image: Claude Monet’s Garden – Giverny, FR

My wife and I were both raised in working-class households, and as such, this trip was aspirational to the point that I had long thought it an impossibility. We have driven across America twice and more recent trips involved flying to the West coast, so we acquired a few travel strategies that gave us more confidence in navigating Europe.

Our itinerary began in Paris, followed by Rothenburg ob der Tauber (near Frankfurt), progressing southerly into Salzburg, Verona, Venice, Florence, Pisa, Milan, Interlaken, Beaune and back to Paris.

I drove about 2200 miles in a span of two weeks. Since our planned stops were all well served by public transportation, a Eurail pass would have been the ideal way to go and I encourage others to choose public transportation, where available. As one who lives in rural Ohio, however, I had very little exposure to high speed rail. As a result, I opted to rely on a rental car for this trip.

---