Turkey Day in Deutschland

My first Thanksgiving in Germany was a mix of the traditional Thanksgiving along with a few new things that might become tradition for me. The traditional part of course being that I ate way too much food and was really regreting my decision to try and look euro with my new skinny jeans tucked into my boots. Elastic waistband for me next year - dress sweats of course. Your last name has to be Hosler to get that one.

It was a little hard to get into the Thanksgiving groove. I wasn't around any family and there was no Macy's Day Parade coverage on German TV. I also spent the day shopping so it felt like just a regular day.

Jim was in Russia for Thanksgiving so luckily my only American friends here in Bonn invited me to their cross-cultural Thanksgiving dinner. The group was 1/2 American and 1/2 German so I was able to practice my German a little bit and share this truly American holiday of overindulgence with them.

We had our meal late because obviously no one had the day off. We had the usual turkey, mashed potatoes and stuffing, but my new favorite sweet potato dish with a twist was a sweet potato tart / pizza. We tried to convince the Germans that everyone has the traditional sweet potato pizza at their Thanksgiving, but I don't think they bought it. (Erin, if you are reading this, I need that recipe). We also had pumpkin cake with cream cheese frosting instead of the traditional pumpkin pie. That was also a great new improvement on a Thanksgiving classic.

All in all it was a great first Thanksgiving in Germany. Next year I'll have to be the one who hosts Thanksgiving as our only American friends are moving back to the US next week. Sweet potato pizza and pumpkin cake are both going to be on the menu.

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving wherever they may be!

Germany's Attempt at Fast Casual Dining

Jim and I recently visited Vapiano for the third and probably last time. Vapiano is fast casual dining with a German Twist. The twist being that you spend more time standing in line than at a table eating your dinner.

The first time I went to Vapiano, I thought that it had a lot of potential and would be a successful concept in the States. The food is very fresh and made right in front of you. They have pasta, salads, pizza and apps which all look delicious as you walk through the modern dining room. The tables even have potted herbs on them so if your pasta doesn't have enough basil, you can just pluck some off of a live plant. The food here reminds me a lot of a place called Sauce in the DTC area of Denver.

However, where Vapiano falls short is in the ordering process. Most fast casual restaurants have one counter where you order all of your food and drinks, pick them up at the end of the counter and then sit down to eat. Some even give you a number and then deliver your food to you like - Wahoo's Fish Tacos or Noodles & Company.

At Vapiano though, it is all about the lines. You have to stand in about 5 different lines to get your full meal. There is one line for drinks, then another for pasta and so on. They have 4 different food stations where the chefs will make your food right in front of you. I like to know my food is fresh, but the whole point of going out to eat is getting to sit down and relax. Here, I'm just on the other side of the counter watching someone make my food, and feeling guilty that I was apparently too lazy to boil water for some pasta.

Vapiano is a busy restaurant and after having been there a few times we knew we need to have a strategy. We decided Jim would secure a table while I got the food and drinks. Apparently, that wasn't a good enough strategy. After standing in the pick up line for the pizza instead of the order line, I decided I would cut my losses and forget about the pizza and salad and just order pasta for both of us. There were so many options on the pasta that by the time I reached the front of the line, I panicked and made some bad choices. I felt a little like Ralphie in The Christmas Story. I was ready to climb over the counter to tell the chef what I really wanted was an official Red Ryder Air Rifle or maybe gnocchi with a Gorgonzola sauce and toasted walnuts.

Linguistic Lessons

One of the great things about the German language is deciphering really long words. Germans tend to string a number of words together to form one long word rather than several words as we do in English. This can make the German language very intimidating at first. Just try to pronounce this word - RECHTSSCHUTZVERSICHERUNGSGESELLSCHAFTEN! In English this word means insurance companies which provide legal protection. Or how about this one? Rindfleischetikettierungsüberwachungsaufgabenübertragungsgesetz – which is translated as a beef labeling regulation & delegation of supervision law.

The other interesting part about the language is how descriptive the words are. Hospital or Krankenhaus is literally translated as sick house. This can be very helpful when trying to figure out words with a limited vocabulary. In my German class yesterday, I learned the German word for gloves is handschuhe or hand shoe. I don’t know why but I found this so funny.

Christmas Tree, oh Christmas Tree

Well, I've got my Christmas tree up! Since we are coming to the states on Dec. 19th, I wanted to have a tree up for at least a little while. Also without that pesky Thanksgiving holiday in the way, I can start gearing up for Christmas a little earlier.

I also figured that I needed to get into the Christmas spirit to get ready for the Bonn Christmas Market (Weihnachtmarkt) which starts this Sunday. The downtown area is already getting set up with decorated wooden stalls, rides and an ice rick. I can't wait!

I decided to go for the potted, living tree this year instead of going the cut tree route for a number of reasons. I figured that if I can keep this little guy alive for a year, then I can use it again next year. (Not very likely considering that my plant graveyard on the deck seems to be growing.) I also didn't want to have to deal with figuring out what to do with a tree before we leave to come home. I couldn't keep it up - a dried out tree could be a fire hazard and since we have no smoke or fire alarms here I thought it would be risky. It also seems to be the German way to do it. I haven't seen any cut trees yet, just little live ones.

The tree is a bit skinny so I couldn't fit too many ornaments on him but all in all he isn't too bad. Unfortunately my tree topper is too heavy for the tree causing him to tip over and spill dirt everywhere, so he's topless for now.

Milk Mystery Solved

I've always wondered why the milk in Europe doesn't need to be refrigerated. The first time I shopped for milk in London, I must have walked around the store three times before finally discovering the milk was not in the dairy section where I thought it belonged but in an isle near the drinks. Of course the thought that the milk could have been sitting on a shelf for a month didn't seem quite right. I figured there had to be something different about this milk so I decided toast was a better plan for breakfast rather than cereal.

In Europe, shelf stable milk is the norm. Coming from the US it is hard to wrap your brain around the concept that milk doesn't need to be refrigerated. However, I've come to appreciate milk than can be stored in a cupboard rather than my small fridge. Plus the thought of lugging home gallons of milk while on foot isn't very appealing.

I decided to do a little research to find out what the difference is between the American milk and the Deutsche milch. It comes down to the temperature that the milk is heated during the pasteurization process. In UHT (ultra high temperature) pasteurization, the milk is heated to 282 degrees for 2 seconds. In HTST (high temperature / short time) pasteurization done in the US, the milk is heated to 161 degrees for at least 15 seconds. The UHT milk requires special packaging but then has a shelf life of up to 6 months.

Sorry to get Nancy Drew on you, but it was something I've often wondered about.

German Pretzel

I went to my first and probably last German Yoga class this week. I thought it might be a good way to meet some English speaking people as it is an English yoga class.

The class was Vinyasa yoga so the instructor started with some chanting and then it was a free for all. Everyone works at their own pace going through a series of poses. Now, if I am paying for a yoga class, I don't want to have to think about what pose is next or remember how many sun salutations I've done so far, that's just me. Plus, everyone doing their own thing is really quite distracting. I spent most of the class watching what everyone else was doing. Although then the "instructor" told me I wasn't focused enough.

Since the instructor wasn't bogged down by teaching the class, she was free to walk around the room and help put people into the correct position. She put my hands behind my back in a prayer position which I've never been able to do. Of course, then I couldn't really do the forward bending part because I thought my shoulders were going to come out of their sockets. In the next pose, she seemed to think it wasn't a big deal to wrap my arm around my body a few times and grab my sweaty foot. I must be missing that rubber arm gene.

I had two realizations during this class. 1). I think I like the idea of yoga more than I like actual yoga. It sounds peaceful and enlightened and people who do it always seem to have really good posture. 2). That torture device called the stretching machine that they used in the middle ages is a lot like yoga.

I have decided that I should spend my time in Germany eating pretzels rather than trying to be a pretzel.

The Beginning of Carnival

The Germans love Carnival or Karneval as they spell it here. Before moving to Germany I always thought of New Orleans or Brazil when I thought about Carnival. Germany was never a country that came to mind as a crazy party destination.

However, after being here for a few months I have come to learn that Germans wholeheartedly embrace such debauchery and Oktoberfest and Carnival are two prime examples. It seems that Germans are always looking for a reason to start drinking before noon.

The official launch date of Carnival is Nov. 11, but the week that people go crazy is in February. No one seemed to know why Nov. 11th was the start of Carnival so I did a little research.

Nov. 11th is Saint Martin's Day, which during the middle ages started a 40-day fast both preceded and followed by excessive eating and drinking. Additionally, the number 11 has historically been considered a number of sin. So at 11:11 on Nov. 11th, the Germans in Bonn kick off Carnival dressed up in costumes, drinking Kolsch (local beer) and singing traditional German Karneval songs.

On Tuesday, I met a few friends downtown to see what it was all about. I was surprised how many people were dressed up on a Tuesday morning at 10:30 am. A lot of the costumes didn’t make a lot of sense – like a cowboy riding an elephant. Apparently in Germany, you can just put a crazy hat and a boa and you are dressed up. You don’t necessarily need to actually be something; being poorly dressed is apparently enough of a costume.

I think the best part of the morning was seeing three little old ladies standing in a circle passing a bottle of wine around. That maybe and seeing Genghis Kahn.

Ghent, Belgium

On Sunday we decided to go to Ghent on the way home from Bruges. Jim raced bikes for a few summers and lived in Ghent, Belgium. Reliving his glory days, (if living in squalor and racing bikes in the rain can be considered glory days) Jim wanted to do a drive by of the ramshackle apartment he lived in for those two summers. Not surprisingly, Jim found the street where he lived with our GPS system, but didn’t recognize any of the apartments. Shocker!

Since we were already there, we decided to check out the center of town. Jim kept trying to manage my expectations so much so that I was expecting a very industrial, ugly city. I thought Ghent was really pretty charming. The downtown area has canals running through it with huge churches, a castle from the 1100s and a belfry.

We walked through downtown looking for a place for lunch before checking out some of the sights. After getting a few Croque Monsiurs, we visited St. Nicholas’ Church which is one of the oldest landmarks in Ghent.

We next visited the Gravensteen castle which was built in the 1100s. Unlike a lot of other castles we have seen, it is right in the middle of downtown surrounded by shops and restaurants. For the most part, the rooms were empty except for a few that showcased instruments of torture and weaponry. It was recently restored so before the late 80s had been used as a prison, a factory, a courthouse and finally had houses built in the area, using some the old stones. The tour was pretty easy to follow, but didn’t provide all that much information. Every other room seemed to be used for torture. I’m glad I didn’t live in back then.

It was funny to see the signs saying no food allowed or in this case no ice cream. I think in the US the no food or drink allowed signs are of a McDonalds happy meal - soda, fries and a burger.

I enjoyed my day in Ghent and would like to go back in the summer. It seemed to be pretty free from the swarms of tourists that we saw in Bruges.

Bruges

Jim and I went to Bruges on Friday. After seeing the movie “In Bruges” and reading what Rick Steve had to say about the city, I was excited to check out this medieval town which is sometimes called “The Venice of the North”.

I was able to get a room at the Camers B&B, a Rick Steve’s recommendation. Unfortunately our host wasn’t home when we arrived so we started to worry that we might be wandering the very quiet, cold streets trying to find a place to sleep. We called him and luckily our host was drinking at the bar next door so was able to pop over and let us in. He had somehow mixed up the dates and wasn’t expecting us until the next day.

We decided to head out for a beer after dropping our stuff off at the room. We found a great little bar and had two of the house brews on tap, deciding that we should start there before wading through the 50 page beer list. The Belgians really take their beer seriously. The beers were both great so we ordered a second round before calling it quits. The Belgian beer must have higher alcohol content because I was feeling it after just two beers.

The next day we walked to the main market square and climbed the Bell Tower. We were lucky that it was sunny so the view from the top was clear. However, it was really quite windy and cold so we didn’t spend too much time up there. The square was a lot like the Grand Place in Brussels with lots of outdoor café/ restaurants lining the square and the surrounding streets, providing their guests with great views and ambiance albeit not very good food.

After doing the amount of travel we have done in the last five months, I have learned one very important lesson. Don’t plan to see too much and view getting lost as an adventure. So we decided that our main objectives for the day were to go to the Groeninge Museum and the De Halve Brewery and find a good place for dinner.

We decided to get lunch on the way to the Groeninge Museum. We searched for the crowded vegetarian restaurant we had seen the night before, but when we finally found it they had a sign indicating they would be closed for the weekend. We were pretty hungry so went to the next place we saw. We ordered the obligatory – steak frites and mussels with frites for lunch. Frites are a big thing in Belgium. They even have a french fry museum!

Our next stop was the Groeninge Museum which houses the largest collection of Primitive Flemish art from the 1500s. The use of the word Primitive isn’t intended to be pejorative but rather to designate that they were completed before the Renaissance. Torture and religion seemed to be common themes in the paintings.

We next went in search of the De Halve Brewery, but of course it took us a while to get there. The narrow, winding streets can be so confusing. Along the way, we found a little antique market on one of the canals.

We also found the Minnewater which is a canalized lake surrounded by flowers and swans. In Dutch, Minnewater means the lake of love. Apparently a lot of people come to take their wedding pictures here, but we didn’t see any wedding parties at this time of year. We did however see a Japanese tourist taunting a swan with her sucker. I’m not sure what she was hoping to accomplish. She obviously doesn’t know much about swans because she was surprised when it attacked her. That was entertaining.

When we finally found the brewery, we were able to get one of the last tours of the day. Surprisingly, neither one of us had ever been to a brewery before. It was a really interesting but slightly stinky tour. We learned that hops only grow on a certain latitude which is why England, Ireland, Belgium and Portland are such havens for beer producers. Our guide also told us that they used to only serve beer in the hospitals. At that time, the doctors didn’t know anything about sterilization but they knew that water made people sick and beer didn’t.

The brewery was definitely not a good place to work back in the day. They used kids to clean the fermentation tanks because the entry was so small. There wasn’t much oxygen in the tank so they had the kids whistle while they cleaned. When the child began whistling out of key, they knew he or she was in trouble and needed to be taken out.

Like all brewery tours, we finished ours with a beer while we made some calls to make a restaurant reservation for dinner. We were able to get in at Tom’s Diner. It was a restaurant recommended by our host at the B&B as well as Rick Steve.

The dinner we had at Tom’s Diner was easily the best meal we’ve had since we’ve been here. I was a little worried that it was called a Diner in the first place, but Rick described it as more of a bistro. It was also a little worrisome that when we arrived, the door was locked. We were early for our reservation but it was 6:30 so I figured it would be open. We walked around for another 15 minutes before going back and luckily it was open. Our server was great. She steered us to a bottle of wine which was 10 euro cheaper because it was a better wine in her opinion. She was also happy to help us translate the menu. We shared the beef Carpaccio to start. For our mains we chose the specials of the day. I ordered the grilled sole with shrimp and scallops in a mustard seed sauce with mashed potatoes. Jim got the rabbit with a cranberry sauce, fried little potato things and bacon. After such a great meal, we had to indulge in some dessert and got the chocolat au moliere (I’m sure I didn’t spell that correctly).

It will be pretty easy to bribe me to come back. Another dinner at Tom’s Diner is all it will take. 3 ½ hours isn’t too far to drive for dinner is it?

Bruges and Butta, Baby!

I have a new found appreciation for butter since I've been in Germany. I think I've got about 5 different butters in my tiny little fridge. I've got some German butter, truffle butter, French butter, etc. (I'm not sure why the French butter is so much better than the German stuff but trust me it is.)

Now back in Denver, I was on the butter backlash bandwagon. I was an anti-butterite. Butter was bad, and I was having no part of it. So my new love affair with this oh so creamy, salty but sweet at the same time, condiment is a surprise to me.

The German bakeries are part of this love triangle, and I truly believe the guilty party. Because the bread here is so good, it deserves the real thing. I'm really just doing it for the bread.

Today we are off to Bruges, Belgium. Jim is doing a lot of traveling this month for work – Athens, Oslo and Moscow so it will be our only weekend to get outta dodge.

From the research I’ve done so far, it looks like the dining scene will be pretty good. I’ll make sure to come back with some good recommendations and a full report on what we ate. I'm sure whatever it is, it will have lotsa butta.

Bike racing on steroids

So for our first Saturday in Bonn in a long time, what do we do? We drive up to Dortmund, of course. Saturday night, Jim and I went up to Dortmund to watch Colby (Jim’s friend) compete in a 6 day track bike race.

I’ve never been to a track bike race so it was interesting to see what it was all about. The track is on a 45% angle at the corners. From what I was able to gather, this is a team sport with two people on a team. The riders go at full speed – 75k an hour and trade off every couple of laps. Because the track bikes have no breaks and only one gear, the riders grab the hand of their teammate and sling them into the group of racers to get them up to speed when they switch places. Surprisingly, there weren’t any crashes while we were watching. I was getting dizzy just watching them zip around the track.

According to Colby, the significance of 6 days of racing comes from years ago when the race actually was a 6 day nonstop race. Apparently when racers started dying, they scaled back the races to 6 hours or so.
Track bike racing is like a bike race on steroids. I haven’t ever been to a monster truck rally, but I got the feeling that it might be a lot like a track bike race. You have your cheesy motivating 80s music - like the soundtrack to Top Gun along with lots of flashing lights. There was even a band in the middle of the track with lots of VIPs hanging out.

There were a lot of other venues set up in the same arena in conjunction with the bike race. They had different rooms with a laser light show, disco, live music and rooms of food and drink vendors all as part of this 6 day race. My guess is there isn’t a whole lot going on in Dortmund so this becomes a major event.

Colby and his teammate were the only Americans in the race. I don’t think track bike racing is as popular in the US as it is here. Here, the star German rider (Erik Zabel) is treated like a rock star.

One of the events was a Derney race. I’m not sure who came up with this one, but I’m guessing there were some head injuries involved. A Derney bike is a motorized pacing bike. The rider puts his wheel up to a metal bar on the pacing bike so that he eliminates drag and can go even faster. The best part about this race is watching the two guys who won take their victory lap. I don’t think the gray haired, slightly chubby guy who drove the Derney motorbike is much of a cyclist so it was pretty comical watching him take a lap on a regular bicycle.

Christmas Markets

CHRISTKINDLMARKT

On Friday night, I went to my first Christmas market. (Yes, on Halloween I was getting in gear for Christmas.) Halloween is not widely celebrated here in Germany. They have a few costumes in stores, but I only saw a few people dressed up while we were out on Friday.

Since the next big holiday is Christmas, the stores start hawking their Christmas wares in mid October. For anyone who might not know – I am a huge fan of Christmas. You might say, I’m a little Christmas crazy. So the fact that the Christmas season has already started is great for me but not so great for Jim.

The Christmas market we went to was in Bad Honnef, about 20 minutes south of Bonn on the other side of the Rhine. They have their Christmas Market this early so that the other, larger Christmas markets don't overshadow them.

The Christmas Market in Bad Honnef had plenty of food stalls selling sausages, potato pancakes, flammkuchen, bread dumplings in a creamy mushroom sauce, roasted nuts, and waffles. However, I think the market is less about the food and more about the Glühwein which is warm, spiced red wine. I’ve already determined that the Glühwein is only good though if it is (1) cold outside and (2) made from decent wine. If it wasn’t very good wine at the start, heating it definitely doesn’t make it better.

The market had lots of stalls selling ornaments, jewelry, hats & scarves and even specialty cleaners for radiator heaters (very random). There were also a number of fire pits with hay bale seats surrounding them so we could warm up our hands and feet.

The tradition of Christmas Markets started in the late middle ages in Germany and Austria. Almost every town in Germany will have a Christmas Market between now and Christmas. In the smaller towns the Christmas Market might only last a week, but the one in Bonn starts in late Nov. and lasts until the day before Christmas. I’ve heard that the one in Bonn takes over a few different plazas and even has an ice rink. I can’t wait.

I think I will dig out my Christmas decorations today! Sorry, Jim.

Heidelburg, Frankfurt, Brussels, Colmar, Trier, Beilstein, Paris - Whew, I'm tired!

Sunday, September 21st

The next morning we left Munich to head to Heidelburg. We definitely didn't have enough time to see everything in Munich but it will have to wait until next year at Oktoberfest.

Once in Heidelburg, Beth and I walked around trying to find a good place to eat. As is typical for me, we couldn’t find a restaurant that we liked but ended up so famished that we resigned ourselves to eating at the Heidelburg equivalent to TGIFridays. We had some mediocre pizzas and went for a glass of wine elsewhere.

Outside of the disappointing restaurant scene, Heidelburg was a pleasant surprise. Jim hadn’t liked it when he was there for work, and according to Mr. Rick “Back Door” Steves, it was a lowlight of the region. I, however, thought the old town had some very pretty baroque architecture. I liked the red tiled roofs of the old town and beautiful villas on the other side of the river (Neckar).

Monday, September 21st

The next morning, we hiked up to the castle which was beautiful but very noisy with the ongoing restoration. In the castle was a huge wine barrel called the Grosses Fass which held 836,000 gallons! I wouldn't mind having one of those in my house.

We wandered around the grounds behind the castle looking for the Schlosshof which according to the Lonely Planet was supposed to produce an audible gasp from tourists. Since we hadn’t yet gasped, we figured we hadn’t seen it. We finally figured out what the Lonely Planet was talking about and it was indeed quite nice but not what we expected. Why is it when something is built up, you are always disappointed with reality, but when your expectations are low, you are pleasantly surprised?

Around lunchtime we took the train to Frankfurt. Beth’s flight was early the next morning so we decided to spend the night there. I can't say I would otherwise ever plan a trip to Frankfurt. It is really just a big city without much charm.

We decided to take the metro to the hotel which was quite confusing. After about 45 aggravating minutes, we were on our way to the Courtyard Marriot. Beth was able to get a free hotel room with her points.

After going against the concierge’s recommendation that we check out the food court, we found a great seafood restaurant downtown with heat lamps so that we were able to sit outside. It was one of the best meals that I’ve had in Germany and a great way to end Beth’s trip.

Brussels – Tuesday, Sept. 22nd – Friday, Sept. 25th

I took the train with Beth to the airport and then headed home to Bonn. I literally unpacked and repacked and Jim and I were off to Brussels for a CLE (continuing legal education).

The first night there, Jim and I went to the Grand Place and then

the main touristy restaurant area nearby for mussels. Although it wasn’t what I had pictured, the mussels ended up being the best we had in Brussels.

The CLE conference was at the Hilton which was in the swankiest area of Brussels. We were surrounded by high end shops and even saw some red carpet events at a few while we were there. After staying at relatively cheap bed and breakfasts over the last few months, I was feeling like a high roller at the Hilton.

We had a great view of the city from our room. I tried taking a picture of our view at night, but forgot about the reflection so only managed to take some nudie shots of myself rather than the sunset over Brussels.

The next three days I spent wandering around Brussels seeing the sights and of course looking for restaurants. I liked Brussels even though a certain Mr. Rick Steves didn’t consider it important enough to include in his Europe Travel guide.

After spending a few days in Brussels, I am looking forward to a trip to Bruges which I have heard is even more charming than Brussels.

Colmar – Oct. 3 – 5th

Friday was a German holiday so Jim had the day off. Even though we were a little travel weary, we decided to celebrate our 1st anniversary in Colmar. Colmar is a cute little town in the Alsace region of France. The area of Alsace has been part of France and Germany at various times in history so it looks like a little German town with its half timbered houses but sounds like France. There is a definite blend of cultures here which is noticeable from the cuisine. The tart flambée and quiche lorraine is all French, but there is also a fair amount of sauerkraut and sausages.

Our first night in Colmar, we went to Les Maison des Tetes for our anniversary dinner. It was a restaurant recommended by Gourmet Magazine. We had a great dinner of foie gras, escargot, fish and great wine -thanks to Orica! Jim's going away present was dinner in any European city.

The next day, we wandered around Colmar hoping the weather would turn around so that we could go out for a bikeride. We went to the Unter Linden museum which is one of the most popular small museums in Europe. We walked through the Petite Venice and then stopped for some tarte flambée for lunch.

Tarte flambee is like a little pizza with a very thin crust topped with lots of cheese and bacon. I’ve decided it might be one of my favorite foods. Luckily, I’ve just discovered it here in a few German grocery stores.

After lunch the sun came out so we set out for a ride in the foothills of the Vogues Mountains. It turned out to be a beautiful fall day with crisp air and sunshine.

For dinner, we decided to check out a nearby small town – Eguisheim. We wandered around looking for a restaurant and found out that we had just missed a wine festival that ended that day. I’d love to go back next summer to check out some of the wine festivals and do some touring of vineyards.

Colmar and the surrounding small towns are part of the Alsace Wine Route which weaves its way just west of Strasbourg south down to Thann. There are over 100 small medieval villages along the wine route and each one has a number of different vineyards surrounding the town. The grapes in the area are almost all used for white wine with the exception of Pinot Noir.

On our last day in Colmar, we were already planning another trip.

Sylvia’s Visit – Oct. 6th – 28th

Jim’s mother arrived in Germany the next day. The only thing we had planned for her trip was a long weekend in Paris.

Her first week here was low key. We did a lot of walking around town, and she helped me get organized as my closets, futon, shoe rack and kitchen island finally arrived.

The first weekend we did a day trip to Trier which is a town on the Mosel River right on the border of Luxemburg. Trier is the oldest city in Germany. It was founded around 16 B.C. by the Romans. We walked around the town taking in the sights. The Porta Nigra is a Roman city gate from the 2nd century. The Trier cathedral is the oldest Christian church in Germany. It houses the Holy Robe of Christ, the sandal of St. Andrew and a nail from the Crucifixion. We also walked through the Gardens of the Electors Palace which was beautiful.

Before driving back to Bonn, we stopped for lunch at a Rick Steve’s recommended restaurant – Zum Domstein. It was supposed to have Roman dishes in the basement dining room but they seemed to be your standard German fare to me, but I have no idea what kind of food the Romans. I guess I was expecting a more Italian flair.

Jim did a fair amount of traveling for work while Sylvia was here so we took that time to do some little day trips near Bonn.

We took the train up to Cologne one day to see the Cathedral and the Chocolate Museum.

Another day we took the U-Bahn to Konigswinter and hiked up to Burg Drachenfels and the Schloss Drachenburg. The hike was the best part of the trip. Although it was a cloudy day, the very steep hike up through the forest was beautiful with lots of fall color.

One of the most surprising discoveries during Sylvia’s visit was Bruhl. Bruhl is located between Cologne and Bonn and has one of the most beautiful castles I have seen yet. Schloss Augustusburg was incredibly ornate with frescoes, countless marble columns and beautiful gardens. We unfortunately didn’t have time to visit the hunting lodge before they closed, but I know I will be back again with our next visitors.

Somehow I read the train map incorrectly so we got on the wrong train going to Bruhl. Bruhl is only 10 minutes away, but I managed to make it an hour and a half journey. We ended up back in Cologne before I realized that I might have made an error. Even though Sylvia’s sense of direction is comically bad, she can read a train map better than I can.

Our next weekend, we decided to go back to the Mosel Valley and spent the night at a tiny little town called Beilstein. Jim biked down while Sylvia and I drove, stopping at the Birkenstock outlet on the way down.

We stayed at Hotel Haus Lipman. The owner of the hotel was incredibly accommodating which is notable because customer service in Germany is a very different thing than customer service in the US. The hotel was supposed to be a medieval mansion. We needed a three person bedroom so ended up in a different building. However, the heating system might have been medieval in our room because it didn't work. Now I know why they shut the hotel down from Nov. to April. BRRR!

While Sylvia and I waited for Jim to get to Beilstein (he got a little lost on the way down), we visited the Beilstein castle. The castle itself isn’t much to look at but the views of the Mosel are what drive people to hike up the steep climb.

The next day, we stopped at Burg Eltz on the way back to Bonn. Burg Eltz is nestled in the forest along a stream so has a very fairytale feel to it. Jim and Sylvia took a tour of the castle which I have already done so I hiked around the grounds. It was another beautiful fall day. I have decided that fall is definitely the best season in Germany.

The following week Jim was headed to Russia so Sylvia and I used the car to drive to Aachen. Aachen is another great day trip from Bonn. The cathedral is the main attraction in Aachen. It is very different from most that we have seen in Europe. It has a main area which is an octagon rather than the typical cross formation of so many gothic cathedrals and has a mosaic ceiling.

Paris - Oct. 24-27

The last weekend of Sylvia’s trip we went to Paris. We stayed with some family friends of theirs, just outside of Paris. Our first day in Paris was spent at the D’Orsay Museum which houses the largest collection of Impressionists. We only were able to cover the top floor before the mueseum started to get really crowded. We decided that after a few hours we were museum’ed out.

We met up with Jim for lunch and tried to find the great steak tartar place we had been to the last time we were in Paris. After an hour of searching, we finally found it or rather Sylvia found it. Unfortunately it was closed so we ended up at a brassiere and had Croque Monsieur sammies because we were all so hungry.

In the afternoon, we visited Notre Dame which was really crowded. We actually had to stand in line to get in. I’m not sure what I was expecting but I was disappointed by the cathedral. I think I like the cathedral in Cologne better than Notre Dame.

On Sunday, Sylvia and I went to Versailles while Jim biked with some friends. For anyone going to Versailles, I would recommend getting tickets ahead of time. We had to stand out in the cold for about an hour and a half to get tickets. Sylvia of course made friends with a Korean couple on their honeymoon behind us. I came back from getting us hot chocolate and she already knew their life story.

Jim and I had been to Versailles the last time we were in Paris but we didn’t go inside. The interior of Versailles is amazing. We saw the kid’s apartments first which wasn’t that impressive but the audio guide gives a lot more information than they do in the main rooms of the palace mainly because they are less crowded. There was a Jeff Koons exhibit in the main place rooms which seemed out of place. I think I just don’t really “get” modern art. I’m not so sure what a statue of Michael Jackson and his monkey – Bubbles has to do with French elite class extravagance. Oh wait, maybe I’m on to something there.

After the weekend was over, I decided that I really like visiting the smaller towns better than large cities. I know I have to experience some of the world's greatest cities, but I'd like to spend more time in the nooks and crannies of Europe.

Oktoberfest - Beer, Beer and More Beer

Friday, September 19th

We woke up at 5am to get an early start for our drive to Munich. It took us about 6 hours or so with traffic to get there.

We met up with Michael, a former coworker of Jim’s. Jim went to a lunch meeting with outside counsel while Beth and I ate a pasta lunch at the law firm. I didn’t get the feeling that they work as many hours as lawyers in the US. I think the foosball table in the office was a hint.

Beth and I walked around the Viktualienmarkt which was a high end farmers market. I was very tempted to buy some fresh truffles. I’m glad the market in Bonn isn’t as nice or we would be penniless. In the middle of the market is a huge maypole.

We wandered into St. Peter’s Church and paid the 1.50 to climb the tower. Thankfully nobody in the group of white hairs in front of us had a heart attack. At the top, we were rewarded with a great view of the city. Climbing a tower as soon as you get to a city really helps you get a sense of where things are, and helps when you are trying to navigate on the ground level later.

After the big climb, we felt justified in rewarding ourselves with a beer and basked in the sun. That was probably the warmest 30 minutes of the entire trip.

We met up with Michael who gave us a walking tour around Munich. We walked by the Neues Rathaus (new town hall) which houses the Glockenspiel. At noon and 5pm the figurines on the carillon of the Glockenspiel circle around on two separate levels.

Next we went into the Theatinerkirke St. Kajetan. It was very different from the dark gothic churches I’ve seen recently. This was a large Baroque church with a completely white interior making the church feel light and airy. The ceiling with light pastel colored frescoes along with the white interior gave it a decidedly Italian feel.

After the church, we headed to the Englischer Garten which is Munich’s main park. It is larger than both Central Park in New York and Hyde Park in London.

It is a lush park with fast moving rivers and lazy lakes. There is even an area of the park where people sunbathe in the nude. Considering that it was only in the 50s and cloudy, we didn’t see anyone trying to tan their fanny.

For being a population that loves order and rules, the Germans do love getting naked. Michael said that in the summer, people at lunchtime for a dip. They simply take off their work clothes and get in the water. It sounds like an interesting way to really get to know your co-workers.

There is an area of the Isar River in the southern end of the park which has a permanent wave. There were about 20 guys in full body wetsuits taking turns surfing on the wave. I can’t imagine how cold they must have been. I was wearing two sweaters, a wool coat and a scarf and was still cold.

We stopped in the park next to the Kleinhessloher Lake for beer and fresh pretzels hot out of the oven before heading back to the car.

We dropped off our stuff and met Michael later that night at an Italian restaurant he picked out. The owner was a crazy Italian guy who obviously loved women. He kissed our hands and made Beth twirl around before he would seat us. Later we saw him giving roses to women by attaching it to a measuring stick and holding it over their heads from across the room feigning shyness.

Michael ordered the pasta special of the day for four people which unfortunately had meat in both of them. Beth was a trooper and ate some of the pasta without pieces of meat. Germany is not a culinary hot spot for vegetarians. Germans love their meat!

Saturday, September 20th

Today was the first day of Oktoberfest so throughout the morning there was a parade which wound around the city and ended up at the fairgrounds. There were floats with lots of smiling, beer drinking Germans bedecked in their finest traditional clothes – Dirndls and Lederhosen.

Jim was able to get us all tickets to the Schotthamel tent through work. That tent housed all the local dignitaries so the mayor gives a speech and everyone in the tent counts down the tapping of the keg. Unfortunately, we missed that as we were separated by the parade we had seen earlier and the tent with no way across. However, after my first liter of beer it was forgotten.

At Oktoberfest, everyone dresses up in traditional clothes. Michael told us this the night before but I really didn’t believe him. I actually felt a little out of place and wished I had gotten a dirndl the day before. Dirndls dresses are flattering for just about every woman – full skirts, tight waist and your boobs pushed up and out. I don’t think I’ve seen that much boob in a while.

Jim’s office gave everyone 4 tickets – 3 for beer, a liter each and 1 for food. They had lots of pretzels and bread on the table to help you soak up the beer in your stomach. We had a bunch of ½ roasted chickens which were delicious. They also served sausages and some bread dumplings in a creamy mushroom sauce which was also really good.

Before we even got to Oktoberfest, I was concerned about the lines for the bathrooms and rightly so. After my first liter of beer I thought I should investigate. I am so thankful that I did. The line for the bathroom wasn’t so much a line as it was a heaving, bosomy mass of about 100 women trying to get through a tiny doorway to the bathroom. I realized that this is how cattle must feel. There were some security guards trying to “herd” us into the bathroom, but they realized it was hopeless and stood aside, hoping their presence would prevent any violence. Needless to say, I spent a lot of the day standing in line with my legs crossed wishing I had some Depends packed in my purse.

The men near our table were very taken with Beth. One old guy from a small Bavarian town wanted to marry her off to his son. He was wearing Lederhosen which looked about 30 years old. I found out later that they were passed down from his father.

Michael translated some of what the old guy said. Apparently his hat had edelweiss in it which his friends harvest from the tops of mountains. He said that a lot of his friends had died that way so the edelweiss was very special. He was going to give some to Beth but I think her lack of interest in his sons prevented him from parting with his edelweiss.

After about 4 liters of beer each, Beth, Jim and I headed back to the hotel for a little nap. Michael had tickets to another tent for the evening so he planned to meet back up with us at 10:30 to go to a club.

The Oktoberfest grounds were quite a different scene than they had been during the day. Now you saw lots of staggering, a few fights were breaking out and a few guys we saw had somehow managed to lose their clothes.

We met up with Michael and a group of his friends to go to the club – Nektar. The club was a very odd experience. It looks like your typical modern club, but everyone was dressed in lederhosen and dirndl, and they served currywurst in the entry way. (Currywurst is a sausage in a ketchup curry sauce.) I guess they figured that most of these people had been drinking all day and needed some sustenance before continuing into the early morning hours.

After about 2 hours, Jim and I were ready to leave so we left Beth in Michael’s very capable hands and headed back to the hotel. Walking back through the fairgrounds, I didn’t envy the guys cleaning the mess of over 100,000 drunkards.

Amsterdam - Beth's Visit

We returned to our house in Bonn and had brand spanking new floors and a huge mess to clean up before Beth arrived the next day. After frantically cleaning for 8 hours to make sure the house was presentable for our first guest, I got a frantic call from Beth. She had missed her connection in D.C. so would be coming a day late.

September 16th

I decided the best plan was to go straight to Amsterdam when she arrived the next day. The train from the Frankfurt airport stopped in Cologne so I planned to get on the same train so we could ride together. It worked out perfectly.

Once we were in Amsterdam, we set about the task of locating the B & B I had reserved. Thankfully, Klaus, our host gave us directions or we would have never found it. As it was, we got lost a few times.

The Eel house was an unassuming and unmarked 5 story house on a corner. The stairs were ridiculously steep and windy. Of course before our trip, I read a negative review of this B&B based on the dangerous stairs, but dismissed the author’s review and attributed it to whiny Americans. I underestimated the “death” stairs. We were, of course, on the 5th floor so we were all pretty out of breath by the time we reached our attic room. The space was small but had a lot of character and a great view.

We freshened up and went in search of dinner. Beth’s Frommer’s guide led us astray a number of times on the restaurant end. We looked for three different restaurants during the course of our stay and none of them existed. However, we were able to find some great places on our own.

That night we had dinner at De Belhamel. It was a little pricey, but we figured a splurge was in order as it was Beth’s birthday. We sat outside at the junction of two canals and had a great meal.

September 17th

The next day Klaus brought breakfast to our room which consisted of warm croissants, bread, cheese, meat and fruit. We had a relaxing, slow start to the day.

First on our agenda was the Anne Frank House. However, the line snaked around the building so we adjusted our plan and headed down to the Van Gogh museum winding our way along the Nine Streets (high end shopping) between two canals.

The last time I was in Amsterdam, I somehow neglected to visit the Van Gogh museum and the Anne Frank House. I’m not exactly sure what it was I did see, but it was about 10 years ago.

The Van Gogh museum was the highlight of the day. I learned a lot that I didn’t know about Van Gogh. He didn’t become an artist until he was 27. He worked in a gallery, was a preacher and then a school teacher before he started to paint. In the span of only 10 years, he painted over 800 works of art. The museum contains 200 of these paintings.

After the museum, we went to the old town center and did some shopping. Beth picked up 2 scarves which kept her warm for the rest of her trip. She only managed to lose one of them in Munich which is probably better than the majority of Oktoberfest revelers.

This was Beth’s first trip to Amsterdam so she wanted to walk by the red light district. This time it was just as depressing as the last time I was there. Everyone seemed to have different tactics. Some stood suggestively; others looked bored or showed off their rolls of fat. One women even stood there making funny faces at would be customers.

We decided to rest our aching feet near the national monument which was fittingly phallic for the sex capital of the Netherlands.

We walked by the Flower Market along the canal and went to the Anne Frank House. The line had completely died down so we were able to get in right away. I've read the Diary of Anne Frank a long time ago but seeing the house made me want to read it again.

For dinner we checked out a vegetarian restaurant that Klaus and Rick Steve’s suggested – De Bol. It was really very good. For those of you in Denver, it reminded me of the Watercourse restaurant but the food was better. We split a North African dish and a veggie cheese casserole.

After dinner we went to the Black Star café and had to peel ourselves away from watching a soccer game to get home. Who knew we liked soccer so much? I think we both decided we were rooting for whichever team had Renaldo.

Thursday, September 18th

The next day we decided to take one of the boat tours to take advantage of the sunshine and two hours we had to spare before getting on the train to Bonn. It was nice to see the town from the water and hear some of the boat driver’s commentary.

We learned that the reason houses are so tall and narrow is that people were taxed according to the width of their house so the built up rather than out. The city has over 100 canals and 500 bridges. A few years ago the city installed low barriers along the canal to prevent cars from driving into the canal. However, one car a week still ends up in the water.

After our tour, we had lunch at Koppel Café which was another winner. I would go back to Amsterdam for the food in a heartbeat.

Back in Bonn, we dropped our bags off at the house and headed downtown for a quick tour of Bonn. Beth was able to practice her German when I fainted. She got to ask someone – Sprechen Sie Englisch? The other German phrase Beth learned during her trip was Entschuldigung (excuse me/ sorry) which she used during the trip as a pick up line.

Greece Trip - Part Four

Friday, September 12th

We woke up, went for a quick swim and then headed back to the boat. Rebecca, Zarko, Jim and I decided we hadn’t seen enough of the island and so in true mutinous fashion, we left on our scooters to check out the Kastro (castle) near the main town, Hora.

There was no wind to speak of for our last day of sailing and for this I was glad. The day before we had dented the boom and ripped a line for the main sail on the boat so I was a bit worried about what else we would break if we had to sail another day.

We got to the Santorini islands around 3:00. One of the guys on the boat said that there were hot springs near a small island across from Santorini. Someone decided the best way to get to the supposed hot springs was to use the dingy which was badly in need of some air. After piling 5 people into the tiny dinghy, I was worried whether we’d all make it or if we’d need to throw someone overboard to save ourselves.

When we got to the hot springs, it was a bit disappointing. The springs weren’t very hot but rather lukewarm . The water had a dirty, cloudy, brown look due to a high metallic content. However, it didn’t seem to faze the German tourists nearby who were jumping from a tour boat like it was the Titanic. They couldn’t wait to get into the murky, brown, lukewarm water.

To get to the harbor we had to skirt the end on the island. We were able to witness an amazing sunset while Alek broke out the Bacardi and Cohibas.

Knowing how “painful” the previous dockings had been, I stealthily or maybe not so stealthily disappeared and took a little nap downstairs.

The port was pretty sparse. There was a restaurant, a store and a little beach with a stand and that was it. We had dinner at the port and went to bed for the last time on the boat.

Saturday, September 13th

The rest of the group was staying in Santorini that night so we split up. Jim and I had a flight to Athens later that day so we were anxious to explore Santorini before heading to the airport.

After having some difficulty finding a cab and considering a ride with the group just when we were excited to be on our own for a while, we were able to get a taxi not to Oia as we had hoped but to Fira where we could take another taxi or bus to Oia.

After checking out the bus schedule, we decided a scooter was the best option to see the island and still make our flight. Plus we were able to ditch our backpacks with the scooter guy. It was only 10 Euros for a scooter for the day.

We drove the longer way to Oia which was more scenic and had less traffic. After schlepping around the backpacks in the hot humid air (100 degrees with 100% humidity), the breeze on the scooter felt so good.

The town of Oia is built on the side of the island with steep cliffs down to the sea. The view from just about anywhere in town is beautiful. There are the classically Greek white adobe buildings perched along the cliffs and the very blue water in the background.
The town was a little more upscale than most of the islands we had been on so far but was pretty much the same type of stuff – clothing, jewelry and art.

We looked for lunch. Again Jim suggested eating at the same restaurant he had in the past, and I entertained that idea for about 5 minutes before I vetoed it and found a restaurant with the best breeze but mediocre food.

After lunch, we explored the town a bit more. You can actually rent a donkey to take you down to the sea if you are too lazy to do the walk yourself. We decided against going down to the water. It was far too hot to climb back up, and the prospect of dodging donkey poop wasn’t extremely tempting.

Two hours later, the clouds rolled in and obscured part of the town and water so we decided to head back to Fira. I was happy to get back on the scooter to cool off.

On the way back to Fira, we saw a sign for a winery and stopped to check it out. It was a peaceful little terrace in the middle of nowhere with only 2 other couples. We learned that in Greece, they grow the vines curled up on the ground to catch the dew so that they don’t require any irrigation.

We tried two whites, a red and 2 dessert wines. None of them were good enough to get a bottle but then again, Greece isn’t really known for its wine. It was a fun little stop nonetheless.

Across the way from the vineyard, was Paradise Beach. It was a rocky little beach with black sand so I wouldn’t have named it such, but we were hot and the water was wet so it felt like Paradise at that moment. We didn’t have swimsuits on, but you can always count on German tourists to be there and be naked so we followed suit or sans suit as it were.

Back in Fira, we wondered around the town, remorsefully turned in our scooter (I loved that little thing) and took a taxi to the airport. Our flight was delayed for about 30 minutes so we didn’t get to the hotel in Athens until 10:30.

The hotel was really, really nice- Athens Gate Hotel. The rooms had a great bathroom with a proper shower a view of the Temple of Olympian Zeus.

We had dinner at a large restaurant at the base of the Acropolis. It was a quiet spot with amazing views of the illuminated Acropolis. It was a wonderful end to the trip.

Greece Trip - Part Three

Ok, I have some serious blogging to do to get up to date. However, it isn't going to happen this week. Jim and I are going to Colmar, France tomorrow and then Jim's mom comes on Monday.

September 9, 2008

The next morning, Jim and I swam to shore to explore what little was there on the island of Kea. It looked like it was a little tourist resort but was completely deserted save for an old man smoking a cigarette and drinking a coffee. It almost had an eerie feel to it as if there had been a big party there the night before and everyone was still sleeping or they were waiting for a big tour bus to come through.

We wanted to get a coffee but it didn’t seem like anyone was working at the bar. We decided that either the old man we saw needed some serious customer service lessons or he was staying at one of the bungalows behind the bar.

Thankfully, we were able to find a bathroom in the deserted town which was clean and even had toilet paper. Bathroom strategy came into play all week as we tried to avoid the bathroom on the boat.

Our second day sailing was a long one. We sailed for about 7-8 hours. We intended to go to Mykonos, but weren’t able to get there. I started to worry about whether we would have enough time to get to Santorini in time if we were consistently were behind schedule.

We ended up going to an island named Sryos and anchored at Ermoupoli. Ermoupoli was a great little town with tight alley ways filled with restaurants and little boutiques.

Unfortunately, Jim had gone down in the galley earlier in the day and ended up getting sea sick so we decided to stay in a hotel for the night. It also didn't help that our boat seemed to be rocking much more than any other boat in the harbor.

We had dinner on shore and then walked up to a chuch high above the town - Agros Greorgios. On the way down, we saw cats everywhere. I am not sure if they belonged to anyone but we saw a lot of cat food out for them as if they were community cats.

I was actually glad that Jim was seasick because having a hotel for the night was really nice. We were able to wash off the salt from the sea and get a good night sleep.

Wednesday, Sept. 10

The next morning, Jim and I went to the main square (Plateia Miaouli) for a coffee. We had our first Greek coffee sitting with 15 or so old men. They were all facing the square, drinking coffee, gossiping and fingering their worry beads or Komboloi. Worry beads are Turkish prayer beads which are often used to reduce stress and bad habits. They were generally only used by men but have more recently come into use by both sexes although we only saw old men using them.

The next island we went to was Naxos. It was the largest and most fertile island in the Cyclades and had lots of tourists as a result. We first tried to anchor in the bay near the port to avoid having to park the boat again, but when some policemen began yelling at us from shore, we surmised that it must be illegal to be there and reluctantly took the boat into the harbor.

After walking around the town that night, Jim and I set up our beds on the bow of the boat again. Unfortunately, the harbor was very windy, noisy and bright so neither of us slept much that night. I moved to different parts of the boat all night long which I think resulted in my glasses falling overboard. They somehow "disappeared" on our trip.

Thursday, Sept. 11th

It was another really rough day on the water so Jim was seasick again. He took over steering the boat and after a few hours seemed to be doing better.

Our next stop was Folegrandos which was a sleepy little port. All I could hear were the waves lapping the beach, and a dog barking in the distance.

Jim and I got another hotel that night at the Farm Hotel. The hotel did have a little farm next to it with chickens and goats.

That night for dinner we rented scooters and ATVs and drove up to the main town - Hora. I was a little scetched out by the rickety old scooter until I realized the poor thing couldn't go over 20 miles an hour.

I was on a mission to get seafood during this trip, but sadly the main "seafood" restaurant didn't have any fish. The seas had been too rough for the fisherman to go out. We ended up having dinner in a little square with Christmas lights hanging from the trees and little Greek girls playing nearby.

Greece Trip - Part Two

Monday, September 8

We finally got out of port at around noon after our grocery trip and our “safety briefing” from Stu. Considering that Jim broke his toe, I found myself holding on for dear life on the side of the boat, and we dented the boom and tore one of the lines, I’m not sure how effective the safety briefing was.

The first day on the boat, I realized that the there are 2 big problems with sailing. The first is that you are sitting on a boat all day. I know this seems obvious. Sailing = being on a boat. I, however, didn't seem to make this connection. I guess I thought much more about exploring the islands rather than actually sailing. I saw the sailing part as a means of transportation, but not necessarily the main event. Unfortunately that view wasn’t necessarily shared with our captains so some of us were disappointed with the amount of sailing vs. island exploration that occurred.

The second problem with sailing is the bathroom situation. For those of you who don’t know anything about sailing, there is one bathroom that can be used when the boat is in the harbor. You must pump out the toilet’s contents into a storage tank and pull in sea water. No toilet paper can be put in the tank so you have to put your used toilet paper into a bag which hangs on the bathroom door. Yes, that would be the ajoining door to our cabin.

I mistakenly thought it would be great to have a bathroom near our room to compensate for my pea-sized bladder so we chose the room attached to that bathroom. Due to the proximity of the bathroom, our cabin had a distinct sewage smell to it and was one of the main reasons we slept on the bow of the boat every night.

Our first day on the boat was a slow one as the winds were light. At one point, we stopped for a swim in the middle of the Aegean and were actually able to swim faster than the boat. It was amazing to be able to swim in the middle of the sea with absolutely nothing, but tons of water around us.

We had intended to go to Kythnos but the wind didn’t cooperate so we only got as far as Kea. The island of Kea was quite barren and didn’t have much of a town. The landscape was scattered with housing projects seemingly abandoned as if they lost their financial backer midway through construction.

I was anxious to get on an island and explore so was disappointed that we were staying on the boat. However, looking back on the trip, that was one of the best nights. We had dinner on the boat, followed by a refreshing night swim. Then Jim and I were able to look up at the stars while we drifted off to sleep in the silent bay where we had anchored.

Greece Trip - Part Eins (One)

Sunday, September 7th

We started our trip to Greece in Athens. Our sailing partners did not arrive until later in the afternoon so we decided to do some sightseeing in Athens proper.

The Athens airport and metro system was surprisingly easy to use. They revamped their transportation system for the 2004 Olympics so it was much better than when Jim was previously in Greece.

Upon exiting the airport and making our way to the metro, both Jim and I remarked upon the similarities in the landscape between Greece and Tucson. I think the only difference in the climate is the amount of humidity.

We were able to ditch our backpacks in a locker at one of the downtown Metro stations (Monastiraki) which was a lifesaver as the temperature was in the high 90s without a cloud in the sky.

Our first agenda was lunch. Jim was sure he would be able to find the restaurant he ate at in 2002 in the Plaka district. Why do I fall for this? I know better. Once Jim admitted that there was no way he would be able to remember where he ate, we went back to a restaurant I had seen earlier. It had fans blowing a fine mist over the tables and was a godsend in the blistering heat.

After lunch we started walking through the narrow, winding streets surrounding the Acropolis. Every street in the Plaka is lined with shops selling leather shoes, jewelry and clothing. After wandering for about an hour and not having luck finding the entrance to the Acropolis, we ran into some people who pointed us in the general direction, kind of. It seemed very strange that the map we had didn’t indicate the main entrance to the Acropolis.

The acropolis is actually more impressive at night when lights illuminate it from below. During the day, the scaffolding is a bit of a distraction. The placards in front of the ruins unfortunately talked more about the restoration of the buildings which has been taking place since the 80s than the history or purpose of the structures. Of course I had left the Rick Steves and Lonely Planet information I had printed out in our backpacks.

However, the architecture of the Parthenon is quite impressive. The columns lean slightly inward and widen in the middle to counteract an illusion of being concave. The corner columns are slightly thicker; otherwise they would have seemed smaller and thinner than the rest. The building's width to length ratio, as well as the ratio between the diameter of each column and the distance between them was set at an ideal number 4:9. The temple's floor and steps rise slightly in the middle, creating an illusion of a perfectly straight line.

At the top of the Acropolis, you can see all of Athens which is a huge urban sprawl. According to one of the guide books, 1 in 3 Greeks live in Athens. They come for the job opportunities. After seeing some of the sleepy, peaceful villages, I can understand why young professionals would come to Athens for work and vacationers go there to relax.

On the way down from the Acropolis, we were so thirsty that we stopped for some drinks at a café/ bar. Jim had a frappe which is an iced coffee that everyone seemed to be drinking. He wasn’t a fan.

After our refreshments, we headed down to the Ancient Agora which was the market place / meeting place. It was hard to imagine what it looked like at one time seeing the scattered fragments of the statues, fountains and buildings. Jim loved the fact that we were standing in the same place as Socrates and the birthplace of democracy. I was hot and sweaty so was somewhat less impressed.

I determined on this trip that the weather in Germany is much more my style. I have some serious issues with heat. However, Jim couldn't get enough of the heat and sunshine. It must be my nordic blood that prevents me from loving the heat.

We decided to make our way to Alimos Marina where we were to meet up with Stuart, Louise and Rebecca. We figured out that it was about 5 metro stations away and then a transfer to the tram.

There was some confusion as to which direction we should be going on the tram. I ensured Jim we were headed in the right direction but for some reason he doesn’t trust my excellent sense of direction. So we got off the train and I showed Jim we were in fact on the right train and now had to wait for 20 minutes for the next tram. I decided that since we were both hot, sweaty and tired I would refrain from doing my “told you so” dance even though it was incredibly tempting.

We arrived at the marina and met Stuart, Rebecca and Louise who were already on the boat. Rebecca and Louise are from New Zealand, living in London and Stuart is an American, living in the Netherlands.

After the food for the boat was delivered, we decided to go into the town to have dinner. The women who dropped off the food recommended a place but Stuart had gone to the marina restaurant and insisted it was good so we went there. It was a very modern design and looked like a very happening place. After looking at the menu though, I decided it was essentially an upscale Applebee’s. I think the only Greek food was a Greek salad. However, the bathrooms were incredibly nice so we all brushed our teeth there because apparently the marina bathrooms were not very clean.

That night was so warm that Jim and I decided to sleep on the bow of the boat. Ultimately, we slept on the boat every night but that had more to do with the room we chose than the heat but I’ll get to that later.