September 1, 2018
So a lot of people blog now. I used to blog. You know, before I had a child. Back then, blogs were a rare thing. Now it seems like everyone has some sort of platform to share their experiences. And talk about forums! There is a plethora of information. So I am going to develop this blog not just to share information about traveling with my family (through Tally's eyes), but so that she has something she can read when she is an adult. So, here it goes!
Tally turns 3 in a couple of weeks and boy oh boy has she been on adventures! In the past 3 years she has visited:
Utah, Texas, Wisconsin, California, Nevada, Idaho, Oregon, Wyoming, Colorado, Montana, Alaska, Mexico, Italy, Germany, and Austria
I don't want to turn the clock back too much and talk in detail about trips that happened a year or two ago, so I'll just highlight a few items for those trips.
Nevada-California (age 10 months):
Surprise fun stop: Nevada City
Fun school and nice hikes: Tahoe
Good place to camp along the way: Ruby Mountains, NV
Bigger city than expected: Reno (but they have food trucks!)
Idaho/Wyoming (age 2.5):
Great place to stay: Victor, ID-they have a kid bike track, good park, and good thai food
Fun hike: String Lake and Leigh Lake, nice and flat for kids
If we return: Go further north in the Tetons and check out the museums near Moose, WY
Alaska (age 1.5):
Highlights: Seward wildlife viewing, Sea Life Center in Seward, Playground in Girdwood, Coffee shops in Homer, Hike to glacier across Kachemak Bay, Beautiful beach across from Diamond Ridge, Skilak Lake
Chacala, MX (age 2):
The beach. Also hit up the food stand for cheap tacos. The hike to the petroglyphs with natural history was great. You need to find the local guy in town to take you. You can hike past the yoga place (Jade--or as Leighton liked to say "hottie") and then up to the caldera. Bring a headlamp to explore the cave! There was also a music festival in San Francisco (San Pancho). It's way more expensive in that town, but the festival and playgrounds were splendid.
Europe (age 2.5):
Okay, this one gets a bit more attention. I decided to take Tally on a flight overseas with last minute tickets and boy was I nervous. But she did great! She was so independent, enjoyed getting her own train tickets, walking all over the towns, playing with kids who did not speak English, picked up some German and Italian words, etc. Here are a few things we learned.
Best games for the plane:
Water Wow, Buckle Bear (the expensive one with multiple buckles, ties, snaps, and a pocket so Tally could carry her own toys), Wind-up fishing toy (it was about $5 at World Market), Arts and Crafts (we took a bunch of puffy stickers, pipe cleaners, markers, etc. so she could take her time making scenes or creating creatures and then we'd make up stories about them), coloring/sticker books that require some thought (she needed to find where each sticker went). Oh, and make a tent with the plane blanket. Tally loved feeling like she was in her own special place.
Munich, Germany
The King's Hotel City Stay was great. It was centrally located, comfortable beds, and friendly staff.
Cheap, but good food can be found in the train station or along the street towards the train station. There is also a great playground right around the corner from the hotel. We found out there is a great thermal bath place (Therme Erding) next to the airport, but didn't have a chance to visit.
Hall, Austria
This is a quiet town just 10 minutes from Innsbruck. Set in the mountains, I would definitely return to Hall. The swimming pool--and by pool I mean 3 pools with giant slides and diving platforms--alone is worth the trip. We stayed at Maria Theresia Hotel. It was like a 5 star hotel (beautiful building, nice rooms, giant varied breakfast, chickens, goats, and playground out back). The was only one problem, and this was a big problem. The rooms were burning up. You could open the windows, but unfortunately the church bells rang every hour and half hour of the night. They were loud enough to wake the living dead! Oh, and Tally got her first experience with stinging nettle while trying to see the goats. Good thing we had benadryl on hand! So, although a gorgeous place, I'd probably dine there, but not stay there if we returned. Also, if we return when Tally is a bit older we will definitely have to hike up the mountains.
Now the highlight of the whole trip: Swarovski Kristallwelten. This place was AMAZING! You begin your experience walking through a green giant's head into a museum with literally millions of crystals and the European version of art (think dancing legs, 3d talking images of Gandhi, crystal gas masks). You exit and find a 4 story building that is built entirely for children. There are trampolines and wooden slides that look like they were some sort of ship with hidden passageways. You then exit to find one of the largest outdoor playgrounds I have ever seen. Oh, and did I mention the miniature and giant gnomes?
Lago di Garda, Italy
We stayed in Lazise at La Forgia. This was a nice place on top of the La Forgia restaurant (good restaurant). Ideal location and had all necessary amenities. And talk about kid friendly! There was a giant play facility (think giant bounce houses, merry-go-rounds, rocking horses, mini golf, etc.) in town. The beach was not the best and the scenery was significantly better on the north end of Lago di Garda. However, it is more expensive on the northern part of the lake. Lago di Ledro is also gorgeous. Oh, and Gardaland. We did not visit Gardaland on this trip, but apparently it is the Disneyland of Italy.
The Olive Oil Museum is worth a trip and be sure to rent bikes so you can ride along the paved trail. I can't rave about the food enough! We also tried to find the Grotta Tanella, but had no luck. However, the beef carpaccio from the one restaurant in that town was on point!
Dolomites, Italy
We stayed in Sexto, Italy. It was a nice little village and San Candido down the way was busier if you are looking for more livelihood. Playgrounds are everywhere, even on the top of the gondola if you take the one in Moose. We biked along the trail and probably could have gone much further if a thunderstorm had decided to pay a visit. The trails go for hundreds of miles so if you are a road biker, this would be your heaven! And don't forget to eat some speck!
So a lot of people blog now. I used to blog. You know, before I had a child. Back then, blogs were a rare thing. Now it seems like everyone has some sort of platform to share their experiences. And talk about forums! There is a plethora of information. So I am going to develop this blog not just to share information about traveling with my family (through Tally's eyes), but so that she has something she can read when she is an adult. So, here it goes!
Tally turns 3 in a couple of weeks and boy oh boy has she been on adventures! In the past 3 years she has visited:
Utah, Texas, Wisconsin, California, Nevada, Idaho, Oregon, Wyoming, Colorado, Montana, Alaska, Mexico, Italy, Germany, and Austria
I don't want to turn the clock back too much and talk in detail about trips that happened a year or two ago, so I'll just highlight a few items for those trips.
Nevada-California (age 10 months):
Surprise fun stop: Nevada City
Fun school and nice hikes: Tahoe
Good place to camp along the way: Ruby Mountains, NV
Bigger city than expected: Reno (but they have food trucks!)
Great place to stay: Victor, ID-they have a kid bike track, good park, and good thai food
Fun hike: String Lake and Leigh Lake, nice and flat for kids
If we return: Go further north in the Tetons and check out the museums near Moose, WY
Alaska (age 1.5):
Highlights: Seward wildlife viewing, Sea Life Center in Seward, Playground in Girdwood, Coffee shops in Homer, Hike to glacier across Kachemak Bay, Beautiful beach across from Diamond Ridge, Skilak Lake
Chacala, MX (age 2):
The beach. Also hit up the food stand for cheap tacos. The hike to the petroglyphs with natural history was great. You need to find the local guy in town to take you. You can hike past the yoga place (Jade--or as Leighton liked to say "hottie") and then up to the caldera. Bring a headlamp to explore the cave! There was also a music festival in San Francisco (San Pancho). It's way more expensive in that town, but the festival and playgrounds were splendid.
Europe (age 2.5):
Okay, this one gets a bit more attention. I decided to take Tally on a flight overseas with last minute tickets and boy was I nervous. But she did great! She was so independent, enjoyed getting her own train tickets, walking all over the towns, playing with kids who did not speak English, picked up some German and Italian words, etc. Here are a few things we learned.
Best games for the plane:
Water Wow, Buckle Bear (the expensive one with multiple buckles, ties, snaps, and a pocket so Tally could carry her own toys), Wind-up fishing toy (it was about $5 at World Market), Arts and Crafts (we took a bunch of puffy stickers, pipe cleaners, markers, etc. so she could take her time making scenes or creating creatures and then we'd make up stories about them), coloring/sticker books that require some thought (she needed to find where each sticker went). Oh, and make a tent with the plane blanket. Tally loved feeling like she was in her own special place.Munich, Germany
The King's Hotel City Stay was great. It was centrally located, comfortable beds, and friendly staff.
Cheap, but good food can be found in the train station or along the street towards the train station. There is also a great playground right around the corner from the hotel. We found out there is a great thermal bath place (Therme Erding) next to the airport, but didn't have a chance to visit.
Hall, Austria
This is a quiet town just 10 minutes from Innsbruck. Set in the mountains, I would definitely return to Hall. The swimming pool--and by pool I mean 3 pools with giant slides and diving platforms--alone is worth the trip. We stayed at Maria Theresia Hotel. It was like a 5 star hotel (beautiful building, nice rooms, giant varied breakfast, chickens, goats, and playground out back). The was only one problem, and this was a big problem. The rooms were burning up. You could open the windows, but unfortunately the church bells rang every hour and half hour of the night. They were loud enough to wake the living dead! Oh, and Tally got her first experience with stinging nettle while trying to see the goats. Good thing we had benadryl on hand! So, although a gorgeous place, I'd probably dine there, but not stay there if we returned. Also, if we return when Tally is a bit older we will definitely have to hike up the mountains.
Now the highlight of the whole trip: Swarovski Kristallwelten. This place was AMAZING! You begin your experience walking through a green giant's head into a museum with literally millions of crystals and the European version of art (think dancing legs, 3d talking images of Gandhi, crystal gas masks). You exit and find a 4 story building that is built entirely for children. There are trampolines and wooden slides that look like they were some sort of ship with hidden passageways. You then exit to find one of the largest outdoor playgrounds I have ever seen. Oh, and did I mention the miniature and giant gnomes?
Lago di Garda, Italy
We stayed in Lazise at La Forgia. This was a nice place on top of the La Forgia restaurant (good restaurant). Ideal location and had all necessary amenities. And talk about kid friendly! There was a giant play facility (think giant bounce houses, merry-go-rounds, rocking horses, mini golf, etc.) in town. The beach was not the best and the scenery was significantly better on the north end of Lago di Garda. However, it is more expensive on the northern part of the lake. Lago di Ledro is also gorgeous. Oh, and Gardaland. We did not visit Gardaland on this trip, but apparently it is the Disneyland of Italy.
The Olive Oil Museum is worth a trip and be sure to rent bikes so you can ride along the paved trail. I can't rave about the food enough! We also tried to find the Grotta Tanella, but had no luck. However, the beef carpaccio from the one restaurant in that town was on point!
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| Castle in Trento, Italy |
Dolomites, Italy
We stayed in Sexto, Italy. It was a nice little village and San Candido down the way was busier if you are looking for more livelihood. Playgrounds are everywhere, even on the top of the gondola if you take the one in Moose. We biked along the trail and probably could have gone much further if a thunderstorm had decided to pay a visit. The trails go for hundreds of miles so if you are a road biker, this would be your heaven! And don't forget to eat some speck!
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