I could say I only realized this in hindsight, but I definitely knew it going into our recent trip to Tübingen, Germany: Taking my husband to my ex-boyfriend’s hometown on vacation was a weird choice. I was hoping that Tübingen would be charming enough to justify the visit, though I hadn’t been there in 13 years and wasn’t sure whether it was actually cute or just rose-colored in my memories.

It turned out that both of us loved our visit to Tübingen, with Matt even saying it was his favorite city we visited during our entire two-and-a-half week trip across five countries. But it was no surprise that he had never even heard of it before — and when we told our friends we were stopping there during our trip, everyone said: “Where?”

Despite hardly anyone knowing about Tübingen’s existence, it is well worth a visit. Here are just 7 of the reasons why you should visit Tübingen. [Read more…]

Have you ever heard of the German city of Tübingen? Unless you’re German yourself, probably not. 

But it’s a special place to me, because it’s the first place I ever traveled outside the U.S. When I was 18 years old, I took my first-ever international trip, flying from Kansas City to Stuttgart. There, my former foreign-exchange-student boyfriend picked me up at the airport, just 40 minutes away from his hometown, Tübingen. And while I made a few visits there over a few years, understandably I hadn’t been back since we broke up in 2015.

A lot has changed in 11 years. I’ve lived in Spain for more than five years of my life and visited a total of 37 countries. And while I remembered Tübingen being a magical city at the time, I wondered whether it was really that charming, or whether it simply had the benefit of being the first place I ever went. 

So on our European train trip this past May, it was time to find out. 🙂

Here’s my review of Tübingen, Germany. [Read more…]

When I was in my early 20s and a brand-new international traveler, Heidelberg was one of the first few cities I visited. I remembered its long pedestrian street, the medieval, hilltop castle, and massive Christmas pyramids at the Weihnachtsmarkts that overtook all the city’s squares.

On our recent train trip through Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, and Switzerland, I was excited to have the opportunity to explore Heidelberg again, especially now that I’ve been so many other places — so I could experience it from a new perspective. So, here’s my review of Heidelberg, Germany. [Read more…]

Checking in from our third country on our two-and-a-half-week Euro train trip! We just arrived in Luxembourg this afternoon after leaving Cologne, Germany, this morning.

Despite eight (!) previous visits to Germany, this was my first time ever visiting Cologne. Funnily enough, I remember passing through the Cologne train station more than 10 years ago as I traveled from Berlin to Frankfurt, and I thought I remembered seeing the famous Cologne Cathedral. Which was basically the only thing I knew about Cologne.

But on this trip, I finally got to visit the city and see what it was like. So, here’s what you need to know if you’re considering a visit to Cologne, Germany!

[Read more…]