There is not too much to do in Kiel, however, we did discover that Kiel was actually a fjord and at the mouth of the fjord was a beach! We could take a water taxi and be there in an hours time! This was THE PLAN for our one full day in Kiel. There was an old U-boat the kids could tour, beaches, and plenty of outdoor attractions for them to keep busy.  We walked down to the harbor, which was right by the train station, and bought tickets.  I heard a family in front of us speak English and I asked if we were in the right line for the taxi to Luboe.  FYI, the correct pronunciation of Luboe sounds very french and not at all german.  We were pronouncing it as “Lah-Bo” and the correct way is “Lew-boh” with French flair.  The husband said it was and we went on buy the tickets and board our boat to the beach! Almost all the outside seats were taken except for the family who is in front of us in line. We asked if we could sit with them and for the next hour, their kids and our kids became immediate friends.  They were ALL so HAPPY to have kids to play and talk to their own age who could speak English lol! We all decided to hang out for the day since the  kiddos were having such a good time. We found a nice piece of sandy real estate with the water right before us and the bar right behind us! Our friends, Scott and Kim, and their two were here from New Zealand.  They were one of the ones who asked ” Why Kiel”?.  We gave them the story and all agreed that this day was meant to be, especially for the kids. The sun was out and it was a perfect mid 70’s kind of day with a nice breeze.  The kids swam in the water and played in the sand, ate ice cream and played games. The kids didn’t want to go and when it was time to take the taxi back we all decided to grab dinner at a restaurant by the station so they could have a little more time together. They were the sweetest family and we gained new friends in New Zealand.  When we go we will definitely reach out to them and will keep in touch. The kids gave each other a BIG group hug and as we were leaving little Taylor yelled out “We’ll never forget you!” with a sad face. Her mom told me later that she cried all the way home.  Meeting new friends along the way is one of the best parts about traveling. Until New Zealand!……