Europe-bound!

We've been talking about it forever, but I think next summer it's finally going to happen: we're heading to Europe with Eric's family! Now that it's only a year away, we can really start planning and thinking about the details. I know I've mentioned this before, but I LOVE reading travel books, scouring the internet for good airfare deals, searching for the best little pensions (B&B's) to stay at, and the best (cheap) restaurants. Of course, then I have to find the best trails to hike, castles to see, museums to tour, and local ice cream to sample! When Eric and I went on our Europe trip a few years ago, we put together a whole notebook full of our plans... only to find that once we got there, we only used about half of it. But that's okay. It's fun to research all of the possibilities and then to wonder about all of the things that will catch you by surprise! Like being woken up at 6am by a bunch of cows marching down the street in a small town in Switzerland (see above)... you can't plan that! This will be my 4th trip to Europe and as I told Eric's parents last weekend when they were here, you can drop me anywhere on that continent and I'll enjoy it! Of course, this time will be a little different since we have Chase. He'll be staying with my parents so I know he'll be fine, but I'm sure I'll be thinking about him the whole time.

I'm going to be adding some of my favorite travel links to the right side of this blog... mostly so that I can have them all in one place and check them everyday. But I figured it might help someone else who's planning a trip of their own. Let me know if you have a favorite, lesser-known destination (or hotel or restaurant, etc.) in Europe. It's always fun to hear about other people's adventures!