We had only been living in the Netherlands for two months but it was getting close to Christmas and work had calmed down. Everyone was talking about the amazing Christmas markets around Europe.
Feeling a tad more settled and like we needed some time to reconnect as a family we decided to plan our first European travel adventure over Christmas. It’s a bit random how we landed on Stuttgart– and not sure I’d ever recommend going there but we made the most of it through day trips to castles and the surrounding towns.
Lichtenstein Castle was a core memory of this trip. The spooky weather created a dramatic vibe for this steep cliffside beauty and we basically had the place to ourselves! Apparently, one of my childhood favorites, The Three Musketeers, featured shots of this castle.
Stuttgart had a nice Christmas market but it was pretty cold and Dolly was not in the best mood so it was a short-lived experience.
On another beautiful and memorable day trip we traveled near the town of Rottenburg am Neckar to a short hillside hike up to a lovely chapel: Wurmlinger Kapelle. Like many of our hikes I did most of it with Dolly on my shoulders– love to get in a workout wherever possible when traveling!
Hohenzollern Castle was another memorable spectacle from our fist European adventure. What a beauty. I’ll never tire staring at castles as I feel such an appreciation for what it must have taken to build considering their age. Dolly had a decent meltdown on the hike back to the car– to her defense, it was FREEZING! Cold and freezing was kind of the theme of this trip.
Our final day trip experience was in Albert Einstein’s birth city: Ulm! This town was full of cobble streets and Bavarian style buildings, it was hard not to have the camera out. We had a schnitzel lunch and visited the Christmas market in Ulm.
On our final day we checked out of the hotel in Stuttgart and went to kill time at a park before our flight. We were very excited and ready to get home when we received the message that our flight was canceled and we would be rebooked on a flight TWO DAYS later. Nope. Managing Dolly for a impromptu six hour road trip was not part of the plan… But six hours later, home at last! Plus Ben got a little more time cruising the autobahn 🙂