Legoland, September 6th

Located about 20 minutes from Ulm, in the town of Günzburg, is Legoland. After dragging the kids through the church in Ulm, the rest of the day was dedicated to having fun for them.

Legoland is a cute theme park targeted at little kids, ideal for ages 5-10. Teenagers will get bored with the lack of large roller coasters, but there's enough fun to be had by them. Billy was a good sport and helped Nolan get the courage to ride the faster rides, and Katie enjoyed climbing on everything that could be climbed on.

The weather forecast was for rain, but we went anyways and were rewarded with a light crowd and short lines for the rides. The rain came eventually, but only just when we were leaving the park, so it all worked out perfectly.

Park entrance

Billy and Nolan on the roller coaster.
Click the picture to see Nolan's "Face of Terror"

Katie gets a "pony ride"

Nolan gets his license at the Kinderfahrschule

Billy gets tossed around by the Bionicle mechanical arm

Erin hangs tough and gets a picture a fraction of a second before getting doused by pirates... Argh!

When the kids tire out, it's time to say...

And the predictable result on the ride home

Ulm Cathedral, September 6th

Our travels for the day started in the city of Ulm, birthplace of Albert Einstein. We arrived in the morning and only stayed long enough to see the Ulmer Münster. This gothic cathedral, which took over 500 years to build, is absolutely amazing, and is the tallest church in the world. We toured the beautiful interior, then Bill and Billy climbed the 768 steps to the top of the steeple. This place is a must-see for anyone visiting the area.

Nolan checks out a fountain near the cathedral

View of the steeple from the base

Inside the main hall

The kids pose by a drawing of the cathedral

Billy getting started on the final flight of stairs to the top

View from the top

Schwarzwald, September 1st

On Labor Day we drove about 45 minutes into the Black Forest to ride the alpine slides. The place is called Schwarzwald and it was super fun. The Black Forest is amazing, they have huge windmill farms up there and it is pretty quiet. Really a spectacular drive. The slides were excellent, the kids had a blast.

Strasbourg, France August 30, 2008

Strasbourg, France was beautiful. We drove about an hour and fifteen minutes from Stuttgart to get there. We walked around in Petite France, ate baguettes and saw the Notre Dame Cathedral, built in the 12th century. We witnessed the astronomical clock at 12:30. We drove to Mont St. Odile up in the mountains which was peaceful and amazing. A great first day trip from our home at the Mariott in Stuttgart.