Category: travel

We enjoy traveling as a family. Here is a photo gallery and travelogue of our educational trips.

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Greece: Mythology Immersion and Island Hopping

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In July 2013, we spent a month in Greece. We started with the first week on the mainland, visiting the ancient archeological sites. Then we enjoyed 3 weeks of leisurely tour through the Greek Islands, visiting: the big island of Crete, the Dodecanese (12 islands) with Rhodes, Patmos, and Kos, then finally the Cyclades with Amorgos, Mykonos and Santorini.

07/16/13: First full day at Athens. Started at the Acropolis then visited the Acropolis Museum and the National Archaeological Museum. There were demonstrations downtown, in the area immediately surrounding the Parliament buildings. We heard some loud chanting but mostly everything was very quiet around town. The tourism economy is really hurting here.

07/17/13: Long day driving south into the Peloponnese. First stop was Corinth, big city on the trading route between Europe to the west and Asia to the east from ancient times. The city was destroyed then later rebuilt by the Romans. Only the columns from the Temple of Apollo still remain standing. Learned about the 3 types of columns, including the beautiful acanthus leaves of Corinthian design. There is now a canal connecting the 2 regions. Made a quick stop at Nemea to visit the stadium and Temple of Zeus.

Mycenae was the center of the Mycenean civilization that followed the Minoan civilization on Crete and pre-dates the classical period of Athens. According to legend, the city was founded by Perseus, slayer of Medusa, and also visited by Herakles aka Hercules. Its walls were believed to be built by the Cyclops. Eventually, it was ruled by Atreus then his son Agamemnon, leader Greeks during the Trojan War. The site was excavated by Henrich Schliemann in the late 1800s where many treasures, including a golden funeral mask, were unearthed.

Epidaurus housed the center for healing, founded by Asclepius. The museum displays many token of appreciation with replicas of healed body parts. The site is most famous for the amphitheater with unsurpassed acoustics, originally used for therapeutic purposes. Later, all significant Greek dramas were first performed here. It seats 50,000 people and is still in use today.

08/18/13: After overnighting at the charming sea-side town of Nauplion and enjoying a fresh seafood dinner, we made a short visit to the remains in Tiryns then headed towards Olympia, where we enjoyed a spectacular sunset dinner in the gardens of The Olympia Hotel.

07/19/13: Olympia is the site of the ancient Greek Olympics. According to legend, King Oinomaos had a beautiful daughter Hippodameia, who could only be married to a man who could out-race the king’s chariot. Pelops, a formidable suitor, hired a servant to replace the kings wheel pins with wax, which melted and killed the king during the race against Pelops. Pelops held the funeral races in honor for the fallen king and those became the first Olympics. Athletes competed in the nude to earn fame & fortune for their city-state. They began the races by passing through a long tunnel symbolizing the purification process.

The extensive grounds included several temples, stadiums, and a training complex. The Temple of Zeus originally held the golden statue of Zeus, sculpted by Phidias, architect of the Parthenon in Athens. Many who beheld the statue again shimmering sunlight reflected from the pools of olive oil thought it was alive and thus, it was hailed as one of the 7 wonders of the ancient world. The eternal fire was lit before the Temple of Hera. Statues and figures commemorated winners, shaming cheaters, and acknowledged sponsors. Due to earthquakes, the entire area was destroyed and buried under mud.

Also avoid cialis uk http://www.tonysplate.com/blog/index.php?catid=2&blogid=1&archive=2010-07 caffeinated drinks, carbonated beverages, alcohol and smoking. Aadhar card Photostat of usa generic viagra all the members. He provides effective and safe levitra without prescription treatment for all sexual dysfunctions like impotence, erectile dysfunction, premature ejaculation, low sperm count. This situation leads to impotency in which the amount of testosterone in the body is going through certain type of allergic disorders or skin diseases. canadian viagra store 07/20/13: Delphi is an extremely ancient city, originally based on the worship of Gaia, pre-dating the Olympian gods. According to mythology, Apollo rid the area of the Python and henceforth Apollo and Dionysus ruled the town. Once a month, after enough ethylene had seeped through the crevices from the ground, the oracle or sybil would sit on a tripod and inhale the gas to gain mental clarity. People from all over would come to seek answers to their questions. Engraved on one end of the temple was the aphorism “All things in moderation”, at the other end “Know thyself”. The ancient Greeks understood the human condition. The town remained neutral throughout wartimes and gained much wealth through the advice dispensed.

07/21/13: Meteora houses the 12 medieval Greek orthodox monasteries are perched precariously on the steep cliffs. Previously, people and goods were pulled by a system of nets & baskets attached to ropes. Today, 6 monasteries are still operational and open to the public. It was a challenge climbing the steep stairs but visitors are rewarded with breathtaking panoramic views. We visited the following: Monastery of the Holy Trinity, Holy Monastery of St. Nicholas Anapausas, Holy Monastery of Varlaam, and finally Holy Monastery of Great Meteoron.

We returned to Athens to enjoy dinner at the Plaka before heading out to the Greek islands. It was interesting to observe how much the monuments were in ruins after earthquakes and wars, in comparison to those better preserved in Egypt.

07/22-24/13: Crete is the center of the Minoan civilization, the oldest civilization in Europe. According to legend, Zeus & Europa had 3 sons who became the first Minoan kings. King Minos built his palace at Knossos and is known for the labyrinth designed by Daedelus to house the Minotaur. This palace is located near the modern town of Heraklion. We also visited Phaistos, the less busy and better preserved palace on the south of the island near the Libyan Sea, built by his brother.

07/25-27/13: Rhodes is the largest of the 12 Dodekanese islands near the coast of Turkey. Rhodes is also the name of the island’s largest town with formerly housed the Colossal of Rhodes, giant bronze statue that stood at the harbor and considered one of the 7 wonders of the ancient world. The charming town itself is a medieval Venetian fortress that encloses a colorful market of shops and restaurants. Alexis was thrilled by her purchase of 2 blue Greek costume dresses. We took a day trip to the town of Lindos famed for its Acropolis overlooking the sea and surrounded by more colorful shops.

07/28-29/13: Patmos is tiny island, known for the grotto or cave where the apostle John received his vision for Revelations. A monastery was built high on the fortress in St. John’s memory. We enjoyed a lovely dinner on the sandy beach, overlooking the water.

07/30-08/02/13: Kos is a mid-sized island in the Dodekanese. It is famous for the Asclepion hospital, which was home to Hippocrates. In Kos town, there’s a medieval castle and cute little shops, like a smaller scaled version of Rhodes. We stayed 25 km from town, in the Neptune Hotel resort. The kids adored the luxurious swimming pools, full service restaurants, and enjoyed windsurfing and body-boarding at the beach.

08/03-04/13: Amorgos is a tiny island among the Cyclades chain with a monastery built high on the cliff with unobstructed panoramic views of the Aegean. We stayed near the port town of Katapola then drove a rental car to visit its crystal clear beaches, made famous by the movie The Big Blue.

08/05-10/13: Mykonos a big tourist town in the Cyclades. Its whitewashed buildings are lined with shops, restaurants, and picturesque windmills. The kids have learned to thoroughly enjoy gyros. We also took a day-trip to nearby Delos, the extensive archaeological site of the sacred birthplace of Apollo and Artemis.

08/11-14/13: Santorini is the picturesque island caldera covered with blue-domed white buildings. It seems every spot has breathtaking panoramic ocean views. Kids probably ruined the atmosphere but we really enjoyed a relaxing break at the Honeymoon Petra Suites with day beds and pool just outside our room. It was a blissful way to pass time, especially since we had no power for 2 days after a fire at the local power plant. We managed to drag ourselves to visit the quaint towns of Fira and Ia in between the lounging. What a lovely way to end our tour of the Greek Islands.

Europe 2012 Slideshow

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Finally, the slideshow from our Europe 2012 adventure! It’s a The ingredient of levitra 20 mg check out these guys now i.e. sildenafil citrate requires some time to really giving this some thought. Jelly form appalachianmagazine.com cialis canada generic of the product: only for menIt is well known fact that impotency in male cannot be cured easily. Generally it is not polite to launch into pushing your products soft cialis mastercard at the first email after the event. Additionally, men viagra purchase that have high blood pressure are at enhanced risk of impotence condition. rather long video, but it was a loooong trip.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Mf7pyu2jt0

Central Europe

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For August 2012, we aimed for the major towns & cities in the central and eastern Europe. We started with Czech Republic and Poland. Then we worked our way along the Danube River from Hungary to Slovakia, then Austria. Finally, we finished the trip with Switzerland and France.


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Two months is the longest we’ve ever been traveling. Initially, the idea was daunting but we generally planned out the main cities we wanted to cover and booked transportation by train or plane about 1-2 weeks in advance. We purchased and extensively used the Eurail Globalpass during the 2 month period. For accommodations, we alternated between hotels for luxury pampering and spacious apartments with convenient laundry facilities. For smaller cities, we stayed about 2 nights and larger cities 3-5 nights. Of course, we spent a whole week in Paris to relax and recuperate. With lots of walking, the kids were generally bribed with popsicles, ice cream and other sweet treats along the way. It was an incredible experience but it’s hard to tell how much the kids really appreciated … at first glance, probably not too much.

Switzerland & France

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Zurich, Switzerland
08/24-25/12: Zurich, Switzerland is the country’s largest city that grew up along the Limmot River. Starting at the train station, strolled along west bank up to Lendenhof park area on a hill for a panoramic city view. Continued down narrow cobble stone alleys to St Peter’s Church (St. Peterskirche) with Europe’s largest church clock then to Fraumunster cathedral with large stained glass windows by Marc Chagall. Crossed Rathaus Bridge (Rathausbrucke) to Grossmunster cathedral with Charlemagne statue in crypt. After a fondue dinner at Adler’s Swiss Chuchi, walked back through Zurich Open Air Dorfli Festival blasting live rock music and street vendors selling tasty treats.


Bern, Switzerland
08/26/12: Bern, Switzerland is the country’s political center but provides charming haven for its namesake, bears! There’s an abundance of bear statures, bear legends, and even 4 live brown bears in the Bear Park beside Nydegg Bridge (Nydeggbrucke). We started at the clock tower (Zytglogge) to square with statue of the Duke of Zahringen, founder of Bern, and a bear eating the duke’s helmet. Passed Einstein’s apartment where he worked on relativity theory, City Hall (Rathaus) and Berne Cathedral (Bern Munster) with remnants of a children’s fair at Speilplatz. Kids were fascinated with a giant marble mechanic maze. Sunday night, the town was entirely deserted by Barenplatz was lively with restaurant activity. Easy access by tram so Alexis learned to read map to guide us home.


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08/28-29/12: Geneva, Switzerland is the headquarters of various international organizations including the United Nations and the International Red Cross/Crescent. Hotels within the town center was double the price compared to those near the airport, just 10 minutes aways. All the city hotels provide free visitor transport cards so we became intimately familiar with the various trams & trolley that brought us in to see the Jet Fountain and Old Town along the river. A day drip at CERN provided fascinating glimpse into to work of particle accelerators & detectors used to study the origin of the universe. For dinner the final day, we came across quite a charming eatery L’Opera Boeffe with international cuisine. That week they were featuring Burkina Faso of Africa.


Paris, France
08/30/12-09/06/12: Paris, France is undoubtedly a beautiful and romantic city. We first went there for our 5th anniversary and we are now back for our 18th. With 2 kiddos in tow, it was a very different experience. We got to try out some fun playgrounds at the Tuileries and behind the Notre Dame. Our original plan was to visit a couple other regions in France, i.e. Avignon or Loire before heading into the capital. However, TGV reservations were complicated and we decided we really just wanted to unwind for the final week of our extended trip. Since we have been to Paris before, we didn’t feel the same pressure to hit all the tourist sites. We still managed to visit the major museums: Louvre, d’Orsay and Pompidou. Otherwise, we really took it easy and enjoyed the gastronomy. A couple highlights were Angelina by the Tuileries for hot chocolate & exquisite pastries and Michel Rostang’s fine dining for an exotic rare-raw duck preparation. Of course, nutella crepes always brightened everyone’s mood.

See more photos in the album.

Hungary, Slovakia & Austria

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Budapest, Hungary
08/11-13/12: Budapest, Hungary is centered on the Danube River with old Buda on the east and new Pest on the west. Our hotel was just around the corner from the Main Synagogue, reputedly the 2nd largest synagogue in the world after New York. The garden documented the hardships of Hungarian Jews with a memorial tree whose leaves named those massacred. Crossed the the famous Chain Bridge and took the funicular up the hill to Buda Castle and walked around Old Town to see St Mathias Church and enjoy the panoramic view from the Fisherman’s Bastion. Started at Heroes Square then down Agrassy Boulevard toward Parliament on the Danube. Ended the day along touristy walkways. Enjoyed some rich local cuisine of goulash soups, grilled goose liver

Bratislava, Slovakia
08/14-15/12: Bratislava, Slovakia has a lovely promenade along the Danube River, loaded with shopping centers, restaurants, cafes, grassy areas and kids play structures. Took a ride up to the castle on the hill then walked down through the Old Town, passed Michaels Gate and many churches & squares. Although Bratislava is a relatively small town, it was a relaxingly, enjoyable visit.

Vienna, Austria
08/16/12: Vienna, Austria is our last stop on the Danube. It’s a vibrant metropolis with extensive pedestrian-friendly shopping districts throughout Old Town between St Stephan’s Cathedral, Opera House, and Hopburg Palace. We started our visit by having lunch at the ornate interior of Central Cafe with exquisite pastry desserts. We’re learning to appreciate the Viennese clear broth and boiled beef but not finding much appeal for wiener schnitzel, fried veal.

08/17/12: Schoenbrunn Palace is a little outside the Old Town center but still easily accessible by metro. We arrived in the late afternoon for the grand tour of the private apartments of Empress Maria Theresa, Franz Joseph, and other famous Hapsburgs. The Gloriette sits atop a hill surrounded by expansive manicured gardens. The kids were particularly excited out the maze & labyrinth. We enjoyed the famous imperial apple strudel before returning back to our apartment. The day was completed with an authentically Austrian experience by having Alexis’ infected tooth extracted by a local dentist.

08/18/12: The Spanish Riding School at Hofburg Palace has housed the Lippizaner white stallions for 4 centuries. They are usually on holiday during the summer months of July & August. We were fortunate to watch them perform on their 1st weekend back from break and had fairly decent seats. The place was packed with people standing and leaning over us. Alexis was mesmerized by the performance and graceful splendor of the animals. In the afternoon, we walked around the gardens and museums surround Hofburg Palace, including a quick peak at Parliament.
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Salzburg, Austria
08/19/12: Salzburg, Austria is a cultural mecca, home of Mozart and the Von Trapp family from Sound of Music. The movie was filmed at many sites throughout the city. We arrived during the Salzburg Festival and attended a childrens opera showing in an open theater. As the blazing sun waned a bit, we took the funicular up to Hohenburg Fortress to visit the the well organized museums documenting weapons and torture instruments. The kids particularly enjoyed the Marionette Museum. Ended the evening by walking around Dompltaz, Residenz, and other shopping streets. Dinner at Magazin, serving French cuisine, built into a former storage cave.

08/20/12: Day of Mozart music. Attended matinee showing of Magic Flute at the world famous Salzburg Marionette Theatre. Toured of Mozart’s childhood residence on Makartplatz. Visited Schloss Mirabel gardens where do-re-mi song sequence was filmed. Dinner at St Peter Stiltkeller Mozart Dinner Concert. Performers dressed in 18th century costumes and meal was prepared according to recipes from that time period.

08/21/12: Saltwelten Hallein, located just south of Salzburg, is the world’s oldest salt mine. The 70 minute tour gave a good overview of the “white gold”, took us down 2 long slides, floated by raft on a salt lake, and provided nice displays & explanations on walk with video breaks explaining history & process. Celtics first discovered and mined salt. During the middle ages, it was rediscovered and made Salzburg (literally Salt Castle) rich. Archbishop Wolf Dietrich built prosperous mine 1/3 in Austria and 2/3 in Bavaria part of Germany. We walked briefly into German region. Returned to Salzburg, crossed the bridge with love locks into town to see Mozart birth house, St Peters catacomb site of SoM film. Enjoyed undiscovered gem Pan e Vin Italian cuisine in Old Town.

Innsbruck, Austria
08/22-23/12: Innsbruck, Austria is a sleepy little town nestled at the base of the Alps. At the center of Old Town is the Golden Roof and other ornate baroque buildings, Schloss Hofburg Imperial Palace, and St Jakobs Cathedral.

See more photos in the album.