Ok, Aunt Martha : )

Ok, Aunt Martha : ) Just haven't had as much wifi time as I'd like lately. And for some reason when I do have wifi time I'm looking over travel sites. Go figure.

Anyway, I have made progress in plans for our trip. We will spend 2-3 days in the Spangdahlem area when we first get there, seeing the base and surrounding area, and spending time with Scott. We just have to keep our fingers crossed that deployments don't get in the way of that.

Tentatively, the following Monday we will leave for the Black Forest, in our rental car that Scott will arrange for on base. Plan to drive to Baden-Baden or nearby the first day. We're giving serious thought to going to the thermal baths there. The next day, we'll tour the Schwarzwald more thoroughly. Know that Triberg and Furtwangen are on the short list, plans are still developing here. From the Black Forest, we'll travel into Switzerland and spend the night somewhere in the neighborhood of Teufenthal, where Steve's grandmother's family came from. The next day, we'll head down to the Berner Oberland for a few days - definitely seeing the beauty around Lauterbrunnen. Still undecided between the Schilthorn and the Jungfraujoch - would love to do both but the trips are both pricey and more likely we'll just do one, leaning towards the Schilthorn.

From there, we're planning to head down to Martigny for a few nights. One of the days will be spent traveling from Martigny to Chamonix, France, and Mont Blanc, then into the Valle d'Aosta in Northern Italy and seeing Monte Cervino (more commonly known on the Swiss side as the Matterhorn.) Seems less of a hassle to see it from the Italian side (with a car anyway.)

From that area we're headed toward Andermatt - there are some pass roads Steve wants to go on, even though we'll be in a car, not a motorcycle. We know those plans will be weather dependent but hope they'll work out. From there, northeast through Liechtenstein (just so we can say we've been) and into Austria, headed toward Fuessen and Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria. Probably headed toward Salzburg, Austria from there, then up to Munich for a day or two and headed back toward Spangdahlem on the Romantic Road, stopping in Rothenburg ob der Tauber along the way.

Whew! Right now I am in the beginning stages of figuring out where we'll spend the evenings. We could probably get by without reservations this time of year but I do like to nail things down. Would rather change reservations than get stuck without something, or only have a choice of high-priced accommodations. What also will factor in is whether or not Scott will join us for some or all of the time. He knows he's welcome, and I think he's waiting to see just where we'll go (and whether or not the Air Force has other plans. You never know for sure in that regard.)

We want to go but not be extravagant, if you know what I mean. Quite a few picnic meals (and we can stock up at the commissary in Spang before we head out) and inexpensive accommodations. Not averse to hostels and "Zimmer Frei" type places. But on the other hand this may be the only time we ever come this way and I don't want to miss something just because we think it costs too much.

I've read in Aunt Martha's blog about the 1st Class sleeper and no-jet-lag pills. Ordered both from Magellan's already as I know from 2009 that I really struggled to get any sleep on the plane trip over. Hoping they will help. Told Mom about that and discovered she already has a 1st class sleeper and would have lent it to me. Oh well. She may lend it to me anyway if Steve thinks it will help him, then we won't have to buy a second one. Not sure it will work for him because of his height but he can try mine first (before the trip, of course.)

I was able to change our seat reservations on the long-haul trips. Before, I couldn't get a window and aisle together so had put us in a window and then the aisle on the other side of the aisle, hoping that whoever had the preferred seat on the window side of the aisle would be willing to trade. Glad to see that some of the preferred seats were released and now we are together. I'd rather climb over Steve to get to the restroom or stretch rather than a stranger!

We've offered Eric a fairly substantial "carrot" for watching Max and checking up on Grandpa. We're going to get him his passport and use my frequent flier miles to get him a ticket over so he can spend some time with his brother. They are already talking London and Paris which will be cool for both of them. Only problem will be timing, with Eric's school, any plans the Air Force has for Scott, and the FF miles calendar needing to coincide. It may not happen for a while. We'll see.

I will try to keep up the blog a bit more often - got out of the habit of doing it on such a regular basis these last few months.

Now to get back to that Bavarian B&B site before the kids here at work wake up from their naps...I'm sure I'm not going anywhere tomorrow with the expected blizzard coming so will have time to do some more planning then, too.