Aaron Cole

Our fifth and final stop in Europe. Super hot and busy, but we were able to have many wonderful experiences.

Highlights

• Dawn found a great rental apartment just off Palazzo Vecchio. Plenty of space and A/C, which allowed us to take much-needed breaks from the heat and crowds.
• Loaded up on carbs at a Trattoria Anita around the corner from our apartment on the first night.
• Waked the halls of the Pitti Palace. In addition to the expected period artwork, they have a costume and fashion exhibit that surprised us.
• Found a wine window.
• “Gelato 30” was the promise of gelato every 3-4 hours.
• Pasta-making class. Brown butter and sage from now on.
• Leonardo Da Vinci Interactive Museum with Dad and Elliot.
• Perfume-making class with Dawn and Dylan.
• Chocolate tasting at Slitti
• Our nicest meal at Buca Mario. Dawn and Dylan shared a huge Florentine steak. All of our steaks in Europe were cooked extremely rare.
• Made it through the crowds to see The David at Accademia Gallery and were glad we did.

Walking Around Florence

Pitti Palace

Pasta-making class

Around the Duomo

We never got into the Duomo, but it was on the way to everything else we did.

Gelato

We promised the boys a lot of gelato. The term “Gelato 30” was coined.

Gallery of the Academy

Our tickets to see David were for our last full day in Florence.

Last Night

Our last date night was pretty simple. Grab two glasses, a bottle of wine, and head to the Ponte alla Grazie bridge, and watch the sunset.

We spent a day and a half in Venice. Glad we did, but the crowds and heat were a little overwhelming. Venice at night is a much better experience.

Highlights

• A walking tour with Ricardo ended at a roof-top deck overlooking the Rialto bridge. Epic.
• Mom and Dad let the boys chill at the hotel and headed to a suggested bar for negronis (Tony Bourdain’s quote mentions having two, we may have gone past that).
• Elliot picked out a super-cool snake ring. Watch out fifth graders.
• Toured La Fenice Opera House.
• Walked to Punta della Dogana to get an amazing view of the lagoon.
• Cicchetti, panini sandwiches, and more gelato.

Our 3rd stop on the great European vacation and our first hotel stay.

Highlights

• The high-speed train from Paris to Basel was even nicer than the Eurostar from London to Paris.  Accidentally got on the wrong train from Basel to Lucern, but we were able to recover at the next stop.  There are way more trains in Europe!
• Checked in at the quaint Beau Sejour.  Our room looked out onto Lake Lucern (and had A/C).
• Walked across Chapel Bridge
• Dinner at Wirtshaus Taube. So much fried cheesy goodness. The boys were relieved after Paris. 
• Paddle boat on lake lucern. The captains were arguing about which direction to go. Entertainment consisted of dad jokes and 360s. No yachts were destroyed. 
• Mt. Pilatus. 10-minute bus ride from Lucern. 20-minute four-person gondola up. Ten-minute Dragon 50-person gondola to the top. 
• Hiking and snacks at the visitor center. The Dragon Path hike around the summit was terrifying. Visibility was almost nothing (Still scary). 
• 30-minute funicular train ride all the way down. 
• One-hour boat ride home on the lake. 
• Dinner at Disco Pizza which was surprisingly good. 
• Successfully mailed our extra stuff home
• Swimming in Lake Lucern at Parkanlage Ufschhötti
• Dinner at Bierlibe next to Chapel Bridge

Our 2nd stop in Europe. Definitely more hectic than London, but we had a great time. The boys had some culture force-fed and Mom and Dad got to check off some memories.

Highlights

• Great little apartment a block from the Louvre. 94 steps each time, but a wonderful balcony on the top floor and the cool (actually a bit hot) attic room for the boys.
• Dinner at Le Bistrot Des Halles. Foie Gras Pate and Steak Poivie
• Conciergerie. Part of the old palace where Marie Antoinette was imprisoned. Also the history of French cuisine exhibit. 
• Sainte-Chapelle Church
• Military practice fly-over in preparation for Bastille Day. Wow.
• Food tour with Ally. Pate a choux, escargot (everyone except Elliot), macarons, fresh fruit, cheese plate, and chocolate. 
• Eiffel Tower. The bus was detoured and took us WAY out of the way. Rode through the Arc De Triumph. CRAZY.  We met a lovely woman on the bus who works as a tour guide and guided us from where we got dropped off to the tour pickup. Waited in line for three hours. 1665 steps to the top. (We took the elevator). Mom and Dylan called it on the 2nd level. Elliot and Dad went to the top. 
• Seine River cruise
• Late lunch at Cafe Flore. The boys were not thrilled with French food. D tried though.
• Drinks at L’Express Bar next to the apartment for Mom and Dad.
• Dinner with the boys next door at Enza Famiglia Trattoria e Pizzeria.
• Train out to Versailles. Rode bikes to Chateau de Versailles. Walked through the “chateau” and nearby gardens. Back on the bikes for a ride around the ginormous canal.
• Dinner date for Mom and Dad at Postiche
• Christian Dior Gallerie
• Mom’s appointments at Christian Dior and Louis Vuitton. Dad and the boys took a walk and saw the Arc De Triumph again.
• Meant to check out the grounds in front of the Louvre, but they were closed for Bastille Day. Dad and the boys rode the giant ferris wheel nearby.
• Grabbed some slushies (it was hot) and sat by the Seine to watch the sunset.

Our apartment and the surrounding neighborhood

Conciergerie, Sainte-Chapelle, and Notre Dame

Food Tour

Eiffel Tower

Seine River Cruise

Versallies

The first stop in our epic Europe 2023 family trip.

Highlights

• The Orbit in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park
• Walks down Brick Lane to get to the Underground
• Sky Garden for a free view of the city
• Leadenhall Market
• Walked by the Tower of London
• Thames River cruise
• Pass by Parliament/Big Ben ala American Vacation
• A failed attempt to find 10 Downing Street
• Walked near Buckingham Palace (we were tired and hangry)
• Unplanned visit to the Fortnum & Mason (est 1707) store. All sorts of cool food products
• Walk around St Paul’s (no tickets to get inside)
• Walk across the Millenial Bridge
• Visit the Tate Modern. Boys weren’t sure what to think of the art. Success!
• Borough Market for lunch
• Miniature golf in a WWII-looking bunker
• Mini-date at The Carpenters Arm for Mom and Dad
• Qualifying at the F1 British Grand Prix at Silverstone
• Dylan tried an English Breakfast (potatoes were a hit, blood sausage not so much).
• Foyle’s bookstore
• Midday break in Victoria Embankment Gardens
• We Will Rock You musical
• Covent Garden Market
• Eurostar high-speed rail

Shoreditch

The Orbit at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park

Sky Garden to Piccadilly Street

British Grand Prix at Silverstone

Foyle’s bookstore