It’s 8:00 p.m. and it is finally safe to come out of the house. We decided to hit our favourite little Italian gelato place for something cool. After that a short trip to the river valley to scope out an outdoor swimming pool where tomorrow we might seek some solace from this menacing heat.
Today went out for another test drive, top down, black leather seats and the air-condition was not working. OMG! It was like staring at a supernova point blank for a thousand years!
Bamberg’s historic city center is a listed UNESCO world heritage site. Sometimes, the locals refer to it as the German Venice. This truly is a beautiful little town with charming streets and shops, and two magnificent churches, set on two opposite hills. We only spent a few hours here to get a quick look at […]
Altenburg Castle is perched on top of Bamberg’s highest hill and is one of Bamberg’s major landmarks. The castle was first mentioned in 1109 and was used at this time as a refuge. In the 14th and 15th centuries it served as a richly furnished residence for Bamberg’s bishops, but was almost completely destroyed in 1553 […]
It seems that every time we turn around there is a demonstration somewhere protesting this that or the other. Today, on the demonstration agenda are the dolphins at the Nuremburg Zoo. I have to say that we much preferred the noise of the kilted musicians to the bells and chanting of the dolphin parade. After […]
I could never understand why Italians have such admiration for Alonso, Schumacher or Gilles Villeneuve – some of the great drivers that graced Ferrari with their skills. Italy produces some of the best sport cars in the world. Bugatti, Maserati, Ferrari, Lancia and Lamborghini just to name a few, but are there no Italian drivers capable […]
O Romeo, Romeo! wherefore art thou Romeo? Deny thy father and refuse thy name; Or, if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love, And I’ll no longer be a Capulet.
Built in the first century AD Arena di Verona was the third largest amphitheatre in the empire. It used to hold 30,000 people when it was completed. Today Arena di Verona is a great venue for many concerts and performances from the likes of Muse, Radiohead, The Pink Floyd and many others. There are also […]
William Shakespeare made Verona famous with its tragedies. Verona is a gorgeous city with its quiet streets, many churches, the magnificent Arena and of course Juliet’s balcony. We did a lot of walking around, a bit of shopping and a whole lot of eating as we usually do. I think we will be coming back […]
Navigating the Italian gastronomical universe is not an easy task. In the galaxy of choices that are presented on an average menu, in an average restaurant one can easily get confused and lost and ultimately regret not ordering just the right meal. The easiest way to deal with this issue is to follow my simple […]
Obvious, vulgar and loud. Or is it fat, single and ready to mingle?
Today we are doing an activity chosen by the children. It turns out that our Legoland Annual Pass also gives us a free one time access to Gardaland which is about 8 min drive from where we are staying. The entrance fee to Gardaland is €138 for a one day family pass. The place was […]
After a long drive around the lake, we went back to the old town in Lazise for a dinner and a quick stroll on the promenade in search of a new gelato place to try On the dinner menu was sturgeon, I had to try it, as I have never seen it on the menu […]
A drive around Lake Garda is slow but rewarding. One town is more beautiful than the next. Each villa is bigger and more ornate with a nicer park and a longer driveway than the next, each residence more secluded and more beautiful. Absolutely stunning and breathtaking. We are so glad that we decided take the […]
Today we are heading out to Salo, another beautiful town on Lake Garda. Then, if the weather cooperates we are planning to drive around the lake to take in the views, other smaller towns and the crazy roads and tunnels that encircle the lake. Stop for a coffee or two and buy some local […]
First, dress the part. The basic theory is to get something louder than Eddie Jordan would wear and try not too look like a clown, although that part is optional. Second, when it doubt order two main courses just to try them both – live to regret it later. I have a new plan. Today […]
After a lazy morning we went back to Garda to hang out by the lake. Feeding swans is now off of the bucket list. These swans do like the German and Italian bread, although the grey swan was kind of dumb and kept getting all of his food stolen by its sibling. Then is started […]
Evelina made a new friend today. Walking from the pool to the main house she heard a little bird chirp. Being a good soul that she is, she helped it get off the road and back into the shade in the grass where it could be cool and safe.
We are taking it easy this morning. Lazying around the pool in the middle of nowhere enjoying some sunshine and a nice breeze coming off the hills. There are few things more relaxing than watching paragliders sail above in the clouds and listening to the water drop off the infinity pool. Life is good.
Tenuta la Presa – the not so little winery hotel we are staying at is hosing a wedding this evening. The preparations started first thing this morning. Grass was being cut, the tents and tables set up, white linens covering all tables and chairs, and of course well before noon guests started arriving for tonight’s […]
By lake Garda a small family of whales was spotted wobbling towards a restaurant. It’s been at least 6 minutes since our last meal, we have done a lot of hard work, lazing around the pool and having a 3 hour nap which of course requires more nourishment. Tomorrow I will simply cut a hole […]
Lazise is a small port town with a great castle dating back to late 800s. Like most old European towns this one too has a small beautiful square a nice old church, Saint Nicolò, dating back to 1200s and beautiful painted houses. Of course the lake is the dominant feature of this little municipality so we try […]
Today is Kasia’s and Volker 16th wedding anniversary so staying at Hotel Dogana was not an option. The winery at Tenuta Le Presa was a more appropriate choice and one more befitting the occasion. To celebrate this we went out for a dinner at a local spot called Hostaria la Cross where German really is […]
Agriturismo at its best. Kasia and Volker know this little place called Tenuta La Presa. It is a winery that is also a hotel with a proper pool and marble floors and clean everything. There is a wine rack in the lobby and a set of glasses and you are free to drink and […]
PBC, PBC – Pretty Bad Call, Pretty Bad Call. We booked a quaint little place on Lake Garda Peninsula. Surround by lake views from 3 sides this seemed like an idyllic little place to relax for a bit. Well that is what the internet listing said. What is should have said is this: When […]
Lake Garda is simply stunning. Imagine Lake Louise but 52 km long. Imagine it surrounded by towering maples and skinny Tuscan cedars. Imagine it peppered with small towns and old castles and miles and miles or wineries and olive trees. That’s Lake Garda – we can’t wait to check in after a short 5 hour […]
Today we are going to Lake Garda in Italy. We are excited as hell. It is going to be about a 6 hour drive. We are staying on the south tip of the lake which is warmer, nicer and far more beautiful. We can’t wait.
My watch is trying to kill me. I have a love hate relationship with my Pebble. For the most part I love this gizmo because there is always something new you can do with it. Today, after talking about for a while, I finally tried the 7 Minute Workout on my Pebble. Two things are […]
A quick dinner and out for ice cream. Nightlife in the old town.
After dinner its ice cream time, and what better place to have it than the old town.
There is a little place outside Nuremberg where a set of home builders built a small village of homes they showcase. You have to pay to get in and see these homes €5 per family for two visits – but no one makes you take off your shoes as you go through and explore them. […]
Tilt shift is simply hours of fun and playtime.
In goes Grizzly Adams out comes Boris GQ – after a long overdue haircut.
Evelina got a new scooter. It almost rusted sitting in a box for a week with all this rain we have been having. Finally today the clouds broke and a bit of sunshine dried up the pavement so promptly she took it out for a spin. I think she is loving it.
Not as grand as Schllos Weissenstein but equally as charming and far less expansive to heat and staff is this little residence Volker’s brother calls home. This little house is a bit of work in progress, after years of neglect it is slowly being restored. Whatever the shape – the family has its palace and […]
Garden Show. Every year, twice a year, for the past 16 years Volker’s brother who is a landscape architect organizes a garden show. One of the shows is at a nice little castle outside the city, about 20 min drive from Nuremberg, and the other is at the family residence, which while not as grand […]
We are planning a short trip to Italy next week. Today we decided to go for a pizza and some pasta to start getting our guts used to, not only the wonderful flavours of Italy, but also to the crazy portion sizes. At L’Osteria, a quiet little place on a side street in Nuremberg, real […]
After the beer fest, and the walk around the castle grounds, we walked some more around the old town before going home. Every time it seems we get out for a stroll we find new and interesting things to look at and take in. Good times.
After some fun in the moat at the beer festival we went for a walk around the castle gardens and then the old town. It actually did not rain – unbelievable.
Germans love their beer – that much is true. We don’t, but we try an occasional sip or two. Kids on the other hand can just run on beer fumes.
Many of you might be thinking that this adventure of ours is all fun and games, and you would be right for the most part but… In order to give you the best and the most immersive and realistic impression of this trip we face a huge burden of having to try and test as […]
Today is, if you are a god-fearing folk, a Happy Cadaver Day, literal translation in German. This means it’s a holiday and everything is closed except churches and beer gardens, both of which are open for business and will gladly take your money. Since we don’t drink beer, but have been to church before, we […]
While we have not managed to triumph over the Polish Bureaucracy yet, we have in fact spotted this classic Triumph bike on our way to a Beer Festival at the castle in Nuremberg. Not only did this thing look and sound great – the guy rode it like he meant it too!
I still have not seen the last F1 race from Monaco. I though I would be watching it already but we are still over 350km away from home. Having been stuck in traffic for over 3 hours it was time to stretch our legs a bit and make up for some lost time – F1 […]
Baustelle – at first that sounded like some exotic French pastry we thought. After a nice rest we drove by a sign that read “Baustelle in 7 km”. With a bit of traffic on the road going rather slow around Leipzig, we looked around at all the nice cars including this great looking CLS wagon. […]
It’s pit stop time. After a few hours of bad weather, we finally got some sunshine about 40km from the German border. We decided to stop for a little break and have some food. You might say that this really is just an average stop, on an average autobahn in the middle of Germany. Kind […]
The toll highways in Poland are quite amazing. Rain or shine there is always someone working on their maintenance. Always! The second amazing thing is that, and I never will get tired of this, is that trucks are always and always in the right lane and they are restricted to going 90km/h. How awesome is […]
We are leaving rainy and cold Warsaw today and going back to Germany. Now that we have updated the maps on the GPS we think we should get to Nuremberg in about 8 hours or so, maybe a bit longer with the heavy rain. We noticed that a lot of people have secondary antennas on […]
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