and all of the beauty on our drive between the cities/towns. Glasgow completely lacked the charm of old world Edinburgh, but we got to experience two beautiful Christmas markets, right across the street from each other. One in George’s Square and one in St. Enoch’s square. Both had similar items, but were absolutely beautiful! For our final day and night, we headed back to charming Edinburgh for another day and night before our flight. What an adventure! We squeezed in a Christmas market in Edinburgh, some ice skating, and Edinburgh Castle as a grand finale to our trip. Since it was Christmas Eve, we also popped into a Presbyterian church service. Hearing the beautiful hymns in a Scottish brogue brought tears to my eyes. To experience this part of the world and celebrate Christmas is an incredible gift I will treasure for all of my days. Next Blog Post: Bansko, Bulgaria and Thessaloniki, Greece. A NYE Party for the whole family and skiing to our hearts content!
There was one city on our travels that wasn’t at the top of our bucket list, but recommendations from friends quickly put it to the top....London! I’ve read the romance novels, gushed over the royalty, and had a desire to see London....it just wasn't number one. However, we’re warm weather people. The Porratas thrive best in sunshine on a beach or on a boat; the last place anyone expected to find us was in rainy, foggy London. This post is to share my experience in this big, swanky city, to include tips for travel to London with a family of 5. ***Airport tip: We flew to London on a budget airliner. There are 6 airports in London. Make sure you check to see which airport you’re flying into. We flew into London Stansted and had to take a 1 hour-1.5 hour train or bus to the city, as London Stansted is in the outskirts. This is important information if you have an early or late flight and it’s an added cost. Lodging and Transportation We were overwhelmed with the size of London with all of the different sections of the city. London is also expensive and I found hotels to be exorbitant, so Airbnb was the most affordable way to go for our family. We decided to stay at an Airbnb in a section of the city called Churchill Gardens. It was in a nice area, close to public transport, and walkable to a good portion of the city. Public transport is amazing in this city, with an underground subway they call the ‘tube,’ double decker & single decker busses, and trains. We used an Oyster card (public transportation card) from a friend that had recently been to London. You have to pay to initially have an Oyster card, so this friend saved us this fee, and we could go to a machine and put money on the card to use ‘contactless’ in whichever public transport we were using. Buying multiple tickets is better than buying one, as the price is higher for just one ticket. Every time we’re taking public transport, it’s for 5 people, so this quickly added up. The Changing of the Guard Number one on our list, on our first full day, was the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace. Our room was an easy walk to the Palace, so we made it in time to secure a good spot. This is, by far, the best Changing of the Guard I’ve ever seen in any country.....a full marching band, horses, crisp uniforms, a whole ceremony, and hoards of people. It was crowded and difficult to see, so we found a wall to sit on, where we could see above everything. It was impressive! After this, we walked through the city until our afternoon appointment at the Churchill War Rooms. My first and lasting impression of the city is that it’s swanky! By definition, swanky means: stylishly luxurious and expensive. That’s the absolute best word to describe the city. It’s clean, old world, but at the same time futuristic, people are dressed extremely well, and it’s fabulous. We had our first fish and chips for lunch and were blown away. The fish was fried to crisp perfection and it was delicious. Chips, aka French fries, were just French fries to me, but pair perfectly with the fried fish. Churchill War Rooms The Churchill War rooms were recommended to us from friends. I purchased tickets in advance, using this website, and we had an appointed time for our tour. My husband is something of a history buff and this was the top of his list to see in London. The Churchill war rooms are a bunker and museum-hidden underground. The museum catalogs the life of Winston Churchill, both personally and professionally. I learned of his love of Beef Wellington, his daily Scotch fix, and his love of Brandy, Port, and wine. I also learned of the life of a man that was in hiding, making decisions for the British Government during World War 2. His rise, fall, and rise again as Prime Minister. I left this museum with a new respect and appreciation for the man who led Britain to victory. He refused to give in and his speeches were so inspiring to the people that heard them. They kept many people going, even when odds were against them. That evening, we rode in a double decker bus, had fun taking photos in the phone booths, had dinner at The Alchemist in Covent Garden, and enjoyed the city at night. I highly recommend this place for drinks or a meal. The drinks come in beakers and include fun things like smoke & dry ice. The food is eclectic and fun, with anything from fajitas to curry to jerk chicken, and every dish and drink we had was delicious. As a surprise, they even brought out a fun alchemy drink for the kids. They LOVED pouring the beaker of juice into the dry ice and watching the reaction. It was priceless! There is not much by way of ethnic food in Naples, Italy, so we always try to satisfy our cravings when traveling. Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park The next day, we went to an enormous Christmas Market in Hyde Park. To date, I’ve been to Christmas Markets in Germany, Austria, England, Scotland, Italy, Hungary, and the Czech Republic.....this is the largest market I’ve seen!! We went on a weekday, so it wasn’t crowded. They had amusement park rides, beer gardens, tents with shows during the day and night, curling, bumper cars on ice, ice skating, an ice sculpture tent, an ice bar, ice sculpting workshops, a comedy club, endless food choices, and even more. Every corner we turned had more to discover. Needless to say, our kids LOVED it! At night, the comedy club and beer gardens come alive for the adults and during the day it’s catered toward families. You can actually book attraction tickets in advance on their website. Hamley’s Toy Shop Hamley’s ~ If you have children and you love them, and you travel to London, you MUST take them to Hamley’s Toy Store. This place is NOT just a toy store; it’s an experience. It was Christmastime, so there was that added magic. There were elves dancing outside, inside there were magicians teaching kids how to use magic kits, the staff were flying drones, throwing balls, showing you how to use magic coloring boards, there were giant lego displays of Harry Potter and Queen Elizabeth, and so much more. The treat for all senses was endless and our kids’ hearts were full of wonder. School of Rock That night, we walked the city some more, to include Picadilly Circus, which is similar to Times Square in New York, but on a much smaller scale (which made it more enjoyable). There was SO much life in this part of the city, with live music and street performers, that just standing there watching it all was entertaining. We had tickets for a show that night. It was near our son’s birthday, so he got to choose the show, and we watched School of Rock. Our whole family had such an incredible experience watching this show. There were so many kids in the show, that the boys enjoyed it even more. I’m happy to say that none of them fell asleep and they sat in rapt attention through the entire show! ***Insider tip: A majority of the shows are in a section of the city called Covent Garden and there are tons of restaurants that cater to a meal or drinks before or after the theater. It's a very hip part of the city, so if you do have a show ticket, be sure to make a reservation nearby to make the most of the experience. The London Eye ****Insider tip: Skip it. The London Eye is Europe’s tallest ferris wheel and the pods are heated, but it is outrageously expensive. At £30 per adult and £24 per child (ages 3-15) it is not worth it. I bet the views are fantastic, but that would have been £138, equivalent to $178.76 at today’s exchange rate. For a FERRIS WHEEL for a family of 5. This doesn’t even include an appetizer or a complimentary cocktail, my friends. Skip it. If this is a really ‘must do’ for you though, buy tickets in advance to save a few pounds, using this website, and combine with other attractions to save more. The Tower of London For our last day, we went to another part of the city to see the Tower of London. The tower was SO much more than we expected. The history of the tower is an incredibly rich tapestry, woven throughout time. The tours are given by extremely lively guides that are very proud of the history and their country. It all started around 1070 with a stone tower in the center of William the Conqueror’s fortress to defend his royal claim. It was expanded over time, , it was a prison, it is supposed to be haunted, and is the current home of the Crown Jewels. The people that care for the tower are called Ravens; they live there at the tower, and are cared for by the government. It is said that the Tower of London will fall if the six residents ever leave. Christmas Tradition ~ Christmas Crackers Christmastime is very special in this part of the world and we truly cherished the opportunity to experience it.. We loved seeing the lights, trees, and the Christmas market. There is a tradition that we enjoyed taking part in, that my son, Roman, had learned about in school. It’s the popping of Christmas crackers! Christmas crackers are shown below. You and a friend or family member are supposed to pull from either side until it pops. Inside is a colored paper hat, and a small toy, sometimes candy, a motto, joke or riddle on a piece of paper. We bought a pack of 20 and popped them all week! It was fun to take part in this tradition. So, we saw as much as could of this swanky city of London and there’s so much more to see. I highly recommend a trip here, and hope you’ll be as impressed as we were. Now, the flights back to Naples were very expensive for some reason, so we found it was cheaper to expand our trip to Scotland.........which lead us to spend more, but also leads me to my next blog post. Some more random photos from our trip: Next Blog Post: Scotland: Edinburgh, Glasgow, & the Highlands.
Now that it’s nearly been a year since this trip, looking back to write this post has brought great reflection to me. This was the most enriching trip of my entire life....I can’t write about it without tears in my eyes. I had an idea of the triumphs and turmoil of polish history, but I learned of a deep tapestry of history that weaved this country into the beautiful country it is today. I knew when booking this trip that there was a ‘holiday,’ while we were there and that there might be protests, so we kept this in mind and used caution. That ‘holiday’ that we were going to be there for was Polish Independence Day, celebrated on November 11, to celebrate Poland regaining independence on November 11, 1918 after 123 years of being occupied by Austria-Hungary, Germany, and Russia. I am excited to share more about our time in Poland, including our experiences on Independence day, our time at a concentration camp, how we saw history in every corner, and all the other fun details of the trip that were good for the soul.....pierogi, soups, pre-war bistros, dwarfs, and more. We arrived in Wroclaw, Poland mid-morning on November 9, 2018. We decided to rent a car, so that we could visit a nearby concentration camp and get around easily. Public transport in Europe is usually pretty easy, but there are times that having a car handy allows for easier exploration and a more flexible schedule. We stayed at a nearby Apartment hotel called Apartment 24-OVO. It was only about $330 total for 3 nights, including breakfast. The building was shaped like a futuristic egg (I image that’s where the word ovo in the name comes from) and the apartment was very nice and spacious, although we didn’t spend much time in it. It was walkable to all of the parts of Wroclaw that we wanted to visit, which was perfect. ,**Insider tip: Eastern European countries are incredibly inexpensive. Your flight is likely your biggest expense when traveling to Eastern Europe. From lodging to food to taxi rides....it’s all incredibly affordable. Example: A full dinner for a family of 5. with 2 beers per adult, came to about $40 in polish currency. I did a lot of research on places to eat before this trip and discovered that there are places that resemble the atmosphere of pre-war bars and/or milk bars that serve food and drinks at reasonable prices (they don’t serve milk that I’m aware of, it’s just a term they use for a cafeteria). The one that we ate lunch at is called Pre-war Bistro. We shared 3 plates of polish sausage and 2 plates of potato salad, a couple of beers, and juice for the kiddos for about 50 polish Zloty, which equaled about $13.00. That was a great lunch for a family of 5. We were winning on this trip already! Then, with no plan in mind we set off to see Old Town Wroclaw. Throughout the city there are these over 400 of these little, bronze dwarf statues. We saw them as firemen holding a hose, fishermen, one drinking merrily, one playing the banjo while his friend is lounging nearby listening, each set of dwarfs had a different pose or occupation. They represent a time in Polish history when the people were under Martial Law and they would spray paint dwarfs on top of the communist propaganda as a way to peacefully protest. The dwarfs gave the people something to laugh at, when they had little to laugh at during this time in their lives. The dwarf was literally the mascot for the people resisting communist rule in the early 1980s, called the Orange Alternative. There is more information here. Needless to say, these dwarfs are very fun thing for children to find and chuckle at. Can you see how this deep tapestry of Polish history was unfolding before our eyes? We went to the market square and marveled at the town hall, the St. Mary Magdalene Church, St. Elizabeth’s church, historical museums, discovered the dwarfs, shopped, and enjoyed the street performances. That night, we had a reservation to try the most notorious Polish food in the world.....pierogi! We ate at Pierogarnia Stary Mlyn. Their pierogi menu was vast. You could have them boiled, fried, or baked. I ordered a 3 course pierogi meal with a different baked perogi for an appetizer, another one for dinner, and one for dessert. We all ordered different pierogi and shared. They were delicious and very filling! Concentration Camp ***As parents, taking our younger two boys to a concentration camp was something we needed to discuss. Overall, children hold innocence in their hearts that life takes away from them, over time. We did not want to be the ones to strip this innocence so early from them.....that innocence is precious, in my opinion. So, after much discussion, we decided to tell the boys about the holocaust. They had heard some things about it, but we told them what happened in WWII, we told them about Adolf Hitler, and we told them about what happened to the Jewish people. We left out gory details, but did not gloss over the truth, either. Does an 8 or 10 year old need to know about incineration? That’s up to each parent, but we didn’t feel they were ready for that. Our 17 year old (at the time), was going to learn and see everything, details and all, the full barrage of it. He needed to. I thank God that he got to see this just before becoming a legal adult, a memory to stay with him for life. We did not go to Auschwitz because it was not near Wroclaw...that’s for a future trip to Krakow. We went to a concentration camp that was an hour away called Gross-Rosen Concentration Camp. I read in advance that most of the camp was destroyed in WWII and is now mostly museum rooms and ruins. If the kids do not go into the museum rooms, they can go through the camp without being bombarded with the detailed atrocities that happened. Gross-Rosen Concentration Camp was out in the Polish countryside....beauty all around us during the drive. After parking, there is a long walkway to the gate. I can tell you, there’s a feeling when you walk up to the gate of a concentration camp. My heart hurt, I could literally feel the trepidation that the walk to this gate must have felt like for those entering and I felt the blood leave my face...... I told the little ones in advance that they could play with silenced electronics just outside of each room that we go in and that they were to stay quiet, no questions until we got back to the car. A concentration camp is a profound place....people will be feeling emotions, there could be people there that knew people or had family members that died at the camp, there could be people that just hurt inside while learning about everything that went on at this place. I didn’t want my kids asking questions out loud that could be hurtful or inconsiderate without realizing. We are all parents just trying to do our best here; I wanted my kids to know about this, for it to never happen again, but I wanted to also be considerate. My friends, this place hurt the soul so deep; the reach of the German concentration camps was so much further than I realized. 23 large mother camps were interspersed throughout Europe with 1,014 sub-camps. Can you imagine? Just look at the map below.....the Jewish people didn’t stand a chance. So many other people died during the holocaust, much more than I realized. In each statistic, there were civilians from every background on top of the statistics of the Jewish people that were killed. At the camp, there were numerous jobs for the prisoners; the most dangerous was working in the granite quarry. The granite they pulled out of the quarry was used for road, building, and sculpture material. The prisoners were so malnourished that they lacked the strength for this type of work and any mistake they made resulted in their death by camp officers. The life span of a quarry worker was no longer than 5 weeks. At this camp people were killed by cyanide to the heart, incinerated, executed at roll call in roll-call square, utter starvation, and many other methods that are as unimaginable as the ones I’ve mentioned. I will not write the details of everything I learned, there are some things my heart just can’t put down on this computer. We were quiet the entire time we were there, as well as reflective, hurting. There were thoughtful and beautiful monuments made out of the granite the prisoners died for~monuments to their loss, monuments of promise of this to never happen again, and piles of granite surrounding the quarry to give tribute to their suffering and loss. We were all quiet and pensive as we left. We answered the barrage of questions from the boys. They just didn’t understand WHY the Jewish people had to die on this massive scale when they did nothing wrong. My sweet, precious boys....we don't understand either. Yes, I’m bawling my eyes out right now. Writing about this helps me relive it.....the pain, their innocent questions, the truth was a punch in the face. A punch WE ALL need to relive, whether by reading about it, experiencing a camp like this one, or however we can remind ourselves that this happened. We need to teach our children, our grandchildren, our friends, and anyone in our life’s reach. We went to a nearby restaurant for lunch and we all ordered soup. It warmed up our upset stomachs. We talked of other things, but my husband, oldest son, and I all had tears in our eyes during that lunch. Aquapark Still raw from what we experienced, the next day we went to Aquapark. It was an adorable indoor water park with a full sauna for adults, hot tubs, water slides, the works. The boys laughed, had a great time, and made friends. It was November and cold outside, so my husband and I just relaxed in the hottest tub we could find. I recommend this park for a day with the kids, but it reminds me of any other indoor water park we’ve been to. **Insider tip: Nearly all water parks, pools, and hotels in Europe do not include towels for the pool. Sometimes, they can be rented for a deposit of €5-10 per towel for the day. Polish Independence Day All throughout the city, people carried enormous flags, and wore red and white to show their patriotism and pride. In more recent history, Poland was occupied/taken over by Prussia, Russia, & Austria before WWI. They regained independence in 1918 and their country was yet again occupied/taken over by the Soviet Union & Nazi Germany. They’ve had independence, then had it taken from them, they’ve been communist and democratic....hell, they’ve been wiped from the map. They’ve fought with the blood, sweat, and tears of their people. They’ve lost and they’ve won. The Polish people have a lot to celebrate. They had parades, the whole of the city was out to celebrate, and we got to see it. There were no protests in Wroclaw that year (2018). When we bought souvenirs at a store, the shop owner asked us where we were from, and we told them "the United States," he gave us little Polish flags as a gift for visiting on their independence day. I’m not a Polish citizen, obviously, but I was filled with pride for them that day. Going Home
Getting on the flight back home, I reflected on our time in Wroclaw, Poland. We learned and saw so much and I realized that my heart was different. Forever changed in a good way. This travel journey is one of constant discovery that changes our life and shapes us all in different ways, but this trip shot an arrow right into my heart and left me gasping. It was an absolute honor to visit Poland and I hope to return one day. #Poland #Porratatribetravels #Grossrosenconcentrationcamp #Aquapark #pierogi #goulashsoup #Polishindependenceday #Porratapossetakeseurope #milkbar #prewar One of the most amazing things to happen to a military family is to run into other military friends on our travels. There are military bases throughout Europe and if our friends happen to breeze through southern Italy, they visit and stay with us. If we happen upon their overseas base, we hang out and stay with them. It’s SO nice to see familiar faces. We have quite a few friends living in and around Stuttgart, Germany and we wanted to make the most of the experience by seeing our friends and attending the annual beer festival with them, Cannstatter Volksfest. Why did we choose Stuttgart's Volksfest over Munich’s Oktoberfest? First of all, having friends in Stuttgart was a big perk. It made it so that we could bring the kids to Stuttgart to take part in a family trip, but we could have a trusted babysitter watch the kids while we partake in the adult portion of the festival. Second of all, I truly do not have a desire to go to Munich’s Oktoberfest simply based on the reviews of a good amount of friends (more than a handful). The friends of mine that have gone to Munich, have had a wonderful time, but they tell me it’s full of tourists and extremely crowded. In some tents, you can barely move. To me, that’s not nearly as fun as what I had heard about Stuttgart’s Volksfest. Volksfest translates to 'the people's fest' in German. It’s mostly locals from nearby villages celebrating at the festival. It’s known to be fun, but not nearly as crowded. Having friends that travel often really helps us to narrow down locations and figure out the good and bad of the locations that we plan to visit. Our plan for this trip was to:
**Insider tip: Many of Germany’s museums and castles have a family ticket at a discounted rate that includes some sort of audio or guided tour. It’s a great way to save money and get more out of the experience. I love that they promote family fun in this way! Cannstatter Volksfest is Kid Friendly Believe it or not, these festivals are very family friendly, especially during the day. They have a large carnival with countless rides for kids. There may be beer tents and beer gardens galore, but there are also just as many booths of great carnival food & desserts, and there’s live music. It’s so very lively and fun and the rides are VERY nice for a carnival. They’re much more of the caliber of rides of an actual amusement park in the U.S. and not the run-down, dingy looking rides found at fairs and carnivals. It’s truly impressive. We bought our little boys some costumes online and spent our first day enjoying the fest with them. They rode the rides, ate giant bratwurst off the grill, and enjoyed desserts. The boys walked through the whole of the carnival inspecting the desserts to decide which dessert they wanted the most. It was a tough choice!! After much deliberation, Roman picked a candy apple & Gabriel picked cotton candy. The whole experience at the carnival was EXPENSIVE!!! We are always trying to save money to travel as much as possible, well, we were really shocked to see that the rides varied from about €2/person/ride all the way up to around €6/person/ride depending on the ride (that converts to $2.20-$6.60/ride). That adds up quick, my friends. ** Insider Tip: While we were there, they advertised that Wednesdays are half-off rides for kids, but we weren’t there on a Wednesday, so if you’re planning a trip there, plan to be there on a Wednesday if you’re with the kiddos. We spent around €120 (approximately $132) for rides, lunch, and a couple of beer steins for our day of Friday fun. You could spend a fraction of that on a Wednesday! The Porsche Museum I have 3 boys, so seeing one of the German car museums was something that made the top of the list. We had the choice of Mercedes-Benz or Porsche and the boys chose Porsche. They had a family ticket for €20 for the whole family that we bought right at the entrance, as there was no line, and we all had audio equipment to listen to a commentary in English at each of the points along the museum. We learned how the Porsche began, the evolution of the company, and got to see their best models throughout history. It was very educational and fun for the whole family....it helps that Porsche cars are super sexy and they were exciting to learn about. There were over 80 vehicles, the building looks very futuristic, and the exhibition area is over 5600 sq meters. The boys also received interactive books that really helped engage their interest throughout the museum. Inside the museum, we saw advertisements for children’s birthday parties, driving experiences, and a dealership. We meandered to the dealership after the museum and the boys all drooled at the cars for sale. =) Needless to say, they all fulfilled one of their dude fantasies by learning more about the amazing Porsche. The museum itself is very high quality, engaging, and something we all recommend. Hohenzollern Castle Germany is known for a great many things....bratwurst, beer, sports cars, mustard, pretzles, Reilsing, castles, etc. Since we had fulfilled our dreams of Bratwurst, beer, and sports cars, it was time to see a German castle. Hohenzollern castle is about an hour drive south of Stuttgart, in what used to be Prussia, and was built in the 19thcentury. The family ticket was €28 and included a guided tour by a man very passionate and knowledgeable about the castle’s history. No photography was allowed inside the castle and we had to omit our shoes and wear giant slippers....by not wearing our shoes and not taking photos, the castle is better preserved. I wish Italy had more rules like this to preserve their incredible history. The truth was that the castle was beautiful and we greatly enjoyed the tour. Be aware that many German tours skip over World War 2 and this tour was no exception. The gentleman eloquently went through the entire history of the castle and skipped the history of WW2 entirely. The elephant in the room, you may wonder? We still had a great time. It was worth the hour drive to experience the beauty, the view, and the history of the castle. The boys particularly loved the armory that was full of swords, armor, and other weapons from times past. Tubingen, Germany One of my friends that lives in Stuttgart recommended that we visit a town called Tubingen. Tubingen was SOOOOO cute!! It was a university town full of cute, picture perfect German buildings, shops, restaurants, a 15thcentury city hall, and a late-Gothic church. This town was everything adorable about Germany in one little town and was my personal favorite thing to tour.....I could almost feel that I was in the pages of Hansel & Gretel. I bought homemade eggnog for Christmas-time, they had every type of Schnapps available for purchase, as well as shops for trinkets, souvenirs, & decor. Being a university town, the restaurants were reasonably priced, diverse, and excellent. Adult time at Cannstatter Volksfest Our friends that live in Stuttgart bought a table for all of us and we paid them back when we arrived for the festival. Tickets run around €50/person for a seat at an assigned table with 1/2 a chicken, and 3 liters of beer for each person. It’s truly great value. THOSE BEERS ARE ENORMOUS!!! You really should dress in Dirndl (for women) and Lederhosen (for men), even if it’s a costume and cheap. No one cares what you’re wearing, but nearly everyone is dressed up. It just adds to enjoying this German cultural experience. I bought mine on Amazon (believe it or not, the brand is straight from a smaller vendor dirndl.com and of excellent quality) for about $100 and $125 for my husband's because his is genuine suede. There are costume versions of the Dirndle and Lederhosen that look great, as well though, so don't feel like you have to break the bank to look fab. Another option is to buy them at the festival. They have an area at the festival with vendors, but we came with ours already purchased. The festival is also a great place to buy accessories. They have necklaces, purses, scarves, shoes, socks, all the things. This is very important information: If you are a woman and go to one of these festivals, while married, it is important to tie your apron to the right side of your waist. If you are single, tie it on the left. This signals your marital status to others at the festival. We left our friend’s house with our kids in the capable hands of a hired sitter, after a filling breakfast, and jumped on the train to the fest. Our table reservation wasn’t until 11:00 am, so I was wondering why on earth we left their house at 8:30 am. It’s not that far to the fest?? Well, I found out very quickly when the train ran late, then people packed in so deep that we were smooshed up against the glass for half of our train ride in. No personal space, everyone in full Dirndl & Lederhosen, and people were already drinking (it was 9:00 am by this time). Once we got off the train, all the other trains and buses were letting off and people were streaming in from every direction. We barely made it to the tent at 11:00 am. **Insider tip: You can only buy advanced tickets if you buy seats at a whole table (10 seats), but there is plenty of room for same day ticket purchases for around the same price/person. If you do buy same day tickets, buy them at the beginning of a session. For example, our table reservation was from 11:00 am – 16:00 pm. The tent wasn’t even half full at 11:00 am, so you have a better chance early in the session. The area near the stage seems to be the rowdiest. Use the Volksfest website to purchase tickets in advance.
**Insider survival tip: If the beer is too much and too strong, you can order a non-alcoholic beer or a Radler, which is a 50/50 mixture of sparkling lemonade and beer. Regardless of what you drink, drink slow, eat, and enjoy every moment! There’s live music, constant toasts, dancing, jumping, laughter, and all while standing on long wooden benches. Tell the people around you when you’re getting down from the bench to go to the bathroom so that they don’t all fall over when the weight distribution changes! Germans are fun!! We laughed, danced, learned German songs, sang American songs, met new people, let loose and had a blast. The table was only ours from 11:00 am – 16:00 pm. After this, everyone leaves the tents and parties in the carnival area, which is also full of beer gardens. I can’t imagine how they get on carnival rides after, but it happens. We left around 15:30 to jump on the train back to our friend’s house. It’s very crowded to leave when everyone else does, so keep this in mind. Overall, this is a once in a lifetime experience I highly recommend. We checked all of the boxes on our German bucket list and absolutely adored our time in the country. It has been one year since this Stuttgart trip and we’ve already been back to Germany, as a family, twice. From mountains to cities, festivals to castles, I highly recommend a trip to this beautiful country. Its rolling hills certainly remind me of my home in Pennsylvania. I may be enjoying every moment of my time in Europe, but my country is never far from my heart. Next post: Wroclaw, Poland: Dwarves, Perogies, Gross Rosen Concentration Camp, Aquapark, Polish Independence Day, & more. The Amalfi Coast of southern Italy is a destination many people have a desire for their whole adult lives to see. Sweeping vistas, gorgeous cliffs, incredible hiking, views for days, and lemons the size of your head. The Amalfi coast is such a gorgeous place, but there are some things about the area that cause many tourists to feel disappointed after actually experiencing it. By reading this blog, you'll have a leg up on experiencing an incredible, well informed vacation! For one, the Amalfi Coast is a series of Cliffside towns.....this means that to get there, you will be going up and down huge hills, mountain sides, and all along the edge of a cliff. The hairpin turns are truly something to behold!! So breathtakingly beautiful, but be sure to keep your eyes on the horizon to prevent motion sickness, stop and enjoy the views at the many viewpoints along the way, and know that the roads are very narrow at points. However, public buses make it by every day. Driving in a car, or a hired driver, you will make it! It’s worth it, trust me! Choose your lodging wisely Choosing your lodging is a big deal in the Amalfi coast. There are cliff top towns and cliff bottom towns. The drive will be heinous to get there and views will not be quite as spectacular (but still amazing), but I highly recommend a cliff bottom town. If you stay at a cliff bottom town, you can ferry between the other cliff bottom towns and avoid the over-full bus system and you can enjoy the beach. Imagine.....you get to your beautiful cliff top property, enjoy gorgeous views....then, you decide to go to the beach! So, you take the gazillion stairs to get to the cliff bottom to the gorgeous beach and have a wonderful time. Guess what? You have to get back to that gorgeous cliff top location!! EVERY time I'm in the Amalfi coast, I see the face of disillusioned tourists that didn't realize that by staying on a cliff top and going to the beach......they would have the workout of their life heading back. No matter where you stay, expect stairs and uphill/downhill walking. Pack light, wear comfortable clothes and shoes, and know what to expect. Don’t get caught waiting for a full bus The bus system......these bus drivers work hard. They take those cliff side roads with ease. It’s truly incredible to witness, but they also have to fit tons and tons of tourists on their routes, year round. The buses get full. I’ve experienced this in May, October, and June. It doesn’t matter the time of year. When the busses are full, they will not stop or pick anyone up. The bus driver won’t even acknowledge you! We’ve gotten stuck in Positano twice. Once, we had to take a cab for €70 for a 30 minute drive to the location of our parked car. It’s not fun and it’s not cheap AT ALL. €70 was a negotiated discount for our cab fare from a hotel owner that felt sorry for us being stranded by full buses for over 2 hours. It was supposed to be €100. If you stay cliff bottom, your life will be much easier taking a ferry. Towns I recommend Atrani is the crowned jewel of the Amalfi coast, crowned by me! It’s a small town with a gorgeous beach, a fraction of the crowds, a fraction of the prices at the restaurants, and that small-town touch. I'm going to clarify the small town touch by saying that the restaurants seemed to be family owned, the food was excellent, and the little shop has coin fed rides for children outside. It's a small town, but big in charm. The people are extremely friendly and everything is so easy to access. Best of all, it's not well known......so it will be much less crowded. Parking is reasonably priced in a garage in town. It’s a 10 minute walk through a paved pedestrian tunnel (notice, no cobblestone in the tunnel!) to the town of Amalfi. There are ferries out of Amalfi every day to the different towns along the coast. This, my friends, is how you enjoy your vacation and that beautiful coast. Not breaking the bank, your feet from walking, and getting to see it all. Maiori is another favorite of mine. It’s a larger town with a HUGE beach, so plenty of room on the beach for everyone. There are daily ferries to Amalfi and Positano. It’s a bigger town than Atrani, by far, but is a great location to see all that the coast has to offer AND it’s mostly all flat. We only had to take the stairs once and it was to our parked car. Our room, restaurants, beach, and shops were all on flat ground. Just make sure that you stay IN a town, not outside of one. You’ll not want to drive everywhere on the crazy roads. You’ll want to drive to your room, and not drive until it’s time to depart. Make sure your room is walk-able to restaurants, shops, and public transport for you to have the best experience on your vacation, unless your desire is to have more privacy and, in this case, you can rent a vespa to get around! Amalfi Coast Pottery Ravello is a cliff top, medieval town, with gorgeous, panoramic views for days. It’s a great location to spend the day exploring. The pottery in this area is high quality, with custom artistic touches, and with many different types to choose from. I have my eye on a set of plates and every time we go there, I negotiate the price, and then still can’t commit!! It’s not cheap, but it is BEAUTIFUL. Each of the pottery shops have signs that request that you not take pictures of their pottery, so I will respect their request and only post pictures of the pottery I have purchased.
Positano: the beauty and the beast Everyone dreams of Positano. The most remembered pictures that people take on the Amalfi coast are in a gorgeous cliff side town called Positano. Positano is all that and more!! Everyone knows it.....that’s the problem!! It’s crowded every dang day. I would not choose to stay there....the prices at restaurants are high, views are breathtaking (of course!), there’s shopping that could take days to enjoy, and the beach is small, but gorgeous. The town is up and down the cliff and to get everywhere, you have to walk around the road that winds back and forth up the cliff....this same road that is shared by cars, buses, and people. It’s narrow and a constant struggle for everyone to fit along the road. It’s a beast in my opinion. However, all along that cliff-side walk, your eyes are treated to the most incredible views. The food is excellent, even though it’s pricey, and the shopping is eclectic and unique. I greatly enjoy a day trip to Positano and I think that’s truly the best way to do it! I have to pinch myself sometimes, when I realize that the Amafli coast is an hour from where we live. I hope these travel tips help you with planning your own trip to the Amalfi coast. #labellaamalfi #atrani #maiori #ravello #vietri #labellaitalia #ladolcevita #porratatribetravels
Next blog post: Stuttgart Germany: Volksfest with the kids and without, Tubingen, Hohenzollern Castle, the Porsche Museum, & more! Stockholm, Sweden: Palaces, Viking Dinner, Meatballs, Lingonberries, the Vasa Museum, & More5/4/2019 We truly didn’t know a lot about Sweden when we booked this trip, other than it’s geographic location and that it’s in a section of Europe known as Scandinavia, which is where the Vikings originated. However, when we started our travel search on Skyscanner, we input ‘Naples, Italy’ for the departure location, the dates we wanted to travel, and ‘everywhere’ as the destination, Stockholm came up as one of the most inexpensive destinations at the time. Not knowing a lot about this particular country really filled me with a lot of excitement when planning the trip. This is what traveling is all about....discovering the unknown and being open to embrace it. This exact feeling is what constantly fuels our desire to travel! May the adventure begin! Day 1 Sweden is known for Swedish meatballs, lingonberries, Fika pastry, and beer. I’m sure there’s more to it, but this is the broad scope of what we were looking forward to on the menu. We arrived in the afternoon and after getting our rental car and checking into our hotel, we ate at a Swedish meatball restaurant that I found great reviews for online called ‘Meatballs for the People.’ They had a rather small menu, but we were only there for the meatballs anyway! They were flippin delicious!! The meatballs are served smothered in gravy, with mashed potatoes on the side. This particular restaurant was chic and fun and had bottles of fresh Lingonberry juice for purchase for the table. We drank two of those bottles! Lingonberry juice tastes much like Cranberry juice, being in the same family as cranberries, but wasn’t as tart as cranberry juice. My middle son, Gabriel, expressed to me.....not less than 10 times on this trip, that Swedish meatballs are his absolute favorite food in the world. This boy moaned every time he ate and asked for meatballs at EVERY meal. At 9 years old, he ate an adult portion for every meal.....he’s got such a foodie heart and I love it!! After lunch, we walked and drove around the city. It’s very clean and beautiful with beautiful waterways and bridges throughout. We went to a museum called the Vasa Museum that we had heard great things about. Essentially, this ship on display at the Vasa museum was built in 1628 and sunk on its maiden voyage after sailing about 1300 meters. After 333 years on the bottom of the ocean, it was brought back up, restored, and put on display in this museum. The museum is very interactive and interesting, with great technology, and we greatly enjoyed it. Tickets cost 150 SEK (Swedish Krona), which was equivalent to about $16 per adult. Kids 18 and under are free. Scandinavia is historically known as being the home of the Vikings. For dinner that evening, we had a reservation for a Viking dinner experience at a restaurant called Aifur Krog and Bar. As we entered, they sounded a horn and gave us a loud, boisterous introduction to the whole restaurant. They asked us where we were from and upon hearing that we’re American, introduced us to the restaurant as being from California. It was pretty funny. We drank beer from ceramic chalices, ate dinner with a 2 pronged fork, and enjoyed great food and music. We really missed the extra fork prongs!! It was really difficult to get meat to stay on the fork. We ordered a couple of meat platters and shared. I didn’t expect for the food to be as good as it was! We all had a very fun experience. **Insider information: Stockholm is incredibly expensive, especially at restaurants. The sticker shock at restaurants regularly made our eyes bug out of our heads! =) Plan accordingly. Day 2 The next day, we drove to Drottningholm Palace and the Chinese Pavillion. The palace is a residence of the Swedish Royal family and was built in the 1600s. I had purchased tickets in advance, online, on the website linked above. Tickets are about $14/adult and about $7 for kids (after converting Swedish Krona to U.S. dollars). The palace itself was enormous and grand and everything a palace should be! Grandious with incredible detail, to include an adorable royal crib and one heck of a royal bedroom! We also enjoyed walking the grounds and went onward to the second part of our self-guided tour, which was another buildings on the grounds called the Chinese Pavilion. The Chinese Pavilion was a gift from one of the king’s to the queen, was sparsely furnished, and rather small. We didn’t find it worth the time to tour and were quite underwhelmed, but we were blown away that someone actually received a gift like this particular building. *Insider tip: The Chinese Pavillion on the Drottningholm Palace grounds really isn't worth the extra money to tour. Day 3 The next day, we watched the changing of the Royal Guard at the Royal Palace of Stockholm. Let me tell you, this was a unique experience that the guard takes very seriously. It involves a marching band, men on horseback, and a Swedish traditional guard change. These tourists jumped in front of the guard when they were marching, in order to capture a picture, the guard yelled and literally pushed the tourists out of the way with a stiff arm. We couldn’t believe it!!! After this, we made our way to an amusement park called Grona lund. There’s something really cool about visiting amusement parks in different countries. Their Characters are different, the layout of the parks are different, and it’s a really fun experience. This particular park had tons of great rides, a beer garden, and was right on the water affording gorgeous views. The carnival games awarded ridiculously enormous chocolate bars and candies as the prizes. Our kids begged to play those games!! It was not an enormous park, which is fine with me, and gave the boys a few hours of being a kid, discovering Stockholm the most fun way possible. Living in Italy is a blessing, but one thing that we miss a lot is ethnic food. There are few ethnic restaurants, and the few that there are, are not known to be very good. So, when we travel, we like to get our fill of Indian, Thai, Japanese, & Chinese food. We ate at this super fun restaurant in a section of Stockholm called Sodermalm, called Koh Phangan. The food was excellent and all of the booths were tuktuks. Not only did we get our fill of ethnic food, but also we felt fabulous in the atmosphere! Day 4 On our last day, we meandered around the countryside, stopped at a random palace to walk around, dipped our feet in the Baltic Sea, and went shopping at the town near to the airport. My favorite days while traveling are often the days with nothing planned. We had a wonderful time in Stockholm and highly recommend it to others looking to travel to somewhere different. We want to go back to Scandinavia to Norway on another trip. If you get a chance to look up fjords of Norway, you’ll see why we want to go back!! One thing we definitely learned is that we are a SHORT family!!! My husband is the tallest at 5’6”, so it was fun to joke with each other about being the smallest in the whole of the country. I am going to include a few random extra photos below.
Up next: The Amalfi Coast of Italia. Positano, Amalfi, Atrani, & Ravello |
AuthorMy name is Brandy Porrata. I am a veteran and I have been a military spouse for 18 years. I am also a mom of 3 wild boys, ages 17, 9, and 7. We’ve spent the past 17 years in the United States at various locations, most recently in Pensacola, Florida where I built a career as a realtor. Our family will be moving to Naples, Italy. This blog is my heart, my journey, and our various travels as we leave our country for the next few years to experience Italy, Europe, & beyond. I plan to share the process of moving overseas, my life, and tips and insight into traveling with a family in Europe. Please don’t hesitate to respectfully reach out to me or comment. Archives
December 2020
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