Our Top European Experiences

So as our time in Italy winds down and we embark on a new chapter in our lives we've been reminiscing about all of our experiences and travels over the past two years. We've done some amazing things and have been to places that we could only dream of going to. We really wanted to make the most out of our time here and we don't think we could have done it any better. We are definitely known as "the jet-setters" among friends and colleagues here in Italy, rushing off to a new city or country every weekend Jon wasn't on call, sometimes taking a plane two or three weekends a month just to make sure we didn't waste a single opportunity. And although at times, especially towards the end of our tour here, we became weary and tired of plane and train hopping to new cities, we were always inspired and thankful when we got there and appreciated what each place had to offer. Of course, every experience we had was the tops in our books, but these are the ones that stood out the most. So, in no particular order, we give you our top European experiences.

1) Staying overnight in an igloo in Zermatt, Switzerland: What an experience we had eating, drinking, and sleeping inside an igloo in the middle the Swiss Alps facing the Matterhorn. Not only did we meet people that we are still friendly with, but dinner was solely cheese fondue with bread. We also got to sled down to breakfast the next day. You can't beat that!

2) Oktoberfest in Munich, Germany: There's nothing like getting together with 10,000 of your "closest friends" in a tent (dressed in the traditional Bavarian gear) with one common goal of drinking liters of beer until you can't remember holding a rifle for a shooting game, dropping and breaking a camera, and getting back to the hotel... or was that just us?

3) Seeing a flamenco show in Seville, Spain: We were truly mesmerized by the singing, dancing, and guitar playing of this genre of Spanish music.

4) Husky sled and snowmobile driving in Saariselka, Finland: Everything about this trip was fun and different, from being in the Arctic Circle, to having three hours of sunlight a day, to staying in a log cabin in the middle of nowhere. But actually getting a chance to drive our own sleds with our own team of dogs and then driving our own snowmobiles at night through the Lapland wilderness was icing on the top of an amazing experience.

And speaking of Finland...

5) Seeing the Northern Lights in Saariselka, Finland: There are no words... just spectacular.

6) Fireworks on New Years Eve in Naples, Italy: For 30 minutes, watching every Neapolitan set off fireworks from their roofs, balconies, and inside their homes (yes, this happens) makes for a spectacular display for all of us who want to keep our extremities intact.

7) Wine tasting anywhere in Italy: Wine tasting here is completely different than in the U.S. You're not given little sips of wine to taste, but rather full glasses for you to enjoy. Not only that, but a lot of places will leave the bottle on the table for you to taste at your leisure. Some come with lunch and snacks, and the hospitality can't be beat! Touring the old cellars is pretty cool too.

8) Opera in Vienna, Austria: Even though we're not the biggest opera fans we're glad to have gone to our first (and last) opera show in Vienna. The beautiful Italian opera of Tosca sung in German was pretty interesting as well.

8) Seeing the concentration camps in Auschwitz, Poland: This isn't necessarily an experience that we enjoyed, but it was an experience nonetheless that gave us a deeper understanding of the atrocities that happened there... and we will never forget what we saw. We wanted to go, we saw it, and we don't have to return.

9) Kayaking in the Adriatic Sea in Dubrovnik, Croatia: We were able to see Dubrovnik from a different perspective while getting in a great arm and core workout!

10) Sex shows in Amsterdam, Netherlands: As if one show wasn't enough, we were offered a deal of two shows for the price of one with two free drinks at the second show. And we're not ones to pass up free drinks.

No pictures of the sex shows, but a lovely picture of all of us who went to see them.

11) Hiking in Cinque Terre: We've done our fair share of hikes in Italy, but this one was our favorite. The scenery, the towns, and the activity makes this a top area of Italy to visit.

12) Going to France - at any time: It's no accident that we went to France four times during our two years here. Whether we went to a big city like Paris, or the small town of Beaune in Burgundy, we enjoyed the food, the ambiance, and the vibe that France puts out.

So there you have it. Two years of incredible travel and experiences that we'll remember forever. 22 countries in as many months, with many repeat visits to some countries and cities kept us pretty busy. The ease and proximity of going to all of these places is something that we're going to miss greatly. People have been asking us if we got to see everything that we wanted to see while here. Yes we have... and so much more!

Skiing at Chamonix and a stop in Geneva, Switzerland

Our second big ski trip of our time in Europe had to be at Chamonix-Mont-Blanc (our first one was last year at Zermatt when we stayed in the igloo). We had been wanting to come to this ski resort for a while now, even talking about it while we were still in the U.S. Like Zermatt, it is consistently in the top 10 lists for ski resorts, not only in Europe but around the world. The town of Chamonix is a true mountain town, surrounded by the towering French Alps, and catering to winter sports enthusiasts. Lying in the shadow of Mont Blanc, the highest of the Alpine peaks, Chamonix is in the Rhone-Alpes region and is in a "corner" of Europe consisting of France, Italy, and Switzerland.

The mountains around the town

View of the mountains while skiing

Some of the town

We flew into Geneva, which is about an hour away from Chamonix. We drove into the center and decided to explore this international city for a few hours. Almost half of Geneva is made up of people from 147 different countries linking together businesses from around the world. Walking down the streets felt like walking on Rodeo Drive or 5th Avenue; Prada, Gucci, Louis Vuitton, and the like, dominated the streets, as well as the prevalence of very high-priced watch brands such as Rolex and Cartier.

A pretty church

Looking out onto the park

A small street away from the action

We strolled along Lake Geneva, taking in the sight of the Jet d'Eau Fountain, Geneva's most famous landmark. It is one of the biggest fountains in the world and the largest in Europe. The spray of the fountain reaches about 460 feet and pumps out 132 gallons of water per second!

After Geneva, we drove the hour to Chamonix and checked into our hotel/lodge. We spent three glorious days of skiing in great conditions; it had just snowed the night before we arrived, and the sun was shining clearly in the sky for us to see. Miles of groomed trails and un-groomed fresh powder laid before us and we were presented with a variety of descents for us to choose from.

Jon on the t-bar 

Action shot

Jon on his way down

Through the trees

Each day we made our way to our favorite lunch spot in the middle of the mountain where we could laze in the outdoor loungers, sip our vin chaud and beer, and chow down on some local grub. On one of the days a local band played music while we ate and it could be heard up and down the mountain. Our two main activities of the trip combined into one- skiing and eating!

The mountain top band

Looking out to the mountains

Speaking of eating, we ate at some fantastic restaurants while there. If I could eat foie gras at every meal I would, and every time we're in France I order it like it's going out of style. Combine that with an undying love for cheese fondue and we were all set as far as food went. Each dinner was better than the next and we left each meal satisfied, but wanting more - it was so good!

Cheese fondue

Flaming creme brûlée 

This was our last trip to France while we are living in Europe so it was a little sad when we had to leave. We've returned to France four times in a year and a half and we wish we had time for just one more visit before we leave. The people are very friendly, the scenery is beautiful, and the food is sensational! Chamonix is a ski destination we will be returning to in the future... definitely! We could see ourselves renting a cabin with friends (any takers?), skiing some fantastic runs during the day, drinking delicious French wine, and dipping bread into a never ending pot of cheese fondue. Sounds perfect!

Slovenia Part II: Kranjska Gora, Postojna Caves, & Trieste (Italy)

Since we made Lake Bled our base for the rest of the weekend we used Saturday to go to Kranjska Gora for a day of skiing. Kranjska Gora is the more well-known ski resort in Slovenia, being used for the European Winter Championships this year and open air events other years. Not only can you downhill ski there, but you can also toboggan, snowshoe, and cross-country ski.

About 40 minutes after leaving our hotel in Bled, we arrived at the base of the mountain where parking seemed to be a huge problem at the resort. There was one big parking lot that had already filled up, with people double and even triple parking cars into their spots. All that was left was street parking in the town, which we drove around aimlessly looking for. We got pretty lucky after we squeezed into a spot right in front of a ski rental place. It ended up being closer to the base of the mountain than had we parked in the main parking lot so it was a good start to the day!

The skiing that we're accustomed to was different than the skiing at Kranjska Gora. For those that have skied in the States and in Europe, it was more akin to East Coast USA skiing rather than skiing in Colorado, Utah, or Zermatt, Switzerland. There weren't too many runs, it was icy in parts, and it was more crowded with people, especially beginners. Aside from that though, we enjoyed skiing here very much and got our legs ready for our big ski trip in February to Chamonix, France.

Kranjska Gora

The next day we woke up early, left Bled, and headed to Postojna. In Postojna there is a a cave network, similar to Lurray Caverns in Virginia, which has 21 kilometers of fantastic tunnels, halls, and passages. Remnants of rivers and pools of water can be seen from the indentation in the rocks. There are big chambers filled with stalactites and stalagmites of many sizes and shapes, some of which have taken tens of thousands of years to form. Considering they grow only one centimeter every 100 years you can get an idea of how old this place really is. The caves were enchanting and each area that we saw offered a different view into this remarkable underground world. We felt like we took a journey to the center of the earth, where time is counted by the drops of water and the art of mother nature is on display.

The entrance, taken from Postojna Caves

The Red Hall, taken from Postojna Caves

To start we took a ride in a miniature train for two kilometers through small archways, large halls, and tiny passageways. After the train ride, we were led through different areas of the caves, each with their own unique name. The Hall of Tubes (aka Spaghetti Hall) was so named because of the white, needle-thin tubes hanging from the ceiling. The Concert Hall holds events and concerts a few times a year and can accommodate several thousand people. The White Hall is named because all of the stalactites are extremely white from pure limestone. The whole experience was magnificent and it gave us a magical view of the underground world of the Postojna Caves.

The Hall of Tubes or Spaghetti Hall, taken from Postojna Caves

The White Hall, taken from  Postojna Caves

After our time in the caves we continued towards the Italian border to Trieste. Trieste is an interesting city - since it's right on the border of Slovenia and not far from Austria, it is a mish-mash of all three countries combined; Viennese style cafes on the streets, the friendliness of the Slovenian people, and the dreaded shut down of everything in Italy from 1 - 4pm (especially on a Sunday). Lying on the Adriatic Sea, it was a key port during the Austro-Hungarian empire before it was added as an Italian territory in 1918.

After we had lunch we walked down some streets, passing people sitting outside drinking their coffees and walking past families on an afternoon outing. We came to Piazza dell'Unita d'Italia, which is a big open square looking out to the sea. Large Austrian type buildings line the piazza, while children with their dogs play in the center. It seemed to be the focal point of the city... the eyes to the sea!

City Hall

We also passed a few churches on our walk:

San Nicoli dei Greci 

Santa Maria Maggiore

We left Trieste after a few hours and took a little detour to see a few more towns on the drive back to Venice. We stopped in Grado, Aquileia, and Palmanova. There wasn't too much going on in Grado (a beach town) and Aquileia so our visits there were very short. Palmanova is a citadel, and is famous for its fortress city plan in the shape of a star. Inside the walls the streets form a octagon with the center of it being a large piazza. Needless to say, the layout of this city is very different from other cities we've seen.

Large piazza

Cathedral

A wooden reindeer exhibition 

Me, hanging out in the piazza

A picture of what Palmanova looks from above.

We then drove to Venice to return the car and catch our flight. We had such an enjoyable time in Slovenia and during our afternoon in northeastern Italy. Slovenia isn't a country that was originally on our list of places to go to while living here, but we're so glad that we researched it and decided it was worth a visit. The charm of Lake Bled, the relaxed atmosphere of the capital city of Ljubljana, and the various types of terrain and natural beauty make Slovenia a terrific place to visit and unwind!