Christmas Markets in Germany!

The first weekend in December we took a short, three day jaunt to the beautiful country of Germany to peruse their famous Christmas markets. As a lover of all things Christmas, I couldn't wait to kick off the season wandering through the charming Christmas stalls which sell everything from Gluwine (hot mulled wine-yummy, yummy!!!), spicy bratwursts, ornaments, scarfs, chestnuts roasting on an open fire :), and hand-made Christmas decorations. I couldn't resist picking up a nutcracker!

This was one of the most magical experiences! There was such a joyful and celebratory feeling in the air! I know it sounds cheesy, but it's true! I felt like a little kid on Christmas morning!

Frankfurt!

We flew into Frankurt and spent a few hours at their adorable market. At the first stall we stumbled across we enjoyed our first (of many!) bratwursts and were in heaven! So good!!! After a few hours we took a train to meet up with Rebecca, a friend of ours we met in Dublin. She lives in a tiny village in Germany right on the Rhine River. We had the privilege of staying at her Grandma, Gezela's house, who was a precious German woman who spoke absolutely no English! What a fun experience! We so desperately wanted to be able to communicate to her. Even with all the iPhone's help, the phrase we kept saying over and over again was "danke schoen"!!!

Frankfurt's Townsquare

Bratwursts cooking on an open fire!

Ross' first taste of bratwurst delightfulness!

Ross' first taste of gluwine... classic face which says, "Oh my word, amazing!"

My smile has turned crazy I'm so excited!

Stalls filled with German sweets and cookies

Beautiful handcrafted wood decorations

Kaub and Rudesheim

The next morning we went to church with Rebecca. She translated the whole service for us, bless her heart! She is a super star! Then she drove us down to Rudesheim to visit their well known Christmas market. Rebecca had no idea what she was getting herself into! As die hard Christmas market browsers, by the end of the day she was exhausted! Sorry Rebecca! :) Some of our favorite treats from this town were the delicious eggnog candied almonds and Rudesheim coffee (a tasty drink where they set their town's local brewed brandy on fire and pour coffee and cream over it, lastly they top it with cream...delish!).

A town on the way to Rudesheim

Another cute town on the drive

Castles along the Rhine... and we all know how obsessed I am with castles!

Favorite street in Rudesheim

And again

And again

And from the other direction

At the top of the street

Fun with Rebecca!

Charming buildings

Three silly elves... and of course Ross went straight to the one holding the book!

Simply love the buildings!

These illuminated star decorations filled the German windows

Nuts from Nub-Hutte :)

Rudesheim coffee

The twinkly lights at night

Mainz

The next morning we said, "Aufedersein!" (Thanks to Project Runway's Heidi Klum, I remembered that one without a bother!) to Rebecca and Gezela and took the train to Mainz, another town farther down along the Rhine River. This Christmas market had gorgeous Christmas lights strung over all the stalls, which thankfully we were able to see lit right before we had to leave. After many glasses of gluwine, more bratwurts, a nutella banana crepe, and much more Christmas shopping we made our way to the airport.

The train station in Mainz... right, why is it that there would never be a train station this beautiful in the U.S.?!

At the entrance to the town square in Mainz

LOVE the architecture!

Mainz town square covered in twinkly lights

This one's for you Dagmar :)

The many, many ornament stalls

The yummy sweets stalls

mmmm... my chocolate, banana crepe!

He is so excited about his last bratwurst of the trip he doesn't even notice the ketchup running down his hand :)

Nuckcracker nutties

Enjoying Gluwine in a cozy barrel

I met St. Nick!

Kiddies snuggled up for the cold

So glad the lights turned on before we left!

Saying our last good byes to the Christmas markets :(

Although it was a speedy trip, it was absolutely perfect! I just wish this could become an annual tradition! Unfortunately, flying from California to Germany for Christmas markets might be a bit of a stretch!

ITALY!

This past week we had the privilege to go to Italy! We traveled for one week along the west coast which was filled with plenty of amazing and terrifying adventures!

Milan!

We flew into Milan, and stayed one day in the bustling, high fashion city. We milled the streets admiring the incredible shopfronts and euro pop fashionistas :) The best stop of the day was the Duomo, a stunning site to behold with hundreds of spires reaching into the sky. Also, the place where St. Augustine was baptized, a point of great interest for Ross :)

The Duomo

Beautiful buildings

Shopping district

Beautiful storefronts

Covered shopping district next to the Duomo

Ross drooling over the Italian leather shoes all over 150 euros... the same brand of the ones he found in a thrift store in SD for $3!

MMMMMM! Our first gelato experience of the week!

Assisi!

And here is where the drama of the trip ensued... a story much better suited for an in person re-enactment, but unfortunately a written account will have to suffice. Our train journey from Milan to Assisi was about 5 hours and we were to be getting into the quiet town of Assisi about 12am. With our Interrail tickets in hand, we boarded the train. Upon finding our seats we realized that that we had accidentally reserved 1st class seats instead of 2nd class seats and would have to pay the difference in the cost of the tickets. Since we had spent so much already on travel, I asked Ross to find someone to see if there were any 2nd class seats available that we could switch to. Ross, being the wonderful husband that he is, leaves everything (including me) behind with our tickets in hand to inquire about the switch. He stepped off the train for literally 2 seconds, and right when he did the train doors closed behind him. As Ross realized this, he attempts to pry the doors open and is banging on the doors and screaming at the top of his lungs. I am hearing this from inside the train and then I feel the train start to move. As the train begins to leave the platform, Ross starts sprinting with the train banging on it for it to stop. At one point both of us are pounding on the glass looking at each other with complete and utter terror on our faces... truly a Hollywood moment. As the train pulls completely out of the station, leaving Ross on the platform without luggage or a passport, we are both in complete panic. I am freaking out to everyone in my car, where no one of course speaks English and everyone is staring at Ross having a complete meltdown in the terminal station. Cell phone communication was not functioning... To make a very long and traumatic story short, with the help of the train conductor on the train (who was contacted by a fellow passenger who came to my beckoning screams) and the customer service desk in the train station who Ross finally convinced to help, Ross was quickly put on a speedier train to meet up with me in Bologna, a town 2 1/2 hours away from Milan. When I pulled into Bologna and saw Ross standing on that platform, I was the happiest girl in the world. We honestly didn't care where the heck we were going as long as we were together! A terrifying way to start our holiday, but made the "togetherness" of the rest of it that much sweeter!!!!

So after a very long evening, we finally made it to Assisi, a charming ancient village with incredible history to match the magical feel of walking the streets. A highlight for sure was visiting the Basilica of Francis of Assisi, a famous pilgrimage site for Christians. Unfortunately, we only had a really short time here, but would love to come back for a longer stay.

Our Hotel: Hotel Hermitage

The Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi

Inside the Basilica

St. Francis' tomb

Misty morning

Stone buildings

Main square in Assisi

Capri

Off on another train ride we went (repeatedly uttering to each other, "Don't you dare get off this train without me!!!") to Naples where we caught a ferry to the Island of Capri. And what a relaxing two days we had! We arrived while it was still dark, so it was a glorious surprise and delight when we woke up to the sound of crashing waves and the sunrise glistening over the Mediterranean Sea! The view from our balcony was spectacular! The entire first day, we simply laid by the beach and swam in the BLUE water, something that truly delights Ross' heart! The towns of Capri and Anicapri were charming with their winding roads and shops. Our hotel was the absolute best part of the island, being a short 2 minute walk to one of the 3 beaches on the island. It was exactly what we needed after the crazy train ride incident! Before we left, we took a chair lift ride up to the top of the highest peak to get a 360 degree view of the island. Breathtaking!

Capri shops

The view we woke up to from bed :)

View from our balcony

To the right of our hotel

The sound of the ocean from our balcony

Hotel Weber Ambassador

View from our balcony

The AQUA water!

A dream to swim in!

Our own free blue grotto

View of Capri bay from Anicapri

The blue, blue water never ceases to amaze

Ready for dinner

The main square at night

Limoncello!!!!!! Tart, sweet, kickin' yumminess!

Chair lift to the top!

Sorrento!

With only a speedy 20 minute ferry ride, we were soon in Sorrento, a precious seaside town. Arriving by water at sunset was the perfect way to catch a first glimpse of this lovely town. As you pull into the port, stunning buildings dominate the cliff. The center square has a bustling feel to it as people and mopeds whizz by. This and Capri is also where Limoncello is from, a new found *favorite* lemon liquor of mine! So yummy and tangy! Gelato was a staple of our diet during this week, but Sorrento had some of the best! So many flavors to choose from!!! We had a fantastic hotel tucked up into the hills over looking all of Sorrento. That night we had the yummiest gorgonzola gnocchi and fresh ravioli. MMMM!

View of Sorrento from our ferry

A hotel on the Sorrento cliffs

Sorrento cliffs

View of Sorrento coast

Sorrento's Main Square

Our hotel: Hotel Prestige

All the yummy gelato flavors! I swear we didn't gain any weight!

Complimentary Limoncello is served after the meal :)

Pompeii!

From Sorrento, we took a day trip to the incredible city of Pompeii where we hired Sasha, an AWESOME guide! He was hilarious and such an Italian fashionista! He made our trip to Pompeii so memorable and informative. I would highly recommend him as a tour guide for anyone who wants history to come alive! His accent, Georgio Armani murse, Euro pop glasses, detest for the huge Asian tour groups, and zest for history made the 2 1/2 hours fly by!

Our awesome guide Sasha!

Plaster cast of man covering his nose

Beautifully preserved 2,000 year old Roman bath fountain

Pizzeria kitchen

Pompeii Sunset

Amalfi Coast-Positano!

So off to our last stop of the trip traveled by a hairpin road that curves along the mountainside to your left and the sea to your right. Positano! By far our FAVORITE city of the trip! We LOVE Positano! If you are looking for a charming, romantic Italian coastal town with tons of character... this is it!!!!! Oh my word...amazing! It was the perfect way to end the trip and we wished we could have been there an entire week! With colorful hotels and homes clustering the hill which comes down straight into the sea, and the tiny windy streets dotted with adorable shops and venders, there is just nothing like it! Our hotel room had a spectacular view of the sea and colorful hill. We arrived early enough in the day that we were able to relax for hours on the beach with the most beautiful view we have ever seen. The only thing that could have made it any better was a Pina Colada, but don't worry Ross took care of that! To end off our trip, we had one of the best meals... tomato cream gnocchi, calzone, local wine, limoncello and tiramisu. Oh my goodness I'm going to miss the yummy food!

Amalfi Coast Drive

Glorious!

Positano!

Charming narrow streets

Mopeds everywhere!

Loafers of every color!

Colorful buildings

Cathedral right on the beach

Yes, he made the moment that much more perfect with a pina :)

Relaxing on the beach

On the beach

View from our balcony

View from our balcony at night

Our last dinner

At our hotel right before our taxi ride home :(

The next morning we had a few hours to relax until the crazy travel day began... 1/2 hour taxi from Positano to Sorrento, 2 hour train to Naples, 1 hour train to Rome, 1 hour bus ride to the airport, 3 hour plane ride to Dublin, and lastly a mad dash through the airport to the Aircoach to make it just in the nick of time for the 40 minute bus ride home... After a long 12 hour travel day... we were back home safe with memories aplenty :) Oh Italy how we love you! Can't wait to go back!