Elle Takes Europe 2026 - Day 8: Back Where We Belong
And now the trip begins in earnest. After a few days in Venice and a turbulent 4 nights in Dublin, we woke up bright and early this morning, packed the few remaining items, and took a taxi to the Dublin airport. We arrived at the airport, walked right up to drop off our bags at the Swiss Airlines counter, and went through the world’s longest security line. We found out from our taxi driver that today was the first day of school holidays for kids in Dublin, so lots of families were off on their own holidays. We eventually made it through and grabbed a quick breakfast in the terminal. The airport was packed, but we did find a small kids’ area that Elle loved that kept her occupied until our flight boarded to Zurich, Switzerland.
The flight was uneventful. Elle was a little fussier than normal, and Jenn and I took turns sitting next to her. She was fighting to stay awake, and somehow managed to. When we arrived at the beautiful Zurich airport, the passport control line was just as long as the security line in Dublin. We couldn’t use the automated kiosks with Elle, so we waited in a very long line. After at least 30 minutes, security saw us struggling to keep Elle entertained and let us cut to the front. We finally made it through, grabbed our bags, and met our driver to take us the 20 minutes to the Park Hyatt. When we arrived, Jenn and I were given fantastic glasses of champagne, and Elle got juice and chocolates. They showered Elle with gifts at check-in and in the room. From a book for her bathtub, to a small stuffed cow, it was a nice small touch as we checked in. I ran out quickly and grabbed us some McDonald’s that we quickly ate so Elle could take a nap.
During Elle’s nap, we both rested, and I worked on catching up on these posts and editing photos. We only let Elle sleep for a little over an hour to make sure she could go to sleep tonight. From there, we left the cool confines of our air-conditioned hotel room for the 90+ degree summer day. We’ve never stayed in Zurich, only ever passed through, so walking from our hotel down to the beautiful lake and seeing the incredible architecture was breathtaking. Even in the afternoon sun, we relished the breeze coming off the lake, walked by the opera house, and grabbed a Starbucks mug for Jenn.
From there, we walked a few blocks and found a place to have dinner called Blockhus. It was so hot that we asked to sit inside. The team there couldn’t be more friendly and welcoming of Elle and us. We started with some bread, and they quickly brought out a butter pasta for Elle, which Jenn also loved. For our entrees, I had the veinerschnitzel, and Jenn had a horse steak for the first time ever. It wasn’t nearly as gamey as I thought it would be, and the sauce it was paired with was divine. We also had two glasses of Swiss white wine. When our meal ended, they asked if they could bring Elle ice cream. We, of course, said yes, and she loved every drop of it.
We made the slow walk back to our hotel after dinner, full from a great meal. We made a quick stop at a grocery store to grab some juice for Elle, and eventually made it back to the Park Hyatt. It turned into such a beautiful evening. Even though the walk was only 15-20 minutes from the restaurant to the hotel, we kept stopping to snap photos and take in the beauty of Zurich. We’re so happy to be back in Switzerland and to be experiencing it for the first time with Elle.
