I headed out of town Friday after school to enjoy a weekend in Bolzano, Italy with a fellow colleague.  Our first stop was about 3.5 hours away in Innsbruck, Austria. Our hotel was nestled in the mountain side and offered a view of the city below.

We awoke Saturday morning to falling snow and snow covered branches. Sadly the fog set inover night and our morning view of Innsbruck was limited. We checked out and started our adventure to Italy.  Our first stop  was at McDonalds which had a panoramic view of the Alps. Wow! After eating we started out adventure toward Italy on the Brenner Pass. The Brenner Pass is a mountain pass through the Alps which forms the border of Austria and Italy.  We were very lucky that we missed the snow that fell a few weeks earlier, but for us the pass was dry. After about 1.5 hours on the road we arrived in Bolzano.

After exploring the museum, we decided to take the cable car to Renon, which is a high plateau which overlooks the city. We took the tram which gave us the opportunity to explore more towns. Since it was February, most shops were closed for the winter, but the view of the Dolomites Mountains and the surrounding area was great.  Early evening we traveled down and had dinner at a local restaurant.

While checking in the previous day we came across a flyer for a trip being offered to see the Dolomites. So we decided to join the 4 hour tour of the mountain. With it being winter the mountains and lake were frozen and covered with snow. I definitely will be coming back in the summer with Mario and the dogs.  Our tour guide was Alessandro who is the owner and guide. Just the three of us and our guide for a  private tour of the Dolomites. If you ever plan on seeing Italy, definitely book a tour with Alessandro he was awesome. His website:  www.itallydolomites.com

​After exploring the Dolomites, we walked around town exploring some of the churches and walking around the river talking in the view.

Monday morning we left Bolzano and headed towards Innsbruck and spent a few hours exploring the area. Innsbruck is the capital of Austria’ s western state of Tyrol and is in the Alps. It is about 45 mins from the German border.

I headed back to Prague this past weekend with Mario and the dogs. We decided to plan a quick getaway and bring the dog along. On Christmas break I got Trooper and Sissy pet passports so we could travel outside of Germany with them. This was the first time we used their passports.
 
We left Friday after I got off work and headed to Bamberg where we spent the night. We saw the sites by night and by morning the next day.

I never pass up the opportunity to take an adventure, so I jumped at the opportunity to go back to Prague. I was there in August and now had the opportunity to see Prague in the winter. I joined a friend who needed to pick up a painting.  It is a about 4.5 hours drive. 

 We left early Saturday morning and traveling most of the morning making our first stop in Kutna Hora, which is about 1.5 hours from Prague to see the Bone Church or Ossuary or Kostnice in Czech. Below among the pictures is the information card which was given to us while exploring. 

After the Bone Church we headed to Prague to check into our hotel. Our hotel was very close to all the attractions. The coolest part was the view from our window was of the Jewish Cemetery which I wasn't able to see last trip and now had a birds eye view of it. After checking in we explored Prague by night. All day while we were driving it was very fog and the fog stay around for the evening, making some of the picture really neat. 

Sunday morning:
On the way to explore Prague Castle Complex, I stopped to take a few pictures of the Jewish Cemetery. We arrived a little after opening at the Prague Castle complex,, we saw a few places but was unable to go inside St. Vitus until noon due to Sunday service, but we wanted to be on the road at noon. After exploring the castle complex we picked up our artwork, sorry forgot to take a picture of it, and loaded it into the car and started for home. Another great trip in the books!