The good thing about me is that I have a strong heart, and a The first thing that I did was to decide that I wanted to do something, so I decided to do it, which made it possible for us to go to Germany as a family of three.
? Preparation before going abroad
I. Passport. To go abroad, everyone must have a passport, the process of applying for a passport is relatively simple. Adults only need to bring the family hukou and personal valid ID card to the hukou location of any one of the Public Security Bureau of the Exit and Entry Hall can apply for a specific process in the Exit and Entry Hall wall have detailed flow chart, as long as the requirements of the above step-by-step can be done, generally about ten days to get a passport. Minors need to bring the household registration and birth medical certificate, and the rest with the adult application process is the same. Only the minor's passport is valid for only five years, while the adult's passport is valid for ten years.
Second, insurance. Schengen visa application must first buy travel medical insurance, so you must have their own approximate date of travel and return time to have a prediction, because once the insurance policy and then to modify the time is very troublesome. In addition, taking into account the time difference, it is better to cover the insurance one day earlier than the date of your trip and one day later than the date of your return. All insurance companies offer this service, and some travel agencies also provide the service, so just consult a few more and choose the one you like best.
Third, the visa. The first thing you need to do is to get your passport and insurance policy and then apply for a visa. The documents to apply for a visa are listed in detail on the official website of the local visa acceptance center. As long as you prepare the documents according to the requirements of the list, you can get the visa successfully. Applicants applying for a visa for the first time must submit the documents in person at the Visa Acceptance Center, as biometric data will be collected. Biometric data for Schengen visas is valid for 59 months from the date of successful fingerprinting. After submitting an application for a Schengen visa in any Schengen country, if biometric data has already been collected and a visa has been successfully granted, there is no need to repeat the collection in person for subsequent applications, even if the country of the current application is not a Schengen country from the previous application. When submitting a new Schengen visa application, only the visa number and a copy of the visa page are required as proof. The Visa Information System (VIS) applies to all Schengen countries, so if you are busy and want to apply for a new visa within 59 months, you can ask someone else to submit the documents on your behalf.
Fourth, airfare. The first thing you need to do is to buy a plane ticket. Buy a plane ticket is one of the most worrying things before going abroad, because before getting a visa, everything is unknown, do not dare to order, see some attractive flight promotions simply can be tangled up in the bad. The good thing is that after I got my visa, the price of airfare didn't go up like crazy, and my little heart could finally settle down.
V. Baggage. After buying the ticket, the number and weight of your free luggage are determined, and then you can start packing. Before packing, be sure to pay attention to the rules of the airport regarding checked baggage and carry-on baggage. For example, the charging treasure must be carried and capacity can not exceed 20000 mA, men's razor must be checked, so you can avoid unnecessary trouble.
Six, other attention to the project:
According to the destination country's weather and temperature to prepare the clothes;
With the children travel with some of the best common medicines, such as cold medicine, fever medicine, diarrhea medicine, etc., so that in the event of the children appear to be what is not comfortable can also remain calm;
In order to keep in touch with the domestic friends and relatives, so that they can rest assured!
Before going abroad, rent a roaming superhero is still quite good, there is always WIFI, Ctrip has this service, you can consult the customer service;
Before going abroad, be sure to buy a good conversion plug, because the foreign sockets are all rounded, I have eaten this aspect of the loss.
Our family's 20 days in Germany
On the first day, we arrived in Munich. After a long day on the airplane, everyone was tired and we fell asleep when we arrived at our accommodation.
On the second day, we didn't dare to organize an outdoor trip because of the jet lag. But instead of sleeping all day in our room, we actively learned the daily routine of the locals, hoping to integrate into their lives as soon as possible.
The first thing we learned was garbage classification. This is a policy that has not yet been widely practiced in China, so at first we were confused by which bin to put different garbage in. For example, biological waste such as vegetables, eggshells and paper waste should be put in the green bin; all paper waste should be put in the gray bin; plastic bags and yogurt should be put in separate yellow bags; glass bottles and drinking water bottles should be put in baskets to be sent to the supermarket for recycling; and the rest of the garbage should go in the black bin.
At first, my father and I felt that this kind of garbage classification is so troublesome, or the domestic kind of put all the garbage together to throw away is more convenient. However, when really mastered the skills of garbage classification, we began to hope that the country can implement such a policy as soon as possible, because the benefits of garbage classification is too obvious: we did not see any fruit peel and paper on the street, no one throws empty bottles, not to mention the pungent smell of all kinds of garbage mixed together, where everyone is an environmental protection guards, so that the country can not help but be born with awe. The first thing you need to do is to get a good look at the country's history and its history.
The second thing we learned on this day is that people here have a very strong sense of time. All the stores close after 5:30 p.m., and except for special places like gas stations and scenic spots, normal stores are not open on weekends, so we had to buy the necessities for the weekend before the weekend came, or else we would have to wait for the following Monday even if we were starving and freezing. It's just so different compared to the 24-hour convenience stores that are everywhere in China, and the restaurants and clothes stores that line the streets. Although I feel that compared to the domestic living conditions are more convenient, but in my heart I still tend to like this side of the quiet life after 5:30 p.m., in the country can be seen everywhere in the stalls and noise, and here seems to be insulated, I can not help but feel that this side of the state of life is actually normal, but also more humane.
On the third day, although we were still suffering from the discomfort of jet lag, we decided to schedule some trips for our rare visit. The first place we went to was Landkreis Weilheim - Schongau, not far from our place. The drive to the top of the mountain was almost like a painting. The sky was so blue, the grass was so green, the lake was so clear and the air was so super fresh that I almost thought I was dreaming.
The next visit to four or five churches, I do not believe in religion, but sometimes I envy those who are devoutly religious people, because they have something to go to church to talk about, no matter whether or not it does not work, at least you can get the soul of the release, I really think that the people who have faith in the heart is happy.
The deepest impression is to go to Schloss Neuschwanstein (Swan Castle) experience, far from seeing the ticket office lined up a long line of people, I think this scenic spot I have to give up. At this point, Runbo's godfather, that is, our trip to the private guide told us, in fact, that the inside of the castle are based on the Palace of Versailles to repair, is not as good as the Palace of Versailles, if we still plan to go to the Palace of Versailles in the future, there is no need to buy a ticket to visit the inside, he does know a good place from the outside of the photo, we immediately agreed.
It turns out that our decision is right, follow the godfather of Runbao to take the scenic mountain climbing bus directly to a legend of the most popular panoramic shot of the side of the Swansea Castle - Marienbruke Bridge. It looks like a "fairy tale castle", I don't know what kind of tools and means were used in the 19th century to transport the marble to the cliffs to build this castle, which can be said to be a work of art!
On the fourth day, it was a long drive to see the Chiemsee Palace, to get to the palace you first have to take the beautiful Chiemsee Schifffahrt (Chiemsee Sailing Boat) and need to go through the many scrubby paths and green lawns in order to finally get there, it was a few minutes of quiet and relaxing, we did not feel that the palace was too far away at all, and after walking a little bit of the way to suddenly The moment we saw the palace, I seemed to have a feeling of "dark flowers and a village".
King Ludwig II built three castles in his lifetime, and the Kiemsee Palace was his most expensive project. Motivated by a strong desire for self-expression, King Ludwig II built Lake Keim Palace on a 230-hectare island on Lake Keim, in a tantalizing Alpine mountainous landscape about 80 kilometers from Munich. It was his last, largest and most expensive royal palace project.
Day 5, a day of relaxation, we were feeling a bit aesthetically tired from all the outings on the previous days, so we decided to take a break and just hang out around the residence. We first went to the supermarket to buy some daily necessities, then we went to Ammersee (Ammer Lake) near our residence. Runbao loves to play in the water, as soon as he saw the lake, he immediately screamed with excitement, and in the end, he didn't even put on his clothes, he went into the water with his bare buttocks, and he even cried and refused to leave even when we were about to leave. I had planned to take him to play once again, but unfortunately later time is more urgent did not go, later have the opportunity to take the baby to play enough.
Day 6, day trip to Munich. I heard that it is difficult to find a parking space in the main city, so we chose to take the subway early in the morning to start, after arriving at the destination, first in the main city of Munich to stroll around, in the Runbao godfather's guide, we started with the Marienplatz, in order to visit the Marienplatz, the New Town Hall, St. Paul's Church, Graggenauer Viertel, Palais Lerchenfeld Palace and so on. Lerchenfeld Palace, etc.
Particularly impressive is The Munich Oktoberfest, also known as Oktoberfest ("Octoberfest"), which takes place every year in Munich, Germany, from late September to early October, and lasts for two weeks, until the first Sunday in October. It's the biggest event of the year in Munich. I'm glad we were able to make it to the festival. If we hadn't seen it with our own eyes, I wouldn't have believed that those scrawny looking waitresses could hold up 7 or 8 glasses full of 1L of beer at a time to serve the customers. I was lucky enough to have an authentic non-alcoholic beer, which I truly thought was delicious, and from that day on, I chose to have a non-alcoholic beer with every dinner for the rest of the day, which was so enjoyable.
Afterwards, I took my baby to a nearby amusement park, and he was so engrossed in all the rides about cars and carts that he just wouldn't come down. It wasn't until he had exhausted his tiny physical abilities that he drifted off to sleep with great reluctance.
The seventh day, for my baby, is another day of immense excitement, because we took him to the Münchner Tierpark Hellabrunn (Hellabrunn Zoo), where the baby saw for the first time elephants, monkeys, cranes, lions, etc., especially exciting for the baby is to touch the experience of the goats, the baby is happy to do not know where to put their hands. The first time I saw this, I had to go back to the house to see it.
Tierpark Hellabrunn is a great place for people of all ages to visit, and it's a paradise for children. If they get tired of watching the animals, there are so many rides for them to play all day long that I would have taken my baby there again if I wasn't in a hurry.
The eighth day was spent driving through Germany, Austria and Italy. Most of the day was spent in the car, and since we had to rush back on the same day, we only chose to get out of the car to take photos at particularly important spots, while the rest of the beauty was explored in the car. In Austria, we drove straight to Top Mountain Crosspoint, which is 2,175 meters above sea level. The top of the mountain is said to be somewhat similar to the topography of Tibet, but unfortunately, both Rundle and I haven't been able to find the time to go to Tibet yet, so we can't compare them, but standing at the top of the mountain and admiring the snow-capped mountains in the distance is quite a special experience.
After that, we didn't choose to go back the way we came, but drove through Italy and back to Germany, crossing three countries in one day, which I'm afraid is only possible in Europe. In Italy, we passed through the top skiing areas, but unfortunately, we were in a hurry and couldn't experience them for ourselves.
On day nine, we drove straight to the top of the Alpine Route in Austria, the 2,571-meter-high peak of Mount Edelweiss. Halfway up, we stopped for a photo stop at the KAISER-FRANZ-JOSEF peak, which overlooks the 3798-meter-high Grobglockner (Austrian Mountain of the Sacred Blood), the main peak of the Alpine Route in Austria. Although it was very cold on the mountain, all of us had a great time and took photos, and we suddenly realized that our family is quite fond of the sport of mountaineering.
The tenth day, because the baby's godfather has a business meeting, so our family is free. We spent most of our time shopping because so many of our friends and relatives in China asked us to shop for them, and we were happy to be able to do our bit for them.
In the evening, we were invited to dinner at the home of the baby's godfather, during which we met the baby's godmother, and the baby's godfather's own brother, who looked so much like him that it was a very fulfilling day.
On the 11th day, it was too rainy to go sightseeing, so I chose to go to the Opera House to see the ballet Giselle. The whole ballet is divided into two acts, the first one is full of idyllic scenery, and the second one is full of supernatural imagery of all kinds of dances, especially the women's group dance of the ghosts, which is simply too classic. I'm sorry that my family didn't allow me to take dance lessons when I was a kid, otherwise I guess I would have chosen to be a dancer.
The twelfth day was a very memorable one. First, we went to Munich's most famous Hofbrauhaus (Royal Beer Hall), also known as HB Beer Hall, where we witnessed once again the German's obsession with beer, no matter men and women, young and old, manually a large glass of beer, people just look at it feel very strong.
Next, we went to Schloss Nymphenburg (Nymphenburg Palace), where the Chinese Consulate is located next to the Nymphenburg Palace. It's a typical baroque palace, which is actually quite small with a large garden area. Runbao especially like to linger in the clear lake water, and the black and white swans that come ashore to look for tourists to ask for snacks to eat play, watching the baby carefully try to touch the white swans, I think it's very beautiful picture.
The thirteenth day, it rained, there is no way to go to the outdoor activities, in view of the baby's immense love of water, we unanimously decided to take him to the swimming pool, we went to the pool called Trimini, although not very large, there are two children's playground suitable for different ages, also has a sauna area, the paddling area, the overall feeling of very cozy. It turned out to be a super good decision, because not only the babies, but also us adults had a good time relaxing there, and everyone had a good time.
Day 14: Drove to Regensburg where we went mainly to see the Walhalla. Located ten kilometers east of Regensburg on the banks of the Danube River, the Walhalla Shrine is a neoclassical building built in 1830-1842 by order of King Ludwig I of Bavaria. I don't have any special feeling about the temple, but the beautiful Danube River in front of the temple y attracted me, I ran all over the corners trying to frame its beauty, but none of them is satisfactory, I can only let that kind of beauty forever imprinted in the bottom of my heart.
On the fifteenth day, it was still raining and there were no other indoor activities available, so we went to Hotel Victory Therme Erding, which was recommended by the godfather's brother. This place is a heavenly hotel, but unfortunately we didn't have to stay here, I don't know how the rooms are inside, but the swimming facilities package alone is very complete, modern and stylish. The first place we went to was the water park where baby had a great time paddling. Later went to the SPA, surfing, sauna and other areas to feel a little, truly feel so big, a day time simply can not experience.
The sixteenth day, the day before the play too high, this day feel should be rested, by the way to help the baby's godfather to collect the apples in the garden. I feel like my baby has grown up a lot on this trip. She picks apples like a little adult and knows how to put them gently into the frame.
On the 17th day of the trip, my godfather recommended that I go to the Freilicht Museum (Klokenhagen Open Air Museum), which is a farmer's museum, and I decided to go to see it. The museum is really open-air, listening to the baby godfather said, this museum gathered most of the farmers' houses in the course of their country's history, and there are corresponding displays inside the houses. These houses were all relocated from other places and rebuilt, and now there are still houses being transported over, so every time I come here, I will find a new house to look at, which is amazing to hear. I thought Runbao would be bored if he wasn't interested in the museum, but in fact he found his own fun there, either mooing at the cows or yelling "baa, baa" at the goats, and he especially enjoyed watching the tourists bowl in the visitor's lounge area, where he saw the bowling ball being struck. His "giggles" when he sees a bowling ball being knocked over let everyone know that there's a loyal little visitor.
Day 18, on the recommendation of a good friend, we went to see the so-called Mining Museum. In fact, the museum we went to is called the Deutsches Museum, which is located on Museum Island on the Isar River, just a short walk east of the Isar Gate. Deutsches Museum full name "German Museum of Natural Science and Technology Excellence", is the world's largest natural science and technology museum, the history of the development of German science and technology of the collection of the masterpiece, *** there are all kinds of exhibits more than 28,000 pieces of science and technology enthusiasts of the highest enjoyment, even if it is a horseback riding, a day is also very difficult to put the exhibits all! See all, and I just started to mention the coal mine museum is actually just a small branch of it. Rumbo and his godfather's favorite was the Naviation Museun (Ship Museum), so we teased the two of them with several laps there in order to see it all.
Day 19, all the scenery we saw on this day was so beautiful that my godfather and I felt like we had entered a paradise. The main sightseeing place is called Herzogstand, which is the place where Ludwig II (the last king of Bavaria) loved to go, and thus the mountain was named after his title Herzog (Duke). Herzogstand cable car can carry tourists up to 1600 meters Heimgarten, which is the first time for my son to ride the cable car. He looked over here and over there and kept saying "wow" in excitement.......
On the 20th day, we spent the day packing and resting because we had to catch a flight early the next morning. We missed the food at home, but none of us had any of the culture shock problems that we had feared. Maybe it's because we've been together as a family all this time, we don't miss our loved ones and we don't feel lonely, but I think it's more because we've had such a great time every day of our trip that there's no room for culture shock. culture shock had no room for error. We loved our time here so much that we will definitely come back sometime in the future.
?
As it turns out, traveling abroad with kids is not as hard as we thought, as long as you are well prepared and adjust your itinerary according to your child's schedule, it's totally feasible. Children are far more adaptable than we think, and it can even be said that children love to travel more than adults because they are at the age of curiosity, love to explore everything around them, and can pay attention to the details that adults don't pay much attention to. On the other hand, as adults, our travels are more or less utilitarian, as we seem to be more interested in taking pictures for our friends than in the sights themselves, including myself, of course.
But what I mean by traveling here is not just a "go-go" type of trip, but an "experiential trip" that fully integrates into the local life, or as the saying goes, "a change of scenery"! The "experience travel" is to fully integrate into the local life, which is also known as "living in a different place". Since this is a life, of course, you have to cook, wash clothes, buy groceries, take out the garbage, study, and try to maintain the same pace of life as at home, so that adults and children will not have any major discomfort.
I've proved from my own personal experience that children can be great traveling companions as long as they are well-planned, have a flexible schedule, and have a reasonable pace.