Eurotrip 2018 - a short intro

When we told people that we were taking our then 3 year old and 7 year old on a roadtrip to Gibraltar, most of them thought we were crazy.

When we told people last year that we were taking our then 5 year old, 9 year old ad 10 month old on a roadtrip to Slovenia (and some other countries), they didn't just call us crazy. It was beyond crazy for most.

Three weeks in a car, on campsites, just sightseeing and spending time together. It's not like we were on the road for months, but we loved it. We loved it so much (that was our third road trip with our kids, only that with every roadtrip we had one more kid with us) that after some deliberation, we're going on a roadtrip again this year. I'm already scared (yes, cause even for me it sounds scary, with the weather, the tent, how we're going to survive the long drives and all) and excited (cause we have so much to see in mind, we're going to spend the time just with ourselves again, which we love so much) at the same time. Possible. And I can't wait.

Our last roadtrip wams definitely shorter than the previous one, when we look at the distance. And while in 2016 we knew we wanted to get to Gibraltar and we knew we were going to make it there, in 2018 there was nothing certain. Sure, we had a general plan. Of course, we had a list of places we wanted to see. Obviously, we were hoping to get as far as we hoped for. However, we had Marti in mind the whole time. And we were ready to stay somewhere on the way, so to say, if she said "no" to travelling by car.

Luckily, she got so used to travelling by car, that now she loves it. What's even more surprising, she loves falling asleep for her nap in her car seat. Yes, at home.

So with everybody on board and willing to stay on the road for as long as we wanted, we managed to get to (I think) all the places we had in mind. We spent the first night in Czech Republic, the second one in Austria (with a little bit sightseeing this time), the next ten nights in Slovenia, from where we travelled to Croatia, then Italy and, finally, with the last night spent in Germany, we got back home.

The first day, we wanted to get to Brno in the Czech Republic. We figured we could explore the city a little, see something there. Instead, since we couldn't find a campsite anywhere close to Brno enough and since there were roadworks on the ring road, we never got to the city itself. We stayed on a campsite in what felt like the middle of nowhere. It was a tiny one, by a tiny river, a 15 minute walk from a tiny town of Veverská Bítýška. We spent the afternoon exploring the area a little and playing at the local playground (a very well organised one). A lovely place for a calm and peaceful summer evening. 

2018 in a nutshell

2018 is slowly coming to an end. We have a little less than 8 hours left before we can welcome 2019. It's time for a short recap of this year, mostly travel-wise. That's not going to be much, but at least something.

1. At the end of January, we took our little bunch to Egypt for winter break. We spent two weeks in a lovely, family-friendly hotel in Hurghada, where we enjoyed ourselves, took in as much sunshine as we could and the kids had a blast swimming and playing in the pools. We hardly saw anything, but it was a great time to rest. We had our daily routine adjusted to the baby's needs incorporating fun-activities for the older two, like mini golf, tennis, swimming pool, the beach and mini club. In the evening there was also mini disco.

2. In July, me, my dad and the kids (my mom at times, too) spent a few days in Hel. The days were filled with walks in the forests and on the beach. When the weather was better, the kids were also playing in the sea. I showed them the places where I used to play when I was a kid. These were slow, family- and memory-filled days for me.We also went to Hel a few times for one-two days before that, plus the kids even more times with my parents. I can't blame them for wanting to spend all their free time there.

3. In July, we went to my cousin's wedding to Bydgoszcz. Before the wedding, we spent half a day enjoying ouselves and seeing the city (which I always treated as a pass through kind of town on the way to grandma). We had a lovely time, the weather was stunning (hot and sunny, as most of the summer this year). It was all great.

4. In August, we went to Sobieszewo (which technically, is a district of Gdańsk, yet an island quite separated from it as well) to meet with friends, climb up a tower (water tank, in fact) and enjoy the view of the surroundings. While we had to book the visit to the tower tank, it was still free of charge (and if I remember correctly, still will be the upcoming year). It was a guided tour, the guide was very open to kids and we learnt a lot. Very well organised.

5. In August, we went on a three-week Eurotrip 2018. We had our car full of stuff, like tent and camping gear, clothes, food, toys, all we could think of and a general plan in mind, but we had no idea how far we could get with the baby on board. We already knew that the older two were great travel companions after our Eurotrip2016. And you know what? The baby fits our family perfectly. We not only managed to see all the places we wanted, but even more! Just see these few pictures, each from a different country we set our feet in.

Czech Republic

 Austria

 Slovenia

 Croatia

Italy

Germany

And that's basically it for this year. If we're not counting numerous fantastic walks in our hometown.

 
Apart from the travels, we also had a few family occassions to meet up and celebrate, like our youngest kid's baptism, our oldest kid's first holy communion, our 10th wedding anniversary, my husband sister's wedding, my cousin's wedding, my dad's 60th birthday, granpa's 90th birthday, our daughter's 1st birthday... just to name a few.

2019 is looking slow. We don't have any travel plans in mind. Neither close nor far. We're open to any opportunities (most likely), but we don't have anything particular in mind. We'll see what the next year is going to bring us.

In the meantime, though, I wish you all a great year. May it be better or at least as good as the last one.