We are finally setting out on our adventure! We spent the weekend in Arild, Sweden, doing many of our favorite things here. But now it’s time to set out to unknown parts. It feels very momentous.

We chose Lubeck as our first destination destination because of its proximity to Arild and because it is on the way to Paris (an absolute must for Lillian). We liked that it is beyond Denmark. It is one of our longest drives of this trip, a little over 5 hours. The drive from Stockholm down to Arild is 6 hours, so all four of us are accustomed to this distance. The challenge with this drive, as with all the drives on this trip, will be to make it a fun voyage, rather than just getting from point A to point B.

We drove into Denmark across the bridge from Malmo. It was very nice weather, so the kids could see really far. We were fortunate that everyone was in a great mood for the trip.

Maybe markers in the backseat were a bad idea?

Otherwise, the trip through Denmark was uneventful. The kids were entertained with the activities I packed (rather than the usual fixation with the ipads). Fingers crossed that lasts.

We stopped in Vordingborg for lunch. It’s a quaint town on the coast of Denmark. The remains of an old castle sit atop a hill, and a little cafe overlooks the ruins. Unfortunately the cafe was having a private event that day, so we walked through town and found another spot for lunch. It had a sunny inside courtyard. Sitting in the sun and sharing a beer was the perfect break from the drive. The kids were happy to ride their scooters around too.

Back in the car and making our way to the ferry, we arrived only 2 minutes after they closed the gate to the ferry boat. Unfortunate timing, but the wait was okay. The weather was perfect, so we sat with the windows down. The kids finally got the ipads and settled into exploring the new apps and stories we’d loaded for them.

The ferry boat was awesome because it had a play area that occupied the children the entire time. It was tiny with one small swing and one small slide, but the kids acted like it was the best playtime of their lives! We went to the very top of the boat where there is a viewing deck before heading down to our car. Lillian found something she wanted and ran to ask me. She ran full speed into a high table. It knocked her head super hard. It made a deep purple mark and she cried for a very long time. They didn’t have ice, so she had to hold an ice cream to her head! We thought it was kind of cute, but she didn’t.

After arriving in Germany, we made our way only one more hour to Lubeck. For a 5.5 hour drive, it went fairly quickly and smoothly.

Lubeck is a beautiful old town with many tall church steeples reaching above the skyline. It is a small island. Our apartment is in the center of everything. It’s on the top floor with great views of the street, and the kids sleep in the attic space, which they think is super cool. Well, Oly repeated, “I spooky!” the first night until Stefan placed a small lamp in the room. Then it was all super cool.

We walked a bit of the town on our way to a great dinner spot, Schlumacher’s. It had a beautiful inner courtyard full of Germans speaking in hushed tones. How do people talk so quietly?! Our kids were very well-behaved. We played for a bit and then had some German “oven cakes” which are basically flat-bread pizzas. Super thin and crispy. Mine had gorgonzola and pears. Yum. The highlight was really the ambience, the awesome service and the fresh baked bread that Oly monopolized.

Day One of this crazy adventure: a success.