Paris is always a good idea.

These pictures are long overdue, but I love them so much I had to share. In April, we spent a few days in Holland and then went to France. It was so nice to go with Cory, my parents and brother--we soaked up every drop we could of the Parisian culture. 

Our view from our apartment in Montmartre. The Sacre Coeur is peeking out in the back. Loved this apartment--what a find! In Paris almost all of the hotels are teeny tiny, but we found this gem with two separate bedrooms and a kitchen for an amazing rate, just because we booked it for three days. It wasn't anything fancy, but because it was clean and we had more than enough space, we felt like kings and queens!

My favorite view of Paris (from the Sacre Coeur).

Our favorite restaurant in Paris, Babalou! Trip Advisor rates it #31 out of 10,000 restaurants in Paris and it was outstanding. The food, ambience, and service was excellent. Not to mention we loved it so much we went there twice!

Pear and gorgonzola pizza (divine).

It doesn't get better than this: the best moelleux chocolat I've ever had.

Ghost man escaping from the cemetary in Montmartre.

View from atop the Eiffel Tower...

You can't go to Paris without eating a crepe...

Creepy statues around the Louvre...

View from atop the Arc de Triomphe...

One of the bedchambers in Versailles. Can you say diva? Every piece of the wall covered in gold or fabric. Ri-dic-u-lous.

One of my favorite places we visited was the darling town of Chartres. We stopped here on our way to Normandy and it took our breath away! Driving through the countryside of France is beautiful, but we were so amazed to see this spectacular cathedral in a small little town. I mean look how huge it is! Stunning.

The church was built in the 12th century and the interior is currently being restored. Many historical churches are decayed and darkened so it was amazing to see what it looked like when it was first built.

Kitesurfers in Le Havre

The Normandy beaches.

The American cemetery.

Pointe du Hoc. 

The memorial and trenches. There were also many bomb craters spread throughout the grounds along the coastline. You definitely get a huge feeling of respect and admiration for our veterans when you come here. A few weeks ago, my dad recommended the movie, Honor Flight. After WWII, many of our veterans came home and never received a proper welcome. The WWII veterans are very old, some are terminally ill and until recently, many of them had never visited their memorials. This documentary shows an organization's goal of helping every single veteran in America visit their memorial. Definitely worth watching. 

There you have it, our trip in a nutshell!

Holland. The Original Cool.

Last month Cory and I were able to take a trip to Europe with my parents and my youngest brother, Peter. We couldn't have asked for a better vacation! We spent our time in Holland and France and were there for about 10 days. We have a few relatives who live in Holland, so it was so nice to visit and see them. Cory found this video when we got back. "Dutch!"

Amsterdam!

Rembrandtplein. We stayed in a hotel here in Rembrandt Square. Rembrandt lived in a house nearby so they made these beautiful sculptures depicting one of his most famous paintings, De Nachtwatch (The Night Watch). I wish I took more pictures of all the cafes lining the perimeter of the square. One of the many things I love about Europe is everyone stops to slow down and enjoy life! They sit for hours people watching and enjoying their food. Here in America we are always on the go and in a rush.

My cute parents on the canal boat tour (so jet lagged!)

So many sweets...everywhere. Lekker!

Anne Frank House. Entrance to the museum is around the corner...

Cheese! Gouda!

Houseboat in Amsterdam. How fun would it be to live in one of these?!

One of the best restaurants I'd ever been to. If you're ever in Amsterdam, try Indrapura. Indonesia was once the Dutch East Indies, so much of the food in the Netherlands is inspired by Indonesia. One of the traditional meals is a rijstaffel. They bring many, many small dishes for you to try until you are stuffed to the max. My mom made a few of these dishes growing up, so it was so fun to try them in Holland.

My great aunt and uncle live in this adorable farm in the countryside.

My great uncle's Vespa's he's fixing up. He rides these around all over Europe!

Their traditional thatched roof.

Zaanse Schans! This cute little town has a couple historic windmills.

Volendam

Delft! My favorite place in Holland. We stayed in the most darling hotel here for a night, but I could have spent a whole week here. Delft is well known as the painter Vermeer's birthplace and delftware, the beautiful blue and white pottery. So of course we had to spend our whole time shopping there.
  

Tulips! You cannot go to Holland without seeing these everywhere.

One of the highlights of the trip! My aunt and uncle came out for a business trip and brought my cousin Leigh and her husband Jon. Our trip overlapped with theirs for a day so it was so much fun to spend time with them! While my parents, aunt and uncle went to visit more family, we wandered the streets of Amsterdam with Leigh and Jon. She lives in Canada so we rarely get to see each other. Leigh is having a baby girl in July, so it was so nice to catch up with her!

Other highlights...

• Hermitage Museum (Van Gogh's paintings were on display here since the Van Gogh museum was under renovation)
• Listening to Uncle Frans' WWII stories
• Seeing two drunk guys try to get on a scooter, and slowly fall over. Then seeing them do that, three more times
• All the bread and cheese!

Pictures from France will be up soon!