We'll try and update as we go today, so far, very uneventful...but, based on past history, that will change!

written by  corncobb on November 19, 2008 from Colorado Springs, United States
from the travel blog: European Vacation 2008
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...

Lots of activity for a Wednesday night though...we leave for London in about an hour and a half, eight hour flight. Hopefully, we'll sleep...otherwise, Liz and Kelly will be grumpy.

Liz and Kelly just bought a battery charged ipod charger, that will come in handy. And, they bought a tip that will work with the iphone. Never let it be said that Liz isn't a good shopper.

Next update will probably come from the Chunnel, traveling from London to Paris... assuming we can get internet access underneath the English Channel! Cheerio!

written by  corncobb on November 19, 2008 from Chicago, United States
from the travel blog: European Vacation 2008
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...

This train station is nicer than any airport I've seen in the US...we're still getting along, although I just realized we're working on 24 hours between showers...hmmm.

OK, we're about to board the train, back in touch later...

written by  corncobb on November 20, 2008 from London, United Kingdom
from the travel blog: European Vacation 2008
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...

Just had a wonderful breakfast downstairs, the owners of the Hotel Valadon (Victor and Maria) are delightful people. They've advised us to do the trip up the Eifel Tower this morning while it's raining...less tourists to navigate through, so that's what we'll do. We're waiting for Stuart to arrive, he should be here by 11am, then we'll head out.

We'll begin posting photos tonight...we have a full day, so we should have a good many to show you...

written by  corncobb on November 21, 2008 from Paris, France
from the travel blog: European Vacation 2008
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...

We spent a few hours at the Louvre...I think you could spend a few days there and not see enough...but we had a wonderful time, saw some incredible art. We had lunch closeby (Stuart had the largest beer I've ever seen), then proceeded to Notre Dame...again, quite impressive, especially since it's been there since the 12th century.

Next to the Champs-Elysees...I know, we're very touristy, but we're only here two and one half days. Very much like Park Avenue in New York, although you can feel the history of the street. And the Arc de Triomphe was spectacular.

Walked back to the hotel from there, we were briefly lost, a couple of times, but made it home safely. Tonight, we're dining at Chez Georges, Ina Garten's (the Barefoot Contessa) favorite restaurant...can't wait.

Everybody is well, Stu's hair is long...Liz likes it, I'll reserve comment. We'll try and get todays photos on the blog tomorrow...Until then.

written by  corncobb on November 21, 2008 from Paris, France
from the travel blog: European Vacation 2008
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...

We also traveled to the antique district in northern paris...again, quite a site! At lunch, we were treated to two old women singing along with the piano and accordian players. Our little taste of paris culture.

We visited the Layfayette Galleries last night, their holiday windows are a tourist attraction...lots of animation, puppets, etc. We also strolled around the Paris Opera, a spectacular building.

written by  corncobb on November 22, 2008 from Paris, France
from the travel blog: European Vacation 2008
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...

We didn't feel like we got enough time in Paris, but we're probably going to feel that way about all of our stops...we're visiting 5 cities in 13 days, so I know we can't do all of them justice. Nonetheless, we really enjoyed Paris, I know I liked it more than I thought I would. The food was fantastic, and the people were very nice...

We'll be in Amsterdam in a couple of hours, I'm hopeful to get all the Paris photos downloaded tonight. We'll be back in touch tomorrow.

written by  corncobb on November 23, 2008 from Amsterdam, Netherlands
from the travel blog: European Vacation 2008
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...

Then,we stopped for lunch, and that's where the excitement really started.

After ordering, Jerry went to the bathroom. When he returned and pulled out the chair, he startled a cat, who promptly bit and clawed, thankfully only at his jeans! It gave all in the restaurant a start, and Jerry swears it was a bobcat or mountain lion, but all is well, and everyone has their limbs.

We visited the red light district, did some shopping and had a great time riding the canal bus throughout the city. This was our only full day here, and we made the most of it, we had a lot of fun.

We'll do a little more exploring tomorrow, then its on to Maastricht to see Stu and his place of study (?). We'll be back in touch tomorrow.

written by  corncobb on November 24, 2008 from Amsterdam, Netherlands
from the travel blog: European Vacation 2008
Send a Compliment

---

1 comment...

Tomorrow, we'll visit Stuart's school, and we're doing a walking tour of Maastricht, so we'll have lots more to talk about.

written by  corncobb on November 25, 2008 from Maastricht, Netherlands
from the travel blog: European Vacation 2008
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...

Then, the shopping...this city has, by far, the best shopping I've ever seen. And, we saw it all. And, even though we visited every shoe store (there are hundreds), Liz didn't find any boots she loved, although I can tell you, she tried. Still, the shopping was impressive. Their local market was today, and many of these villagers must sew...probably 20% of the booths were selling fabric, notions, etc.

Had a great dinner tonight at a local seafood spot...Stu invited his friend Shey Wiley, we had a blast. We're leaving in the morning for Brussels, we'll give everyone a shout from there...for now, Happy Thanksgiving!

written by  corncobb on November 26, 2008 from Maastricht, Netherlands
from the travel blog: European Vacation 2008
Send a Compliment

---

1 comment...