Mitchell Mariot to close its doors...

Nearing the end of the 3rd quarter 2011, the "Mitchell Mariot" will be permanently closing the doors on it’s Stuttgart location.

The last flurry of guests will get to experience multiple day trips including the Stuttgart Spring Festival, the Black Forest Cuckoo Clock town of Triberg, the Hohenzollern castle, the Mercedes Benz Museum, the walled city of Rothenburg ob der Tauber, the City of Worms and Alsheim, a tour of downtown Stuttgart, spend a morning shopping a true German Flohmarkt. Some guests will enjoy a foray into Paris and others will experience a day in Switzerland.

As this location is preparing for closure the proprietor's are considering opening up a new location near the Oklahoma City area. Watch for an opening announcement within the next few months!

Spring is in the Air

Well, a girl can dream can’t she. We got hit with another snow storm this weekend. It started snowing Saturday and was still snowing Monday evening when I went to bed. It was not very heavy but probably got 2 inches or more. I told Alan on our way home from Berlin that I was tired of site seeing in the COLD.

Berlin was cold and windy; for some reason I have always envisioned Berlin as being cold. But we didn’t let that stop us from getting out and seeing the sites. We tried to work in 5 or 6 of the Top 10 Things to see in Berlin. The remnants of the Berlin Wall, Check Point Charlie, the Brandenburg Gate (the last of the original 18 gates into the city), the Reichstag building (the seat of the German Parliament) , the Gemaldegallerie (the painting gallery and home to many Rembrandtd works ) and Potsdamer Plazt (modern cultural hotspot containing shops, restaurants, cafes, bars and cinemas). The train system in Berlin was very efficient and easy to learn/use and our hotel was only a short 10 minute walk to the nearest Train station. On our last evening we also did the Hop On/Off bus tour and got to see (from a distance) Museum Island, the Berliner Dom, the new DB Train station, the Zoo (just the entrance) and multiple embassy buildings. It was so very cold we opted to stay on the bus and see the sites from the semi-heated upper deck

It was a great trip and I am glad I got to see Berlin!

Day 9 Thankful for Travel Opportunities

Yes I am thankful to be able to travel while we are still young enough to enjoy it.

We have always managed to work some travel into our schedules. When the boys were younger most of our travels centered around camping at the lake and trips to ball tournaments with few side trips on the way home. Then as the boys grew older we got to experienced a few Caribbean cruises and a several trips to College Football Bowl games in Miami, San Diego, Tempe, New Orleans even extending a few of these for some extra time away.

And then the opportunity to extend our travels to another continent became a reality for us about a year ago.....

These days our travel plans revolve around places in Europe. On our bucket list to try and work in while living abroad are Rome, Dublin, London, Venice, Paris, Swiss Alps, Czech Republic, Munich, Prague, Berlin, Black Forest, Worms and Darmstadt and Delft Holland...this is just a partial list (those in blue have already been crossed off and red is booked). And we have managed some day trips from the house to wonderful towns surrounding Stuttgart.

Yes, 2011 looks to be the year of our European Vacation! Our plans are to take vacation time in Europe in 2011 versus flying back and forth to Oklahoma. But we are flexible and will work with what ever God hands us.