3 weeks, 3 countries, 2 couples, 2 Toddlers!

Let me start with a Thanks! to Jenny & Avish for getting married, for the third time, in Germany. That was what triggered our plan for a trip to Europe. Honestly, it was a lot of hard work planning for the trip. Though, we got help from a couple of our friends on what to do/ where to go, it wasn’t an easy task. There was too much information available and it was overwhelming.

We traveled in late May – early Jun which made it easy for us and Mother Nature extended her full support.

Day 1 – Singapore to Dubai to Germany. It was an Emirates A380 flight and needless to say, it was a comfortable journey. Entry into Germany was pretty easy with a Schengen Visa and a clear itinerary to show. 

From Frankfurt, we drove to Baden Baden via the expressway and it was a bit scenic but not all that great. We stayed for two nights in Holiday Inn which was a good, safe, budget hotel with clean rooms. Our first sightseeing was to Merkur. We took an almost 180 degree tram ride to the top of the hill. We were awestruck by the scenery once we reached the top. We could almost see the borders of Germany and Switzerland. It was a continuous lush-green mountain view.   

On the next day, we visited the Black Forest. Our first stop was at Lake Titisee. It was super-duper cold, even on a hot summer day.  Apparently, this lake freezes during winter and people ski on it. We drove on the Baden Baden - Black Forest High Road (B500) – Mummelsee – Kniebes – Wolfach – Gutach – Waldrich - Freiburg. Wow! Awesome I must say. This place completely blew me away. Everything you could imagine about Europe was there – green everywhere, mountains, cattle fields, farm houses, typical European style houses, streams and rivers.  

I never knew Germany was so beautiful. For every nature lover, this is a must visit. We have been on many long drives, but this one tops the list. Couple of activities you can do here are Sommer Roder Bahn and Freiburg ski cable ride.   

 Frieburg is the place to be for shoppers. And not to forget the Black Forest Cake. One cannot leave this town without trying it and also a Pretzel – it’s a must have in Germany. The next day we started our drive to Stuttgart and on the way, we visited a farm house – it was a nice picnic spot, especially for the kids. 

Stuttgart is a beautiful city with lots of vineyards. The city itself is shaped like a cup – as you travel up hill, you can have a good view of the entire city. There are a lots of good places to visit in every country / city we go to. We limited it to visiting the Zoo (especially for the kids), Old castle - Altes Schloss (it's a huge open space surrounded by beautiful architecture) and Mercedes-Benz Museum. 

Also, we enjoyed being a guest at the German wedding. 

Day 6 – Our next stop was Koln. The train journey from Stuttgart to Koln was one of the most scenic with the tracks running almost parallel to the Rhein River. Koln is my most favorite of all the places we visited. The Rhein River and the promenade were amazing. What a feeling to stand in a place that has so much of historical significance.

The next best thing was the Cathedral – wow! It had a soul and a meaning to it. The dark shade of the building, the height of it, the wooing sound around it, that entrance arena, the hallway - everything was trying to convey something to mankind. The chills it brings in when you look at the structure – the tip of it almost in the clouds. It’s a feeling, hard to explain. Just stand there and relish. We also visited the Lindt Chocolate factory and sat in the river cruise for lunch. Then we took a city tour strolling through the streets. Apparently, this city was completely washed off the map during WWII and was re-built after that. Appreciate what Germans have done to this city.

Then, we waved good bye to Germany and started our train journey to Amsterdam. 

Our first tour was to Zaanse Schans and to Volendam – it’s a picturesque village. Canals, widespread greenery, cattle fields, and windmills. We took a tour of the farm houses, and technicalities behind a windmill. Our next stop was to a Cheese Factory. You don’t get to see how cheese is made for real but a theoretical walk through and then you can taste a variety of available cheeses. It was yummy and smelly! Fresh cheese is a must buy here. Then we took a ferry ride to a fishing village named, Marken. While waiting for the Ferry, we realized that we could actually view the North Sea from there. During the mid1900s the Dutch built dikes to stop the sea from getting onto the lands and to control floods. Another important fact – Holland is the lowest lying land mass in the world. It is actually below the sea level. Hence the name Netherlands. That is also the reason why, the Dutch built the Canal system to let the water flow in but not flood the country. Holland is also one of the first and largest manufacturers of wooden shoes - so we made a visit to one of the factories and were able to witness how a shoe is made.

On the second day we visited The Hague, which is more of a political walk through of Dutch ministry and the history of their kingdom. Flame of Peace outside the Supreme Court was inspiring. Our next stop was to Maduro Dam. If you have kids or if there is a child in you, this is a must see! Very interesting to see a miniature country. 

 

The third day was more of walking through the city and appreciating Amsterdam. Yes! Being safe and cautious is very important. Take care. Hop On Hop Off boat and bus tour was very easy and convenient. We visited the Gassan Diamond factory, Von Gogh Museum, and Jewish museum. Honestly, walking though the city fulfilled my heart’s desire. It was very scenic with canals running everywhere, the weather was perfect, history spill all over yet you can feel the modernism. It is best walking / cycling around in this place.

Though we had some troubles checking into a good hotel, the rest of the trip was awesome. My overall feeling when leaving the Netherlands is that, this place is underrated and mis-perceived. It is one of the most beautiful countries in Europe. And as the saying goes, we did see more sheep than men in Holland!

It was lot of stress when we left Amsterdam for Switzerland. The stress was all about being safe and not getting mugged. We were fortunate and safely boarded the overnight train (City Night Line) with a sigh of relief. May be this was not a wise choice, though we saved close to 1000$ per family. The journey was a bit tiring.

We reached Zurich, locked our baggage in the cloak room and within two hours, we left for Lucerne. The train journey from Zurich to Lucerne was very scenic and so relaxing after a tiresome journey.

Later in the afternoon, we visited Mt. Pilatus. The train ride up the mountain was thrilling, followed by cable car rides and view from the top was awesome. We expected it to be much colder but it wasn’t. Let's blame it on the population, constructions and real estate slowly climbing up the mount. Later in the evening, we walked around the Lucerne Lake, hopping on bus rides and tram rides. It was more than relaxing. And the view – was just like out of a fairy tale. Lake in the center, surrounded by mountains, lovely breeze and people lazing around.   

The next day was our trip to Mt. Titlis. It was one of my most anticipated spots as I had read a lot and so many nice reviews about it. It was a train ride followed by a bus ride, then a couple of cable car rides and then the Rotair. It was a bit too many and tiring especially with large crowds everywhere. Starting your trip early in the day is the best option to beat the crowd but touching and playing in the snow made my day (p.s. I am a south Indian living in the tropical country, Singapore!!!) . We also walked inside an Ice cave and enjoyed the walk on the hanging bridge (connecting two icy cliffs). Rotair experience is a must feel. Locomotive engineering at its best. They have reached places that are hard to even view and they built this decades ago. I bow to their brilliance.

Day 14, we left the lake city Lucerne for Interlaken. Intentionally, to avoid the crowd, we stayed in interior parts of Interlaken close to Interlaken West Station. It was a calm, serene, and beautiful town. Land masses surrounded by lakes and mountains – that’s what is Interlaken. Should I say anything more? It was a treat to our eyes when we did the Paragliding. One of my best experiences in adventure sports. We made a day trip to James Bond peak – the revolving restaurant atop the snowy mountain was a superb experience. And of course playing in the snow and the views were mind blowing. Later in the evening we stopped for a sunset view at Harder Kulm. We also made a short visit to Grindelwald. It was a terrific spot (maybe we should have stayed here). Again it had views of snowy mountains, green mountains, cattle fields and nature at its best. One thing we got tired of was the cable car rides. It was a bit too many hop on and hop offs. 

Day 16 we made a short one night stay at Zermatt. Again, a very beautiful town. It’s a town with no pollution – Yes! No cars or buses, only electric autos. This place, instantly adopts you and makes you feel at home. We roamed around the streets of Zermatt relishing the rivers, mountains, Swiss heritage and the most stunning, Matterhorn. It was wow! We could view this highest peak from so close – very beautiful. 

Next day, we headed to Chur via Glacier Express. Yeah! We were told that it was not such a great one but we had no other choice to reach Zurich (unless we took the same route back). It was a royal treat inside the train with food served hot and beverages. There were bits and pieces of scenic views and we did cross the glaciers. Late winter would be a better time to try the Glacier express than in summer. Later in the evening we reached Zurich. I must say, I loved this city. It was beautiful, scenic, and culturally rich yet you can feel the modern city. Lots of shopping options, and beautiful lake views. We took an evening walk around the lake. It was relaxing and enjoyable. 

Our last outing was to Rhine falls. By height, it was very short compared to the ‘typical’ water falls but breadth wise, it was massive. It is so lovely to see the water gushing through with such rage and power, so close. We took two boat rides, one which took us very close to the foot of the falls and the other where we can climb atop a small hill – which is actually between two waterfalls. You feel as if you are part of the water falls. Very thrilling and adventurous trip.

The things I loved the most – great connectivity by trains / buses / trams. I enjoyed every bit of travel that we did inside a city/town. Though not a great feeling but yes, there was no time for shopping. Indeed, I liked the fact that we were busy roaming around, seeing places and enjoying. I enjoyed our simple struggles in deciphering the foreign languages and trying to communicate. It was fun. I loved the abundant culture and history that every place embraced. I loved the green carpet that surrounded me everywhere we went. I loved the technology advancements these countries have – be it the railways or IT or civil engineering – I was literally awestruck, more so because my home country couldn’t do it for so many years. I loved the fact that every place is environment friendly – Clean and Green. Until then, I read it in papers but these 3 weeks I saw it, I lived in it and I loved it.

I purposely named this article as Euro Trip One because I am not going to stop visiting Europe. Already, there are plans in the making for our next trip(s). In fact, I wouldn’t mind moving to Europe. What better than living close to the nature! Now, that’s a hint to my dear husband!