Glen is the blogger in the family...me not so much, but it has been almost a month since we landed in Paris and it is time for my take on the trip so far. First stop was Versailles...which Glen LOVED??? The palace and the gardens are amazing, however, I was disappointed in the amount that you get to see inside the palace. And it is a tourist trap...the line ups to get in can be 2-3 hrs long...hard to see everything once you are inside as there are so many people. You need to have patience if you are going to visit this site. Next we drove down to the Bordeaux region, stopping in the old town of St. Emilion. It was a gorgeous old town with narrow streets and lots to see. From there we drove on to the Arcachon Basin. Lovely area...the Dune of Plya is incredible...not much "history" to see, however, did a drive to Cap Ferret along the ocean and it was very picturesque. We then headed east to the Sarlat de Caneda region which has many medieval towns and castles. Highlights were Sarlat, Domme and La Roque Gageac...great old villages well worth the visit. Continued to drive east and next visited the Annecy Lake Region. We stayed at Le Bourget Lake, which is south of Annecy and enjoyed a walk around the lake which is very pretty. We then drove for the day into Genève, which almost didn't happen as there is no where to park in the area...without mortgaging your house, that is. Thought Glen was going to have a heart attack...he is so calm!!!! We finally stopped at a hotel and there were 3 young men outside waiting for the bus and they told us to head out of the city a bit and take the park & ride tram. Worked like a charm...parking was free and it only took about 10 minutes to get into the heart of the city. The highlight of this excursion was an American family we met at the Cathedral St. Pierre. Originally from Kentucky, they have been living for many years in Dubai...very interesting to talk to. Genève is a big city...the lakeshore is nice...main highlight was standing at the Plaza of Nations...United Nations headquarters. From this region we headed a little further east to Lake Como, Italy. Really enjoyed our stay here...the lake is gorgeous and we had one chill day (which was great) and then we took the ferry boat across the lake to Bellagio and Veranna. Great little spots to visit, although Bellagio is quite touristy with shops, cafes etc. Varenna was more quaint. Also drove up the road to Menaggio as well. The little village we were staying in was Griante and it was nice to stroll along the lake on the promenade. Next, headed to Lake Konstanz, Germany and stopped on the way at Interlaken, Switzerland. It was a quaint "canal" town which we strolled around. Then we arrived in Lake Konstanz to spend three days with our German friends, Walter & Sybille and Walter & Karina. Had a wonderful time with them, catching up on everyone's news and spending time at the lake. We visited the Otto Dix museum (no English audio guides..so not as interesting for us as our German friends), the Swiss village of Stein am Rhein...which is worth the visit...the gelato is worth going for!!! We also toured the flower island, Mainau Isle, which is a beautiful garden in the region. They have a butterfly house that we thoroughly enjoyed. Was a wonderful time with good friends!!! Next on the agenda, we started making our way south to Croatia. We stopped in Bled, Slovenia for 2 days where we toured Lake Bled..small lake but very picturesque with an island in the center with a church on it. We visited Slap Savica, a well known waterfall in the region as well. Slovenia is a small country, only 2 million inhabitants, but very clean. Will see more of Slovenia later as we make our way back from Croatia towards Hungary. Now we are in Trieste, Italy, just north of the Croatian border, on the Adriatic Sea. Toured the city today....Miramere Castle would definitely be the highlight...very nice and not expensive to tour. Tomorrow we move on to Pula, Croatia which is on the sea, with some Roman sites to tour and some beaches to lie on....yes!!! Hard to believe that we have been gone almost a month!!! So far...soooooooooo good!! Glen has only lost his cool a couple of times and screamed at the Navi b*itch (I am sure that was who he was screaming at)!!! Give him credit...I would not want to be driving...the roads are crazy narrow, the drivers are just plain CRAZY!!! Especially in Italy!! Driving here is not for the faint of heart and he is doing a great job. I am sure more great stuff to come!!
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Leslie...
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