Whew!!! It took many hours, but we did it and let's face it now that we are retired time is on our side. We are planning the trip of a lifetime and I'm glad to report that the most important aspects of the trip are confirmed.
1. We begin our vacation by flying to London and staying at a B&B near Buckingham Palace. This place was listed in 1000 places to go before you die book. Although it is now under new management that's ok. We do get a full English Breakfast. I'm eager to find out just what that is.
2. Take the Eurostar through the Chummel to Paris. We found a lovely hotel in the Montmarte area, which I understand to be the artistic side of Paris. It's filled with small cafes. Ooh La La. Should be heavenly to walk around there and try the pastries and baquettes.
3. From Gay Paree we begin our Eurorail journey to Munich. We'll arrive the day before the Opening Day of the Octoberfest. We hope to see the parade and the opening of the first keg. Oh there may be a beer or two drunk as well. : )
4. On to Innsbrock, Austria for one night. This is a lovely European village.
5. And moving on to Venice. We plan to take the water taxi while there and see it all.
6. Final stop before our Mediterranean cruise will be Rome.
7. And now our 13-day Mediterranean Holy Land Cruise to Israel, Turkey, Greece and back to Naples Italy before returning to Rome.
Oh my. I can't believe this is going to really happen. We've talked about this trip for 20 years.
Now the fun of planning what to do in each of our wonderful destinations.
More to come.
Saturday, June 18, 2011
Saturday, June 11, 2011
Riding the rails makes sense these days
Our rehearsal for our big European Eurorail trip was a success. We took the Amtrak train to Orlando, FL.
The down side - There was some confustion at the train station. Track 2, the north bound side, was handling the south bound trains and vica versa. Unfortunately, there was no clear communication of this change. Also, the train was late on arrival and again there was no announcement. When the train finally arrived the passengers had no idea which door to go to. There was a major lack of guidance.
Despite all of this, we loved the train ride.
1. Plenty of leg room and there are foot rests. The seat can go way back to allow for a nice long nap.
2. Only 2 seats together rather than 3 seats as on a plane. Loved this.
3. You can walk around, stretch your legs.
4. There's a dining car. We had lunch and my salad was fresh and delicious.
5. The price was right. When you consider the price of gas these days I feel like we got a bargain.
I don't remember ever in my adult traveling life arriving at my destination feeling more relaxed. No stress from a long drive or from manipulating your way through the airports.
I highly recommend traveling by train. As a traveling retiree time is not a factor. Why not take your time getting to your destination and take the time to enjoy each moment.
It's a shame that Amtrak doesn't promote train travel to retirees. There is a missed opportunity for them.
The down side - There was some confustion at the train station. Track 2, the north bound side, was handling the south bound trains and vica versa. Unfortunately, there was no clear communication of this change. Also, the train was late on arrival and again there was no announcement. When the train finally arrived the passengers had no idea which door to go to. There was a major lack of guidance.
Despite all of this, we loved the train ride.
1. Plenty of leg room and there are foot rests. The seat can go way back to allow for a nice long nap.
2. Only 2 seats together rather than 3 seats as on a plane. Loved this.
3. You can walk around, stretch your legs.
4. There's a dining car. We had lunch and my salad was fresh and delicious.
5. The price was right. When you consider the price of gas these days I feel like we got a bargain.
I don't remember ever in my adult traveling life arriving at my destination feeling more relaxed. No stress from a long drive or from manipulating your way through the airports.
I highly recommend traveling by train. As a traveling retiree time is not a factor. Why not take your time getting to your destination and take the time to enjoy each moment.
It's a shame that Amtrak doesn't promote train travel to retirees. There is a missed opportunity for them.
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Mini Rehearsal for the big European trip (BBMP)
Now that we are Retired we will finally be able to do what we love the most Travel, and lots of it, to places we've never been and places we love and want to return to. Eddie and I have planned a 4 week European Eurorail trip which will end with a 13-day Mediterranean Cruise. The theme of our trip is BBMP (Bed and Breakfast, Museum, Pub). We will begin with London, then Paris, Munich, Venice and on to Rome where we catch our cruise.
In order to prepare for this major trip we are taking an Amtrak trip to Orlando.
More to come.
In order to prepare for this major trip we are taking an Amtrak trip to Orlando.
More to come.
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