Move Over Heidi...

Auf Wiedersehen!

2010-05-31T07:45:00.000-07:00

As the month of May comes to a close, so does this blog. It has been a great way for us to document our time and amazing experiences as expatriates in Germany. We have only been back for a couple months, but we have found ourselves missing our life and our travels in Europe. Although its good to be home, we will forever have a special place in our hearts for our life in Germnay. It is impossible to explain how much we loved living there and can only hope that we may have a similar opportunity in the future. Not many people can say they spent the first year and a half of their marriage living and traveling around Europe with the one they love, and for this we are extremely grateful.
I would like to say a special thanks to those friends and family members who took the time and invested in visiting us there. You all helped make our experience in Germany that much better. Also, thank you to my readers and followers of this blog. Some of you I have known all my life, and some of you I have never met, but I appreciate the time you took to share our experiences. Finally, I would like to thank the many friends we met in Germany and abroad. You all are unforgettable! All the best to everyone, and for the last time...Auf Wiedersehen!

Georgia House Pictures!

2010-05-30T09:13:00.001-07:00

It has been about two months since we closed on the Watervale house and now we are almost finished. We still have to gut and remodel our bathroom that still resides in the 80's and finish the backyard, but it is finally finished enough to show the before and afters. I hadn't looked at the befores in a long time and I can easily say that I am proud of TJ and my work (with the help of a few others too...special thanks to Kenny)!
Our Hilton Head style home sure needed a little curb appeal and the process has certainly began with some help from my parents. The door color isn't right yet, but we are on the right track as they planted some pretty stuff and seeded the near inexistent grass.

Before...

Almost after (not the best photo)...

We have a side entry garage, and if you come in through it the first room you hit is the laundry room.

Before...

After...

The kitchen is next and needed the least amount of work...just some new lighting, appliances, and paint.

Before...

After...

Between the kitchen and front entry was the dining room, which we converted into our office since the kitchen has a large eating space. It was awful! It still needs wall decor and french doors, but she has come a long way.

Before...

After...

I think the most amazing transformation is that of the living/family room. It was probably the most ugly and dated room I had seen in a long, long time. It took a lot of primer and paint, new carpeting, new shades and new lighting to change this room. We still need a piece of art for above the fireplace (large black and white photograph), but she is almost finished.

Before...

After...

From the living room is the hall to the bedrooms and bathrooms. It is a three bedroom home with two and a half baths.

Before...

After...

The powder room has new lighting, hardware, paint, and a new mirror.

Before...

After...

The smaller guest bedroom needed a little help too. Just paint, carpeting, lighting, hardware and blinds. Sorry the pictures are at different angles.

Before...

After...

The Jack and Jill bathroom literally hurt my eyes and my heart with its nasty wallpaper. She was a doosie, but looks much better now with paint, lighting, and hardware. The tile is a little dated, but its white and in great condition so it stays! I like this bath because it is two seperate areas, so you can get ready while another showers.

Before...

After...

The back guest room needed the same work as the last.

Before...

After...

The last finished room is the master bedroom. We actually kept the fan...shocker! Everything else got the same treatment as the last two bedrooms.

Before...

After...

We still have our master bath to deal with, but mama needs a break! It has great space, but has a hideous shower and tub...and the wallpaper...ewwwwww! But here it is:

Our backyard is a dream, but currently doesn't have any grass. We took out seven trees so that we might have a chance at growing some now...we just need some sod. I do like the back deck a lot, and in the lower area we plan to put a firepit.

Clearly we have been busy! In addition to what was mentioned above, we have had the ceilings redone and all the hinges, door handles, switches, and recipticals replaced. And we have painted evey square inch of this place except for the master bath. There have been times when I thought it wasn't worth it, but now the work has seemed to have paid off. We are home now.

Until next time, BYE!

On to Normandy

2010-05-29T12:08:00.001-07:00

After our stay in Paris, we moved onto Normandy for the beauty of the French countryside and some amazing US WWII history. Some of you may have thought that I was traveling there to stalk David Sedaris, but unfortunately he doesn't live where we were headed!
TJ found us this great little Maison to stay in near St. Mere Igles. It was so charming and we quickly fell in love with the proprietor, Paschal, and his very social cats.

The next day we headed into St. Mere Igles where our tour began. It is home to the church where a paratrooper from the 82nd Airbourne fell to suspend himself in the middle of the square that the Nazi's occupied. Luckily he survived as many of his brothers fell to their deaths.

St. Mere Igles honors D-Day and those that fought and lost their lives here in many ways and has a really great museum with artifacts from the war.

We visited many D-Day hotspots including a few beaches. We first visited Utah Beach the first night without even really knowing it. Here is a look at it and the English Channel present day...so hard to believe all that happened here...

And another view. Good thing I brought my personal photographer with me again this trip! TJ and I have a deal...he takes the pictures (because he is amazing at it) and I listen to the guide and fill him in on what he misses. Its a pretty good deal. I love this one.

The next day with our crazy but awesome guide, Elwood, we went to the main area of the invasion at Utah Beach. Flags and monuments stand to honor the invasion and those who lost their lives.

After our stop at Utah, we moved onto Omaha Beach, the site of an American slaughter on D-Day. We suffered the most casualties here...if you have seen the movie Saving Private Ryan, the first 15 minutes of the movie is supposed to reinact the invasion at Omaha Beach. So sad. It looks a lot different now.

The sloping beach line was important here, because those Americans that survived moving up the beach had to throw themselves against it in order to survive as it was the only cover available.

The Nazis were ready and picked them off through the cover of their pill boxes above the beach. As you can see, some of the ruins remain.

We then moved on to Pointe du Hoc, or the High Point where Army Rangers scaled this point to destroy an important Nazi defensive site. It was home to giant cannons and huge concrete bunkers filled with Nazi soldiers. They could hit either beach with these cannons, it was important to take them out. This is the point where they scaled the 100 meter cliff.

There were many casualties as the invasion did not go exactly as planned, but overall it was a success! The ruins of this area remain, and the views off the point are simply beautiful.

Some of the ruins at Pointe du Hoc are still safe enough to tour. We went inside a creepy Nazi bunker...it was pretty cool.

Here we are inside where many Nazi soldiers called home.

Probably one of the most emotional and beautiful places we visited was the Normandy American Cemetary and Memorial. It is the site where many fallen Americans rest.

We were there at the end of the day and witnessed the lowering of the flags.

There was an American WWII veteran and his family present and he folded the flags and wept. It was so emotional. Who knows how many of his friends he visited before the ceremony...

The cemetary is located on a high point overlooking a Normandy Beach and the English Channel. It is a really beautiful place.

I can easily say that I enjoyed Normandy more than Paris. It is seeping with American history and is a stunning place to visit. The weather was much better too. I really loved our trip to Berlin and other WWII historical places in the last year and found this to make my WWII learning experience in Europe complete.

If you are ever in the neighborhood, you shouldn't miss this place!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Rewind to Paris...

2010-05-28T09:44:00.000-07:00

I guess you could say that I am a little behind when it comes to the blog...by about 2 and a half months. Things have been a little busy, but after a full day if organizing photos through the last few months, I am ready to play catch up and finish this blog and publish it.

In mid-March my parents came over to Germany and we all took a vacation to Paris and onto Normandy, France. It was a great trip albeit a tiny bit freezing, especially in Paris. The first thing TJ and I usually do is take a city tour to aquaint us with the city so we feel better navigating it ourselves, and that is exactly what we did with a cruise down the Seine River. But to get to the boat we had to hoof it a little to Pont Neuf (Point Nine) to grab our boat. TJ got this great first picture of the Schaefer Family (minus 1) in Paris.

To get to the boat we walked along the Seine and took in some really great views on all sides. It was not the most beautiful day as it was cold and rainy, but the city was still pretty!

The cruise was interesting as many of the sites are right on the river. In fact, on the cruise is where we got our first sight of the Iron Lady. She is a beauty until you make the journey up into the Eiffel, then it becomes less beautiful. She is the most beautiful at night for sure.

The cruise was a bit chilly, but we spent the better part of it taking in the views outside on the front of the boat. I should recommend bringing a blanket if the weather is questionable as they don't provide them for you like the rest of Europe when its cold!

We also wandered about the city coming upon many sites without even trying. TJ and I found ourselves trekking down the popular Champs Elysees more than once searching for cafes, pubs, and shops. Here is a peek at the Champs...

At the end of the Champs is the Arc de Triomphe...it happens to be my favorite site in Paris and I am not sure why. I love the names chistled into it and that it stands for all the soldiers that fought for France. We actually got to see some sort of changing of the guard by chance and it was pretty cool. It is the center of a giant round-a-bout that is extremely busy and a little scary to get to.

From the top of the Arc you can see across to the Eiffel Tower. She is really pretty from a far and even prettier at night. I personally would have skipped going to the top had I known how crazy it was.

Of course you have to wait in line and that is after you move through a sea of people trying to sell you tourist items. Clearly, pick pockets everywhere and you had to keep your eyes open. Actually TJ and I kept our eyes on my white haired American father as he was maybe the easiest target. I was proud of him for being proactive in telling them no and to go away. Maybe the funniest thing was that he kept saying "no" in German, and we kept reminding him that he was in France!
After the long wait and several uncomfortable rides later we arrived at the top with some spectacular views of the city.

We decided to then walk part of the way down to the lower deck where I took the cutest picture of my parents!

There was a point when I felt compelled to hurl some really bratty and extremely disrespectful French teens off the top of the tower, but realized that I might have to then remain in France. I believe (in my own opinion) that making the long journey to the top takes away from the Tower's allure. It is beautiful and romantic from afar, and pure hell on earth inside.

The Notre Dame Cathedral was right by our hotel and only a five minute walk, so we saw it a bunch of times but only went inside once. TJ had not been feeling well, so my parents and I went in on Sunday where they were ushering tourists though while mass was going on (which was a little odd). It was really pretty, but still a typical European Cathedral in the gothic style. My parents really enjoyed it, and that might be what I most enjoyed about the cathedral!

Here is a look at the mass...complete with incense.

And my super cute Dad lighting some candles for family members passed.

We also went to the Louvre, and just outside of it is a mini Brandenburg Gate like you would find in Berlin. There is a long story regarding the Germans, the French, and the Brandenburg Gate that might explain some of the animosity between the two...you should google it.

The Louvre is completely amazing and clearly the warmest site we saw all trip. The entrance is a glass atrium that takes you underneath the former fortress of Phillip II that now houses an uncountable number of works of art.

Inside are some very famous paintings...its most popular might be the Mona Lisa.

And it also houses many ancient artifacts...like ancient Egyptian sculptures of animals. This one sort of looks like Tut Anthony...

It also has preserved apartments, rooms, and furniture of famous rulers...like Napolean's.

Paris at night is beautiful...the sites are lit up and showcased! The Arc is amazing and you can see it all the way from the other end of the Champs.

My favorite evening site is easily the Eiffel Tower! She is a beauty lit with her evening lights and then she even gets prettier!

On the hour she sparkles! It is nearly impossible to get a good photo of the sparkles, but we tried for you!

Paris had great food, sites, and fun to offer. We had the best meal at a place called "The Smoking Dog" when translated. It was super fun and really good, especially if you like seafood! I really enjoyed an English pub one block off the Champs near the Arc, called "Winston's". If I ever decided to go back, I would make sure to go there. We had a great time those five days and had an even better time as we moved on to Normandy. More on that later!

Auf Wiedersehen!

House Update

2010-04-12T05:02:00.000-07:00

It has been brought to my attention that I have been neglecting my readers in the past weeks, so for this I am sorry but I have been just a little busy. We closed on the 26th of Marc and had the ceiling guys in on the 27th...they sort of finished on the 31st. When the guys were finished and I entered my kitchen I completely lost it as there was a ton of popcorn mixed with a good amount of dried drywall mud stuck to my beautiful hardwood floors and when they walked on it it scratched all over. I was devastated as the kitchen was originally to be the least amount of work for us with just a coat of paint and new appliances. Then a friend of ours came over to tell us that ceilings weren't even right as they hadn't gotten some of the popcorn all the way off. We were a little upset, thus the job is being disputed. So we got off to a not so good of a start.
Since then we have been painting, cleaning, changing switches and recepticals (and their covers), got new carpet, had some trees hauled out, hung some lights, put in recessed lighting...and the list goes on. And get this...we aren't even completely done with any room yet! And that is why I haven't posted any pictures, because I want to post befores and afters because it will be like night and day. The kitchen should be done by Friday and maybe the great room will be done before that, we see. The bedrooms are nearly finished, but we had to take all the doors off the hinges because we wanted to change the hardware and paint them white...so maybe that can be done by weeks end too. Who knows! It feels like we may never be done! More later...

Popcorn Ceiling Removal Sucks!

2010-03-29T15:45:00.000-07:00

We have started the house update and I promise to never again buy a home that has popcorn ceilings as it is a huge mess! We hired it out with the help of our amazing friend, Kenny, and it is still a gross mess. I thank God we are not living in there through this as every time I step inside I come out covered in white powder. Oh well, the end is in sight as the contractor told Kenny he would be done by end of day tomorrow. Then I come in and clean like I have never cleaned before, and then paint almost every square inch of that place including all the trim and the ceilings. I am going to be a very busy girl! Wish me luck...I'm gonna need it!
Until the next time...

New and Expensive

2010-03-26T03:56:00.000-07:00

Its official, we have moved back to the States and little by little things are getting back to the way they used to be. The difference is that everything seems to be new and very expensive. I simply went to get a cell phone yesterday and could not believe how I could spend that much in 15 minutes just to get my plan started! In addition, we close on the house today, and we love its bones, but first up is the cosmetic renovation that begins tomorrow morning with the removal of popcorn ceilings and doesn't stop there as we have things scheduled through the 5th of April. This clearly equals a large out of pocket cost right away. That, coupled with TJ and I having to purchase cars and new appliances makes for an expensive welcome home.
Things that aren't new or expensive include returning to my favorite home Augusta, Georgia and being greeted by 75 degree weather yesterday! I swear the weather here is perfect! The locals have said its to be cold (high 60's) for the next few days...gotta love it! Some differences I have noticed right away from Germany are the abundance of cops out driving around and the the extreme friendliness of complete strangers. Cops don't patrol the streets of Germany, but the cameras do...it was so strange to see them out in full force last night when I went to pick up TJ from work. It is kind of funny how we have a larger police presence and also more crime than Germany. Also, I have mentioned before that the Germans are private people and can come across as unfriendly because they don't make conversation with anyone or greet others as they walk down the street. Here, everyone talks to everybody and I am trying to figure out if it was always this way or simply a regional cultural difference unique to the warm south. I would never talk to the hotel staff in great detail in Europe, but I have been here a day and a half and I think I have spoken to and know all the hotel staff. Funny, isn't it?
I still have unfinished European blogging business as I haven't chronicled our France trip yet. I haven't forgotten, rather the timing and now logistics are creating the roadblock. Once we receive our home PC in the air shipment I will get right on that...but who knows when that will be!
Until the next time...

Trier

2010-03-10T01:46:00.000-08:00

We made a quick day trip to Trier, Germany yesterday, which happens to be the area that my Dad's ancestors hail from. I had been there before, but only for a wedding, so I never got the chance to take it all in. We spent most of our time in the old city, as it is the oldest city in Germany...and very catholic too. Here is a look at an old street from the Black Gate, which is an old Roman ruin called Porta Nigra.

And my Dad inside that ruin...

I can't tell you how many churches we went into, but there were a lot! This one is called St. Paulin. It was ridiculous!

Aside from the huge catholic thing, there was also a huge Roman influence with much of its history including Constantine and his mother St. Helena. If you didn't spot Mary and Jesus, you were sure to spot something Roman! Like this ruin first constructed by Constantine as the Imperial Baths.

Trier is nestled in the vined wine hills near Luxembourg and is quite a nice surprise. You certainly wouldn't believe its history! It was really nice for my Dad to go and visit his ancestoral homeland and see where his roots began...and for me too!

Tomorrow we make our way on the first leg of our France trip to Paris, we will then return in about a week after we return from Normandy. Don't worry, I will kep you posted on all the highlights!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Weekend Update

2010-03-10T01:23:00.001-08:00

We got back from Switzerland on Saturday evening to find TJ getting ready for a festival, so my Dad and I went to check it out. It was freezing! So freezing that our friend Konrad slipped on some ice and broke his ankle! It was an awful break, and it happened just as they arrived. My Dad and I went independently to the Shriesheim festival- it was the "Festival of the Grape". Inside the tent they were serving wine, and outside they had beer and other fun treats. Here is a picture inside the tent...

Then Sunday, I took my Dad and Tutter to the top of the Heiligenberg to see Thingstaette and St. Michaels' Monestary ruins. It was also cold and very snowy up there, but there were tons of people sledding through the trails. This is a winter shot of the monestary ruins.

Later Sunday evening, we took my folks out for dinner at the Bierkrug (German cuisine), but first we made a stop at the Dubliner to toast my Dad's Uncle Earl that passed this week. We toasted Irish beer to a fine Irish gentleman. May he rest in peace.

We spent a few hours at dinner and introduced my parent's to some traditional pork dishes. It was really fun and everyone seemed to have a nice time.

The next day I took my parents to Heidelberg. My Dad had never been there before so we did a bunch of sightseeing while my Mom shopped. It was a cold, but very nice day as the sun was out. I can't figure out this weather- it is far too cold for Germany!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Interlaken, Switzerland

2010-03-07T05:30:00.001-08:00

My parents and I spent took an overnight trip to Interlaken, Switzerland on Friday as it is only a few hours south of here. It is really pretty as the town sits between two lakes and is surrounded by the Alps. The above picture was taken from my balcony at our hotel a few kilometers above Interlaken in Wilderswil at sunset. You can sort of see the tips of the mountains have turned pink with the setting sun. The picture below is also from my hotel room, however, it is a view of the Thunersee (Lake Thun) in the distance amongst the Alps. Although the picture does not do it justice as the haze of impending snow is showing more than the view.

We had a really good German dinner and then enjoyed some after dinner wine before retiring for the evening. The next morning we woke to snow, and a decent amount of it too. We were to go to the top of the Jungfrau, but being that you couldn't see anything we decided to shop in Interlaken for the morning and then head back to Seckenheim to try to make it to wine festival that evening. This is what we woke up to...

And my parents in Interlaken, shopping and taking in the views.

It was a short, but sweet trip! And we did make it back in time for the very cold Schriesheim Festival. More tomorrow as we are headed out for schnitzel tonight!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Jim and Julie in Deutschland!

2010-03-07T05:07:00.000-08:00

My parents arrived last Tuesday morning, and we have been on the go ever since! They rested up the rest of the day Tuesday and then hit Mannheim on Wednesday for a short outing. We walked the Innenstadt area and had lunch at one of my Mom's favorite places from the last time she visited. My friend Hazel came to visit with us for an after lunch coffee and then we headed back to rest up with the last of their jetlag.
Thursday was a Daddy-Daughter kind of day as I took my Dad to lunch in Weinheim for traditional German food at Diebsloch Restaurant and it was so good. We had a very nice little table in the back that set in a small cove. Dad had a Frankfurter style sausage and kartoffel salat. Here he is pictured below after our meal.

After lunch, I took him to the Tanner's Quarter of Weinheim to see the old German architecture of that area, in what he calls Dicken's Village.

It wasn't a very long day...more like an afternoon, but it was fun and we spotted a special surprise on our drive home. It is the Schaefer Apothecary. I think I have mentioned before that the name Schaefer is as common as Smith here and when translated means Shepherd. So the picture beside the sign is of a Shepherd and a sheep. I think it was fun for him to see his name on a building on his third day here!

It was a fun day, followed by many more as we headed to Interlaken, Switzerland the next day. More on that trip later today or tomorrow!

Auf Wiedersehen!

And the Winner is...

2010-02-22T08:38:00.000-08:00

The Hilton Head style home in the Watervale neighborhood. Its a really good thing we got it too, because we really didn't love anything else.

Its about 2400 square feet with a wooded back lot, 3 bedrooms, and 2.5 baths. I think one of the best things about the house is that it is in a perfect location for TJ and I for his work and downtown...and it has trees which was a my only house hunting stipulation. Tut will like it too as the back windows go to the floor and the french doors allow him to see whats happening in his yard!
I meant to take more photos of the interior, but forgot the second time we went through. I can tell you that it was built in 1986 and still exists there! We need to get rid of the popcorn ceilings and the cobalt blue carpet first, as well as bring in some new appliances and change out brass fixtures. We close at the end of next month, so maybe I can do some before and afters one we get there! We love the new house and can't wait to live in it!
Auf Wiedersehen!

House Hunters

2010-02-18T08:46:00.000-08:00

I have to say that my plea to get more owners to put their houses on the market didn't exactly work, but we do have a couple finalists that we will revisit tomorrow.
The first one is in Augusta (Richmond County) and has been almost completely redone inside. It is centrally located and has a really nice backyard. We also like the established midcentury neighborhood! This one is 2000 square feet.

Then we have a home in Martinez (Columbia County), but close to Augusta and in a well established neighborhood. This is one of my favorite neighborhoods in Columbia County too because it has trees and good resale ability! It is a Hilton Head style home with about 2400 square feet.

Then we have another Columbia County home in the same neighborhood as the last. It has to be an honorable mention though...we can't get it because the siding is Masonite and the company won't buy it back if we get moved again. It was initially my favorite too with a really wooded back lot and a great layout and back deck. With that being said, she would have needed major painting!

We liked all of them, so we will see what happens after our revisits tomorrow! Wish us luck on getting a good deal!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Dear Augusta Homeowners...

2010-02-14T02:03:00.000-08:00

Dear Augusta Homeowners,

I am about to house hunt in your community and am finding it very difficult to find some really good prospects. I would prefer to live in Augusta, a more central location to satisfy my need to be closer to downtown, good restuarants, etc., however, it appears that nothing decent is available in the good areas unless we want to pay close to a half million for an old southern mansion. The same goes for Martinez (the closest suburb) and North Augusta (South Carolina). Augusta is very close to my heart as it is easily my favorite place that TJ and I have ever lived together with the adorable people, strong sense of community, and fabulous weather year-round. I nearly feel like I am going to be moving "home" and am very excited because this time I get the overall say on which house to choose. Its my turn as TJ chose our last house, albeit beautiful, the location was not fun or close to anything and it lacked trees...anywhere. If he had the choice this time, he would again prefer to be way out in Evans in a brand new cookie cutter. This actually may end up being the result unless you all put some good stuff on the market beginning Tuesday of this week. Please don't put anything good out there before this date! I have been completely crushed in the last month with the sales of my most favorite homes- they were snatched up immediately :(.
Augusta Homeowners, in one last plea...please don't make me have to choose suburbia! Just go ahead and put your house on the market. But please wait until Tuesday.

Sincerely,
Annie

Winter is Killing Me!

2010-02-11T22:52:00.000-08:00

This winter has been the pits! There are many reasons why I think that, but the big one happens to be that Germany is getting the most snow it has received in like 30 years. It is already gray outside for at least 3 months of the year - most of them in the winter, and now it seems that we have cold temps and day after day of snow to match. I can't decide what I would prefer in a season like this...a cold Iowa winter with snow and the sun...or a colder and snowier than usual German winter with ugly gray skies. That's a tough one. I can say that in Iowa people need special equipment to remove snow and here all you need is a broom to sweep the sidewalk. Oh and by the way, there is some sort of law here that says you need to have your part of the sidewalk sweeped by a certain hour of the morning. Apparently if someone slips on your portion, you are liable! Some of these laws are a little much. Any way, the silver lining to all of this awful weather was going to be my trip to warm and sunny Georgia for house hunting next week, that is until I read my Facebook posts this morning. The Augusta Weatherman's wife is my friend and she posted that they are supposed to get snow today, which means the whole city shuts down after everyone has raided all the grocery stores. And it will probably happen too, because Rucker's always right and the TJ and I are coming to town! Just figures!
Other than crappy weather, nothing much has been going on around here with TJ in the States. I did get my TV back (thank you so much, Nick)...before this happened last night I spent the week organizing and cleaning the house, planning an excursion to Switzerland for when my folks come next month, and mustering up the will to do the inventory of the house we need to do for relocation. It is seriously the worst part of moving countries, though I guess I will get that done this weekend. Also on tap for this weekend: coffee with Hazel, the Penny Bazaar, and the Fasching Parade. If I make it to the parade (pending the weather) I should have photos posted on Monday. Thats it for now!
Auf Wiedersehen!

Weekend Update

2010-02-08T04:52:00.000-08:00

TJ and my weekend seemed to begin on Thursday night as we went out with friends until the wee hours of the morning. There was an "After Work" party at the Heidelberg Castle and it was really fun. The castle ballroom was all lit up and there was a bar and a band upstairs and then a DJ downstairs. If I were being honest I would tell you it was sort of like a PG rave down there. I was hoping to put up photos of the party and our friends, but TJ took the camera to the States with him before I was able to snatch them! Friday night T had a haircut and took me out for pizza afterwards. It was a much needed low-key night as we were so tired from the night before! Saturday night came around and we went for drinks and dinner with our friend, Karen, and her boyfriend that was visiting from South Africa. It was very fun and we seemed to dine for hours...Indian food, yummy! It wasn't a late night as TJ needed to get back to get ready for his flight yesterday. I really don't like it when he is gone, but I will see him next week when I travel to Augusta for the house hunt. That should be interesting being that we both want different things in a house!
In other startling news, we haven't had American TV since Thursday! For those of you who know me at all you know this is devastating news! We have a slingbox and the person who handles it on the US side is on vacation. It hasn't been that bad and certianly hasn't gotten to the point where I am feeling behind on my shows yet...thanks to ITunes! But we will see what happens by weeks end.
Perhaps the best news of the weekend happened at about 8:30 am Saturday morning when I received a phone call I have been waiting on for a while. It was my best girlfriend, Laura (some of you might remember her from my wedding as she was our Maid of Honor) and she is now engaged!!!! I couldn't be more excited...so excited that TJ and I were asleep and both of us were so happy for Laura and Scott that we remained wide awake! Love that news! Congratulations, Laura and Scott!
That's all from here. Auf Wiedersehen!

Big News

2010-02-01T03:19:00.000-08:00

Some of you may already know, but TJ has been promoted and we are soon to leave Germany for the United States once again. It is very bittersweet for us as we have much enjoyed the opportunity to live in and travel around Europe...and there are still plenty of places we would like to go here (i.e. Greece for one). But we can always come back as Europe is a simple plane ride away!
We will be going back to Augusta, Georgia where we once lived for 3 years. I couldn't be happier about this destination! For one, it seems I have dodged the Iowa bullet once again! Its not that I don't like Iowa, it is simply that I loathe the weather and would prefer to live where it is sunny and warm (and without snow). Also, we have some very good friends there, favorite restaurants, the best gym in the world, and the beach only two hours away. And the people are amazing too! TJ will soon go to spend a few weeks with his new team and I will join him at some point for a house hunting trip (FYI, I can't wait to live in a house again). Then we both will be back here by March for my parents to visit for a few weeks, and at that time we will be traveling with them to Paris and Normandy. As soon as they leave we will be packing up and in Augusta by April 1st. Its going to fly right by us!
With this news and inevitable move will also be the end of this blog. I have much enjoyed chronicling our time here, but a blog about living in Germany just wouldn't be the same living in the Southeastern United States. I plan to take it through our re-patriation to chronicle things that will be different to us on the other side. Some of these things might include our first grocery trip, and our new home. Who knows, maybe I will start another blog chronicling our time there...it could be called Southern Belle in Training or Georgia is Peachy. It might not be as fun or interesting as this one, but from experience I know the area has a lot to offer!
That's all from here, and a big congratulations to TJ for another job well done!
Auf Wiedershen!

Chamonix Apres Ski

2010-01-29T08:40:00.001-08:00

In Europe, partying after skiing is kind of a big deal and everyone does it...its called Apres Ski. TJ and I certainly participated, but had two extremely different experiences! Our first day snowboarding in Le Tour was super fun so we decided to Apres Ski at the bottom of the mountain near the lift like many others. It wasn't wild, and it didn't have the cheesey Apres Ski music, but it was still fun and was the beginning of an great night. Here we are enjoying our first beer on the terrace.
TJ...

And me...

The beers weren't that big, but the French lady questioned me when I said I wanted a big one. I wanted to say, "Hey Lady, I have been living in Germany for a year and a half and this is the tiniest large beer I have ever seen!" But of course, I know like 10 French words and didn't know how to say it.

But we had a nice view as the sun went down and it was really pretty, and very cold so we went inside for another before our ski bus came.

After that we decided to find a place to eat as we had worked up quite an appetite, and we stopped along the route in the cutest town ever called Argentiere. There we found a British Pub called, "The Office". It was a great little place that had the best burgers! They were huge and we were so hungry we both ate the entire thing...I can't remember the last time I ate a huge burger! Any way we enjoyed some more beer and headed for the hotel.
So we realized the second night that the first night was very tame. We got into Chamonix around 3:30 or 4:00 in the afternoon and found this place called, "Chambre Neuf" or "Room Nine", and it turned into a wild, busy, and fun place!

It seems we got there early as it appeared to be a pub as you can see the picture of TJ below.

It soon became a packed party house with people everywhere and a great British band called the "Bored Poets". They were really good and the patrons had no trouble drinking and singing along to the Apres Ski music.

Most of these people hadn't eaten as they came right from the slopes so it was a drunken mess, just ask TJ. I had driven that day so I had one early on and then was able to witness the demise of the Apres Skiers! We did make some friends of the British and middle-aged variety. They were super friendly...a bunch of guys who used to play Rugby together that take three trips a year to basically get wild and celebrate their friendship. According to one, "You wouldn't believe it, but many of these baboons are captains of industry in England!" They were a hoot! But I am pretty sure their wives would be horrified...so I decided to post a nice picture of maybe half of them! They happen to be watching one of them hang from a rafter with a few twenty-teens!

I hope that my four besties and I can still have that much fun on our annual trips when we are in our 50's!

The only bad part about this place was the odor. Hundreds of skiers and boarders packed into a place after sweating the entire day in sweaty and wet ski clothes! It was really stinky, but at least everyone was in the same boat!

Once again, good times had by all on one of our European vacations!

Auf Wiedersehen!

TJ Draws a Line

2010-01-26T23:45:00.000-08:00

This is the video I was writing about in the last blog. At first you can barely see him because he was high up and far away. It is still a good one, so enjoy!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Chamonix Snowboarding

2010-01-26T00:10:00.001-08:00

We spent two days snowboarding in the Chamonix area, one day at Le Tour and the second day at Les Praz. On the first day we had no idea where we were going to end up as we just hopped on the bus and waited for the locals to get off at what we were sure was to be the best area...and we were right! Le Tour was amazing! We had fabulous powdery conditions and the sun was out with clear blue skies...it was super awesome! And it was a great area to go off piste because you could go forever!
Here are some photos of our first day, starting with me standing at the bus stop.

And your token "Annie and TJ are snowboarding" photo.

This was the ski lodge at Le Tour (well one of them any way) complete with lawn chairs to bask in the sunshine!

And me at the top strapping into my board!

The next picture is of the area where TJ climbed up to (the part to the left of the shade, you can see where some lines are drawn). We saw the lines and the fresh powder and TJ wanted to draw his own, so he climbed up there and rode his board all the way to me! It doesn't look that far, but it was a hike! I will try to post the video later if I can figure it out.

He then became a trendsetter as other boarders started going up when they saw him! We boarded at Le Tour for a long time and had a great day!

The next day we decided to try a different area called Les Praz, and it wasn't as good. It was closer and really pretty, but the slopes and off piste opportunities were not as good. And the snow was a little rough too. We didn't get any snow the night before and it got realy cold after being sunny the day before. We still had fun and entertained ourselves all the same. Here is TJ with his snowboard angel!

And here he is right before he dropped down to get to his run. Pretty ugly surroundings, huh?

TJ was proud of his action shots...this one is of me coming into the lift area.

I didn't board the entire day as my legs just gave up around 1:30 pm, so I went back to shower leaving TJ to rome the area solo on his board. He, of course, went off into the wild! This picture is just a look at what he saw from a different view.

Our second day sure turned into a long one as we joined in the Apres Ski festivities in Chamonix and TJ was in rare form. But you will have to wait to see that! We certainly had a good time snowboarding and look forward to our next time on the slopes!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Mont Blanc Views

2010-01-25T02:47:00.001-08:00

Last weekend we took a snowboarding trip to the Mont Blanc Region which consists of a portion of the Alps in France, Switzerland, and Italy. We went specifically to the French part to the town of Chamonix. I will post more about the town and our snowboarding adventures later in the week, but I thought that I would first post some of the views of this amazing area. The pictures are really good, because we had the best weather and took most of them from the mountain tops! I won't describe them in detail as I think they speak for themselves.

It was even prettier in person! We had a really good time there, so stay tuned for our snowboarding post tomorrow!

Auf Wiedersehen!

The Weekend

2010-01-18T01:34:00.000-08:00

We haven't really had much going on lately as we are some what exhausted from our busy fall. We have mostly been hanging out at home because of the weather being so miserable, but this last weekend we decided to do a couple of fun things. Friday night TJ took me out on a date in Heidelberg. It wasn't wild or anything, in fact, the only casualties were my favorite pair of black high-heel boots...darned cobblestones! We went to dinner near the old bridge at a little German place. Normally I don't love German food, but TJ was in the mood for schnitzel so I agreed. I was pleasantly surprised by how good it was too. I can't remember the name, but I am almost sure I will be taking my Dad there when he comes! Then afterwards we went to an old favorite place, The Dubliner, where we caught the last half of the Bayern (Bavaria) - Hoffenheim (Mannheim's area soccer team) game. It was packed...but not nearly as fun as an American Football game! We each had a beer...I had a Kilkenny because that is where my Dad's family is from in Ireland. Of course, I had to take a photo for him!

Its always fun to go out with TJ! And it was a good night, except that Hoffenheim lost!
Saturday was lazy, aside from a trip to the gym. But Sunday was really good because we saw Avatar in 3D!!! I have to say that I was a hater until Oprah told me to go see it, and I am glad she did! I should have believed TJ when he told me I would have liked it...sorry, T! The only let down were the super annoying loud talkers behind us. Sadly they were Americans...and I know this because when it came time for intermission (normal in German theatres) one yelled, "This is Bullshit!". Nice. Anyway, if you haven't seen it you should because it is really awesome!
In other good news, the snow here is almost all melted!!!!!! This is good for both me and Tut as we don't like the snow unless you can snowboard in it. Which reminds me that the blog will soon be more exciting as we have an upcoming snowboarding trip to Chamonix-Mont Blanc, France planned for this weekend. So stay tuned!
Auf Wiedersehen!

Simply Ridiculous!

2010-01-11T00:58:00.001-08:00

I have been a little annoyed for about the last week, and especially last weekend with the weather situation over here. It won't stop snowing!!!!! Normally, our part of the country might get snow that sticks for a few days in the winter and then it melts. It usually snows at night and then by the end of the next day its gone. Last year we had some stick, but it was gone within a week and it wasn't that much, but people still couldn't believe it. This year we have this...

and this...

These pictures were taken outside my back window this morning! I object! Everyone who knows me, knows that I strongly dislike living in the snow. In fact, the only way I wouldn't mind it is if I lived in the mountains (but clearly I would still complain). Any way, I thought I had left the snow and everything that goes along with it in the Midwestern United States. Guess not. TJ was told by a co-worker today that it snows like this once every ten years, and unluckily for us it just happens to be a year that we live here. We probably have 4 inches that are sticking and the forecast has more coming. And to that I say, no thanks, Mother Nature. The silver lining better have something to do with amazing powdery conditions in Chamonix Mont-Blanc in a week and a half, or I just might lose it! I'll let you know when the time comes.
Auf Wiedersehen!

Tut's Fashion Show

2010-01-08T09:39:00.001-08:00

I got home from the gym today to find a package in front of my door from TJ's mom. I waited for TJ to get home to find that in the box were three gorgeous sweaters...for Tut. These sweaters, combined with the one my parents sent him, allowed for an evening fashion show in the office.
First up, the Hawkeye sweater! I had mentioned to my parents that Tut would be needing a Hawkeye sweater and to keep their eyes peeled. And, of course, they came through for him! I only wish that the bowl game on Tuesday night wasn't in the middle of the night as Tut was already sleeping and wouldn't put it on. Its very cute and will get a great deal of use out of it next fall and winter.

The next three are from TJ's mom, and they are super cute and fit him perfectly. Tut LOVES sweaters in the winter, and especially in the Alps. So now he is ready for snowboarding season!

Aren't they cute?!? I know some people (who suck) think its silly to put dogs in sweaters, however, this dog gets really cold and shivers like crazy in the winter time. He is a basenji and is from the African desert...so just keep that and mind! The only judgement I ever pass concerning him on how cute he is! He tried on each sweater, posed for pictures, and then pranced around showing off his new stuff. What a ham!

I love all the sweaters, so thanks grandparents!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Prague at Night

2010-01-05T05:08:00.000-08:00

Prague turned into be quite a party place for us. It wasn't intentional, but we did our fair share of drinking. We watch a show on the FLN called "Three Sheets" and we caught the Prague one right before we headed out, so almost immediately we stopped to have the country's widely known Pilsner and a quick bite. It's called Pilsner Urqull, which means original pilsner, and I fell in love. Here's TJ at an Italian restaurant about 5 seconds after we checked into the hotel. It was a good stop.

Tht same night we spent a great deal of time at the Prague Christmas Market, aka the best Christmas Market ever! It was cold, but so much fun. The hot wine and treats were fantastic! I really liked the spiced hot wine...it is delicious and keeps a lady warm! This was my first cup of wine in Prague.

As you can see from the photo below, the Market is a happening place, with tons of people and a lot of pretty too. And we heard just about every language walking through- it was so diverse.

And as the night went on...it just got busier and more fun. It also got prettier as the lights were so beautiful after dark.

As we drank our wine, we listened to a couple of medievil bands that were quite entertaining. They could play every instrument...they could play a beer can if you asked them to.

We took a break from the party to check out Prague Castle at night...just a few blocks away. It was our first look and it was worth leaving the market to see.

Our night did not end there. We weren't ready to go to the hotel so we found a great bar called, The Beer Factory. And that it was! Its a bar that allows you to pull your own drafts of Pilsner Urquell all night long. There are four taps at each table and a digital meter to keep track of your liters drank. Here I am pulling the first one...the rest didn't have as much foam after the first.

And it gets better. They have a screen that keeps track of each table's consumption, so if you are in the mood to compete...you can. The first picture is of TJ under the screen. We were sitting next to 2 Aussie couples that we became friendly with and they were kicking everyone's butt. Last I checked they had consumed 28 beers between the four of them! And they hadn't even been there long. The second picture is one of them showing us how they do it down under!

The following night, Christmas Eve, nothing was open and even the markets were shut down so we laid low in the hotel with some Bohemian Sekt and Pilsner Urquell and watched a few fights on TV...you know, what everyone does on the Eve of Christ's birth.
The next day we went on what might have been the coldest tour ever. So naturally we went to a late lunch/early dinner for heat and drinks. It was soooooo good. And from there we met up with the four Aussies again at a bar I cannot pronounce or spell. We had some beer and some fun and then continued on back to the Beer Factory, which had magically turned into a discotech in two days...or at least after a certain hour. Again, more fun.

Like I posted yesterday, Prague is fun and I hope you have enjoyed reading about our trip. We haven't anything planned for this month's travels, but I am sure it will include some snowboarding. We see!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Prague Sights

2010-01-04T02:05:00.001-08:00

There are many sights to see in Prague, Czech Republic. We have about a million pictures of what seems like each and every building in the city...so I have chosen a select few (or 20) to share with you. TJ and I took two tours, one where we spent a lot of time seeing sights from a bus and then an in-depth castle tour as the castle is truly amazing. The first tour took us up to a monestary where this is clearly one of the only good pictures of the two of us with the castle in the back ground. Too bad it was cloudy, otherwise you could see almost the entire city behind us.

From that very same spot you can see the US embassy. The white building with the flag is on the property on the hillside gardens and the embassy is right below it. Pretty neat for an embassy!

We spent a lot of time in the Market Square as that is where the main Christmas Market is held. I will blog on our nightlife later this week where you will see more of the Market Square, but here is a daytime look with the fountain.

Near our hotel and near Wenceslas Square is the old city hall building. It is huge and quite beautiful for how old it is. In fact, the entire city is so beautiful as it remained untouched during the war.

In the castle city part of town we saw some amazing sights...and that is where most of the most popular ones are. The house below is adjacent to Prague Castle and is the city provided home to the area's Archbishop. Its quite impressive and extravagant for a simple holy man, if you ask me.

And then there is the main entrance to the castle. We actually saw the changing of the guard the next day at noon and they marched right past us. If you want to see that you can check out the video on TJ's flickr account. This city is full of statues and spires, and the castle is no exception.

Inside the castle area includes the new palace, the old palace, St. Vitus Cathedral, St. George Basilica, and the Golden Lane to name only a handful of buildings. My favorite was the Basilica of St. George pictured below. I liked it because it is Romanesque and is the oldest and most well preserved churches in Prague (built in the 8th century). Its not as neat on the outside as inside, but it is the orangey-red building below.

I like the inside because it is small and clean for such an old church...and completely quiet. I love it! It is also where the Grandmother of Saint Wenceslas is buried.

The other and more famous church on the grounds is St. Vitus Cathedral. It is impressive, if you like really big, giant cathedrals. Here is a front view...

The back side (which faces the Basilica of St. George)...

And the interior. And it is really as big as it looks.

I am kind of over the really ornate cathedrals, but I did LOVE the stained glass. The colors reminded me of Gaudi and his stained glass in the masterpiece, La Sagrada Familia.

Probably the most ornate pieces are the memorial crypts where significant people are buried. Here are a couple of examples.

It is pretty on the inside, but I prefer the outside and at night. Like this photo TJ caught at dusk.

Behind all of the major sights in the castle, there is the oldest street in Prague...the Golden Lane. Now the houses are tourist stores full of medievil stuff and crystals, though they originally kept the families of the castle marksmen.

The castle area is across the river from the old town (market area), and the foot bridge that connects the two is called the St. Charles Bridge. This is the gate.

It is wildly busy with people, tourists, pets, and entertainers. And there are huge statues every few meters too. Kinda like these guys.

And from the bridge you can clearly see Prague Castle.

And the river views aren't so bad either.

Back in the Market Square there is a very tall Bell Tower that we climbed our last day. Here is part of it...the clock part.

From the top of the tower there are pretty awesome views of Prague...

We stayed near Wenceslas Square, named after one of the most revered people of Prague, St. Wenceslas. At the very end is the National Museum. Its a really pretty building from the outside...we were unable to go in because of the holiday, but it is supposed to be a great celebration of the history of Prague. Maybe next time.

I think its very easy to see that we had a great holiday in Prague, and enjoyed much of the city. We did enjoy it much further at night as I hope to blog about next!

Auf Wiedersehen

Year in Review

2010-01-02T03:43:00.000-08:00

TJ have had quite a year and we feel so lucky to have experienced everything we have since living abroad. 2009 left us feeling exceptionally lucky as we explored new countries including Ireland, Spain, The Netherlands, Belgium, Sweden, The Czech Republic, and Poland. We also had a great time visiting repeat countries and further exploring Germany, thus adding 23 new cities to our list. TJ and I have both discussed our favorite trips of the year with his being Barcelona, Spain and mine being Berlin, Germany...although Stockholm, Sweden is right up there for me too. Stockholm was particularily special because that was where we celebrated our first wedding anniversary in addition to being a very cool place! Our first year of marriage has seemed to flash right by us!
In addition to our travels and our wedding anniversary, we have celebrated other important events. Last March marked the end of my Master's studies leaving me with a very well deserved MBA to hopefully be put to use upon our return to the states (of course we never know when that may be). In May, I ran my very first half marathon making that the first race TJ and I have done together. It was really fun and we look forward to improving our times again this spring. We also had the interesting opportunity to celebrate the German wedding of one of TJ's co-workers in a small wining town. It was a great party and I really like many of the traditions...most of all the breaking of porcelain! The fall brought our annual trip back to the states to visit our friends and family. For TJ that meant working in Augusta for many weeks, and for me it meant hanging with my best girls on our annual girls trip! Seriously nothing can compare to hanging out with my four best friends whether its for five minutes or for five days. Like I said, we have had an exceptional year, but one of our most favorite celebrations was only weeks ago when we made the long voyage to Hawaii to witness two of our closest friends marry! It was not only a great trip, but its always fun to hang out with these two as we don't get to see them very often.
2009 was also the year of visitors, which as a kept woman, was very fun for me! I'd like to thank all that took the time and made the investment to come over to see us and Europe, especially my Mom as she came over to keep me company when TJ was in the US!!! We had a couple come over in the spring and then had 10 more from mid-August through November. We look forward to more guests this Spring as well!
2010 will, of course, allow for more European travels. So far we have snowboarding trips this winter and a Paris-Normandy trip this spring already planned. We also hope to get to Copenhagen, Denmark and take another cruise from Italy to Croatia and through Greece. As for the rest of the year...who knows! I guess we will see where 2010 takes us! We hope you all had a wonderful 2009 and wish you the best in 2010.
Auf Wiedersehen!

Happy New Year!

2010-01-01T02:47:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year, Everyone! I can't believe another year has past and that TJ and I have now lived in Germany for 16 months. It was also a nice change of pace that we stayed in the area rather than traveling for the holiday, but with Tut's questionable health it all worked out for the best. We were invited to a Silvester Party (they call New Year's the Silvester because its the day of the feast of St. Saint Silvester) by a German friend of ours as he was renting out a facility, but I wasn't supposed to be able to attend because Tut was to have surgery. To our pleasant surprise, Tut's tumor is shrinking and the surgery wasn't needed...leaving me to have a Happy New Year as well. Tut, on the other hand probably didn't like it because he was scared to death the whole day with the Germans lighting off firecrakers in the streets for the Silvester celebration...but he survived that as well!
TJ and I started out the night with some well-deserved sushi, and then headed to the party only a few blocks away. We took our token "beginning of the night picture" to make sure we have a good one and then partied on through the night with our friends.

Our friends consist of some people that work at the office with TJ and then significant others as well. The party was fun with a full bar and tons of food provided by Konrad's brother, who is a chef, and also we had great music and plenty of room to dance! Here is a picture of the guys before the stroke of midnight...TJ, Konrad, and Tobias.

About 5 minutes before midnight everyone grabbed some champagne and their drinks and headed outside to watch and set off fireworks. There were also an abundance of sparklers...and smoke from sparklers and the streets burning up with fireworks!

After we rang in the new year, everyone headed back inside for more food, drink, and of course dancing!!! As many of you can imagine, TJ was cutting a rug all night...and in this one so is Rico!

TJ and I only made it until something like 2:00 in the morning before we were in bed and only slightly disturbed by the remaining fireworks on the streets. All in all it was a great time here in Germany...as per usual!

Auf Wiedersehen

Christmas in Prague

2009-12-28T10:43:00.001-08:00

"Vesele Vanoce" is how they say "Merry Christmas" in Czech (although I know I am missing symbols above some letters). Christmas was warmer than we expected with no snow, Thank you Jesus, but still a little chilly. This was a good thing we had the cold so we could enjoy the hot wine they serve at the Christmas Markets! The picture above is the Market Square where the main Christmas Market was held and Christmas entertainment happened. They had many folk bands on the main stage and even held a non-denominational service on Christmas Eve here so that people of all religions could celebrate the peace and love of the season.

The people of Prague were very festive as they decorated much of the city, and did it very tastefully. I mention this because the fashion displayed by its inhabitants and Eastern European visitors was questionable at best :). They also celebrated more on Christmas Eve rather than Christmas Day there, in fact, the stores were open on Christmas Day more than the Eve. We had a great time exploring the city by day and visiting the pubs at night...Prague is a very fun city! I plan to blog more on the sights tomorrow and the nightlife later in the week, so stay tuned for more on this amazing city!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Heidelberger WeihnachtsMarkt

2009-12-22T11:36:00.000-08:00

We have been a little busy this season and have only made it to the Mannheimer Market until tonight when we caught the Heidelberg Christmas Market. TJ had never been so it was fun showing him the different markets in each area of the Hauptstrasse...even though it was raining. It wasn't that cold as it was about 45 degrees, and after our weekend in Garmisch it felt even warmer! Anyway we got our cups of gluhwein and wandered the Hauptstrasse until we found a covered area near the skating rink on the Marketplatz. We hung out there for a while, collecting more mugs, until we decided to head back to the house to get ready for our trip to Prague tomorrow. I like this market because it is spread out a bit and seems to have a larger variety of gift vendors...and I also like the bar pictured above. Its a play on the Kathe Wolfahrt pieces that use candles to spin the fans. The fan at the top does spin...but the only heat coming from the bottom is that of the gluhwein! It is a good time and I am sorry its almost over.
We leave tomorrow for our Christmas trip and won't be back until after the holiday so Frohe Weihnachten...or in English, Merry Christmas!
Auf Wiedersehen!

The Zugspitze

2009-12-21T07:33:00.001-08:00

TJ and made an impromtu trip to Garmisch, Germany this weekend to get our first snowboarding in of the season. One word could describe the conditions...cold. The traffic getting down there was also a bother as it marked the last working day for most Germans before the holiday season, so everyone was on the road and we were exhausted when we got there. We woke the next morning and quickly realized that we left the bag with our boots and mittens at home- and I am pretty sure that this will be the last time that I pack and TJ loads the car by himself. Any way that didn't stop us...we just rented some! The train ride from Garmisch to the Zugspitze (the tallest peak in Germany) ski area is about an hour and 15 minutes and it offers some really pretty views. Like this one of a small charming town's church and cemetary.

The boarding was fun and it took TJ about 5 seconds to get used to his new board and about a half hour for me to get comfortable again on the slopes. The snow was okay for being so early in the season, but the wind was ridiculous! I still have windburn and it hurts! We boarded for a couple hours before lunch and decided to take the lift up to the top of the Zugspitze to have lunch and take in the views, even though it was a little foggy. Here we are at the top...

And the view from the top.

The thought of going back out in the wind after I was freshly thawed from lunch left me almost teary-eyed, so I took off for Garmisch and left TJ, his new board, and the wind behind me.

After soaking in a hot bath to bring my core body temp back up, TJ came home and we got ready for our own Apres Ski which included dinner at Renzo Pizzeria and pints at the Irish Bar next door. Both of these places did warrant the freezing three block walk from the hotel and good times were had by all...even Tut Anthony!

Auf Wiedersehen!

The J and J Wedding

2009-12-14T22:12:00.000-08:00

We wrapped up our time in Hawaii with a beautiful wedding. This couple is very special to us as the groom is TJ's best friend and was the best man in our wedding, they both have been dating nearly as long as us...and the bride is clearly my favorite college friend! So we have long awaited this day (as have many). I spent the day doting on the bride, and TJ spent the day golfing and hanging out with the groom before the ceremony. I think you can see from the above picture that the scenary was perfect and the bride was breath-taking!
After the ceremony we hung out to catch the sunset and take a few pictures of our last night at the beach. Here I am with Tommy Bahama...aka my hubs.

And the sunset after the wedding was gorgeous!

We then headed up to the condo to let their precious baby cock-a-poo out before heading over to the party, and a party it was! It was an open air reception in one of the houses with the most delicious food ever...my faves were the ahi tuna and the kobe sliders! And the best drink of the party was the J and J Cooler...the couple's signature drink complete with edible hibiscus flowers at the bottom. We ate and drank a bit before the couple came in and the real party began. Here they are being announced in a ceremonial Hawaiian tradition.

And like I said, then the real party started...at least in part by the J and J wedding gang as pictured below...

The special entertainment began after the couple came in and they were ah-mazing! It was a Beatles cover band called the "MOPTOPS". If you love the Beatles, you would be sure to love them!

The minute they started, everyone began dancing! It was super fun, and it wasn't long before the heels came off!

Then due to a Hualalai event curfew they had to stop which prompted the toasts and cake-cutting.

And then we stuck our feet in pool to cool down, the DJ played some hits and their was some more dancing, and definitely more picture taking! Its a event tradition amongst our friends to do a "circle of friends" photo, so we did!

And, of course, one of the high school three and their hot wives!

It was a wonderful occassion and we had a fabulous time! There are about a jillion more photos from the wedding and our time on the island on TJ's flickr, however they are private and you must be a friend of his to view them.

Although this adventure half way around the world is over for us, we have plenty more to come with a possible snowboarding trip this weekend and Prague for Christmas so...stay tuned! Aloha!

More Wedding Festivities

2009-12-13T22:24:00.000-08:00

We kept very busy and had a ton of fun with the activites leading up to the wedding. The happy couple, being the athletes that they are, put together a group fun run for our little wedding gang of friends. I am not exactly sure how far we ran, but it felt far and we ran one of the loops in the resort. And guess what? It was beautiful and fun up until the last part...heartbreak hill! Here we are goofing around...

And then running down by one of my favorite areas in the resort. There is lava rock on either side of the path and the ocean waves crash up against it. Becky and I kept joking that views sucked and hurt our eyes!

I didn't put any pictures of heartbreak hill up because they all looked too painful. I mean the looks on the faces of our little gang...and especially me being that I couldn't breathe! But here we are at the top when it was all said and done!

It was super fun and earned a beach day for most. A few of us had other things in mind like nails and a trip to a tatoo parlor. And for those of us without it...a dreamy trip to Target!
Later on that evening was a "Guys and Girls Night" where the boys went one way and the girls went another on campus. I loved the dinner portion because we really did celebrate our love for the bride when playing my favorite game, "Say Your Favorite Thing or Memory about the Bride". Which, of course, turns into funny stories! This is our candle lit table...it was so pretty!

And afterwards a photo of the CB boy's girls! Can you tell which one of us is the bride and doesn't live in a frozen winterland?

Following the dinner, the girls met up with the boys at one of the houses for champagne and cupcakes. The cupcakes were delicious...as was the champagne! At least the bride and I thought so...

Oh and the man to the left is the groom's stepdad and one of my most favorite people ever! The next day came with a hit...nausea for me...partly do to too much fun and partly due to a much needed trip to the chiro. So we decided to punish me by going outrigging. Actually I love outrigging and it was one of my favorite things we did last time and I didn't want to miss it! It was an unbelieveable day. The girls in our boat...

And the super hot guys...the husbands!

It was amazing for many reasons...the day was beautiful, we had the best guide, we laughed a ton, and saw dolphins!!! They swam right by us! My photography skills suck so I didn't get any clear photos of their passing, but the boys got out and swam with them. This a photos of them checking them out as they passed under us. So cool!

T says there is a video of the dolphins somewhere and I will try to find it and post it. It was awesome! We then spent the better part of the day at the beach where TJ earned himself a mean sunburn before heading to the Mainlander's Dinner.

The night before the wedding the couple hosted a gorgeous dinner at the Residence Beach House on the resort. It was so pretty as we were able to catch the sunset and then particiapte a yummy feast. These photos uploaded backwards again but they are of the groom's buddies and then the brides.

It was a very sweet party complete with toasts from the Dad's, which was a favorite of mine! Later that night we listened to a set from SmashMouth as they were performing at the resort on the golfcourse and you could hear them from the condo. Sysco Corp. had rented out the resort and they were the entertainment for their last night. The festivities were fabulous, but nothing compared to the time we had at the wedding! More on that tomorrow. Aloha!

Driving the Island

2009-12-11T00:57:00.000-08:00

The day we went to the volcano, we decided to do an entire loop around the island. It took about four and a half hours with many scenic stops and it was simply beautiful! Here are a couple of our favorite snapshots!

The photos don't actually do the images any justice...the reality is much more amazing. We had a long, but great day and wrapped it up with a fantastic meal together at one of the other resorts complete with another Hawaiian sunset. Aloha!

Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park

2009-12-10T05:48:00.000-08:00

Last Wednesday we took a trip about half way across the island to Volcanoes National Park. It was awesome and certainly worth the trip! The only bad part was that about half the park was closed due to harmful gases being emitted in certain areas. It was okay with us as we had a great time anyway. After about a 2 hour drive...plus some scenic stops along the way we entered the park and found our first stop, Devastation Trail. Its only about a half mile each way, but it was beautiful! You can see the lava trail on one side and then the jungle like environment on the other. The devastion side was so pretty with some plants and flowers that have grown there since.

And then the other side...with regular trees in some parts, and then rainforest in others.

There were also really pretty dead trees...I know that sounds funny but they really were. Here is my favorite.

Then it was onto the lava tube. Its basically a tunnel, or a cave, that the lava made. One part has been lit and designed for all tourists and the other part requires a flashlight and is left in its original form. Some how these pictures were uploaded in reverse order, so the first one is us in the unlit original tube. I didn't go all the way in like TJ...instead I took family and group pictures for other tourists.

This photo is of the hollowed out tube and its lit so we could get a decent picture.

Its kind of interesting that the environment in and around the lava tube is basically that of a rainforest. Then you go in and its dark and wet with little or nothing inside...and then you come out and its completely lush. Here I am going in and you can see how lush it is.

The last thing we did was hike down to one of the craters (the only one open), walk across it, and then hike back up. It was something like 4 miles, but sure didn't seem like it. This is the view we had of it from the top of the trail...it is huge!

And then another view with the smoke from one of the active vents in the distance.

This crater is called the Kilauea Iki Crater and is the site of the 1959 lava. It weird because you hike down and up in a lush forest and then when you get down there you fell like you are on the moon! Some parts are smooth and others are very rocky. There are also some smoking vents in the crater and you can feel the heat when near them. Here is T by a mound of rock...and somewhere in that mound is a vent. You can kind of see the smoke.

There are also giant cracks. Some of them you can see down to where they end, and some you can't. Others have odd green plants growing inside them. Here are some cracks and their are others both larger and smaller than this.

Here I am hiking down to the smooth part...

We finally made it across!

It was awesome and we were starving! Our bellies were crying for sushi or rumored nearby Thai food. And then we realized we still had to hike up to the car! It was a very steep but beautiful trail up.

The only thing I didn't see that I really wanted to see was the NeNe. Nope, not one of the Real Housewives of Atlanta, rather the Hawaiian goose that is endangered. Oh well maybe I will catch it next time! After we left we decided to drive the other way around the island and it was so pretty! More on that later, Aloha!

Pre-Wedding Party!

2009-12-09T08:36:00.000-08:00

After our hike last Tuesday, we were invited to a pre-wedding party at the bride's parent's house in Kona. It was a gorgeous day- perfect for a backyard party! It was one of my favorite pre-wedding festivities because it was casual, fun, and there was the most amazing mexican food ever! You know we don't get that often and it simply hit the spot that night, especially after a very long hike! It was family and friends, and of course one very special dog. The bride's Mom and Dad thought of everything right down to the table decorations...the tables were decorated in the ribbon that her wedding gifts were wrapped in! But the best part was when she gave them the most amazing traditional Hawaiian tea leaves to wear. Here they are...

Like I said, it was so much fun! And this is where I learned to play the most fun name game ever- it is fun and hysterical and I am sure I will be playing it in the not-so-distant future!

Tomorrow's blog will be all about our fun day going to the volcano and touring the island! Until then, Aloha!

The Pu'u Wa'awa'a Hike

2009-12-08T23:02:00.000-08:00

We just got back from Hawaii yesterday and had the best time there! Things started to get busy last Tuesday with day trips and wedding festivities so I decided to wait until we got back to blog about our adventures. Tuesday we had a couple things happening...first we hiked the cinder cone and then it was on to Jess's parent's house for a pre-wedding party (more on that later as it was super). A bunch of us got up on Tuesday, filled our packs with water and lunch and headed out to hike a cinder cone at one of the state parks about 45 minutes from the resort. A cinder cone is basically formed by a volcanic vent that when exploding the magma cools quickly forming these bubble hills, and the island has several of them. It was a clear and gorgeous day...perfect for a hike in the heat! My personal photographer (TJ) grabbed his Nikon and got some good pictures of our time there...here is a good one.

It should be noted that even though the cone looks small it isn't...it was very steep and a fantastic workout! Here are a few of us making our way up some steep parts.

We were basically all alone up there besides some cows and these really cute goats!

TJ took some great photos of the views as we went up and then again from the top!

In this one you can see Maui in the background. Its pretty close, but sometimes there is fog from the volcano and you can't always see it. On this day we got lucky!

TJ and I made it to the top along with the others...we were hot, stinky, and sweaty! But, what a view!

There are all these random trees and bush's everywhere...and apparently they went up before and it was more lush with greenery in the spring...not this time. But I love this photo of TJ's buddy near one of the tree's.

We had our lunch snack, took in the views, and then took a victory photo of the group. Here we are!

What goes up must come down. I think someone said we hiked up and down in an hour and a half or so...it was a great workout and we covered something like nine miles. And we were happy to make it down. This is the bride-to-be and my we did it photo...and she looks far more energetic than me!

It was super fun and a great way to get some sun! Thanks J and J for taking us!

Aloha.

Sunset

2009-12-01T10:46:00.000-08:00

So yesterday we took a break from KK2 to catch a beautiful Hawaiian sunset complete with green flash! Here are a couple of shots...

Aloha!

KK2

2009-12-01T10:18:00.000-08:00

Sunday TJ and I spent the better part of the day at the beach and the secret pool...but were so jetlagged that we forgot to take pictures! Luckily we remembered yesterday, but spent most of the day at KK2. KK2 is an address of one of the properties at the resort that is for sale that J.D.'s Mom is staying and it is simply gorgeous! We went over in the early afternoon...I layed out while J.D. and TJ horsed around in the pool. Here they are before the action started...

And J.D. standing on the edge of the infinity wall with the golf course and ocean behind him.

And water aerobics races....

And then they finished out in the hot tub before heading down to catch the sunset.

We came back to KK2 after the beach for pupu's (appetizers) and nice laughs. Here is the property view by day...

And by night...

It was a lovely day (as per usual here) with the sun, the ocean, and great friends!

Aloha!

Aloha

2009-11-29T19:44:00.000-08:00

We finally made it to Hawaii after over 17 hours in the air and 25 hours of complete traveling. You would think that we would be exhausted...but not us we are in full force! In fact we woke up at 4:45 this morning and have been awake ever since...mostly working out and laying on the beach. I promise it has been awesome! We were very fortunate to catch the sunrise this morning over Mauna Kea outside of our room at J.D. and Jess's condo (see above photo). And the best part...we saw two celebrities today and I couldn't be more excited! My fave...Christian Bale in a swimming pool! And this is only our first day. More later...

Aloha!

Mannheimer Christmas Market

2009-11-27T07:43:00.000-08:00

Some people go to the Mannheimer Market to shop for Christmas gifts or listen to live Christmas music...but not us. I save the Mannheimer Market specifically for the food, the friends, and the drink. It took us about 5 seconds to get some food and our first cup of gluhwein. It was just as I remembered it! There are two sections, the PG section near the water tower where I am here...

And the super fun eating and drinking area by the Engelhorn shops...and across the street from where T used to live for our first month. This is where friends meet up for happy hour and then some each night after work from the 25th of November to the 23rd of December. Here I am with Meredith, Kristina, and Karen three cups in...

Last night also had a first. Usually we drink the gluhwein, but now I have a new favorite called Obstweinpunsch (fruit wine punch). Its even better than gluhwein, in my opinion! It was fun and it makes me excited to get back after Hawaii as we have decided to hit the Heidelberg one next.

Tonight we will attend the annual ex-pat Thanksgiving and then tomorrow we begin our long journey to Hawaii for Jess and J.D.'s wedding so the next time I blog it may be from the Aloha State! Say your prayers for a safe trip for us.

Auf Wiedersehen!

Amsterdam, Take Two

2009-11-25T00:17:00.001-08:00

TJ and I went to Amsterdam in April with another couple visiting from the States, but this time we took my BF, Rebecca and had another super fun time! Last time we did the Anne Frank House, the Van Gogh Museum, and a canal tour...but this time instead of going to the Van Gogh Museum we went to Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum to hang with some of our favorite waxy celebrities! Here are the highlights...

Bec and JT...we like to pretend she is his date to an event in this one!

Me and my longtime boyfriend (since 1987), Mr. Bon Jovi - excuse us while we smooch!

TJ hung out with a British DJ and spun some records for a bit while Bec and I said hello to some others...

And then before leaving he had to say hey to J-Lo and her big booty!

Bec and I did visit the Anne Frank Museum and take a canal ride...but the rest of the time was mostly spent in bars and restaurants. This is Bec at our first night:

It was where we met Bob and Loraday, a couple from the US about your parent's age. They loved us though- especially Bec and myself with our funny catholic stories. We continued on there for most of our night, had dinner, and christened the hotel bar later on.

The next night we went to the movies before dinner...and that was an experience! We decided to see New Moon as I am a fan of the books and we could get it in English there. We could get it here in D-Land as well, but we would have to wait until the 26th (which is the opening night of the Mannheim ChristmasMarkt). We also couldn't go on the 27th (ex-pat Thanksgiving), or after that as we leave for Hawaii...so that left Amsterdam. So the movie theatre was huge and mass chaos. There were tweens everywhere! And once we got in the theatre there were only like a dozen seats left with the rest filled with much younger people screaming and freaking out. It was hysterical! We couldn't stop laughing- but were thrilled when a couple of people in the neighborhood of our age came in! So the movie begins and it is another screamfest! I am telling you I have never seen a movie that had an experience like this, and it continued through the credits. The girl sitting next to TJ recited every word and then clapped if she got a sentence right...crazy. Any way it was a good movie and far better than Twilight. Clearly, after that we need food and drinks...but not necessarily in that order. Here we are in the Mexican Restaurant- with me after my 2nd margarita in 15 minutes.

It continued throught the rest of the night- complete with a stroll down the RLD so Bec could experience it for the first time. One time is enough for us! Amsterdam does not disappoint- with fun around every corner and in the least expected places!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Basel, Switzerland

2009-11-19T01:44:00.000-08:00

Yesterday Bec and I took off for Switzerland to the border town of Basel on a beautiful blue-skyed day. It was a pleasant surprise...I have been through there several times and have never thought anything was there. Once again I was wrong. The city isn't inundated with a bunch of sights, but it does have its share and is incredibly cute and extremely clean! Here are a few sights...

The first photo is the front of the Rathaus (City Hall)...the lines in the photo are from the tram line.

The next two photos are of the inside courtyard of the Rathaus, and their Christmas tree is already up!

Outside of the Rathaus is the Marktplatz, where incidently there was a sort of Farmer's Market. Its not uncommon in a lot of European cities to have a regular daily market as many people here shop daily.

And I really liked this tree too, it made us want to start decorating immediately...

Probably the best and the most hard to find sight was the Cathedral. It was so pretty! And it was huge and sat perfectly on the river offering the best views.

There was even an indoor/open air area with memorials that simply looked like art. This only one of many corridors that displayed these memorials...

And, of course, the gorgeous riverfront view from the back courtyard of the Cathedral.

As we trekked about the city yesterday, we didn't just sightsee. We had lunch, did some shopping, and came upon some very fun and interesting things. Outside Butler's we found the perfect accessory for any Christmas time Swiss adventure. Reindeer ears!

And probably the best find in Basel was the wonderful novelty store called the "Condomeria". Yep, its full of condoms in various forms...they even had condom Christmas ornaments and several kinds of condom pipes! So if you need a great gift idea, please go here...

We had a great time, as per usual!

Today we spent the day in Heidelberg on the Hauptstrasse, at the Castle, and on Heiligenberg. It was another crystal clear, beautiful day and it could not have been better to see the sights. We aren't done there either, so we will head back Monday after our weekend away in Amsterdam! We'll let you know how that went on Monday too.

Auf Weidershen!

Rebecca and Cinderella's Castle

2009-11-18T08:12:00.000-08:00

Monday, Rebecca and I made the trip to the Bavaria to visit the inspiration for Cinderella's castle. It is true that I am no stranger to this place as we were just there last week on our way to Garmisch...but this time...for the first time it was not raining! So it was very enjoyable...we even made the trek up to Marienbrucke (Mary's Bridge) to capture the beauty from the back of Neuschwanstein. It was also really fun to go with Bec because she had just taken her son to Disney to the fake Cinderella's Castle last summer...and now the fairytale is complete. FYI to you all...it is Cinderella's Castle from the outside, but not really on the inside as it is dark and extremely over the top! It was great and we got some awesome souvenirs.
Yesterday it was a super rainy and crappy day here, so we made our way to Weinheim for a short sites day, and then spent the rest of the day shopping...which is my kind of day. Again, fun had by all! More later...
Auf Wiedersehen

Weekend Update

2009-11-18T08:00:00.000-08:00

Apparently I need to apologize for not blogging regularly...but its true that my best friend, Rebecca, has graced Germany with her presence and we have been busy having a delightful time (see picture below).

That picture was taken over the weekend at our favorite sing-a-long bar, O'Reilly's. But that was Saturday night once she got here. Friday night was equally fun and exciting as our friends Yvonne and Tomislav took us to an area in Mannheim that we have never been to before, the Jung-Busch area. We first went to a bar to have a couple drinks and have "German Hour", where we can only speak German...I guess it is only fair being as though they have to speak English with us most of the time. FYI, the more you drink the more difficult it becomes. After that we went to a bar called "Onkel Otto's", which was a super fun bar that was packed and full of 70's music. Tomislav told us that it was a singles bar that was once a strip club in the day...and you could probably tell with the flat screens flashing pictures of naked women every 15 seconds. Aside from that, it was really fun!

Saturday Bec got here and the fun began at O'Reilly's that night along with TJ and our other friend Karen. TJ loves karaoke, and now so does Bec and about 150 people in that little bar! Here some photos...

Just a little dancing...

And a little singing...TJ with "Baby Got Back"!

And the duet of Bec and TJ to "Ignition", it was interesting...

We had a great time and finished the night off with Doners/Kebaps for a snack and made it home by about 3:30 am. All in a days work! And the next day we slept off our hangovers and saw 2012...as per usual after a night of drinking with Bec!

Auf Wiedersehen

Innsbruck, Austria

2009-11-13T00:54:00.000-08:00

After Garmisch we headed south through the Alps to Innsbruck, which turned out to be a fantastic town! The city isn't huge and is surrounded by the Alps...it is easy to see why there have been two Olympic Winter Games there. Last season TJ and I went snowboarding near Innsbruck and it was one of our favorite places, so we decided we could easily live in this city. Here is another view with the river from the hotel room.

After settling in and eating lunch, we went to the old city to putz around and see some sights. Clearly the best site there is the Alps, especially because it was such a clear day. We first climbed an old tower to look out to the city. It was quite a climb and very well wrth the views (minus the fencing for safety).

To get out on the balcony there was the tiniest door- perfect for two vertically challenged girls like myself and Melissa.

There are basically two popular sights there...one is the Cathedral of St. Jakob...

...and the other is the Golden Roof which was built and preserved since the 1400's.

We actually thought the roof would be much larger- but no its a tiny roof. It was originally built by an Archduke to be the residence of the Tirolean sovereigns. The city is really pretty and clean (of course, in a German speaking country), and it is also very dog friendly...which is good for us. And the whole city lights up at night! Inside and out as we visited some cafes and local watering holes.

The next day we took the train upto the lifts that take you up the Alps...it was beautiful, albeit hazey. This was the look out from our first stop, where you could still see the city.

Here we go on the second of three legs up...

And it was not a heated journey...we were all cold, but Tut Anthony's feet were freezing on the metal floor. TJ and I had to take turns warming him...what a baby!

And here is what the top looked like...

It was so hazey, and you couldn't see that far out in front. We all enjoyed ourselves and were happy to get back down after a lunch at the top. This trip has invigorated TJ and I for snowboarding season...we can't wait! But we will have to wait until at least December as another friend comes tomorrow, and then we head out to Hawaii for a bit. Our lives suck...just kidding!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany

2009-11-12T13:29:00.000-08:00

While Melissa and Kenny where here we made a weekend trip out of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany and Innsbruck, Austria. It was really fun and absolutely beautiful. On the way to Garmisch, we first stopped at Cinderella's Castle (Neuschwanstein) for Kenny and Melissa so we didn't actually get to Garmisch until dinner time. Luckily TJ had snowboarded there before so we knew exactly where to go. It was a great little pizzeria that just happened to be adjacent to an Irish pub. So we hung there all night and had fun with good beer and good friends. Here are some photos from that night:

This is Melissa and I at the beginning of the evening...

Kenny and TJ were not messing around that night- and ended up being quite a handful later on!

Kenny and Melissa...

And us towards the end of the night...

The next day we had a great breakfast and headed out to walk the town and see some quick sites before heading of to Innsbruck, which is less than an hour south of here.

These are some typical German homes and Guesthouses for this area.

A street in the older part of the town...

Garmish is in the German Alps, so the scenic views are all around!

And the last view is of the Zugspitze, the highest peak in all of Germany.

We had a good time and it was really pretty, but Garmisch didn't hols a candle to Innsbruck in terms of beauty and fun. More on that later on!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Melissa and Kenny in Deutschland

2009-11-09T12:21:00.001-08:00

Melissa and Kenny are two of our friends from Augusta, Georgia and they arrived last Wednesday for their first trip to Europe. I haven't had the chance to blog since they have arrived because we have been on the go! Their first night we had dinner and drinks in Mannheim, and then last Thursday we spent the day and most of the night in Heidelberg. We then kept them busy in Garmisch, Germany on Friday and then traveled onto Innsbruck, Austria the rest of the weekend. The weather couldn't have been more beautiful there...not like here as the rain was waiting for us when we got back last night and has continued through the day. It sort of put a damper on our afternoon in Weinheim, but did offer the opportunity to slow down for the remainder of the day. Tomorrow is their last day and, of course, offers rain in the forecast...but nothing will keep us out of France to wrap up their trip! It has been fun and I am sad :( its almost over.
I promise to have more pictures and blogs about our adventures in Garmisch and Innsbruck later in the week. Until then...Auf Wiedersehen!

Weekend Update

2009-11-02T08:47:00.000-08:00

Clearly we have been on a US hiatus for the month of October, but we are now back in D-Land ready to swing back into our normal activities. Which for me means planning travels and being a part-time tour guide, and for TJ this means going to work and traveling with me. We spent all last week getting back in our groove, so for you this is boring. Even our weekend wasn't that exciting except for our amazing Friday night date. I love going on dates with TJ...yeah, yeah we have been together forever but I still enjoy getting ready for a big night out and then hanging with T. Last friday night we went to dinner (sushi of course) and then headed onto the main event...the movies. We saw This Is It starring the one and only Michael Jackson. I highly recommend seeing it on the big screen as the music and performances do not disappoint any fan. And if you know me...rather my husband, we are big fans of MJ's music! In fact, we delicately planned "Billie Jean" into the dance portion of our wedding reception. He will be missed by us, but thank God his music lives on! Go see it.
Saturday we worked out during the day and then caught the Hawkeye game that night. We both almost had heart attacks and went through just about every emotion during those four quarters! The end result was fantastic and I can't wait for the next game! We were planning on going out for Scary-oke night at O'Reilly's but decided to stay in to tend to our sore bodies and post-game exhaustion.
Sunday wasn't anything special...just prepping for our guests this week and our trip this weekend. Our good friends, Melissa and Kenny, are coming in on Wednesday from Augusta and we can't wait! They will be here a week and we have planned overnights to both Garmisch, Germany and Innsbruck, Austria. I am excited as I haven't really been to these places before so it will be an adventure for all of us! I will be sure to keep you updated!
Auf Wiedersehen!

Jet Lag or Something Else?

2009-10-28T01:39:00.000-07:00

TJ, Tut, and I all got back on Sunday from our trips to the United States and I seem to be the only one with a jet lag problem! I am usually the one who is without this issue and get myself back normal by the end of day two. This would be day four and I am dying! What I would give for a normal day, and then a normal full night of sleep. Tut sure isn't helping matters as he was banished from our bed this Spring...yet has spent the last two months sleeping with his Grandma so now believes he should be able to sleep with us and has been very persistent through each sleepless night. He isn't the entire problem though as last night I found myself lying awake feeling achy. So now I can't help but wonder...could this be the beginnings of some awful illness and not the dreaded jet lag? I think probably not, but I still can't help but wonder as I spent a good few hours in the O'Hare airport and then about 8-ish hours on a plane. For now I have decided to diagnose myself as having jet lag and being extremely dehydrated. If I don't feel even the slightest bit better, my next action is to run as fast as I can to the chiro to get adjusted to see if that might help. We see...wish me luck though, I haven't time to be sick as the next wave of visitors arrives in one week!
Auf Wiedersehen!

Augusta Love

2009-10-22T20:42:00.000-07:00

I spent a few days in Augusta, Georgia earlier this week and loved every minute of it! I got there on Saturday night and immediately headed to an old favorite spot for dinner and drinks with old friends. The Wild Wing Cafe should never be missed if you ever make it to Augusta- they have great food, beer, and football! I spent the first portion of the evening there with my old work friends and the DI Club Wrap...delicious. Here are some of them...

After that we headed dowtown with a group to Tribecca- across the street from where I used to work. TJ posed for a pic with Melissa, a friend that will be coming to Germany in 2 weeks with her husband and I can't wait!

The band playing there was called "Electric VooDoo", and it stars our friend Rob on the drums. The lead guitarist and vocalist was also amazing...you might not be able to tell but he only has one hand and he is so good!

Sunday I hung out with TJ before going to workout at Health Central. It was awesome! I did Bodypump and RPM and felt invigorated and then awfully sore the following day after Bodystep! It was fantastic and I am sorry it ended so soon as won't get another real Les Mills class for a while. Later that night after a well deserved shower we went out with more old friends to another favorite local eatery, the Bee's Knees. Again, delicious! Here we are with Barbara and Paul...

My last full day in Georgia I spent at Health Central for the most part. I loved working there and still love everyone the works and works out there. One of my favorite visits was a lunch with Melissa and Jennifer, probably my two best friends there. We had such a good time! Here are Jennifer and I, isn't she so pretty...

Later that night I met some friends for wine at the Bistro and then headed to my all-time favorite restaurant, Tako Sushi, for a company dinner. It was the perfect end to a great trip! I will miss you Augusta! Until then, Auf Wiedersehen!

A Night With David Sedaris

2009-10-16T08:39:00.001-07:00

Last night was near perfect for me as my mom and best friend, Rebecca, made the journey to Quad Cities to see my most favorite author, David Sedaris, read several essays he has been working on. Listening to him read is certainly far better in person than over audiobook because the energy of the other listeners makes it far more fun. And he also speaks freely about his inspriation for some of the pieces and has a Q & A at the end, so it was nice to be able to witness his candour. In fact, at first I was disappointed that we didn't hear any stories about his brother, who is one of my favorites, and then later found out that he is "punishing" him by not writing about him at the moment...which is so funny if you know his brother! He also recommends other authors as well, which I appreciate since I have been saving his last book until his next book comes out for fear I won't have anything else that I want to read. The books he mentioned are: Our Dumb World and Everything Ravaged, Everything Burned in case you are looking for something else that he would read. In addition to David's fabulousness, the icing on the cake for me was him mentioning his favorable experience the Downtown Davenport YMCA...and further in the pool there. This tickled me silly for many reasons...one, if I had still been the Aquatics Director there and Sedaris walked in I might have possibly screamed and/or fainted; and two, I have always believed that the Downtown Y is the best one in the QCA even though it is old and not as pretty. I love that he told the entire auditorium that he liked it too and lets hope they get a few new members or two out of it!
All in all it was a fantastic evening and I would do it again in a heartbeat! If you have the opportunity to see David Sedaris you should, but at the very least please pick up one of his books...my favorite is Me Talk Pretty One Day. I soon leave for Augusta, Georiga to see TJ and other friends and food, so I will update you on that next week.
Auf Wiedersehen!

KC Girls Trip

2009-10-14T21:09:00.000-07:00

Each year I look forward to the amazing few days that my 4 best friends from high school and I get to share together. For the last seven years we have been to different destinations enjoying the company of eachother on our annual girls trip. This year the destination was Kansas City and it was fabulous! I would like to think it is especially exciting for me (although all of us probably think this) as living in Germany has its share of girlfriend limitations. For example it is a rare occassion that I find myself without my husband and instead out with 4 bright, intelligent, beautiful, and very fun (not to mention English-speaking) women for drinks on a given night no matter the occassion!
The trip itself was low-key as we spent a lot of time shopping and gabbing at restaurants, with the special highlights being a night out at Howl at the Moon, and a private showing of Couples Retreat in a VIP screening room complete with recliners and alcoholic beverages. I think it speaks greatly that of all the trips I have taken in the last year, the one that means the most to me is 5 days I spent KC with my best friends...I love them (although the south of France is a close second)! I mean just look at us...

I can't wait for next year!!! We are thinking warmer and all-inclusive as KC was unseasonably cold this year...of course. Thanks girls, for another amazing trip!

Auf Wiedersehen!

A Weekend in Iowa City

2009-10-08T09:28:00.000-07:00

After about a million hours waiting on United Airlines to get their crap together and transport me to Iowa...I made it a day and a few hours later. It was perfect timing as my best friend, Laura, and her boyfriend came back to Iowa as well for his first visit. It was so fun on Thursday night and Friday for Laura, Rebecca, and I to get together and catch up a bit...and even more fun to make the trip to Iowa City with Laura and Scott on Saturday. A fall trip back to Iowa would have not been complete for either of us without and early morning tailgate and a Iowa Hawkeye Football game! And it was cold- I swear it felt like a November game! Laura and I, as well as other tailgating friends bundled up for the occassion!

It was Laura's boyfriend, Scott, who had his first Iowa tailgating experience as he is a Washington alum (boo-hiss). He was a good sport and purchased some Hawkeye attire and joined the festivities like an old pro!

After about 4 hours of good, clean tailgating we made the journey to the stadium...complete with bathroom break about half way there! The rest of us waited patiently...

Go Hawks! They played Arkansas State- and we made it to the stadium for pre-game for Scott to get the full experience.

We won, but the game sucked so we were ready for an old fashioned night out in Iowa City with college friends Jill, Joanne, and Andrew. First stop...MICKEY"S!!! Lore and I miss the best sandwich ever, the conglomeration! Here we are in our old routine!

After dinner we started a mini bar crawl that included Brother's, Martini's, The Union, and Bo James. Here is a snap of the girls at Tini's...

It was a good time and I hope for something similar next year, minus the mean hangover the next day! This weekend brings my annual girls trip- which is always my favorite trip of the year!!! We are leaving for Kansas City tomorrow and I can't wait! More details next week.

Auf Wiedersehen!

Oktoberfest 2009

2009-10-02T06:09:00.000-07:00

Oktoberfest this year was just as good as last year...but very different too. We did different things outside of the tent, were with different people, but of course drank the same beer...and lots of it! TJ and the boys headed down to Munich via train early Friday morning while Steph and I waited for UPS to arrive with Kremer's lederhosen and then headed down about 1:00 pm. We were certainly tardy to the party as TJ was already three sheets and taking a nap...so Kremer, myself, and Steph got dressed and headed down to Theresianpark where the festivities were taking place. This is us with our road beers entering the park in our garb for the first time!

We quickly found the rest of the gang at the carousel bar, which quickly became home base for our crew. It was a carousel...but where the horses where supposed to be there was a huge bar instead. Needless to say we liked it there a lot and they made a ton of money off us! Here we are at our Table on Friday with a random called "the braid". You can see Steph in the sea of hosen!

Later that night...another random in a pink hat with Tommy, Spain, and Steph...

Some of us went home at a decent hour while others stayed out until all hours. Spain, Kremer, and Steph were struggling the next morning. All but Kremer made it to the tent...and its too bad because it is really fun in there! Just us and 8500 of our closest pals...

There was prosting and singing...

Consumption and double vision...

And complete and utter joy with more prosting and singing!

In the next picture Jim is wearing a heart around his neck with a picture of himself, Tommy, and TJ in it. At mst festivals it is common for girls to wear the gingerbread version of these that have a message on them like "Ich liebe dich" or "I love you". His said Oktoberfest and he wore it the whole day! So fun.

The tent was fun and we ended back at the carousel bar. This one sums it up!

If you haven't been you need to go...and if you don't have the time of your life you might suck. So until next year...perhaps...Auf Wiedersehen!

Madrid, Spain

2009-09-28T07:36:00.000-07:00

Steph and I had made plans for an excursion to Spain while she was here for after TJ's friends arrived so that they could have the car and travel about while TJ was at work. So Tuesday we headed out for the few days before Oktoberfest. We had been going and going and going so this trip was a welcomed time of ease and relaxation complete with sangria. Here is a peak at a portion of Madrid.

I had never been there before so I found a newly renovated hotel that looked neat on the Gran Via near the El Sol part of town. Our room was awesome and the view from the balcony was great although the night creatures were a little creepy in the neighborhood our first night. We stayed at the Regente Hotel. Our room was the one on the corner with the wrap around railing...pretty nice.

And these were the street views from one of our two awesome balconies...

I don't think I would recommend the location, but the hotel was really nice. We took a hop-on, hop-off bus tour through the city to get used to the areas of the city and see some sights. Here are a few highlights.

Neptune's Fountain:

The Ministry of Agriculture (but I mostly just like the gorgeous statues on top):

One of Madrid's many gates...love the the detail:

Alumudena Cathedral, near the palace:

The Royal palace of Madrid (courtyard view):

And its offical entrance that was guarded by very decorated soldiers , but when we went back we didn't see them. The palace is only used for special events and ceremonies as the royal family does not live there.

The FC Real Madrid Futball Stadium:

Those were just a few of the sites as there were many more. The coolest thing about the city would be the architecture and the energy. There are always people out all the time! Another interesting thing we found was the advertising the city is doing to compete for the 2016 Olympics. They have signs up all over with their choice for the Olympic logo and TV commericals too. They really want it! There was also a TON of construction everywhere and I think they are already preparing the city if they get the bid. We will see...here is one of the signs.

I loved the weather while we were there and the fresh warm air was certainly welcomed. We dressed in dresses and added cardigans at night...Not so much in Germany! Here we are on the balcony before our night of tapas and sangria!

We didn't have the best luck with our food...but we found a little street with a hole in the wall tiny restaurant that was pretty good and I liked the sangria quite a bit. Here is Steph enjoying hers!

It was a short trip, but a great experience! Tomorrow I tackle our ridiculous weekend in Munich for Oktoberfest...and yes it was even better than last year!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Strasbourg and Jakob's

2009-09-25T01:40:00.000-07:00

On Monday Steph and I decided to take a short road trip to Strasbourg, France so that she could experience a little bit of the culture and we could also have a great lunch...which we did! We walked the streets of the old city and toured the Notre Dame Cathedral there...very pretty! Here is a look at Petite France which is a neighborhood in the old part of the city.

Then we made way to the beautiful cathedral...it is so impressive! Outside...

And inside too!

We had to be back by three, so that I could pick up the boys arriving from the US, so it was a short trip...but the fun didn't stop there. After some beer and a pan and a half of lasagna later we headed to our small village's downtown area for some good time's at Jakob's Biergarten. I didn't plan on having such a great time, but Jakob and his Frau spoiled us and we all felt it the next day. Our first Prost...

On our way home the boys were true to form picking on each other...complete with wrestling. I am so happy that TJ had his buddies to hang with, it was just like old times! Pictured below are the boys...Adam, Jim, Tommy, and Nick!

Good times had by all! Auf Wiedersehen!

WurstMarkt...Nope Best Market!

2009-09-22T06:27:00.000-07:00

I know I am behind in my blogs, but blogger was not uploading for some reason and then I spent the last few days in Spain with Steph...but last Saturday we took her to the Bad Durkheim WurstMarkt (Wine Festival) and of course had a very good time. We wenr with some of our German friends which made it even better, and they were so excited that Steph was enjoying her time here. It was really cute! We decided that we had better take before wine pictures for good measure so here they are...

We made TJ and Konrad do the same thing! We did the thing where we got street food and wine and then all but Jens, myself, and Steph hit some rides as we then became wine and coat holders...here is one of the rides.

Shortly there after we entered a tent with a bad and found a large table and dancing space to accommodate the group. Here is our table with some of the group!

And then a look later at night of the whole tent when everyone began dancing on tables.

We didn't get on any tables, but it didn't stop us from dancing!

And consuming ridiculous amounts of wine!

It was a blast and some good training for Oktoberfest this weekend. When we left the tent the party really must have started as this is what we were welcomed to...crazy crowds.

This festival has been coined as the largest in the world...I am not completely sure that this is true, but I kind of believe it! So much fun...and we had even more since then! More on that later.

Auf Wiedersehen!

Friday Night at the Disco

2009-09-20T14:06:00.000-07:00

Friday night TJ and I took Steph out for a night on the town in Mannheim. It was super fun! We started out at a place called Stars that offers a birds eye view of the city...and then moved on to a "club" called Baton Rouge. Before we headed over there TJ made us take a Senior-esque picture on the Parade Platz. Funny, huh?

Once we got to the club we took to the dance floor almost immediately. And thank God TJ was there to capture us tearing it up the entire night! We were just getting warmed up here...

Catching the beat...

Then we moved into novelty dancing...the sprinkler, cabbage patch, and of course the seahorse *please note Steph on the left side laughing with her head thrown back!

And we ended with a fashion show featuring newly purchased 80's boots...they are so faboosh!

It was sooooo much fun...so much that we didn't get home until 4:30 am! I haven't had that bedtime in years...like circa my college years!

Saturday started late and took us late once again...more on that tomorrow!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Flashback to 1989

2009-09-19T08:01:00.000-07:00

Steph and I have been friends since we were something like 8 years old. We spent many a days and nights together at eachother's homes glamming ourselves up with the latest hairstyles and fashion. Little has changed over the years. Last night before we went out we did our hair and make-up in my closet using a full-length mirror leaned against the wall like we had so many times before. The only things missing were the krimper and the Aqua Net!

This one goes out to our Moms...this one is for you, Penni and Julie. Enjoy!!!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Windeck, Heiligenberg, Triberg, Dachau, and Neuschwanstein

2009-09-18T01:25:00.000-07:00

Steph and I hae been having so much fun together and have been on the go since she arrived that I have failed to keep everyone updated on our latest happenings. This might be the longest post ever because we have done a lot, but the read is worth it...at least I think. The first day she arrived she had a bit of jet lag so we hung at the house and then went shopping in Mannheim for a dirndl for her in Mannheim. We saw some great ones and she was able to try some on and get a good fit...but they were so expensive! So she ordered one online for nearly half the price thank goodness!
TJ had some friends coming in on Tuesday so Steph and I stayed in the area and did the Weinheim thing. We went int the altstadt like I did with my Mom to the Tanner's Quarter and then headed up to other castle ruins, Windeck Castle. Here is what that looked like from the altstadt.

We made it up to the ruins and Steph was able to get a good pic with the view.

The castle was built around 1100 to protect the Lorsch Monestary...and it was badly damaged in 1674 by Louis XIV. Inside the ruins (that are barely there) lies an operating restaurant. It would be awesome to rent the place out and have a party there with the cool ruins all around and the view...cool place. Here are some snaps of the ruins.

There is one lookout tower that still exists with beautiful views. This is from one of the windows of Wachenburg Castle...the one I took my Mom to only weeks ago.

After touring the castle we headed home to get TJ, Adam, and Angie to take a quick view of some sights in Heidelberg. Angie and Adam had arrived from Chicago and would only be with us overnight so we wanted to show them one of our favorite towns! We first drove up to the Heiligenberg to the lookout tower, Thingstaette, and the Monestary. The tower is old and tall and skinny...but worth the climb for the best view!

Like this one...and a really good photo of Steph and I with Heidelberg Castle in the background!

And these are the first wave of Chicago friends coming ultimately for Oktoberfest...Adam and Angie.

We headed to Thingstaette (an ampitheatre built by the Nazi party in the 30's to push propaganda and hold rallies. Hitler and the 3rd Reich has gathered here.) Davis ran the stairs like Rocky, but in a cubs hat!

And here is Steph at the top!

Just over the hill is the ruins of St. Michael. The monestary was build in the 11th century, and the ruins that still exist are really cool. On German Sundays people have picnics up here in the old rooms that are now simply greenspace. Steph and I climbed up the higher turret and the boys only climbed the little one. Don't they look cool?

But we got a better photo of the monestary's footprint. I love the tree in the middle!

We ran up to Heidelberg Castle for a minute, but couldn't stay because they were closing and setting up for an event (Steph and I will be back to visit later)...so it was off to dinner at the Bier Brezel (Beer Pretzel) for good eats and drinking beer out of a horns. Here is our crew!

The last stop that night was the old foot bridge over the Neckar to catch a glimpse of the castle at night. Here she is...

Oh, and then Steph kissed a baboon!

Wednesday we went to the Schwarzwald (Black Forest) to the little town of Triberg to visit Germany's highest waterfall. It was so pretty! Here are some snaps but they do not so it justice!

And then a great view of the Black Forest from one of the trails...

Another good one!

And I made a friend along the way! Tut would have loved to bite this one!

Triberg is also known as the cuckoo clock capital of the world! And it has the largest cuckoo clock in the world...here is part of it with Steph underneath.

Thursday was quite a big day for us...it started at 7:30 in the morning and we didn't get back until 10:30 pm. We went all over Bavaria to get to Dachau and then Schwangau to see some very cool things. Our first stop was Dachau Concentration Camp. There are many camps all over Germany, but this one is sort of important because it was the first one and it was the camp that all other camps were designed after. Like Sachsenhausen (the first one I went to) it was very sobering...but far busier. We took only a few pictures as some of the areas- we were a little caught up in the experience...but here are a few.

This is the large memorial to the prisoners that lived and died here.

And look at the camp prison bunkers.

The Jewish memorial. It was really amazing and a bit emotional.

A view of the prisoner barracks. There are only two left as the US Forces tore down the others after the liberation. The rock wells in the foreground represent the barracks that once existed there.

We also visited the cremetorium as well, but it seemed almost disrespectful to take pictures of the still intact building. But we did walk through the gas chamber room and the corpse area and them into where the ovens still exist. Very sad and very emotional.

So following this darker sightseeing experience we decided to head south to the German Alps to the castle of Ludwig II Neuschwanstein, or probably better known as Cinderella's Castle if you have been to Disney World. And you can see it like a mile away...

And some a closer look...

And the view from the castle was awesome! It was actually made better by the questionable weather...the clouds were awesome at times we were in them.

And more views...

And this is what is surrounding the castle ...mostly rocky alps and tons of beautiful waterfalls. It really sucks and hurts your eyes...its like the ugliest sight you have ever seen. Just kidding- its awesome!

It was a long day, but a fantastic one! Then yesterday we had a low key day in Heidelberg shopping and eating a fabulous cafes. Then rounded the night out by staying out until 4:30 in the morning. So much fun and more on that later!

Auf Wiedersehen!

WurstMarkt, Part One

2009-09-13T23:24:00.001-07:00

This weekend wasn't as eventful as last, but it was fun nonetheless. Friday I had a very busy day with friends, and then we took the train out to Bad Durkheim for the WurstMarkt. It is better known as the largest wine festival in the world. It goes on for two weeks and attracts thousands of people. And they know how to do it as it has been going on for over 400 years. We spent part of the night in the smaller wine tents, but most of it in a large tent with a band. Here are a few looks at that atmosphere...

You order wine by the 1/2 liter with the option to make it a schorle. A schorle is a glass that has some sweet water mixed in to water it down. It is very fun and the wine is delicious. TJ lost last year to the wine, and this year still lost...but it took longer. We went with my good friend Karen, and some other ex-pats that she knows from Heidelberg. These are the ex-pats that we became fast friends with:

This was their first festival and I think it was a success...they loved it! The trip out to this festival is very long by tram, but well worth it. We had so much fun that it took the rest of the weekend to recover. This was our pre-party for the upcoming weekend when we take Steph, one of my oldest friends from grade school. She just made it in this morning and I look forward to showing her the area...and showing you as well!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Crazy Busy Weekend

2009-09-09T11:04:00.001-07:00

TJ and I don't really go out and party as much as we used to in the States as the bar atmosphere is very different and we tend to travel more or go to festivals, but this weekend we went a little nuts. This is one of three weekends we will have alone together and be here in Mannheim until the middle of December so we decided to live it up! It started Thursday night with pre-dinner and drinks with fellow American friends Karen and Meredith at Billy Blues in Heidelberg. A really good band plays there on the first Thursday of each month called, The Wright Stuff. Although they sucked last Thursday so we rounded out the night in another favorite watering hole called The Dubliner.
Saturday night we had a dinner date with our friends Darren and Kristi as it marked her last night out in Mannheim since they are both returning to Iowa with the company. It was really fun! Dinner at Milano was delicious and so were the two bottles of wine! We later found ourselves at The Ivy for drinks...and they were not for the faint-hearted! That bartender did me proud that night and then not so much the next day. Here are the four of us for the last time in Mannheim...

So basically I was still hung over on Saturday night which also the night of Konrad's 30th birthday party. It was then TJ's very lucky night as it won him a designated driver! It was a good time and I was reunited with some German's that I hadn't seen in a while...along with new acquaintances like a Berlin area gym owner. Poor guy got the whole "...Les Mills programs are best fitness programs ever and you are crazy for not having them" speech. It was a good party, but apparently we were very late. I guess the party beginning at 7:00 meant that we were to be there at that time as they were serving dinner. Who knew? Clearly not us. Any way here are TJ, myself, and the Birthday Boy!

The weekend was a hit, but not at all restful. I guess at 31 it takes a lot out of a person to have fun for three days and nights straight! The fun will continue on Friday night as some of us are heading to the Bad Durkheim Wurstmarkt. Its over two weeks long and is better known as the largest wine festival in the world. Other than that we are preparing for our friends to arrive as well as preparing the DVR for the new season of shows. More on all of that later!
Auf Wiedersehen!

Happy Blog-iversary!

2009-09-07T01:18:00.000-07:00

Today marks one whole year of blogging about our experiences during this ex-pat assignment! We have visited over 35 cities in 12 countries, met fantastic new friends, and have been exposed to an entire continent full of new experiences! It is absolutely true that we are loving our time here and look foward to the next year, which of course might be our last here. Through our experiences I have found out some interesting things about myself...like how German I really am. For example, out of all the places I have visited I think that Germany is the best place in Europe for me to live. Its clean, safe, interesting, energy efficient (actually efficient in most every way), and the people are straight forward but genuinely nice and helpful. The langauge is extremely difficult, but anyone who knows little more than the basics can easily get by with day to day activities. It has just been great living here, but thank God for technology or I would really miss the US! What did ex-pats do before the internet? Our US phone, email, social networking, and television are through the net. If I had to watch German TV, not have access to email, and not be able to talk to friends and family whenever I want...I am sure I would not love it as much as I do!
Aside from Germany, I have also fell in love with many places and look forward to the places I plan to fall in love with this next year too. So far my top five favorite places have been Rome, Berlin, Nice & Cannes (or anywhere along the French Riviera), Stockholm, and Amsterdam. All for completely different reasons. Rome and Berlin for the shear history that encompasses those places, Amsterdam for the culture and livability, Stockholm for the beauty, people and architecture, and the French Riviera because I could die there! It might be my favorite spot yet.
This next year I look forward to visiting Madrid this month with one of my oldest friends, hitting the two biggies of Paris and London, and most of all visiting the one place I have always wanted to go...Greece. The biggest difference for this year might be the volume of visitors we are expecting. This year we had a couple in April and my Mom last month. We will have 7 visit by months end, more in November and many more after the first of the year! I couldn't be happier and look forward to everyone's visit! And as always you can count on my recap of each experience right here on Move Over Heidi!
Auf Wiedersehen!

German Polterabend

2009-09-04T06:01:00.001-07:00

Last Saturday we drove up to the Trier area with some of TJ's co-workers to attend a Polterabend. Its a German tradition to have an informal reception before the bride and groom marry to celebrate the wedding itself. Here in Germany it is not common for a lot of people to attend the actual wedding and dinner that follows, so this is a good way to make sure that all friends and family...and actually anyone that wants to celebrate can. Last weekend we went to Trittenheim to Iris' Family's Winery to celebrate and it was a lot of fun. Here are Natalie, myself, and Yvonne before the Polterabend on our hotel balcony. Notice the surrounding vineyards...so pretty!

Soon after this picture we headed over to the Eifel Winery, just four blocks away to celebrate.

They served three kinds of wine...a trocken (dry) and a lieblich (lovely or sweet), and then another one not pictured that was in the middle of these...

When we arrived the courtyard was decorated and the wine and beer was flowing, along with many finger foods prepared by Iris' Family. Here is a shot of the courtyard.

The look on may face can easily be explained by one of the customs of this evening...the breaking of porcelain. It was done as you enter and people brought everything from plates to wash basins to old toilets to break. The broken schards represent the hard times they will experience, and then they have to clean it up together then symbolizing teamwork with in a marriage. The schards the better as to bring them luck. TJ and I participated by breaking plates. In the picture above I was watching a toilet being dropped by a John Deere tractor on the cobblestones. Here is a shot of the beginning of the night with the schards in the background.

And the some friends of Iris and Jens thought it would be funny to cover the street in wood chips to create more work for them...

And four loads later this is what the street looked like!

It was really fun...so fun TJ stayed out until 4 am with his co-workers celebrating! Just another interesting experience in Deutschland!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Heidelberg and Two Farewells

2009-09-02T09:38:00.001-07:00

The Heidelberg area is so awesome and has so many cool sites that we split the area into two days for my Mom. I think I have said before that this is my most favorite place in all of Germany, and it is still true.
On Friday, we went to the Heiligenberg (Holy Mountain) across the river from the old city of Heidelberg to catch an few sites and walk throught the forest a bit. The best view of Heidelberg is from and old tower at the top of the Heiligenberg. Its perfect...you can see the castle and the old city underneath it.

Just up the hill from the tower lies Thingstaette, an ampitheatre built by the Nazi Party in the 30's as a gathering place. Hilter was here along with 20,000 of his supporters at one time. My Mom is sitting at the top and the theatre stage is at the bottom.

And just beyond that is a very old Monestary...well the ruins of an old one called St. Michael's.

After cruising through these places we decided to take Tutter for a short walk through the woods. The forest area is called the Neckartal-Odenwald area and s so beautiful. This also happens to be one of Tut and my favorite hiking areas. This is one of the paths...

We headed back home as the heat set in, but then returned with TJ on Sunday afternoon to visit Heidelberg Castle and the Altstadt. I was so proud of my Mom for hiking up the main path to the castle as it is very steep! Here we are and you can see some of the path behind us.

Once you get up there this is what you can see...

The castle was built sometime in the 1100's and then was occupied and attacked by many through the years.

You can really tell how old it is after you move through the main gate and can see the stones on the walls and ceilings.

Once we got inside TJ took our photo with the castle gardens behind us. This is easily the best picture of us from the trip!

The castle itself is a ruin...but some of it is more in ruin than the rest. Like this wall. Clearly it used to have 3 other walls and a ceiling, but I am so glad it doesn't any more. So pretty!

And another. This was one of the newer wings built for the wife of one of the electors...it didn't last long with the castle being attacked so many times!

A fire broke out in the castle at one point and reached the armory...and this was the result.

After the castle we walked the streets of the old city...this is a peak!

Then we browsed through Kathe Wolfahrt and TJ treated us to dinner at Supan's, one of our favorite Thai restaurants in town. It was a lovely afternoon!

Monday and Tuesday we hung out here and ran errands as my Mom wanted to spend her last few days just hanging out. And then all too quickly this morning arrived and I drove her and my darling puppy to the airport to head to the US. I am so thankful that it worked out with her coming and being able to accompany Tut back to the States for a vacation with Grandma and Grandpa. Of course I will be there as well in a month for my US trip so I won't be able to miss them for too long!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Ancestral Homeland

2009-09-01T01:36:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday I drove my Mom up to her ancestral homeland of Luxembourg. The last time I went I thought I was going to the town where her family originated...but it wasn't the right place so we decided to try again and headed for Trintange and then Luxembourg City.

I took the wrong exit when we first go there and it was a happy mistake as we came upon the Mosel River and the wine country that surrounds it. Here is Julie in her familie's "old country".

Shortly (like 5 minutes) later we found Trintange which is significantly larger then Ernster, the town I thought previously to be where the Ernster's originated. It still was small, but consisted of more than just two streets.

We found the only cemetary and started looking for some Ernster's, then realizing that the family probably couldn't afford the price for burial near the church...so we didn't see any Ernster gravestones, but it still was very pretty!

It took less than 15 minutes to get from Trintange to the big and only city in Luxembourg to walk around and sight see a bit. First we had lunch on the market and then we were off to see things and snap pictures. Last October, TJ and I went and in the blog archives you can see some more photos, but here are some highlights...

A really old bridge. The Quad Cities should definitely consult with this city as this bridge has been around since the 11th century. Not only has it lasted a long time, but it is much prettier than the ones about to fall down over the Mississippi!

And the original gate to the city still stands. The houses on the road up to it used to be where the peasants lived...and now its nearly impossible to be able to afford any of the row of houses.

St. Michael's church is another one of the popular sights just inside the gate.

We also walked through the shopping district and found some cute shops! We also grabbed some refreshments...and of course Tut was not to be left out when it came to ice cream!!

It was once again a great day with my Mom and Tut. Over the weekend we took some time to enjoy Heidelberg and I will have more on that later!

Auf Wiedersehen!

The Bodensee

2009-08-28T00:12:00.000-07:00

After Zurich, we traveled to our next hotel in Rorschacherberg, Switzerland. It sits on a hill overlooking the Bodensee, also called Lake Konstanz. The Bodensee is nestled between Germany, Austria, and Switzerland and is absolutely enormous and beautiful. Our hotel was so cute and charming! Its called the Rebstock...the rooms were huge and very clean offereing ridiculous views of the lake and hillside. Here is a look at the front!

And we had the best view from our terrace!

It was so charming that the hotel came complete with neighbors that had natural lawnmowers. The sheep even had bells around their necks...so cute. Tut wanted to catch one so bad!

And the hillside was beautiful. We were near the Alps, but not in sight of them due to the haze, although you could see the outline of them the day we left. We also had the best weather while we were there!

Both afternoons we were there we made our way down to the seaside for late lunches. Here was one of our views the second day...

I cannot count how many times we wished my Dad were here to experience this place. He love the water and boating and would have thoroughly enjoyed himself! I could just picture a sailboat for him right here in this marina!

Of course my Mom and I weren't the only ones who enjoyed our trip...Tut Anthony had a great time too! He went almost everywhere with us and behaved quite well too. Here he is watching the ducks in the lake with me. What a baby!

If you want a nice relaxing Swiss vacation I highly recommend the Rorschach and Rorschacherberg area near the Bodensee. It was lovely!

Yesterday I took my Mom to her ancestral homeland of Luxembourg. It was a fun day for both of us...more on that later!

Auf Wiedersehen!

More Switzerland: St. Gallen

2009-08-27T12:03:00.001-07:00

When my Mom decided to make the trip back in July, I had asked her where she had really wanted to visit while she was here as I wanted to make a short trip out of a place different from here. She chose St. Gallen, Switzerland because of the historic monestary and its ancient, but well preserved library. We ultimately didn't stay in St. Gallen, but enjoyed its cuteness and history on our visit there. Like most European cities there is an area of the entire city that is called the "old city" and that is where all of the good stuff is! Here is a look at one of the main pedestrian streets.

And the really cute apartments that hover over the shops and restaurants in the area...

At the edge of the old city we came upon a really pretty fountain, although there were a couple of others in the old part as well.

And more super cuteness...

We saw a lot of decorated windows, with hand painted murals and carved out details. I haven't seen much of this where I have previously been so I thought it was adorable, especially in a town like this one.
The monestary probably draws the biggest crowd as it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It has a really beautiful church on its grounds as well as a really old and preserved library called the Stiftsbibliotek. It is quite an amazing place and now serves as part of the university. Unfortunately, no pictures were allowed to be taken in the library, but it was very cool. This is a statue of the guy who founded the Abbey, St. Othmar.

The church is huge and very beautiful on the outside...

...and just as impressive inside too!

It was cute, but I am glad we didn't stay there as it gave us a chance to discover another area in Switzerland called Rorschacherberg near the Bodensee/Lake Konstanz. More on that later!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Zurich, Switzerland: An Overnighter

2009-08-25T00:50:00.000-07:00

We were supposed to leave for Switzerland on Saturday, but decided at the last minute to add a night in Zurich to our trip and ended up leaving on Friday so my Mom could attend the city's flea market on Saturday morning. It was a great decision for me as I have never been there and it turned out to be a pretty cool city. I will be sure to take TJ there another time. Zurich, for the most part, is nestled around Lake Zurich where boaters and sailors can be right on the water and the rest of us can admire it. A small portion of the city is the old city where shops, restaurants, and bars are plentiful. There architecture was also very cool..and like many other European cities, was very clean. Julie snapped more great photos here!
Here is part of the city with the hills behind it...

Some canal/street views.

A very old protestant church in the old city.

And a part of the new city.

I am sure TJ and I will spend more time there as well, so maybe there will be more posts in the future. The next day we went to our hotel near the Bodensee which was so cute...so more on that tomorrow!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Weinheim, Germany with Julie

2009-08-24T05:42:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday I took Mom to Weinheim for some German charm. Weinheim is a very nice town as a whole, but the Tanner's Quarter is quite something and you really feel like you are in and old German town the whole time you are there. We went early in the morning to avoid rising afternoon temperatures as it hit almost 96 degrees. Yep, it was a hot one. Here is a look at only some of the pictures taken in the Tanner's Quarter...

Isn't it cute? I love how even though they don't have yards they still manage to have beautiful flowers and plants to decorate the property.

After we wandered through taking pictures we sat for coffee at a small cafe right in the heart of the old city. It was very nice and even Tut maintained a decent behavior while we were there.

Drinking coffee is one of my Mom's favorite passtimes, so it was so fitting we snapped one of her at the cafe!

After our short break in sightseeing, we headed up the Bergstrasse to visit the Wachenburg Castle and its fabulous views of the area. Here are a few highlights...

It was another fun day for sure. Friday, as well as the rest of the weekend, was spent in Switzerland...more on that later! For more Julie's photos you can visit her Flickr site at http://www.flickr.com/ and search "Jewellia1".

Auf Wiedersehen!

Mom's First Day Out

2009-08-20T09:46:00.000-07:00

My Mom arrived safely in Frankfurt at 5:45 Tuesday morning and had a decent case of jet-lag, although her trip seemed to go well. Her first day here was quite uneventful as she needed to get on schedule, but on Wednesday we got up early and hit up the Schloss Schwetzingen Gardens. The gardens were designed in a French style by several architects for two different electors in the 17 and 1800's. There are simply beautiful! And I find it sort of special that on my second day of living here I visited them for the first time and now on my Mom's second day in Deutschland she also visited them. She took really great pictures and enjoyed making her way through the different gardens with Tut and I along side. We often spoke of those that would love the gardens...my Dad and Rita to name a few. She took really great photos with her camera...here a just a few snaps of the 178 that she took.

As you walk in there is a long aisle of flowers, trees, and fountains...
More garden views...

I really don't care for birds in the least, but this guy and many of his friends occupy the gardens and we thought they were kind of funny.

Hidden in the back is an old ruin of a watermill with a really cute brook.

And a gazebo too.

And a closer look at the ruin...I think it is really cool.

In the gardens there is an on-site mosque that is quite something, with its own gardens.

And here is a garden view of the site.

The interior of the mosque is really amazing as well!

Tut couldn't go inside the mosque so we hung out and wait for my Mom outside. This also happens to be the site where a Korean tourist asked me to carry (hold) my dog and pose for a photo...and then not long after I was approached by a crazy German lady who wanted to know my thoughts on the end of the world. Thats what you get for minding your own business hanging out in front of a mosque like this!

We had a really nice morning and then it reached about 90+ degrees out (FYI, no AC here) and took refuge at my house out of the sun. We ended the day at a small cafe in Ladenburg with coffee and a late meal. It was a great day!!

Today we went to Weinheim to see some German cuteness and I will post on that tomorrow. Until then, Auf Wiedersehen!

Mary Kay Porsche?!

2009-08-17T02:08:00.000-07:00

Its not outof the ordinary to see a lot of Porsches here as it is a German car and a fair amount of people drive them...and even park them on the street. But Saturday night (Sunday morning) on our way home from a very fun girls night we came upon the most unique Porsche yet...

Being that all three of us are Americans, we immediately screamed "Mary Kay!" upon seeing this light pink Porsche complete with racing stripe. Isn't she a beauty? If its not a Mary Kay then it must be Racer Girl Barbie's! I couldn't resist a photo, so Meredith and Karen obliged! I personally love that someone parked this little girl about a foot and half away from the curb and into the street in the city center. The things we admire here!
Auf Wiedersehen!

Knokke-Heist, Belgium

2009-08-14T04:41:00.000-07:00

On our way home we decided to drive 25 minutes north to one of the Belgian beaches. Something about a beach...if I am near one I must go! Anyway, its located on the North Sea near the English Channel. It was a really pretty day and we enjoyed checking things out and walking along side the beach. We had Tut with us and in high season dogs aren't allowed on the beach so we didn't go down to the ocean, which is too bad since Tut loves it so much. The beach was huge and there were many different areas as you made your way from the boardwalk to the water. First were the restaurants, then the rental sheds. Some people were grabbing chairs out of the shed and laying them right out in front of it...not even lookingat the sea. I thought that was strange!

It was a ways from the sheds until you hit the water front too. There was a marina for sailboats, and a giant port in the distance with a ferry that will take you and your car to England if you choose.

This is where spent most of our time...walking along the boardwalk eating our waffles for the last time!

TJ made the long trek down towards the waters edge while the little boy and I waited patiently. It took forever to get down there and get back though. Here is a closer look at the beach!

We weren't there long, but enjoyed it all the same! If we had more time I would have liked to stay there for at least a night or two as the beach and the area were very nice.

Auf Wiedersehen!

A Pleasant Belgian Surprise

2009-08-13T05:28:00.000-07:00

Probably the most unexpected surprises in Belgium was how fantastic the food was. Sure, we figured that the beer would be good as some of our favorites brews are Belgian, but who knew the food would be this good? We have a friend in Augusta that used to live quite close to Brugge and made sure to tell us to try the local fries and beer, but still all the other edible things in this town were good too! My favorite...Belgian Waffles. My favorite are the ones with fresh strawberries, where TJ and Tut preferred the nutella and whipped creme waffle.

They are good for breakfast, dessert, and if you are TJ a good snack in the middle of the day! also liked them because you could walk with them.

I also didn't realize how popular seafood is in Brugge, especially the mussels as they were advertised at nearly every restaurant. Apparently there are several different ways to make them and clearly there is no shortage for them as TJ and I both received larged steamy pots of them. They were soooo good! And they also came with fries as a side...also very good.

The beer was quite wonderful too. We bar hopped a bit the first night we were there trying a new beer at each place. TJ is enjoying a dark Palm at the second place we went too, but I prefer the Bruges Blond.

Then we arrived at a place that has too many choices where beer is concerned. I was completely overwhelmed...but had we been thinking we would have tried a fruit beer. After we returned everyone mentioned we should have tried one and sadly we didn't...guess we will have to go back! This was the bar...I liked it and the atmosphere was perfect!

We continued to eat and drink our way through the next day, not leaving out the famous Belgian chocolates (which are divine and a complete sin) and looked forward to our evening meal. We ate at a French restaurant and for me this meant cheese and chocolate mousse, and for TJ it meant a three course lobster meal...and chocolate mousse! He had so many utensils and an interesting looking tool.

I hate to say that we ate and drank our way though Brugge, because we really didn't, but we could have and would have thoroughly enjoyed it!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Back to Belgium

2009-08-12T00:18:00.000-07:00

We woke up on Saturday to a lot of noise and people on the street outside our hotel room, so I took Tut out that morning to check things out and found that a huge weekend market was being set up. We are no strangers to the markets as most cities have regular ones, but this one simply blew me away. It not only covered the huge t'Zand, but went down the street next to our hotel and connected to yet another square. It was huge! And it wasn't a run-of-the-mill farmer's market either...it had everything you could imagine.
People had mic-packs on giving demonstrations about what they were selling, and allowing to people to try their product out before purchasing...like this guy.

The eggs in the farmer's market area came straight from the chickens themselves....I mean talk about fresh! And these same chickens an other small livestock were for sale as well. (As you can imagine Tut was going nuts).

Then in another part of the market were mobile shops. Some of these included fresh cheeses, salads, and meats...and others were filled with prepared food like roasted chickens, pasteries, and wurst. And people wanted everything...it was packed! All of these people were waiting for fresh roasted chicken.

Clothing was another big item with vendors taking up half the market. And then there was my favorite...a kiosk devoted to tuning up bicycles, and the line was outrageous!
Clearly the dog was far to stimulated and a little crazy so we took him back and started our day wandering the city when we came upon yet another market along one of the canals. This one reminded me more of a flea market as people were selling things made or being resold...kind of like a really good garage sale.

We weren't sure how long it went on for, but at 4:30 as we made our way back to our hotel and our dog it appeared as though nothing had happened at all. The streets and the squares were completely empty and cleaned with out a scrap of what had happened earlier that day. That is certainly something I loved about Brugge (and Germany as well)...it is so clean! Another great day, and more to come!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Another One Down

2009-08-11T13:33:00.000-07:00

Today marked my 31st Birthday...at least in Germany and it was a pretty good day. I was planning on not doing anything at all with TJ in the States, but quickly changed my mind when I realized I love my birthday. I had decided since my my 30th birthday was spent on an international flight and that this one would be spent once again without TJ or the normal crew, that I would just spend the rest of my time here as a 29 year-old and then just have a big party and celebrate all of my birthdays when we again lived in the States. Essentially I would be 29 there and my chronologiacal age here. I am still going with that but had a fun day here any way. It started with a cup of coffee and moved on to a fabulous long workout. I had planned to take Tut on a hike...but Mother Nature had other ideas (rain again) so I caught up on the DVR instead. But the best part was a mexican dinner at Enchilada's with Hazel and Wilhelm. They are always fun to be around, and the margaritas made the day that much better! Thanks guys!!! It was a fun dinner if you can't tell...as I am flushed from the cocktails!

Auf Wiedersehen!

Brugge, Belgium

2009-08-10T02:32:00.001-07:00

Brugge is so cute...as if you couldn't tell that from the adorable home shown in the first picture. I had never heard of this special little town until we arrived here, which is strange since it was a title of a Colin Farrell movie (In Bruges). Any way we had always planned to visit Brussels thinking that was the best place to visit in Belgium, but were urged by some local Germans to skip Brussels and come straight here, so we did. TJ and I both decided that this trip was a pleasant surprise for many reasons. First, it might be the most accessible adorable city we have seen thus far. The streets are lined in cobblestone, horse drawn carriages are quite popular, the cafes are amazing, the canals are enchanting, and the sights (although few) are quite impressive. And we also loved it as it was a low-key and laid back trip, which is nice since TJ left this morning for the States...and it was easy enough to bring Tut instead of board him.
We took endless pictures...but here are a few to highlight how adorable and quaint this midevil city really is...

One of many canals.

A Brugge cobblestone street lined with beautiful old buildings, cafes, and eateries.

There are definitely more cute pictures to come, especially those taken in a fairytale-like park called Minnewaterpark. It was so enchanting...in fact I think it might be where Disney got the idea for the "kiss the girl" setting in The Little Mermaid. See...there are even swans!

The old monastery is the backdrop in this part of the park, complete with a cobblestone bridge over the canal to its entrance.

And down the canal a bit...the most perfect little church with an outdoor grotto.

Among the cute sights there are also important, but not cute ones like the Half Moon Brewery. For two beer drinkers like us...this sight is just as important!

Belgium brews many beers...many of them flavored with fruit and other flavors, but since we have been living in Germany the flavors we are used to are light or dark...or in Belgium...blond or bruin. This brewery makes a great blond!

In additions to the Half Moon's beer, they also have one of the best views in town!

Then there are more important sights that are well known for the area. The locals know the t'Zand quite well as the square displays a beautiful fountain and is also home to the weekly market (more on this later). This was also right outside of our hotel and a perfect location to stay!

The Church of Our Lady was one of my favorites as it is a giant church that is practically ancient but so cool. Not only does it have really amzing gothic architecture, but it also has life size stations of the cross, and one of Michelangelo's sculptures inside. They are renovating part of the outside so unfortunately some of it is covered by plastic.

And inside Michelangelo's Madonna and Child.

And part of the altar...there is another behind this one that is part of the church museum.

Probably the most popular sights are right on the main Market Square. These sights are featured in "In Bruges" and quite grand in terms of size and architecture.

The first is three buildings that look like one. These include the congress and the post, again very gothic and takes up and entire side of the square.

Two sides of the square are lined with cafes and restaurants, where outdoor seating is quite hard to find on a nice day!

In the center is a beautiful fountain and is also a parking lot for horse-drawn carriages. On the last side of the square is the Belfry and Halls, or the Bell Tower. There are halls below it, one of which was the sight for a Salvador Dali expo.

Here we are in the square's center.

Later that night we went out and caught some night pictures of the square...the Belfry...

And TJ in front of the post with the Belfry off the right.

Like I said, Brugge is a very special city and the people here are also special. Most speak three to four languages and are very friendly! I have more blogs planned on Brugge for the week as well as one on Knokke-Heist which is a beach area 20 minutes north of Brugge where the North Sea meets the English Channel. Until then, Auf Wiedersehen!

Schwimmenbad Bellamar

2009-08-06T02:02:00.000-07:00

It has been really beautiful lately here in Mannheim and since I have an unlimited amount of time on my hands I thought it might be fun to check out one of the local swimming pools. I chose the Schwetzingen one as it is the closest and a somewhat smaller community. I usually avoid public pools at all costs as I find them exhausting in more ways than one. To my knowledge they are loud not filthy but not clean places crawling with too many unsupervised children. And as an ex-Aquatics Director I also get very nervous about children drowning in front of me, which plagued me with nightmares for the year I was in that position, so I didn't know how I would feel about going here. It was very interesting.

As you can tell from the photo above it is pretty unsuspecting as that is what you see from the outside...but once inside it should be labeled water park rather than swimming pool. First of all there isn't A swimming pool, there are many indoor and outdoor pools with many features like water slides and diving boards, a sauna, a solarium for those who don't want to be near a pool, a park, several cafes and the list goes on. I first noticed that it was insanely clean which made me comfortable right off the bat as I walked through the locker room. Yep just one unisex room with dressing areas for each gender and showers for each gender. So I breeze through with my bathing suit and cover up on complete with bag of goodies...camera, magazines, book, IPod, etc. and then I head into the indoor area, through one of the cafes until I have reached one of the outdoor pools noticing that people are staring at me the whole way. Then I notice that these folks are only in swim attire with only towels no bags of goodies. Amatures, I am thinking? Nope. They actually use the facility for what it is for...swimming and cannot figure out what I am doing. Clearly I am not there to get wet and I can't go back in looking stupid. So I immediately park it at the first pool I arrive at in one of the many available sun chairs (available because everyone is in the water). I am sure I looked funny...but so did they in their speedos and swimming gear! What this did do was give me opportunity to watch and I did.

It was almost a phenomenon...the children were supervised by their guardians...and the guardians were in the water playing with there own kids. Certainly this is not Byrnes Park where absent parents drop off kids at the opening and pick them up at closing for cheap babysitting. Therefore there are no lifeguards. Simply not needed...its swim at your own risk although they do have a medical area for first aid and what not. And I saw many parents teaching their own kids to swim. Amazing! Now this is a place where I could again be the Aquatics Director as there would never be a staffing problem and a minimal chance of drowning with guardians being right there with the kids. The pools also aren't marked with depth or no diving, etc. signs because again no need! I wasn't even stressed or exhausted when I left. So its official I like German Schwimmenbads.

There was only one photo for obvious reasons...people already thought I was weird so I thought it best not to take photos for fear someone might approach me. So next week when TJ's in the States, you can find me at the Bellamar on nice days!

Auf Wiedersehen!

I Heart Good Friends

2009-08-05T02:21:00.000-07:00

Like this one.

This is my friend Hazel and she is officially my favorite person in Europe...well aside from TJ. I have posted about her before...we met in language school and she is now a German resident but originally came from Capetown, South Africa. Any way she has been a great friend the past months, but as of last Friday she became an excellent and extremely thoughtful friend. Why? She brought me a real Diet Coke back from her trip to California! That is all she did, but it might be the most wonderful thing anyone has done for me in recent memory. You see, Diet Coke is truly the only product I miss from the US. Everything else seems to have a sort of substitute...but not Diet Coke. They have this fake-out coke product called Coke Light and I do not appreciate it for it is a sad imitation. Any way it was so nice!
TJ was laughing at me when I went to consume it. I set aside some time where I could enjoy it. Saturday after our workouts and lunch I opened it and proceeded to drink it like a fine wine for the next hour. It was the best hour, and TJ mocked me for it! Its truly the little things in life that make me happy. Thanks Hazel!!!!
Auf Wiedersehen

Weekend Update

2009-08-03T02:52:00.000-07:00

It was a low key weekend for us...the calm before the storm...but we enjoyed it. After I spent the afternoon with my friend Hazel in Mannheim (where I got a smoking deal on a muted orange trench coat), TJ and I had a nice night in. We made mexican and watched "In Bruges" to precede our trip there this coming weekend...hopefully our trip is better than the movie.
Saturday was consumed with grocery shopping and gym time before we went to a BBQ that evening. It was fun because there have been new additions to our ex-pat group which is good as some have left back to the States or are leaving soon enough. We hung out in one couple's garden, grilled out, and got to know the newest arrivals. The best part was me finding out about a German paw park near the house we were at so Tut can run off leash. I probably won't try it until Tut comes back from the States and is used to running around off lead otherwise he might be a bit crazy with the other dogs.
Sunday was not special as it rained all day. Big surprise here...if you visit make sure you bring a rain coat and umbrella. We never leave home with out ours! We hung out and relaxed the day away..it was nice!
Friday we leave for Belgium and then TJ leaves for the States right after. I believe this will mark the beginning of our busiest time yet!
Auf Wiedersehen