Last night, we slept peacefully … save for the occasional snore. Even after the cold showers and insanely fluctuating heat, we managed to get a good night’s rest before we began our day in Cologne, Germany. We got a head start with breakfast.

After finding yet another parking garage in another European city, we turned on the trusty GPS and began the search for an aesthetic breakfast spot. Here’s the thing about Europe – you have to have a European phone plan if you don’t want to drown in roaming charges for the excess amounts of data us millennials would be consuming on this lengthy sojourn through foreign countries.

We were attempting to use my brother’s phone, but his cellular device would not and could not pick up a signal in the middle of a congested city. Therefore, we were stuck using my mother’s phone because she decided she was the only one worthy enough for that constant connection. The thing about my mom’s GPS is that it reverses the route on the screen; so, it looks as if we are constantly moving in the opposite and very, very wrong direction.

My family looks like a group of lost penguins when we travel. We kind of just dawdle around, stopping smack dab in the middle of a bike lane. Oh, I forgot to mention that every country we’ve been to so far runs on bicycles. The cobblestone streets are so compact that the majority of the city’s population travels by bike to save on the extremely high and consistently rising gas prices. Both Amsterdam and Cologne gave me so much anxiety as I perused the beautiful architecture and dodged oncoming pedestrians on wheels.

After much confusion and wrong turns, we found a little restaurant called Bastian’s where we ate copious amounts of eggs. The portion sizes in Germany are significantly bigger than those in America. I consumed a plate of delicious scrambled eggs the size of my head. I am also noting how much better the coffee is in Europe. I had an amazing latte this morning with amaretto in it, and I have never tasted anything better. My caffeine kicks are surely being met on this trip, which makes all the anxiety worth it if I can find a cute café to keep me satisfied.

Once we emerged from Bastian’s, we made our way to the Museum of Chocolate where we had a breathtaking view of the city as well as the sweet, sweet aroma of German chocolate wafting around us as we went higher and higher into the exhibits. Eventually, we made our way into the Christmas Market’s outside the museum where the smell of delicious foods enticed us as we walked the busy streets.

Satisfied with our time in the city – and ready to move to the next place of rest – we walked back to the car and made the drive to stay with a friend of my brother’s who lives near Ramstein, Germany in a smaller town at the top of a hill with an indescribable view of the town below and the expansive countryside.

Once our host arrived, we made a pit-stop to the military base near where she works and stocked up on a few items, and then we went to a little Mexican restaurant in the middle of the city. I’ve never eaten at an authentically Mexican restaurant, and I learned that I love the cuisine that much more. It was a quirky spot, and we feasted and drank and laughed. It was a fantastic day, and I am looking forward to tomorrow’s adventures in Italy. I’ll be on the look out for even more unique cafes; so, grab your mug, and keep reading.