Quick pictures of the first half of the trip

Frankfurt Day 1- Mom and Dad with Bavarian beers outside the castle



Frankfurt Day 1- Neuschwanstein castle



Venice Day 2- Dog inside a butcher shop...???



Venice Day 2- The Daniel family at St. Mark's square



Venice Day 1- Private walking tour of Venice at night



Rome Day 2-The Coliseum



Rome Day 2- The Piata in St. Peter's Basilica



Rome Day 2- Illegally taken Sistine Chapel picture



Rome Day 1-Trevi Fountain



Rome Day 1-Panini in the square

Frankfurt

Hallo! (Hello in German...)

We finally made it to our hotel last night around 2 am after a 6 hour delay due to technical problems on RyanAir. We also found out while sitting in the airport that the Frankfurt-Hahn airport is not really located in Frankfurt, but 1 hour and 20 minutes outside of the city. At least we knew that ahead of time, instead of being worried our driver was lost late in the night. It was great b/c we got to take Autobahn ("car lane") at night and go really fast as no one else was on the road. We got to Frankfurt and realized it was a very modern city, actually the financial district of Germany and Europe, so it was not the small German town Mom had hoped for. Once in the room, we saw it was very modern, even with a choice of light colors in the room (white, orange or blue). The hotel was the biggest we've stayed in so far and the front desk staff spoke great English which was comforting. We all collapsed for a 3 1/2 hour "nap" before getting up for today's adventures.

Breakfast at this hotel was more American, as we had scrambled eggs and American-style coffee, but many unique options like cheeses, meats, melon with proscuitto, etc. Very yummy and helped fuel us for the 13 hour castle tour we would soon imbark upon. We were suprisingly picked up from the hotel in a high class black Mercedes which would take us to the tour office. We were then shocked to find out that we had a private tour, with a English speaking driver...in the Mercedes!!!! We all felt like movie stars and couldn't believe we wouldn't be taking a tour bus with others, but would be taking this amazing car on our own private tour. Now you're probably wondering what you do for 13 hours looking at castles. The truth is, the castle we went to see, Neuschwanstein (meaning "new", "swan", "stone" in German), was about 4 hours from Frankfurt. This castle is supposedly the inspiration for the castle in Disneyworld...which made Mom and I very happy. The drive was pretty long but neat b/c we spent most of it again on the Autobahn. We did get off about 45 minutes from the castle and drive through a few Bavarian towns, which looked more like "typical" Germany. We stopped a beautiful church that was very pretty and very cold (no heater and it was below freezing outside). Once we arrived at the castle, it was a 1 mile walk, straight up the hill to the castle, and the tour was only 35 minutes (kinda of a bummer, but still great to see). We did get bratwurst for lunch so that was awesome to have real bratwurst in Germany (which was fried, not boiled or grilled). Finally our great driver, Paul, loaded us back up in the car and drove us home...even faster this evening...on the Autobahn.

We are now lounging in the room and preparing for another tour tomorrow (Day on the Rhine River). Hope all is well back in the states and hope everyone is getting ready for a fabulous New Year. I plan to blog again tomorrow!!

-Melissa

Rome and Venice

Greetings from the airport in Venice!

We finished our 2nd day in Rome as another jam packed day with tons of walking. We woke up, rode the Metro, and headed to the Vatican. Our tour was filled with all Americans and the tour guide spoke great English, so both were a plus. The Vatican was truly amazing and Mom even took one picture illegally in the Sistine chapel (which was soo beautiful). St. Peter's Basilica was also very great and after the tour we headed to the Roman Forum (closed b/4 we could get in but had great views from the outside) and the Colisseum (also closed early b/c of the winter and again great views from outside) so both of these encounters were slightly disappointing, but still very greatful to see in real life. We then moved on Circo Massimo where they held the ancient chariot races, but is now just an open field area so we had to use our imagination to hear the horses and think of the grand stands used to watch the races. Finally, we walked on to Trastevere and managed to get very frustrated and very lost at night. Our dinner that night was very good (I had true Carbonara) but the server was not very friendly. We rode the bus home and collapsed after such a long day.

Yesterday, we woke and took a taxi from the hotel to the train station in Venice. This was another frustrating part of the trip b/c the trains are meant for short trips and not to handle our large luggage. Therefore, we were unable to stow the luggage above us and had to leave it in the aisle. Someone had to stay awake constantly on the train to make sure no one messed with the luggage or took it with them at a stop. I managed to get a quick nap in while not looking at the nice Italian countryside outside, which helped to recover from the busy days so far. We passed 2 towns that were completely white with snow, so that was a great treat. When we arrived in Venice (4 hours after the start of the train ride) we had to haul all the heavy luggage through the narrow streets and over bridges to reach our hotel. Seems like yesterday was a pretty annoying day. We checked in our hotel (beautiful) and met our great tour guide (Federica) for our nighttime private walking tour. She was a great tour guide and showed us more local areas of Venice with amazing views and gave us tons of information about the city. We even took a short gondola ride across the Grand Canal for 50 cents euro each. We went to a local (tiny) restaurant and had some local fried food and wine. The tour was a great way to end the crazy day. We even saw that dogs are allowed in all buildings (including restaurants and the butcher shop).

This morning we woke up and did the touristy areas on our own including St. Mark's Square, Basilica, and the local market. We managed to get around Venice very easily, so finally we had a more relaxing day. We did some shopping for souvenirs and headed back to the hotel to prepare for our trip to the airport (to fly to Frankfurt). We had a private water taxi that stopped where we met a private bus to take us to the airport. We sure feel like celebrities sometimes! With a perfect on-time arrival at the airport we knew things couldn't end so perfectly today....therefore, we are on a 6 hour flight delay due to mechanical problems with our plane. Supposedly, as soon as they get the plane fixed, it will leave Frankfurt to come get us here in Venice and then take us back to Frankfurt. We are now using internet for 12 euro for 2 hours so this is a very pricey post. Tomorrow will be another fun-filled day with our castle tour in southern Germany.

Hope to blog again soon! Thanks for all comments :)

-Melissa

Bonjourno from Roma!

Bonjourno!

The Daniel family has safely arrived to Rome, Italy as of 8:15 am (1:15 am central time) on 12/26. The flight was long and all of us struggled to fall asleep and stay asleep. Mom and I were so excited that the 2nd movie on the flight was "Mamma Mia," but the in-flight entertainment system was having problems and the movie never came on so we were heartbroken! The flight was long, but not unbearable. Once we arrived, we successfully passed through passport checks and then met our "hard-core" Italian driver who greeted us with a sign with our name on it. How cool!!! The ride to the hotel was very pretty and we got some great views of the city from afar. As the driver dropped us off at the front door, we were met with a stairwell with no hotel in site and we all started to get nervous...thankfully the hotel was on the 2nd floor and the great front desk man came to greet us. He has been wonderful and gave us a great recommendation for dinner (Il Pomodoro). Despite the urge to lay down once we got in the room, we got up and started sightseeing (despite drizzling rain and jetlag).

We first hit the Piazza de Spagna with the Spanish steps. Very beautiful and there was even a small nativity scene at the base. Next, we moved on to Piazza del Popolo (a la recommendation of my brother, Trey) and it was very nice. It's known for bringing entertainment and activity in the evening in open area, but we didn't hit it at that time. The area was still very beautiful. Next we walked on to the famous Trevi Fountain. This is where you throw money into the fountain for hope to return to the Eternal City in the future. Very touristy but very beautiful! Mom and I especially loved it because there is a replica at Disneyworld in the Italy area in Epcot. Finally we hit the Pantheon, but the inside portion was still closed for the Holiday. We may try to see it again and glance inside, since it's supposed to be an amazing dome. After this, the Daniel family began to tire (around 2:15 local time) and we returned to the hotel for a nap. We ended our night with a great meal and have now found FREE wireless internet in the hotel. Woohoo!!

Tomorrow we will hit The Vatican, Coliseum, Roman Forum, Circo de Massimo (where the chariot races were once held), and a trendy little neighborhood called Trastevere. Hope everyone had a great Christmas and I'll hopefully blog again tomorrow with a day full of info!!

Melissa

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas everyone!

I hope yall are enjoying a great Christmas day and I hope Santa was good to you and your family. The Daniel family was up bright and early for last minute preparations for our travel to Europe. We leave from the Baton Rouge airport around 11 am and then fly to Atlanta. Following a few hour layover, we will take to the skies around 4 pm (ATL time) and arrive tomorrow in Rome, Italy at 8:15 am (which is 7 hours ahead of central time). We are so excited to start our travels and make some great memories on the trip.

Thanks for the prayers b/c I was able to get in touch with Sue Hall, the director of Physiotherapy at The Royal Hospital for Neuro-Disability, and she has arranged for me to stay in the nurse dorms for at least the first part of my clinical rotation. A big sigh of relief, especially for mom, b/c I won't be living on the streets. Now she can just enjoy the trip and leaving worrying to a minimal state (b/c we all know she'll still worry about some things).

Depending on the amount of exciting news and availability of internet at the ATL airport, I may blog again before we head out. If not, hopefully we can get a message out in the next few days to began telling the wonderful story of the Daniel's European Vacation.

God Bless and Merry Christmas!

Melissa

Preparation

Greetings!

The preparation for the trip has become so overwhelming! Last week I spent my time packing and moving all my stuff from my place in Nashville into a storage unit for the next few months. By the way, it's really hard to decide what things you won't need for such a long period of time. After a long week, short bout with a cold, and tons of help from my neighbor Tom, all was moved out and I was ready to hit the road. But not until I slipped down the stairs, broke my new phone, and added another thing to my to-do list before I left the country. After a few "last suppers" in Nashville and with a new phone, Mom, Oliver, and I headed to Baton Rouge.

Today was spent with more preparing (washing clothes, getting used to another phone,creating a new email address {melissadanielpt@gmail.com}, etc.). I'm very much looking forward to Christmas Eve celebration with the family and then heading out around 9 am Tuesday to start our trek to Italy.

For those who don't know already, we will hit Rome, Venice, Frankfurt (Germany), Paris, and London in a short 10 days before Mom and Dad head back to Baton Rouge and leave me on the streets in London (as I haven't found a place to live yet...any suggestions???). Hope to blog again before we leave on Christmas!

-Melissa