Day 79: Cross Country Halloween

Chris woke up early today (early for us) and went for a run with Tim. He was able to get a feel for the neighbourhood and see how beautiful this countryside is. Out here is very different from the city and it's really nice to be able to run in such a beautiful area straight from your door.

Tim and Annie (left), One of the many Windmills (middle), Chris and Annie (right)
Photos by Chris and Tim

The oldest daughter in the family has a cross country race today (the European finals) and was out the door to meet up with her teammates for the long day ahead. The rest of us took a lazy morning approach. Breakfast (we're excited because, as a family of 6, there is a lot of cereal to choose from!), getting dressed, and relaxed conversations.

100 MPH

After breakfast, we pile into two cars (we're nine people without the oldest daughter), and head out to the autobahn. On the way to the cross country race, we make a stop at Burg Lichtenberg. There are a few awesome facts about this castle. First, it is open to the public for no fee. We park and walk right through. Second, for better or for worse (of the well being of the castle), we are able to climb on the ruins. The kids had a BALL running around, climbing into the windows, and exploring all around. Third, you can climb the tower to get beautiful overhead views, without having to walk up 900 steps. It's only 2-3 flights of stairs, easy peasy!

And the views do not disappoint. The castle ruins, the grounds, the views. All beautiful.

The kids had a great time at Burg Lichtenberg, but it was time to head out. Back to the autobahn and on our way to the location of the cross country meet (a golf course). We arrived just in time to see the boys race line-up and start. Perfect!

The 5K course looped around the golf course 2.5 times, so we spectators could run from side to side to see the start, the middle, back to the start, etc. It was fun to see the friends and families of the runners so excited for their kids, cheering them on with great enthusiasm (I think some may be a little hoarse after today), and running back and forth to catch glimpses of their kids and fellow team members. Side note: these kids are fast! In the 15 minute range for their 5K!

After the start, a few spectators were asked to pull up the stakes from the starting line to help close the gap for the continuing lap. Chris helped for the boys race and I helped for the girls race. Yay us!

Tigger

There were a few schools there offering food, snacks, and drinks. We even got served by Tigger at one of them (it is Halloween, afterall). Oh, and they take U.S. dollars, but thank goodness they also take Euros as we don't have any dollars. This brings me to one of the interesting things about the races. There was so much native-English spoken (most people were speaking English). I hadn't realised how much I have learned to tune out the conversations around me due to the fact that I can't understand what they're saying. But now, I'm back to eavesdropping, as I can understand all the conversations around me. Perk or not?

After the boys race, there is a bit of down time before the girls start. I'm not sure how they do it, all that waiting in the cold. There are a lot of girls hopping and jogging about, keeping muscles loose and warm. Us spectators aren't as bouncy, so we're a bit colder, I suppose. Darn weather, it was supposed to be warmer and sunnier today!

And, finally, it's the girls' race-time.

The start of the girls' race (top)

Holly in fourth (left, middle, right)

Holly did amazing. She came in fourth in all of Europe (and that's including all the divisions), if I'm understanding all the rules correctly. If you take out the two girls who are in a different division, she really came in second. Her team, did come in first in their division. It was a lot of fun to see her race, be a part of the sports atmosphere, and to see her get her awards. Side note: The results were supposed to be done at 2:15... however, it was closer to 4pm. So, we were all a bit frozen by the time we left. But it was a good day with friends and it was fun to get a glimpse of what their weekends are like (next weekend they are off to Amsterdam for another daughter's Irish Dancing competition).
On the way home, the car I'm in (the boys and me) makes a quick stop to pick up some döner for dinner. Yum! The car Venice is in (the girls) head to the airforce base to pick up runner-Holly. So, döner for us and Cinnabon for Venice (yes, THE Cinnabon!) Now I don't feel as guilty that we didn't get Venice her own food!

It is now time to get ready for Halloween. The kids dash off to get dressed. The adults get dressed.... and what the heck? My costume from Oktoberfest is too tight. How the heck did that happen? I swear. I think it's because I wash and dried it (I'm sticking to this explanation). And on top of a tight fit, I forgot to bring the pink ribbon that ties it all together (helping to take the stress off the zipper). When in dire straights, one must be creative, thus, I used dental floss to tie myself together.

Venice's pumpkin (top) and Xander's pumpkin (bottom)
With our Canadian host (middle)
Chris, Diana, Tim, Kristie (left and right)

Taking two cars, we headed to the Halloween party thrown by friends of Tim and Kristie. It's in a neighbourhood similar to ours in the U.S. A lot of houses, close by, and a ton of participating "candy-homes". As we approach, it's tough to get through the streets due to the masses of crowds walking the streets looking for treats. But we make it without running anyone over (great driving skills by our hosts).

Almost as soon as we enter the party destination, the kids are off trick-or-treating... without us! This is the first time they've gone trick-or-treating without us tagging along. Nice! It helps that (other than us) there really are not cars driving around the neighbourhood. Small streets. Lots of crowds. And a great sense of safety (either due to the high density of "base"-workers in the neighbourhood, or the regular "German-safeness" we've gotten used to).

The party is wonderful. Good eats. Nice people. Welcoming conversations. A great way to feel "at home" when "far from home". Thank you to our hosts and the party hosts for taking such good care of us. I know the kids were sad to miss our traditional Halloween and, I think, this evening filled their needs and wishes beyond what we could have thought possible. Thank you.

A portion of the kids about to head out for trick-or-treating (left)
Tim and Chris (right)

And the kids come home. Check out their loot. Trade. Eat MORE than their fair share. It was a good day. A good evening.

Day 38: Schloss Charlottenburg

Well, crap. My throat hurts... a lot. Crap. Crap. Crap. But the show must go on.

Chris and I spent the morning finishing up some plans for our up-comping trip to Munich and Salzburg, Austria. And by this, I mean, I sat on the couch, keeping Chris company as he booked our flights home from Austria. We actually already had tickets, round trip, to Munich, but they were purchased using "miles" and thus, more expensive to change than to just buy single trip tickets from Austria.

Random: We happened to decide (several weeks ago) to got to Oktoberfest this up-coming weekend... turns out, it's the same weekend at the big BMW marathon in Berlin. Bummer to miss it. Or good to miss it? I hear the crowds are crazy big.

Then to buy our train tickets from Munich to Salzburg. Well, this was a crappy experience. When we bought our tickets to Prague, it was no problem, punch in the info, get tickets with proper info. This time, we (Chris) put in 2 adults and 2 children. We verified the info, it was all good. Then, once we confirmed, we got the pdf to print our tickets and... it only had 2 adults on it?!?! So, we panic. Let's try again. But guess what? You can't buy just tickets for kids, as kids need to be accompanied by an adult. So we can't buy two kids tickets. We must buy 1 adult and 1 kid. Ok, the tickets aren't too expensive, so we'll just do it. But, damn it, the pdf says 1 adult, no kids. WTF?

The 80s dork in me is
reminded of Pet Shop Boys'
"West End Girls" song.

Chris (champion that he is) calls the DB (Deutsch Bahn) get someone who speaks English and asks, WTF? Well, turns out, on these "shorter" routes, kids don't really need a ticket, as long as they are accompanied by an adult. And no, we can't cancel the ticket. So, we are not clear if we bought 6 tickets and will only be using 4. Or if we bought 3, when we only needed 2. In either case, how does the train system know not to oversell if kids aren't counted on the tickets? So unclear, so NOT instilling confidence. But it is what it is and we now have tickets (too many). P.S. Chris is not in a good mood as I explain we just paid a "tourist tax"....

By now, half the day is over, so what to do? Let's go see a castle!

We're off to see Schloss Charlottenburg, just on the far west side of town.

The gates surrounding the schloss or "castle" (left), The main building (right).

We paid for a family ticket, which allowed us access to the old wing and the new wing, otherwise, it is two different entrance fees. Both had included audio tours which the kids decided not to use, while Chris and I used them for both wings. Venice opted, instead, to read the plaques placed in each room.

Windows looking out into the garden (top-left). The green mirror room (bottom-left).
The porcelain room (bottom-middle).  Mancala board! (bottom-right)
One of the many ornate ceilings, this one had three dimensional items, such as the cloud (right)

Something you hear a lot during this tour is that "this is just a replica, the original was destroyed during WWII." Or, "Sophie Charlotte saw the plans for this part of the building, but she died before it was finished." I even thought I heard, once, that the parquet floors were installed in 1980 (but I think this was the only "new" thing I remember hearing about). Oh, and it seems that EVERYTHING is gilded. Wow. Very opulent. Still, odd to tour something that was heavily replicated (and not the original).

Windows (but on the second floor) overlooking the gardens (top-left). A seismograph, one of many (top-right).
The gardens (bottom-left). Staircase to the second floor (right).

Something that was original! The Japanese room, however,
I swear the audio tour said they were Chinese tapestries (top-left)
Ballroom (top-right), Port of Venice painting (bottom-left)
Venice with a large book in the library (bottom-middle)
A grandfather clock that reminds me of the Bailey's grandfather clock (bottom-right)

FYI, you can only take photos of the outside, unless you purchase a "one-day permit", which we did.

After seeing both wings, we wandered around back (this part is free and is right up against the river, so many are here jogging, walking with strollers, or just taking a stroll). The grounds were beautiful and we wondered how many gardeners they had on retainer to work here keeping it looking so nice.

The outside grounds.

I missed this (as I was talking with the kids using one ear and listening to the tour with the other), but Chris said he heard that Sophie did not like to use a carriage, and preferred to take a boat anywhere in town. So, they had their own boat launch, river access.

Again, the landscaping was beautiful and gigantic. I can't imagine having such a beautiful garden to wander through whenever one pleases. Idyllic.

You can see from our photos (and the coats that we are wearing along with longer pants... at least some of us) that it is definitely cooler now. Leaves are falling on the ground. Most trees are not showing any signs of changing, but the wind feels brisk and fall is definitely approaching.

Funny story. I went to the bathroom, here at the castle. Venice and I walk into the "ante" room that leads to the women's and men's bathrooms. There is a woman sitting there, who looks at us as soon as we walk in. I figure, we must pay, right? So, I start fishing for my 50 cents, but is it 50 or 10 or 20? I can't figure it out. I don't see a sign indicating how much it is? Venice suggests we just put money into the box on the wall, but I don't see coins in there. 

I look expectantly at the women and ask how much (of course, I'm panicked, so it comes out in English)... she just mumbles something (could have been total gibberish) but I take it to sound like, "I'm just sitting here." OMG, she's NOT an attendant. She's just a lady waiting for her husband who's using the men's room. OMG. I guide Venice into the bathroom saying, "run, run, go, go"... 

Awkward.

The end of our day at Schloss Charlottenburg.

This time of day is always hard to navigate. It is late enough that it's almost time for dinner. But to "find" dinner may take some time. First, we have to think of a place to eat (and try to please four people). Then we have to get there. So, maybe we should stop for a coffee first and get a small snack. BUT, we aren't in the centre of town, so coffee shops aren't really easily found, only restaurants. And if we're going to go to a restaurant, maybe we should just go to the one where we'll eat. Back to square one, where should we eat? And this goes on for about 15 minutes, while Chris and I discuss options, meanwhile time is only ticking by.

Things you see while figuring out dinner.
A painted utility box (left) and another Buddy Bear (right).

Oooh, light bulb! Chris remembers a great restaurant on this side of town, just a few blocks away, that serves all kinds of schnitzel! Perfect! We walk into the restaurant with no reservations. It's 7pm. Can we eat within 1.5 hours? Yes? Then right this way!

Yum, that was a fantastic meal.

On the way home, there was a light rain and we were treated to a beautiful double rainbow and sunset. It was a great afternoon, ticking off one of Chris' "to do" items.

Rain through the tracks (left), Rainbow (middle), Sunset (right)

Day 30: Praha Part 1

Our hotel comes with breakfast included. Whoever first decided to do this was probably a parent. One of the hardest things about traveling is figuring out breakfast. You're hungry. You don't know the area. You don't want to spend money on cereal. So, included breakfast is super nice.

The breakfast at our hotel is lovely. All sorts of breads and danish. Cute yogurt in little glass jars with a "yogurt bar" to snazzy it up (honey, jams, fruit). A coffee/espresso machine that will make you an espresso, coffee, cappuccino, and other drinks, at the push of a button (yeah, "fake" drinks, but still, cool to get it at a push of a button!) Eggs, meats, cheeses, and more. Very nice.

The changing of the guard (noon) and
the poor band that aren't as popular.

While the kids were finishing up their meals, Chris went to ask the front desk  how to get to the Pražsky Hrad (the Prague Castle). With several transportation tickets in hand (they are good for 30 min once you validate them), we headed out for the train. Just as we got to the tram stop, we see a tram there. Is it ours? We're not sure. We hesitate, and just as it pulls away, we realise it is our tram and we see how to validate the tickets... but too late. So we wait for the next one.

We take the tram to the transfer stop. And we get on the next tram (same stop). But after a few stops, we realise this new tram is the wrong one (which now makes sense, someone asked if this went to the castle, someone else said, no, the other side). Sigh. We get off our tram, look at Google Maps and figure we can just walk from here. We may or may not make the changing for the guards (that happens at noon and we have about 10 minutes for a 13 minute walk, so who needs a tram anyway?)

Don't smile. Don't sneeze!

As we approach the castle's front gates (using Google Maps a lot to walk the short walk), we see people lined up on either side of the entrance, leaving a path. Just as I say it's probably for the changing of the guard, here they came! About 20 uniformed men with bayonets came marching through the path. They walked through the gates. We looked to one another. Was that it? Many left, so we figured that was it. We proceeded to enter the castle grounds to have a look.

The front entrance to the castle grounds. (top)
Who knows... we decided it was a wishing well (bottom)

St. Vitus Cathedral, immense and impressive with details, stopped us in our tracks. We oogled the building along with the many others. Music (a live band?) played in the background and we enjoyed ourselves. As we made our way around to the next courtyard, doh, we saw that the music we were hearing, was the changing or the guard continuing in grand fashion. At this point, it was almost over, and the crowds were so deep, we couldn't see anything. We were about to stand on part of the cathedral until we saw a guard come over and tell those, already there, to get off. So, the "Entitled American" in me was mad. Why don't they have bleachers so we can all see what's going on? Many had their phones high above their heads to get a look. I tried this too but it didn't work well. Poor Xander, the shortest in the family, could only see the backs of those in front of us. The "Cynic" (or "Survivalist"?) in me figures it was just a stupid march of men in baby-blue suits, who cares. Nothing we can do anyway.

Images of St. Vitus Cathedral of its entrance and its back (from the "square")

More photos around St. Vitus Cathedral and the square. 

To make ourselves feel better, we decide to try to enter the Cathedral (is it free or do you pay?) Chris found the price to climb the tower. OK! And we were off to climb the 287 steps to the top! Side note: When walking up narrow steps in a tight spiral, your inner-right leg gets more tired than the left leg. All the huffing and puffing was worth it. Beautiful views from the top. We got to see the largest bell in the Czech Republic while ascending the steps (along with stained glass and small rooms where priests(?) used to live/work) and, at the top, the mechanism that rings the bells.

Stained glass window you can see while climbing the 287 steps (left)
One of the many bells, but not THE bell (middle)
I enjoyed watching the clock mechanism click the seconds and then ring on the hour (right)

Views from the top of the bell tower on St. Vital Cathedral.

Looking out some windows at the top (top), Zoomed in to see Charles Bridge (left)
See the tiny tower (on left)? That's the Petrín Lookout, we're headed there tomorrow! (right)

After safely returning to ground level, we searched for lunch (using The Lonely Planet travel book) and found a great café (one of many) on the castle grounds (which are enormous!) Today's meal? Schnitzel and goulash. Both very yummy.

lunch restaurant with regional-traditional
dish of goulash (top and left)
Chris bravely ordering trdelniks for the
 kids. See how he captures the attention
of the man behind the counter! (right)

With full tummies (another big meal where I'm leaving overstuffed), we meandered through the gardens of the castle grounds enjoying beautiful view after beautiful view. We also passed a good-looking (if "Amazon-tall") newlywed couple. What a good groom for holding his bride steady. I do not understand how women walk around over all these cobble stone sidewalks without catching a heel in a groove or breaking their leg as they fall sideways. Flat-bottomed shoes are more than sensible, they seem necessary for survival.

The kids enjoyed their first trdelnik (a local treat) and we window shopped as we returned back down the hill. As you walk the "touristy" route, you might be accosted by someone handing out free-samples of their trade. So we tasted free chocolates and free gingerbread. Chris bought some of the chocolates to bring back to his office, but we skipped the gingerbread store (even though the guy handing out free samples was very persuasive... if you don't eat it, it makes a very good decoration!)

It's pretty crowded here, not quite a crowded as Venice, but pretty crowded. It probably helps that it's a little off-season as well as the sidewalks are way wider than the alleys in Venice. Yet, while it's so crowded, we don't have to wait in long lines, tables seems easy to find (although we didn't get the terrace seats we wanted at lunch, but still, we ate outside) and it's just not too bad.

Thank goodness they speak English. We did a quick study on how to say "Thank you" and.... well, that was about it. The Czech language is a slavic language, so nothing at all like German. It sounded a lot (to my untrained ears) like Russian, and some words overlapped, but I guess it's only a distant relation, so I'm not much help here either. But it is confusing when I hear someone say something and it sounds a lot like "Good Morning" in Russian. I find my brain freezes, thinking I can return in Russian, but then remember it's not the same and that German won't work... and by this time, they speak English to me.

Once again, it's good, for us, to have English be the international language (even though it continues to make us feel dumb being a monoglot - look it up, I did!)

Day 29: Travel by Train

Over breakfast, Chris and I did some last minute planning for the weekend. We decided I would skip our morning walk together (a first!) so I could help the kids get ready.

Surprise! We're going to Prague!

There are performers on
the Bahns who play for tips.
This guy and his buddy played
"Oh When the Saints, Go
Marching In". We tipped.

We didn't know, until two days ago. We had been going back and forth on where to go. We had originally thought about Prague. But then we heard (from Chris' coworkers) that it was a very crowded place. We began to think about other places (Copenhagen, Kraków)? But then another conversation with Chris' coworkers uncovered that no, it's not overly crowded in Prague... and by the way, HotelTonight can get us a deal on a family suite in Prague. So, Prague it is!

Chris packed early this morning and left for work with just his backpack. I helped the kids pack. I packed. Then, the kids and I took our backpacks and the two rolling suitcases onto the M tram (and of course, we just missed one, so had to wait another 9 minutes... always stressful when on a tight schedule) then to the S7 Bahn to meet Chris at Hauptbahnhoff (Berlin's main train station).

Side Note: Hauptbahnhof train station is impressive. We had transferred here before, but never had we explored it's depths. The upper-level, where we arrived on the S-Bahn, is covered with beautiful glass windows all around, creating a sparkling, bright atmosphere. This is two levels above ground. The EC 176 train (Euro-rail) platform is located two floors below ground! Chris, having arrived earlier than we did (he didn't miss his train), found and texted the correct platform for us. So, we went down many escalators watching stores, markets, and restaurants go by (at least two Starbucks and two McDonalds). We had no idea it was this big!

Hauptbahnhof (looks like it's smiling... due to distortion of the panoramic photo)

Everyone was excited to travel by train. The kids had never traveled by train. I hadn't done so since... 1988? Train tickets were so cheap, we decided to travel "first class".  €80 per person (round trip!) for first class. Yay! So, yes, please! Our train had the engine car, about 5 regular cars, a food car, and then 1 first class car. We heard that it doesn't ever get full.

Chris figured out that the trains have a "2" on the side if it's "regular" and a "1" if it's first class. He found a digital picture of all the cars and how they were situated so you could know where your car would be. But we just looked at the train as it arrived for the car with the "1" on it. We then figured out the fact that some were reserved (we didn't see this option, next time, we'll try for this). There is a card holder above each section of seats, if there was a card with a name, it was reserved, so we had to search for four seats without reservations. And we found a "Family" set of four together (one set facing forward, one set facing backward with a shared table in the middle). Perfect! And bonus, no security when traveling by train! Take all the 4+ oz liquids you want! Scissors, nail clippers, yes! And no extra luggage cost, just whatever you can hoist above you!

Our car was the last car, which means you can take photos out the back
window when visiting the bathroom (left and middle)
Beautiful countryside speeding by (right)

The ticket-taker (what are they called?) came by after our first stop (the first stop was only 3 km away, so a super short trip) to check our tickets. We joked, if we're on the wrong train, do they just throw you out the window? Well, we don't have to find out, our tickets are good. Phew.

One must entertain oneself during a 4+ hour train ride. Venice read her book (start to finish) but refused to
be photographed reading (it's a sacred time, she says). Well, we snuck a few anyway.

Here's something I never would have thought about traveling by train... it's SUPER quiet. Not like an airplane where you have to turn your headphones all the way up or talk loudly in your neighbour's ear to be heard. No, it's so quiet, you can hear the man in the back snoring. And the mom with her toddler? You can hear her whispering answers to his EVERY question. I don't say this to complain about other people's noises, I really say this because I was so flabbergasted by how quiet it was. And it was a smooth ride too. The seats were comfortable. We all felt super comfy! What a nice way to travel! Of course, I have no idea how it was for the "others" not traveling first class.

Chilling in our seats (left). Taking photos out all the windows (right).

Oh, the BEST thing for the kids? No seat belts! They were super excited about this and were so happy to be able to sit however they wanted to. They also liked that they could get up whenever they wanted to (you can stand while the train stops, starts, heck, you can be in the bathroom while the train is going and stopping). They (mostly Xander) seat-hopped to get the best view when ever he wanted to.

Over 4 hours later, we arrived at our stop in Prague. We got off the train (that was the easy part) and then proceeded to figure out where to go. As we walked through Prague's main station (also large, but it didn't seem as large as Hauptbahnhf), Chris got out Czech korunas (not an easy conversion rate, at least not for me, at 23-ish czk to $1). Next task, to find a taxi. It was kind of hard to find where to go (and yet not hard, there were signs, it just seemed to point us to a darkened-underpass, which seemed creepy).

The main train station in Prague is also beautiful.

A taxi driver approached us as we came out of the station. Asked Chris where we were going. Talked to the driver "in front" and said to us the price. I did a conversion, and I thought it would be about $100. Well, we've paid $80 for our boat-taxi in Venice and $75 in Berlin to get to/from the airport, so I didn't balk at the $100. I thought it was a lot, but figured we had little other choice if we wanted to get to our hotel quickly. And we did get there quickly, in about 10 min. I thought that was the most expensive taxi, but turns out, I did the conversion backwards. It was more like a $12 ride (I had the conversion backwards and I heard the price wrong)... so now I'm thinking, "Damn, that was cheap (or at least correctly priced)!"

Our hotel room is amazing. It has an anterior room with the coffee, small couch and some closets. Then into a room with two twin beds, a chair, a table, and another couch. Then into our "master" room with a king bed, and the bathroom. They even left us macaroons and a bottle of champagne to welcome us! We're not sure why it was there for us... does everyone get one? Or did they know it was us (and by us, I mean Chris from HotelTonight?) Either way, what a nice welcome!

Xander in the lobby (left) and our "treats" waiting for us in our room (right)

The bad news is that our phones may be in trouble again. AT&T sent messages of overage. Chris did an online chat to figure out what's going on. Our plan ends in two days, so we're not sure why I'm getting messages that indicate I am not on the international plan. Turns out, I am, but it's just a warning. So Chris asks them to up the limit before sending a warning alert. And, he renews our plans so that there will be no gap in service. Should be all fine (foreshadow alert).

Where does one go for dinner their first night in Prague? An Argentinian restaurant, of course! It was in short walking distance and reported to have good food (so says our hotel staff). It was delicious. I think, a first meal in a long time, where I left in "pain" from eating too much. Yum.

Everyone gets an iPad to view the digital menu! (left) and We like the Coke bottles here (right)
We later came to find that it's not "Share a Coke with..." like in America, instead it's, "Kiss...."
and the "name" on this bottle isn't a name, but just "guy". So, Kiss a guy. Hmm, ok.

Off to bed with happy tummies!


P.S. We're rich!

In reality, less than $150.