Days 1-2:  We departed New York on AirBerlin.  I have not flown the airline before but the service was good, the price is better than

 most of the larger carriers, and they do have "XL" seats, at an extra cost, in coach.  Our overnight flight landed us in Berlin where wepicked up another AirBerlin flight to Nuremberg.  It was an easy train ride to the home of our family in the Bavaria region of Germany.  After resting, we had a terrific meal at "Casino" (see photo to the right).

Days 3-5 We decided to travel with our family member to northern Germany to the town of Bremen.   It is known as the home of Beck's beer.  It is famous for its UNESCO world heritage town hall and the famous Bremen musicians represented with the familiar statue of a rooster atop a cat atop a dog atop a donkey.  We loved the old-world style of Bremen.  It's easy to get around, walking is easy, and there are terrific restaurants that are reasonably priced.

Days 6-10:  Back in Bavaria, we too the 5 hour first-class train ride to Vienna.   It has perhaps the most modern train station in the world.  It is extremely clean and has great connections.  We met our travel group (about 30 of us) mostly from North America that evening for a cooking class where we made mountain-cheese dumplings, a beef stew, and of course apple strudel.   We spent some days visiting the great sites of this large city to include St. Stephan's Cathedral, Spanish Riding School, Music Museums, and the over-the-top, most beautiful museum I have ever seen, the Fine Arts Museum.  There is much more to see and eat in this wonderful city that makes me want to come back again.

Days 11-12:  If Vienna is a large metropolis, Salzburg is a small village.   Of course it is the home of "The Sound of Music" and we experienced all that, but it is so much more.  With our guide we visited small shops, we walked the winding streets, and coincidentally we were there for the celebration of Mozart's 260th birthday.   What a treat!   This small town is chock full of charm and good, good food.

Days 13-15:  We headed back to Germany before departing home.  My overview of Germany and Austria is that the terrific people, the historic and cultural attractions, and of course the great food make it a destination we want to bring our small groups to.   We will be going there for the Christmas markets in the first week of December.  Why not join us?