After staying overnight in the airport hotel, which was a GREAT idea with kids and bags and everything ... and some chaos in the morning because the people at the checkout counter were inept ... we FINALLY made it to the gate on got on our flights. After that morning chaos, everything went SUPER smoothly and the girls could not have been better. By far the best day of flying we've ever had. We even had an extra seat on both flights. Chloe loved it!
She also LOVED Lily's new headphones, haha
Meanwhile, Lily was having a blast with her suitcase. She rolled it around everywhere and we kept all of their toys in it.
... and here we are with everything we owned in Switzerland (that we didn't sell off). This is our apartment and our lives in 9 checked bags, two carry-ons, one stroller, two carseats, a backpack, a diaper bag, and Lily's suitcase.
The second flight went even smoother than the first. Lily started watching the movie Brave and then both girls went down for a nap for the entire 6 hour flight from JFK to SFO. Heaven.
Oh you know, this is what a rest stop in Switzerland looks like, haha. Yeah, it is possibly more beautiful than a lodge at a national park like Yosemite ... that's just a random rest stop on the side of the highway.
Then back on the road again!
... and as soon as we got our feet on the ground in Montagnola, it was off to the new Splash and Spa park to have one last great night out with the McKees
Lily lost her fear of the water. She loves jumping in, even when she is going to go under water for awhile. We need to re-instill some healthy fear in her to keep her safe =)
... and she had a blast going up and down the slides with the McKee girls. We will miss our good friends!
After another 7 hours in the car, we finally arrived in Munich! Safe and sound ... and happy to boot
We even got to meet up with our old friend Jesse!
Then, after a nice night's sleep, it was time for a day of fun and our first beer garden!!
This is "English Garden" which is the central park of Munich and is absolutely stunningly beautiful and amazing. It has rivers running through it that you can swim in, ponds, animals, forests, paths, it is so green, and there are beer gardens scattered throughout the park as well
Oh, and did we mention that pretty much every beer garden has a kid's playground? Because Lily loved the beer gardens as much as her parents
Then it was off to continue our walk through the beautiful park.
We came across this awesome trick of the water. The way this bridge was built ages ago makes a natural standing wave that is there all year round but changes shape depending on the water flow. We watched for quite a while. It looked like a ton of fun.
Then we went for a nice walk down to the river for some playtime
In European style, Lily was quickly down to her underwear and chilling in the river.
Then dad and Jesse joined in. We went for a nice walk upstream, then jumped in the river and floated downstream to meet back up with the girls
We all had a BLAST at the park and wanted to stay forever
Then, you know, you pass old famous things on your way home from the park - no big deal
... and then once we got home, Lily asked for her favorite song "apple jean please!" and we danced and danced (with world cup soccer on in the background)
... and we had a killer sunset view from our penthouse apartment we rented - though there must always be a crane! haha
After another awesome night of sleep (the girls slept perfectly all trip long), we all woke up with a nice vacation glow and started off the day with a big breakfast
Lily ate up a storm as well, and had fun while doing it
... and of course we caught up on some political news
Then it was off to explore the city. Pretty much every main street had a split sidewalk where half was for biking and half was for walking. Munich is an amazing city. They even have this GPS rent-a-bike thing that is amazing. You sign up, and you go into an app on your smartphone that shows you every locked rent-a-bike in the city (and they are everywhere). You walk up to any of these bikes on the sidewalk, punch in the code on your phone and it gives you an unlock code. You type that in on the bike and it unlocks. You ride the bike as long as you want, wherever you want, and when you get off you just lock up the bike and you get billed by the amount of time the bike was unlocked. So if you ride it to a store and lock it up, you aren't paying for it while you are inside (though anyone can come by and grab the bike and take off). Jesse gave me a ride on a rent-a-bike around town to find a place that rented bikes with baby seats on them.
Oh you know, just more famous ancient structures as you walk around town
... and cute little shopping streets
... and gothic cathedrals
... and then we had lunch at the Hofbräuhaus, just a royal brewery owned by the government that was founded in 1589 ... no big deal, just the bar at the corner
Then, the next day, which was my favorite day by far ... Jesse, Lily and I took off for a day of beer gardens and play grounds. Like LOVED it. We would pull up to a playground and she would have a blast and her dad would have a beer. Then I would ask, "Lily, do you want to go for a bike ride?!" and she would go, "YEAH!" I definitely need to get her on a bike more often.
Just some delicious beer and sausage at the English Garden pond. Lily got to feed the ducks.
... and she LOVED the sausages
Oh man, that was just an AMAZING day. We had the greatest time. Some day we'll go back!
