Europe 2000
Here are some pix from my trip to Europe this summer with my dad -- I can tell you're excited!
GERMANY
We stayed in Gaiberg, Germany for three days with my dad's friends from his Army days.
01 Traude Larsen, Frau Muller, and Frau Dimmel
02 Frau and Herr Kress, Traude's parents
03 Bob Larsen, Traude's husband
04 Me and Jeffrey Larsen, Traude's son
ENGLAND
Next, we visited my maternal relatives in Colwall, Worcestershire, England.
05 Inchmahome, the family homestead -- the original Inchmahome was a Scottish castle, now in ruins
06 Me with my Great-Grandfather and Great-Uncle
07 Dad, under a very appropriate sign
We then went to London to join our tour group for the remainder of our journey.
08 Changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace
09 London Bridge
HOLLAND
The mainland tour really began in Holland, where we spent 2 nights in Amsterdam.
10 The Rijksmuseum
11 A street performer who spooked one of our fellow travelers
12 Our hotel, the Jolly Carlton (yes, my family secretly owns the world!)
13 This plaque on a house in Monnickerdam indicates that Jews were hidden and saved from the Nazis there in WW II
14 A real, working windmill! I climbed to the top, much to Dad's chagrin
15 Frank and Jo Coley at our dinner in Volendam
16 The newlyweds, Te-Ali and Phyllis, with our tour director Marianne
GERMANY
We zipped through Germany on our way to the Alps.
17 A castle overlooking the Rhine
18 Heidelberg Castle
SWITZERLAND
Across the Swiss border, we marveled at the beauty of the Swiss Alps.
19 Our lunchtime stop at a waterfall
20 Silly tourists trying the Alpine horn at Mount Pilatus, which overlooks Lucerne
21 Me playing in the snow atop Mount Pilatus
22 Some of the gang enjoys cocoa at the peak
23 Yet more of the gang taking the world's steepest tram down the mountain
24 A long-distance view of Mount Pilatus
25 The Alps!
26 One of many frogs that decorate Lucerne
LIECHTENSTEIN
Just stopped for lunch -- it's a tiny little country, y'know!
27 Dad in front of a map of Liechtenstein
AUSTRIA
Due to a lack of talent, Dad and I forgot to take pictures in Austria. Just trust us, Austria is cool.
ITALY
We spent almost a week in Italy, catchin' all the major venues.
28 29 30 31 32 33 The major sights of Venice
34 35 36 37 Our tour group got in gondolas and took to the canals
38 Dinner at Rome got a little rowdy…
39 …as several of the women were forced to do the macarena
40 Dad made his triumphant return to Trevi Fountain
41 The inside of St. Peter's Basilica
42 A fashion-challenged Swiss Guard
46 The ruins of the Roman Forum
47 Our second Rome dinner, out at a vineyard, was slightly more tame (till the booze set in)
48 The Santa Croce in Venice
49 Me in front of a statue of Dante
50 Il Duomo, the famous domed church of Florence
51 Group cheerleader Ashley with her "famous" hat
52 What Italian trip is complete without the Leaning Tower of Pisa?
MONACO
Sadly, cameras aren't allowed in the casinos, so we didn't get much here.
53 The palace of Monaco
FRANCE
France was the last part of our journey before returning to London to catch our flights.
54 That's right, we also own a hotel in Lyon
55 A view of the hills surrounding Lyon
56 Sacre Coeur, which overlooks Paris from the north hill
57 These crazy old-timers sang for us at dinner…all American tunes, with creepy French accents
58 59 60 61 Again, the wine set in and dinner became chaos
62 Nighttime at the Eiffel Tower
63 Notre Dame cathedral
64 65 Views from the observation deck of the Eiffel Tower
66 Victor, Jason and I enjoying the view
67 Dad outside I.M. Pei's famous entrance to the Louvre
