Tag: Europe
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Painted Houses, Mountain Views, Violins, & Masks- A Day in Mittenwald {Germany}
We have a soft spot for small towns and places just off the main tourist trail, and Mittenwald fits that description perfectly. Our day there was filled with all of our favorite things — wandering through a museum, lingering in a bakery, and heading out onto mountain trails. Of course, it wouldn’t be one of…
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Exploring Innsbruck {Austria}
We spent a few wonderful days exploring Innsbruck, and it didn’t take long to realize it could easily become a new favorite. Elegant and interesting, the city is framed by dramatic mountain views that never feel far away, no matter where you wander. Innsbruck’s history stretches back thousands of years, with evidence of settlement dating…
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Perfect Views & Family Bones-Exploring Hallstatt {Austria}
For as long as I can remember, my mental picture of Austria has been shaped by two places: Salzburg and Hallstatt. Salzburg, of course, came from the hundreds of times I watched The Sound of Music. But Hallstatt entered my imagination later — through guidebooks, travel magazines, and glossy pages filled with impossibly perfect photographs.…
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Hiking the Sigmud Thun Gorge in Hohe Tauern National Park {Austria}
Our family has a deep love for national parks. There’s something about heading out onto a trail, not quite knowing what waits around the next bend, that feels like pure adventure. Visiting a national park in another country adds an extra layer of excitement — stepping into a landscape with no expectations, no familiar landmarks,…
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Strolling & Surprises Through Salzburg {Austria}
We arrived in the beautiful city of Salzburg early in the morning, dropped our bags at the hotel, and headed straight back out. With comfortable shoes and tired eyes, we set off to wander. This was the first day of our two-week trip, and because we love Salzburg so much, it felt like the perfect…
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Christmas Markets, Courtyards, & Wishes on a Tree in Basel {Switzerland}
Our last stop on this festive trip was Basel—a city uniquely positioned at the crossroads of France, Germany, and Switzerland. It turned out to be the perfect place to end a trip built not on plans, but on wandering—where even something as simple as crossing a border became part of the experience. The logistics alone…
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Old Town Gates & Markets in Freiburg {Germany}
After spending several days wandering through the storybook villages of the Alsace region, we crossed the border into Germany for a day in Freiburg—a city that had quietly worked its way onto our itinerary. We first came across it in a travel book, then again through a fellow traveler’s story, and something about it lingered.…
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Fairytale Towns & Christmas Markets of the Alsace {France}
When we first started planning this trip, we knew we wanted to visit the Alsace region of France. This area is made up of so many beautiful small towns, many of them just a short distance from Colmar, making it easy to set out for a day—or even a couple of days—of wandering, exploring, and…
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Christmas in Colmar {France}
Our next stop in the Alsace region brought us to the beautiful city of Colmar—one of those places that feels almost too picturesque to be real, especially during the Christmas season. Colmar has an impressively long history, first mentioned in 884 by Charlemagne during the Saxon Wars. Over the centuries, it has shifted between powers—granted…
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The Capital of Christmas in Strasbourg {France}
After leaving Paris, we made our way east to the Alsace region, where our first stop was Strasbourg—a city that fully embraces the magic of the season as the Capital of Christmas. This is a city shaped by centuries of change. Today, it is known as the seat of the European Parliament, but during the…