Ange and Dave had never been to Vienna so it was a pretty obvious choice about where to travel to next. Timing worked out so we got to spend a lot of time with Arthur, Vera, Spider David and Jessie. They helped show the sights and we all enjoyed the great a/c we had in the apartment we rented.
Our first stop was to see Schonbrunn Palace (the royal summer palace). We first explored the gardens all together then Vera and the kids went to the zoo while the rest of us visited the royal apartments.
Two Daves!
Jessie is such a funny kid. She lead us all up the hill to the very top of the gardens.
Can you tell these two are related?
Almost all of us.
Obligatory picture of the views from the top of the gardens of the summer palace.
Artistic picture of the palace behind the waterfalls.
Dave ducked out with a duck.
Bat-Dave with two hats and one missing tooth.
All of us!
After the palace, it was time to play. The Daves build a tower and Jessie showed us some dance moves.
Three siblings roasting in front of Hofburg Palace.
It was so hot in Vienna! We had no choice but to find shade and drink some beer. So many shades of delicious beer.
The three of us got pretty good with the trolleys to get to and from Arthur's place.
Ange is a huge fan of Sigmund Freud so we had to go to his museum. We never did make it to the one in London though.
Although the weather did cool down our last full day in Vienna, it also messed with our plans to spend the evening at the amusement park (we got rained out). We did get to enjoy a few rides before the weather really turned.
David enjoying the Merry-Go-Round.
Bat Jessie!
Some people take their bumper cars very seriously...
I convinced Ange, Arthur and Dave to go on the Extacy, which I enjoyed. Some people felt a bit sick after. Here is a video of the SECOND half of the ride if you want to see:
Our apartment was very good. The air conditioning was spectacular, we had a BBQ (had everyone over for dinner one night), and the fridge kept the drinks cool. The only downside was we were right across from a church. Every morning at 7:00 am, This church would have every bell dinging (and not just a ding for every hour, full on church bell ringing for 2 minutes). We were then treated to the traditional ringing every quarter hour. Needless to say, we did not get to sleep in much in Vienna.
We did have skylight windows in the bedrooms so we made sure to get pics of our heads while we waved to each other from our bedrooms!
Hi Ange and Dave!
Bye Vienna!
Our time in Vienna helped us all discover a new nickname for Dumb Dave. He will now be known ad Toilet Dave! Bat-David did a great job in helping this new name stick!
After a wonderful time in Canada, it was time to return home with a few extra-pieces of carry-on luggage: Ange and Dave!
We had been planning a Europe: 2016 holiday edition for quite some time. Well, some of us had been planning. Dave didn't realize we were NOT going to Paris until a few days before we flew off (we had not talked about Paris as a possibility since January). He also took his sweet time getting his passport so he could actually join us.
Looks like Dumb Dave will be going to Europe.
Some of the 'souvenir' shopping I did while in Canada.
At the airport. We were kind of excited for our flight.
After recouping from the time difference and the 9 hour flight, our first activity was a pub crawl along the Thames. We visited 6 pubs and celebrated our success with pizza!
This pic is for dad; remember all those round-abouts?
After one pub...
Dave found his street.
We learnt that Shea became a very avid Pokemon Go player while I was in Canada. I am not such a great shot in catching these virtual creatures.
Well beered, well pizza'd, well happy.
Sisters at the Tower of London!
Because we can't just drink in London, we also visited Buckingham Palace. There was a wonderful exhibit on for the Queen's 90th birthday where they had over 150 of her outfits on display. We also toured some of the rooms of the Palace and visited the royal stables where we saw some of the royal horses and carriages. Interesting fact: the queen picks the name for every horse she owns.
One of the many royal carriages.
Another royal carriage.
Selfie with Buckingham Palace.
After his first visit to London, Dave's only request was to visit St. James Park to see the squirrels. His first time there, he had a squirrel climb his leg (which was hilarious for the rest of us because he sort of freaked out and had to shake that sucker off his leg). Why would we not go back and hope for a repeat performance? Well, Dave played shy this time and didn't beckon any to come to him. But squirrels are still cute.
This little guy even posed for the camera.
Ange and Dave spent a day visiting Stonehenge in the rain. I think they still had a good time and they came back with some great souvenirs: ROCKS!
Smiling in the rain!
So after a few short, busy days in London, it was then time to hop back onto a plane to see everyone in Vienna.
Samson was happy to see us moving on to a different country.
It had been over a year since I was last back in Canada so a trip home was due. To keep the tradition alive, I promptly avoided the Stampede and headed to the lake shortly after arriving. And, as is tradition, it rained a lot during Stampede! Luckily, the weather at the lake was a bit better but quite cool for a BC summer. This kept me out of the water and afforded me the opportunity to experience a Canadian summer cold.
Some things never change. This would include giving Bunny Ears.
We had some lovely boat rides!
The tepee is still standing!
Uncle Dennis still drives the boat.
Ange was very happy to see me!
Aunty Lonny still sits and enjoys the views.
The loon family is still swimming.
Going cross-eyed is still fun to do.
We also still take selfies! But now we can take them in the Monkey Room.
The hummingbirds are still humming.
Uncle Dennis is still hilarious.
This is new!
Because of the weather, not too many campfires were lit at night.
I did get to celebrate my joint birthday with Uncle Dennis! We even had a reserved table to two so we could celebrate in style!
Dumb Dave still does dumb things.
When back in Calgary, I did go to see Dumb Dave's mansion. It is basically complete so if anyone is looking for a HUGE home, let me know. This is the kitchen with two separate sinks, a huge island and tons of storage space.
While home, I also got to help Dad finally get out the patio set. I guess socks and sandals have now morphed into shorts and rubber boots...
Overall, it was an excellent trip (even with a horrible cold for a week). I had a chance to see family, friends, do some shopping, and eat some Canadian treats (Harvey's!).
