Return to Iowa

Vienna, Austria - June 29

We arrived in Vienna in time for a quick visit to the city.  We took this picture especially for cousins Steve and Joan Julius, remembering when we had ice cream at the Julius shop in Vienna with you two on your honeymoon!!  

St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna is one of the most amazing sights anywhere as you come up out of the subway on the escalator!  

The interior of the cathedral is awe-inspiring too.

We ate a late lunch at our favorite little out-of-the-way restaurant/pub (Kolar) near the city center.  It's on a tiny pedestrian-only street, but we always manage to find it again!

We decided to go exploring for a while, and we checked out some "off the beaten path" churches that we'd never seen before in Vienna.

It's truly amazing how many ornate churches are behind relatively bland exteriors!  

This church had a newer pipe organ installed 

Another church on our afternoon tour

And the interior - another gorgeous one!

This red-roofed white building is so fascinating.  How I'd love to peek out from one of those little windows in the top of the corner tower!

The plague column, built to give thanks to the Holy Trinity for the end of the Great Plague in Vienna.

 We took one last look at the cathedral, this time in sunshine, so the colors were brighter, before taking the subway to our hotel near the airport.  (Thinking of Paul; this is his favorite place in Vienna!)

Vienna, Austria - June 30

We were up very early for our flight from Vienna to Brussels, and we dressed in our new Slovak shirts for the flight home!  

For our flight from Brussels to Toronto (the longest leg of the journey), we were unable to secure seat reservations and were told to report to the gate for our seat assignments.  I was worried that we'd be in separate random seats at the back of the plane.  But we were soooo lucky!!  The counter attendant quietly told us that there weren't any two seats together in the economy section, so she had already upgraded us to "Economy Privilege" at no cost, even though other passengers had been asking about paying for upgrades.  We had seats together, by the window, two rows behind first class, with plenty of leg room and lots of wonderful treatment from the flight attendants.
It was such a nice treat for us, and such a surprise!!  We are big fans of Brussels Air now!!    :-)  

Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota - June 30

Alana's father picked us up at the Minneapolis airport.  Then  we had supper with Ed and Gloria and this little munchkin at their house!  

Paul and Alana had driven down to Iowa earlier in the day for a wedding rehearsal, so we brought Zahra back to our house with us.  We had such fun being with her again!  

She was happy to see us too!  All three of them stayed at our house for the weekend, but Zahra was home with us during the wedding.  What a great transition!!  

Along Interstate 35 southbound in Iowa - June 30

A colorful Iowa sunset on the drive back from Minnesota

Ankeny, Iowa - July 1

Paul playing some tunes on a small wooden flute that was a gift for Zahra from Slovakia

Another gift from friends in Slovakia - a book for Zahra

Story City, Iowa - July 2

On Sunday night after ZAP returned to Minnesota, we drove up to Riverside Bible Camp for the family camp opening program.

This science teacher presented a really cool Christian-themed science program, and Lute was a "volunteer" assistant for one demonstration with liquid nitrogen.  

Our main purpose for visiting camp was to see Nicola and deliver a package from her parents in Slovakia!  

Nicola was staying at the Ranch for the week.  Remember your time spent here as a camper and counselor, Beth??    :-) 

Ankeny, Iowa - July 15

Nicola came to stay with her American family for the next weekend, so she got to bond with ZAP (Zahra, Alana, Paul).

Ankeny, Iowa - July 21

My big project as soon as we got home was to create and assemble this quilt for the annual Riverside Quilt Auction.  It is made from camper T-shirts and old blue jeans.  

Ankeny, Iowa - July 2017

And this little charmer is the reason we didn't stay longer in Slovakia.  We love every minute spent with her!!    :-)

Ankeny, Iowa - July 30
We hope friends and family on both sides of the Atlantic enjoy this captioned photo album as a small glimpse of our recent visit to Slovakia.  We send hugs, thanks, and love to all those who hosted us so graciously in Slovakia.