Originally scheduled to celebrate our older daughter Ivy's high school graduation in 2020, this family adventure was delayed by the worldwide onset of the COVID pandemic. Two years later, following our younger daughter Hazel's high school graduation in 2022, the long-awaited dream finally became a reality.
We want to especially thank Rick Steves Europe (RSE) Tours for making our journey through so many beautiful, historic locales (and with so many great fellow travelers) SO worth the wait! As you can see from the map on the right, our tour took us from southern Italy into the heart of France. We elected to extend our trip on both ends, arriving in Rome a couple of days before our official RSE tour began, and then traveling by rail from Paris at the conclusion of our RSE tour to spend a few days exploring London before returning home. The following pages of this online scrapbook chronicle in photos and brief notations our family's day-by-day experiences as we journeyed northwest, sharing with each other the sights, history, languages, cuisine and unexpected little discoveries that make tours like this so special. At the beginning of our tour, our terrific RSE guide, Keith, reminded us that trips like this aren't always just about the sights you see, but also about the experiences you share with each other. The best memories are often a result of the company you keep and the things you do together, no matter where you happen to be. He was so right! Hopefully, this scrapbook captures some of that truth he spoke. For more specific details about our tour (or to trace our footsteps and schedule your own), click the link below; Now, on with our tour! Click "Landing in Rome!" to get started!
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