Sirmione
Last day in Lago de Garda. A ferry ride to explore & enjoy the quaint town of Sirmione. Sirmione is a comune in the province of Brescia, in Lombardy. It is bounded by Desenzano del Garda (Lombardy) and Peschiera del…
Blog
Read MoreSirmione
Riva, Limone and Malcesine
What a day jam packed with plans to visit the gorgeous places around Lake Garda. We hired a private car ride up to the most northern point on the lake. Lake Garda, the largest (area 143 square miles [370 square…
Desanzano Saturday
Quiet morning just a few chores before a walk about HISTORICAL BACKGROUND The Castle of Desenzano, built before the year 1000, originated as a defensive enclosure (ricetto) intended to protect the inhabitants of the village and to provide them shelter…
Garda & Bardalino
Took the morning ferry to Garda. A lovely town on the lake with colorful buildings and lovely shopping streets. Plus yummy pizza for lunch. Garda is a town and comune on the shore of Lake Garda, in the province of Verona,…
Lake Garda
Started the morning with thunder, lightning and downpours. After awhile you just gotta get outside anyway. Nice wet ☔️ walk along the lake “Inside Two Sails” is a model of monumental minimalist sculpture, designed by the artist Walter Xausa, where…
Overnight train to Milan & Lago de Garda
We took the overnight train from Brussels to Milan Our rides here 17 hours and riding the wild Chitty Chitty bang bang kinda journey Nice to wake up to Switzerland We arrived in Milan and met up with our friends.…
Goodbye Netherlands
Fabulous time & what an awesome Solheim Cup. So many nice people as we bid farewell to our home away from home Kasteel Steenenburg. We rode the shuttle to the train station with a sweet couple from Sweden. It was…
Solheim Cup Final
With 100% Chance of rain you’d better pay attention. We took the early shuttle to get a good spot in the Bernardus Pavilion. It’s pouring ☔️ We parked in a great spot and waited. If this doesn’t quit weren’t not…
Solheim Cup Magic
What a day watching the best women golfers in the world competing and representing their countries. It was exciting and the fans were over the top fun. Alternate shot. McGuire hits the ball in the water. Her partner Esther Henseleit…
Solheim Cup Matches
The crowds on the first hole were having a party of epic proportions. A fantastic first day of alternate shot and fourball matches. A few shots to start the day. We decided to beat the masses and park on the…
Solheim Cup 2026
The Solheim Cup combines the tradition and prestige of the game of golf with passion for one’s country and continent. This biennial, transatlantic team match-play competition features the 12 best European players from the Ladies European Tour (LET) and the…
Bye bye Amsterdam
At least travels in the Netherlands are all in the same situation and the strike has cancelled all trains. I do feel sorry for fans arriving today and trying to find transportation to Barnardus Golf course. Big bummer and not…
Amsterdam & Plan B
It’s always about being ready for Plan B, C and hopefully not D This morning we looked at the train times for tomorrow to get to Den Bosch for the Solheim Cup accommodations and Jeff noticed a “change” in place…
Erika Stanley
It’s most important to give credit to this outstanding artist. Loved her paintings in the cubed house of a city she loves.
Rotterdam
We left this morning for a second visit to this cool city. We visited 9 years ago when we did a bike & barge. Rotterdam, major European port and second largest city of the Netherlands. It lies about 19 miles (30…
Amsterdam
Yes these 4 flights are steep. We start and end our day with more steps 🤪 but our place is cozy & the bed is perfect for zzzz Off to explore the Old Town before the city wakes up. Lots…
Amsterdam
We left left Köln and rolled to the station. We left in the morning rush of trains heading all over Europe. We hopped on the fast train, with speeds close to 100mph. The trains are ICE (Inter City Express) and…
More Cologne History
I wanted to add a bit more history that I found today concerning the Jews who’ve lived in Cologne. We talked about these brass markers in the sidewalk I found the night we arrived. Well, today wandering around the Dom,…
Cologne Cathedral & Hohenzollern Bridge
The site of Cologne Cathedral has been occupied by Christian churches since about the 4th century. An older cathedral was destroyed by fire in 1248, and immediately thereafter work began on the present cathedral, which was designed in the Gothic…
Cologne Germany 🇩🇪
Cologne is the fourth-most populous city of Germany and the largest city of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia with nearly 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and over 3.1 million including surrounding areas. Cologne is worth visiting for…
JEllens Grand Tour of Switzerland is over 🇨🇭
Goodbye to Switzerland. 😢🇨🇭 We covered the country on our Swiss Pass and enjoyed every day, every adventure. Today we took a long ride from Zurich to Cologne Germany. Our train was 16 cars long and sped along smoothly. New…
Lindt & Sprüngli Chocolate Heaven
The history of Lindt & Sprüngli. In 2025, Lindt & Sprüngli celebrated its 180th anniversary. From its origins in Switzerland, the company has expanded to Europe, North America, and beyond. We discovered the captivating story of Lindt & Sprüngli and…
Zürich
We have a plan it’s mapped out from our AI friend “Doc” First up Lake Zurich and honestly I am not sure I have ever seen a swan fly… The skies had some clouds but blue skies are up there,…
Zürich Rhine Falls, Laufen Castle & Schaffhausen
Lots planned today so we started early walking from our new “home away from home” to our local train station. Always good to have a nice “landmark” to use this week. Easy ride to the largest waterfall in all of…
Lucerne
A little more of Lucerne. A walk to the ferry boat through the Saturday Farmers market. A ride over to the museum before our train to Zurich. The lake is beautiful today and everyday. A morning visit to the Swiss…
Lucerne
We think when we’re departing from a city after a week of sunshine it always sprinkles a little rain tears as part of our goodbye. Ha seriously it’s not all about us but we have new umbrellas so we are…
Switzerlands Independence
Why is Switzerland not in the European Union? Switzerland and the European Union have a complicated relationship. The recent decision by the Alpine nation to definitively shut the door on a framework agreement with the EU reaffirms its attachment to…
Lucerne 🇨🇭 Treat
Jeff was up and out early to capture some shots first thing in the morning of this enchanting city. Hard not to be mesmerized by the Chapel bridge. In the meantime I caught some extra 💤 and headed out after…
Mt. Pilatus
Hey, it’s Jeff here! I hope I didn’t scare anyone off the couch :). It isn’t everyday that my brain is still functioning after we get back from our daily outing. But, since Ellen is feeding me, the least I…
Lucerne 🇨🇭
The hits keep coming. Left Bern this morning, the rain gave way for our walk to the Bahnof. Honestly we loved the beauty, serenity, history, and charm of this city on the Aare River. The SBB Trains are tidy, on…