If someone would have asked me to guess where I would spend my 30th birthday, I’m sure I would not have guessed Europe. Nope, not in a million years! And yet here I am, able to spend the big 3-0 among friends and my family in a place that is full of adventure and intrigue (at least to me)!  I am so blessed! We left Hamburg with our friend Claudia, who drove us to Lübeck, a beautiful town on the North Coast of Germany…right on...

After spending the day exploring Hamburg, we needed some serious refueling. We went well out of our way to visit Vapiano, a fresh Italian food restaurant located in Hamburg’s downtown. This restaurant was started by a former McDonalds franchisee in Germany..and yes, while it is German-based, it is Italian Food! When you enter the restaurant, the host gives each adult an electronic card that keeps track of your bill. You begin by...

I know, I’ve raved and raved about public transportation in Hamburg, Germany…but really, it is EXCELLENT! Their subways are clean, smooth and efficient, as are their boats and buses! Sibling love. As we waited for the bus, Ethan would run far away from Ella, and then come running back with his arms wide open for a...

With all the walking we’d been doing, exploring the streets of Hamburg, Germany as a family, it was time for a kid’s day –that is, a day dedicated to doing something we knew the kids would really enjoy! We had heard about Hamburg’s Miniature Wonderland (Miniatur Wunderland), home of the world’s largest model railway in the world…and loved by locals and foreigners alike. With 86,000+ likes on...

Low and behold, it turns out that Germany is REALLY into their flohmarkts (fleamarkets)! If you do a search online for flohmarkts, you’ll discover they are in just about every area of the city–every Saturday and often on Sundays, too! We were lucky that the twice-a-year Schanze Festival happened to be the weekend we were in town. So, it was half flohmarkt, and half…well…street party! Besides finding some garage-sale...

On Day 2 in Hamburg, my good friend Claudia took the day off work to show us around the city. Claudia is one of my best friends from high school. She was an exchange student from Germany for one semester, and of all places, landed in my hometown of Topeka, Kansas!pfirst stop after arriving to Germany! She also lives in the Schanze district, which is where we found an affordable apartment to rent for 4 days via...