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| Spree River cruise |
The past 2.5 weeks are feeling like a total blur and I feel like we’ve been on the go non-stop….probably because we have. That’s what I love and wouldn’t have wanted it any other way. Three weeks ago, the dream of any (well, probably most) expats came true! After 14 months of being in Berlin, we had our first visitors! My mom, stepdad, brother, and his girlfriend (both just graduated from high school) all came to Berlin and stayed with us in our little apartment for 5 days. Yes, it was a little cramped with only one spare room to put a couple of guests in, one bathroom for 6 people, and 2 borrowed air mattresses, but we made it work. When in Europe, you can expect that most things are going to be smaller and more compact. But it’s all part of the experience, right?! *nervous laugh*
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| Berlin Wall Memorial near our apartment |
During their 5 days in Berlin, we saw the main attractions (Brandenburger Tor, Reichstag, the Berlin Wall, Holocaust Memorial, Checkpoint Charlie, the sight of Hilter’s bunker), but also went places that Case and I had yet to visit such as...
David Hasselhof "Museum" (more like a hallway): Absolutely ridiculous, but I found it on a website of lesser known things to do in Berlin, it was free, and located right down the street from our apartment.
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Spreepark: This amusement park was originally opened in 1969, but shut down in the early 2000's due to too much debt. Guided tours used to be offered, but since 2014, when the City of Berlin bought it, there haven't been any since
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| We were taking pictures through a fence, hence the crooked alignment |
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| Had lunch on the Insel der Junge at the Inselgarten
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Soviet War Memorial Treptow: This memorial was built to commemorate the 7,000 Soviet soldiers that died in the Battle of Berlin in April-May 1945.
Visited the Berliner Dom and climbed to the top for a beautiful panoramic view of Berlin
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| Vodka tasting! |
After my family's "tour" of Berlin, we picked up a rental car and made our (much longer than expected) journey to Krakow. Case and I have never driven in Poland before, so we had no idea what lied ahead...The moment we crossed the border from Germany into Poland, the road conditions went from great to awful. There were tolls and lane reductions due to construction that created hours of stand still congestion. The silver lining, I guess, is that there were a lot of rest stops and they were all clean with nice facilities. We eventually made it and had a great time exploring Krakow, visiting Schindler’s Factory and a day trip to Auschwitz-Birkenau.
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| Krakow, Poland |
The rest of their stay in Europe was a journey to Amsterdam with a few other stops along the way.
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| Bad Bentheim Castle, Germany |
First up: Bad Bentheim. This little German town is near the Germany/Netherlands border with pretty much on main attraction, Bad Bentheim Castle. My stepdad's last name is Benthem, so they think there might be a connection?
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| Bad Bentheim Castle, Germany |
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| Exploring the grounds of Bad Bentheim Castle |
Next up: Giethoorn. Giethoorn is a small Dutch town filled with canals, tourists and thatch-roofed homes. It really is a fairytale setting! Despite some rain, we strolled around in town, rode bikes along the canals and enjoyed Heineken, fries with mayo (yes, mayo), and bitterballen canal side.
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| Our canal side Airbnb on the left <3 |
Finally, after 2.5 weeks exploring other parts of Europe, we all made it to Amsterdam! To us, it's one of those cities that you can keep coming back to and it never gets old. The Airbnb we stayed in was about 30 minutes outside of Amsterdam. Due to us being there in the peak season and the price for staying in Amsterdam is typically high, we thought going into the country will be our best bet to find accommodations for our group of 6.
When we arrived, we weren’t quite sure about what the place was, how it came to be, or just why. Just look at the pictures below and you'll maybe see what I mean. We later found out from our host that her dad created this place after he retired as a hobby and to do something fun.
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| Meine schöne Mutter |
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| The Airbnb |
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| This is what I have to deal with when I travel with my family...gotta love 'em though... |
Saying goodbye is never fun. Even though we have (probably too much) experience with the distance from our family, it doesn't get easier. Case and I are so grateful for the time that we got to spend with them and all the new memories we now have. We're grateful that we got to host them in our apartment, share Berlin with them, and can't wait for them to return ;-) (and new visitors too!)
