January 30, 2017

Exploring Oslo with the Oslo City Pass

January 30, 2017/ Meghan Oaks

Oslo, the capital of Norway, is an incredible city! We only had a couple of days to explore it, so we opted to buy the Oslo City Pass to make the most of it. The pass, which costs between 44 - 82 Euro, and grants the owner entry into a number of museums and unlimited access to public transportation. Like almost everything in Scandinavian countries, it wasn't cheap, but there were a few places we wanted to be sure we hit up, all of which were included with the pass, so the convenience made it easy.

May 24, 2016

Visiting The Sistine Chapel and Vatican Museums

May 24, 2016/ Meghan Oaks

Ask anyone what to see in Rome, and the Sistine Chapel will most definitely be on every list. In a city that is practically an open air museum and beautiful art is found in even the smallest of churches, the Sistine Chapel may seem to be just another historic piece of art. And it is, but there is also a reason it's on every single "Things to See in Rome" list - it's breathtaking. To see the place where popes are made, and avoid the hoards of tourists, we opted to pay for the Pristine Sistine tour offered by Walks of Italy. It granted us access an hour before it opened to the general public and it was totally worth it.

January 19, 2016

Speyer Technikmuseum

January 19, 2016/ Meghan Oaks

The week between Christmas and New Years turned out to be a busy one for us. We went to Switzerland and then we one of my sorority sisters and her husband visit us for a couple of days. They were on a European vacation that started in Turin, Italy and ended in Amsterdam. Quite a trip for only a week! We wanted to show them a little bit of Germany, and we were lucky to find the Christmas market in Speyer was still open. Coming home, they noticed the giant Lufthansa 747 at the Speyer Technikmuseum, and said they had to go (it's good to be friends with like minded people!). Despite living so close, Aaron and I had never been, so plans were made to visit the next day.

April 02, 2015

Visiting the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam

April 02, 2015/ Meghan Oaks

Perhaps one of the most famous historic residents of Amsterdam is Anne Frank. Nearly every school aged child in the States reads the diary she kept during the war years. Originally published by her father, Otto Frank, in 1947, her diary has since been translated into 67 languages and sold more than 30 million copies world wide. She has become the voice for so many of those that did not have a voice.

April 04, 2014

Yankee Air Museum Heritage Night

April 04, 2014/ Aaron Oaks

Jacket worn by some of the Bomber plant employees

Close to our home, there is a small airport with mostly corporate jets and specialty charters that flying in and out. However, the airport has a long history and the area surrounding it played a critical role during World War II.

Willow Run Plant was built by Ford Motor Company from 1941 - 1942 and, during the war years, focused solely on building the B-24 bomber. Over 8,600 bombers were built and peak production saw one bomber being built every hour - something many thought was impossible.

It was during this time that the famous "Rosie the Riveter" was born. As men were being called upon to enter the armed services, a dearth of employees needed to perform manufacturing jobs was created. It was at this time that women and minorities stepped to fill that need.

While Aaron and I have never been to the museum before, we were really there to attend a presentation from pilot who flew the A-10 warthog during Desert Storm. It was so interesting to hear about the conflict from a person who flew during that time.

The A-10 was manufactured by Fairchild-Republic in the Early 70's and was just recently announced that it will be phased out from active duty in the near future. Lt. Col. Joe Rutkowski gave a great presentation telling stories, and sharing memories from his deployment in Iraq, and many other bits of information that only a veteran can share. Much more information about the A-10 see the Wikipedia article here.

If you're ever in the area, and have a penchant for World War II or aviation history, stop by the Yankee Air Museum. And, if you're there in August, you may even catch the "Thunder Over Michigan" Air Show!