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What better way to get a little closer to your teenage daughter than to trek across Europe her style!  My daughter and I always wanted to see Europe, so for her high school graduation I thought it's now or never and booked a mini Eurotrip for just she and I.  We had our own agenda that we wanted to see, so I decided not to use a travel agent or tour of any kind.  We were going it on our own!  We flew directly into London then on to Amsterdam, Berliln and Munich and back for one more night in London.  Me being a single mom and homeowner, I had to work within a budget.  Most hotels in Europe can be pretty expensive, then my daughter suggested staying in hostels just as all of the other traveling young people do as they back pack across Europe.  A room full of bunk beds, hmmmm, then I thought why not?  I suppose she and I can sleep with 4 other girls for a few nights?... So I plunged into her world with both feet and booked our hostel stays.  Much to my surprise, it was a very pleasant experience. We met the neatest people and loved exchanging stories of the places we've been and where we were going.  The one hostel even cooked us all a big spaghetti dinner where we really got to know the travellers. 

We saw so many wonderful things.  Buckingham Pallace, Westminster Abby, Tower of London, Van Gogh Museum, the Berlin Wall, Brandenburg Gate and Neuschwanstein Castle were among the highlights.  The countrysides were breathtaking and the cities extremely busy.  We quickly mastered several challenges.  First one was getting to and from on the "tube" (subway system) in London.  Londoners move at a pace of about 1-1/2 times faster than we do...look out!  They even paint which direction to look on their streets before crossing otherwise we Americans would get run over--thanks London for that one!  And even though my daughter was a 5 year German student, we still stubled over communications with our German friends.  We did alot of pointing to things..."I need to go here...", thank goodness body language works! 

To sum it up, it was one of the greatest things my daughter and I got to share together.  I was extremely glad that I planned it and with alot of her ideas in mind (yes, your teenagers have some really cool ideas, just ask them!)  It was a truly wonderful mother/daughter bonding experience!