Reap The Whirlwind

This summer my family and I went on a two week European vacation. Six cities in fourteen days is no joke, but we had a blast, saw a ton, and stayed healthy throughout. For something different, I thought I’d catalog our activities here.

Day 1 – Rome

• Land at Leonardi da Vinci International Airport
• Taxi ride to the hotel (aggressive driver kept us on our toes)
• Jetlag recovery nap (essential)
• Pizza at Taverna Rossini
• Pico Gelato for dessert (tears of joy were shed)

Day 2 – Rome

• Trevi Fountain
• Colosseum
• Piazza del Campidoglio
• Pantheon
• Lunch at La Soffitta Renovatio
• The Vatican, including the Sistine Chapel and St Peter’s Basilica
• More gelato at Pico
• Quick dinner at the hotel before crashing in bed

Day 3 – Rome

• Temple of Asclepius
• Walk through Villa Borghese
• Piazza di Spagna (the Spanish Steps)
• Trevi Fountain (again)
• Vicus Caprarius (ruins under Trevi)
• Life-changing carbonara at Al Simeto (no one spoke English, a good sign)
• Even more gelato at Pico

Day 4 – Florence

• Morning train to Florence, and walk to our Airbnb that was right on the square
• Accademia Gallery to see Michelangelo’s David (breathtaking)
• Uffizi Gallery (Birth of Venus, amongst other masterpieces)
• Life-changing chianti at La Buchetta, and the steak was pretty good too
• Evening walk at the Piazza della Signoria

Day 5 – Florence

• Climb to the top of the Brunelleschi Dome
• Tour of the Duomo cathedral
• Cappelle Medicee
• Basilica di San Lorenzo
• Trattoria Sergio Gozzi for lunch with an old friend (and killer truffles)
• Battistero di San Giovanni
• Palazzo Strozzi
• Ponte Vecchio
• Gelateria Edoardo il gelato biologico (obviously)
• Quick pizza from a grab and go

Day 6 – Alps

• Walk to the Florence train station
• Train through Bologna, Bolzano, Innsbruck
• Arrived in Munich in the afternoon
• Dinner at Haxnbauer im Scholastikahaus (pork knuckles FTW!)

Day 7 – Munich

• Bus ride to Bavaria
• Neuschwanstein Castle
• Quick lunch (sausages and beer)
• Oberammergau
• Linderhof Castle

Day 8 – Munich

• Morning run in the Englischer Garten
• Tour of Dachau (a sobering and essential experience)
• Shopping in Marienplatz
• Walkthrough of Peterskirche (including a climb of the tower)
• Stroll through the Englischer Garten in the rain
• Dinner at Hofbräuhaus
• Midnight sleeper train to Paris

Day 9 – Paris

• Taxi to the hotel to freshen up
• Walk through Jardin des Plantes
• Brunch at Clint (poached eggs, yummy)
• Recovery nap (absolutely essential)
• Shopping in Le Marais
• Dinner at Robert et Louise (beef cooked over an open fire plus a Bordeaux)
• Walk through Place des Vosges and Place de la Bastille
• Cards in the hotel lobby

Day 10 – Paris

• Stroll through Montmartre
• The Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Paris
• Eglise Saint-Pierre de Montmartre
• Cheese sampling from a local shop
• Walk past Moulin Rouge
• Arc de Triomphe (only a couple quick photos)
• Eiffel Tower (didn’t go up though)
• Pont Alexandre III Bridge
• Eglise de Saint Germain des Pres
• Macarons from Boutique Pierre Hermé
• Le Jardin du Luxembourg
• Panthéon (photo from afar)
• Cathédrale Notre-Dame (just an outside view)
• Ile de la Cité
• Sainte-Chapelle (beautiful stained glass)
• Lunch at Brasserie Les Deux Palais
• Quick walk past Musée du Louvre
• Tried to tour the Catacombs, but alas they were booked out
• Crepes from Au Beurre Salé
• Well-earned sleep

Day 11 – London

• Eurostar through the Chunnel (delightful train and fast!)
• Tube to Pimlico station
• Bit of recuperation at the Westminster Hotel
• Tour of the Churchill War Rooms
• Dinner at The Admiralty (Trafalgar Square)
• Walk past Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, and Parliament

Day 12 – London

• Several hours of exploration at the National History Museum (Dippy!)
• Nap on the lawn at Hyde Park
• Princess Diana Memorial Fountain
• Science Afternoon Tea at The Drawing Rooms
• Stroll over Westminster Bridge

Day 13 – Oxford

• Morning train to Oxford
• Fish and chips at Wig & Pen
• Photos at The Eagle and Child (sadly closed due to COVID)
• Shopping on Cornmarket Street
• The Sheldonian Theatre
• The Hertford Bridge (most photographed spot in Oxford)
• Bodleian Library
• Blackwell’s Bookshop (bought a rare Isaac Asimov book: The Clock We Live On)
• Radcliffe Camera
• University Church of St Mary the Virgin
• The Bear Inn (serving Oxford since 1242)
• Christ Church College
• Merton College
• Martyrs’ Cross

Day 14 – Journeying

• Sleep in late
• Depart Heathrow in the early afternoon
• And land in San Diego in the late afternoon (hooray for timezones)

And there you have it. Not a bad way to spend a fortnight.