Trier-----our first train trip!!!

Part of the newcomers inprocessing is a trip to the city of Trier. We took the train from Spicher (a little town near Spangdahlem) to Trier. This, I believe, was a first for the whole family (I need to check with Damon on that....he says yes, to the best of his knowledge.). Luckily, we had a dual citizen guide who spoke fluent English and German. Our train ride was about 30 minutes long. It paralled the Kyll River most of the way. It was breathtaking....and a little scary at first when we went through the tunnels!!!

We arrived at the train station and had a small break. Damon and I didn't get our morning coffee, so we endulged in some German coffee and strudle. I thought it would be more sweet than it was, but it was still yummy. The coffee is STRONG!! Like keep you up all day strong, but good nonetheless! Then we were off....into the city. I am amazed at the amount of foot traffic you find in this area. People walk EVERYWHERE!!! As a matter of fact, if your car is older than a 1994 model, there are cities that won't allow you to drive, and the sheer amount of money it cost the locals to get a license is astounding. So, I guess it's not surprising that they walk. We walked to the Porta Nigra. The history is amazing. As a history buff, Damon was on cloud nine!!! We then walked through the main market area.....oh the money I could have spent!!! We didn't bring that much in Euro and our bank charges us to convert charges :-(. Some of the buildings in the market square date back to the 1500's and 1600's. Amazing....Courtney wanted to know if that was older than us....by a few years sister, just a few!!!

We ate at a German restaurant (with our tour guide of course...to translate the menu!!! The girls shared chicken nuggets (surprise, surprise!!), I had shnitzel, and Damon had mushroom strudel. It was YUMMY!!! And, oh the soup.....I am not a big onion fan, but this onion soup was wonderful.
Then we headed to St.Peter's Cathedral (aka the Dom). It was built by Constantine and the oldest church in Germany. To say that it was big is an understatement. It was massive!! Oh, and there are signs everywhere that say "silence please". We didn't spend too much time in there...silent isn't in the girls vocab!!! We walked back through the market, bought some grapes for Courtney, and went back to the train station. I think we might have been more adventurous if we didn't have the girls, who were exhausted at this point. Once we were back on the train, Carlee was out within just a few minutes. Courtney waited until we got on the bus back to the base.












I, in my infinite wisdom, decided that it was WAY too late to make dinner and we needed to pick something up on the way home. Now, I know what I am about to say is shocking and may cause some of you to pass out......we went to McDonald's, and it was GOOD!! You see, German McD's use this stuff called meat, real meat. And they add these things called seasonings. Nowm they don't serve anything called a quarter-pounder, it's the qp's cousin Hamburger Royal. I think maybe her daddy was a cow, the qp's daddy is a cardboard box. Just a hunch......
Now we are home....and I am blogging, and Damon is chasing girls trying to put them to bed....as it should be. I need my chill time. And I am tired of the "when are you going to post pictures?" questions.....
Hope you enjoy.....
OH bonus pictures....
These pigeons are everywhere....Carlee was convinced that they were kitties. There was no telling her otherwise.







The view from McD's...yes, McDonald's.....