Munich & Austria

At the beginning of this month Ross and I went away to Munich and Austria to celebrate our six year anniversary.

There were a few things planned on this holiday that I had been looking forward to for years... visiting the castle of all castles, Neuschwanstein Castle and frolicking in the green hills of Austria.  I must say that both expectations were exceeded.  We arrived in Munich early in the morning and had the whole first day to tour around the great city.  Being the main area where Hitler rose to power, it was full of fascinating history. We took a free walking tour through a great company called Sandeman's, the same company we had used in Edinburgh.  Throughout the tour we enjoyed walking through the pedestrian filled squares, beer gardens, farmer's markets, and places of historical significance in the events leading up to and during WW2.  We ended the night eating an authentic German meal at the Augustiner Beer Garden, a great place to try a local pint and delicious food.  We then took a fresh baguette, gruyere cheese & strawberries from the farmer's market back to the hotel for dessert. Yummy!

Beautiful yellow clock tower

The church next to the main square Hitler addressed the SS

A speech given by Hitler was made between these two lions... Maybe we should have been doing a frowny face in this pic

Busy town square- Hofbrauhaus on the left

Inside the Hofbrauhaus

Smelly, yummy cheese at the farmer's market!

Fresh fruit and veg

Dinner at Augustiner's Beer Garden...yum!

Fresh pretzels and bratwursts

The next day we hopped on a tour bus for our long awaited castle tour!!!  King Ludwig II had four castles/palaces built during his life time, two of which we were able to see on this tour.  We first stopped at Linderhof Palace where King Ludwig lived in solitude for the last 8 years of his life.  It was a gorgeous palace tucked away in the Bavarian countryside.  The inside is unbelievable!  From floor to ceiling in every room the walls are covered in gold.  It is the most gaudy and overwhelming decor, but fun to look at!  

Wild flowers in Bavaria

Linderhof- King Ludwig's Palace

View from the front of the palace

View of the garden and mountains from behind the palace

Simply stunning!

We then hopped back on the bus and stopped in a cute little village where men and women were decked out in their lederhosen and dirndls and the homes were covered in hand painted murals.  

Our stop along the tour in Oberammergan, where we bought our Christmas ornament

Beautifully muraled buildings

Men in their lederhosen enjoying the sun 

We then headed back on the bus for the drive to the ultimate of ultimate castles----Neuschwanstein!!!!!!!  This is the castle which inspired Disney.  As you drive into the town down below, the castle is nestled away up in the hills.  We hiked 45 minutes up the mountain with great anticipation!  Before our tour of the inside we were able to enjoy the best view of the castle from the bridge across the ravine.   I can't even put into words how amazing it was, but I think the pictures speak for themselves!  We then toured the inside, which wasn't nearly as impressive as the outside (because King Ludwig had died before it was completed), but still very worthwhile going into.

Charming town at the foot of the mountains below Neuschwanstein

Ummmm..... WOW!

The breathtaking beauty of Neuschwanstein 

View of the bridge from the castle

View hiking back down the mountain of the surrounding Bavarian countryside... no wonder King Ludwig wanted his castle here!

Ice cream after touring the castle... my kind of day!

The third day of our trip we picked up our rental car and stopped at Dachau Concentration Camp, a very sobering and informative trip - a must see.

30 rows of barracks where the prisoners slept

Crematorium 

We then started the 2 hour drive south to the valley of Zillertal, Austria where we were staying the next four nights.

  As we had booked this hotel deal through Groupon, we were a bit skeptical as to what we would find once we got there, but it surpassed our expectations and ended up being an amazing deal!  Zillertal, which is located in the Tyrol area of Austria in the heart of the Austrian Alps, is known for its unbelievable beauty, and it is well deserving of this!  It is truly one of the most beautiful places!  Our hotel, being in the valley, was surrounded on all sides by bright green, snow-capped mountains.  Stunning!!!  

In Zillertal Valley and almost to our hotel... getting excited!

Cows!

If I were a cow, I'd want to graze here too!

Typical style buildings we saw along the way

Our hotel was fabulous!!!!  We would go back in a heartbeat!  

We were just a little excited about seeing how dang cute it was!

I immediately took a walk around and took a few snap shots of the grounds.

Gutshof Zillertal Hotel

Bedroom and balcony view

And the first thing I did was crack open a Toblerone and I enjoyed the scenery!

Then I read a book with a glass of wine... I could get used to this!

The four days we were there, it was drizzly and raining off and on, but fortunately our hotel had a great spa area that we made great use of!  At one point as we laid out in the glass enclosed pool area and watched a thunder and lightning storm.  It was a perfectly restful trip filled with reading, the steam bath and sauna, massages, and good food. 

Our second room

Creepy eyes looking at us!!  We still aren't too sure what they're about

We sure sat in these lounge chairs a lot... quite the view!

Happy Anniversary!

Favorite memories from the past 6 years inside each balloon

Ready to enjoy the spa!

One of the days we went to Swarovski Crystal Factory, which was a bit of a flop except for the pretty pen I bought :)  We were expecting to walk through the factory where the crystals are made, but it was a modern art museum where Swarovski crystals were used in their designs.  Random!!!!  On the wall as you left we noticed that it was a self-proclaimed 8th wonder of the world... don't be fooled! hee hee

Outside Swarovski Crystal Factory... about the only cool thing to see there 

Every girl needs a sparkly pen!

Thankfully, our last full day, the rain let up long enough to take a few different hikes in the surrounding mountains.  And my frolicking dreams, first formed by watching the Sound of Music, were fulfilled :) There is something about being surrounded by raw beauty that refreshes the soul and makes you want to sing!  I don't blame Julia Andrews!

Driving to find a hiking trail

Waterfall

View during our first hike

Ooops!  That was an electric fence! It kept out cattle... it kept out the Inmans!

Along the drive

The view at the top of our second hike... down below us in the valley is where our hotel was located

During our entire trip we kept stopping by a roller coaster that was built into the side of the mountain near our hotel.  Due to the rain, it had been closed all four days.  The day we left, the sun was shining so we thought we'd try one last time to ride the coaster--- it was finally open!  It was great fun and the perfect way to end our trip!

Coaster!

Going up the track!

Steam train

 As we got home, we turned to each other and both expressed how the entire week felt like a dream.  The beauty that our eyes had taken in during those 7 days seemed almost too good to be true.  I must say, it was the perfect way to celebrate the six wonderful years we've been married.  Happy Anniversary!

Picture proof that it wasn't a dream :)

Our Surprise Trip to Minnesota

Since being in Ireland, Ross and I have had the chance to see our friends and family in San Diego many times, but we haven't seen some of our closest friends, Julie and Dustin, who live in Minnesota, for four years! Not only this, but they have had two babies in that time frame who we hadn't been able to meet. We were soooo missing the precious Gott family so Ross and I devised a sneaky plan with Dustin to shock the socks off of Julie for her 30th birthday. With two weeks off for Easter Break, we thought it would be the perfect time to make our dreams a reality. Since January, we have been scheming with Dustin to come up with the perfect surprise for Julie... and if I must say so myself, we did an AMAZING job keeping the secret and with its execution!

So on Tuesday, April 3rd we boarded the plane with a very sneaky package in hand, complete with authentic postage, customs declaration, and the perfect crinkled international package look. That evening Dustin told Julie he was "watching a game" with the boys, but really came and picked us up from the airport instead. As we approached the house, I was SOOO nervous! Questions like, "Does she know?" "Did she see an email?" "Did she suspect something when Dustin started vacumming today?" (Sorry I had to throw that one in there Dustin!) We slipped out of the car and quietly tip-toed to the front porch behind a pillar. Crouching in the dark on the grass for almost 30 minutes we were afraid nervous neighbors would call the cops on the creepers outside! Unsuspecting Julie was chatting away to her mom on the phone! Hee! Hee!

Meanwhile, Dustin brought in the mail from the day along with the sneaky package that we had given him. Finally, after Julie got off the phone she opened her birthday package. Inside she found a CD with a song that Ross and I had recorded for her. We rewrote the lyrics to Katy Perry's song, "Teenage Dream" telling Julie how fabulous and wonderful her life is living the "Woodbury Dream" (the city in MN where they live)!

Listen and enjoy! And pay careful attention to the last bridge of the song ...

So after listening to this song, and Ross' soulful remix to "Woodbury Dream" Julie had NO clue that we were quite serious about "coming so far to be her Irish Dream tonight!" Click on the You Tube link below to enjoy the surprise reveal that occurs only after MUCH prodding from Dustin!

Julie's Amazing Front Door Step Surprise! You Tube Link

Surprise view from the outside

This is honestly the best reaction I could have ever imagined possible! I have officially decided that Julie is the funnest person to surprise! If that one moment was all I got flying all the way from Ireland, it would have been worth it! But thankfully we had eight days to soak up Julie, Dustin, and the four kiddos!

I had such precious time living life with Julie and seeing her as a mom of four. She truly is a woman to be admired! Logan, Landon, Layton, and January have endeared themselves to our hearts forever! It is precious now knowing their little quarks and personalities that skype just doesn't allow you to experience. Ross and I feel so blessed that we had the opportunity and resources to make this trip. Here are some of the many pictures taken to capture the highlights.

Driving in the backseat with the boys

Lake Minnetonka

Logan tree climbing

January snuggling with Ross

Cutest little tutu tushie

Sleeping angel

It's the little details :)

At tea for Julie's birthday

Going to tea

January's easter egg

The boys after their Easter egg hunt

January in her cute Easter dress

The boys ready to find their Easter eggs

January's new Easter glasses

January in her new butterfly towel, glasses, and swimsuit

Everyone in their matching Easter gifts

Well, we wanted to have fun in them too!

Mall of America

Taking the boys on a roller coaster

Such cuties

Ross teaching the boys the proper way to eat a cone

Ross playing Rugby with the boys with the ball we brought from Ireland

Kayaking in Trim, Co. Meath

Today we went on a great day trip with Sarah and Adam to the town of Trim which is located in County Meath. Thankfully, it was a gorgeous, sunny day for our kayaking experience along the Boyne River. The views along the river were breathtaking of Trim Castle and horses and cows roaming along the green banks. Great memories!

Trim Castle, where scenes of Braveheart were filmed

Celebrating Sarah!!

Sarah, our sweet friend here in Dublin, has just turned in her dissertation after working hard here at Trinity College for four years. We were so excited to celebrate this amazing accomplishment with a night of yummy martinis and finger foods. We unexpectedly ended the evening with a dance party as we flashed back to the high school classics!

The boys enjoying the patio

Love these girls :) Just missing Katie!

28th Birthday at Cinnamon

For my 28th Birthday we had a great evening at a new restaurant called Cinnamon in Ranelagh. We had a great night! So glad to have sweet friends here in Dublin to make my day so special!