France

We drove into France one day to visit a town that is said to have inspired the set for the Beauty and the Beast movie. And we could see why! Walking into Riquewihr, this old walled city from the 13th century, was certainly like walking onto a beautiful movie set, with a central fountain, brick streets (dedicated almost entirely to foot traffic), and German style buildings. Gianna said it looked like we were in Disneyland.

One of our highlights here was dinner at a French restaurant, where all of us tried escargot for the first time. It was cooked in a very garlicky sauce and was served with special spoon tongs where the spoons had holes in the middle. You use them to pick up the snails and then use a small fork to scoop the meat out of the shells. Our family gave mixed reviews, but for me, it was like eating a pesto flavored gummy candy — not my favorite!