Trier

Sunday we went to Trier, which claims to be oldest city in Germany. It has a ton of Roman ruins and it was a home of Constantine. Speaking of which, below is his foot. The kids really got a kick out of it. Pahahaaaa. Yes, I did. This is the bath house complex. We have seen a few of these in our travels, but this one is HUGE!!! The complex was the biggest of it's time with warm and cold bath sections and a massive complex of underground tunnels. The kids had a great time climbing all over the ruins and running and hiding in the tunnels. It is nice that they actually let your kids do that since back in the States that would not be allowed.In trying to paint a realistic scene for the kids we explained what happened at the baths and what the people would do. Shortly after, while posing for this picture, Logan exclaimed "I'm just sitting here naked and relaxing!" And, of course, the kids broke out in giggles.Here is the Roman Ampitheater. It sat 20,000 in its day and you could go through the tunnels underneath it. There were still sections that you could see where they would keep the animals for combat, or the gladiators or the Christians.... whatever was available at the time...Logan REALLY wanted to play gladiator and so they spent some time beating each other up in the ring... we are great parents, huh?This is the view from the Porta Nigra out into the hills of Trier. It is a really beautiful city with an incredible amount history. This is Porta Nigra and was built almost 2,000 years ago!! It was the gate you would have to pass through to get into the city to do business in the town. Napoleon demanded it be restored in its original state once he had control over the city.
We went to an archaeology museum while we were there and we were amazed at the quality and quantity of what they have recovered. Also, I never get tired of hearing the music on the streets as we walk around here. We walked down one street and listened to an opera singer, a marching band, a violin player and a Spanish guitar player. It is awesome. They only problem is that Chase wants to give money to all of them.