Danny, I was reading your blog entry from Budapest and noticed that you went to see St. Stephens cathedral. I grew up and went elementary school in the block right next to it. Small world eh? Hope you had fun.
Laura
We are in Portugal now, before heading home. Now that we are finally finished with school, we are trying to catch up on some of the missed blogs. I just posted the Nice one (from June 28th), sorry it´s random...hopefully we´ll be able to catch up at some point...enjoy
Nancy Woody
Danny, what a phenomenal trip you have taken this summer! I have enjoyed looking at your slides and reading your blogs so much. My parents rode down the Rhine on Hitler's yacht over 50 years ago, shortly after the end of the war. Solid gold faucets, etc. bought with the blood of the German people. Study hard for your finals. Be safe and enjoy your last week-end of travel to Venice. That's a place I'd love to visit, along with Florence to see the works of da Vinci and Michelangelo. Maybe some day. I know your parents will be glad to have you home, if just for a short while before returning to school. To what fraternity do you belong? My brother-in-law was in TKE at Tech. Thanks for letting me share in your experience.
Laura
Our pictures from this past weekend are posted. We won't be working on the site anymore until after finals, but hopefully we'll be able to catch up all of our blogs by then. Enjoy the photos from the Rhine & Mosel River Valleys.
Miss Bonnie
Laura, I checked the item u were concerned about that Nick brought home and it is in very good condition.. a few things shook loose but it is just about perfect. Have a great weekend w/ your cousin and study hard next week. WHAT A SUMMER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Now I really have to see Germany too. My short list is getting longer and longer. Have fun!!!!! And I can"t wait till I can give ya'll a hug.
Nancy Woody
Danny, I'm so glad you got to go to Neuschwanstein. I was there many years ago and thought it was beautiful!!! Disney's idea is somewhat pathetic, isn't it? Yes, Ludwig WAS gay. I went to another of his castles, Linderhof, and it is magnificent also. That is the site of the murder (by Ludwig) of his lover - in the gold fountain out in front of the castle. He was totally certifiable! The castles are something to behold, aren't they? I'm glad you liked Prague but am sorry to hear that the exchange rate is so poor now. I'm glad I was there when it was good. Germany is a beautiful country, isn't it? Rothenburg is a lovely old walled city, and the countryside in the areas you visited is beautiful and lush. I was born not too far from Munich, and I love the greenness of the landscape in the spring and summer.
I know your exams are coming at the end of next week and I expect you'll do as well as you always do. You're an exceptional young man and I expect to hear great things about you in the years to come - and not just from your mom (she's a bit biased, I think). Be safe & enjoy your last few days there. I'm envious of your summer's excursions! Lucky you.
Mom
Oh, I forgot to mention that Tami told me several times that the 14- 7 is Bastille day and that it is bigger than july 4. and for ya'll to enjoy it. Sorry I'm a little late . Hope u didn"t miss classes again today.
Mom
Danny, Danny, Danny, what do u mean u may not have many pics cause your batteries were low w/ Laura having 2 cameras, u 1 ,and nick 1. I can't believe this from my ,used to be perfect ,child and his perfect girlfriend. Hope to talk to u soon and I pick up Nick around 9:00 pm.
Danny
Mrs. Woody,
Sorry I'm being slow about responding...yes we did love Prague as well. I liked the layout of the city, with all the winding cobblestone streets, that you could get lost in, the terra cotta roofs on all the buildings, and all the bridges on the river. It's not quite the shoppers paradise now, however, with our dollar value dropping the rate was about 14.50:1, compared to 30:1 2 years ago. It was still cheaper than western Europe though.
This last weekend turned out to be a lot of fun, and a great alternative to the original plan of visiting Spain and seeing the running of the bulls. We went to Rothenburg...after a fun series of overnight train connections. It was a beautifully preserved Midieval, walled city. Unfortunately our cameras were near dead, so we didn't get many pictures. We then went to Bamberg to stay for the night and ended up seeing an outdoor, festival with lots of beer and sausages. Sunday we went to the Neuschwanstein Castle (the one the Magic Kingdom is modeled after) and then we left in time to go to the Hofbrauhaus in Munich on the way back and nock down 2 liters.
I think Nick got a good taste of Europe with a lot of different sites. We definitely had a lot of fun together. I wish he could have spent another weekend with us.
Well that was long b/c I don't know if we'll ever update our blogs...
Laura
Miss Bonnie,
We had a great time this weekend! I think Nick got the FULL German experience - we made it to 4 different towns/cities, each with their own appeal. Hopefully we can get the blogs up soon...we'll have the photos (although there aren't many of them) up by tomorrow. I had a great time with "two of your favorite Giglios" (...that way Mr. G can be included in your favorites...). Danny is in Paris right now getting Nick to the airport with all his luggage...we didn't consider that it is Bastille Day so Paris is pretty crazy but I think everything is going to work out. We'll talk to you soon.
-Laura
Mom
Dear Danny & Laura,
Ya'll be good this weekend and take care of your big buba and make sure he gets back to Paris in time to catch his plane. It's the pits being the responsible one, huh ? Have lots of fun this weekend. I've been teaching VBS this week , the kindergarten class, and we've had tons of fun. The kids are great in my class- the other K. class has 1 autistic kid and 1 just plain bad kid , so I lucked out w/ my class. We're going to the lake this weekend- we still have water!!!!!!!!! Love u little boy MOM
Mom
Dear Mr. What Else Can Go Wrong With Our Travel Arrangements ,
Let me know if u got home and I'll stay signed on from 5:00 on so u can skype me if u have time. Love u