With only a couple days for our explorations, we took a pass on the skiing in Whitefish and opted for a drive into Glacier National Park. Amtrak’s Empire Builder travels along the southern edge of the park and is an amazing way to see it in the winter, but we wanted to venture in a little deeper… CONTINUE READING >>
Amtrak’s Empire Builder travels along the southern edge of Glacier National Park and is an amazing way to see it in the winter, but we wanted to venture in a little deeper.
So we rented a car and drove through Hungry Horse to the western entrance of the park and the famous Going To The Sun Road.
During the summer months the road traverses the park, climbing over Logan Pass, but once the snow flies only the first eleven miles are open.
While this seriously limited the amount of the park we could see, the upside was that there were no crowds.
Other than a handful of hardy souls we saw strapping on cross country skis to head off into the back country, we were all alone.
We gingerly managed our way up the snowy road, skirting along Lake McDonald all the way to the iconic Lake McDonald Lodge.
The hotel, designated as a National Historic Landmark, has been housing guests since 1914 when it was built as the Lewis Glacier Hotel.
However, it is only open in the summer, so we had the whole place to ourselves, at least the outside of it.
We trudged through the snow examining the entire grounds and then down to the lakeshore, where we found a view that was well worth the trip… and slips, slides, and falls.
The panorama includes the whole lake and surrounding peaks, but our eyes, and cameras, were automatically drawn to the north end of the lake where Stanton Mountain, Mount Brown, and Gunsight Mountain loom over the water.
On the way out of the park we stopped at the Apgar Visitor Center and then got some great pictures from the boat ramp by the campground. Nearly ten miles of lake spread out before us from this vantage point.
Europe is an incredible travel destination with so much history, diversity, culture, and natural beauty to discover. There are experiences here for every type of traveler and interest… CONTINUE READING >>
Europe is one of the most incredible travel destinations in the world, thanks to its incredible diversity, history, culture, and landscapes. This makes it a great place for travellers with different preferences – there is something for everyone, whether you prefer a capital city steeped in history or a peaceful rural escape. This variety also allows travellers to tailor their vacation to the exact type of experience they want.
Relaxation & Cultural Discovery Vacations
Many places in Europe are known for their charming towns, world-class museums, and cultural diversity. If you are seeking a slower pace away from the tourist crowds in the capital cities, you might want to consider coastal retreats, spa escapes, or a lesser-known city break. These trips are ideal for those who enjoy taking in the scenery, history, and local traditions in each destination.
Active Adventure Across Europe
Active vacations are becoming more popular in Europe as they give people the ability to visit multiple places in one trip, enjoy the benefits of hiking/cycling, and see the places between the major destinations – this is where you find the true heart and soul of a destination.
There are all kinds of amazing active adventures to be had throughout Europe, from long-distance cycling routes to mountain treks. Long-distance journeys such as Camino holidays appeal to those who enjoy exploring on foot, with the chance to enjoy a rewarding and iconic pilgrimage. There are other experiences to be had, too, including skiing in the Alps, kayaking in Scandinavia, or hiking the Balkans. The diversity of Europe’s landscapes means it is easy to find an adventure that suits your interests and fitness levels.
Choosing the Perfect Vacation Style
With so much to offer and so many places to choose from, planning a European adventure is not always straightforward. This is why it is helpful to think about the pace and experience you want – consider if you enjoy culture, relaxation, adventure, or a mix of everything. This will help you determine your ideal vacation style, whether this is exploring the iconic capital cities, relaxing on a coastal retreat, trekking across Italy, or skiing in the Alps. With so many amazing experiences to be had, it is easy to design a trip once you have established your preferences.
This post should help you plan your perfect European adventure. Europe is an incredible travel destination with so much history, diversity, culture, and natural beauty to discover. There are experiences here for every type of traveler and interest, so you want to make sure that you plan an experience that suits your preferences.
The holidays are fast approaching so now is a good time to explore some of the unique aspects of family gatherings for empty nesters. When we were a young family, the holidays posed a problem for us. Whose family we should visit? CONTINUE READING >>
The holidays are fast approaching so now is a good time to explore some of the unique aspects of family gatherings for empty nesters.
(A little note from the authors: When we refer to Christmas, please feel free to substitute Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Festivus, Saturnalia, winter solstice or whatever it is you celebrate. We are only using Christmas as an example because it is our family tradition, and to keep from having to write three or four names every time we refer to a holiday. Absolutely no slight is intended or any preference for one over another. If your family is like ours, no doubt any one of them can be just as crazy as the next.)
When we were a young family, the holidays posed a problem for us. Whose family we should visit? Both sides wanted to spoil their grandkids and have the big family holiday — hard to achieve without feelings getting flogged or feathers being ruffled.
We worked it out by alternating Thanksgivings as much as possible and insisting that we create our own Christmas traditions with our kids in our own home. If extended family wanted to see us they were more than welcome to join in. We haven’t forgotten the limitations that young people face as our own kids attempt to tackle the December Debacles for themselves.
Later on, while we were living on a tiny Caribbean island, the girls attended college in Washington, D.C. and New York City. The physical distance — coupled with the short amount of time they were given off from classes — made it nearly impossible for them to come home for Thanksgiving.
Several times we solved that predicament by getting together at a relative’s house up in the States. That made the trip shorter for the girls and more fun for us because we got to see some of our extended family. Other times our stranded students were fortunate enough to be invited to the house of a friendly family of a friend to join in their Turkey Day celebration.
Christmases were much more conducive to travel with plenty of time between semesters for longer stays. We never had any problems there — who doesn’t want to visit the Caribbean in late December?
Now, if we want to spend a holiday with our grown-up kids, flying everyone from the far corners of the map to wherever we happen to be can get mighty expensive.
We no longer have the benefit of two out of our three offspring living in the same city, but holidays in New York City are becoming the norm. We have had the pleasure of staying in The Piglet ‘s studio apartment when we visit the city and even gobbled up Thanksgiving dinner at Decibel’s humble abode. It’s a tight fit to say the lease, even just for the five of us in the immediate family.
Lately, with the family growing, we have taken to renting an AirB&B outside the city and piling everybody, including extended family of any grandparents, in-laws, or aunts and uncles that can make it. Since we are GypsyNesters and don’t have a home to host a holiday hoedown for Thanksgiving this is a fantastic alternative.
All in all, we have discovered that it really doesn’t matter where you are or what’s on the table, it’s all about being together. One of our best family memories involved a ill-fated trip to Cleveland. Not having planned properly (who? US?), we ended up with three teen-agers stuck in a hotel on Thanksgiving. Not a restaurant was open in the city, so we made a spread out of tortilla chips and beef jerky from the mini mart next door.
An unconventional holiday feast, to be sure, but one that all five of us look back on with fond feelings.
Or perhaps, we’re just weird. Yeah, that’s probably it.
The festivities, the food, the comraderie, the glühwein – put it all together and we’ve got ourselves a great way to ring in the season!
But really — you ask — how different can they be? Surely one Christmas market is the same as the next?
Our reply? Not by a loooooooong shot!
Vienna, Austria
Arguably the oldest of the markets, the Vienna December advent market was the predecessor to the modern Christkindlmarkets, or Christ child markets, and is said to have started way back in 1294.
The idea spread across the Holy Roman Empire, and they remain most popular in the German-speaking regions of Europe.
As with most of the cities we have visited there are several markets scattered about town, but the Wiener Christkindlmarkt in the Rathausplatz, the plaza in front of the town hall, is the city’s main market.
We were thrilled to wander through the descendant of the world’s first.
Local delicacies are a big part of experiencing the markets, so of course we had to sample some from the selection of sausages, (that makes them Vienna sausages, right?) and a steaming cup of mulled wine known as glühwein.
The name is said to come from a glowing hot iron used to warm the wine, or maybe it’s because this staple at the markets really hits the spot when it comes to keeping the shoppers warm and glowing.
In Germany we visited the Passau Christmas market at the square in front of St. Stephen’s Cathedral, a baroque church from 1688.
Here we discovered something new and truly inspired, the half-meter würst.
Wow, that’s nearly two feet of sausage!
Did we (meaning David) die and go to heaven?
Unfortunately we had just eaten a huge lunch, so we had no place to put half a meter of würstle.
That minor detail was easily overcome when Sausage Boy devised a würst-case scenario, and snuck his way back a little later to partake of the best of the würst, or at least the biggest.
Sometimes he can be his own würst enemy.
The quest culminated in a legendary half-meter-würst selfie.
While the markets are most common in the German speaking world, we also found a fun example in Bratislava, Slovakia.
The Hlavne namestie, or main square, was filled with vendors, mostly selling food and drink, and tables under small shelters where the purchases could be enjoyed.
A very social situation and we were more than happy to jump into the middle of it.
We gave zemiakové placky with cheese a try. This is a pancake made of shredded potatoes — crisp on the outside and chewy within — covered in a layer of mild, yet tangy white sheep cheese.
We gave it two gloved thumbs up, very tasty and stick-to-your-ribs on a chilly December evening.
Nearly everyone warmed themselves with varene vino, the local version of mulled wine, but in a twist we hadn’t seen before, hot white wine seemed just as popular as the red.
After giving this regional variety a try, our verdict was that while delicious, it lacked the superior cockle-warming qualities of the red. But the fact that we made our purchase from a vino vender named “The Flinstones” more than made up for it.
On the Pest side of the city we checked out the main Christmas market, a large collection of stands and kiosks all decked out in holiday style.
While there were plenty of booths selling handcrafted gifts, food — lots of food — was certainly the main event.
After scouting out all the offerings we ordered a töltött káposzta, that’s cabbage stuffed with meat and rice, served with a paprika sauce and sour cream.
Exceedingly Hungarian!
We also couldn’t resist a huge smoked meat dumpling with sauerkraut.
To wash it all down, and to stay warm too, we tried the Hungarian version of glühwein, which is called forralt bor, meaning simply “boiled wine.”
New York City also hosts a number of Christmas markets throughout the city. Two of the biggest and most popular are the Winter Village at Bryant Park, and the Union Square Holiday Market.
Surrounded by soaring skyscrapers, Bryant Park’s Winter Village began in 2002.
Booths offer NYCcentric wares and food (we saw everything from chimney cakes to sushi), and in lieu of glühwein, New York apple cider is standard fare.
Bryant Park boasts a huge Christmas tree and a full-sized ice skating rink that’s twice as big as the rink at Rockefeller Center — and it’s free to skate!
The Union Square Holiday Market may not be quite as spectacular, but it struck us as more traditional.
A veritable maze of tents are set up offering all kinds of gifts and goodies that are sure to put even the Ginchiest Grinch in the spirit of the season.
Last year, in our post-turkey bloat, we grabbed the remote and settled into something we rarely do. We vegged in front of the boob-tube. Immediately we felt bombarded.
The blaring onslaught of Black Friday ads was funny at first, but after an hour or so, being yelled at to BUY! BUY! BUY! the commercials didn’t seem so funny anymore…
We saw this quote and just had to share. It struck us that we may be losing sight on what is truly important this holiday season.
Christmas Gift Suggestions
To your enemy, forgiveness.
To an opponent, tolerance.
To a friend, your heart.
To a customer, service.
To all, charity.
To every child, a good example.
To yourself, respect. -Oren Arnold
Last year, in our post-turkey bloat, we grabbed the remote and settled into something we rarely do. We vegged in front of the boob-tube.
Immediately we felt bombarded. The blaring onslaught of Black Friday ads was funny at first. We sat and mocked in our usual GypsyNester fashion.
But after an hour or so, being yelled at to BUY! BUY! BUY! the commercials didn’t seem so funny anymore.
They had become insulting and irritating.
In fact there’s no waiting until Friday anymore, we were right in the midst of what seemed to be the first Black Thanksgiving. Stores are now opening up on Thursday night for their “Friday” sales!
The evening news carried a segment with “professional shoppers” bestowing tips on how to survive Black Friday. One ad had the gall to suggest that Black Friday was the day of the year we should be looking forward to most.
It seems every year we hear the horror stories of folks — in a frenzy to buy the hottest items at the lowest price — camping out on freezing sidewalks, coming to blows with their neighbors, and being trampled by fellow shoppers.
We doubt this year will be different. Except that now it starts right after Thanksgiving dinner… or maybe even before.
