Our first visitors

We enjoyed our first visitors since moving to Germany: Andrea's dad and step mother.  Not only was this our first guests, but it was their first time to Europe as well.  You have to make the first visit to Europe a memorable event, right?  So we rolled out the official Red Carpet (aka, our Subi at the airport) and planned a 10-day adventure filled with sights to see, places to visit, and great food (of course). Some highlights of their visit.......in no particular order: 

The gang in front of the Dom Cathedral in Cologne, Germany

Jim enjoying his first ever Schweinshaxen, a very traditional meal in Germany.  Although it is a pork knuckle, it is actually quite tasty and worthy of a try.

Our favorite local eating destination: Bellevaux, Belgium.  Great food in a beautiful location in the middle of nowhere. 

One of the stops on their 10-day journey was Paris, France.  The weather was absolutely perfect for them to enjoy all the famous sights......and not so famous sights. 

Inside the Louvre observing a teacher with her students.  One of many times I wish I understood French better......

Walking past the gardens outside of the Notre Dame Cathedral. 

A few paintings found inside the Louvre........

Done with the Louvre, the Loudermilk gang make their way out of the Garden de Tuileries towards the Champs-Elysees and onto the next destination: the Arc de Triomphe seen in the distant background.

A great way to rest the feet when in Paris: pull up a seat at one of the pools in the Tuileries and watch the small wooden boats float around the pool.....or take a quick, refreshing siesta (guilty as charged).

I vow to NEVER drive in Paris.  Why?  It is non-stop crazy confusion.  Take this scene at the Arc de Triomphe and the 5 lane roundabout.  It does make for some great entertainment watching people work their way into the madness and back out.  Key word: watching (not participating).

Inside the Dom Cathedral in Cologne Germany lighting a candle in remembrance of my late grandfather.

A random small walkway in the village of Vianden, Luxembourg. 

Montmarte Paris....possibly our favorite area of the city. 

The visit went by too fast, as it always does when you have visitors.  However our goal for making this their first of many trips to Europe was quite possibly achieved.  The words "on our next visit" were spoken on more than one occassion.  Let that be a warning to all potential and future visitors: spending time in Europe can lead to several return visits......or an eventual move to one of the countries (again, guilty as charged). 

I want to ride my bicycle......

One of the many benefits to living in Europe is the bike scene.  There are hundreds of bike trails in almost every country which is probably why it is such a popular activity.  For over a year now we have been "working" on joining in the fun. The search is somewhat of an exhausting, long story....so here is the short version: our bikes in the states, packed tightly in the shipping boxes, are too big for the US Postal Service to ship (by like 8 inches), so our options were to either pay big bucks to ship them from the states, pay for them to be shipped as extra luggage on our flight, or pick up bikes over in Europe.  The cheapest option turned out to be buying bikes in Europe.....but not by much.  Months of looking and researching paid off as we both found great bikes that we feel will be worthy of shipping back to the states when all this fun and games comes to an end.  Here are the new additions:

The first ride was more of a test ride than anything else, so we selected a route that is not too difficult and one that we could access from our house.  The route we chose ran parallel to the local train tracks for quite a few kilometers.  This was intentional......in case one of us got a flat tire, we could simply hop on the train to return back to our village. 

It was good to see the trains running today, even if it did come out of nowhere to scare the living life out of us.

There were many great finds on our ride, including this eclectic mix of statues and pottery.

One of the many train stations found along the route.

Our destination was a small village called Speicher...mainly because there is an excellent ice cream shop in the village.  The route to get there was going to take some effort, but the views were worth it.

Finally.....we reached our destination and ultimate reward.....two scoops of Gelato. 

The views on the return trip were just as rewarding as those climbing up to the village. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was a great first ride and since this inaugural trip, we have officially introduced the weekly tradition of going for a ride every weekend.  No traffic to contend with, plenty of bike paths to choose from, and easy access.......I think it is safe to assume that most of our weekends this upcoming summer will be spent on the bicycles.