Going to Europe for 2 weeks

Kristin and I are leaving for Europe this Friday. For our family and friends, I wanted to give them a run down of where we will be and where we are going once we get there.
 

We'll be landing in Stuttgart, Germany and traveling to the city that I lived in for a year during my study abroad, Tubingen. I loved living there. It was stressful at first, but I really grew to love Germany and their culture. While we are there, we may travel to Hohenzollern Castle in nearby Hechingen, Germany. We will also walk around the Alt Stadt (old city) and shop for souvenirs. I'm looking foward to having Kristin try some awesome German food. Maybe even a German beer. She'll love the pasteries.

After a short stay in Tubingen. we'll be flying to Valencia, Spain to see my good friends Javier & Ruth. They became my family away from home. I don't think we would have enjoy our stays in Germany if we hadn't had become such good friends. Their families are wonderful and very nice people to be around. I'm looking forward to having them meet Kristin. Javier's father has a beautiful house in the mountains just outside of Valencia. I suspect that we will have a 3-4 hour meal with all kinds of wonderful Spanish treats. When I was last there, they ordered a fire cooked paella and we ate the entire thing. I remember slipping into a coma after that because I was soooo full.  The weather is supposed to be beautiful right now in Spain, so that will be a nice change from the wet and cold weather of Northern Virginia.

While we are in Valencia, there will be a huge festival going on called Fallas (Fires). During this festival, organizations fund artist to construct HUGE sculptures in the town squares throughout the city. After having a contest for the most beautiful sculptures, they are all burned to the ground in a fantastic display of fireworks and flames. The city will be very energetic and it will be amazing to see these sculptures that are only around for a limited time.
 

Next we'll fly back to Germany and land in Munich where we'll stay for a short two days. During that time we'll venture out from the city to visit Dachau Concentration camp. I visited here with Javier, Ruth, my sister and her husband. It's really an incredible experience and was one of the things Kristin said she wanted to do while we were there. Munich is also a very beautiful city. I think we'll have lunch or dinner at the Hofbrauhaus and then head for the train station to catch our train south.

After Munich, we'll travel south to Fussen Germany and visit Neuschwanstein Castle. This is such a beautiful area. I think the low right now is around 12 degrees, so it will be cold, but very beautiful. Neuschwanstein Castle was the inspiration for the castles that Walt Disney built in his theme parks. It's an amazing castle with a beautiful interior.

On the 24th, we'll travel by train back to Tubingen and enjoy a last dinner in the city. The next day, we'll take a bus back to the airport to go back to the US.

It will be a wonderful trip and I'm looking forward to seeing what Kristin thinks of Europe and their culture.

Here is a rundown of dates for our trip:

• March 11: Leaving from Reagan National at 1:50pm.
• March 12: Arrive in Stuttgart Germany at 8:50am and travel to Tubingen, Germany.
• March 12-15: We'll be in Tubingen amd on the 15th fly to Valencia, Spain.
• March:15-20: Valencia, Spain. On the 20th, we'll fly to Munich, Germany
• March 20-22: Munich, Germany. On the 22nd we'll take a train to Fussen, Germany.
• March 22-24: Fussen, Germany
• March 24: We'll be traveling back to Tubingen, Germany
• March 25: Fly out of Stuttgart at 9:50am and arrive at Reagan National at 7:13pm.