Drive: Bremen, DE

In early April, we headed north and crossed the border to Bremen for the long Easter weekend.  Our scheduled 4-hour drive became 5 hours due to road works.

'Fast food' at 150km/h

On arrival, we were greeted by super cold weather and lots of rain.  Not a good start.


Luckily, Swissotel Bremen was a lovely hotel.

It is the first hotel we've ever stayed in which provides a diaper bin, plus a really nice bath towel and toys.  Moms will know that these are not standard items.  Most times it is just a mattress in the cot and a bath towel as a blanket.

Who wouldn't want to sleep here?

They brought out this gorgeous porcelain dining set for Lucas at breakfast.   I wanted to eat off them.

 

Every morning he gets served a cup of warm milk in that double-handled mug.  And the milk promptly goes into our coffee.

Lots of space to play

   

Daddy was happy that his PS3 worked

Easter decoration

We spent a very cold day walking around Bremen town.  

The Brothers Grimm's fairytale of the four Bremen musicians

The most interesting part was Bottcherstrasse.  It is a collection of buildings showcasing 'Brick Expressionism', a form of expressionist architecture.

 

Floating bottle at Aioli in colourful Schnoor.

Schnoor is Bremen's oldest quarter, dating back to the 15th century.

We spent the next day exploring the lakeside town of Bad Zwischenahn.

The small one had no time for photos

Busy doing his rounds at the playground..



Hand-crushing his Easter eggs..

And sitting on toilet brush holders..

More photos here: https://picasaweb.google.com/110776657145071773017/Bremen2012

Drive DE: Mosel Valley

We had a short holiday in Mosel Valley, Germany, at the end of May.  After a 4-hour drive, we arrived at Cochem where we spent a couple of days.

Cochem is a scenic old town by the Mosel River.

Bleary-eyed after the long drive.

 Some shots around the town:

 DIY family portrait:

We also drove to nearby Trier, Germany's oldest city.

UNESCO World Heritage site: Porta Nigra (the black gate), built between 186 and 200 AD by the Romans.

The old city centre has many historic buildings in very good condition.

Trier Cathedral, the oldest cathedral in Germany.  Also a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Inside the cathedral.

Wondering why daddy is working whilst on holiday....

The Basilica of Constantine, built around 310 AD, yet another UNESCO World Heritage Site!

  The Electoral Palace of Trier, a baroque building.

Another side trip we made was to Burg Eltz, a medieval castle which started construction in 1157:

Driving across the hills to Burg Eltz.

This is one of the best preserved castles in Germany.  It still belongs to the same family after 33 generations - that's 800 years!

Having some 'finger food' at the castle's cafe.

 We spent one night in Cologne on the way home.

Cologne is full of shopping streets..

... and one amazing cathedral.  The height is just jaw-dropping.

 Inside the cathedral - you have to really crane your neck to see the ceiling.

The "padlock" bridge, a novel way to declare your love.

Our tourist guide kept throwing our maps out of the stroller.

More photos here: https://picasaweb.google.com/110776657145071773017/MoselValley2011