June 12: Leave the country!!!
Depart Orlando International Airport at 7pm
June 13: Arrive in Amsterdam
Mike's Bike Tour (Amsterdam City Bike Tour)
Mike's guides offer a historical introduction to Amsterdam as you check out the sights and ride around in the heart of the city.
June 14: Amsterdam continued...
Anne Frank House
The Anne Frank House on the Prinsengracht in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, is a museum dedicated to Jewish wartime diarist Anne Frank, who hid from Nazi persecution with her family and four other people in hidden rooms at the rear of the building. As well as the preservation of the hiding place — known in Dutch as the Achterhuis — and an exhibition on the life and times of Anne Frank, the museum acts as an exhibition space to highlight all forms of persecution and discrimination.
Madame Tussaud
A popular tourist attraction full of famous wax figures.
Van Gogh Museum
This museum contains the largest collection of Van Gogh paintings in the world!
June 15: Amsterdam/Koln
We will spend a half day in Amsterdam, go grab our rental car (TBA), and head over to Koln, Germany.
Oh yes, and of course we will be partaking in the Kölsch Drinking Tour.
June 16: Koln
Kölner Dom (English: Cologne Cathedral)
This Roman Catholic church is one of the world's largest churches and the largest Gothic church in Northern Europe. It was the tallest structure in the world, until the completion of the Washington Monument. The cathedral is a World Heritage Site, one of the best-known architectural monuments in Germany, and Cologne's most famous landmark.
Museum Ludwig
This museum houses a collection of modern art. Featured artists include Josef Haubrich, Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, and one of the largest Picasso collections in Europe.
Wallraf-Richartz Museum
Host to an art gallery with a collection of fine art from the medieval period to the early twentieth century.
Schokoladenmuseum
Chocolate museum!!! Need I say more? (And yes this was my idea.)
And at some point we will be visiting a German bakery with interesting locals like this one...
Nevermind, it's just Chris...ten years ago.
June 17: Koln/Freiburg
According to Chris, we have to wake up early. But that's okay because we will be taking the scenic Rhine River Cruise.
And then we will be headed on to Freiburg (not to be confused with Freiberg).
June 18: Freiburg
Freiburger Münster
Another cathedral! This one is cool because it was the only Gothic church in Germany to be completed in the Middle Ages, and has survived since then. It's original construction date was 1200!
We will also be taking a drive to the Black Forest, a wooded mountain range in southwestern Germany.
June 19: Freiburg
We will be doing a day trip to the city of Basel. They have a pretty amazing zoo as well as an art museum. We will also be doing a winery tour(yea!!). We will be staying the night at Gasthof which is located near to Basel.
June 20: Interlaken
Another early morning (I am really glad this wasn't our honeymoon!).
We will drive to Switzerland and view the scenic area of Interlaken. If you have never been there here's just a glimpse of what it looks like:
After we are done sightseeing we will spend the night in Lucerne.
June 21: Lucerne
Lucerne is one of the more populous cities in Switzerland and a huge tourist attraction due to it's location. Here are just a few of the sights we will be taking in.
Kapellbrücke (Chapel Bridge)
A long bridge crossing the Reuss River. It is the oldest wooden covered bridge in Europe and the most photographed monument in the country.
Verkehrshaus der Schweiz (Swiss Transport Museum)
The most comprehensive traffic museum in Europe including a 3-D theatre, a planetarium, and a Hans Erni Museum.
Glacier Gardens
Contains a park and a museum built around a glacial pothole that has survived since the Ice Age.
Also, at Glacier Gardens we will visit the Lion Monument.
This memorial commemorates the Swiss Guards who were massacred in 1792 during the French Revolution when revolutionaries stormed the Tuileries Palace in Paris, France. Mark Twain praised the sculpture of a mortally-wounded lion as "the most mournful and moving piece of stone in the world." And I have to say I agree.
June 22: Day Trip to Lugano and St. Gotthard Pass
Gotthard Pass is a high mountain pass with tunnels allowing access through the pass.
We are also going to visit Lugano, a town which borders Italy and is heavily influenced by Italian culture. And did I mention it's breathtaking?
June 23: Salzburg
I have been looking forward to this part of the trip for a long time. Growing up with piano lessons I became a huge fan of Mozart, and since my parents raised me right, I have seen the Sound of Music at least 100 times. So I am thrilled to be going to the birthplace of Mozart and where so much history took place, as well as recognizing the sights from one of my favorite childhood movies. (You know I'm going to be on a bike re-living the Do-Re-Mi scene...okay maybe not.)
Anway.....here's what I plan on, I mean, we plan on doing.
Mozart's Birthplace
It's just one of those things I've got to do to say I've been there.
Getreidegasse
a.k.a. Grain Lane; a busy shopping district in the Old-Town section. Kind of reminds me of Hogsmeade...
Mirabell Palace and Gardens
The famous gardens with the Old Town Salzburg in the background.
I have the sudden urge to run up the stairs and hit a really high note.
Salzburger Dom
A 17th century Baroque cathedral- also the site of Mozart's baptism.
Festung Hohensalzburg
We are going to see a castle!
and finally...
The Sound of Music Tour
Just kidding...Chris would never let me.
Onward to Munich!
June 24: Munich
Our first day here, and for some reason we have nothing listed on our timeline. Hmmm...I will have to check on that.
June 25: Munich
Get schnockered at the Hofbrauhaus. And yes that is our only plan for the day. Not kidding.
June 26: Munich
Here comes are attempt to hit up all the touristy sites in a day.
Neues Rathaus (The New Town Hall)
It hosts the city government including the city council, offices of the mayors, and part of the administration.
Hofgarten (Court Garden)
Garden located in the center of Munich. Also cited in the T.S. Elliot poem The Waste Land.
The Englischer Garten (English Garden)
One of the world's largest parks, larger than New York City's Central Park.
My brother Trip's picture from when he was there in the fall. Gotta love those autumn colors.
BMW Headquarters
This may or may not happen due to pricing and crowds, but I am keeping it open as an option.
Olympia Park
The Olympic Park constructed for the 1972 Summer Olympics. Also hosting the Olympic village where the Munich massacre took place.
Nymphenburg Palace
(i.e. Nymph's Castle)
A Baroque palace constructed as the main summer residence for Bavarian rulers.
Frauenkirche
(full name Dom zu unserer lieben Frau, "Cathedral of Our Dear Lady")
It is a landmark and is considered a symbol of the Bavarian State Capital.
Munich Residenz
The former royal palace of the Bavarian monarchs located in the central part of Munich. It is the largest city palace in all of Germany.
Alte Pinakothek
It is one of the oldest galleries in the world and houses one of the most famous collections of old master paintings.
Featured artists : Raffael, Da Vinci, Rembrandt van Rijn, and El Greco
Asamkirche
(English: Asam Church) The Asamkirche is one of the most maginificent achievements of Bavarian late Baroque architecture or rococo. I wonder if they do weddings.
June 27: Fly back home to Orlando
Oh boy...
So this is our tentative plan as of now. I am open to suggestions as far as other places to go. Especially that day in Munich where we don't have anything planned.
I will keep you updated as we book hotels and figure out which car we are going to be driving to all these cool places.
Auf Wiedersehen
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