Saturday, March 8, 2014

Hannah & Trier

Trier with Hannah!

Good news!  Hannah, my cousin is moving to Luxembourg!  She has been back and forth quite a bit between Nebraska and Luxembourg City while she waits for her visa to come in.  But we were able to meet up with her last Saturday at a perfect half way point for everyone in Trier.  We are thrilled to have family only a short 2 hour drive from where we are living.  You got room for a family of 6 to visit every weekend right Hannah?  ;)

We were able to see some of the same sites we had seen last summer when we visited, along with touring the Roman Baths and the house of Karl Marx.  

Over 1600 years ago, the Romans built one of the grandest and most impressive baths in the world: the Imperial Baths in Trier.  People bathed naked together.  They could also engage in sports, sit in cold or hot baths, swim, get a massage, have the body hair removed by tweezers or wax, and be cleaned with the help of scrapers, pumice stone, or fermented urine.  They could relax, gamble, do business, go to the hairdresser's libraries, reciting rooms, or pubs.  
People bathed naked (not always separately), could engage in sports, sit in cold and hot baths, swim, get a massage, have the body hair removed by tweezers or wax, and be cleaned with the help of scrapers, pumice stone, or fermented urine. They could relax, gamble, do business, go to the hairdresser's, libraries, reciting rooms, or pubs. 
The Karl Marx house in Trier was Karl Marx's birthplace.  It is now a museum of his life, influence, and work.  We got there about 35 minutes before closing.  We were able to view the entire house and listen to most of the tour, however most of the written works were far beyond our comprehension of the German language. 
Highlights of this trip to Trier were Rowan blowing her shoe out.  We had to stop at one of the shops along the Marktplatz and invest in some functional shoes!  Not two hours later Liam rolled into a pond in the park.  Literally soaked from the waist down we found ourselves back in a department store in the Marktplatz with a new pair of size 5 jeans and spiffy new boots.  Always an adventure with The Finleys!

Roman Baths


Baths


Hannah and my boys in the baths


Baths


The crew in the baths


Miss Rowan


Teddy


The girls, Rowan & Hannah


Teddy capturing his trip on camera


Daniel at the baths


Patrick was determined to hop the length of this stone backwards on one foot without falling off.


Constantine's foot





A swim in the pond


Liam climbing more trees.  Wet.


Teddy in the trees.


Rowan loves her dad!


Hannah & Paddy Punkins.


Me & Hannah


The Crew


Karl Marx Haus


Hannah in front of the Karl Marx Haus


Liam listening intently to the Karl Marx tour information








Koblenz Germany

We took a trip to Koblenz Germany in celebration of Teddy's 10th birthday.  I cannot believe my little guy is not so little anymore and has hit the double digits.  Time is going to fast!  So in light of this it is time to soak up every last opportunity I have with my babies!

The name Koblenz actually means "merging of the rivers."  If you ever get to visit Koblenz there is no denying where it gets its name!  The Mosel and Rhine Rivers meet here, creating what Germans have coined as the Deutsches Eck, or German Corner.  It is considered the heart of Germany.

The day we visited was a little bit chilly.  We took took a gondola ride over the river from the hilltop fortress down, over the river, into the city of Koblenz.  The kids of course were thrilled with the gondola ride and the amazing view.  

We walked down to the very corner of the rivers where the rivers meet and walked up into the statue of William I, the first German Emperor.  

We wandered the streets and spent some time in a local park.  After we walked the waterfront back to the gondola and rode back up to check out the fortress.


Besides boasting the most incredible views of the area on top of this hill, the Fortress was built by Prussia in 1817 as as the backbone of the regional fortification system.  

Following our tour of the fortress, we went and grabbed a few schnitzel dinners and called it a successful day!



Gondola Ride with view of the Deutsches Eck



Taking in the view



Coming down!



Liam loved this "sky train."


The Deutsches Eck 


Standing on the Deutsches Eck



Riverside Eye Candy.  I am a lucky woman.


William I.


Curls and Cuteness!


Really cool statue of Koblenz through the centuries.




Park time!


More park time.


2 Patricks.






Our big boys.


Teddy in front of the palace.


Big boys again.


Climbing trees.  We are also doing a grand tour of European tree climbing!


Riverside.



Love!



Rowan and her dad.




One of our little world travelers that is not so little anymore.



Fortress.


Running.


Paddy taking in the view.


View of Deutsches Eck


Handsome boys.