It's All Greek To Us!

It was 11 pm at night, and I thought that the kids had already provided about as much entertainment as they possibly could. But always the over-achiever, Brody can entertain us...even in his sleep. From climbing invisible stairs to our bathroom (it was on the same level of the rest of the room) to taking a tour of our armoire closet (which you could not really walk in), we learned a whole new side of Brody as his slept walked through Greece. And let's not forget the night he woke me up to tell me there was a snake in his bed, and it turned out to be the lining of his blanket. That time he wasn't even asleep.

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BRODY COMMENTARY: And let it be noted that in Dad's past he, while sleep walking, once peed on the washer and dryer in the middle of the night.

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As with most of our trips, it started with a bleary eyed drive to the airport at about 5am. Luckily we had our friendly taxi driver, Janusz, to get us there safely. We flew Krakow to Athens via Munich, with only a 30 minute layover. Because our plane was a few minutes late (that's another story), we got a special pick up in a van that took us directly to our connecting flight, and our luggage even made it. Ariana said she felt like a star in her own private limo going to our private jet. Imagination is a great thing. Now back to the "other story." We realized our plane was going to depart Krakow late as we sat in the bus next to the plane for about a half hour while a sniffing Golden Retriever checked out the plane for anything illegal or explosive. Apparently, the plane had not been appropriately secured over night, and this was the procedure. What fun. At least the dog got a treat for trying.

In the picture to the right and above...note that it looks like Ariana is holding a "Brody Doll!" Check it out by clicking on it.

We arrived at our hotel, a nice Marriott--in a somewhat seedy area--near the center of Athens, with a distant view of the Acropolis from our balcony. After the usual conversation of "What do you want to do?" "I don't know. What do you want to do?" we decided to go for a swim on the rooftop swimming pool. Our polar bear, Ariana, was not phased by the freezing water, and did timed races across the pool. Corey enjoyed the hot tub, while Chris and Brody read on the lounge chairs.

Then the real Greece began with a trip the National Archealogical Museum where we saw a wonderful selection of sculptures from 2000-3000 years ago. It's the little things that make museums fun for kids. As we departed, we spent countless minutes on a makeshift marble slide on the side of the stairs leaving the museum. Fortunately, they had their fleece jackets to speed their descent AND to clean the marble! The night ended with our usual quest for gyros and hummus, which we

seemed to find in great abundance.

The next morning we took an amazing walking tour of Athens. Our guide showed us an archaeological section that has been preserved in the metro station while explaining the history of the area from pre-historic times to present day. (All in about 10 minutes, very impressive). We have come to enjoy these walking tours as the guides always have interesting stories that can make the history come alive for adults and kids.

The highlight of course was the Acropolis, home to the Parthenon, an amphitheater, and several other structures from the 5th century BC. This brought back fond memories for Corey of his to scale model of the Parthenon that he built in about 6th grade at St. Mark's. The real thing looked just like the model! Ariana showed a really high interest in the Parthenon, and filmed 2 videos to show her classmates. That afternoon, we strolled through other parts of the old ruins of Athens.

Our final full day in Athens was quite nice with a hike up to the top of the Filopappos Hill, across from the Acropolis. As we discovered, it is the place from which all great photos of the Parthenon are taken. And, of course, we had to hit the local battleships just to appease Brody. Another day, another battleship!

Santorini would be our next stop, but a 7 hour ferry ride at 7:30am stood in the way. So, with Corey loaded up on Dramamine and Brody and Ariana loaded up with books and gum, we hit the open seas.

As you arrive in Santorini from the north, one immediately sees the intrigue of this island.

It is formed from a volcano, still active but dormant since the 1950's. The city is situated on top of the cliffs that overlook the Mediterranean. We stayed in a great hotel with a view over the cliffs, and a nice Polish guy running the joint. We had 2 and 1/2 days of fun ahead of us.

Our activities ranged from hiking on the crater of the volcano to swimming from our pirate style tour boat, about 50 meters to a hot springs in a cove nearby. The water is crystal clear, as you can see the bottom which is probably at least 50-75 feet down. Here's how it went at the springs. Ariana psyched to get in the water gets in line first and touches the water with her foot and realizes it is colder than expected. So, of course, Dad has to get in first...and yes it is darn cold shall we say. the other 3 cautiously follow while I try to keep a smile on my face pretending I am not cold. As we start to swim away from the boat, Ariana informs me between labored breaths that "I can't make it and I am getting salt in my mouth." I was glad she told me then rather than further from the boat. We returned Ariana to the boat, a little scared, but no worse for the wear after a drink and some chips. Brody and Chris made it to the hot springs and rubbed mud on their bodies that of course have some unknown medicinal qualities. They just looked dirty to me. Brody was very proud to have swum such a long distant in cold sea water. That day was very active and full of adventure.

We should also mention that we had a fun 30 minute walk down the road from the top of the cliffs to the boat. Ariana's quote was that "it was a poopy minefield." People have a choice of ascending / descending from the cliffs on foot or by donkey. And Ariana was exactly right. The walk down was a cautious walk around donkey excrement and dozens of donkeys too! Oh the memories. They say that smell is one of the things that renders the most vivid memories. If that is the case, we will remember that walk forever.

Our last full day in Santorini was also full of adventure facilitated by a full day car rental. This time, rather than hiking, we drove up a treacherous road to the city of Ancient Thira ruins (1215 feet up) from the 4th century BC. It was a white knuckle drive, but worth it, as we enjoyed the ruins and had a picnic lunch at the top. That day we also visited the quaint town of Oia.

And probably the highlights for the kids were visits to two black sand beaches, one called Red Beach which required a short hike to a magnificent beach that was deserted. There were only 5 or 6 other people there during the 2+ hours we spent there.

We watched the sun set on our wonderful vacation from a black sand beach,

with orange red cliffs behind us, all overlooking the Mediterranean Sea in

the Greek Islands. Sometimes I just can't believe I am writing these words. Cheers!

Gdansk, Malbork and Sopot

It began as several of our Eastern European treks have begun, with an overnight train ride. This trip, all within the borders of just Poland, was the longest of our overnight adventures. Krakow is in the southern part of Poland, and Gdansk lies on the northern shore, about 303 miles away. Gdansk is most famous as the home of the shipyards where Lech Walesa worked and became the solidarity leader who helped Poland break with communism. Eventually, he also became president of Poland.

Chris and Brody slept in the top bunks, and Corey and Ariana in the bottom. Everyone is now used to the routine, and we know where the buttons are for the special night lights as well as the knob to adjust the heat. We figured out that one on a previous trip in which our cabin got a little too hot. It's an adventure but it makes the EconoLodge seem plush.

So, after 12 hours, about 6 or 7 which we slept, we arrived in Gdansk. Ok, so it's the equivalent distance of DFW to Houston, but hey, this ain't Southwest Airlines. We exited the train station and headed straight for the taxi stand figuring we deserved to treat ourselves after the long ride. However, with mostly hand gestures as our form of communication, we were informed in Polish, by the driver, that our hotel was "just over there and that we should walk." So, with rolling luggage and backpacks we headed "over there." Luckily, it really was only about a 15 minute walk, so the kids did not have too much time to complain about their heavy backpacks full of books and electronics.

We arrived at our hotel in one piece, and were pleasantly surprised to find that the 6 room hotel (Gotyk House), converted from a house that was built in 1541 in the old town of Gdansk, was quite nice and comfortable. The owners were also nice, as has always been the case as we have traveled through Eastern Europe. We slept Dick Van Dyke/Mary Tyler Moore style, with a twin bed for each of us.

That first day, we hung around in Gdansk and took a boat ride on a ship that looked like a pirate ship. This took us to Westerplatte, the area where the first shots of WWII were fired by the Germans. Westerplatte had strategic importance as the port for almost all of Poland's sea commerce and a major shipbuilding center. A monument now stands for all the valiant soldiers in WII. From far away it looks like a face, but upon closer inspection, you can see soldiers and other details. Just what Corey needed...more WWII history...but Brody was, of course, very excited.

After a good night's sleep back in a real bed (vs. a train bunk), we hit the road early on Saturday morning to visit Malbork Castle, just a one hour train ride south. Built by the Teutonic Knights, this was once the largest castle in all of Europe, and parts of it date back to the 13th century. It passed through the hands of the Prussians, Germans, Swedes, and Poles along the way, sometimes operating as a fortress and sometimes as a residence. Corey was intrigued by the rocks that formed the road into the castle, and how it matched the colored tiles inside.

We left there in the early afternoon and headed back north, through Gdansk, and into the beach resort town of Sopot. Picture a cross between a small Oregon beach town and Brighton in the UK. It is a wonderfully quaint town with a 515 meter pier called the Molo. The sandy beach served as a great source of entertainment, especially for Corey and Ariana who spent time building a toilet seat of sand and seaweed. Don't ask! We ate at a nice outdoor restaurant with tourist fare and bad service, but it was fun. Everyone loved the Crooked House which had a very Gaudi-esk feel to it, even noted by the kids from their recent trip to Barcelona (Gaudi's home). We wish we had more pictures, but Corey forgot to charge the camera in Krakow, AND forgot to bring the charger. We were lucky it lasted 2 days.

Sunday morning, we concluded our trip with a walk around town, a visit to the crane museum (an old wooden crane for raising cargo from ships), a coal ship called the Soldek that looked like a WWII battleship, and of course, the Amber Museum. We actually learned a lot about amber, which formed when the sap from felled pine trees was covered up during the last ice age. Some pieces of amber even have small animals or insects embedded in them.

Throughout the trip, we searched for amber on every beach, rocky or sandy. We did find several small pieces that we think are amber. Ariana was most intrigued by the amber and used her allowance money to purchase an amber necklace and amber earrings that she can wear when she gets her ears pierced. She insists that her ears are all she will ever pierce, and her parents sure hope so.

Another fun trip that the Krakow Ladd family truly enjoyed. We continue to be extremely grateful for the opportunity we have to travel the world and experience cultures, people and places we've never encountered before.

Our Summer Vacation in France

As I look down at the small bald spot on my arm, I am reminded of the fun times we had in France, more specifically, when Brody thought he was being funny and put his gum on my arm. OK, I put Ariana's gum on Brody's hand first. But, as was noted on a t-shirt a guy was wearing in France, "He hit me back first!"

Our trip began smoothly as we headed by rental car from Paris to Normandy and the D-Day beaches. Luckily, we never got stuck in the roundabout at the Arc de Triomphe like Chevy Chase did in one of those Vacation movies. The roads in France are very well kept...no potholes in sight. But you never know if you are going east or west, north or south. You just have to know the next big town in your path. Fortunately, we had a map, Chris as the navigator, and Corey driving the 5 speed, manual transmission, diesel Peugeot.

In Normandy, we were all very excited to meet our friends, the Ferris family (Dessa, Peter and Duncan). Duncan and Brody had spent countless hours in Dallas playing war games, and here, at the site of the beginning of the end of WWII, the two of them could not be happier. For Ariana, there were beautiful sandy beaches that stretched a quarter of mile deep at low tide. And for the adults, there was the quiet French countryside, straight out of a Monet painting.

I shouldn't bore you with all the details, but I can certainly try. We visited several WWII museums, numerous German bunkers off of Omaha beach, Gold beach and others, the Pegasus bridge and cafe (where gliders landed at midnight to capture the bridge from the Germans), and we saw more tanks and military paraphernalia than I can even describe. Brody and Duncan know the name of every vehicle.

At Pointe du Hoc, the kids discovered hundreds of craters (from Allied bombs!) amidst the German bunkers and decided it was fun to run down and back up each crater as fast as they could. Unfortunately, Duncan didn't quite make it and crashed in one of the bunkers, leaving him scratched and bruised.

For me, as Peter noted, I was seeing GREEN by the time we left Normandy. Peter, who has GREEN running through his veins, is an ex-Marine who served as a fantastic tour guide during our 3 days in Normandy. Between him and the kids, we never had a shortage of statistics and facts about WWII. Luckily Dessa knew French, so we also had our own personal translator. Too bad she disappeared before Paris.

In spite of all the fun we had, we also all recognized the enormity of the significance of the events that took place on these beaches. Seeing the sea of crosses and Stars of David at the memorial site really made me appreciate how fortunate we are in America and how hard we sometimes have to fight as a country for freedom.

When leaving Normandy, we first had the pleasure of RE-visiting the Pegasus Cafe. That is the historic site where the infamous Brody Ladd left his coat for the 20 millionth time! Unfortunately, this time we didn't figure it out until later that evening.

Now we headed back to the medieval times (1400's). Mont St. Michel is a small island off the western coast of France, connected to the mainland by a man-made dirt pile with a road. It started with a small abbey on top, and over a couple hundred years grew into a small community. It has a kind of a Disneyland feel to it because everything looks like the set of an old medieval movie. The only difference is that it actually IS real. We got to stay in a hotel on the island. The highlights there were a tour of the Abbey as well as some adjacent museums of armor, furniture and torture devices of the time. The really interesting thing about this place is that depending on the tide and the time of the month, the island can be surrounded by water or can be completely dry. We happened to be there during a low tide period, so we had lots of fun playing nearby on the extensive sandy beaches.

We were warned by signs as we entered to beware of quicksand. So, being the quick studies that we are, we immediately started to search for quicksand. After building sand castles behind the island, we found the dreaded quicksand in a muddy area nearby. OK, so maybe it was not the thing to do, letting your kids dance around on top of quicksand pits, but it was really interesting to watch the kids making waves in the dirt as they danced and sang. I have the video if anyone is interested in more detail. Luckily no one sank deeper than about half way up their calf. And, of course, we had an ex-marine ready to save the day if necessary. Quote from Brody..."It was cool."

Finally after sadly leaving the Ferris family, we were off to Paris via the Loire Valley. Along the highway, we stopped for a picnic where the kids also picked apples from a nearby apple tree. They were a little too small to eat, but it was fun anyway. As a diversion for the day, we decided to stop at the Chateau Chambord in the Loire Valley. What a beautiful place it was...wow I wish I had that much money. All my friends and family would stay for free!

Paris was full of excitement and climbing (well over 1,000 steps). We climbed 700 steps to the second level (about 2/5 of the way to the top) of the Eiffel Tower. We also climbed almost 300 steps to the top of the Arc de Triomph. At the Louvre, we saw famous stuff like the Mona Lisa (still not really smiling) and the Venus de Milo who Brody said is in a funny Bud Light commercial. Who says ads don't work. We also had the pleasure of meeting our friends, the Ortiz family, in Paris one night for dinner.

At Versailles, we spent the entire day wandering through the grounds, having a picnic lunch and even rented bikes. The bikes helped us visit the outskirts of the grounds where we saw Marie Antoinette's "play" area called the Queen's Hamlet, a beautiful little community of cottages.

We concluded our trip the night before departure with a one hour sunset (which occurs at about 10:30 this time of year) cruise on the Seine River where the Eiffel Tower was alternately sparkling and lit blue.

Overall, it was a fantastic journey that carried us through the old French country side, into the heart of Paris, one of the most famed cities in the world, and through a vast array of military and regal sites. But most of all, it was a great time with friends and family.

My Good Old Days at Camp, From Ariana

This is the castle me and Brody went to at camp. The camp we went to is Summer Adventure Camp with Coach Mike and Mr. Radek. Right before we went to this castle, we went to a cave, and the cave was +5 degrees Celsius, and Brody had to wear a girl's jacket. We got lost in the castle.

The picture on the right is at the castle. We were getting into this big thing where they would put you when you did something bad. Coach Mike hung two jackets on my fingers.


The picture of the fire is when we had a sleepover at school. We made a really big one, and then it started to rain. So we danced around the fire with sticks with fire on the top while singing a little song. It was a rain dance to make the rain go away. We sounded like little Indians, although we were very different from Indians because we had made the fire from a match and we got the wood from the builders who were building on to the school. After, we went inside to watch a movie. We watched Shrek II. Then we went to sleep, but the French boys would not stop talking, and we finally went to sleep.

Prague with the Loops

Prague...Praha. One of the oldest cities in Europe. Like Krakow, its old town city center was untouched during the bombings of WWII. We got to visit Prague with the Loops - Charles and Lian (ages withheld for confidentiality reasons), Eric (9) and John (12). Our kids awaited the arrival of the Loops (mainly Eric and John) with great anticipation. Brody even likened the waiting to the anticipation he felt himself when we were leaving to move from Dallas to Krakow. The Loops stayed with us in Krakow for 5 days, doing all the usual sites with Chris (her 3rd or 4th time to many of these sites, since she seems to play tour guide while Corey works whenever we have guests from the states). Sometimes work ain't so bad ;-).

So we took the overnight train to Prague, just as we did to Budapest a couple of months ago. Sleep was not easy, but is always better than you can get in coach on the airplane. I'd say the average sleep was about 5-6 hours, which isn't too bad. But John had a real tough time sleeping, and in the process decided that it was his job to keep his dad up most of the night too.

But we were all troopers as we arrived at the train station at 7am and prepared for a full day of site seeing. We took a taxi to an apartment that we were renting for the two nights we would be there. It was spacious, clean and very close to the city center. One shower was the only downside, but that's no different than our apartment in Krakow when we have guests at the Ladd B&B.
Having done a little research in advance for a change, we had booked a tour guide who did a 3 hour walking guide with us through the old town. It was very inexpensive and was a great way to get acclimated to the city and get advice and what to do for the remainder of the weekend. With our guide we walked down the Wenceslas Square (pictured to left), kind of the main boulevard leading into the old town. We also walked through the Jewish Quarter where she told us a great tale about the Golem, a monster created to protect the Jews. And we saw the cemetery that was about 20 feet above street level because they have added graves on top of graves and just raised the headstones. Space was really at a premium when the Jews lived in the ghettos.



Another thing of interest on the tour was the upside down horse statue, just kind of a unique thing hidden in one of the buildings nearby. We also visited the Havelska Market, a great open air market that sold fruit, veggies and, of course, tourist chachkis.

On our second day, we primarily visited the Castle Quarter. To get there, we took the 500 yard stroll over the ancient Charles Bridge built in the 14th century and named after Charles IV, not our friend Charles Loop...though he is so noble too! It has an abundance of local artists selling paintings, wooden boxes and jewelry. It is adorned with large statues every 20 yards, and I think Ariana took a picture of every one.

In the Castle Quarter, we of course visited the Prague Castle, Royal Palace, and the St. George Basilica using an audio tour with a monotone voice and way too much information. To get to the top of the hill where all this was, we took a funicular (cog train) which are always deemed in the guidebooks as a treat for the kids. But we have now been on 3 of these in various European cities, and the kids think they are universally short and boring. Adults agree. But at least it keeps them from whining on a long walk up a large hill.

So, the big dud of the trip (there's at least one of every trip...other than the funicular of course) was the maze. The kids have always loved the mazes, so we headed straight there as soon as possible. Well it turns out it was a maze of mirrors, that only had one path through and took about 45 seconds. Ok, so we had a very good laugh watching each other stretch our bodies on the concave and convex mirrors in a room at the end of the "maze."

In the Castle Quarter, there was even more. We had bagels at Bohemia Bagel (twice!). We visited Golden Lane (pictured to right), a very old, narrow street with an Armory Museum, Franz Kafka's apartment, and antique watch and music shops. And, we tried to visit the Toy and Barbie Museum, but it was closed...woe is me.

And there was pain. Brody bonked his head jumping off the 4 person swing in the park (see left). And, Ariana had a nasty spilled caused by...well...walking! Unfortunately it was our camera that broke her spill and has not taken a picture since. At least the memory card was undamaged. Thus all the good pictures attached.

Thanks to the Loops for great fun and friendship!