Car trip down to the Alps

Last week we took off and went down to visit our friends Tracy and Greg in Grenoble, France. This was our first long car trip through Europe with baby and dog but it really went well. With patients and lots of stops it was no problem. We did stop in Berlin with our friend Katrin for two nights and she gave us a great tour of Berlin. Then we were off to Grenoble but stopped half way in Frankfurt, the dodgy area, in between kebab places and strip clubs. Maybe not the best place but the hotel was fine and they were ok with dogs so it was good enough for sleeping. We got to Grenoble on Wednesday night and stayed there until Monday morning. It was so great to see Tracy and Greg again and their apartment is so cute in the middle of the city. Grenoble is really the 'capital of the alps'. Totally surrounded by mountains. We hung out in the city for 2 days and Tracy and Greg showed us around. Then on Saturday we went up to Alpe d'huez . Matt and I took turn baby sitting and skiing and Tracy also helped out watching the baby for a couple of hours so that we could get some skiing in. This was the first time in the Alps for us and I loved it! It is so beautiful, tall mountains, relaxed skiing, cheap (much cheaper than in the US). We already started planning for a longer trip there next season. On Monday we drove the entire way home, 15 hours, 5 countries. priceless vacation. Thanks Brinkmeyers for a awesome time!