March 24, 2016

Walking Tours in Bruges

March 24, 2016/ Meghan Oaks

For the last weekend in February, a friend and sorority sister of mine visited us in Germany. After picking her up at the airport bright and early Friday morning, we drove directly to Bruges, Belgium. Our original plan was to spend a day in Bruges, and then a day in Ghent, but in researching things to do in Bruges, we decided there was too much to see and do and a one day visit would not do the city justice. So while I was bummed about having to cancel plans to visit Ghent, the silver lining is that we have at least one more trip to Belgium - one more chance to eat Belgian chocolate and waffles and drink Belgian beer. So really, not a problem at all.

October 28, 2015

Wieliczka Salt Mine in Krakow

October 28, 2015/ Meghan Oaks

Have you ever seen an entire church carved out of salt? What about larger than life statues of saints and famous Europeans? Or how about a chandelier made out of salt? No? Well, neither had we, until we visited Krakow and the nearby Wieliczka Salt Mine. On Sunday, the weather in Krakow was beautiful - sunny, a slight breeze, and cold in the morning. We were headed to Wieliczka Salt Mine, a half hour train ride outside of the city. There are lots of tour companies than organize tours for visitors, but we went solo and did it ourselves (we did use a tour company for Auschwitz since it was much further outside of town). It wasn't all that hard either, and it ended up being a lot cheaper than using a tour company (although, compared to London, everything in Krakow was super cheap).

October 23, 2015

Auschwitz and Birkenau

October 23, 2015/ Meghan Oaks

Death camp.

The words flowed easily, as if the guide had said them many times before. And indeed he had, and would continue to do so throughout the day. Despite the manner in which they were said, and how many times they were said, the emotion behind them never left. For it was here that hundreds of thousands came to die. At first it was Polish political prisoners, those who disagreed with and resisted Nazi ideals, or simply were found to be listening to foreign radio, reading illegal pamphlets. Then, came those unlucky enough to have been born into the wrong racial or ethnic groups - the Jewish, the Slavic, the Romani and others.

June 19, 2015

A Visit to Eagle's Nest

June 19, 2015/ Meghan Oaks

One place that Aaron and I wanted to visit while we were over here, and other place that was on our bucket list, was Eagle's Nest, Hitler's mountaintop house. We figured it would be perfect to go there with my sister and show her some of the most beautiful Germany countryside ever. After we finished up at Neuschwanstein, we got back in the car and headed towards Berchtesgaden, a national park in the south eastern most part of Germany, right on the border with Austria. We stayed the night in a small Gasthaus (which are quickly becoming our favorite types of places to stay in Europe) that looked out at the mountains. It was stunning.

June 02, 2015

Champagne Tasting in the French Countryside

June 02, 2015/ Meghan Oaks

For the last long weekend in May, Aaron and I headed to Paris, France to meet up with some friends from the States who were there on vacation. There were two other couples - Justine and Andrew had been to Paris a number of times before, but it was the first time for Sarah and Scott (and us too!). I have to say, I didn't do a ton of planning for this trip other than organizing train tickets and a place to sleep, I let the seasoned Paris travelers manage most of it :) It was actually quite relaxing and I understand now why Aaron usually doesn't do much with the planning. Extra bonus was that we got to check yet another item off our Bucket List - taste Champagne in Champagne!

May 29, 2015

Dive Log: Grünersee (Bucket List Item)

May 29, 2015/ Meghan Oaks

The REAL reason we went to Austria in May was to dive the famous Grünersee. After seeing it in countless magazines and on too many ''Top 10 Dives to Do Before You Die'' lists, we knew we HAD to add it to our bucket list and make it happen. I mean, it's pretty awesome to say that you've dove in the Alps too. Most people go to ski, but we're crazy and go to dive.