Oktoberfest!!

Time for some grown up time =) Allan and I, and about 18 other people from our base, snuck away for 4 days to go to the one and only, original Oktoberfest in Munich. We had an absolute blast and I would encourage everyone, especially the beer drinkers, to go sometime. It was so much fun! I didn't realize how big it was. There are 6 huge beer tents (and a handful of smaller ones) that each hold 6,000 people and then a wine tent that holds probably 4,000 and then there is a carnival and a big livestock show. We went Tuesday through Friday last week and even during the week it was packed. I can't imagine what it would be like on the weekends.

From Wikipedia:
Oktoberfestbiers are the beers that have been served at the event in Munich since 1818, and are supplied by 6 breweries known as the Big Six: Spaten, Löwenbräu, Augustiner, Hofbräu, Paulaner and Hacker-Pschorr. The original "Oktoberfest" occurred in Munich, on October 12, 1810. Since its beginnings the Oktoberfest has thus been canceled 24 times due to war, disease and other emergencies. It was also estimated that approximently 6 milllion people visit Okoberfest. Needless to say, it was our most fun trip!


Allan and I on the first night at the Hofbräu Haus




Allan had a little too much fun the night before. This was on the train the next morning going back to the fairgrounds.


Allan in front of the Hofbräu Tent


The first beer at the Houfbräu tent


My good friend Sarah and I posing with an old man. I wish that you could see his whole outfit. Most of the Germans dress in the traditional garb complete with lederhosen!


Some more guys in their outfits


Allan with the pretzel girl


Allan and Adam prosting


The Spatenbräu tent


It is amazing how many glasses of beers the ladies can carry. They move so fast, it is hard to get a good picture.


Allan and I in front of the statue "Bavaria." She is there to watch over the fairgrounds. For a nominal fee you can climb up inside of the statue...so I couldn't resist.


A picture taken from the top of the statue.


The big fountain in the middle of Munich. Yes we did do a little bit of sightseeing ;)

Last but not least...what would a trip to Munich be without visiting the Marienplatz with its Glockenspiel.

Paris

I drove Chase, Lauren, and my friend Felicia on a quick trip to Paris. We went the morning after we got back from Athens. We drove into Paris and then visited the Eiffel tower and the Louvre by night. We also drove the round-a-bout in front of the Arc de Triumph, which I didn't realize was a round-a-bout until we were in the middle of it. It was a little scary as there are no lines in the road and people just drive around like crazies ;) We then went back to the tower as it was right by our hotel for some night time shots. The next morning we went to Notre Dame and then back to the Louve to see the infamous Mona Lisa and La Venus de Milo sculptor. I didn't even bring my camera into the Louve b/c I figured that there would be no picture taking in the museum, but to my disappointment (and amazement) they do allow photos inside the museum. After our trip to the Louvre we headed back home and ended up getting very lost in Paris. What is a 5 hour drive ended up taking us 8 hours! Yuck! Here are some pictures from our trip.

Athens

The Greek philosopher Socrates once said, “if you have some great friends that are willing to watch your two sassy boys, you should probably go on a vacation without the kids.” Well, that can’t be confirmed, but our good friends Adam and Sarah were willing to do just that. They babysat the boys for 4 days while we all went to Greece.

When we got to the airport we found out that our flight was cancelled at 11:00am, so, we had to wait until 7:50pm…8:15pm…9:00pm…9:45pm to finally leave the Frankfurt airport. It wasn’t fun, but we found unique ways to spend €120 in refreshment vouchers from the airline. And yes, we used every cent.


Even after 12 hours at the airport we still love each other. Maybe we were so sweet because of the ridiculous amounts of candy and pastries we consumed.


Kristen and Chase’s Great-Great Aunt Irene lives in Athens, and was such a great host to us. She opened her house to us and actually stayed with her daughter so we would have enough room.



Our first day there, Irene took us to a museum that had a lot of interesting artifacts of Greek history from ancient times up to the present.



This is the first king’s palace after Greece attained its independence from the Turks.



The Mediterranean Sea was only a 5 minute walk from Irene’s house.



The next day, Irene’s daughter Maria (Kristen and Chase's 3rd or 4th cousin??) took us to the Acropolis. Most old Greek cities had an acropolis (the city center at the highest point), but the word is mostly associated with the one in Athens.



Kristen, Lauren, Chase, and Maria pose atop the Acropolis with a view of Athens behind them.



A beautifully preserved temple shows the contrast between the old and new Athens.




Here is the rock that the Apostle Paul stood on to deliver his message of Christ to the Greek people.



The Parthenon, one of ancient Greece’s most prominent structures stands solemnly at the peak of the Acropolis.



Our last night there, Maria took us to a restaurant on the Sea. Right behind us is the water…and I mean Right behind us; there is no window separating the dining area from the marina.

Nürburgring

On Labor day we all took a trip to Nürburgring to see the famous race track. We could have taken a lap around the 20.8km north loop…but I don’t think our van would have made it. The Nürburgring, known as simply "the Ring" by enthusiasts, is a motorsport race track in Nürburg, Germany. It was built in the 1920s around the village and medieval castle of Nürburg in the Eiffel.  It was a beautiful day until we arrived…then the temperature dropped about 15 degrees. Despite the weather (we didn’t even think to bring jackets), it was a fun day…here are a few pictures from our day at the track. Nürburg castle ruins from which the town and racetrack get its name. We signed up for the tour and got to see the infield of the Grand Prix circuit. The day we were there it was just locals in some Porsches, Lotus’, etc. cruisin’ around the track. For about 20 Euro you can drive your own car around the track, but we didn't think that the mini-van would be able to keep up =)



The next Michael Schumacher? Matthew and Zachary pose as racecar drivers outside of the gift shop



The winning team of Sell racing.

Burg Eltz (aka Eltz Castle) and Cochem Fireworks

On Sunday we went to show Chase and Lauren the Eltz Castle. The Eltz Castle, dating back to 1157, is one of only a few castles that wasn’t destroyed by the French during wars with Germany. The castle is still owned by the Lords and Counts of Eltz. We have seen it once before, but it is such an impressive sight we decided to go again. Their website has more information for those interested. http://www.burg-eltz.de/e_index.html




Later that night we went to see the “Mosel in Flames” fireworks display. It was again an awesome sight. The big fireworks are launched from the Cochem castle and the smaller ones are launched from a barge in the middle of the Mosel river.

Manderscheider Burgfest (aka Medieval Times at the Manderscheid Castles)

An annual tradition for us is to see the Medieval festival in Manderscheid. It is comparable to a renaissance fair in the US. The role playing may not be as good, but it takes place in the courtyards of real castles. Here is the lower Manderscheid Castle which was built in the late 1100’s



The upper Manderscheid Castle, first mentioned in 973, is one of the oldest castles in this region.



Hopefully they don’t run off and join the circus. Here are some clips of Matthew and Zachary tight rope walking…with a little assistance of course.





Matthew and Zachary insisted on using some piggy bank funds to purchase some wooden swords. Zachary sees a weakness in Matthew’s stance and goes for the victory. Of course that is about the time daddy stepped in to call it a draw. It turns out children don’t understand “swing it softly so nobody gets hurt.”