Essingen

 

Just when I think that we may have visited and seen everything there is to see within a half hour of our house, we stumble upon another amazing find. This time it was the town of Essingen, which is a little reminiscent of Tubingen with its cobblestone streets, open air cafes and old homes that date back for centuries.  However unlike Tubingen, Essingen has the old castle walls still in tact high on a hill.  The hill is surrounded by vineyards and once you make the climb, there is an amazing view down into the village. Within the walls lie a beautiful green space and huge playground.  This is only a twenty minute drive from our home! I wonder what else is out there that we have yet to discover?

Spring Rains ...and Rains

Ug! I was told that if I made it through the cold and dark winter days, Spring in Germany was the reward. Everyone speaks about "last May"...how HOT it was, how people went out for the morning without sunscreen and came back with a burn...well, that is not a Germany with which I am familiar. They are just mean people spreading untruths. May Day is when the rain started to pour..and pour..and it wasn't stopping. We had to make the best of it...we pulled out the finger paints, then the Play dough and then when we couldn't take much more, we headed out in our rain gear to splash in the puddles and the mud.

Just when we started to embrace the rainy weather, something amazing happened.  The sun came out... and with it our tulips bloomed (as did our moods).

Fruhlingsfest

Stuttgart boasts that it hosts Germany's largest Fruhlingsfest, which is the Spring version of Oktoberfest. The last weekend of Fruhlingsfest coincided with a visit from our close friends from home. Could there be a better way to indoctrinate them into German culture? We called our babysitter, reserved tickets for a beer tent, and headed downtown. Fruhlingsfest didn't disappoint.

This guy had the best time of all:

 

Tulips Tulips Everywhere

On the way to Brugge, we made a pit stop in the Netherlands. We spent our first night in Amsterdam and after settling into our hotel room, we headed out to tour the city. Amsterdam was such a dichotomy between beauty and sleaze.

The streets and canals that surround the University are clean and lined with gorgeous, historic buildings. Just 1 Kilometer away, there are still gorgeous, historic buildings but the windows are lined with red neon and scantily clad women for hire are standing behind the glass. It was both fascinating and depressing. After finishing our walking tour, we found the restaurant and bar, Cafe Luxembourg, that CM had read about in the New York Times.  There we had a few Dutch cocktails, a great dinner and dissected what we had just seen.

The next day we headed to Keukenhof to see the tulip fields. Tulips are some of my favorite flowers and you will find them in my home on a regular basis. Keukenhof was such a worthwhile trip to take. The landscaping of the flowers were gorgeous and the endless fields of tulips were breathtaking. In the park, there were also playgrounds and a petting zoo.I love playgrounds.  I hate petting zoos. It took a lot of strength to stifle my gagging and spend some time there.Thankfully, I don't think it is one of Griffin's favorite places either. Fifteen years ago, I probably wouldn't have thought to visit the tulips fields.  That is one of the reasons I love that I am experiencing this adventure now. I am finding such pleasure and beauty in all of it.

Show me your waffles..Spring Break in Belgium

We just returned from a wonderful week and a half in Amsterdam and Belgium. Having mentioned my husband is a planner in a previous post, this trip was no exception. He planned each day's activities: Keukenhof to see the tulips, Trappist breweries to taste and purchase their goods, Calais, FR where we could see the ' the white cliffs of Dover', and both a carriage ride and a boat ride through town. This isn't including the multiple walking tours of Brugge itself, where we rented our vacation house. It was wonderful. The beer, the food, the history, the chocolate, the beer..oh, did I already mention that?

Garmisch with my Bro and SIL

I mentioned in an earlier post the importance of family in my life. My relationship with my little brother is no exception. He's great. He is a cooler, more talented version of me. Or at least I like to think so. He also married someone who is smart, fun, athletic and the best part, hysterical. 
We were so happy when they made plans to visit over the winter. The winter was very cold and that made some of the days very long. Their visit was such a bright spot in an otherwise dark season.
We headed to Garmisch for the long weekend to ski and snowboard. They are much better snowboarders than I am a skier and they could have ditched me many times up on that mountain. They didn't. Like I said, they're great.

London Calling .....for the New Year

Shortly before we found out that we would be moving to Germany, one of my oldest and dearest friends had the opportunity through her job to move to London. We sort of couldn't believe our luck! How did two girls from a little suburb in Alexandria,VA end up living abroad at the same time?
For a few years running, we have celebrated the New Years holiday together, so this New Years 2010 was no different. Our family decided to make the trip to London to visit and celebrate with her family. We had the best time. Ate, drank, danced, played, saw all the sights, made memories.  A wonderful way to ring in the New Year.

BRRR.....

Winter came in fast and furious. I wasn't prepared...here's an excerpt from an e-mail:

"It's COLD. Bone chilling cold. I don't know if reading the temperature in Celsius plays tricks on my mind, but there is something about your car thermometer reading -4.5 degrees that makes you want to get right back into bed, throw the covers over your head, and wait for Spring. I have to remind myself what I learned in Earth Science, that 0 degrees C is 32 degrees Fahrenheit. Saying this mantra over and over as I run out to warm the car does help..as do my heated seats."

This was the beginning of a long, cold, snowy winter....and I don't like winter.

Christmas and it's Markets

Recalling this past Christmas through an e-mail sent to friends and fam:

"The Thanksgiving weekend coincides with the start of the Christmas season here. And the Christmas season is NO joke. Every town has their own Weihnachtsmarkt or Christmas Market. Our Saturday mornings are spent visiting a different Christmas market in the area. These Christmas markets are taken very seriously, with hundreds of small kiosks that are elaborately decorated for the holidays. Vendors peddle their wares: ornaments, handmade toys, jams, baked goods...sausages, krauts, biers are everywhere. A more popular drink than bier at these Christmas Markets (I know, can you believe it?) is called Gluvine. It's a tasty, hot, spiced red wine. I wasn't terribly crazy about it the first time I tried it, but this past weekend we had it from a guy that added Amaretto. Now, that was delicious. All of the markets shut down two days before Christmas. I love that they don't drag it out past the holiday. "

Christmas was an unusually quiet, simple holiday for us. We went to Mass, opened Santa and family gifts, and went on a long walk. It was the first time I experienced the pangs of homesickness. It was at the same time, a very special holiday with just the three of us; one that we will look back on fondly.

Luxembourg and Trier

My parents coming every eight weeks has provided my husband and I the opportunity to get away by ourselves for a few days. For our last two-day excursion, we headed to Luxembourg and Trier. Luxembourg is a wonderful little country. We spent the cold and snowy day walking the city, eating and drinking our way through town. The following day, Sunday, we spent in Trier. With the exception of restaurants and museums, most of Germany shuts down on Sundays. Our Sunday in Trier consisted of the Karl Marx house and the same weinstube multiple times. We had fun because we were with each other, but don't go to Trier on a Sunday. Actually, I am not sure if Trier should necessarily be a destination at all...just spend more time in Luxembourg.

Oma and Papa

My parents are the best. I'm not kidding. Everyone who meets them thinks so.  That's including my husband! I feel very blessed to come from such loving people.  I was raised to believe that family is the most important thing in the world. 
Griffin is their only grandchild and I remember when we told my parents that I was pregnant. They were so elated they kissed each other and both cried for joy.  It was such a beautiful reaction.
Adore isn't a strong enough word for how my parents feel about their only grandson. They make the trip from the States to Germany every eight weeks to see him. (They say it's to see us as well, but I don't believe that for a minute).

I should mention that after their visits with us, they tack on another week exploring the few parts of the world they haven't yet seen. My mom and dad  may the most disappointed in our eventual move back the the States!