Barcelona Beaches

We had some time last Saturday to enjoy the Barcelona beach areas before heading to the cruise ship last Saturday and it was so beautiful! We were only two blocks from the beach and decided to walk all the way from Nuovo Icaria down to the large Port area near Rambla del Mar and just check out what was going on. Aside from the completely naked man walking around, it was a very nice and happening place...and we snapped some pictures along the way.
We first went back to the Nuovo Icaria beach area that we drank at the night before to see what it actually looked like and this is what we found...

And then did the same in Port Olympico...and found there are more than a few sailboats in the marina!

The port area was busy, but a completely different scene from the night before. For example, the police weren't arresting anyone, kids were on the beach, and those that were drinking were in an actual restaurant rather than all over. Here is another shot of the other side of the port area with a big copper fish sculpture at the far end that takes you into Barcelonetta.

The beach in Barcelonetta are not just for sun bathers. There were plenty of people playing organized soccer and volleyball games and also some exercisers. There was an outdoor gym area as well as children's play areas in a few places. Another view...

A little further down the beach were a lot of elaborate sand sculpture that were very cool. This one was my favorite for the time as the Champions Cup Soccer Final was only days away between FC Barcelona and Manchester United. They put out a dish to collect apare change for their efforts and some are quite good.

After walking down the beach we had just enough time to grab a bite before heading back to the hotel and on to the port to get on our ship. We stopped at a sea side cafe for caipirinahs, hummus, and nachos...and it was "muy delicioso"! It all added up to a very good morning! More on the ship tomorrow.

Auf Wiedersehen!

Nuova Icaria and Port Olympico

We made it back today and I realized that I needed to start blogging immediately or I would never be done as with this vacation we saw and did so much around the Mediterranean! I have decided to split it up quite a bit by activity or destination as to better designate it in the published version of this blog after we are through here...so please be patient with me as I muddle through!
We flew out on Friday evening after TJ finished work so we didn't arrive in Barcelona until very late and opted to take the public train system to our hotel in Nuova Icaria rather than walk it or take a taxi with our bags. This was not the best idea at the hour we traveled as we were targets for pick pocketing. We were stalked by a team of three that split us up on an escalator...blah, blah and the next thing I know some axxhole is going through my backpack. No worries as I caught him and swiped my $14.99 TJ Maxx sunglasses out of his hands and told him to get lost. Lesson...do not ride trains in Barca at night with a ton of bags! We finally made it to our hotel that sat near the sea and very close to the beach and Port Olympico. We were told by Diego (of course) that we had the best room. And we did! And it also had the best view of the area. Here is a peak...

We also had a giant walk-in closet...which would have been great had we stayed there at least 24 hours! It took us all of 1 minute to drop our things and head for food and Sangria in the Port Olympico area. It was 11:30 and just getting started! There are tons of bars and restaurants in this area and it was very walkable. I forgot where we ate but it was good...and the Sangria was AMAZING! You can kind of see that I was sucking it down like I was never going to get it again!

We ended up getting calamari, some shrimp, and artichokes to share...and the shrimp was also very good. TJ and I were a little afraid of the calamari as it was the entire baby squid and they had eyes. TJ was horrified...the black things half way down are the eyes...Eww!

Following dinner we went down by the Port in this area where there are tons of bars and stuff..a very lively place! Very lively and very well occupied by the police! Here is TJ near it...below him are bars and the harbor, and behind him in lights are more bars and restaurants.

We opted for drinks at a more low key place just on the other side of the lights on the beach. There was a great little beach bar that served Caipirinhas and Mojitos until 2:30 so we relaxed there for a while and then headed back to the hotel. Here is TJ coming up the beach after touching the water- I opted to stay with my drink :)!

It was a fun first night, and we also had a chance the next day to see the area by daylight plus neighboring Barcelonetta the following day before heading to the ship. More on that tomorrow!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Blogging Break

Starting tomorrow I will be taking a blogging break until around June 1st. We are going to Spain and then on a cruise and I just found out that the rate on the ship for internet is $28...and yes that is per hour. So this little lady is going to disconnect herself from the world for a week or we will be broke by the end of it.
We head to Barcelona tomorrow for an over night before we get on the ship tomorrow afternoon that will take us to Nice, Cannes, Sardinia, Sicily, and then back to Barcelona. I am sure it will be fabulous and amazing, but I think everyone should say a little prayer that we don't sink like the Titantic or get raided by any group of pirates. I will be back online in June to show everyone our travels!
Auf Wiedersehen!

Thingstatte and St. Michael's

On Sunday, TJ and I went for a hike since the weather was so nice. The destination was Heidelberg again, but only because I was obsessed with finding Thingstatte. And we finally found it! We decided to drive up and start hiking from there so there was a better chance that we wouldn't get lost trying to find it.
Thingstatte is at the top of the Heilegenberg (Hill of the Saints) that overlooks Heidelberg, Neuenheim, and Handshuhsheim in the Odenwald. It was built in 1935 by the Nazi Party as a gathering place for rallies. In fact, there is kind of an odd feeling when you are there as you can picture Hitler standing on top of the platform below the two flag poles with torch lights surrounded by the Third Reich and Nazi supporters. Hilters most famous rally there had 8000 people sitting and 5000 standing. 13,000 crazy people climbed that mountain to hear him speak...crazy.
Here is a view when you come in from up hill...

A closer look...

And then a look from the bottom, coming in from under where he would have spoken.

The seating is all stone that was layed by forced labor. You can see the scale as TJ is sitting about half way up and looks like a pebble.

The ampitheatre is huge! And today it is used for other gatherings...like the labor day celebration. On May 1, the German Labor Day, people hike up with beer and picnics and have an outdoor party there all day.

Just beyond the ampitheatre are the ruins of St. Michaels. It originated as a church in 870, but was later developed into a monastery in 1070. It has been almost forgotten as it was abandoned in 1503 after one of the steeples fell and killed the last remaining monks in their beds. Now all that is left are its ruins.

People picnic and gather there on nice days...and the children love to climb in and out of the old rooms and play hide and seek as we witnessed.

Here is TJ on one of the vestibules...

I was on the taller one and got a pciture of the Heidelberg view. It is really pretty.

If you come and visit I will be happy to take you there either by car or by foot. TJ and I hiked down to Heidelberg for ice cream and then hiked back up to our car afterwards...it was a workout!

Last night my Uncle Ted was in town for a visit and it was so fun to see him. We enjoyed good wine and food at one of our favorite restaurants and fun conversation too. I can't wait to do it again when he comes back in June! Tomorrow is a public holiday so we have decided to paddle boat if it is nice...although the weather does not look promising! Bis dann!

Auf Wiedersehen

TJ's Belated Birthday

TJ got home from France on Friday night and was exhausted, so my plan to take him to the area's only Karaoke bar didn't happen. Instead we stayed in and I made him one of his favorite meals to go with a bottle of the french red wine he brought back with him. While he was away I also baked him some carrot cake cupcakes with cream cheese frosting in place of a birthday cake and they were delicious!
The following night we went over to a friend's house for some BBQ and beer, and of course some great company! Not a blowout like last year...but I hope TJ had a nice time. We leave Friday for our trip to Spain, France, and Italy so I am sure we will be able to let loose a little more this weekend.
Auf Wiedersehen!

Happy Birthday, TJ!!!!

Clearly today is TJ's birthday as you can tell from the title. I have tried to make it really fun for him, but it is most difficult when he scheduled a meeting in France for today and tomorrow. So I needed to improvise a little to make sure he felt a little special today as we have to really celebrate tomorrow. I woke up this morning...early and made him some hot and fresh blueberry muffins and cut up some fresh fruit for a birthday breakfast. That and I sang him "Happy Birthday" in German to which he called me a huge dork.

I have more things planned for tomorrow after he gets home from work, but I have a feeling nothing will quite measure up to last years festivities for his 30th. For the few of you who weren't there we had a huge party at our old house in Le Claire. The party was supposed to start at 6pm, but ended up starting at noon. There was BBQ, corn hole, an over priced ice cream cake, lots of drinks, and of course Rock Band! This year he gets me and a night on the town...probably not as good as this...
Early...

Much later...

Oh well. I will do my best! So far he liked the breakfast and loved the new pair of lime green snowboarding pants I got him. More on TJ's birthday part 2 later.

Auf Wiedersehen!

LP: A good idea in theory

We had a gorgeous April as it was sunny and warm almost every day so I had this bright idea to combine my two favorite summer pass times that I have rarely had time in the past to participate in...laying in the sun and reading fun books. Since the weather was good and I have an extraordinary amount of time on my hands these days I thought it would be great to start this summer thing now in May to get a base tan for our cruise. I even had the perfect place in mind...Luisenpark (though I call it the "LP"). I have blogged about it before, but it is a private park that is huge and very well maintained. It has another fantastic selling point...permanent lawn chairs to lay in! Perfect right? I thought so...so I went there at the end of last week to buy my season pass for 35 EUR and participate in my first day of sun training. Here is the spot I chose...
It is a very popular place and probably should be marked for mature audiences only. Why...because there is a lot of flesh out there. I had originally wore a tube top and shorts to avoid disasterous tan lines...no need...everyone there was in a bathing suit or less. Oh, and by everyone I mean the Geri's...the geriatrics. I think there may have been one other person under 65 there and she was wearing more clothes than most. Nakedness and age aside, I still liked it. It was quiet and sunny and basically wonderful. That was last Thursday...and since then it has been crappy out so I haven't been able to go...figures! But when I do go I will sport the bikini without a problem...if the 70 year old woman with a big gut can sport only the bottoms, then I really shouldn't be embarrassed about my decent exposure.
Auf Wiedersehen!

The Race

Saturday I had the pleasure of running in my very first marathon, and to make it better TJ ran with me and it was conveniently located in our town. It as a little strange as most of the races I have participated in have been in the morning, but this one started at 6 pm in the midst of a big party...and I have to say that I thought it was very cool! Like most of the big events in Mannheim, the race(s) and celebration were centered around the water tower in the city center and it was very busy. Here is a photo of the start and finishline about an hour before the race...

And another look at the festivities on the other side from the water tower...which got very busy after the races...

Side note, I have never seen so much of the male anatomy in one day...it was almost exhausting. Let me explain. First we have the issue of spandex...and a lot of the shorts were not black so it was a little scary on that front, but there were other reasons as well. Like during the race where men just started peeing and didn't really have any discretion at all, and of course there were the men pre and post race that were sporting there teeny tiny underwear when they were changing out in the open. And FYI those leave little to the imagination! But perhaps the worst and most shocking was the all too public urinal. I can't explain it, but you can see for yourself (and please excuse my goofy look on my face)...

It appears like you can't see anything...oh but you can...like before they get up there and when they are done. I was sorta mortified, but now I am over it. We had some time to kill if you can't tell so we wandered around and took photos. I like this one the best!

I keep mentioning the races...like more than one...because there were many different ones happening. There was a mini-marathon for kids, a handcycle marathon, in-line skating marathon, and the they half and full runners marathon. It was a busy night in Mannheim! The runners were the last to start so we got a few pictures of the other races. Here are the kids...

And the bikes...

We have a video of the skaters, but I promise all they do is zip by in a flash. In-line skating is huge here for some reason and they take it kind of seriously. After we checked it all out and warmed up we got in our starting spot, and we were ready!

This girl gave two thumbs up and said "lets do this"...(although I was really very nervous inside)!

And then next to her was a more calm and seasoned runner despite his bum ankle from that snowboarding accident last season.

It took us about four minutes to get up to the start line, so at 6:34 pm this is what we saw...

TJ stuck with me for about a kilometer or two and then sped away. I was left with my IPod to enjoy the rest on my own, and thank God for BODYSTEP music, The Killers, and a few oldies because they got me through! The race took us out of Mannheim and through our little village of Seckenheim where we looped around and headed back. That was the best part because our little town just rallied for the event! 
It was pretty lively and dark when we finished...here is a look at the water tower fountain!

I had fun, but was really happy to have a shower and hit the sheets when it was all said and done! The knees are on the mend, so I have decided to do it again...but probably not for a while :). The only downside was looking up my time...it was listed under Annie Lugero. Yep, they spelled my new name wrong! Figures! We spent the next day resting and hit the new Star Trek movie...let me rephrase...I went with TJ to Star Trek because he wanted to see it and I wanted to die. Not my kinda movie, but since it was the start of TJ's birthday week I thought I would take one for the team!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Frankfurt am Main

Last Saturday TJ and I went to check out Frankfurt. It is only a 40 minute drive away, and although we have flown from there often we have not been outside of the Flughafen. We just went for the day and planned to see everything on an organized tour, but unfortunately it was all booked. They did give us a map so T and I walked the city for the afternoon and checked most things out. There are a couple of Frankfurts in Germany, so the proper name for this one is Frankfurt am Main (pronounced "mine"), which means Frankfurt on the main to distinguish it from the smaller towns of the same name. Frankfurt is the financial capital in Germany so there are many, many bank buildings all throughout downtown....as you can see...

Outside, there is a long and very large park that borders a lot of the banks and is home to our currency...the Euro. Here TJ is with a statue that marked the beginning of the Euro in the 90's.

We saw many things in this very park...like an Asian tourist on a bench with his pants off. He was hanging out in his boxers and picking at something on the pants he should have been wearing...weird. And then I saw another couple and he was wearing a Georgia ballcap...to which I said, "GO DAWGS"! There are some sites, but it is nothing like some of the other cities as Frankfurt was heavily bombed during WWII, but an old part of the city still stands with a gothic church, rathaus, and even Roman bath house ruins. Also, the famous German writer and poet Wolfgang Goethe's home is here and is preserved as a museum. Of course this is interesting to me as I spent two months of my life in language school at the Goethe Institute. Frankfurt also has a bit of charm as well with a gorgeous river walk that is very busy and well maintained. Here is a peak at that...

We crossed the river and got a great shot of the Dom in the old city. The old city is very small as there isn't much left of it.

In the old city, right outside of the Dom are the remains of an ancient Roman bath house. They apparently didn't find the ruins until the clean up effort post war. It appears that someone over time had built ove rthe top of them...

The old city is just a little bit larger than a square. You can tell which buildings are old and/or reconstructed from the German looking architecture.

Frankfurt is also known for its operas and has a very beautiful and very old Opera House. Many events take place there as well as the operas themselves. You can't see it, but the house has a very old copper roof as well.

On our way to the Opera House we found a place to lookout over the city from all directions. It was really beautiful and seemed so small from up there...and it was very breezy too!

Our experience at the top was good although we did encounter a funny. TJ overheard a Southern American woman discussing Dutch and Deutsch with another American couple...she thought it was the same thing and proceeded to tell those she was with that they were the same thing. Of course everyone else in the entire world knows that Dutch is in fact Dutch and Deutsch is the German word for German. I hoped no one else heard, because she sounded ridiculous.

Frankfurt is a nice city, but is definitely a city. You don't feel like you are in "Germany" when you are there like you do in Munich or other places (most likely due to the devastation), but it is very clean and the people are very nice as well and we enjoyed ourselves!

This weekend TJ and I are sticking around Mannheim as we have a marathon to run and TJ wants to catch the new Star Trek movie hitting the theatres. It is only two weeks until we leave for Barcelona and the Mediterranean and I CAN"T WAIT!!!!

Auf Wiedersehen!

MaiMarkt

I mentioned that TJ and I went to MaiMarkt last weekend, and it was quite interesting. It wasn't at all like we were expecting as we were told that it would be like a state fair minus the carnival aspect of it...yet it was still different. It is a huge gated area with large- almost permanent tents where vendors would be set up...sometime a bunch of vendors in one place and then at other times it was just a large business that occupied an entire tent. Some other structures were there too, like a finished house center where different builders made model homes for people to tour and either get ideas or have built (but that is kind of rare). Most of the tents were home or garden expos inside, but others were filled with clothes, nick-nacks, and also a petting zoo. We were out to find a grill, but unfortunately most were ridiculous in price. One of our favorite stops was at a kiosk that had traditional Bavarian-wear. TJ and I wanted to get a good look at what we would be wearing at Oktoberfest this year. Other than that we came upon a fashion show in the Italian clothing tent...

An equestrian competition in the ring....

And many biergartens where we found ourselves having a traditional German lunch- complete with wurst and bier.

The MaiMarkt was so close to our house that we were able to ride our bikes and avoid the mean traffic. It was only about a ten minute ride and it was a nice afternoon as well!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Those aren't canes...

When TJ and I were in the city last weekend we happened to catch something that I have only seen on trails...a Nordic Walker. It is sweeping the nation, but it might be seasonal so maybe not. As soon as it started to get cold last winter I saw all of these people with these weird walking sticks- come to find out they are Nordic Walkers. I don't think it is a sport per say but it is certainly a huge recreational pass time. Normally they are decked out in hiking attire rather than cream pants and orthotics...but you get it, right? I did find it funny in the city though!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Weekend Update

TJ and I had a very busy weekend, and it was a long one as he was off on Friday too. After our date on Thursday, we slept in on Friday...correction...TJ slept in and I tried out my new running shoes. My knees are still a little sore, but I wasn't in pain so I'm going to say the shoes are a success! After we both got ready we were off to Mai Markt (more on this bazaar and expo tomorrow) to spend the afternoon exploring.
Saturday we decided to make a short day trip to Frankfurt as we have been there to fly but not really to see the city. It was a beautiful day and we enjoyed ourselves walking the city and having a late lunch in the old city. The rest of the night was spent reading and catching up on stuff that was DVR-ed.
Sunday brought a bike ride into Mannheim to get some essentials before lounging at Luisen Park (LP). Every Sunday and all public holidays, every store and business shuts down so if you need something you are screwed...unless you can get it at the Hauptbahnhof. The train station never closes and there are businesses inside. TJ and I decided to grab some reading stuff to enjoy while we relaxed in the park (Newsweek and BusinessWeek for him and the fourth Twilight book me), and I also need some band-aids so thankfully there was a sort of Walgreens there. We had gotten to LP and just got cozy on our blanket in the grass when it decided to rain! And to this I say boo as I really wanted some sun! We thought it might not last long so we hung out under a gazebo roof and watched this serious man play life size chess. He was a character...complete with special gloves, fanny pack, white linen capris with black bikini cut undies, and to top it off...Chinese chess playing shoes. It made for a good passing of time until the rain stopped and forced us home with the sudden temperature drop. We then spent the night watching "Marley and Me". Bad idea. We have had some trouble with our really bad dog, Tut, lately and we were hoping to love him more after the movie. That didn't happen either...instead I missed our since passed yellow lab named Sunnie. She can assume the title as best dog ever...if only I had a picture here I would post it as a tribute to her. Unfortunately she died before digicams were the norm. Trust me, you would have liked her!
This week I will post about Frankfurt and Mai Markt as well as anything else that comes about.
Auf Wiedersehen!

Wieder im Kino

TJ and I went to the cinema again last night after sushi. It was fun...I much prefer the cinemas here as I have mentioned before because it is so clean and comfortable. TJ made the reservations for us to pick up the tickets before dinner where we got to choose our seats and what not...upon getting the tickets we were told I get a free glass of champagne (sekt) as some promotion upon entering the theatre...my thoughts were "SWEET"! When we got back for the movie we grabbed a couple of snackers and I decided I would also need some sort of soda in addition to the sekt...so I ordered a large Fanta thinking I would get like a McDonald's size large soda. Nope...instead I received a full liter of soda. Here I am in one of the lounge areas outside the theatre with my little glass of sekt and my gigantic Fanta.
That is another thing...you can get to the theatre early and lounge around and have a few beers if you want. I think it is pretty awesome. Needless to say I had almost half a Fanta left after drooling over Hugh Jackman in Wolverine...next time I will go for the Klein or Mittel instead!
Auf Wiedersehen!