Lose Yourself in Venice, Part 1

So I've been hanging out in Munich for a little while. Knowing I'm surrounded in close proximity by 5-6 other countries has been killing me... I need to get out! When I found out Venice was only 5 hours away by car, I was dead-set determined to get the gang together and get on the road. So that's exactly what I did.

We took a drive through the a popular skiing destination for rich people, The South Tirols, which covers Austria and Northern Italy. The drive started out well but we hit a huge cloud bank, and most of the Alps were covered. It was still really nice!

We hit a bit of traffic on the way there, but the drive wasn't really that bad. Since it was on our route, we decided to make a pit stop in Verona, the famous city of Romeo and Juliet, on our way there.

It was over 80 degrees!! Such a change from the freezing German summers!

The arena where Gladiators fought

Streets of Verona

My first Italian Gelato!!!

Erik by the Bubble Gum Alley

Juliet's Balcony

And the courtyard where Romeo stood :)

Verona was really beautiful. It was very Italian in the architecture, with the pale oranges and pinks and the ornate white trim. We didn't stay very long because we were eager to get to Venice. I really didn't want to miss the sunset!!


So we got back in the car and finished our trip. Our hotel ended up being really nice! It wasn't on the island because we had a car, but it was just a short bus ride away. We took the bus onto the island and sat down to have dinner.

Erik's pizza had eggplant, salami, prosciutto, olives, artichokes, bell pepper, mushrooms, and eggplant on it! I was so jealous!

I could see dusk was coming so I hurried Erik up so we could make it to the Grand Canal by sunset.

Venice at dusk is gorgeous. All of the colors of the sky reflect on to the water and it looks like an oil painting. plus, the weather is finally comfortable enough to enjoy everything you see.

Ahh Venice at dusk! There was so much to take in I didn't even know where to look! I just had to stop, take a deep breath, and thank God for putting me here and making such a beautiful scene.

When most of the colors had faded, we decided to get some gelato! When my dad and Chris when to Italy, the thing I remember most about their trip is how much Gelato they ate!! Every since then I had always wanted to have some. Now, we have Gelato in Germany, and I thought it was good.. until I went to Italy!! We found this cute little place right on the ocean and got a couple of scoops. I decided I was going to try a new flavor every time, so I had Melon and Strawberry. Surprisingly, Melon was my favorite! It was delicious! Erik makes fun of me because I say everything is "the best thing ever". He says it's over-used and he can never really tell how good things are, because I love everything. After hearing me declare it, "the best gelato ever", Erik just kind of rolled his eyes and ignored me... but then he took one bite of his ice cream and said, "wow, this really is the best gelato ever!" HAHAHA it was such a momentous occasion for us!

Gelati Nico, a Venetian MUST DO!!

Now that it was pretty dark outside, all the lights of the city were getting turned on. The sky was dark but there were still lots of street lamps and windows lit up everywhere. It was great. We made our way through the alleys and dead-ends (stay tuned for part 2) to Piazza San Marco where the giant Basilica is.

The Basilica

The Plaza

Nook of Venice

Creepy alley

There were people playing music and people sitting on the steps, it was really nice.

After this, we walked to The Rinalti Bridge to see The Grand Canal at night. It was gorgeous! The lights were reflecting on the water and there were boats that went by--it was really nice!

The Bridge

Words/photos can't express how beautiful it was

After this, Erik and I were done. We met up with the girls we drove with, left the island, curled up in our hotel room, and were out cold in a matter of minutes!!

to be continued...

Enjoying Bavarian Holidays: Salzburg

Bavaria is a very religious part of Germany. So religious, they have an extra 18 days a year of vacation where the entire region closes. I'm not joking. Everyone gets the day off, and people sit around try to remember exactly what the day means. In June we celebrated "Corpus Christi Day" (still haven't figured out what it means) and Erik got the day off. We took a short ride to Salzburg, just to see if the hills really were alive...

Cool palace fountain.

It was scorching hot and being by the river felt nice

They were alive.

For the first time in weeks, it was 25 C. We were so surprised considering it had snowed three weeks before. We were definitely unprepared but it felt nice.

Salzburg is a very regal city. It's very old looking and all of the buildings are palatial.

 While walking through, we stumbled upon a graveyard. The gravestones were really cool and unlike any I've ever seen-they were made of metal. We looked to find the oldest one there. It was from the 1700's!!

Salzburg is situated next to a cliff face, the same cliff face where the castle is. Built into the cliffs is an old chapel. We walked up these dodgy stairs that had been carved into the rock, and came upon a very old church that was about 20 ft-20ft, had a few pews, and a place to put holy water.

Thank goodness for this place.. it was so cool inside!! It was a nice break from the heat!

After Erik and I walked around and looked at the city, and then we decided to take a funicular up to the top of the cliffs to the castle.

The view from the top of the castle was magnificent. You could see the entire city and the hills in the background. It was gorgeous.

After this, we were tired and wanted to go home, but we shared our tickets with some friends and had to wait for them. Erik and I went down to the river and took a nap on a hill. What a gorgeous setting.

Salzburg is a nice place to visit. I didn't do the Sound of Music tour, but maybe someday I'll go back and see where it all began.

Travel Addicts Anonymous

It's true. I think I have an addiction.

To all of those real travel addicts, please don't be offended. I'm sure it's really a problem for you that you have no control over... but would you mind if I attended some of your meetings once in awhile?

Here's my problem. I work 50 hours a week, 7 days. I never have a day off. I work with children, sometimes in German. and it's really hard. I whine and complain about I how I never have any money. So what do I do?

I book a trip to Istanbul.

Mind you, it was only 100 euros (bam!) but still. There's just something about the hunt. All the different websites, trying different days, seeing what you can find. Your heart skips a beat when you find the perfect time.  With a little bit of reluctance, you click "view this one" then the page comes up where you check it our further. You click "next" where the page comes up where you input your data. Your heart starts to race as you quickly type your name. Stop. Where my debit card? Sudden panic hits you when you realize it's no where to be seen. You search everywhere, and it is literally gone. Where's the last place I had it, you ask yourself. You search every bag, every corner, everything. When you've about reach your wits end, thinking, "oh my gosh the price is going to go up before I can book it" and "it's going to be sold out" you stop and almost began to cry. You look on your desk and there it is. You type in your data and hit click. Adrenaline is racing through your body. "Error". You go back.. Why do they never accept my telephone number? You change it to their preferences. Hit the "I agree to these terms and conditions" one more time and BAM. Confirmation. A deep sigh of relief as all the blood rushes through your body.

Oh yeah. Then you like get to go on a trip or something?

A Walk through History

As some, well, lets be honest, as all of you know, I've been dating this European Dreamboat for a few months

He was on assignment in Munich, then had to go home for what was meant to be a month. It ended up being a lot longer. So, I decided to come visit.

I arrived on a Sunday afternoon. Erik picked me up from the airport and we drove to his house. I was so nervous to meet his parents, but of course, they are the nicest people in the world. I mean, Erik's the nicest guy in the world, so his parents had to be great. So great they did this:

Funny thing is, I didn't even notice it at first. My boyfriend had to point it out. Even then, it didn't click to me that it was odd to be flying an American Flag in The Netherlands. But then I got it. How awesome are they!!

 Now, Erik is like an adult or something, and he has this job where he has to go everyday? I don't really get the whole idea, but thankfully Monday was a holiday so he had the day off. He took me on a walk through the forest near his house. His town has a lot of history from World War 2, and his dad spends a lot of time researching it. His dad created a walk through their forest as a sort of remembrance to what has happened.

The start of the walk

This is a replica of the underground caves people hid Jews it. You can't see them from behind, they just blend in with the landscape.

A pilot crashed in his town and due to the soil conditions his imprint remained in the mud for 10-15 years. This is a replica of that (my boyfriend was the model)

This is a crater from where a plane dropped their bomb cargo

Nazi trenches

Erik in the Nazi trenches

Just lookin' hott.

The whole thing is really cool. I think it's great how much Europeans still remember the war and try to learn from it so history doesn't repeat itself.

Look closely at this picture

Could you be more Dutch?
hehe. Okay back to my story.

So anyway, along with the cool forest, his father also created this monument to commemorate the crew of a bomber that crashed here during the war.

His dad has put a lot of work into this, and has even been invited to dine with the Queen because of it!! So basically, what I'm trying to tell you is, my boyfriends kind of a big deal. Hahahaha.

Anyway, it was a great day. I learned a lot. And really love his town.

Frühlingsfest

I wanted to start this post with, "It's finally spring in Germany" but then I realized, hmm. I think I may have not one, but two post already with this beginning. Then I pause and look outside. It's pouring rain, and yet again, freezing cold.


What is with this weather I ask you! One day it's 80 degrees, the next it's 40! My wardrobe is getting confused!

And now the point of this post.

Frühlingsfest. Ah Frühlingsfest. Known to the locals as "Oktoberfest's little sister", it is in fact, just another excuse for German's to get dressed up in lederhosen and dirndls and drink at inappropriate times of the day.

Now, it's not all about drinking. There are also rides. Like the County Fair. And many places to buy greasy German fast food.

So you're thinking, let me get this straight. First you get drunk, then you eat a giant bratwurst followed by a schnitzl, then you go spin around high up in the air?

My answer for you is yes. That's exactly what you do. Until 8pm. If you have managed to stay conscious until around 8pm, then the real fun begins. (or the real fun for me, considering I don't drink) Everyone gathers together in these giant beer tents where there are many tables packed full of people. They cram as many people as they can into on table, and have about 25% of the amount of servers they require. All of them are very cranky. I wonder why? People squish as close as they can, and needless to say you end up making a lot of friends. The fire captain would not be happy about this.

In addition, they decorate them as if it were going out of style. Tons of color everywhere! When the night gets going, they have DJ's come and play popular music, both American and German. People get crazy. They stand up and on the benches and dance like no one is watching. Now. The problem with mixing alcohol, Germany, height, and dancing is, people fall down a lot. Something like this would never happen in America, because frankly, someone would sue. It sure is funny to watch.

On that note. While I was sipping my alcohol free beverage, the waiter came around and brought more beer to our table. In the process, he set a glass on top of my glass and it chipped. I showed him the shards of glass in my drink. He looked at me and said (in German), "what do you want me to do about it?" and walked away. hmm. I'm proud of the American Legal System. And no, I'm not ashamed to say that.

This festival goes on for about three weeks. It sure is a lot of fun. Sadly, like all good things, it came to an end.

126 more days until Oktoberfest.