Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Monday, February 16, 2009
Venedig… Venezia… Venice!
So we finally made our trip yesterday to Venice. We couldn’t have had a better day of weather. It was brisk, definitely a jacket was needed, however it was sunny and not a cloud in the sky. We left Garmisch at 5:00 and got to Venice at 10:30 a.m. While we were on the bus the driver was telling us that there is going to be a BIG celebration in Venice because of it being the first day of Carnival. The three of us (Chris, Nic, and Moss) thinking we lucked out on traveling on a low tourist day, were wrong. It was packed with people dressed in all sorts of costumes. The great thing about our start is that we rented a private boat into Venice so we didn’t have to deal with the water taxi stops and hoards of people. When we got there, we decided to go to Saint Marc’s Plaza and then branch out into the many little alley ways. This was BIG mistake number One: Although there were fun looking costumes and amazing arctecture to see in Saint Marc’s, it was getting crowded quickly. Then a huge “BANG” and music start playing (this was when we should have taken the hint) everyone rushed to the middle of SM square and were looking up with their cameras. So, thinking they (the locals) would know better we stopped, waited, and stared for what would happen next. All the while people kept pushing there way into the square. About 20 minutes later we saw was they were all waiting for… an angel descended from a church tower. It was interesting but not worth what HOT MESS we were just getting ourselves into. As soon as we realized that the angel descending was not worth our time we decided to leave the square. BIG PROBLEM… No one was budging. We were literally smashed to one another like a can of sardines. Pushing in either direction just resulted in nasty looks. I kid you not I was sandwiched between two Italian men, a Russian lady, a female dressed in a unicorn suite and Chris. Poor Chris, at one point he was literally surrounded by 5 or 6 short very old Italian ladies, it was like they were playing ring- around- the- rosy with him. Moss was getting pushed in all directions. I yelled over to him, “that you have got to push or you will never get out!” What seemed like hours of rubbing up against every nationality of the world and smelling every variation of bad breath and BO possible, we managed to escape SM square 1 hour and 25 min. later. Unfortunately in the escape we lost Moss, and decided that waiting any much longer to try and find him was worthless, there were just too many people. So, since I have been to Venice, I told Chris let’s get as far away from SM area as possible and then work our way back into SM by the end of the day it should be better. And so we did, we walked to the very outskirts of Venice, into the Castello area then head northwest (more north than west, because eventually we needed to get west and had to change our direction entirely to west to get to the Grand Canal). We had the most amazing time during our exploration! We attempted to use the map, but that only confused us. I was quickly reminded on when my brother and I visited Venice. We too decided to just get lost and walk in the direction that we know what right. Same worked for Chris and I! We stayed away from all the crowds and saw so many wonderful churches, old houses, alley ways, restaurants, etc. It was a great time and the pictures I will post will prove this. We eventually found a great old restaurant, it was full but only with locals. We stopped in and had two great pizza’s! Mmmmm, to think I will be back in Gresham in one week ordering Wallstreet Pizza instead of the true original stuff we are getting here is depressing. Anyhow eventually we made it over to the Grand Canal and got a picture of the famous bridge Ponte Di Rialto. It was bustling with the same people we were crowded with in SM square, but definitely more manageable as we were actually able to move. The next part was my personal favorite, all the window shopping of my favorite designers! Italy is so FUN! There was this other store couched in between all the designers and they were making custom shoes! It was awesome! They had some really cool designs.
Anyhow, after all this we went through some more alley ways and canals we managed to find Moss at the meeting place we figured out before we left. It was fun to hear his story and talk about what all we saw. Eventually we headed out on the boat and then got on our bus to head back home. We were supposed to go party at my mom’s high school friends restaurant for Fasching in Germany, but we were just too tired! We plan on stopping by tonight with my friend Tim who is visiting from Bochum. Today we plan on going to the Ski jumps and checking out the old Olympic stadium there. Later tonight if weather permits we also plan to go explore the Partnachklam (sp?) at night with torches. It’s basically a small cave like water way that has icicles handing and is very dark.. I have hiked through it in the summer, it’s fun!
Okay, so that is all I really have to say, I will be in touch with you soon again. Tonight is our last night in Garmisch, tomorrow we pack up and leave for Munich. Chris is going to have a hard time saying good-bye to Partenkirchen as this was definitely his favorite part of town.
Bye-bye until next time!
Love,
Nic
P.s. More pictures to come, I have to pick my really good friend Tim up at the Banhof (train station). I will have pictures from our trip to Venice as well as some from our trip to Neuschwanstein.
Anyhow, after all this we went through some more alley ways and canals we managed to find Moss at the meeting place we figured out before we left. It was fun to hear his story and talk about what all we saw. Eventually we headed out on the boat and then got on our bus to head back home. We were supposed to go party at my mom’s high school friends restaurant for Fasching in Germany, but we were just too tired! We plan on stopping by tonight with my friend Tim who is visiting from Bochum. Today we plan on going to the Ski jumps and checking out the old Olympic stadium there. Later tonight if weather permits we also plan to go explore the Partnachklam (sp?) at night with torches. It’s basically a small cave like water way that has icicles handing and is very dark.. I have hiked through it in the summer, it’s fun!
Okay, so that is all I really have to say, I will be in touch with you soon again. Tonight is our last night in Garmisch, tomorrow we pack up and leave for Munich. Chris is going to have a hard time saying good-bye to Partenkirchen as this was definitely his favorite part of town.
Bye-bye until next time!
Love,
Nic
P.s. More pictures to come, I have to pick my really good friend Tim up at the Banhof (train station). I will have pictures from our trip to Venice as well as some from our trip to Neuschwanstein.
Friday, February 13, 2009
Catch up
Hi Everyone!
Sorry I have not been so well at writing these blog on a consistent basis. We have been having a lot of fun running around doing different things here in Germany. Yesterday we went to the castle, Neuschwanstein and it snowed the whole day... BIG FLUFFY Flakes! In fact it has been snowing here non-stop for the past four days. The skiing is wonderful! Anyhow, so yesterday we went to the castle and visited many little villages around the area. It was a great day, long, and we barely had any energy in us to walk to our favorite local and have some dinner. We eventually did and were met again by the wonderful music... Bavarian music. I don't know is Moss and Hadeel enjoy it so much, but I do know that Chris and I are enjoying it a lot and keep wanting to call my parents so that they can listen through the phone.
Right now I am sitting at our favorite spot to login into the internet. It's snowing outside and we are getting ready to meet up with some more family. Later tonight we are planning on going to the Hockey game in town, then we plan on partying in the Garmsich side of town. I will be sure to report our times spent there as well.
All in all everything is going well, we had to do our first load of laundry and I am loving the smell of all my sweaters! I keep sniffing them! I think I am going to take some of the detergent back with me. It's called Purcil... it reminds me of when I was last in Germany! I love it!
Anyway, lame blog, but just wanted to update you and let you all know, that everything is going well!
Lots of love and ciao,
Nic
Sorry I have not been so well at writing these blog on a consistent basis. We have been having a lot of fun running around doing different things here in Germany. Yesterday we went to the castle, Neuschwanstein and it snowed the whole day... BIG FLUFFY Flakes! In fact it has been snowing here non-stop for the past four days. The skiing is wonderful! Anyhow, so yesterday we went to the castle and visited many little villages around the area. It was a great day, long, and we barely had any energy in us to walk to our favorite local and have some dinner. We eventually did and were met again by the wonderful music... Bavarian music. I don't know is Moss and Hadeel enjoy it so much, but I do know that Chris and I are enjoying it a lot and keep wanting to call my parents so that they can listen through the phone.
Right now I am sitting at our favorite spot to login into the internet. It's snowing outside and we are getting ready to meet up with some more family. Later tonight we are planning on going to the Hockey game in town, then we plan on partying in the Garmsich side of town. I will be sure to report our times spent there as well.
All in all everything is going well, we had to do our first load of laundry and I am loving the smell of all my sweaters! I keep sniffing them! I think I am going to take some of the detergent back with me. It's called Purcil... it reminds me of when I was last in Germany! I love it!
Anyway, lame blog, but just wanted to update you and let you all know, that everything is going well!
Lots of love and ciao,
Nic
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Random selection of pictures...
Hi, so I was able to get some pictures on here. A random, quick selection. My camera was out of use for a bit, and we used Hadeel's. Her pictures will be added to our facebooks and myspaces later. Until then, here are these:
Fasching
February 9, 2009
So, yesterday was probably one of my most special days! Since it was snowing so hard we went to the “SchwimBad” and had a good three hours there jumping off high jumps, sliding down slides, and swimming in the wave pool. After being in the water and warmness for three hours it was refreshing to go outside in the cold and falling snow for our walk home.
Next to the pool is the ice skating stadium. We snuck inside and watched figure skating practice and walked into the other side and watched hockey practice. There were two ice rinks. We found out that on Tuesday nights they have DISCO on the ICE, we are all contemplating that, we might do it! Also, there will be a ice hockey game Friday and we most definitely will be going to that.
Last night we went to Schatten, to visit an old School friend of my mother’s. It was again traditional Bavrian food and culture this time. Not only was the food outstanding again, but the entertainment was awesome. As we were eating, a four man band was playing music, and because it is the beginning of “Fasching” they had actors dressed in masks doing different things with the crowd. Their masks were made of wood, and each one had a different character carved and painted on their individual masks. Some had big noises, other were laughing, my personal favorite was the grandma face yawning. I don’t know much about the history of Fasching but I have heard of the mask tradition and last night I was able to experience it first hand. What I am most excited about is, not only did we get this on camera, we have been video-recording the entire time. So, just before we left I said good-buy to my mom’s friend and he told me that next Sunday will be 10 times bigger of a celebration that this Sunday. So I think even if we go to Venice, Italy next Sunday, we should be back in time.
Awwe, yes Venice… So we finally found a travel agency that does Day tours. For one day round trip to Venice it is 49 Euros. They will be celebrating Fasching there as well! It should be a ton of fun.
So anyhow later on into the night we rumbled to our favorite Frauendorfer spot, and perched their for a while. We saw even more characters coming and going from different bars located on the Ludwig Stra. What we also observed is that when each of these characters went from one bar to another, they were given a free drink every time. We all contemplated buying a mask and dressing up next week…. We decided only if we are low on cash! J
So, as it snowed monster flakes yesterday, today is entirely sunny! We are getting ready to go Ski for the afternoon. Finally our first ski day in Garmisch-Partenkirchen!
So I hope you enjoy some of these photos from the past couple of days!
Ciao,
Nic
So, yesterday was probably one of my most special days! Since it was snowing so hard we went to the “SchwimBad” and had a good three hours there jumping off high jumps, sliding down slides, and swimming in the wave pool. After being in the water and warmness for three hours it was refreshing to go outside in the cold and falling snow for our walk home.
Next to the pool is the ice skating stadium. We snuck inside and watched figure skating practice and walked into the other side and watched hockey practice. There were two ice rinks. We found out that on Tuesday nights they have DISCO on the ICE, we are all contemplating that, we might do it! Also, there will be a ice hockey game Friday and we most definitely will be going to that.
Last night we went to Schatten, to visit an old School friend of my mother’s. It was again traditional Bavrian food and culture this time. Not only was the food outstanding again, but the entertainment was awesome. As we were eating, a four man band was playing music, and because it is the beginning of “Fasching” they had actors dressed in masks doing different things with the crowd. Their masks were made of wood, and each one had a different character carved and painted on their individual masks. Some had big noises, other were laughing, my personal favorite was the grandma face yawning. I don’t know much about the history of Fasching but I have heard of the mask tradition and last night I was able to experience it first hand. What I am most excited about is, not only did we get this on camera, we have been video-recording the entire time. So, just before we left I said good-buy to my mom’s friend and he told me that next Sunday will be 10 times bigger of a celebration that this Sunday. So I think even if we go to Venice, Italy next Sunday, we should be back in time.
Awwe, yes Venice… So we finally found a travel agency that does Day tours. For one day round trip to Venice it is 49 Euros. They will be celebrating Fasching there as well! It should be a ton of fun.
So anyhow later on into the night we rumbled to our favorite Frauendorfer spot, and perched their for a while. We saw even more characters coming and going from different bars located on the Ludwig Stra. What we also observed is that when each of these characters went from one bar to another, they were given a free drink every time. We all contemplated buying a mask and dressing up next week…. We decided only if we are low on cash! J
So, as it snowed monster flakes yesterday, today is entirely sunny! We are getting ready to go Ski for the afternoon. Finally our first ski day in Garmisch-Partenkirchen!
So I hope you enjoy some of these photos from the past couple of days!
Ciao,
Nic
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Living life a little more Bavarian each day...
Sunday, January 8th 2009
So, it’s a couple days later, and unfortunately I am not going to have pictures for you until tomorrow. The battery ran out in my camera and I wasn’t able to upload it to my computer.
Anyhow, we have been having some great times! Two nights ago we went and had a REAL Bavarian time. We went to the Drei Mohren for dinner. Interesting place, because the name means Three Moors, but the food is very authentic Bavarian food. Chris couldn’t stop talking about how amazing the food was there, especially his schnitzel. Afterwards, we went to an old school Bavarian bar. The place was full of locals, and we were the only tourists there. It was what you picture in your mind when you think of Germany. People sitting at long tables drinking lots of beer, an old Bavarian man playing traditional songs on an accordion at the front of the bar and everybody was singing along.
OK, Chris here. Yesterday we went to a small town right on the Austrian border. There couldn’t have been more than 1,000 people living in the town. As soon as you get off the train, you are immediately met by a very imposing yet scenic mountain range. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a town so close such a large mountain. We walked to Nicole’s aunt and uncle’s house. Very kind and gracious people. Unfortunately, I didn’t understand a word that was spoken. They speak in a very thick Bavarian accent that only loosely resembles any of the German that I’ve been studying. Their house is the house that Nicole’s grandma was born in. It’s amazing to see how many old buildings are still standing here. One of them was built in 1485. Stunning. From their house we walked to Nicole’s grandma and grandpa’s gravesite. Kind of an emotional thing for Nicole, who wasn’t able to see them for about 2 years before they passed. Kind of an emotional thing for me as well, because I’ve heard such wonderful things about these people and would have loved to have met them. Staying in their house makes me even that much more appreciative. I have quite a few pictures from this town on my phone, and will try to post them soon.
We came home after about 5 hours and I was extraordinarily tired. I took a nap while Nicole cooked an amazing Spatzle dinner. I woke up, we had dinner, and walked to a hotel/bar/restaurant down the street. Nicole’s mom went to high school with the owner of the place, so we thought we would stop by and introduce ourselves. We had hoped to see some more live Bavarian music, but the music had stopped by 10pm We did however, get a wonderful opportunity to meet Mr. Hansmartel BowDrexler. I love the fact part of his last name is Drexler. After we left, we went to the bar we were at the previous night (Fraundorfer) and a similar, wonderful time. We had a nightcap at an Irish pub close to our house. It was full of American tourists, which is a bit annoying to me. I didn’t come to Germany to associate with such people. It was fun nevertheless. We danced on tables and had a good time. When people tried to speak to me in English, I spoke back to them in Spanish and told them I was from Spain. I can’t believe how well it worked! I eventually had the entire place convinced I was Catalan. Wonderful.
Got back to the house around 3am, and went straight to bed. Woke up to a very heavy snow storm which is beautiful. Should make for some good skiing tomorrow. We are headed off to the swimming pool right now! Aufwiedersehn!
So, it’s a couple days later, and unfortunately I am not going to have pictures for you until tomorrow. The battery ran out in my camera and I wasn’t able to upload it to my computer.
Anyhow, we have been having some great times! Two nights ago we went and had a REAL Bavarian time. We went to the Drei Mohren for dinner. Interesting place, because the name means Three Moors, but the food is very authentic Bavarian food. Chris couldn’t stop talking about how amazing the food was there, especially his schnitzel. Afterwards, we went to an old school Bavarian bar. The place was full of locals, and we were the only tourists there. It was what you picture in your mind when you think of Germany. People sitting at long tables drinking lots of beer, an old Bavarian man playing traditional songs on an accordion at the front of the bar and everybody was singing along.
OK, Chris here. Yesterday we went to a small town right on the Austrian border. There couldn’t have been more than 1,000 people living in the town. As soon as you get off the train, you are immediately met by a very imposing yet scenic mountain range. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a town so close such a large mountain. We walked to Nicole’s aunt and uncle’s house. Very kind and gracious people. Unfortunately, I didn’t understand a word that was spoken. They speak in a very thick Bavarian accent that only loosely resembles any of the German that I’ve been studying. Their house is the house that Nicole’s grandma was born in. It’s amazing to see how many old buildings are still standing here. One of them was built in 1485. Stunning. From their house we walked to Nicole’s grandma and grandpa’s gravesite. Kind of an emotional thing for Nicole, who wasn’t able to see them for about 2 years before they passed. Kind of an emotional thing for me as well, because I’ve heard such wonderful things about these people and would have loved to have met them. Staying in their house makes me even that much more appreciative. I have quite a few pictures from this town on my phone, and will try to post them soon.
We came home after about 5 hours and I was extraordinarily tired. I took a nap while Nicole cooked an amazing Spatzle dinner. I woke up, we had dinner, and walked to a hotel/bar/restaurant down the street. Nicole’s mom went to high school with the owner of the place, so we thought we would stop by and introduce ourselves. We had hoped to see some more live Bavarian music, but the music had stopped by 10pm We did however, get a wonderful opportunity to meet Mr. Hansmartel BowDrexler. I love the fact part of his last name is Drexler. After we left, we went to the bar we were at the previous night (Fraundorfer) and a similar, wonderful time. We had a nightcap at an Irish pub close to our house. It was full of American tourists, which is a bit annoying to me. I didn’t come to Germany to associate with such people. It was fun nevertheless. We danced on tables and had a good time. When people tried to speak to me in English, I spoke back to them in Spanish and told them I was from Spain. I can’t believe how well it worked! I eventually had the entire place convinced I was Catalan. Wonderful.
Got back to the house around 3am, and went straight to bed. Woke up to a very heavy snow storm which is beautiful. Should make for some good skiing tomorrow. We are headed off to the swimming pool right now! Aufwiedersehn!
Friday, February 6, 2009
Herzliche Welkommen!
Friday, January 6th, 2009
You know you have woken up early when you look on the mountain and the snow groomers are just getting a start. WE MADE IT! The flight was awesome, the train ride was easy and getting settled in my family’s house was fun. Although it was late night (9:00 p.m.) when arrived I was able to round up everyone for some REAL ITALIAN Pizza just across the street. A family favorite, Renzo’s is a great place to enjoy great pizza and great service. Our waiter was definitely new to the area as well, as he spoke very little German and/or English. We did well with our attempt to mix what little we know of Spanish and making it sound Italian, I think one of us even threw in a “Merci”… LOL Awww, to be American’s in Europe again. There are so many different cultures living in Germany, and so many different languages that border Germany, it’s inevitable to run into at least 2/3 different languages here a day.
Anyhow, so we got out yummy pizzas and our waiter “Guieseppi” was quite the typical Italian…. charming, flirty, and used many quizzical hand gestures. While we were there, we met a group of middle aged Irish men who were in town skiing, they were fun to talk to and they gave us a name of an instructor who could show us around the mountain. We will probably give him a call today and set up a weekend time with him. We have all opted for an instructor to guide us around so that we learn the mountain terrain and area. We think we are being “Smart Americans” for doing this! J
So after Renzo’s it was on to the Irish Pub… America Heaven… it was full with American Marines and Military men. Yes, MEN, it was what we could call a total sausagefest… and not anything to do with German Sausage. As soon as Hadeel and I walked through the doors we were greeted and hugged by Germans, Irish men, Australians, and American Service men,,, It was tiring. It’s a great place for a good night cap, but today and the next days here forward we are going to dig deep into the old streets of Partenkirchen and find some real Bavarian food and music.
I heard my favorite Bavarian joke already. While standing outside the Irish Pub, we asked a young German man if he knew were the nearest bank was, he showed us and Chris tried a little of his German and said, “Vielen Dank” (Many Thanks). The guy could tell we were tourists so, I said in German, “My husband is trying to learn German.” His response was, “I’m a Bavarian and I’m trying to learn to speak German everyday as well!” I thought that was such a wonderful joke. I explained to Chris that what he said was the equivalent to a Catalan man saying he too is trying to speak Spanish every day. Although, if someone can find a Catalan man to actually say that, it would be like finding gold at the end of a rainbow!
So, I will end this now, we have a big day ahead of us! We are headed to the travel agency to check out some deals on day trips, we are going to wander the streets a bit, and we learned that there are some races going on up on the slopes, we might get up there to watch. I wish you all a wonderful time back in the states and a TGIF!
Love,
Nic
P.s. More pictures later....
You know you have woken up early when you look on the mountain and the snow groomers are just getting a start. WE MADE IT! The flight was awesome, the train ride was easy and getting settled in my family’s house was fun. Although it was late night (9:00 p.m.) when arrived I was able to round up everyone for some REAL ITALIAN Pizza just across the street. A family favorite, Renzo’s is a great place to enjoy great pizza and great service. Our waiter was definitely new to the area as well, as he spoke very little German and/or English. We did well with our attempt to mix what little we know of Spanish and making it sound Italian, I think one of us even threw in a “Merci”… LOL Awww, to be American’s in Europe again. There are so many different cultures living in Germany, and so many different languages that border Germany, it’s inevitable to run into at least 2/3 different languages here a day.
Anyhow, so we got out yummy pizzas and our waiter “Guieseppi” was quite the typical Italian…. charming, flirty, and used many quizzical hand gestures. While we were there, we met a group of middle aged Irish men who were in town skiing, they were fun to talk to and they gave us a name of an instructor who could show us around the mountain. We will probably give him a call today and set up a weekend time with him. We have all opted for an instructor to guide us around so that we learn the mountain terrain and area. We think we are being “Smart Americans” for doing this! J
So after Renzo’s it was on to the Irish Pub… America Heaven… it was full with American Marines and Military men. Yes, MEN, it was what we could call a total sausagefest… and not anything to do with German Sausage. As soon as Hadeel and I walked through the doors we were greeted and hugged by Germans, Irish men, Australians, and American Service men,,, It was tiring. It’s a great place for a good night cap, but today and the next days here forward we are going to dig deep into the old streets of Partenkirchen and find some real Bavarian food and music.
I heard my favorite Bavarian joke already. While standing outside the Irish Pub, we asked a young German man if he knew were the nearest bank was, he showed us and Chris tried a little of his German and said, “Vielen Dank” (Many Thanks). The guy could tell we were tourists so, I said in German, “My husband is trying to learn German.” His response was, “I’m a Bavarian and I’m trying to learn to speak German everyday as well!” I thought that was such a wonderful joke. I explained to Chris that what he said was the equivalent to a Catalan man saying he too is trying to speak Spanish every day. Although, if someone can find a Catalan man to actually say that, it would be like finding gold at the end of a rainbow!
So, I will end this now, we have a big day ahead of us! We are headed to the travel agency to check out some deals on day trips, we are going to wander the streets a bit, and we learned that there are some races going on up on the slopes, we might get up there to watch. I wish you all a wonderful time back in the states and a TGIF!
Love,
Nic
P.s. More pictures later....
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