European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - May 13, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Travel Europe 1992 with the kids kids react to a daredevil act at Europa Park in rust Germany. Amusement Parks make any trip with kids easier. S4s Dave Casey travelling with kids the sort of painless Way by Rob Staggenborg staff writer your foreign currency is in your pocket. Your International Driver s License just arrived. The tank s full the map is neatly folded and after those 60 Days of Field duty you Are ready to take that of so anticipated vacation. Pack up the kids and you re off. Pump the arms Arsenio Hall style give a Hearty Quot Woof Woof Quot and hit the highways. Then it starts. First it s the whiny sniffy voices from the Back seat. Quot Are we there Yeti Quot then in France Timmy does that thing with his hand and his armpit. Susie s unhappy because Belgium Quot is  As you enter the Netherlands Timmy starts breathing Susie s air and Susie retaliates by blowing spit bubbles. You re losing your sanity As you approach Amsterdam and the vacation that looked like it was going to turn out just As Sweet and wholesome As a Brady Bunch episode turns into a Page from a married. With children script. Where s the aspirin travelling with children does not have to be pure hell. A Little planning and foresight go a Long Way. When the kids Are Content you can enjoy your vacation just a Little More. Children have different interests and attention spans than do adults so keep that in mind when you re trying to understand Why your 6-year-old can t appreciate the magnificence of the Arona Lisa. While Anne Frank s Home in Amsterdam May be a must see for adults Young children could t care less. Children have lots of Energy. European amusement Parks of which there Are plenty Are a Good Stop. The activities for children Young and old will help release some of that pent up Energy. If you re planning on spending the Day gawking at cathedrals or absorbing As much As you can at a museum try stopping for awhile at a Market and then grabbing a spot under a Shade tree for a picnic. The kids can eat and then run wild before heading Back to the sights. Another possibility is finding a playground if you have children Young enough to appreciate one. You May see it As wasting a few hours of your vacation but they la see it As a Chance to do something they want to do and something that s familiar to them. If you re going to be doing something that requires a lot of walking a such As scaling the Steep Hills surrounding the Neuse Hanstein Castle in Bavaria a try to do it in the morning when the children have the Energy to keep up. A few other tips to help take the horror out of vacationing with your children a travelling a if you re travelling by car you May Marvel at the breathtaking scenery rolling by you. The bavarian Alps up ahead. The windmills of Holland. The castles of Germany. The rolling vineyards of the French Alsace Region. The sheer Beauty of Austria and Northern Italy. In the eyes of a child this is what they Many of Europe s amusement Parks have information posted in English. S4s Ken George see of boy Yawn a Mountain. Windmill thing. Huge pile of rubble. A Bunch of Hills. Quot Are we there yet Quot More Hills. So before you set off plan your drive. Really plan it. The worst mistake you can make is to drive straight through to a destination when travelling with the family. If the ride is Short enough sure. But if you re travelling from Raf Lakenheath taking the ferry across the English Channel and cutting across Holland and Germany to get to Munich allow time to pull Over at the rest stops and stretch your legs. Some rest stops Are equipped with miniature playgrounds for your children to use while others just have Large open areas for the kids to run and work the kinks out of their legs. An easy Rule to follow when deciding when to make rest stops on Long trips is to take a Stop at least every hour 90 minutes at the maximum. The Driver s eyes will need to be rested after driving that Long especially if travelling at night along darkened roadways or in Rainy weather. Pack your kids tote bags with colouring books crayons pocket games drawing pads tapes and Headset and any inexpensive hand held electronic games you might have. Better yet let the kids pack their own bags. This allows them to pick and choose As they like and makes them feel like they Are actually a part of the trip not just being dragged along. Travelling by plane can be a thrill for children. Talk to them about planes a How they go How High they Fly Etc. Appeal to their adventurous sides. Travelling by boat or train can also be fun because it allows the children to walk around and enjoy the scenery passing by them. Think carefully however before 10 travel Europe May 13, 1992