Schleswig and the local celebrity.

I woke the sleeping bear and made him start the day earlier. Turns out it takes a non morning person a really long time to get into the day. I can’t imagine. Getting up at noon means you’ve only got a few hours to do things.

We headed to a place further north today. A town called Schleswig. It sits on a water inlet from the Baltic Sea. Was a nice place, had a big cathedral, a nice quay by the water and a really old area where they preserved the fishing village from the 1700’s and earlier. It was really cool. They still fish there and you can buy the fish fresh from the man on the boat! Yum!

Niklas’ mom took us to a café near the harbor and we had lunch. Niklas ordered what turned out to be cold smoked salmon with a dish of pasta. Wow! Yum. I’m still not sure what its called on a menu but once I learn I’ll be ordering it. Salmon is so cheap here, its on every menu!

Niklas' mom Elke was voted by her local community to be a model for people over fifty. It was a contest they ran in the local paper and she won! She was modeling on a catwalk on Friday. Neat! She's pretty adorable though so I could see it. That was my local celebrity...haha

Inside the cathedral is an alter carved entirely of wood, it survives from the 1400’s. Wow! They were pretty organized about showing it off. They have a ‘map’ of the different scenes so you can follow along and then they also have close up photos enlarged and in a big display so you can see them up close. Really cool!

This morning I walked to the Tourist info office. Its just past the train station. They are pretty well organized, with a nice store but only 2 items were in an English version. Which is what I’m finding everywhere. Its been really interesting. I keep visiting places where few Americans wander so they aren’t quite as tourist oriented.

On my way out the automatic door stopped working. So you walk up to the sensor and nothing happens, it was funny. Talk about being trapped, there was a line to get in and out, ha! Finally a desperate lady just pulled the doors open.

This afternoon (Niklas had to work today) we are headed to Flensburg. I’d tell you all about it but I haven’t have Google power for days, I’ve gotten to do no research ;( it’s a bummer actually, I kinda like being able to read up a little bit on where I go, what I see etc. But its not so major. 

Kalifornia...

I went to California (okay, Kalifornien) haha. It was great! Niklas kept saying lets go to California which is especially funny because his tour was all over California.

As it turns out it’s a real place right along the sea. Big sections of beaches (which they are ‘combing’ right now, scooping off the rocks…) beach chairs, beach gear, shops etc it was great. Since its so early in the season there isn’t anyone around yet but when I come back in a month the place will likely be packed!

I got into the water a little bit, its freezing cold! Swimming there would be hard really, besides that its freezing, you have to wade a long ways out to get to deeper water otherwise it’s a nice shallow sandy pool.

This was the first area I’d seen that had camping options also. Around here they seem to be RV campgrounds mostly. I could see that though, its really windy across that place. A tent would never survive. Their RV are really cute mini versions of our road warriors…

Right next to Kalifornien is a place called Brasilien. Ha! So we walked there to check it out, all we found was an enormous campground parking lot and the biggest rooster you’ve ever seen. I mean this thing was the size of a golden retriever! I couldn’t get him to move off his hilltop so the photo doesn’t do him justice.

Neither Niklas nor I were sure if that was all brazil had so we kept walking and walking and walking and ended up in a new village altogether. Ha. I guess Brazil is just a place you camp.

Along the way there were the funniest cows I’ve ever seen (simple minds, simple pleasures) how cute are they? Really small, shaggy curly hair and colored around their noses. I couldn’t get them to come closer to me either so no good photo but I am determined to snap a picture of one eventually.

There were restaurants and snack shacks at this village so we had a break before our long and upwind walk back to California. I had Pringles and a Diet Coke, a little taste of home I guess, haha.

Last night was a champions league soccer match on TV so we watched that. Apparently everyone in Germany is totally into it because two of the teams are German. Both have won but I’m still not sure what that means, Niklas said they play more games.

We also experimented with mixing our own cocktails, I mention this because later on I’m going to want to remember some of the mixtures…well one in particular. Its called (I learned yesterday) The Mexican. Its delicious. Made with this stuff called Sangrita (I bought the picante version) it’s a spicy tomato juice loaded with pepper or something…then you mix it with vodka (the actual recipe calls for korn, but I don’t know what that is exactly, a type of liquor) and Tabasco which I don’t like and we didn’t have anyways. So you mix it all up with more black pepper and drink it like a shot. Though you could add more juice and make it a ‘long drink’ that’s what they call things like Rum and Coke, long drinks…haha

The other concoction was nameless but really good, vodka and caramel syrup (the kind we Americans use for flavored coffees) sweet but like eating a piece of birthday cake. Ha!

Today I made Niklas get up early (he slept till noon yesterday, too long…so much to do…haha) we are headed up north to see some new country. I’ll also meet his mom today and it sounds like also his grandma. We are meeting Caroline there which will be really fun.

Baltic Sea Catch Up

Tuesday morning I sat waiting for Niklas in the hostel coffee shop and talked to a man who was from Hamburg originally. He told me all the things I should go see, where to walk, which trains to take…I was like, where were you Sunday evening?! So I took notes for when I return to Hamburg (catching my train back to Stuttgart from there)

When we arrived in Kiel Niklas switched into tour guide mode and showed me around. We went and saw where he worked on the Kiel Canal. Saw the beach, then another beach in a place called Laboe (that place is rad, beach front Baltic Sea. Who would have ever thought I’d see the Baltic Sea!

community, kite surfers etc.) Laboe sits right on the

We went and had a pasta and fish lunch, yum! Then headed to the Citti Park which is a giant shopping mall! We did a grocery shop there, it was like a Costco (within the shopping mall) only there was both huge portions of things and smaller ones for regular people. It was pretty fun. 

After that was hung out and relaxed at his apartment. It was rainy and windy and cold out. Today the sun is out so we are headed to another beach this time.

This photo here is of the end of a Uboat and the big brick structure is a Marine monument. It costs a bit of money to get into both of them so I skipped it but weird to see U boats sitting around here. That one was built in Hamburg, which I read earlier was bombed by the British because of its amazing ship building abilities. Who knew. 

Red Light...check

Had major technology meltdown at the hostel so I'm just now posting blogs....sorry!

Having major technology meltdown. Monday I was able to post photos of my wanderings on Facebook and then after I returned from hunting for dinner the computer wouldn't connect any more. Old computer I guess. Poor little thing wasn't planning to come back to Europe, now here it is.

I’m currently in Kiel Germany. You might have to look it up on a map. North of Hamburg, on the eastern side of the peninsula leading up to Denmark. It sits on the Baltic Sea. But I want to go back to Monday first.

Since I hadn't come prepared, I wasn't really sure what to see when I got to Hamburg. The hostel people were great but not at ‘tour our city’ type things so they hand you a map, show you were you are on it and then off you go. Sunday afternoon I’d walked around quite a bit so Monday I walked in a new direction. This time past the tourist information office. They offer tours of the area but only in German. The English tour are on Friday and Saturday mornings. I pointed to a photo on a brochure and asked where that was, he gave me directions and off I went.

Red light district. That’s where I’d asked to go, without knowing that’s what I’d done. Why wouldn't the man have offered up that information? Ha! At first you walk by a really cute little church then it’s all straight to hell from there. I had asked about the street because they have a bunch of (non sexual) neon signs hanging over the street. I’m thinking “Vegas” but below the signs was, well, you know. I don’t even want to describe it and if you’re really curious there are graphic photos on the outsides of the buildings.

I wandered onto the street in the day time luckily so I just got out of there.

The Reeperbahn is another place people say I should visit. Let me describe it to you. San Francisco, Market Street, between 8^th and Powell essentially. It was a little sexier but otherwise dirty and run down, shops were closed. Bums were around. So I kept walking.

I had seen people climbing the steeple of a church from the harbor so I wandered down the road to it. It’s called Saint Michaels Church. I took the stairs, it’s a lot of stairs. So many stairs! Up past the clock works and the bells and onto the top portion for a great view of Hamburg. Really cool! They had a crypt too which I always find interesting but they’d fixed it up, put museum type things in it and left the bodies alone. They were all apparently below our feet. Different than in the English crypts where you see the coffins etc.

From here I wandered back along the harbor where I’d already been. Walking in circles…I did stop and have a ‘bratfisch’ I had no idea but on the photos it looked the least scary. It turned out to be a fried fish sandwich, not sure what kind of fish but when you’re hungry it doesn't matter.

I walked under the Elbe River along the Old Tunnel. That was really neat. They let cars drive through there and they have elevators for the cars! The other side is nothing special it’s totally industrial but the view was really nice. Not a lot of people go there for that view, not sure why. It’s a short walk.

Altogether it was a good day. I went back to the hostel for a shower and nap and then wandered back to the food street to find something cheap to eat. I ended up with a crepe that had ham, Camembert cheese, and some weird jam or jelly. Surprisingly delicious!

At this point it had been decided that Niklas would come and get me from Hamburg on Tuesday instead of Weds. So I packed up a little but and took it easy the rest of the night. 

Hostel Refresher

Oh boy, when I was making up my hostel bed yesterday I realized it had been quite a while since I'd stayed in one. It was like relearning an old skill.
First you check in, get the 'orientation' of the building, lockers, sheets, kitchen etc then you go check out your room, find a bed. They provide a pillow and comforter and clean sheets to put on it. They don't want you using your own because they can control bugs better. Ew, but its true.
As far as I can gather 16 'beds' share one shower/toilet combo and one toilet room. Its a little bit much. Shower when you can, when no one is around and you hear yourself think, "now's my chance!" I goofed on that yesterday. Rookie mistake.
When it was time to go to bed (I went first, old lady in the house) I had a moment of panic trying to find my ear plugs. That's the one thing you need when you go to bed early, a way to block out the noise. I've learned to sleep with the lights on and the ear plugs in and that way people aren't fumbling around in the dark when they could just as easily have the light on.
This morning it seemed we all got up at once. Which meant we were fighting over the one shower. It was kind of hilarious. So either get up early and get to it or what I'll end up doing, come back mid day (break time anyways) and take care of business then.
Its raining at the moment so I'll keep it simple today. Coffee shop?? Maybe I'll pay for the hop on hop off bus around Hamburg, then I can see it all from inside a vehicle.

Hamburg!!

I had quite a day today. Travel day, very few 'hiccups'. I got up early and caught the train in Stuttgart to head to Hamburg. It was actually pretty smooth ride, I slept the whole way. I guess I should have been seeing scenery but I couldn't keep my eyes open, something about that rocking train. It was an ICE train so it was flying through the countryside too! 5 1/2 hours.
Once I arrived in Hamburg I had to navigate the most insane train station I've ever seen (so far) it was huge and absolutely heaving with people. Trains on every track, S trains, U trains, Buses. My gosh! Luckily I'd looked up my route ahead of time (I know, preparing ahead...a magical thing) so I knew I needed the U3 train. Piece of cake, find a kiosk, tell it speak English and push some buttons. See what happens. Then it was a matter of not hurting anyone with my giant bag! haha trains are easy to navigate here and cheap to hop on too. That was a relief considering what I went through to get to the correct train :)

I did of course get lost walking to the hostel. I know the general street names but the street signs here are grafitti'd to death so it wasn't easy. Luckily for me the bus stops are equipped with maps.
The hostel is great, cute little reception area, a patio and clean rooms. I'm in an 8 mixed dorm room. No sweat. After walking around all afternoon with my bags I'll sleep like a baby with all my new roommates.
After some bed making and unpacking/resorting I got oriented by the front desk guy and wandered off down the street.
I'm in a neighborhood called St.Pauli and it sits in between all sorts of great districts...or so I hear. I haven't gotten that far yet. This place is crazy about grafitti. to the point where its a little bit much, like control yourselves (check out the building in the photo, its covered in 'superheros;). Its everywhere. Everything not moving has a hundred stickers on it. And they don't clean up after their pets and the men urinate on the street so its alot like being back in Spain. Totally different than Southern Germany. I miss Southern Germany for its cleanliness but things are way cheaper here and the stuff they sell in the shops is great fun and very entertaining. Not like my cake ring :)
Tomorrow I'll get up early ish and wander around while everyone has gone back to work...I should be so lucky. Not sure what to go see but I'll figure it out!

Survived a German Beer Tent (Fruhlingsfest)

Its an interesting thing to go to a carnival in a foreign country. Walking in you'd think you were in America during every state fair...but with no admission fee. Food vendors, games with prices, lots of little rides. And then there are the enormous beer tents.  Totally unexpected. They are huge solid wooden structures. The Germans have such a way with putting on a festival and bringing in these actual structures. I gotta hand it to them.
On the way to the beer tent they have built this Austrian village. It had food,
beer, tables and umbrellas and a shop for all the traditional clothes. It was raining today so there weren't alot of people out, which made it more manageable.
When you approach a beer tent all you can hear is the music and the singing and its quite a bunch of noise. Then you step inside and you are literally hit with a stinky smokey heat wave. Vile. That was the word that came to mind. I mean really it wasn't that dirty but people were allowed to smoke so it was a really smelly place. My advice would be to have a drink to ease the shock before you walk in. I mean, whoa. It was so overpowering. Overwhelming. I had my one large (1 Liter) of beer then we left, it was too much. The best part for me was actually the Austrian village.

BangBags, its a band, not a cuss word

Cassiopeia, that's the place where the band played (in Stuttgart). Why they are called the BangBags I'm not sure. Oli said in German they are called something that means crazy person. After seeing them sing and dance and perform I can see that. It was great. I'm in Germany, the last thing I expected to do was go see a band that plays old American Rock and Roll songs but they were so entertaining! It was great fun! People were dancing and all dressed up in the theme of the band. It was awesome. The place is up on a hillside or hilltop I guess has great outdoor seating and a restaurant and room for the band. Right down the hill from them was an amazing looking tennis club! Really random spot for it it seemed like but who knows.

I packed up all my stuff today, got ready for my trip north. I'm headed to Hamburg on Sunday and will stay in a hostel that seems to be pretty centrally located. We shall see. I don't even know why I'm going to Hamburg except that all my German friends love the place. Then beyond the few days I have there I'm not sure what to expect.

I sat on my cake

Yes I did. I sat on my cake. It wasn't a cake in the true sense of the word it was this thing they have here that  is just a thing of beauty. Oh man, its really hard to describe. Its a pastry that has strawberries and a crumble topping with glaze over it. I'll snap a photo of it one of these days. Either way I bought this thing and went to the park (Schlossplatz-Castle grounds) to have a seat in the sun and enjoy it.
When I got to the park I found a great spot to sit down and decided it would be better not to sit on the grass

and have the potential muddy bum happen so I put my bag down and proceeded to sit and get comfortable. Only after I'd done that did I realize what I'd just sat on. It was a sad moment when I pulled the giant sticky paper bag out of my larger (luckily) plastic one and saw the smoosh. Wah! So at least I didn't get a muddy bum and since the pastry was inside a plastic bag I didn't get a sticky bum either, hehe.

I went to Stuttgart on the train today. It was an easy journey this time. After having ridden the entire line before it all seemed familiar. I stopped into the tourist info office (where I was given a plastic bag) and then headed up the main shopping street to the park. They say the shopping street there is a mile long. You should see it, store after store. And everyone was busy too!

The Schlossplatz was packed with people so I circled the place a few times (and bought a pastry) before I came back and had a seat (on my cake).
My plan was to meet Dani and a few other girls for sushi. It was a great plan! They all met at 4:30 and we had an Eis (ice cream~we call it gelato) in the park before it was time to head to the restaurant. Nice day for it. We headed to the Sushi place which was tucked into this little alley, you've never have found it without a local taking you there. Its a tiny place so it fills fast, people wait in line outside to get a table. Dani had made reservations so we were in luck. The sushi was good. Everything seemed familiar except for one fish which was totally white and was a weird chewy thing. Hmm
After dinner we had cocktails at a really cool old building that was the library and is now a bar. I guess they are tearing it down which is really too bad but Stuttgart seems to insist on modernizing everything. Bummer!

S Bahn RE Bahn Just give me a direct train to somewhere!

Seriously! What is my problem with the trains in Europe!! I knew when the train was leaving Zell today so what do I do? Leave the apartment too late (much longer walk than I remember) and miss the train I intended to take. So, I catch the next one 30 minutes later. I did finally get to Tubingen without too much trouble. That city is bustling! It feels very international, lots of nationalities wandering around. I was planning to meet Rolf at the Neckarmuller brewery which sits on the river but I was early (yes, even after missing trains)

I walked into the old town Tubingen and had a look. It was such a nice day, people were lining up for their afternoon ice creams and sitting in the sun on the church steps. Totally different place when its not snowing but still as nice.
After beer and food and ice cream myself it was time to head back to the train station. I bought a ticket at the automated kiosk machine and didn't look closely enough at the time and in heading to platform 2 I reached the top of the steps and saw the train moving out of the station. Ack! Missed it by THAT much!
So instead of my hour journey home....I caught a train headed in another direction, transferred (luckily it was the end of the line at the transfer point because it was so dark out I wouldn't have seen the station I needed till it was too late) Once I got to the end of my trip I saw the sign that

showed all the stations...I literally did almost the whole route today. Phew!
I did want to mention a few things about the train. The S bahn is like a subway or metro, servicing the local area only out so far, I think Stuttgart is that hub. Then you have to transfer to Regional trains (which seem to be run by DB) Those two are different than the ICE train, the quick ones that travel the longer distance. My journey today required I start on the SBahn and transfer at a larger station to a Regional train (where a train man checked my ticket...) to get to Tubingen and vice versa. It was a learning moment today!

Setting up my Esslingen Tour

I walked for hours yesterday, up and down every alley in Esslingen. People probably wondered what I was

doing with my little notebook. Writing down the names of restaurants, wine cellars, etc.(check out Einhorn

Weinkeller, looks promising)  Now I have to learn how to ask "what makes your place special?" "what are you best known for among the locals?"

I went into the Tourist Office once I got to the main square and found a couple from Wisconsin in there! What were the chances of that! I never see Americans here.
The lady working there was able to get me a 'tour guide booklet' for Esslingen in English so I can start studying. Fun!
After I'd walked circles around the place I was waiting for the bus and decided I'd go try and find the bottom of the stairs that lead to the Burg. But you know, once I got there I couldn't not go up there so, one step at a time I climbed up to the top and enjoyed the views. It was great! Really it boils down to alot of work and plenty of visits to the local establishments to see what I'm impressed with etc. Fun!

A Beer Garden at Every Stop

Germany has one thing figured out. Beer Gardens everywhere, its amazing! And when I say beer garden it is much more than beer. Its coffee, cake, food, soda, wine, you name it. OH and the most expensive thing on any of the menus is the bottle of water you desperately want to buy and drink.
I haven't written since Friday so I'm playing catch up a little bit. Saturday was "meet the parents" then "meet the friends" of Oli. It was a great day. A really adorable old couple who spoke no English invited me over for lunch. Maultaussen soup. I got the recipe!! Its written in German but that would actually help me during the shopping trip here.
Saturday evening I met 7 new people. All around my age and so much fun! What a great group of people. I asked them all what they did, made them go around the circle and tell me. Then I introduced them to the

bucket game. That was almost the best part of the night. They may not forget me if only because I told them to put a bucket on their heads and jump around. Ask me any time, I'll show you. Its hilarious!
I thought the funniest thing was when they told me what the German words for 'bucket on the head' it sounded just like a ladies name. Ima Oppencof (spelled in German Eimer auf den Kopf) the more they said it the more I heard 'Ima' haha.

This morning (Sunday) the sun was supposed to come out so it was time to get out and see some countryside, and a few castles too. First stop on the route turned out to be a fairly grueling hike to the top of a hill where the Burg Teck sits. I think the hike even surprised Oli. But once at the top there was, of course, a beer garden! And amazing views as well. (oh and notes for later, really nice bathrooms, food, water and a cave below the castle)
After we came back down and had a sausage and bread at the snack taxi (mobil food cart, snack taxi, haha!!) we headed to an 'outside museum' Freilichtmuseum Beuren. It was interesting, some of the buildings were 500 years old. The things in the house were from the 30's and 40's so the "see how it used to be" theme wasn't very consistent but still really cool to see how it was done. One room had both laundry and the bread oven. I guess so you could keep the bread from burning while you beat the clothes.

Our next quick stop (we were headed for the monks place to try their brew) was a place called Bad Urach. Really pretty drive, down a windy narrow road into a little valley. Really cool.

Wimsen Cave area

On our way to the Monks place we were again distracted by the signs for Wimsen Caves (and waterfalls and as it turned out, beer garden) that was a cool stop. We were thinking, quick walk into the cave to check it out, but they put people onto these little boats and float them into the cave instead. Whoa. We didn't stay and do that but its on the list to revisit.
Zwiefalten (z-vee-fall-ten) was the town where the monks worked ;) After we'd parked we approached this amazing looking church and found the information desk and were then made aware that it was in fact a mental hospital we'd stumbled onto...oops. Ha! We did finally find our way into the church. Oh man, you know European churches are done up sometimes but this one

takes the cake. It was covered in angels and people and animals and sculptures and paintings and my gosh you could sit there for an hour and only see one little bit of the decoration.
Just outside the church is the motorcycle club headquarters. It was a bikers paradise there for sure. I could see why though, all roads leading in would have been really fun to ride on.

Just around the corner from that place was the Gaststatte Klosterbrau. The restaurant attached to this big brewery. No monks in sight but the beer and food were delicious. I had I'm not sure which one, I didn't get it written down but it was good.
We headed to Lichtenstein castle next. That place was the coolest one I thought. You get up to the parking lot (all castles are on hills-attention Americans-and require some effort to get to, something about keeping watch over valleys below...hehe) There is a beer garden to greet you there, toilets, a park for public use. The castle cost a couple Euros to get into but worth it, amazing views again and cool buildings. Outside the castle but still on top of the hill is another beer garden, why would one be enough?? Just next to that is an Adventure Park.

Reminded me of the log walk at Quaker Hill. No one will remember that but essentially tons of obstacles in trees that you move around while harnessed to a cable. Looks like so much fun!!
Phew, what a day! It was a warm sunny day with plenty of good fresh air and amazing views. Germany is such a beautiful place, I love it! Every where along this route there were bikes trails and walkers and hikers. These people love being outside. It was awesome!

Beer and Burgers, Best 2 B's

Friday night and the sun was out! Oli and I headed to the Harley Davidson store for a burger! Haha, no joke, you walk into the motorcycle showroom only to find half of it is tables and chairs and a bar! Fun! We were seated by the door adn proceeded to order our food. The burgers there are HUGE, and delicious, I was very impressed. I ordered the Texas Burger and it came with a few surprises. I just went with it. BBQ

Texas Burger

sauce, red beans, cucumbers, bacon and special sauce of some kind. Amazing! Thats a picture of it with the pommes frites. Delicious. After the meal had started we heard the rumble of a Harley and the owner swings the doors wide open and in rolls this running Harley! It was awesome. I mean, seriously, drive your motorcycle into the place while people eat! Love it! From this place we headed into Esslingen for a nice evening out. Mostly to walk around, everything closes early but its still fun to window shop.
Our next stop was ad Astra. A cool college bar in downtown Ess. Beer is the cheapest thing  you can get on any menu. I might just switch from food to beer only. I mean seriously. 10 Euro for a burger but 3 Euro for a half liter beer! A beer here has to equal the calories in a meal anyways! hehe. At 11 pm they start the salsa

ad Astra

dancing at Joe Pena's place. A Mexican style restaurant in town. It was great fun, people are good dancers and they seem to really enjoy it. Its interesting to see it when you know you're in Germany but everyone is totally into the Hispanic music! I attempted to dance with Danko (Oli's friend Andrea's boyfriend) He is really good and I certainly struggled but still fun ;) I hope to try it again!

Food Paradise Found...sort of

The Long Table

I went to an indoor 'convention' type event featuring what they call "slow food" I don't  quite understand it but it was a lot to do with organic food and actually a lot of organically grown wine and beer.
Either way it was loaded with specialty cheeses, wines beer, olive oil, mustard etc. Some of it I had to guess at but you get the point.
The event center was enormous. 9 large buildings for events. You pay one entrance fee and have access to whatever is going on there that day. Today there were about 5 other conventions going on. Not really conventions more like we would consider a garden show, there was a show about fossils and yoga. Totally random group but hey, i was busy eating ;)
At one of the tables I sampled some 'rustico' cheese from Switzerland. It tasted so fresh it was like you could imagine the meadow the cow ate in. I'm not kidding, the taste evoked an image. Every TV special you've seen about Switzerland and their high meadows and their cows and their large blocks of cheese...well wow. Anytime you get a chance, sample (then buy) some!
One amazing thing I wanted to share (well there are a few) about this big place was that I went to use the bathroom and there were stalls free. There were 10,000 people milling around and so many bathrooms you could just walk right in! Amazing! The picture above is of the Long Table. They set up on continuous table from one side of the room to the other and that is the seating for everyone. Ingenious. I love Europe! Always forcing strangers together. Though here the 'mingle' less than in the US it seems. They mind their own business where we would try to meet all our neighbors...Oh wait! Maybe that's just me?!! haha

Earlier today I went for a walk around the local 'hood' its called Zell (just outside Esslingen). Cute little place. Has a butcher, baker, beer hall, bank. The 4 b's haha.
I will take my camera next time, you should see all the great things, peoples gardens are so well tended. They all seem to really like their gnomes. All sorts of happy gnomes watching over the garden.
While I was walking I encountered a friendly local woman who thought I was a bit silly wearing capri pants (they seem to think its really cold here still). I understood she said something like winter is gone, I said I was happy. She laughed...trah lala no telling what the conversation was about but she was happy, waved at me and we went our separate ways. Ha! Fun.
I'll likely go for another walk tomorrow. Should be a nice day again. Its grey and rains occasionally but then the sun comes out its a nice day.

Registration and Work in Germany Part 1

Its Tuesday. Oli and I went to the registration office today. Online you can read about the process for Americans trying to get visa's, residence permits etc. The first stop they recommend is to go to the registration office and register your address in the town you'll live in. (This process requires you have a friend to host you.) Or at least a place to land, so to speak. After three months I get a letter stating that I can come back to the office and apply for another type of visa that allows me to stay and work/find work. Unless I find a job before that. ( I thought I was applying for a residence permit but I guess this is just the first step in the process.

She seemed pretty interested in the fact that I was a tour guide. She said that less hoops are required to jump through for that reason. I guess communities are trying to increase visitation from outsiders. The lady at the registration office said she'd be my first tour guest for a local walking/wine/food etc tour of Esslingen. She also seemed pretty confident that I'd be filling a niche they had here. That is encouraging! Next stop Tourist Information Office to talk to them about my ideas. Well...really, first step is come up with the ideas. Haha, minor details.
Now to get out and walk walk walk and figure out some ideas. I wonder if that is the case in many places? It seems promising! And they'd be my own too!
I'm including the info I cut and paste from the websites etc.

How to Obtain a German Residence and Work Permit

U.S. Citizen Services in Germany

US citizens in possession of a valid US passport do not need a visa for airport transit, tourist or business trips for stays up to 90 days.

This does not necessarily apply to US residents who hold an Alien Registration Card (green card). They need to check the relevant visa requirements with the authorities of the country of their nationality.

All persons who wish to stay in Germany for more than 90 days are required to obtain a residence permit.

If you intend to stay longer than 90 days, you are required to register at the local Standesamt – Einwohnermeldeamt (Registration Office) within one week of arrival.

Citizens of the United States of America may apply for their residence permit after entering Germany without a visa. Alternatively they can apply for a residence permit prior to entry at the German Embassy in Washington or at a German Consulate (currently located in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York or San Francisco). Inquiries may be made at the German Embassy athttp://www.germany.info

Studying in Germany

All persons who wish to study at a high school, college or university in Germany are required to obtain a residence permit. Citizens of the United States of America may apply for their residence permit after entering Germany without a visa. Alternatively they can apply for a residence permit prior to entry at the German Embassy in Washington or at a German Consulate (currently located in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York or San Francisco). Inquiries may be made at the German Embassy at http://www.germany.info

Employment in Germany

All persons who wish to seek gainful employment in Germany are required to obtain a residence permit in the form of a visa. The residence permit ("Aufenthaltserlaubnis") only allows you to take up gainful employment (employee or self-employment) if the residence permitexpressly entitles you to do this. Alternatively they can apply for a residence permit prior to entry at the German Embassy in Washington or at a German Consulate (currently located in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York or San Francisco). Inquiries may be made at the German Embassy at http://www.germany.info

Once in Germany, the following procedure generally applies for job seekers:

Once you have an offer of employment and have registered your residence,

1.          go to the Ausländerbehörde (Immigration Office).

·                 Check with your local Einwohnermeldeamt or Rathaus for the exact address and office hours of the Ausländerbehörde in your city.

2.          They will check whether the general legal prerequisites are fulfilled for issuing an "Aufenthaltserlaubnis". If these are fulfilled,

·                 the immigration authorities request approval from the "Bundesagentur für Arbeit" (Federal Employment Agency) for taking up employment in a particular job for which you are applying.

·                 Approval is only given if the job cannot be filled by a German, EU citizen or other applicants given preferential treatment (e.g. third-country nationals who have been living in Germany for a longer period of time). This is known as the Priority Principle ("Vorrangprinzip"). After a specific period of time has lapsed, it is possible for the U.S. citizen applicant to have the same access to the labor market as German and EU citizens.

Detailed information on the various residence categories is available at Bundesministerium des Innern under: Residence Permits

The Invisible Line and Other Challenges

Well, three connections later I'm finally in Stuttgart. It was a fairly uneventful journey really. First I got yelled at by this rude lady at the United counter. Apparently I scan my own passport at check in, who knew! I mean really, who'd want any human interaction at that point. Once United Rude was sufficiently peeved at me I put my first piece of luggage on the scale and about blew the numbers off the charts...hehe, not really but I had to make some adjustments before BOTH bags were underweight. Packing light?! NOPE!
Onto my first flight. I was in the aisle seat next to a man with endless elbows and knees. Excuse me, sir! There is an invisible line there don't know you know, don't cross into my personal 'air space'. Don't people know that United thrives on the misery of the economy class? Adjust your personal space bubble settings and move over!
In Denver I faced two challenges. The first being (reminiscent of my last European trip) getting myself and ALL of my carry-ons into a bathroom stall. It ain't easy! Basically I back into position...haha. The second was getting a much needed cup of coffee and while fixing the lid etc the inevitable 'bag slips off one shoulder' scenario happened. Spilled coffee everywhere. It was fun. I laughed...through my tears.

Back to space bubbles...At least on the international flight there is a teensy bit more room, otherwise how would you cut your chicken like substance while not giving your neighbor a black eye? I've come up with a useful strategy for eating meals on those flights. Its all about the planning. Before you eat anything you must first arrange your items in useful ways. Place your frozen butter on your hot entree to soften while you move dessert to the back and open your utensils, place garbage under the tray so you don't eat bits of it later. I find its easier to tackle one thing at a time, the roll gets butter demolished then placed in the middle, thats handy in case the entree is weird tasting. My meal was a strange orangey color. I wasn't very confident in finishing my weird goo and then not gurgling the rest of the way so I ate lite. After dinner and salad get eaten you move your little puzzle pieces around so that dessert is nearest and then enjoy!. Viola!

After  I got through customs in Germany I waited for a my checked bags inside a security barrier so Oli wasn't able to come help me with my mountain of luggage. I therefore had to stack it up and drag it out the security door butt first...you're welcome Stuttgart. (and yes I heard giggles but I just took that to mean, 'look at the awesome American woman with those neatly stacked bags and flip flops')

It was snowing when I arrived in Stu so I had to unpack my shoes and socks and find my coat, Oh which by the way I left on the airplane! But not to worry I discovered that oversight and Oli turned around and we went to Lost and Found. I couldn't believe it! After a whole winter of dealing with lost and found I had to go there and beg for mercy. They had my coat though so that was good news!

I'll put up some photos of Esslingen. It was so pretty there yesterday.