Our Central European Adventure

Day 0 – day 1: Friday 20/6/25 – Saturday 21/6/25

The overnight flight to MUC was uneventful, as was the flight to WAW. Other than being very, very tired, we emerged unscathed.

Deb picked us up at the airport and we nearly tackled each other when we finally got together – best hug ever. 😊 

We met up with her family and went to the food hall at the Elektrownia Powiśle for lunch and then ice cream. We saw the mermaid statue, and then continued on to walk along the river and we found a bunch of chess boards set up. Billy was happy to play some chess with the girls (and he beat me handily). 

After some chess, we made it to the University of Warsaw Library Rooftop Gardens, which was really beautiful. We wandered there for a bit enjoying the views of the city, and then made our way back to Deb’s house.

Deb and I had fun cooking one-pot Asian chicken and rice together and we enjoyed a glass of wine on the patio while we were waiting for things to happen. It was so nice to catch up with her after so long, and we fell back into the rhythm of friendship like no time had ever passed.

We lasted until around 9pm and then crashed.

 

day 2 – 22/6/25

We got up and Deb’s husband made us breakfast. June, Billy, and I went to do a walking tour of the Warsaw ghetto. It was very sobering reading about the 300,000 Jews taken from the ghetto to the Umschlagplatz (“collection place”) and on to Treblinka.

We followed the walking tour past several monuments and museums, including a line on the sidewalk marking the edge of the ghetto and the former location of the ghetto wall. We saw the only remaining synagogue (out of over 400) from pre-WWII, and then met up with Deb before seeing one of the remaining portions of the ghetto wall. 

We then headed for happier wandering, going to the playground and walking around Łazienki Park, and then caught a Chopin concert. We sat on a blanket and got to enjoy classical piano in the middle of the city. It was striking that everyone was so quiet for the concert. 

Afterward we got ice cream and headed back to Deb’s.

 

day 3 – 23/6/25

We headed out early and caught the train to Malbork. We walked up to the castle and took an audio tour, which was really interesting. Billy and Deb’s youngest really loved it, especially the toilets. 

We had kebab for lunch and after some train ticket shenanigans we were off to Gdańsk.

We stepped out of the Gdańsk train station and found that our hotel was right across the parking lot. We got situated in the hotel, and then Deb’s husband and I hopped a taxi to Sopot and the Opera Leśna (Forest Opera). The taxi took us straight to the entrance (which was good because it was a very, very big hill) and after waiting in a long line that took a short time, we were in.

The venue was absolutely amazing – it was an open-air pavilion of probably about 5000 seats set back into the woods above Sopot. We both got t-shirts – while waiting in line, we heard a huge thunderclap and knew that weather was about to happen. We went to get some Belgian frites and luckily there was an awning there when the skies opened up and it poured for about 30 seconds. After the quick downpour stopped, we went into the amphitheater proper and found our seats,

Dream Theater was awesome – they played a bunch of stuff off Images and Words. The drunk guys behind us played air guitar and the superman in front of us played air drums. We decided that I would play air keytar and Deb’s husband would play air bass, and then we’d “have Dream Theater at home”. 😂 

When the concert ended we walked down to the train station. The train pulled up almost immediately and we got on and back to Gdańsk Głowna.

 

day 4 – 24/6/25

We stashed our luggage in the lockers at the train station, the went to breakfast and spent the day exploring Gdańsk. The city is absolutely gorgeous, with beautiful brick buildings interspersed with muted colored buildings with façades reminiscent of those in Amsterdam. Many of those buildings had frescoes painted on them.

We went inside St. Mary’s Church (one of the world’s largest brick churches and known as the Crown of Gdańsk) to see the art and architecture inside and then headed to the canal. The buildings along the waterfront were just as pretty. We got to see the bridges open. We also found a merry-go-round and then found a ferris wheel across the canal. The other footbridge drawbridge operated on a 30 minute schedule (30 minutes open, 30 minutes closed) so we had to wait a few minutes to cross. While Deb, Billy, and I were on the ferris wheel, her husband, daughter, and June found a small bar in a tent and waited for us. The views from the ferris wheel were absolutely breathtaking – it looked straight out of a fairy tale. When we got off the ferris wheel, we joined the others. As we sat in the tent, the rain cabin in. It was perfect timing and having a cold drink was a great way to wait out the rain. After we were done, we got across the bridge about 15 seconds before the bells and announcement to get off the bridge before it opened again.

From there we ate lunch and then did more wandering. We went inside St. Katarzyny’s basilica, the oldest church in Gdańsk. The basilica had a fire previously but had restored, and I loved seeing the brick arches.

We went back to the train station, retrieved our bags, and got on the train back to Warsaw Centralna. 

I have to say that I really love taking the trains in Europe. They are convenient, inexpensive, and a great way to see the countryside. I don’t know that I’d want to do Europe any other way.

We opted to stay in a hotel for the rest of our time in Poland so that we wouldn’t put Deb and her family out too much and also to get to stay in the middle of everything.

 

day 5 – 25/6/25

We met Deb at our hotel and had breakfast at the Hotel Bristol’s cafe. The hotel is very famous and a lot of celebrities and political leaders have stayed there. Breakfast was great!

We passed the presidential palace and then stopped into the Carmelite Church and saw some more amazing architecture.

We headed up to the Plac Zamkowy (castle square) and Alumna Zygmunta III Wazy (Sigismund’s Column). We walked around the Stare Miasto (Old Town) and saw the mermaid statue and then headed to the barbican and walked a bit on the old city battlements. We passed out of the Old City and walked by Marie Skłodowskiej-Curie’s birthplace, then found the Marie Skłodowskiej-Curie statue overlooking Multimedia Park and the Vistula in the background. We saw the Warsaw Uprising monument, which was really moving.

We headed back to Stare Miasto and had lunch – I had gluten free pierogi (and we once again had excellent timing with rain and drizzles)! We wandered more and went to see the Saxon Gardens and the Grób Nieznanego Żołnierza (Tomb of the Unknown Soldier) and then it was time to say goodbye to my dear, dear friend. I was so sad to leave her but so happy to have been able to spend that time with her.

We came back to the hotel. June napped while Billy and I walked to see the Copernicus monument and get gluten free pąckzi! We then headed to the hotel pool and met the grumpiest man in all of Poland, who was attending the spa/pool/fitness area. We swam for a bit and then returned to the room. I went to sleep and June and Billy found dinner. I must have been tired because I slept all the way through to morning.

 

day 6 – 26/6/25

We had a lazy morning checking out of our hotel. We headed to the train station to drop our luggage in the lockers, and then went to find some breakfast. 

We found a place a short walk away that was on a pretty little square and had the best breakfast of our trip so far – soft scrambled eggs and prosciutto. It was a beautiful day and we enjoyed eating outside.

After breakfast we walked to Pałac Kultury i Nauki (Palace of Culture and Science), Poland’s tallest building. We went to the observation deck on the 30th floor and enjoyed seeing Poland from above – and Billy enjoyed having more łody (ice cream). From there we went into a spider exhibit and saw all kinds of tarantulas and scorpions. It was really interesting. 

We then checked out the Muzeum Ewolucji (Museum of Evolution). Billy was most excited about the dinosaur skeletons – “I need to take a picture of every bone in this room before we leave.” 😂 I liked the trilobites. All of the placards were in Polish, but that was ok. We didn’t have enough time to read everything anyway.

We got a taxi back to Powiśle and had a late lunch. I finally had chłodnik – a cold beetroot and kefir soup with a boiled egg on top. I enjoyed it but couldn’t finish it because I was still full from breakfast!

We walked to the river and got on our river cruise. We cruised for an hour. I sat on a beach chair on the upper deck, and June and Billy spent most of the trip down inside the cabin. It was such a nice way to spend part of our last few hours in Warsaw. 

We got a taxi back to the train station and got coffee (and Billy got dinner), then we retrieved our luggage and waited for our train – the “Chopin” sleeper train to Prague. We found our cabin and got settles. I took a shower (first time taking a shower in a moving vehicle!) and we all settled in for the night.

 

day 7 – 27/6/25

I didn’t sleep much but June and Billy seemed to sleep just fine. At 6:20am we got our wake-up call and the conductor changed out room into a sitting car. He then brought us breakfast. We got to watch the Czechia countryside roll by as we ate. We arrived in Prague and got a taxi to our hotel. Our hotel room would be ready early at 10am so we had breakfast and then walked across the Charles Bridge, a footbridge that leads to Old Town. 

We got to the Old Town Square just before the Astronomical Clock chimed 10am and we got to see the parade of apostles in the windows and the golden cock crow before the hour chimed. Billy suggested we go to the top of the clock tower, so we did, and we were rewarded with a wonderful view of Prague.

We walked back to the hotel and got settled in. I took a nap, Billy relaxed, and June took laundry to the laundry/wine bar around the corner to be washed. We then showered and got a taxi to the Prusa Research building for a factory tour. We got to see many different 3D printers, assembly areas, and the printer farm with over 600 printers. Josef Prusa passed us while we were on the tour, and our guide remarked that it was good timing because even they only see him occasionally.

We got crepes for dinner and then walked back across the river and went to the Story of Prague Museum, which was interesting. We then for trdelník (chimney cakes) and wandered a bit more before heading back to the hotel and calling it a night.

I failed to mention Billy’s obsession with pigeons. He was running after them and commenting on each one. 😂 

 

day 8 – 28/6/25

We got up and had breakfast and then had a bit of a lazy morning until our driver picked us up for our tour of Kutna Hora. We got to see more of Prague on the way to pick up our tour guide, and then got to see some of the Czech countryside. Kutna Hora was beautiful.

Our first stop was the Sedlac Ossuary, which was creepy but strangely beautiful. The ossuary was decorated with the bones from the monks that had lived and died there. We got to see the wooden base for the second of the four bone pyramids they are restoring. We then walked over to the Cathedral of Assumption of Our Lady and St. John the Baptist. We climbed some temporary stairs and walked between the stone ceiling and the time roof to the loft. It was a very cool sight.

From there we went to the city centre and to the gardens outside GASK (Central Bohemian Gallery) and to St. Barbara’s Cathedral. We stopped at the Corpus Christi chapel, built right into the stone of the hill, and then entered the cathedral. It was breathtaking. Our guide showed us the small chapels surrounding the back of the altar and then I went up the 84 steps to the loft (June and Billy stayed downstairs). There was an exhibit on the mezzanine as well as a balcony over the front door with an amazing view. I also got to see the insides of the big pipe organ, which was neat.

From there we walked around town a bit after stopping into GASK for a Quick Look at a couple of exhibits and a bathroom break. We walked along the Socha svetého Floriána, modeled after the Charles Bridge in Prague. We saw the old city cistern, which was really cool, and several UNESCO sites like the Dačického House. We saw the Plague Column and the Stone House, which is now the Czech Museum of Silver. After our wander we had dinner and then returned to Prague. We got dropped off near the National Museum and Statue of St. Wenceslas, and Billy noticed the Czech Pinball Museum 1990 was right across the street, so we went in and played a bunch of pinball. We then wandered back to the hotel after getting some of the best macarons I’ve ever had at a cute little shop with an Alice in Wonderland theme named the Mad Rabbit Macarons Bar.

 

day 9 – 29/6/25

We had a very lazy start to the day. June took the laundry to be done and we had breakfast. We finally got going and headed into old town. We got another trdelník and walked to St. Giles Church for a chamber music concert. We were a bit early so we walked around and found a cafe to get a coffee to pass a few minutes.

We returned to the church and attended the concert. It’s hard to describe how amazing it was – the music itself, the musicians, the acoustics of the church. I was moved to tears repeatedly throughout. I was so glad we went (Billy fell asleep in the middle of the concert). 

After we headed toward the river. We had dinner in the basement of a medieval inn (Krčma) and then went on a boat cruise on the River Vltava. They overbooked the cruise so we got to go on a second much nicer, smaller boat. Our captain was a med school student at the Charles University. It was the last trip of the day so he showed us a few extra things. It was the perfect end to our last day in Prague.

 

day 10 – 30/6/25

We woke up early and made sure everything was packed before heading down to breakfast. Then we met Petr and started our journey from Prague to München.

Petr was really nice and I enjoyed talking with him quite a bit. He was really thoughtful about adjusting the itinerary for June when he saw they were using their cane.

Our first stop was Karlštein Castle. We walked through town and the castle came into view above. It was really cool! Petr explained that most castles are built to protect the rivers, as they were the main trade routes, but this one was built by Charles IV to house the Crown Jewels and emperor’s treasure, so it’s not visible form the river.

We headed to Plsen, which was a really cool town. We toured the brewery museum and then got lunch. We then had time to do the Underground Plsen tour (exactly right timing and exactly 3 tickets left!). We wore hard hats and got to see the tunnels under the city. The water tower was especially cool. We went to St. Paul’s Cathedral to look around, and then headed back to the car.

Our last stop before München was Regensburg, Germany, a beautiful medieval town. We stopped at the absolutely gorgeous St. Peter’s Cathedral, wandered around town, and walked along the Danube.

Petr dropped us off at our hotel in München and we bid a fond farewell to him – he really was a spectacular guide. He also had amazing luck with parking, lol.

We checked into our hotel and then got some amazing Italian food for dinner and called it a night. 

 

day 11 – 1/7/25

We got up early for breakfast and then headed out to meet our tour group and our guide Johnny. We headed south to Neuschwannstein, taking in the beautiful Bavarian scenery along the way. We got to see the Alps for the first (but definitely not the last) time, and the castle was impressive rising above the small village at the foot of the mountain. We took a shuttle up to the castle path and followed Johnny to the castle courtyard. 

We took the tour through the castle (so. many. stairs.) and saw the ornate decorations throughout. King Ludwig II certainly had ostentatious tastes (we had no idea just how ostentatious until our final stop on the trip) and there was a man-made grotto built right into the castle.

After our tour, we stopped on our way downhill for lunch. Then we took a horse-drawn carriage the rest of the way down. Billy was excited about the carriage ride. We wandered through the village down to the lake and Billy and I tested the water (warm!). We returned to the bus for our next stop. 

We arrived in Oberammergau, a small traditional Bavarian village. We walked around a bit and went into a few of the shops before getting gelato and returning to the bus. 

Our last stop was Schloss Linderhof. The grounds were breathtaking, but the palace – it was hard to know where to look because of all of the decorations. Sitting rooms, dining rooms, waiting rooms, meeting room, bedroom – all extensively gilded (5 kg of gold leaf throughout the palace!) and decorated. The waiting rooms were each a different color. The dining room had a table that lowered to the kitchen and then raised back up to bring food to the king. Vases, sculpted peacocks and swans, porcelain flowers all adorned the palace. Ivory, glass, and gold chandeliers hung overhead. The entire palace said “I’m the king.”

Our ride back was uneventful and we got back to München tired from our day out. We ordered food in and chilled in the hotel room until going to sleep.

 

day 12 – 2/7/25

After breakfast we headed around the corner for our tour to Salzburg, Austria. Our tour guide, Nick, brought us to the train station and we had an uneventful ride to the city. We took a bus ride to the Schloss Mirabell and walked through the gardens, which was where part of the “Do-Re-Mi” from The Sound of Music was filmed. Nick then took us past Mozart’s residence and the birthplace of Christian Doppler before crossing the Marko-Feingold-Steg over the Salzach. We saw Mozart’s birthplace and passed the Cafe Konditorei Fürst, the original makers of the Mozartkugel. We walked through Residenzplatz, where we found the baroque Residenzbrunnen, the fountain featured in “I Have Confidence”. Nick then left us to our own devices for a few hours.

We got lunch at the Stiegl-Keller and then went to see the graveyard where the Rolf scene was filed. We went to the catacombs, which were built not underground but up into the side of the mountain – that was very cool. Weird seeing roman numeral dates that didn’t start with an “M”! 

We went inside the Salzburg Cathedral and saw that it has five pipe organs. We also saw the old columns and foundation built in the 700s.

We went to take a closer look at the Residenzbrunnen and then got Junea nd Billy Mozartkugel. We then walked to the Mönchsberg Lift and went up to the M32 Cafe for ice cream with a view. And what a view it was, a panoramic view out over the entire city!

We headed back to the meeting place and Nick took us back to the train station. And that’s when the real adventure began! The train stopped several times to wait for a while and then eventually we were informed that the train was being discontinued and we had to get off. We waited for the next one, which showed that it was coming on both track three and track four. We chose wisely (or so we thought) when the train showed up and we all got on… then they kicked everyone off the train. The station said they were ordering taxis for everyone, but that didn’t appear to happen. Eventually a train for München Ostbahnhof showed up and we got on that, and then changed trains there for München Hauptbahnhof.

We made it back, feeling bad that Nick had missed the concert he was supposed to go to that night. I was impressed with his navigation of the situation. Since it was late, we got food at the train station and then hit the hay when we got back to the hotel room.

 

day 13 – 3/7/25

We had a lazy morning and dropped laundry off at the laundromat. We then headed to Marienplatz and made it just in time for the Rathaus-Glockenspiel, which was adorable. We went up the clocktower and got a grand view of the city. Afterward we walked to the Hofbräuhaus for lunch (and to get June a beer). We stopped in the yarn store on the way back and everyone picked out a skein of yarn for me to make them socks when we got home. June started feeling unwell so Billy and I stopped in the LEGO store, which was ridiculously cute, and then we got him new sneakers at the Skechers store because his old ones were falling apart. We headed back to the room and chilled. Billy and I went to an arepa place for dinner and enjoyed talking with the owner, and brought back dinner for June.

 

day 14 – 4/7/25

Travel day today. We packed and went to breakfast. We got on the train to Zurich and I promptly ejected everything I had eaten from seemingly the past several weeks. I tried to sleep after that. 

When we got to Zurich, June was really not doing well at all – they most likely had a fever, which was severely affecting their balance. We could only find space in the lockers for three of our bags, so June used the other one as a walker and we found a place to eat lunch. After lunch, Billy and I wandered down to the Limmat while June rested. We got back to the station, found where our train was leaving from, and boarded. We made our connection in Renens without incident and Billy was excited about being on the top deck of the train.

We got to Genève and our hotel was immediately across the street from the train station. We rested a bit and then got Ethiopian for dinner. June was feeling better by this time so we walked down to Lac Léman to look around – so pretty! We came back to the hotel and settled in for the night.

 

day 15 – 5/7/25

We got up early and June and Billy went to breakfast (my stomach was bothering me again so I stayed in the room and rested). We met our guide for the day, Zed, outside the hotel. He let us onto a minibus and we were off to drive around the north side of Lac Léman toward our first stop in Broc. Unfortunately my stomach caught up with me and I started puking again – luckily Zed was able to pull over for me. 

With that out of the way, we made it to Maison Cailler and took the chocolate factory tour (sadly no Oompa Loompas). The first part was really neat 0 they had separate rooms explaining the history of how chocolate came to Europe, and then there was an area to learn how chocolate is harvested and made into candy, and see, feel, smell, and taste the ingredients. We then learned how to taste chocolate like the pros. Next we got to taste a bunch of different chocolates – the “sublim” was one of my favorites, along with the regular milk chocolate. 

After Maison Cailler, we headed to Gruyères and La Maison du Gruyère to learn how gruyere cheese is made. We got th see the cellars where the cheese is aged, and we were given 6 month, 9 month, and 12 month aged cheese to taste. After the tour we were invited to the restaurant for an 8 month aged cheese tasting, fondue, and wine. It was really good, and I was happy my stomach cooperated.

Our next stop was the medieval town of Gruyères, and the Gruyères Castle. We toured the castle, which was built in the 1300s and was very cool. When we walked through the town, which was built mostly in the 16th and 17th centuries. Since it is built on the top of the hill, there are no newer buildings in the medieval town. On our way back through the town we saw five guys playing alphorns and a guy twirling a Swiss flag. It was so cool! We headed back to the car for the final part of our tour.

We boarded the Golden Pass panoramic train in Montbovon. The train wove around the side of mountains and through tunnels, showing us some of the most breathtaking and picturesque scenery of the entire trip so far. Yes I cried, lol.

We got to Montreal and Zed brought us on the home stretch. He stopped for an extra photo op at the Terrasses viticoles de Lavaux (vineyard terraces on the UNESCO list) because he saw that I liked them so much. He also heard me mention that we were booked for a Zermatt tour for the next day, and he double-checked for us because he didn’t think that was right – and he was correct. Because of his extra help, we were able to get in the Zermatt tour on Monday. I was SO grateful to him – he could have ignored my comment about Zermatt, but he went the extra mile for us.

Zed dropped us off at our hotel and we headed out after a bit for Italian for dinner. Afterward we walked to La Grand Roue de Genève (ferris wheel) after stopping to look at the swans in the lake. We ended our day with a wonderful view of the city. I remember feeling like I belonged and could live in Genève.

 

day 15 – 6/7/25

We were able to see Mont Blanc from our hotel window, and even saw a lenticular cloud over the top! After a lazy start to our day, we had breakfast and then walked down to Bains des Pâquis and went swimming in the lake. They had a few beaches on the north side of the peninsula and a couple of “swimming pools” on the south. They also had changing rooms that you could rent to leave your things while swimming and towel rentals. It was kind of wild swimming in the middle of a metropolitan area but the water was beautiful and clean (and a great temperature). After swimming for a while, we got dressed and went on a lake cruise on the Morges, a belle-epoque steam boat, out from the Port Mont-Blanc. The cruise brought us right past le Jet d’Eau and Billy and I caught a bit of the spray as we passed. We also passed the Bains des Pâquis. We enjoyed seeing Genève from the lake and passed the UN buildings on the cruise.

After the cruise we walked through old town. Old town Genève was enchanting, with its narrow streets, hidden alleys, and gorgeous buildings. We went into St. Peter’s Cathedral and enjoyed seeing how differently the Maccabees Chapel was decorated from the main church. We nipped into the archeological site but it was about to close so we didn’t pay to get into the exhibit proper.

After wandering (and refilling our water bottles from the city fountains, which are all flowing with fresh potable and delicious spring water), we ducked down some stairs and ended back at the patisserie and tea shop Billy had wanted to go to earlier. June and Billy had dinner there and we call had a drink and macarons. Then we wandered back a different way and over a pedestrian bridge back to our hotel – after buying more chocolate, lol. I ordered Indian for my dinner and we played Ticket to Ride Switzerland together before calling it a fairly early night in preparation for a long last full day in Europe.

 

day 16 – 7/7/25

We got up early to walk down to the bus station to get our bus for the tour of Zermatt and the Matterhorn. I didn’t sleep well so I was very grumpy, but after snoozing on the bus for a bit we made it to Montreaux and headed southeast into the Swiss Alps toward Martigny, stopping for a brief trip to the toilets. We continued on to Täsch, where we boarded an electric bus to take us up to Zermatt, as Zermatt is a car-free town except for authorized taxis. In Zermatt we changed to a small taxi, which brought us to the Zermatt cable car station. The scenery thus far had been unbelievable, but it was about to get so much better.

We boarded the first cable car and made our way to Furi Station. We had decided to go straight to the top before stopping at any of the way stations to look around. From Furi we went up another gondola to Trockener Steg. Unfortunately by this point in the day the top of the Matterhorn was covered with clouds, but we could see snowy peaks for kilometers around.

We continued on to to Matterhorn Glacier Paradise, Europe’s highest mountain station. From here it felt like we were on top of the world. We headed first to the Glacier Palace, with carved ice sculptures all around centuries-old ice formations inside a glacier. We were definitely feeling the effects of being 3883 meters above sea level. Following that we went outside, which was very brisk! Clouds were starting to roll in and we were cold and feeling a tad woozy from the altitude, so we sat down and got lunch. I got rösti and some Swiss wine. 

After eating we went to the viewing platform (highest one in Europe), but we still couldn’t see the Matterhorn. We weren’t disappointed, though, as what we could see was incredible. We were treated to a winter wonderland, and could see three countries from where we were – Switzerland, France, and Italy.

We started back down the cable cars, enjoying the views of the glaciers and the four-thousanders we could see all around us as well as Zermatt far below. We got to see a bit more of the Matterhorn as we descended.

Once back in Zermatt we walked through town, looking in a couple of shops and getting cappuccinos. It was a town straight out of a fairy take, so adorable nestles in between the mountains.

We headed back from Zermatt to Täsch, and then onto our tour bus to make the reverse journey. This was every bit as pretty, with the sun breaking through the clouds and shining on the mountains every so often, and then onto the lake. It started raining and we could see spots on the lake where there were isolated showers – where we could see the rain coming down from the cloud and disruption the serene surface of the lake. 

When we got back to Genève we stopped in a few shops and then returned to the hotel to pack and prepare for the journey home the next day. I had a hard time hthinking about leaving Genève specifically and Europe in general, as did Billy. We cried for a bit and hugged and comforted each other before it was time for sleep.

 

day 17 – 8/7/25

We were off to the airport early to catch our first flight to FRA. I cried as we left because I was so sad to be leaving. We got checked in and grabbed coffee and a light breakfast, our last al fresco meal of many on the trip, and then went through security. June got some scrutiny as we went through passport control but we were soon on our way to the gate. We had some extra time so we wondered through duty free even though we weren’t buying anything.

As our flight to Frankfurt took off, I glimpsed a last look at Genève, le Jet d’Eau, and Lac Léman and cried again. The flight was uneventful apart from a bit of turbulence which I reassured Billy about, and waiting for the stairs to arrive so we could disembark. 

We finally got off the plane and onto a shuttle bus to the terminal landing gate “ASS” (A-Schëngen-Sud), lol. We had to walk quite a ways to get to the next gate for our connecting flight. We made it there and soon enough we were on our flight to BOS.

We made it to BOS and found our driver, and he whisked us home. We were all tired but happy with memories from our trip!