Cruisin'

Weekend #2 of Keri's visit was more of a relaxed weekend for us. Instead of running ourselves ragged trying to see Europe by train, we decided to spend the weekend in Konstanz and the surrounding area. We'll get back to living on trains this coming weekend.

Keri returned from a quick Italian trip to Milan and Venice early Thursday afternoon and was understandbly tired. Her overnight train from Venice to Münich arrived in Münich late, and because of that, she missed her connection to Konstanz, and what was supposed to be an already long 10 or so hour trip turned into a 12+ hour trip. But she was a trooper, and after a couple of hours to refresh her self, we went out to enjoy the sun, see some more or the town, and partake in a quintessential German experience, the biergarten.

Friday and Saturday were more of the same. The weather was great, and we spent lots of time touring the town, enjoying the sites and some local beer, ice cream, and on Saturday night, a nice dinner at a local Turkish restaurant that we really enjoy.

Sunday we decided to take a cruise down the Rhine River from Konstanz to Schaffhausen, Switzerland. The boat ride was about 3.5 hours long, and just slowly bounced between the shores on either side of the river between Germany and Switzerland. The scenery was gorgeous; small village after small village among the rolling green hills and vineyards of the area. The sun was shining and we enjoyed a couple of beers during the ride, as well as the company of a beautiful Bernese Mountain Dog named Carlo. After we departed in Schaffhausen, we took some time to check out the town before catching a train back to Konstanz. All in all a nice, relaxing weekend.

Early on Monday morning, Keri hopped on a train to Amsterdam and is there as we type this. She'll be back on Wednesday, and on Thursday, the three of us are heading out to Paris for Easter weekend, not to mention Erin's 30th birthday. If this weather holds up, not only will we have a great time, but great tans to start the summer as well.