Amberg’s Magnificent St. Georg Church

The magnificent rococo church of St. Georg is one of the oldest churches in Bavarian Amberg, Germany. It was built as a Gothic church in 1359. Later, it was taken over by the Jesuits and then in the 18th century, redecorated in the rococo style with the bright colors and stucco work of Johann Baptist […]

Bavarian – American Day in Amberg, Germany

We were lucky to combine our visit to George Then’s father’s birthplace with the annual “Bavarian-American Day” held each year to celebrate the friendship between this town in the Oberpfaelzische Wald with the American soldiers who were stationed here from 1945 to 1993. The market square was a hub of activity. Locals up near the […]

Private Tour Opportunity for August

We have an opening on our calendar for a private tour of at least seven days minimum for the month of August, 2011. This month is historically for us the last month to fill, and we’ve taken bookings as late as July for the very next month. Still, if it’s your dream to travel in […]

From Prague to Lisbon

We just left Betty and Bob at the Lisbon airport and are now preparing for our next guests, Art and Carol, whom we’ll meet in Barcelona. We have six days to get there. What are we going to do? Explore new places in Portugal and Spain to get ready for 2012’s adventurers. We’re also looking […]

Meersburg Zum Baeren Hotel, Traditional Inn, Exceptional Service

We stayed a night in Meersburg on Lake Konstanz, southern Germany on our way south into France. Betty and Bob have stayed here before, in fact, they have stayed in Room 23, which was the very same room we arranged for them this time. It’s one of two oriel rooms overlooking the little square in […]

The Black Forest Goes Solar

Farms all through the low mountains of the Black Forest in southwestern Germany are installing solar panels to help cut down on their energy costs. The average homeowner gets about 30% of the cost back from the government. After seven years, the average homeowner has paid for the rest of the system and then can […]

After all of the Genealogy, Rothenburg ob der Tauber and a lunch stop in Ulm

The Packwoods had just completed a rather intense week of experiences visiting their ancestral villages in Rheinland-Pfalz. As the trip wound down, we made a stop for a couple of nights in the medieval town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber before continuing on the 4th to Dachau, where their escorted trip ended and their independent […]

Still Making Wicker Baskets in Neupotz

Karl Heid will turn 80 in a couple of months but he’s still busy making wicker baskets the “old-fashioned” way in the village where he was born along the Rhein River. His hometown of Neupotz has a history dating back to pre-Roman times. Surrounded by the serpentine “Old Rhein,” the village has maintained an uneasy […]