Buongiorno!

That's right, friendz- we kayaked our way through the City of Water aka VENICE. (Dan and Lindy- impressed?? We thought you would be!) 20 kilometers and a few days later and I'm still feeling the burn. OUCH.

Our sea voyage brought us to one of my new favz, a place called Burano. It is the cutest, most colorful little island neighboring Venice- it is also where we had our best Venetian meal- PIZZA, of course. (Sorry, no pics of the hardcore kayak trip to share just yet. I was advised to keep the camera on dry land! That was a smart idea...)

Obvi, a trip to Venice wouldn't be complete without a Gondole ride. So, I bet you are dying to hear about ours...well, that's a funny story.

Soooo- the locals in Venice use a boat service called the Traghetti in order to cross from one side of the canal to the other. I swear to you, the boat looks justtt like a gondole...minus the glitz and glam and the singing man.
Ok, so it is a little bit ghetttto...but whatevs, he still had stripes on! Anyway, we took this as a great and super cheap opportunity to get our "Gondole" photo op. Say FORMAGGIO!

And to our delight, waiting for us on the other side of the canal was a fresh market serving the most delicious Venetian bananaz you could ever bite into. Bon Appétit...on a budget!

Off to Roma.
Caio! xo.

Kathryn

Innsbrooklyn xo

2 overweight bags. 1 shoeless Citygurl. 0 elevators. Excellent.

INNSBRUCK, here we come.

---From Salzburg to Innsbruck, our Austrian tour continues---

Innsbrooklyn- the cutest little town you ever did see.
Cuzins in front of the famous gold roof (and the silver gurl trying to make a Euro.)
A coloful city- plopped in the mountains.
This, my friendz, is a chubby Austrian water bottle. I took a liking to it.



And this, my friendz, is Daisy and SkinnyBoi. Daisy (the dog) had a sweet Austrian groom job.
Innsbruck from above.
Innsbruck hosted the Winter Olympics twice...rumor has it the flame blew out like 30 minz before we got there. CRAP.
This is Julian, The Travel Expert. He also blogz. He and Lauren know each other. We liked this drink so much that we shared it...at a beach bar.
Saved the best for last. This child followed me into the bathroom and waited for me at the sink. Then, she laughed at me all the way back to the table. I hate her. (She also jumped into our group shot, fist pumping. Hey Julian: send me that pic, plz!)

And tomorrow we are off to Venice the Menace.

Caio. xo.

Kathryn

Alpine Hikerz (Innsbruck, Austria)

Soooo, you know it's going to be a great hike in the mountains when you're greeted with these words, straight from the tour guides mouth, "Um...do you have more clothes?" Whatever, check out our sweet bootz. Lauren looked extra legit with her Alpine Pigtails.
Yep, we climbed that...without walking poles- because we are TRUE hikerz.
How rude, I almost forgot to introduce you to our guide...WOLFGANG. He ran down the mountain.
Lauren made friendz with all the beginnerz. (Take note of their beginner style poles...)
Adorbs Alpine calves in our path...mooooooo-ve it or loose it, sista.

At this point, Wolfgang promised it'd all be downhill. Wolfgang was a liar.
Never been so thrilled to see the snow...and to throw it at myself.
Citygurl reaches the summit...sweet success.Cousinz conquer the giant mountain...in only 5 hourz. That's not bad for first-timers (...look closely, you can start to see Lauren's 3rd degree sun burns.)
I end the day with a Bronze 1st Time Hiker Medal and a signed autograph from Master Wolfgang.

Although this hike was probably the most strenuous activity I'll ever do- and I hated every uphill minute of it- the viewz were breathtaking...which made it sooo worth it! I'd never do it again, but if you find yourself in the Alps- you should totally take a hike.

Bis Gott. xo.


kt

RandomZ

Please, allow me to introduce some new citygurLZ from SaLZburg.

(if there's not a gurl in the gnome garden, there's a lady in the window)

and IDK how the next 2 pics snuck in...but they are fab :)

(WEINERSCHNITZEL AND BIER)

Off to Innsbruck!

Tchuess. xo.

KMR

The HILLS are ALIVE with the SOUND of MUSIC

question: If you have one day in SALZBURG, AUSTRIA what do you do?

answer: Obvi, THE SOUND OF MUSIC CYCLE TOUR!

Yep, that's right. Lauren and I survived a 9 mile bike ride through the bustling city streets and beautiful country hills of Salzburg, seeing all the famous sights from The Sound of Music (which is based on a true story, you know). Naturally, we sang a song or 2...or 3....on our tour. But really, what else would you expect from me at this point?!

These were a few of my favorite things...look familiar?

If not, you obviously aren't a fan of The Sound of Music...and idk if we can be friendz anymore.

So long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, good night
I hate to go and leave this pretty sight
So long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, adieu
Adieu, adieu, to yieu and yieu and yieu. xo.

RynNY

Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp

Destination: Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp

This stone marks the path prisoners were forced to travel during a death march -end WW2. If a marcher could not keep up, he was shot and left on the roadside.

About the tour: "Just outside Berlin, over 50,000 innocent victims of the Nazis perished in Sachsenhausen in conditions of appalling brutality. The camp became a training ground for the execution of the Holocaust and ultimately the center of the whole concentration camp system. After the Nazis were defeated, the Soviets turned the camp into a gulag for their own political enemies. Thousands more were to perish over the next five years." (http://www.berlinwalks.de/tours_sachsenhausen.html)


Layout of Sachsenhausen- a triangle shape enabled a minimal ratio of Nazi Guards to thousands of prisoners.


Tower A: Main entrace where all prisoners passed through to enter the camp.


"WORK WILL SET YOU FREE"


Cabins were made to fit 130 people but as more prisoners were admitted, nearly 400 people were crammed into the space.


"The Green Monster"- Dining Hall of the SS Guards living at Sachsenhausen. Prisoners were forced to serve the meals.


"Any prisoners crossing will be shot."


When the camp became more crowded, prisoners were assigned random tasks: shoveling piles of sand from one place to another and back again, standing still at randomly located posts for 14+ hours, or pictured here- running back and forth along the shoe testing ground, wearing footwear 2 sizes too small.


Prisoners lived in constant fear of being tortured or killed by the SS Guards. Some were even drowned in the washroom basin.


This is the jail within the camp that was reserved for special prisoners-specifically politicians who opposed Hitler and the Nazi Party. Prisoners were strung by their wrists and forced to hang for hours on end.


Some prisoners received special priviledges for performing skilled labor- like creating counterfeit money (shown here are the stamps used in the process). Hitler's goal was to cause hyper-inflation in the British economy.


Camp medical facility where SS Guards tricked the Red Cross into thinking the prisoners received adequate healthcare. In reality, cruel and unusual medical experiments were being performed.


Station Zed (equipped with gas chambers and neck-shooting facilities) was built as a means of quick and efficient extermination. Each oven could incinerate 250 bodies per day.

So sad. Please, just take a minute to reflect on these things...I know it is a lot to take in, but it is important to remember.