Canadian Buffoon European Vacation - 30/03 - Endings and Silver Linings

[Thumper_Man]

Thanks Marita. I'll start working on her... tonite!

TMI

What you do at your house, should stay at your house.

 

[Thumper_Man]

But he might crush a pkondz with his fist... :

Well I gotta get into those nuts somehow. But she's right, I wouldn't hurt a fly. This coming from the lady who has me killing bugs and spiders all the time.


"Lady H, have you seen the fly swatter lately?"

Yes. Please.
I'll wait here until you post it.

Wait, I need to give her a lesson first.

Works for me.

Ponzi may get the look. I on the other hand, won't. I'll be lucky to be let in the door.

Never say never.

That's what I told her. She just laughed at me.

Just wait...

 

[pkondz]

What about when this goes into full effect for everyone and the numbers jump? Not just for the certain resorts now, but for all the Disney resorts and for all the offsite people.

I'll field that one. It's the same reason why UG touring plans work. Because only a small percentage of visitors are willing to do the research. I think it'll be the same with FP+. There'll be a small percentage of people who'll have FPd TSMM and walk on and there'll be the same line up of people stating, "You have to pay extra and/or stay at an expensive Disney hotel to skip the line."

And what about people like our friends Smidgy and Nebo who don't have a smartphone or like to use their phone while on vacation?

Or us? We don't have smart phones either. I'm more then happy to book a few FP rides a few months in advance. If that means I can avoid the "running of the bulls" for TSMM I'm all for it.

Then again, I usually stick to plans once made. So it's unlikely that I'd be changing plans ala smart phone anyway.

Can you imagine that you'll be able to FP Stitch now.

I actually can see people coming out of Stitch saying, "I can't believe we wasted a FP on that!!!"

Last trip to WDW, Nebo and I were able to ride EE 3 times utilizing FP. To my understanding it won't be like that anymore with the new system.

True.

Sorry Ponzi, didn't mean to be the Debbie Downer here. There are plenty of threads discussing this at the moment. We'll leave this discussion to those threads.

And for those who're wondering, here's a pic of Thumper_Man:

TMI

What you do at your house, should stay at your house.

Full disclosure on this TR.

Well I gotta get into those nuts somehow.

TMI

 

[pkondz]

No really. How did this happen?

So "This_Bud's_for_Belle" asked how we picked Venice, the airline, hotels, etc.

Here's the backstory.

Several eons ago, when dinosaurs still roamed the land, a very young pkondz was taken on a trip to Europe.

I was about 10 at the time.
We caught a ride with a returning Viking party.

Pleasant enough people, but dull. All they wanted to talk about was pillaging. It gets a little old after a while.


Anyway.

When I first went to Europe, we went to London for 3days, Paris for 3 days and then a couple of weeks in Germany where my Father's Sister (my Aunt) and her family lived.

So I wanted to recreate that trip. A few days in London (to see the Queen), a few days in Paris and the rest of the time in Germany where both Ruby and I had some familial history.


I began researching places to stay in Paris and Bavaria...
Why not London? I guess I just wasn't that keen on it.
No, I don't know why.
When I started researching Things To Do In London, I started to get more excited, but at first... meh.

Once I started to get more interested in London and had done a fair bit of research, Ruby mentioned that she would much rather see Italy than London.


Okay. We switch gears.


"Okay, Ruby. We can't see all of Italy... we just don't have the time. If you had to pick just one city, which would it be?"

Of course I knew that she'd say Rome, I know my wife.

"Venice." She replied without hesitation.

See? I told you she'd pick Venice.


Our plans now have us flying in to Milan (closest major airport to Venice that I could find flights to), spending the day there then taking the train (a three hour tour... a three hour tour ) to Venice. A few days in Venice then grab a train up to Munich. Spend a few days in Bavaria, up to Hanover to visit the relaticks, if there's time, over to Cologne to see the Cathedral then over to Paris where we end our trip and fly home.

Plans evolve and change and I found that if you're travelling by train in Germany, you're entitled to a free ride on a KD Rhine ship.

Hmmm.... a Free Rhine cruise, hunh? (A Free Rhine Cruise... for you purists)


After some more planning, the final trip was this
1. Fly to Milan - explore same before passing out at the end of a very, very long day.
2. Take the train to Venice. Explore for 2 - 3 days.
3. Take the overnight train to Munich (saves on hotel cost as we travel)
4. Rent car and drive to some small town somewhere in Bavaria. Explore for a few days.
5. Take the train up to Hanover. Stay 2 days and see relaticks and Hameln (original home of the Pied Piper)
6. Go to Cologne and try to fit in a Rhine cruise somewhere.
7. Train to Paris. Explore for a few days.
8. Fly home.

Okay! We're all set.


Except it didn't happen that way.


I did tons of research on flights and the cheapest option was this:
1. Use Airmiles points to get round trip airfare from Winnipeg - Toronto - return. We have enough points.
2. Book separately flights from Toronto - Milan then Paris - Toronto.

The above option was about the same price as a flight out of Minneapolis. Except of course we wouldn't have to drive down and stay in hotels. Plus that would cost us two extra days of vacation time that we just didn't have.

So now that I've got our itinerary pretty much set, I can start looking into hotels.


I'd already done some research on Paris, and had pretty much decided on where to stay.

Did I mention that Paris is slightly expensive? Where the average three-star hotel price is $350... a night?
Heck, a thousand bucks a night isn't uncommon.

One of the first places I checked was the Mandarin Oriental Paris.
I almost choked when I saw the $3000 per night estimate!


I was getting a little overwhelmed with all the research I was doing and decided to call in some reinforcements.

I asked Ruby for some help.
She was invaluable.
What she said was, "I don't care. Whatever you pick will be fine with me."



I went to see a TA that we've used in the past... before it became easier to use the internet. Yes kids, I was alive when there was no internet.

Say it again, go ahead. "No internet."
No iPods either.

We didn't have thumbs then. They evolved later when we had a use for them.


I asked the TA to look for hotels in Venice. She asked if I needed anything else:
"Flights? Rail passes? Tours?"

I assured her that everything else was taken care of. I told her about my plan to use Airmiles to save a few bucks.

"Have you looked into that new Air Canada discount airline? I think they fly into Venice."

"Huh?"

So she did what TAs do and found that if I started in Paris instead of Milan, and ended in Venice instead of Paris....

uhh.... I think I just confused myself, let alone you guys.

Basically if we flipped the trip end for end we could fly from Winnipeg with connections in Toronto for about the same price... without having to use up our airmiles.

woot!


As for the hotel... I'll be honest. She sent us an email with a hotel that she'd found that wasn't break the bank expensive and by then I was so sick and tired of researching that I just went ahead and booked it. (There are over 650 hotels in Venice that can sleep four in a room! )


We had one more change that had to be done.
If we wanted to do what we wanted to do... ummm... what?

Something had to give. Either it was not seeing the aunt and cousins (whom we never have contact with and the DDs had never met) or cutting short our time in Bavaria and cutting out the Rhine cruise.

Darn it! We're paying for this trip and we're darn well gonna do what we wanna do!

The side trip to Hanover fell by the wayside and we never looked back.


So here's the final itinerary:

1. Leave Winnipeg Friday August 2 - Arrive Paris Saturday August 3.
2. Travel to Cologne on Tuesday August 6 for 2 nights - Rhine cruise while there.
3. Travel to Munich on Thursday August 6 - pick up car and drive into Bavaria. Stay 4 nights.
4. Monday August 12. Drop car off in Munich and take the train down to Venice. Stay 3 nights.
5. Leave Venice Thursday August 15 - Arrive Winnipeg same day.


One last thing. Almost always, a Eurail pass is the best way to travel around Europe. But if you already know exactly what you want to do and can book 90 days in advance, buying individual tickets is often cheaper. By booking tickets in advance, we saved a few hundred bucks over buying passes.


Okay, so that's how the planning, etc. happened. Now whaddya say we get this trip started?

Anyone?

 

[jedijill]

Giddy up!

Yay for the TA saving all your miles!

I cashed in my miles in 2007 and flew open jaw into Venice and out of Rome. Fantastic trip! I fell in love with Venice and can't wait to go back some of these days.

Jill in CO

 

[pkondz]

I cashed in my miles in 2007 and flew open jaw into Venice and out of Rome. Fantastic trip! I fell in love with Venice and can't wait to go back some of these days.

Jill in CO

Me too! And as you'll see later, I have to go back.

 

[pkondz]

Ya know... I keep trying to hold back fits of laughter.


Two chapters in and I haven't even come to the first day of the trip yet.

 

[mmeb144]

Ya know... I keep trying to hold back fits of laughter.


Two chapters in and I haven't even come to the first day of the trip yet.

So, you'd think you'd do something about that, eh?

I'm liking that you are showing us how you arrived at your hotel/car/plane/train/fun stuff to do and all that. Makes me want to go on a trip right now!

 

[Thumper_Man's Wife]

Yes. Please.
I'll wait here until you post it.

Um...Family board?!?!

"What does this button do?"*

*As said by the passenger visiting the cockpit of the Hindenburg.

I think that was what happened when we were at Universal Studios Hollywood last year. There were buttons all around us...what were we supposed to do? Push the button!

Hmm...That facial expression I have is sort of scary! I'm pretty sure we probably burned down some tourist attraction on the other side of town or maybe even in Antartica or something...Oops?!

Yup. Otherwise we pout.

I make fun of T-Man for this all the time, but he doesn't necessarily pout so much as try to steer me in the direction he wants to go. We will be discussing the options, and he will turn to me and say, "What do you think honey?" and I will say what I think, what I might be interested in, etc...and he will go, "Well, I was thinking..." and then ramble off his plans. To which I reply, "Whatever you want honey."

Never say never.

True...however, We have the trip in October planned, which we really should have been saving that money to go to Hawaii next year, but we aren't. Then we have the Hawaii trip next year around the same time, which we technically don't have money for, but will probably use our taxes for when they come in early next year, which should probably be used for other things, but they won't be...The year after that sounds like a possible trip to WDW, don't know where that money will come from...I may end up have to take up a corner on Central in my off time...and between all that we have the mortgage, the car and other bills...not to mention because our jobs are exempt, we may or may not have a job in about 16 months...so...I'm going to go with Never at the moment...but who knows.

Not the luggage! Those things were heavy enough as it was!

You'll see.

Are you saying I'm heavy? Just kidding...Really. I know the issues with luggage and airlines and everything else...I can't wait to hear what happened. and I will say I'm sorry in advance, because it doesn't sound good.

One moment please.
Please stand by.
Your post is important and will be mocked in the order in which it was received.

[/QUOTE]

Is it bad that in my head I keep hearing either really bad elevator music, or the sound of Dial-up internet trying to connect to the phone line...

No really. How did this happen?

Ok...Fine...I'll tell you. When a man and woman love each other very much...They show that love in different ways.............

Here's the backstory.

Oh...You meant...Sorry...

Several eons ago, when dinosaurs still roamed the land, a very young pkondz was taken on a trip to Europe.

Darn me for not having photoshop...What I would give to see a picture of young Ponzi riding a Dinosaur!

I was about 10 at the time.
We caught a ride with a returning Viking party.

Pleasant enough people, but dull. All they wanted to talk about was pillaging. It gets a little old after a while.

When I first went to Europe, we went to London for 3days, Paris for 3 days and then a couple of weeks in Germany where my Father's Sister (my Aunt) and her family lived.

So I wanted to recreate that trip. A few days in London (to see the Queen), a few days in Paris and the rest of the time in Germany where both Ruby and I had some familial history.

Recreating that must have been difficult. I mean, I'm not saying your old hun, but you ain't 10 years old anymore, unless you have a .... Oooh...You have a time machine?

Once I started to get more interested in London and had done a fair bit of research, Ruby mentioned that she would much rather see Italy than London.

Of course, as soon as you have done all the research and come back with a clear cut plan, we as wives are bound by the "wives code" to do change the plan on you. Didn't you read the handbook?

"Okay, Ruby. We can't see all of Italy... we just don't have the time. If you had to pick just one city, which would it be?"

Of course I knew that she'd say Rome, I know my wife.

"Venice." She replied without hesitation.

See? I told you she'd pick Venice.

After some more planning, the final trip was this
1. Fly to Milan - explore same before passing out at the end of a very, very long day.
2. Take the train to Venice. Explore for 2 - 3 days.
3. Take the overnight train to Munich (saves on hotel cost as we travel)
4. Rent car and drive to some small town somewhere in Bavaria. Explore for a few days.
5. Take the train up to Hanover. Stay 2 days and see relaticks and Hameln (original home of the Pied Piper)
6. Go to Cologne and try to fit in a Rhine cruise somewhere.
7. Train to Paris. Explore for a few days.
8. Fly home.

Sounds like a plan.

Except it didn't happen that way.

Did I mention that Paris is slightly expensive? Where the average three-star hotel price is $350... a night?
Heck, a thousand bucks a night isn't uncommon.

And then you wonder why I say never...

One of the first places I checked was the Mandarin Oriental Paris.
I almost choked when I saw the $3000 per night estimate!

Almost choked? Almost?

I was getting a little overwhelmed with all the research I was doing and decided to call in some reinforcements.

I asked Ruby for some help.
She was invaluable.
What she said was, "I don't care. Whatever you pick will be fine with me."

That is very helpful. I mean come on. She already told you where she wanted to go...she wasn't going to plan the whole trip for you.

I went to see a TA that we've used in the past... before it became easier to use the internet. Yes kids, I was alive when there was no internet.

Say it again, go ahead. "No internet."
No iPods either.

Just kidding...I just like that shocked face. I remember the old rotary dial phones, not to mention the old phone in the kitchen, that wasn't portable, that had the cord that could reach the entire length of the house and if you walked around with it, you had to be careful to walk back the same exact way or else you would end up wrapping yourself in the cord and trip and fall.

We didn't have thumbs then. They evolved later when we had a use for them.

And that use is?

As for the hotel... I'll be honest. She sent us an email with a hotel that she'd found that wasn't break the bank expensive and by then I was so sick and tired of researching that I just went ahead and booked it. (There are over 650 hotels in Venice that can sleep four in a room! )

I'm not liking the sound of this...

We had one more change that had to be done.
If we wanted to do what we wanted to do... ummm... what?

FAMILY BOARD!

So here's the final itinerary:

1. Leave Winnipeg Friday August 2 - Arrive Paris Saturday August 3.
2. Travel to Cologne on Tuesday August 6 for 2 nights - Rhine cruise while there.
3. Travel to Munich on Thursday August 6 - pick up car and drive into Bavaria. Stay 4 nights.
4. Monday August 12. Drop car off in Munich and take the train down to Venice. Stay 3 nights.
5. Leave Venice Thursday August 15 - Arrive Winnipeg same day.

Are you sure this time?

Okay, so that's how the planning, etc. happened. Now whaddya say we get this trip started?

Anyone?[/B][/COLOR]

My mind is spinning and I wasn't even a part of the actual planning. Kudos to you for all the research and planning. I'm with Ruby...Whatever you want dear.

Great job though. Can't wait to read about how things actually went after all that hard work!

 

[bellebud]

love it so far! remember.. details, details, details. I wanna hear all about the plane (how long it took, where you sat, food, etc, would you fly that airline again to Europe?)...

I know you're not even there in the report yet, I just don't want you to start w/ day #1 in paris... knim?

THANKS! I'm counting on your report to help me plan my future trip

 

[Backstage_Gal]

Too bad you had to skip the German relatives. Germans are very hospitable people and always have something on hand to offer guests (read schnapps and food and beer).

Hope you had a great trip anyway and got to try good stuff wherever you went.

 

[pkondz]

I'm liking that you are showing us how you arrived at your hotel/car/plane/train/fun stuff to do and all that. Makes me want to go on a trip right now!

Go! Go now!



Still here?

Guess it's cause you wanna see how this is going to turn out first, huh?

Um...Family board?!?!

You started it!

I think that was what happened when we were at Universal Studios Hollywood last year. There were buttons all around us...what were we supposed to do? Push the button!

Hmm...That facial expression I have is sort of scary! I'm pretty sure we probably burned down some tourist attraction on the other side of town or maybe even in Antartica or something...Oops?!

I remember that!

I make fun of T-Man for this all the time, but he doesn't necessarily pout so much as try to steer me in the direction he wants to go. We will be discussing the options, and he will turn to me and say, "What do you think honey?" and I will say what I think, what I might be interested in, etc...and he will go, "Well, I was thinking..." and then ramble off his plans. To which I reply, "Whatever you want honey."

Wow. You just described our marriage.

I know the issues with luggage and airlines and everything else...I can't wait to hear what happened. and I will say I'm sorry in advance, because it doesn't sound good.

Let's just say the luggage will be mentioned...

Ok...Fine...I'll tell you. When a man and woman love each other very much...They show that love in different ways.............

Yup. Like throwing tomatoes at each other, right?

Here's the backstory.

Oh...You meant...Sorry...

Darn me for not having photoshop...What I would give to see a picture of young Ponzi riding a Dinosaur!

I looked through the old photo albums and found one of me with Twiggy. I named her that 'cause of her thin arms.

Recreating that must have been difficult. I mean, I'm not saying your old hun, but you ain't 10 years old anymore, unless you have a .... Oooh...You have a time machine?

Well... yeah. Don't you? Oh, that's right. They're only available up here in Canada so far.

Of course, as soon as you have done all the research and come back with a clear cut plan, we as wives are bound by the "wives code" to do change the plan on you. Didn't you read the handbook?

That is very helpful. I mean come on. She already told you where she wanted to go...she wasn't going to plan the whole trip for you.

True. I shouldn't have expected more.

I remember the old rotary dial phones, not to mention the old phone in the kitchen, that wasn't portable, that had the cord that could reach the entire length of the house and if you walked around with it, you had to be careful to walk back the same exact way or else you would end up wrapping yourself in the cord and trip and fall.

We never got that far. We were basically handcuffed to the desk in the hall.

My mind is spinning and I wasn't even a part of the actual planning. Kudos to you for all the research and planning. I'm with Ruby...Whatever you want dear.

Great job though. Can't wait to read about how things actually went after all that hard work!

Gotta admit that by the time the trip rolled around, I was sick and tired of doing "research".

love it so far! remember.. details, details, details. I wanna hear all about the plane (how long it took, where you sat, food, etc, would you fly that airline again to Europe?)...

I know you're not even there in the report yet, I just don't want you to start w/ day #1 in paris... knim?

THANKS! I'm counting on your report to help me plan my future trip

Ah, I see you haven't read my previous TR. I do tend to ramble...

Trust me... you'll have details.

Too bad you had to skip the German relatives. Germans are very hospitable people and always have something on hand to offer guests (read schnapps and food and beer).

Hope you had a great trip anyway and got to try good stuff wherever you went.

I did want to see my aunt and cousins again... but it just didn't work out this time. I'm hoping there'll be a next time.

 

[buzz1121]

Okay, so you know you had me singing the theme song of "Gilligan's Island" and the oldie but goody "Pied Piper".

I found myself laughing out loud at the sheer volume of assistance Ruby provided you in planning the trip. What you were smart enough not to write was the feedback she might give you were you to incorrectly interpret her mind wave patterns of what she really wanted to do.

So, I've flown quite a few times, but a flight to Europe, overnight in coach, is a delight that you must experience to truly understand. Want to know if you are a good sleeper? Can you sleep with your knees up to your chin and someone else's head in your lap simultaneously? DH calls it a sustained cannonball pose.

The other thing that hit was how completely exhausted we were upon disembarkation. It's like we didn't get a wink of sleep or something.....weird I know. The crazy thing was our tour started immediately, so our first day in Italy was somewhat a blur.

And look on the bright side Pkondz, you sailed with the Vikings, at least you are a little more recent than crossing the Bering Strait. There's old and then there's Ice Age old!!

 

[smidgy]

This is all good in theory and early reports show promise. Yes, it's still in the testing phases. Early test results are positive, but that's only because only certain resorts are part of the testing phase. Its working great now for the test people, because they only make up about 10-15% of any park's attendance at any given time. What about when this goes into full effect for everyone and the numbers jump? Not just for the certain resorts now, but for all the Disney resorts and for all the offsite people.

And what about people like our friends Smidgy and Nebo who don't have a smartphone or like to use their phone while on vacation? I know there will be the kiosks, but will these kiosks be available at various spots throughout the park? One thing Lady H and I like to do while on vacation is to put our phones away and enjoy the sites. Sure we'll check them every now and then, but only on occasion. It's going to be the norm now to have everyone's faces buried in their iPads, Tablets and smartphones.

The main thing I'm not liking about this is you're limited to a certain amount of FP's and they're limited to a certain park. There's no park hopping ability with this yet. It would be nice if I could book TSM over at DHS in the morning, then hop on over to Epcot and book TT at night. And now you'll only be limited to 3 and will be categorized. Can you imagine that you'll be able to FP Stitch now. Last trip to WDW, Nebo and I were able to ride EE 3 times utilizing FP. To my understanding it won't be like that anymore with the new system.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not totally against it. One thing I like about this idea is yes, you can be sure to get a TSM FP. Or schedule your FP time around your ADR time so they don't interfere with each other.

Sorry Marita, but until this goes into full effect, I had to show the not so wonderful side to FP+. Hopefully Disney is taking notes on all this and address these issues.

Sorry Ponzi, didn't mean to be the Debbie Downer here. There are plenty of threads discussing this at the moment. We'll leave this discussion to those threads.

Now on with the show.

YES YES , triple YES!!! I am determined to hate the new system there I said it. so now I have to go out and purchase a hundred dollar phone, and a contract, etc. etc, just to get the most benefits from my tickets? harrumph, i say!!! HARRUMPH!!!!

 

[smidgy]

this sounds like a very exciting trip!!! funny how plans change as you plan a trip. cant wait to hear more!

 

[pkondz]

Okay, so you know you had me singing the theme song of "Gilligan's Island"

But which version do you sing?

I found myself laughing out loud at the sheer volume of assistance Ruby provided you in planning the trip. What you were smart enough not to write was the feedback she might give you were you to incorrectly interpret her mind wave patterns of what she really wanted to do.

There was a time or two where I'd ask her, "So.... if you had to choose between option 'A' or option 'B'... which would you pick?"

"I don't care. Whatever you pick is fine with me."

So, I've flown quite a few times, but a flight to Europe, overnight in coach, is a delight that you must experience to truly understand.

True. And I love how you have to waddle by 1st class on the way to your little slice of purgatory. It's as if... no. It IS that they're telling you, "Look at this! For only $2500 more... per ticket... you too can sneer at the lowly cattle in coach."

Want to know if you are a good sleeper? Can you sleep with your knees up to your chin and someone else's head in your lap simultaneously?

In a word? No.

DH calls it a sustained cannonball pose.

The other thing that hit was how completely exhausted we were upon disembarkation. It's like we didn't get a wink of sleep or something.....weird I know. The crazy thing was our tour started immediately, so our first day in Italy was somewhat a blur.

Our experience was somewhat similar to that.

But then, you'll see, won't you?

And look on the bright side Pkondz, you sailed with the Vikings, at least you are a little more recent than crossing the Bering Strait. There's old and then there's Ice Age old!!

Did you not see me with Twiggy? She was long gone, of course, before I rode Tiny (my fuzzy mammoth... yeah people say woolly mammoth now, but she was just fuzzy to me) across the Strait. Of course it wasn't supposed to be a one way trip. Darn bridge was under water when I went to go back!

YES YES , triple YES!!! I am determined to hate the new system there I said it. so now I have to go out and purchase a hundred dollar phone, and a contract, etc. etc, just to get the most benefits from my tickets? harrumph, i say!!! HARRUMPH!!!!

Nope, nope, quadruple nope. I still think that it'll be a good thing even if you don't have phones. The idea of making ADRs 90 days ahead doesn't faze the planner, so making FPs shouldn't either.

Unless of course you're one of those people who hate the ADR system and preferred the days when there weren't any and you could actually just walk up to a restaurant and get a table.

this sounds like a very exciting trip!!! funny how plans change as you plan a trip. cant wait to hear more!

Yeah, 'cause plans NEVER change during a trip. Right? :

 

[orangecats2]

Ya know... I keep trying to hold back fits of laughter.


Two chapters in and I haven't even come to the first day of the trip yet.

Exactly what I was thinking!!! It'll before Christmas before you write about Europe.

Can I make a guess at the Disney part of the trip? I might know what it is.

 

[ougrad86]

I'm in! Although I'm more of a lurker...

Lived in Germany over 30 years ago, will love to read your TR. Trying to plan a trip in a couple of years. Probably should have taken DS when he was in high school, but too busy going to WDW . I think he liked it better - he got to hang there with his best friend instead of his parents ! So we'll do it some summer during his college years - if we can afford it after tuition!

 

[pkondz]

Exactly what I was thinking!!! It'll before Christmas before you write about Europe.

Can I make a guess at the Disney part of the trip? I might know what it is.

Ha! I may be verbose, but I'm quick! (Regrets to Ruby)

It may be a few chapters before we even get on the plane (Just kidding... it'll be the next one) but you know darn well that I pump these chapters out pretty fast.


Go ahead and take a guess. It's pretty obvious (I thought) to a lot of people.
We'll see.

I'm in! Although I'm more of a lurker...

Lived in Germany over 30 years ago, will love to read your TR. Trying to plan a trip in a couple of years. Probably should have taken DS when he was in high school, but too busy going to WDW . I think he liked it better - he got to hang there with his best friend instead of his parents ! So we'll do it some summer during his college years - if we can afford it after tuition!

Oh, you grad of 86... Welcome! Thanks for coming out of lurkdom. I found Germany to be quite a bit different from even 20 or 10 years ago. Heck, 30 years ago, the Wall was still up!
My 2 cents? Take him if you possibly can!

 

[dawnbu40]

Looking forward to it