Two Weeks Worth of Traveling

It's been a very busy two weeks and I must say it feels great to be home. Jay's parents met us in England on July 2, and we spent 5 days touring London, Bath, and the country of Wales. It was fun to see all of the big sites in London, like Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, London Bridge, Tower of London, Wimbledon (while it was going on). We also had a front row spot to watch the changing of the guards at Buckingham Palace. That was pretty neat. The best part of it was the songs the bands played during the half hour. Lots of James Bond... it was great!!

Bath is a very traditional town in England and gave us a chance to get out of the big city. It is a spa city, that has Roman Baths in it. This is one from a long time ago that still stands. The water is natural spring water, that is warm to the touch.

We took a walking tour with an elder from the community who was very knowledgeable. We also stopped at Stonehenge, which is an attraction of rocks. It was built a long time ago (don't remember the year) and still stands. It's amazing to think they cut all the rocks and layered them all by hand.

We drove to Wales and saw a castle, but didn't get to do much else. We were pushed for time, but at least are able to say that we've been to Wales. Once we got back to London, we went to Greenwich to stand on the Prime Meridian. Jay and I are standing in two different time zones.

We got home on a Tuesday and left again on Thursday. That gave us enough time to show Curt and Nancy around post and the town, do laundry, and rest for a day. After laundry, we packed up again and headed out to southern Germany. We moved to a new town every night after exploring the surroundings for the day. Our towns were Rothenburg (an old, traditional town that still has a wall around the city), Nuremburg (to see Hitler’s parade grounds and a castle), Dachau Concentration Camp, Munich (tried to see the BMW plant, but the tour was full… saw the Olympic stadium and the Oktoberfest grounds), Neuschwanstein and Linderhof castles (both built by King Ludwig II), Bertchesgaden and Hitler’s Eagle’s Nest, Garmisch Olympic Ski Stadium, and ended with a trip to Salzburg to explore the city. I think we tired out our guests by the end of this week. It was pretty action packed.

Neuschwanstein Castle (Cinderella's Castle was built after it)

Linderhof Castle

Salzburg Castle and city

Ramsau, most photographed church in the world

Rothenburg

Hitler's Eagle's Nest

On top of a mountain

We came home on Tuesday, spent Wednesday packing and resting and headed to Frankfurt Wednesday night. Jay and I went with Curt and Nancy to the airport this morning and watched them until they were out of site (which doesn’t take long with security). It was rough to watch them go, especially for Jay. It will be a year before he sees them again. We are all hoping the time goes fast!!!!

We had a great time the past two weeks. It’s hard to believe that it’s all over. We’ve been looking forward to July for so many months now…. And it’s come and gone. We would love to have two more weeks with Jay’s parents, but unfortunately time isn’t on our side. Jay is home for one more month, then out to the field for a month, and then I get him for another month or so before deployment. In that perspective, time is moving way too fast!! We just continue to be thankful for the time we do get together, and that Curt and Nancy were able to come see us for awhile. We are always reminded that God is in control, always!!