November 18, 2016

The Bone Chapel of Kutná Hora, Czech Republic

November 18, 2016/ Meghan Oaks

Back in May when we visited Prague, we wanted to do something a little out of the ordinary. Months earlier, IFLS, a science blog I follow via Facebook, ran an article about a chapel that had a chandelier made completely out of bones. Well, it's not just a chandelier, the entire place is decorated and line with bones. In any case, I filed it away in the back of my head for "later." When we planned Prague, I remembered that this place existed and we made it a point to visit. And I'm so glad we did.

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 13, 2015

The Tower of London

October 13, 2015/ Meghan Oaks

Sunday morning, we headed to the Tower of London, one of the most famous sites in all of London. It was here that many were famously imprisoned and then loss their lives. It was first built by William the Conqueror as an actual palace in 1066. Over the next 500 years, more buildings were added on to the structure. It sits right on the banks of the Thames and, today, looks out on Tower Bridge. Although historically used as a prison for treasonous individuals, it is more tourist attraction today, but it also houses and guards the most coveted collection of jewelry around - the Crown Jewels. Sunday was a beautiful fall day - slightly windy, but sunny and in the low 60s - to tour the tower.

July 14, 2015

City Visit: Trier, Germany - Part 2

July 14, 2015/ Meghan Oaks

During our visit to Trier, we made some additional stops. Again, Trier is a great little city to visit and definitely worth a stop if you're in western Germany. It doesn't warrant much more than a day, but it's a day well spent for sure!

For part 1 of our visit to Trier, click here!

July 08, 2015

City Visit: Trier, Germany - Part 1

July 08, 2015/ Meghan Oaks

On one of the last weekends in June, we realized we needed to head out of Mannheim for a bit. Last minute planning, and sky high travel prices in Europe during the summer meant that we were looking to go somewhere within driving distance. We ended up choosing Trier on the Moselle River, a small city very close to the German border with Luxembourg. For only a two hour drive from Mannheim, it was a nice city escape.

April 07, 2015

Exploring Amsterdam

April 07, 2015/ Meghan Oaks

After we finished our visit to the Anne Frank house, Mitch and Carrie and Aaron and I had a couple of hours to explore Amsterdam. We started by grabbing lunch at a small cafe near the Anne Frank house. We all had a famous Dutch dish: half smoked sausage with bread and french fries. It was delicious! Let me tell you, these Europeans really know how to cook a potato.

After lunch, we decided that one of the best ways to see the city was from its famous canals. We hopped on one of the canal tours that departed from near the Anne Frank house. From there, we traveled around the city and saw some of the more famous sites. Amsterdam looks much the same from the water

February 10, 2015

Tips for Visiting Luxembourg City

February 10, 2015/ Meghan Oaks

It was a ''Get Out of Germany'' weekend, but without wanting to take time off from work, we were a little limited on where that was. Western Germany borders France, Switzerland, Belgium and the tiny country of Luxembourg. Switzerland is exorbitantly expensive this time of year, we are going to France and May, and we have already been to Belgium, so Luxembourg it was!