We made it! The flight over was uneventful and it was nice to be traveling with my brother and mom instead of all by myself. We had a layover in Munich and as we were walking through the airport to our next gate I ran into a friend from school! It was nuts. He was on his way to Switzerland where his parents live. Yay for international kids!
We arrived around 4 p.m yesterday and I managed to break out my spotty German with the taxi driver. He was very cold until I tried to speak with him which thawed him out about one degree. It was so great to see my Dad again though, I didn’t even mind that most of the taxi ride was in awkward silence. We’re staying at the Dormero Hotel in Stuttgart and it’s wonderful. We met friends for dinner last night closer to Stuttgart proper and the great train access Dormero supplies made it incredibly simple. They even leave little Ritter Sport chocolates on your pillow!
See the yellow light over the beds? You can change it glow anywhere from fuschia to forest green!
Overall I’m really enjoying the hotel and its location, but it does have some strange decor. On top of the rainbow light over the beds, there is also this beautifully carved statue in the lobby.
My brother in front of what my dad termed ‘the Pagan statue’
After arriving at the hotel around 5 o’clock, we had a quick snack in one of the hotel’s 5 restaurants and then took the train to Silberburgstrasse to meet friends for dinner at a GREAT restaurant called Casa del Gusto. Funnily enough it was an Italian restaurant, but the food was out of this world. Our friends were regulars and knew the chef, so we didn’t even order our food. He brought out so many courses, including caprese with roasted red peppers, eggplant parmesan (my favorite, I looove eggplant), bread and olive oil, fish with prosciutto and sage, lemon risotto with caramelized ginger shrimp (out of this world), and a dessert with strawberries and some sort of pastry that was like a firmer version of tiramisu. I didn’t snap any pictures for fear of being rude, but it was absolutely phenomenal. The service was spectacular and the food was incredible. Our dinner lasted about 3 and a half hours and I loved every minute of it.
mouthguardsandmagnolias 
Sounds like you are having a great time in Germany. You travelled to a different country but had Italian food instead, made me laugh 🙂 I hope to one day travel and get to experience all the world has to offer. Best of luck with everything and enjoy your trip.
Our family laughed about eating Italian on our first night in Germany as well! Can’t say we regret it though 🙂 Thank you!