Christmas Road Trip

Since the Christmas season is just about officially over (even here in Italy), I figure it's about time for a recap of our holiday adventures.  It is difficult to travel to any touristy sites here in Europe for Christmas since many things are closed and the usually cheap intra-Europe flights are pretty expensive, so we decided to road trip to visit our friends who live in Heidelberg, Germany.  Although we visited Heidelberg last year for New Year's, we decided to take our time driving and hit up a few spots on the way.

Shop windows in Germany

Stop One: Luzern, Switzerland

Unfortunately, the weather was very uncooperative on our trip here and prevented us from doing any site seeing.  We arrived at night and had enough time to grab dinner.  The combination of wind and freezing rain was not at all enjoyable and we did not get to check out much of the town.  We will be back.

Some rough weather made for far too few Swiss pictures.

On the plus side, we did discover a hidden gem of a hotel.  High above Lake Luzern, this hotel is currently undergoing renovations and will likely be expensive some day soon.  In the meantime, it is a real bargain!  Our room was easily the biggest one we've had in Europe, complete with a balcony overlooking the lake.

Unfortunately, this was the best shot of the view.

Stop Two: Strasbourg, France

We took a quick detour into France on day two to experience the oldest Christmas Market in all of Europe.  Strasbourg is the self-proclaimed "Capital of Christmas" and it comes as no surprise.  The city was packed with vendors, decorations and all sorts of Christmas cheer.

Christmas in France

If you ever get the chance to visit Strasbourg outside of Christmas, I highly recommend it.  It's a delightful town just over the Rhine River (the river is the border between Germany & France) with lots of Germanic flair and French charm.  Back in the day, the French and Germans frequently swapped this land because they both disagreed on their country's borders.  Now, it's a cute and quaint town with lots of unique architecture, a ton of bicycles and a massive cathedral.  Ironically, it's sister city in the US happens to be Boston (which probably explains why I liked it so much!). 

Christmas Market Vendors

Strasbourg Cathedral

Christmas Everywhere!

The streets of Strasbourg

Oldest Christmas Market in Europe!

Pretty buildings

Strasbourg

 Destination: Heidelberg, Germany

Ending 2011 in the same place we started it!

We arrived in Heidelberg on Christmas Eve and caught up with our friends- the Gonzales'.  We met the Gonzales' in North Carolina a few years ago and they are now stationed in Germany.  In the past year, their family has grown and this was the first time we got to meet their six-month old son and reunite with their English bulldog puppy.  We spent the evening walking the streets of downtown Heidelberg, which were pretty empty since Germans celebrate Christmas on the 24th.  Most shops were closed and the restaurant we ate at was closing as we left.

Heidelberg's oldest building....quiet on Christmas Eve

Christmas Day was relaxing and quiet as we enjoyed watching the baby open his gifts (he's now a huge Red Sox fan!), the generosity of our hosts and some delicious cooking.

Although we missed our families back home, it was nice to be in the company of our friends overseas who were wonderful hosts throughout the weekend.  Last year, we had an Italian Christmas, this year a German one and hopefully soon, the rest will be in Quincy!

Buon Natale, Joyeux Noel, Froehliche Weihnachten & Merry Christmas!

**Side note- As a sign that the above Christmas wish is meant to come true, we ended up behind a car with Massachusetts license plates when we crossed the Swiss border on our drive back.  What are the odds of that!? (And who knew you could drive in Europe with US plates?)