Disneyland Paris!!!

We surprised the kids on Christmas by wrapping up a stuffed Mickey Mouse that I snuck out of one of their bedrooms a few days before.  I made up tickets to Disneyland with each of their names on them and had the in an envelope attached to Mickey.  They all were thrilled at the prospect of heading to Disneyland in less than a week.  They have been there before when they were 4, 2 and 6months old respectively, so this was exciting.  We have never taken them to Orlando so they have nothing to compare it to; consequently, they were excited to be headed to France.  What is great is that it only takes 6 and a half hours and that includes the hour wait to get then car onto the train through the Chunnel.  You could take the Eurostar train as well, but we had opted to drive.  We were staying in the Davy Crockett Ranch which actually requires you have your own transportation to the park and we would be staying in a cabin.  Having been to a European Centre Parc before, I started to get nervous about the accommodations, but we were pleasantly surprised.  It was nice to have the extra room of the cabin and we took advantage of the kitchen for breakfasts and snacks. 

We arrived at about 2pm on Thursday which gave us time to head into the park and to get dinner at Disney Village.  Steve and Jacob headed for Space Mountain: Mission 2 and I took Katie and Cameron over to the Buzz Lightyear laser blast.  Surprisingly, we had the longer wait for Buzz than the guys did for Space Mountain.  So after spending almost 2 hours to go on one ride we headed to dinner with somewhat long faces.  Rather than attempt another long line, we called it a night and decided to plan our attack for the next day.

Armed with a Disneyland Paris app on my iphone we were able to scan the map and select the attractions that were on our must see list.  We could also plot times for the parades and locations of characters we might want to catch.  Since we were on Disney property, we took advantage of the early admission and descended on the park by 8:15 in the morning.  Still feeling like we were on UK time and having risen early the day before to catch a 10am train, we weren't moving fast.  We were happy to get to the park before the crowd.  Our plan was to hit Discoveryland first and brave Space Mountain.  Katie and I had it on our list and Jacob wanted a second go.  Since Cameron is still too short for a few of the rides, Steve opted to take him on the Autopia car ride.  But wait!  Space Mountain was not running yet due to technical difficulties.  To kill time we went back to Buzz Lightyear where The kids were much better than I was (that includes Steve) at getting Zurg.  Having killed the right amount of time, yet the park was still not open to the general public we were able to jump on the 10 minute Space Mountain line and they actually opened the Autopia ride a few minutes early due to the line forming.  Success!  Love it when a plan comes together!  A trip on Star Tours after that left the 3 guys about to vomit from motion sickness so that was not going to be revisited.

Now, off to Frontierland.  Cameron got to pick the next ride which was the Phantom Manor.  A friend at school had talked it up.  My app indicated the line would not be too long, so off we went.  When we turned the corner toward the manor we were lucky to find that Mickey had just appeared for meet and greets!  Barely a crowd and the kids were able to get one of the most elusive photos!  Cameron is still hesitant about the characters so I was only able to convince Jacob and Katie that they needed this picture so they could prove to their kids that "Yes, I really did go to Disneyland as a kid!" 

Rides on Phantom Manor followed by Big Thunder Mountain and then though Adventure Isle put Frontierland up high on the list of the best part of the park.  Pizza and pasta for lunch kept smiles on faces as we filled out the afternoon with Pirates of the Caribbean, Peter Pan's flight and It's a Small World.  I convinced the kids that some rides are quintessentially Disney and although they don't seem like big thrills, you kinda have to go on them.  OK, you know that those are the ones of my childhood and I couldn't think of missing them!  For another character moment, we go a photo with Captain Jack!  Honestly, I thought it would be really hard to get character photos but was pleasantly surprised...again.

On Big Thunder Mountain!

Adventure Isle

It's a Small World

 Cap'n Jack

 Parade Watching

We finished our day in the park with the early (5pm) parade and then headed to Annette's Diner in Disney Village for some all American cuisine.  Say what you want, but when we can get American food, we don't pass it up.  It's a novelty for us, like pub food is for all of you.  Back at the Ranch (literally), we made our plan for the next day.  We also managed to get in an hour at the pool, where we met Mickey on our way in!  Photo op number 2 with the Big Guy! 

By the way, the Disney app, when in the park did give us wait times on rides so you would know before even walking over to it.  It would find you on the map and then you could use it to guide you through.  I did have some problems with it updating information, particularly on our second full day at Disney Studios, which may have been due to high usage.  When it was working, it was awesome.

Our second full day was New Year's Eve.  We spent the day in Disney Studios.  Our first stop was the Tower of Terror.  This kids were a bit freaked out by the Twilight Zone story line of the ride.  They also really didn't like the freefalling bit of the ride.  Steve and I loved it!  Cameron was actually tall enough for all of the big thrill rides in the Studios, so we were able to all go on the Rockin' Rollercoaster, but a coaster in the dark scared him and he decided he wouldn't go on that one again.  We went to the Armageddon Special Effects attraction.  Here they dub everything into French and we have to read English subtitling.  This is odd because you see Michael Clark Duncan talking to you, his mouth forming English words, but a deep French actor's voiceover.  It gives you a bit of a headache trying to watch it.  But we were in France....   We came across this again when we went to the Art of Animation attraction.  Here we had headphones and you could select your language, but there was a host on the stage speaking in French and the video was all dubbed.  We were hearing the actual actors and animators voices (since they are all Americans...) in our ears which actually matched the movement of the lips on the screen but the sound from the host and the voiceover was so loud in the theater that it was a bit annoying trying to hear the English.  Really, voicing over Eddie Murphy.  After that, we decided to skip anymore shows as it took too much effort when on vacation to understand what was going on.  No problem because we still had a few more rides.

We waited for quite a while on the Toy Soldier's Parachute Drop.  Katie, Jacob and I waited for about an hour for Crush's Coaster.  Because it spins and goes backwards, Steve and Cameron opted out given that they have problems with motion sickness.  Smart idea!  We loved the ride and afterward, Cameron regretted his decision, but with no fast pass available on that ride and hour long waits prevailing throughout the day, we were unable to try again.  Katie and I then braved the RC Racer and ended up with seats in the last row.  I was happy when that one was over!  We caught the parade through the park and even managed to get a photo with Sully.  Knowing we had a late night ahead of us we went back to the Ranch to relax before 8pm dinner reservations.

From Toy Soldier Parchutes

We had made reservations at the restaurant at the Ranch.  Because it was New Year's Eve, there was special pricing everywhere that we had to work around.  I was happy to have a reasonable time.  We hadn't been seated but a moment when Pluto entered the restaurant.  This was the only character that Cameron would be photographed with.  Then Mickey Mouse and Goofy joined him.  I don't know if we just lucked out with our timing or if they came to the restaurant each hour, but we were thrilled to have the characters at dinner.  Just note, photo #3 with the Big Guy, Mickey Mouse, for Katie!

After dinner we went straight back to the park.  The kids had voted on seeing the fireworks over the castle in Disneyland Park, so that is where we headed.  We had already been told that the exact same display would go off in Disneyland Park, Disney Studios and Disney Village.  With time to kill before midnight, we agreed to head back to Big Thunder Mountain for a rollercoaser thrill - this was in hopes of making Cameron feel better after missing Crush's Coaster.  We had even checked on the way back the the park and the line was still an hour for that ride.  Even after a 30 minute wait for that ride we still had some time, so we wound our way up to the Pirates of the Caribean for an easy ride.  Cameron had not been feeling well after the rollercoaster.  As the ride came to an end, there were no people waiting!  It was eerily quiet.  When we made our way back outside it was apparent that all of the rides were closing and that the crowd was forming for the fireworks. 

Madness!  This is what we landed ourselves into when we made our way out of Frontierland and toward the castle.  You just couldn't go any further so we stopped behind the crowd and tried our best to see.  Thankfully fireworks are in the sky.  Poor Cameron was at a distinct disadvantage and if you ask him, he will tell you it was terrible!  The crowd was crazy.  People kept trying to cut through to get closer and we would tell them that you couldn't go any further.  Steve and I weren't even next to each other as people pushed forward between us.  I had Jacob and he had the other two.  I have been in Times Square for New Year's Eve and I think this was worse!  A woman behind me, who did not speak English and smelled of alcohol, had her hand on my shoulder and kept pushing/leaning into me.  My legs hurt from trying to stand upright and not push into the people in front of me.  The fireworks were good and the castle looked great and we can say that we have "been there, done that."  We celebrated midnight again when we got back to our cabin and it was 1:00am Paris time which would be 0:00 London time! 

Sunday morning we had some time to kill before getting to the Chunnel train, so we loaded up the car, dropped off our key to the cabin and made one last stop in Disneyland Parc.  A board right near the front indicated that there was only a 5 minute wait at Space Mountain.  There seemed to be a lot of people as it was almost 11am, so I was surprised by the short wait.  My theory is that as this is a big thrill ride for the older crowd, that the target market was too hung over to brave the rollercoaster.  The 5 minutes was actually the time it took us to wind our way through the maze to get to the cars.  We only had to wait for one group ahead of us to load before it was our turn!  We were off before Steve and Cameron were able to even get in a car in Autopia! 

Let's Drive Home!

It was almost 11:45 and we had to leave by 12:15 to get to our train on time.  We decided to grab McDonald's figuring that would be quick.  We didn't remember that McD's is a great hangover cure and the line was crazy!  We actually ran from the McDonald's to the car and still got on the road 15 minutes later than planned.  Steve promised to make up the time as long as I promised not to comment on the spedometer.

With a stop for gas and toilets we still managed to get to the checkin gates at 3:15, more than one hour before our 4:20 train as they request.  Unfortunately, there was a line.  And the line wasn't moving.  At 3:50 we were through the checkin gate, but now had customs.  Here we had to swerve around rows of cars to get on the one lane which was for All Passports and not just Euro passports, but all of the lines were equally long.  The French had no problem waving us through, but then there was BRITISH Passport Control!  Another line!  They load the train 25 minutes before departure.  It was 4:00 and we were still on line.  Finally, with passports stamped by the British, we headed for the train.  All signs indicated that boarding for our train was CLOSED!  Uggh!  Steve ran into the waiting terminal to find out what we needed to do to change trains.  He leapt back in the car and quickly got it in gear.  What did we need to do?!  We apparently just needed to head right to the boarding area and we would be put on the next train!  Probably because the delays and lines were affecting everyone, they were working on the belief that there would be trains enough for all.  We were just thrilled to be able to get on the next train which was only 30 minutes later than our scheduled train.  By 6pm we were back home and by 6:30 I had laundry in the wash and dinner on the stove!  What a vacation!

Happy New Year!

Now we are just waiting for our next adventure...when Rupert finally joins us on Thursday!  Thanks for reading!

Holiday Pub Walk

We definitely like to keep busy when we don't have to go into the office or to school.  On Wednesday after Christmas, we took advantage of the mild weather and went on a pub walk.  The route had the pub in the middle which made it an easier and more appealing journey for the kids!

What we love about walking in England is that there is always something to see and this particular route, not more than 40 minutes from our house, has several sights.  First was the ruins of an abbey.

 



The ruins are on private property so you can just view it from the road. There was a farmer on a tractor in the field that morning but he wasn't close enough to ask questions and he would have probably found me a nuisance.  Next we continued along and found a church.  The kids LOVE it when I drag them into ANOTHER church!  It must be my upbringing, but I can't pass a church without taking a peek inside.  This church was built in the 1100's and has an original fresco painting on the wall.  I thought it was cool...

We continued along our way through a field and along another field and then across a golf course which was very busy due to the unseasonable weather so we did have to watch for long drives.  It is amazing to me that there is a public access way through a golf course.  That's England.  Then we found the pub and had a really good lunch.  We were actually fortunate to get a table as many were reserved.  Then it was back on the path along the River Wey back to the car.  Along the river we were afforded the view of another historic site - the home of John Dunne when he was first married.  The kids were all good and goofy.  I think they were humoring us since they knew that in less than 24 hours they would be on the road to Disneyland Paris!  More blogging to follow on that!

Dunne House

A Visit to Hampton Court Palace

With our family pass good for one year to the Historic Royal Palaces, we decided to check out Christmas at Hampton Court Palace.  This was Henry VIII's favorite palace and to celebrate the holiday, the palace was decorated as it might have been for the first Christmas that he spent there with his third wife, Jane Seymour.  To help us really appreciate it more, there were costumed interpreters throughout engaging us in conversation.  Lord Thomas Howard was there helping me convince Jacob to join the King's army.  Jacob didn't seem very interested.  He also doesn't think I'm serious when I tell him he better get into an Academy if he wants to go to college!  There were some frantic ladies who heard the king was returning early from his morning hunt and we all had to get outside to welcome the king.  Oh, we did! 

In front of the Palace

They have some decorations throughout.

Thomas Howard in a Privy Council meeting just after trying to recruit Jacob

Loved this Hall!

We all kneeled for the King!

After welcoming the king back to the palace we were in just the right spot to catch the jester's show in the courtyard.  He told us of how he had only just been hired for the holiday season to come to court.  He was then overwhelmed to look across the crowd of people and notice his long lost uncle in the courtyard!  He asked us to part for his uncle to run to him and show him how much he was missed!  When we turned around the kids and I were particularly amused to see his "uncle" coming through the crowd!

They then skipped through the crowds to find their way to the "king" to show him their special trick.  Steve was so good at keeping in character. 

After doing the handstand, the Jester had to properly "thank" his uncle with a HUGE KISS!  Katie was taking pictures here because the kids were all near the front of the group and she would get a better shot, but she was in such SHOCK at the sight that she didn't think to take a picture of it!  I am certain that Steve is grateful for that!  Dag nab it...that picture would have been perfect right here in a blog on the internet!

Thoroughly amused for the afternoon, we got a quick bite at a cafe in the gardens and took a walk through the hedge maze and around the grounds.  Although overcast, the weather was fairly warm for the time of year and we were happy to spend the day at the palace.

Really...flowers in bloom on 27 December!

Can we find our way through the maze?!

The kids "Tebowing" as they had managed to get to the center of the maze!

Christmas Holidays in England

Once I was home from Germany, all eyes were focused on Sunday...Christmas day!  Steve actually had to go out of town for business from the 21st to the 22nd, so that gave the kids and I some time to get shopping for Daddy completed.  I even was able to get wrapping done.  But as it is the school "hols" (short for holidays in UK speak), I felt compelled to get out of the house and "do" something.  The kids voted on going to the Tower of London.  Never one to shy away from a sightseeing adventure, I said sure and we grabbed our things (camera, snacks, backpack and internet confirmation of prepurchased tickets) and headed for the train.

We took the train into London Waterloo and two tubes to Tower Hill.  It was surprisingly not crowded.  We were able to move easily through the tower and hear costumed interpreters.  We were soon ready for some lunch and since I had purchased a membership to the royal palaces, we were able to freely leave the Tower and look outside for lunch.  We stumbled on a hole in the wall of a pizza place and managed to get pizza and drinks for the four of us for 13 pounds!  A bargain in London...or anywhere in the UK and almost a fourth of the cost of the train tickets into the city.  On our way back into the Tower we saw a sign for a free iphone app called Escape from the Tower and they even had a wi-fi hotspot right there for downloading.  A few moments later and we were armed with technology to make this visit more interactive and exciting (and don't tell the kids...educational).  Other than having to turn up the volume on my iphone to the highest level and worrying that we might be disturbing the other visitors, it's a great app.  Truth be told, the other visitors are all holding those audio wands up to their ears and listening to some tour guide and for the groups around Wardens giving tours, we would move away to be considerate.  The App has you choose one of four characters to save from the tower.  It then takes you to different places in the tower to tell you the story of the escapee as you find the tools to help him escape.  As you go, you earn coins and can go on to free the other characters.  We freed two and know we will end up going back so will vow to aid the other two on our future visit!  Two prisoners that could not be saved were the two little princes and their story is highlighted in the app and then in one part of the tower.  Katie seemed particularly disturbed by this story.  After a fun day in London, we were home in time to make dinner.

Friday and Saturday were spent baking cookies and cleaning the house.  I am always fearful that Santa won't leave me any presents if the house isn't picked up and it will look bad in the morning photos too.  We had dinner reservations for 5pm at a chain restaurant called Frankie and Benny's: New York Italian Bar and Restuarant.  We knew the kids would all find something that they liked to eat here!  After dinner we walked over to the chuch we have been visited a few times for their 6:30 carol service.  This was the latest service of the evening at this church.

Opening the traditional Christmas Crackers!

When we got to church people were gathering in the fellowship area and drinking mulled wine!  After wine at dinner, I was thinking I might fall asleep during the service if I had too much mulled wine before.  The service was nice although the kids didn't like having to keep getting up and down to sing another song.  What I found interesting was that we sang 8 carols before we got to one that I had heard before!  The 9th hymn was a Charles Wesley Hymn, Hark the Herald Angels Sing, and since it is a Methodist church, you would expect that at least that would be sung.  (For those of you who are not Methodist, John Wesley is the founder of Methodism and his brother, Charles, wrote many hymns that are common to all Christians.)  Silent Night and O Come All Ye Faithful followed.   We were home with plenty of time to relax over brownie sundaes for dessert and watch The Muppets Christmas Carol before saying good bye to our Elf on the Shelf, putting out cookies for Santa, and sprinkling reindeer food on the driveway. 

Christmas morning was the traditional craziness of presents.  Santa did in fact find us at our new address in England.  Our tradition the past several years has been to go to the movies on Christmas day, but I had investigated a few weeks earlier and learned that the theater would be closed.  Oh, well, it's a good thing the family got some new games for the entertainment systems for Christmas.  It was just the five of us until we managed to Skype family back home. 

Santa Was Here!

No opening presents until Mom gets the obligatory snapshot.

Monday was Boxing Day in the UK.  Besides being the crazy shopping day it is in the US, it is a holiday for most companies.  We decided to partake in another one of the British holiday traditions by going to a "Panto."  A Panto is short for Christmas Pantomime and has nothing to do with "mimes!"  It is when the Brits take a traditional story and spoof it up a bit and get the audience involved in the truly British comedy way.  We saw a Peter Pan Panto.  We "booed" whenever Captain Hook appeared.  We got up and sang along to the crazy 12 gifts of Christmas (you should see what the captain gave his crew!).  We had fun keeping up with the Brits and plan to keep Panto in our plans for next year.  After the show we were treated to an all American dinner of Skyline Chili at the home of friends who live around the corner from the theater.  It actually made a great end to the holiday celebrating!

Getting ready for the Panto!

We hope all of you had a very Merry Christmas and know that our house is open if you feel like celebrating the holidays next year in a British way!

Christkindlmarkt in Munchen (Munich)

Last weekend, I had a chance to escape the day to day of mommyhood and meet up with Allison Bergstrom for a Girls Only weekend.  We met in Munich to spend a few days scouring the Christmas markets of the city and take advantage of the numerous beer houses.  The proliferation of gluehwein stalls kept us going between the beer.

I arrived in Munich an hour later than planned due to Friday evening delays, so we started our weekend with a very late night dinner at about 11pm.  Allison had been waiting patiently in the hotel lobby for me, nursing a glass of wine or two and enjoying the facetime.  We were in the center of the city, just around the block from the main Christmas market.  In addition, we were around the corner the other way from the Hofbrauhaus, another Munich tradition.  We actually headed across the street from the Hofbrauhaus to the Hard Rock Cafe which was actually one of the very few places with a grill still going that late.  If you know the de Waards, then you know our quirky affinity toward HRC.  It started when we lived in Holland and needed a good fix of American food every once in a while.  It also is one place that has something on the menu that all three kids will want for dinner, making it a good stop for at least one meal in all the major European cities.  So, weinerschnitzel would have to wait a day, and we indulged in American fare for our first evening. 

Our second day started late, because we could!  We found a continental breakfast in a coffee shop off of the Town Hall square.  With a caffeine injection we were able to start our prowl of the city.  The first market we hit was the main one at the Town Hall.  We even caught the Glockenspiel play at noon!  (sometimes it pays to get up late...)

Munich Christmas Market

Glockenspiel at Town Hall

We perused the stalls and wandered down streets in just about every direction.  We had a map, but we weren't really using it, rather opting to follow the crowds.  Before one o'clock we had our first mug of gluhwein: spicy and warm to get us in the spirit of the markets.

We found our way to the Manger Market and then on to an ice rink at Karlsplatz.  From there we continued checking out the multitude of gift ideas by wandering over to the market at Sendlinger Tor.  Where the market at the town hall (Marienplatz) was mostly Christmas decorations and the nativity market mostly creches and the figures to fill the creche, this market actually had a wonderful selection of gift items.  Still not ready to buy, we mostly looked, but as we had not yet hit the beer houses, we remembered where we found the things we liked most!

Viktualienmarkt in Munich...yet another one!

With more and more lights coming on and the sun setting, our feet were getting a bit weary.  Fortunately, the Hackerhaus appeared before us and a plate of frites and two pints of beer (actually half liters) gave us the needed respite from the markets.  After an evening tour of the market at Marienplatz, we were ready to find a place for dinner.  Our first idea was to attempt diving for a table at the Hofbrauhaus; this is the most famous beer house in Munich and apparently in the 1001 places to see before you die.  Surprising as this may be for many of you, Alli and I were unable to commandeer a table!

We decided to try our luck across the street at the Augustiner am Platzl.  We were able to slide into a table as a couple got up to leave but now the difficult part came.  We had to get the attention of a waitress!  The waitresses here and it seems everywhere in the center of Munich wear the traditional Bavarian dress, which I guess leads to the cantankerous looks on their faces.  When we did catch her to order beer she was not all smiles and helpfullness.  Actually two gentlemen at a talbe near us who has also just sat down stepped in to make sure we actually ordered a beer that would agree with our American palettes. She brought us the beers but then seemed to ignore our desperate glares imploring her to take our food orders.  We had ordered Liters of beer, so I guess she figured she had plenty of time to get back to us, but I needed to get food in my stomach if I was going to be able to walk out of the restaurant with a liter of beer in it!  Apparently, the tables around us were having a similar problem, yet every time she walked by our area, she kept her scowl firmly pasted and her head down.  Uggh.  Finally we did get to place an order for two schnitzels.  She asked us something about the order, I have no idea what, buy I said "sure" and she actually smiled!  Alli saw it!  After a liter of beer, I was very tempted to ask her if I could get my picture taken with her, but was still sober enough to think better of it!

After dinner, it still seemed early at 9:45, so we headed back to the Hofbrauhaus and had much better luck at landing a table.  When in Germany do as the Germans do, so we ordered another liter each!  A younger Italian couple sat down next to us and the fun of the beer house commenced.  We learned that Francesca and Sergio were also on vacation for the weekend and that Sergio could not speak any English, or German!  Francesca was doing all the translating, which we found amusing as we could talk about Sergio right in front of him!  He was a really good sport and even bought us each another half liter!  (Have you been keeping track and doing the math.  I'll help you out, the total for the day was 3 liters!) Thankfully the Hofbrauhaus closes at 11:30 so we could still walk home.

Sunday was another late start.  Not surprising, I'm sure.  We actually found a really nice cafe across the street from the hotel where we had brunch the next three mornings.  The waitress was particularly cheery and helpful and told us of another market to check out.  With no specific plan for the day, we took her advice and wandered deep into the Englischer Garten to a market at the pagoda where in the summer a lively beer garden is waiting.  The brisk air made for a great walk.  We even saw the river where people actually surf!  There were about half a dozen crazy people in wet suits attempting the waves in the frosty afternoon.  A light snow had blanketed the area and kids were even managing to find small slopes for sledding and enough snow to make mini snowmen.  After our trip to that market we found the Medieval market at the Odeonsplatz and the snow started falling!  It was big, heavy flakes that soak your hair and wool coats.  Not able to enjoy the market we found shelter in a Starbucks. One thing nice is that you can pretty much order in English and it's all the same so you don't feel guilty not trying a few words of German beyond "Danke." 

Sunday evening we made our way back to the Marienplatz market for the 500 year-old tradition of the Krampus Run.  This is an obscure  tradition where members of the Sparifankerl Pass dress up in archaic costumes and run through the crowded market.  With only a photo on the website to go by, we were interested to see what this was all about.  We made our way over to a gluhwein stall and found warm beverages to spin us in the Christmas market mood.  Suddenly, we heard crazy cow bell type clanging from across the square and these crazy figures appeared.  They characters would come around with switches and snap at your legs with them and get right in your face.  Oh, the little boy who was not so happy to have a Krampus in his face!  If you think Santa is scary, you cannot even imagine the level of fear leveled by these guys!  Below is a picture of Alli with one of them.

After completing most of our shopping on Sunday, Alli and I took the time to actually do some sightseeing on Monday.  We visited the Residenz in Munich which had been the political and cultural center of dukes, electors and lastly kings of Bavaria.  Amazingly it has been mostly rebuilt after being more than 90% leveled during WWII.  The grotto courtyard, the antiquarium and the church of All Saints were the highlights.  We then climbed the 306 steps to the top of St. Peter's church for great views of the city.

We had a great time in Munich and I would actually go back again.  I bet it would be lots of fun in the summer!  Below are a few photos from the market.  Many thanks to Allison for being my drinking buddy and guide for the weekend.  Merry Christmas everyone!



Lebkuken and other treats




Ornaments



Nutcrackers!