Nuts! Each year after the Battle of the Bulge Memorial Walk and parade, city officials throw nuts from the balcony of city hall. General McAuliffe's response to the Germans' request for surrender was, "Nuts."

We went to Bastogne, Belgium to participate in the Battle of the Bulge Memorial Walk in December. We stayed in a sleepy little town, called Esch-Sur-Sure, in Luxembourg. This is a picture of Esch-Sur-Sure. Our hotel is the builing to the far left. I think you can see our Chevy parked in front. You don't see a lot of Chevy's in Luxembourg.

We had to pass by Bras to get from Esch-Sur-Sure to Bastogne. Hee hee.

This is a look up toward the town square in Bastogne on our first night in town. The Christmas lights look so much better in person. We went to the small Christmas market that was set up near the church and sampled true Belgian waffles. Yum!

There were displays like this all over the Bastogne city center and reenactors walking around in US Army uniforms from the time.

We attempted to walk the 20k route that had a good representation of the terrain and the towns our troops walked through. Adam could have made it the whole way, but I called a short cut after we hit the drop zone. I'd say we walked a good 12-14k.

They did a jump at the meeting point of the different walking routes. It was a cold and windy day to be jumping out of an airplane! The following are pictures from around the drop zone.

The following are pictures from the parade and various vehicles. This is a group of Belgian troops.

"American" troops

Over Thanksgiving, we went to Barcelona. This is Placa d'Espanya. This square was the setting for the 1929 International Exhibition and the 1992 Olympic Games.

The structure at the end of the street and in the following pictures is The Sagrada Familia, Gaudi's dream. Building began in the late 19th century, and it still under construction today. At the time of Gaudi's death in 1926, only one of the towers had been completed. When it is finished, it will have 18 towers.

Isn't this a great house?

This is La Pedrera or 'Casa Mila' built by Gaudi between 1906 and 1910. The facade evokes the motion of the waves. The following two pictures are also works of Gaudi.

We took a trolley car up to the top of Tibidabo and got some great shots over Barcelona from there.

A little blurry, but this is the layout of seafood options for dinner. We had an excellent meal!

Dessert!

This is a picture from a local market.

During my parents' visit in September, we took a short trip to Rome. This is the 400 year old stone spiral staircase in our hotel. It was a pretty cool place to stay. We recommend this place if you're ever in Rome! http://www.hotelteatropace.com

There it is, the Vatican. We toured through the Vatican Museum and went into the Sistine Chapel. No photos are allowed in the chapel, so you'll have to go see it for yourself! :)

The Vatican Museum is full of amazing ceilings. Here are a few samples.

More amazing ceiling.

Here we are at the Colosseum.