We had been counting down to this trip for so long that it was surreal when it finally arrived. In the morning the kids went to school (the last day of school) and Chris and I packed, did a few errands, picked up the kids from school and ran around crazy excited finishing everything up. We headed to the airport but I forgot my phone so we turned around which made everything a bit stressful until we were successfully checked in. 8 people, 8 suitcases and 7 backpacks. The system was pretty smooth. Even getting off the shuttle to the airport people remarked that we had the system down. Chris grabbed a suitcase from the shuttle and handed it to Ryan who wheeled it to each kid who hopped off. 4 other people remarked that we had a lot of kids. Usually Chris doesn’t hear those comments because he’s in the front, then the kids, and then me. I love it though.
We grabbed some McDonalds and headed to the gate to find Dan and Esme (our neighbors) headed on our flight to Iceland for their Mediterranean Cruise. We laughed that we were on the same flight. We boarded first because of our ‘little kids’ (which isn’t going to work much longer) and got all set up. Ryan, Katie and Megan together. Dad and Emily across the aisle from the boys and I. The flight to Iceland was 7 hours and was pretty smooth. The kids just love having a movie screen at each seat and that they get to watch movies or play drawing games the entire time. The boys watched the Peanut movie and a few others. At 9:00pm we had them turn it off and coaxed them into a few hours of sleep. I don’t think Chris got any, but I got a few hours all pieced together.
The highlight of the trip was waking up at the exact time we were flying over the Southern tip of Greenland. The clouds parted for a minute so I could see white capped mountains. So cool.
(iPhone photos here)
We landed at what felt to us like 1:00am but instead was a bright 5:00am. We got off the plane, shuttled to the clean modern Iceland airport and ate donuts while we waited in line for our 3 1/2 hour flight to Munich. The boys didn’t sleep at all. I did a bit.
Arriving in Munich was a bit surreal. It felt so good to be seeing the German language in print on signs around the airport. We just kept smiling at each other. We gathered suitcases, got our rental van, which fit us well, and got on the autobahn – which put a big smile on Chris’ face. He was giddy. We had some tired kids but no one slept. We marveled at the green fields, trees and red roofed villages along the way to Garmisch, still in shock that we were actually there.
We headed to the commissary by Edelweiss to pick up some groceries and snacks and then checked in at the hotel to get our key to our apartment. Chris used his limited German to figure things out and explain that we had already paid online. They sent him with the key and the address, telling him they were pretty sure it was “14”. It wasn’t – but Chris made friends with the nice couple living there and again pieced together a conversation, which led to a phone call back to the hotel with the correction to “40” Waxensteinstrasse – named after one of the German alp peaks.
The apartment was adorable. It’s always so fun to check out the ‘new house’ and see where everyone goes. This one was great with 4 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms, a kitchen, dining room and big living room. When we opened the sliding glass door to the balcony then the church bells started as if on cue and I started to cry. I squealed and Chris and Ryan came to find me smiling and sobbing. I think the lack of sleep was amplifying the feeling but I really was overcome. It was a small German detail that I hadn’t even remembered until it happened.
The owners of the apartment left us German juices and a box of milk. We love the juice but never really learned to appreciate the boxed shelf milk – so we just left that on the counter.
The sun was shining, and even though we were starving we decided that walking through our new little village, Grainau, would be first on the list. We brushed our hair and teeth and headed out the door walking straight over to the village church, proudly sitting on the hill overlooking a gorgeous cemetery. I just love the flowers planted at every grave. We could hear the church organ playing for afternoon services as we walked by.
Ryan, Luke and Matt in front of the cute house we stayed at.
Starving, we hoping in our van and headed to Eidelweiss – until I saw the most beautiful field in front of the German Alps and just had to stop. Chris pulled over the van and we all hopped out.
It might be funny to eat American food for our first meal in Germany but the kids have such fond memories or staying and eating at Edelweiss, that going there was a must and an “all you can eat” buffet sounded really great for this starving crew.
Just look at that view from the front balcony…
So much fun walking around Eidelweiss. We love it there – such good memories. After dinner and pictures we headed to downtown Garmisch to walk around. I was so surprised we stayed away for as long as we did – but the excitement of being in Germany gave us some extra adrenaline.
After Garmisch we headed back home, finally getting everyone tucked into their beds at 9:00. So tired!!
1 comment:
I didn't know you came through!! Garmisch and it's surrounding areas are my happy place and your pictures are much better than mine but still as I love that place:)
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