Year: 2023

Up early in Strasbourg to catch the train to Reims with one important stop in Metz to see two incredible churches. The first was the magnificent Metz Cathedral nicknamed “The Lantern of God”. It is massive and holds claim to the largest expanse of stained glass in the world. Here we saw the much anticipated windows designed by Marc Chagall and Jacques Villon (both contemporaries in the 60’s).

Also in Metz, we stepped into Eglise Saint Maxime. This church is much smaller and much more modest compared to the Cathedral but the glass is truly amazing! Designed by Jean Cocteau, another contemporary of Chagall and Villon, the windows are cubist in style and possibly my favorites of all the glass I have seen on this trip.

We arrived in Reims as a gentle afternoon rain started to fall and quickly found our hotel. Ignoring the rain, we set out on foot to see some sights. First we visited the Franklin Roosevelt Comprehensive School which, during WWII, was the operating headquarters for General Eisenhower and the allied forces. Here is where the official documents of the German surrender were signed in 1945. There is a comprehensive and really well done museum in the school. Ryan especially enjoyed the history and we enjoyed sharing it with him.

We continued on through the streets admiring the French baroque architecture until arriving at Our Lady of Reims Cathedral. There was a funeral in session so we sat and listened to the music. The acoustics are phenomenal. Then we marvelled at the stunning glass all around the church, especially the double rose windows in the west. We also found more Marc Chagall glass in the east ambulatory. Happy to see so much famous glass on this day.

Raining steadily as we left the cathedral, we ducked into the first restaurant we came to for supper. Good choice… great service and excellent food. It was dusk when we finished and only a short walk back to the apartment past wonderful street fountains with their lights just coming on.

The next morning, we arrived at Veuve Clicquot Champagne House in Reims for a guided tour and tasting. Down into the labyrinth of chalk caverns we went to learn how 27 year old newly widowed Madame Clicquot single handedly and against all odds in the early 1800s, elevated her husband’s business to world class status. The tasting at the end of the tour was bubbly good.

The final stop on this last day of our trip was into the Basilica of Saint Remi to see the windows. I’m running out of adjectives to describe how beautiful the stained glass is. Other worldly perhaps. This church was the 30th one we visited on our tour around Europe.

Just some parting refreshments and a nice lunch before we caught train back to Paris to prepare for the flight home the next day. What a tour! Many dreams came true and memories made. A final word of praise for Monica’s impeccable organizational skills. She orchestrated the entire journey flawlessly: managing all the flights, all the trains, all the ubers and taxis, all the hotels, all the museums, galleries and walking tours, all the required documents and receipts and made sure Ryan and I were healthy and happy the entire time. Respect, admiration and gratitude to you Monica. We love you! ❤️

Here are the photo highlights of our time in Reims.

We left Munich at 6 am on what would be 10-hour train journey to Strasbourg, France (normally 6 hrs). This was due to two very important stops to see two very important churches. Monica and Ryan are troopers to accommodate my obsession with stained glass.

The first stop was at Augsburg, Germany to visit Augsburg Dom where we saw the world’s oldest stained glass windows still in their original installation. Dating to 1065, these five windows depict the prophets Daniel, Isaiah, David, Moses and Jonah. It has long been my highest dream to see these windows and I am so grateful it came true.

The next stop was at Ulm, Germany to see the world’s tallest church, Ulmer Munster. At 530 feet, it is an imposing Gothic masterpiece in the middle of town. The glass inside is relatively modern and astonishingly beautiful. Again, I am one lucky guy to see these two churches in the same day. Eventually, when Sagrada Familia in Barcelona is completed, it will become the tallest. Until then, Ulm Munster has held this honor for 500 years. My blog will show only a very few window shots. For all photos, please visit the Image Gallery under World Windows.

Finally we reached Strasbourg and enjoyed an evening stroll around our neighborhood to oggle at the beautiful architecture and find some Mexican takeout for supper. Our apartment is on the top floor of a 16th century building with internal spiral staircase. Good exercise for sure.

The next day, we fully explored the Grande Isle de Strasbourg (city core) on foot. Easily walked, the island is a labyrinth of cobble stoned streets crisscrossing the canals of the Rhine River with absolutely breathtaking vista’s at every corner and bridge. It certainly rivals Amsterdam for beauty. We visited three more churches, shopped for souvenirs, ate an excellent Oktoberfest lunch, people watched and enjoyed live street music. After an afternoon rest, supper was at a fantastic steakhouse just a block from our apartment. So good! Strasbourg is right up there with my favorite stops on this journey.

Here are the photo highlights of our time in Strasbourg.

In a word, Munich was chaotic! And we loved it!

We arrived in the pouring rain on a Saturday afternoon, couldn’t find our hotel because of street construction (did eventually), couldn’t find a sit-down restaurant because they were all packed, got take-out from a Turkish fast food joint (excellent because we were starving), ate in our room and then we crashed.

The next day was pouring rain so what better way to see the city than by hop on/hop off bus. Our ticket got us on three different routes with covered the entire city. The recorded commentary via earphones (available in 8 languages) was an excellent history of the city (founded in 1154 by monks which is Mönch in German thus the name of the city).

We cruised the city this way for three hours eventually getting off at Marienplatz (city center) to find pre-dinner refreshments at an authentic pub where Freddy Mercury once hung out, and then supper at an authentic German beer hall. Loud and raucous with live October Fest music, the food was plentyful and delicious.

Munich was interesting and fun despite the rain (the beer helped). Here are the photo highlights of our time in Munich.

We were just one night (24 hours) in Salzburg and it was magical. What a lovely city! Small by comparison to all the previous stops but completely engaging. Our arrival afternoon started with an authentic Bavarian meal and then we strolled the streets to find souvenirs, walk through the Mirabel Gardens and visit a church or two. Mozart was born and lived here so there is a great musical influence in the city.

The next day, we took the 4-hour Sound of Music Tour. Let me just say that during the ride through the beautiful Austrian countryside, the bus was alive with the sound of music. We saw all the places where the movie scenes were filmed and heard plenty of behind the scenes stories. In addition, we got the history of the real Von Trapp family and their escape from Salzburg to the United States in 1938. It was all absolutely fun and uplifting.

Here are the photo highlights of our time in Salzburg.

We arrived in Vienna in the early afternoon to bright sunny skies. An easy hotel check in was followed by lunch right around the corner at a Japanese ramen bar. It was awesome! Then a stroll around the east end of the city to see the sights; Vienna’s oldest church, Vienna’s largest church, a mechanical clock, a public park filled with music (wonderful). Still quite full from lunch, supper was snacks in our room as we planned our strategy for the next day.

The next day was even brighter and warmer. It was a full walking day to see the west end of the city. We visited two fantastic museums (the Belvedere and the Leopold) to expand our minds, especially on Klimt, Schielle and Oppenheimer who were all contemporaries in the early 1900s. We strolled past the baroque Hofburg palace, the Temple of Theseus, through the Volksgarten (the roses were lovely) and into the gothic Votivkirche. The glass there is something else but the surprise was an ongoing free music concert. The church was packed making it difficult to get shots of all the windows but the music was great and familiar (James Taylor, Beetles, Fleetwood Mac). With worn out feet, we Ubered back to our hotel and had supper close by at an Italian restaurant.

Vienna surprised me. While the inner core offered the expected elegance of fountains and monuments, glorious architecture and peaceful parks, the outer fringes of the city are bustling with noisy construction amid the skyscrapers. Progress, I suppose, is inevitable. Overall, Vienna was enchanting and I took nearly 500 photos in 24 hrs! (mostly in the museums). I whittled those down to 50+ for this post.

Here are the highlights of our time in Vienna.

We were just two nights in Budapest and we arrived late after an 8-hour train ride from Prague. So, the first night was food only and then crash.

The next day we saw some of the major highlights of the city. The weather was not optimal (cold and cloudy) and Budapest is very large and spread out. So we combined on foot sightseeing with taxi and hop on/hop off bus to save time. The city has a different look and vibe than Prague, primarily because it was 70% destroyed in WWII and rebuilt in the 50s and 60s. Streets are not cobbled and buildings are not as diversely ornate. That said, it was still amazing to see history preserved in the many monuments and parks. The true beauty shines at night when the lights come on. We enjoyed the stroll along the river to see the sights and then taxied home for our final meal next door to our apartment.

Highlights of out visit were;

• Matthias Church (sooo pretty)
• Fisherman’s Bastion (best views of the city)
• the history lessons from the hop on/hop off bus driver
• the Parliament Building (gorgeous by day but stunning by night)
• St. Stephen’s Basilica (opulent times ten)
• Heroes Square (commemorating the founding fathers)

Here are the photo highlights of our time in Budapest.

An easy train ride got us into Prague by early afternoon and a short walk got us to our apartment in the heart of the city. First impressions were jaw-dropping… the architecture is unlike anything we’ve seen before and it is stunning. Because this city was not destroyed by war and then rebuilt, everything is either Gothic, Baroque or Renaissance. Art Nouveau and Art Deco are also prominent design features indicating not much has changed since the early 1900s. It’s an easily walked city but, shockingly on this day, the labyrinth of cobble-stoned streets were absolutely swarming with tourists. I’m talking PACKED!

We spent three nights in Prague and saw as much of the city as our legs and feet would carry us. On the third day, we took the train to Pilsen (a 1 hour ride) to visit the Pilsen Urquell brewery and museum. Back in Prague for our final night, we were lucky to meet up with Monica’s sister Marg, and her friend Pat, who were on an organized tour through central Europe. We enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving meal together.

The highlights of our time in Prague are:

• St. Vitus Cathedral
• The beautiful architecture
• St. Wenceslas Square
• Buying street art (from artist Vladimir)
• Visiting the Jewish Quarter
• Supper in Prague’s oldest pub (1375)
• Visiting Pilsen Urquell brewery
• Supper with Marg and Pat

Here are the photo highlights of Prague.

After a 3-hour train delay (there was a rail accident ahead of us), we arrived in Berlin and Uber’d our way to our Hotel Astrid. This hotel was built in 1904 and has not been modernized much since then. We stepped back in time to marvel at the sculpted stair banisters, the brass chandeliers, the art nouveau doors and 13-foot high ceilings. Supper (around the corner) and a night cap were all we needed to finish the day.

The next morning, we met our tour guide, Oren, and enjoyed the 3-hour Third Reich Walking Tour that covered Berlin’s story from 1933-1945. We saw the major locations around the city where history happened during Hitler’s rise to power. We learned about the many people involved in the story and visited important monuments. Educational, evocative and emotional. We had the added benefit of having Ryan along to clarify our misunderstandings and fill in the gaps to the story.

After the tour, we walked (in the rain) to Museum Island to visit the National Gallery. Along with all the familiar masters, we also saw a touring exhibit of Gustav Klimt. His stunning “Judith” was the centerpiece and it is exquisite. Leaving the gallery, we stepped next door into the magnificent Berlin Cathedral to marvel at this baroque beauty. The sun was shining.

An authentic German supper finished our visit to this previously mostly destroyed and now very modern city.

Here are the photo highlights of Berlin.

We spent two nights in this truly beautiful city. The buildings are ornately decorated with Dutch Baroque architecture and the more than 1200 bridges crossing the many canals give the city a fairytail ambiance. We arrived in time to join our scheduled 3pm Anne Frank walking tour. We learned so much about the history of Amsterdam and, in particular, the plight of the Jewish people during WWII. Our tour was two hours and covered the main core of the city ending at the house of Anne Frank. Very educational and sobering, especially the Holocaust Monument.

The next day we visited two major museums: Van Gogh and the Rijksmuseum to see some of our favorite artists and their most famous works of art. Our feet were tired after two busy days of walking but our hearts were light and the evening was clear. We chose a pub near our hotel for supper. The stained glass inside was a delightful surprise and a stroll home along the canal capped off a memorable visit.

Here are to photo highlights of Amsterdam.