First trip out of the country I totally understand the uncertainty you felt before your trip. We had similar feelings, and a lot of energy was taken up with checking on things and making sure we hadn't missed anything. Lovely to see all the beautiful hiking options available on an island I usually associate with parties on beaches and tourist nightlife... although the canyon hike in high winds sounded very scary! Good to hear you were safe :)
Thanks for the memories... In the early 1980s we stayed in the Harz Mountains in Goslar, which is also has the Imperial Palace of Emperor Friedrich I "Barbarossa" Hohenstaufen, 21st Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, who I recently discovered is our 28th great grandfather. While living in Germany from 1977 to 1984 we loved to visit the many castles and walled cities. We also loved hiking the German forests, and volksmarched almost every weekend. We are like you when it comes to celebrating New Years. Fortunately for us, midnight in New York is 10 pm in Colorado, so we get to bed two hours early!
Re: Thanks for the memories... Wow, you are descentants of Friedrich I Babarossa! Interesting that life took you to Germany for a few years. Hiking in the forests and visiting castles is fun, I love it very much, too. And great to hear that there are others who perfer an early night on New Year's Eve. My friend Mizzi lives in Melbourne, and she says she would be perfectly happy with the fireworks for children that take place at 9pm; she would not need to stay up until midnight to see the fireworks for adults and start the new year. I could not agree more.
Wernigerode Castle If ever I venture to Germany it will be to see the castles, among other delights our kids have experienced. I have posted yours on TB's "Palaces & Castles' thread in the Photography Forum. Check 'em out. You have an interesting life Katha, so even without dancing due to Covid and requiring a hot water bottle on New Years eve, I trust you had a great time!!! My New Years Eve was on a Queensland Beach (my sister's place) and the only down side was we had to wait for the hour delayed broadcast of the Sydney fireworks due to Queensland not being on Daylight Saving Time. Mustn't grumble. Every New Year is expectation of the Year ahead. May your 2023 be a good one!
Re: Wernigerode Castle Thank you Dave for coming on the journey with me and for commenting! Also found the pics on the Photography Forum, together with so many excellent photos of great castles and palaces.
We had a very good time in Ilsenburg, and the good thing about the early night on New Year's Eve was that we could enjoy New Year's Day because we were not hung over.
Sounds like you had a very good New Year's Eve too. I can imagine there are worse places in the world than a beach in QLD ;-) All the very best for you in 2023, and I look forward to reading your stories from different places in the world!
Through local eyes It's nice to see a country through the eyes of its residents. It looks like a great area to hike through... thanks for taking us along :)
Re: Through local eyes Thanks for coming along and commenting :-) One good thing about the Corona pandemic is that it made me explore my own country a little more. I probably would not have done this otherwise, at least not now.
Re: Germany Thank you for coming along and for commenting :-) I have to say that I did not mind too much not being able to leave the country for some time. There are definitely beautiful places in Germany.
Nice blog Hello- Lovely pictures of your walk. Loved the picture with the trees and the stream. One could get lost in a world like that! Just a small question, of ll the places you visited in this blog, would you consider Sotolberg to be the most quaint and old with medieval streets?
Re: Nice blog Thank you :-) Would I consider Stolberg to be the most quaint and old with medieval streets? It is certainly quaint and old, but there are other very old and charming places that I have been to, like for example Turin, Wernigerode, Naples, Dublin, Krakow, Göttingen, Riga, Cambridge, or Budapest.
I miss you, Katha! I'm happy to read you are still traveling, even though it was two years ago. More places are open now - let us know what you're doing!
Nice to hear from you! Hi Belinda, so nice to hear from you. You are on my mind so often, the picture of you and I on the Aerial Tramway in Palm Springs sits on my bookshelf! I will send you an email, been wanting to do this for ages!
Re: Scenic Location Yes, this region is really one of my favourite places in the world. Probably because there are so many good childhood memories connected to it :-)
Ski trips.. I have a blog that consolidates a number of trips, including one with me practicing skiing for the Engadine Marathon at [blog=622403]. I am rarely in a picture as I am the one who takes the pictures! As you can see, we loved to ski in Switzerland!
Thanks for sharing your experience... of revisiting your childhood vacation spot with your mother. When I lived in Stuttgart, my wife and I would spend many long weekends in the Lauterbrunnen valley, but we did make it to St. Moritz once so that I could langluaf the Engadine Marathon. I crossed the frozen lake at St, Moritz. Switzerland is certainly a beautiful country.
Re: Thanks for sharing your experience... Oh wow, it must have been an amazing experience to cross frozen St. Moriz Lake, and you participated in the Engadine marathon! Do you have a post on this here on Travelblog? Would love to read it :-)
Thanks for sharing your experience... of revisiting your childhood vacation spot with your mother. When I lived in Stuttgart, my wife and I would spend many long weekends in the Lauterbrunnen valley, but we did make it to St. Moritz once so that I could langluaf the Engadine Marathon. I crossed the frozen lake at St, Moritz. Switzerland is certainly a beautiful country.
KL I have a soft spot for KL but haven't been there since 2014. I'll have to remember some of these places you visited for ideas for our next visit. But now I have a craving for a nasi lemak! :)
I started this blog in late 2007, before heading off to Australia for a hang gliding adventure. After my first solo flight in a hang glider all I wanted to do was fly as much as possible. I gave up my job as a human resources consultant and headed to Australia to live my dream of hang gliding. When I returned after four months, I wanted to build my life around the sport I loved so much, and I did. I was also determined to make it into the national hang gliding team and started flying competitions with only one year of flying experience.
My dream was shattered in earl... full info
RENanDREW
Ren & Andrew
First trip out of the country
I totally understand the uncertainty you felt before your trip. We had similar feelings, and a lot of energy was taken up with checking on things and making sure we hadn't missed anything. Lovely to see all the beautiful hiking options available on an island I usually associate with parties on beaches and tourist nightlife... although the canyon hike in high winds sounded very scary! Good to hear you were safe :)