World Traveling Military Family

Hello 2017 & 2016 Review!

By: Mrs Bcomment

Hello 2017, it’s so nice to see you! I have high hopes for an amazing year ahead! 2016 was a year of changes for us but still full of many adventures.

We just got back to Guam after spending 2.5 weeks on mainland USA. We were in West Virginia and Idaho, where we got to experience the the joy of a winter wonderland with snow and all! I didn’t realize how much I am fond of cold weather until this year. My two favorite season are Spring & Fall, as the weather is just ‘perfect’ during those seasons but moving to Guam has made me realize that I do indeed like…and miss Winter when it’s taken from me. I was thrilled to be in weather that nipped at the tip of my nose and where snowflakes fell from the sky to kiss my cheeks. I took every minute in as I know we won’t see cold weather like that in the next few years. Interestingly enough Summer is my least favorite season…so I guess I’d better learn to embrace it 😉

2016 was unique in many ways for us. We only got to see our oldest who is away at collage once this year, instead of the normal twice a year. We had family come visit us in Germany, and they got to be there for a special ceremony. Mr. B received a promotion which led to several fun and busy events. And we had to say good-bye to some great friends when we moved from Germany to Guam.

2016 started off with a dip in the North Sea in the Netherlands as our very first adventure on January 1st! It was an amazing and unforgettable experience!

It was also the year where were got to visit Scotland, and I LOVED every minute of it! That is one country I plan to go back and visit again.

I was asked to teach travel and blogging classes at a conference in Germany, it was an amazing experience even though it was outside my comfort zone.

I took a group of awesome ladies on a day trip to bike through the tulips in the Netherlands, it was amazing! Highly recommend doing this at least once in your life, and it makes a great girls trip!

We also took a MSC Baltic cruise which was a HUGE Bucket list check! Visited Copenhagen, Sweden, Estonia, & Russia!

Military One Click also asked me to do some posts for them this year, I’ve been super excited to share Europe info with their site. You can see my latest post for them 9 cool winter activities for military families stationed in Europe. Keep watching MOC because I have more going up on the site in the near future 🙂

And the biggest change of the year…we moved from Germany to Guam…which has been quite the adjustment. Many differences here for sure! We’ve learned how to Boonie stomp and waterfall jump to pass the time, you can read about one of the adventures HERE. Snorkeling and Scuba have been added to our monthly events here. We’ve checked out the local cuisine and can’t get enough of the finadene sauce.

We also got to spend the holidays in the US with family for the first time in 17 years, which was great. Although we had a horrible trip back to Guam on United so I can say that we won’t be visiting the States again from here again! And we’ll be avoiding United as well!

2017 Goals

To get back on a normal posting schedule of twice a week sharing both content from here in Guam as well as the rest of the Europe posts I have.

To explore Guam and what it has to offer & encourage others to do the same.

Take a Space A trip…destination TBD.

Travel to at least 1 new country.

What was your best of 2016? What are you looking forward to in 2017?

Things to do on Sunday in Germany!

By: Mrs Bcomment

There are many people who think that because the Germans take Sunday off there is not much to do, but there are still many Things to do on Sunday in Germany. I wanted to share a few as well as some suggestions of local places near Spangdahlem & Ramstein to try it out. I also kept the list to locations inside of Germany as many people arrive here before they have gotten their tourists passports so this list can get you out traveling within Germany until you can get a tourist passport. Also this list can easily be expanded upon but it give you a starting point for generating ideas for Sunday adventures.

Festivals – there are festivals year round! Some popular ones are the Christmas Market in Dudeldorf in Dec, Wittlich Pig Festival in August, Easter Festival in Sankt Wendel in Mar/April, and many more!

Hiking Paths – Manderschied, Devil’s Canyon, or any of the many hiking paths that you can find in nearly every village!

Pools – Cascades (year round), during warmer months (May-Sept) the outdoor pools: Freibad Kyllburg & Vitelliusbad Wittlich.

Castles – Burg Eltz (end of March to Nov 1), Reichsburg in Cochem (Mar-Nov)

Parks – Eifel Park – animals & some rides, Daun Wildlife Park – safari park, Eagle & Wolf Park – see Eagles & wolves

Indoor Playgrounds – Trampoline Trier, Landal – indoor play area, mini golf, climbing wall, etc

Outdoor Playgrounds – Castle Playground or one of the many playgrounds/parks you can find all over Germany.

Museums – Dynamikum – Science museum with hands on learning exhibits with English info & 2 slides inside! Gondwana – Dinosaur experience

River cruises – Mosel River cruise from Bernkastle area, Rhine River cruise to see lots of castles, daily in peak season.

Rope Suspension Bridge – Geierlay Hangeseilbrucke in Morsdorf

Flohmarkts – watch for signs for local flohmakrts, Speicher does one on Sundays a few times a year.

Rodelbahns – Sommerrodelbhan Daun – open during summer season, Sommerrodelbahn Peterberg – summer season

Barefoot Parks – Bad Soberhiem – tons of fun for the family & cheap as well! Seasonal – open in the warmer months.

Ice Skating – Eissport Halle Bitburg – year round

Go-Karts – Karthalle Wittlich

Black Forest area – Dorothee’s Glass Blowing Hut, Cuckoo Clocks, Triberg Waterfall – lots to do on Sunday in this area!

Amusement parks – Phantasialand in Cologne & Europa Park near the Black Forest area.

Lakes – Lake Bostalsee – lots of things to do there, also camping available, summer season mainly

I hope this gives you some fun suggestions to get out and explore on Sundays! Any other places you like to go on Sundays?

Lichtenstein Castle – Lichtenstein, Germany

By: Mrs Bcomment

Lichtenstein Castle (Schloss Lichtenstein) in Lichtenstein, Germany is a must see if your traveling in the area! This picturesque castle is amazing to see perched on the edge of the cliff over looking the village below. It’s very quaint & charming. This is an easy add on to a drive to or from the Garmsich area.

I was so excited to get to cross this castle off my list on the way to Garmish recently [Read more…]

14 Easy Day Trips from Garmisch, Germany

By: Mrs Bcomment

I often get asked ‘What is there to do around the Garmisch area?’ so I’ve made a list of 14 easy day trips from Garmisch, Germany that covers multiple countries. It’s a free PDF file so you save it to your computer or print it out if needed.

Note that all these trips you can drive to in 2.5 hours or less from Garmisch and the Edelweiss Resort, the time is in (XX) after the location name. Also if there is a * before the name it means that we have been there and there is more info on the blog about that location. You can use the search box on the right and find that extra info.

This is an image of the printable, to download and print the file you can find it HERE.

I want to take a minute to highlight a few things on the list:

Austria – The salt mines are great, especially if your heading towards Salzburg. Reutte is an easy add on for the drive to or from the area with the castle ruins and the Highline 179 bridge.

Austria
*Bad Dürrnberg – Hallien Salt Mines tour: slides, boat crossing (2 hour 10 mins)
GPS: Ramsaustraße 3, 5422 Bad Dürrnberg, Austria
*Reutte – Highline 179 bridge, Ehrenburg Ruins, museum, playground (40 mins)
GPS: Klause 2, 6600 Gemeinde Reutte, Austria
*Salzburg – Castle, Sound of Music tours, Mozart’s home, & more (2 hours)
GPS: Parking lot on Petersbrunnstraße, 5020 Salzburg

Germany – If you go in season (May – XX) the Eagle’s Nest is worth a visit on a clear day and their is a rodelbann near it as well. Linderhof has been said to be the favorite of visitors even over Neuschwanstein, don’t miss the grotto with his swan boat!

Germany
*Berchtesgaden – Eagle’s Nest & Documentation Center, Coaster (2 hours 12 mins)
GPS: Salzbergstraße 41, 83471 Berchtesgaden – parking at Doc. Center
*Ettal – Linderhof Palace & Grotto, Monastery, Cheese store (30 mins)
GPS: Salzbergstraße 41, 83471 Berchtesgaden – parking at Doc. Center
Munich – *Dauchau, Surfers, Octoberfest, museums (1 hour)
GPS: Marienplatz 2, 80331 München, Germany- Tourism Office
*Oberammergau– Alpine coaster, hiking, cable car, museums, reptiles (25 mins)
GPS: Eugen-Papst-Straße 9A, 82487 Oberammergau – Tourism Office
*Schwangau– Neuschwanstein Castle, Lake, Luge, hiking, cable car (40 mins)
GPS: Neuschwansteinstraße 20, 87645 Schwangau

Italy – A great way to get another country in on your trip with some interesting sights to see, indoor & outdoor options.

Italy
Bolzano – South Tyrol Musuem to see Ötzi the iceman (2 hours 20 mins)
GPS: Via Museo, 43, 39100 Bolzano BZ
Parcines – Partschins waterfall, climbing tours, & rappelling (2 hours 20 mins)
GPS: 39020 Parcines BZ, Italy

Lichetenstein – A quick detour into this tiny country will add another checkmark to your countries visited bucket list.

Liechtenstein
Malbun – Skiing/winter, Falcon center/spring & summer ( 2 hours 35 mins)
GPS – 9497 Triesenberg, Liechtenstein – Falconry center
Vaduz – Castle, Cathedral, Art Museum, Hiking (2 hours 20 mins)
GPS: Städtle 37, 9490 Vaduz, Liechtenstein – Tourism office

Switzerland – Head across the border for some tax free shopping, hiking or ropes course adventures! Keep in mind it’s a bit expensive in general so it could be worthwhile to take a picnic lunch from a grocery store in Germany.

Switzerland
Samnaun – Tax free Shopping, skiing, Fairy Tail Hiking trail (1 hour 50 mins)
GPS: Dorfstrasse 4, 7563 Samnaun-Dorf, Switzerland – Tourism office.
Sent – Suspension Bridge, Ropes Course, Sculpture Park (1 hour 50 mins)
        GPS: Via Veglia Vers Scuol, Sent, Switzerland – Sculpture Park

I hope this gives you some ideas to get started on some amazing adventures! Happy Travels!

Monschau, Germany – Glass Blowing, Castle & More!

By: Mrs Bcomment

Monschau, Germany is a cute little village in Germany that has many neat things such as glass blowing, a castle, mustard mill, sand sculptures, brewery, & more! It’s also very charming with it’s half timbered houses, you can get a great overview from the castle area. It’s 1 hour 10 mins from Spangdahlem, and 2 hours 9 mins from Ramstein. A great little village to visit for a day trip!

On our [Read more…]

Dynamikum Science Center – Pirmasens, Germany

By: Mrs Bcomment

Dynamikum Science Center in Pirmasens, Germany is a fun way to spend a few hours exploring as a family! This science center is full of 160 hands on exhibits and attractions, two floors of fun including 2 slides back down to the first floor! It’s only 1.5 hours from Spangdahlem, 30 mins from Ramstein and for those at Spang could easily be combined with a trip to the land of the big BX 😉 This is also [Read more…]

March Things to Do Around Spangdahlem 2016

By: Mrs Bcomment

March Things To Do Around Spangdahlem has several Easter events going on as well as some other interesting things to go see during this month. Again these are generally no more than 3 hours away, although I may throw in one or two further away ones if I think that they are something to consider.

There are Things To Do for everyone! Some include Easter Markets, Food Festivals, Teddy Bears, Chocolate, [Read more…]

Geierlay Hängeseilbrücke – Mörsdorf, Germany

By: Mrs B6 Comments

Geierlay Hängeseilbrücke in Mörsdorf, Germany is the longest rope suspension bridge in Germany! It just opened in Oct. 2015 and is only a 1 hour and 10 minute drive from Spang but can easily be added as part of a day trip to Cochem because it’s only 25 mins from there. While this is a neat experience there are a few things you should know to make your visit the best experience possible.

The parking [Read more…]

February Things to Do Around Spangdahlem 2016

By: Mrs Bcomment

February Things To Do Around Spangdahlem has several Fasching events going on as well as some other interesting things to go see during this month. These are generally no more than 3 hours away, although I may throw in one or two further away ones if I think that they are something to consider.

There are Things To Do for everyone! Some include Fasching parades, Chocolate, Beer Festival, Easter Market, [Read more…]

Demeter Hof Breit – Farm in Wittlich, Germany

By: Mrs Bcomment

I was so excited when a friend offered to take us out to Demeter Hof Breit – the farm in Wittlich, Germany where you can bottle your own fresh milk! I’d been wanting to try it but hadn’t gotten around to it, and it was great to have her there showing us the ropes. If your looking for fresh milk, eggs, organic or bio fruits and veggies, meats, cheeses, juices, etc you can find it all here at the farm!

The [Read more…]

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