First we visited Gluckstadt, the German town from which Josh’s great-great-great grandfather (Joachim Engelbrecht) emigrated. Here are Josh and his Dad in Gluckstadt:
Just to the east of Gluckstadt lies the "Engelbrecht's Wilderness," which now contains houses, cabbage farms, and a mental hospital. It must have contained (or been owned by) Engelbrechts at one time.
We next travelled to Hamburg. Hamburg is the second largest port in Europe (after Rotterdam). Much of its architecture is new because it was damaged heavily in WWII. This is the view from a church steeple that survived the bombing (the rest of that church building was destroyed and not rebuilt, as a memorial to the war):
The most fun part of Hamburg was the open-air fish market, where merchants sell fresh fish, produce, and souvenirs early on Sunday morning. The market starts at 5 AM and was packing up when we arrived at 9:30. One feature of the fish market is a large beer hall, which seems to cater to people who never went to bed Saturday night.
We next travelled to Hamburg. Hamburg is the second largest port in Europe (after Rotterdam). Much of its architecture is new because it was damaged heavily in WWII. This is the view from a church steeple that survived the bombing (the rest of that church building was destroyed and not rebuilt, as a memorial to the war):The most fun part of Hamburg was the open-air fish market, where merchants sell fresh fish, produce, and souvenirs early on Sunday morning. The market starts at 5 AM and was packing up when we arrived at 9:30. One feature of the fish market is a large beer hall, which seems to cater to people who never went to bed Saturday night.After Hamburg, we spent a couple days in Berlin. Berlin had many displays and memorials about WWII, Hitler, and the Cold War. Only about a kilometer of the Berlin Wall remains. Here we are at the famous Brandenburg Gate:
The Reichstag is the capitol building of Germany. It has a large glass dome on top, and from the dome you have a good view of the entire city. Here are Dad and I in the dome on the Reichstag.
There was lots to see in Berlin, and we could get around easily using public transportation. We enjoyed the signs in the subway station, bidding us a good journey:
We spent a day in Potsdam, where Frederick the Great built his grand "Sansoucci Palace." Although this palace was nowhere near as lavish as the Palace of Versailles in France, it was still a nice pad. Here we are in front of the main palace building:
And a nice view of the tourist-clogged terraced garden next to the palace:
When we had seen enough of Germany, we headed to Poland. Our first stop was Boleslawiec, a small town that is home to several pottery manufacturers. The town is famous for its beautiful pottery, so we went shopping. Here I am with a pottery tree:
And then we headed to Oswiecim, the town where the Auschwitz concentration camps are located. There were actually three camps at Auschwitz, and two are open for visitors. Auschwitz I, the original camp, greets visitors with its famous gate that reads "Work brings freedom":
Auschwitz I contains several bunkers that were used to house prisoners (and that now contain displays about the camp and its victims), as well as a rudimentary gas chamber and crematorium. Auschwitz II is 3 km away and is much bigger, with more bunkers and four gas chamber/crematoria. 
The gas chambers and crematoria are in ruins; prisoners revolted and burned one down, and the other three were destroyed by Nazis attempting to cover their actions at the end of the war. This was the most horrible tourist attraction I've ever been to. I'm grateful that I was born in the time and place where I was.
The gas chambers and crematoria are in ruins; prisoners revolted and burned one down, and the other three were destroyed by Nazis attempting to cover their actions at the end of the war. This was the most horrible tourist attraction I've ever been to. I'm grateful that I was born in the time and place where I was.Next we went to Prague, in the Czech Republic, for a couple days. Prague is a beautiful, old city (it has not suffered from wars like most other European cities). It is called the "city of 100 spires" because there are so many church steeples and cupolas. Tyn Church is in the Old City Square:
And there is a lovely view from the top of the City Hall:
On the front of City Hall is a 500-year-old Astronomical Clock. On the hour, while a skeleton representing death rings a bell, the twelve apostles appear at two windows to gaze on the tourists below. Then a rooster crows.
On the front of City Hall is a 500-year-old Astronomical Clock. On the hour, while a skeleton representing death rings a bell, the twelve apostles appear at two windows to gaze on the tourists below. Then a rooster crows.After Prague, we drove home to Deurne via Germany's Rhine Valley.
The biggest disappointment of the trip was that we only saw one beehive (in Poland). Germany supposedly has lots of beehives, but they are hidden from tourists.
My favorite part was Westminster Abbey, which was huge and ornate. It was interesting to see how closely the church was tied to the royalty and government, very different from the separation of church and state we have in the US. 
Of course we stopped by Tower Bridge.
After we left London, we went to Stonehenge. This construction dates from at least 3000 years ago, and no one knows exactly what it was for. It's much smaller than I had expected.
After Stonehenge, we went to Bournemouth, on the southern England coast, for an air show. Josh and I have gone to several air shows over the years, and this was a good chance for us to see the Red Arrows, the British military precision flying team.
There were lots of other cool military planes and helicopters, including four different helicopters that flew together, but I don't remember their names or have good pictures. (Sorry, Bro. I'll send you the pics I do have.)
A few German bunkers on the hillside are still intact:
From Normandy, we headed to Versailles to see the Palace of Versailles, home of Louis XIV (and his successors). Josh and I had seen it already a few weeks ago, but it is worth another visit, and Dad had not seen it. This is the back view of the huge palace, with a fountain in view.
Here we are enjoying the "Petit Trianon," the smaller palace in the back garden of the large Versailles palace.
Kinderdijk is an area containing 18 old windmills, dating from 1740. It’s an essential stop for any visitor to the Netherlands. The windmills were used to pump water up and dump it into nearby canals, so that the “polder” could be dried out and used for farming and living. Here are Josh and Dad Engelbrecht in classic Dutch scenery.
Rotterdam is the largest shipping port in Europe and is a busy place. Because it was badly damaged during WWII, all of the buildings are new, and it has some interesting architecture. We took a fun river cruise up and down the harbor to see container shipping equipment, and lots of boats.
Much of the Netherlands is below sea level, and there have been many catastrophic floods. The North Sea Flood of 1953 was especially harsh, and to prevent damage from future floods, the Dutch government started building the Delta Works, a series of dikes, dams, locks, and storm surge barriers. The Delta Works were completed in 1997 when construction of a huge sea gate near Hoek van Holland was finished. This photo does not do justice to this neat piece of engineering. 
For better photos of the sea gate, see 
And here is Josh with the Mona Lisa:
And on top of Notre Dame Cathedral, I got to pet a chimera.
Just in front of Notre Dame is the center of Paris, the point from which all distances in France are measured, marked with a bronze disk:
We saw lots of little neighborhoods full of shops and street musicians, and an open air bird market where you could buy a pet bird.
We spent a day seeing the Palace of Versailles, which was built by Louis XIV and was home to Marie Antionette. They had quite a garden:
Complete with dozens of fountains:
And cute topiaries that I find quite huggable:
