Paris

Posted on April 3, 2013 by daverian

We returned on Monday from a wonderful 4 day Easter weekend in Paris. We left for the city of lights on Thursday afternoon, landing at Paris Orly just before 6:00 pm. It was an easy ride into the city and we were easily able to find our flat- which we found through AirBnb and turned out to be a great deal in a GREAT location! If you’re headed to Paris in the future let us know and we can pass along the information. Our flat was located in Marais, in the 4th arr. of Paris- smack dab in the center of the city and just a 10 minute walk from Notre Dame. We spent Thursday evening exploring our neighborhood a bit and then dinning on some yummy sushi at one of the many Japanese establishments in the vicinity. We turned in early so we’d be bright eyed for a full day of touristing Friday.

We were up and out of the house before 9:00. Our first stop was the Louvre, but before heading into the museum we took a little walk and enjoyed the most expensive coffee of our lives in the Tuileries. We saw a few flowers and buds on the trees- it made us hopeful for the end of Winter! It was still pretty cold, but at least it was sunny and we were willing to brave the weather for the prime outdoor seating.

After coffee we headed into the Louvre and spent the next 3 hours perusing the immense collection. We’ve both been to the Louvre before, but decided we still needed to revisit her most famous works so we braved the crowds to glance at the Mona Lisa and the Venus de Milo. We also spent a good deal of time in the Egyptian art section- which was Dave’s favorite area.

Post Louvre we headed over to the left bank (Paris that falls on the south side of the Seine) and wandered through the streets until we came across a grocery store where we picked up our favorite sterotypical French foods- a baguette, cheese and wine. We also popped into a bakery for a meringue and a chocolate tarte. After collecting all our provisions we found a spot in the little garden on the tip of the Île de la Cité.

After lunch came the real walking. From Île de la Cité we walked along the Seine taking in the sites as we made our way to the Eiffel Tower. The Eiffel Tower was literally crawling in tourists, but we managed to find a nice quiet spot in the adjacent gardens were we rested up and took a bunch of photos.

After our photo shoot we jumped on the metro up to the Arc de Triumph and then walked down the Champs-Élysées, window shopping as we went. The streets were absolutely packed the entire trip. I don’t know if it was just the fact that it was Easter weekend or that Paris is always just that crowded- but you really couldn’t escape the throngs of tourists. We finished our evening by walking back through the Tulieries and straight on to our flat- stopping for some groceries along the way. We figured we’d pop in for a breather, eat some dinner on the cheap and then head out again, but were so exhausted from the day we ended up dozing off in our pj’s as we finished up a bottle of wine. So really a pretty good way to end the day.

We woke up well rested on Saturday and headed right up to Montmartre for a tour of the district. We met up with our wonderful tour guide, Thomas from Discovery Walks, in front of the Moulin Rouge. The next two hours were spent exploring the renowned, artistic 18th arr. The district was originally located just outside the walls of Paris- literally the street the Moulin Rouge is on was the barrier. It allowed citizens to escape some of Paris’s laws, restrictions and taxes- hence a great place to set up the types of establishments that rose up in the area. Basically the area developed into a haven for artists, revolutionaries and people seeking an open, progressive, ever-changing location. People like Picasso, Renoir, Langston Hughes and many more called Montmartre home and drew inspiration from its citizens and streets. The most conspicuous building in the district is the Sacré-Coeur- which is where our tour concluded.

Following our great tour we wandered around Montmartre a little longer before jumping on the metro and heading out to the famous Parisian flea market- Les Puces. We were a little taken aback when we first got off the metro as the first big sites were a KFC, a Subway and a whole mess of people trying to hawk knock-off Louis Vuitton and Rolex. We walked through hordes of stands selling the same cheap stuff, a little worried that we’d read the online reviews wrong or had gotten off at the wrong stop, but after about 10 minutes of shuffling along we finally found an opening that lead to the most romantic little alleyways filled with little shops selling everything from antique furniture and jewelry to old fashioned keys and silverware. It was a complete 180 from the booths set up outside. We spent awhile perusing the goods (buying just a few little trinkets:))before we decided we’d had enough and were going to pass out if we didn’t find some lunch soon.

We headed home for some lunch and a nap. After resting up we trekked back out to Montmartre for dinner at a great little spot recommended by our friend Max. It was called Au Pied du Sacré Coeur. The food was delicious, the servers friendly and everything came in a great price (for Paris!). We were adventurous and started with the escargot in garlic sauce. I had a steak with bleu cheese sauce for my main and Dave went with the Duck confit- which was the highlight of the meal for sure. We ended with a traditional brulee. Of course a bottle plus of wine was also consumed. We were stuffed, but we managed to head out to the Grands Boulevards and consume a few more beers at a popular Irish Bar- key word here is a couple. At 7 Euros a beer we were not thrilled to be spending more than double the amount on booze we do here in Berlin. Just to provide some quick perspective- we went out with friends a week or so back to a bar here called Badfish. Beer on tap is 3 Euros for a .5 liter- already less than half the price of Paris. Oh but wait- not only is beer only 3 Euros, on Wednesday night they have a deal that when you buy a beer you get a free shot of Jameson. Needless to say Berlin is definitely a better (or worse depending on how you look at it) place for these beer-loving Americans. Even with the priciness of Paris we still love it and had a great night out!

He is Risen! We lost an hour for day light savings Saturday night so we ended up sleeping in a little on Easter morning, which was a nice way to start the day. After waking up and showering we grabbed some breakfast (croissants- regular and chocolate) from the corner bakery and then some coffee from Starbucks (unbelievable, but seriously cheaper than the local shops). We took our b-fast and walked over to Notre Dame to hear the bells chime (Quasi?!?).

We initially planned on trying to attend a service at Notre Dame on Easter morning, but decided the multi-hour wait, the prospect of standing the entire service and the fact that it was delivered in Latin was a little overwhelming. Instead we enjoyed a beautiful view of the cathedral from the bleachers set up outside, while catching part of the service on the big screen and munching on our delicious breakfast. Though it was sunny it was still freezing and before long we had to get moving again.

Right behind Notre Dame rests Paris’s deportation memorial- their version of a holocaust memorial. After spending a little time contemplating the horrors many Parisians were subjected to we crossed over the Seine and headed up to the Musee L’Orangerie. The museum houses one of Monet’s greatest masterpieces- his Waterlilies. The first floor has two large oval rooms, each covered by the painting. Natural light streams in from the ceiling. The paintings are absolutely gorgeous and mesmerizing Unfortunately no photography is allowed of the paintings, but no photo could do it justice anyhow. Downstairs contains an additional collection of paintings by artists such as Renoir, Modigliani and Picasso. We loved the museum because of how manageable it was. We were able to see everything and didn’t feel rushed or overwhelmed. Definitely would recommend for future Paris visitors.

We spent the next few hours walking the streets of Paris, enjoying the sunny Easter day and munching on some mussels, beef bourguignon and of course wine, cheese and baguettes. We walked along the Seine, explored more of the left bank, sat for awhile in Luxembourg gardens and then headed back to the Seine for an evening boat cruise. As the trip to Paris was planned as a gift for Dave’s birthday my parents added to our fun by gifting him a $100 to do something fun with. Dave decided it would be fun to put the money towards a nice dinner (the night before) and spend the rest on the water. We braved the cold with outdoor seats and had a great time cruising up and down the Seine, getting to see Paris from a different vantage point.

We started to walk home so we could grab some dinner and warm up after our boat cruise, but as we were walking past Notre Dame we noticed that the line had all but disappeared so we decided to pop in and we caught part of what must have been the 6th or 7th Easter service of the day. Even with the service being conducted in Latin it was a powerful experience to be in the cathedral during a worship service and we were lucky to witness some of the amazing choral works.

Our last evening in Paris was relaxed and low key. We by a happy hour on the way home for a drink and then ate the last of our cheese, baguettes and other goodies at home before grabbing one last bottle of wine and finally taking the time to explore more of Marais. We walked along the streets stopping at the Bastille, admiring Place des Vosges and wishing we had time to visit every cute cafe, shop and restaurant along the way. We saw and did a lot in during our time in Paris, but definitely agree that there’s much more to be seen and we can’t wait to visit again in the future!

We had time for one last walk and stop at the corner bakery in the morning before we had to make our way to the airport. We’re back in Berlin and really, REALLY ready for spring to get here already. Luckily we have our big vacation to Greece coming up the first two weeks in May so we have beaches and islands on the brain…helps you pretend it’s balmy outside:) Hope everyone had as wonderful an Easter weekend as we did and that all is well state-side and with our friends around the world.

Au revoir- Daverian

Skiing in Austria and (Hopefully) Saying Goodbye to Winter

Posted on March 20, 2013 by daverian

It’s been a busy few weeks here in Germany as Adrian and I have been doing a lot to prepare for our trip back to the USA this fall and of course for our wedding on October 12. It’s amazing how much work gets put into these events! But we are very lucky to have lots of help from people back home and it looks like the whole thing is starting to take shape. We are already getting excited to see everyone and to finally get married!

Meanwhile we’ve fit in some time to have some fun as well, especially me! I just got back from my second annual trip to the Zillertal Valley in Austria for a week of skiing with my friends from school. We had a great time and the trip was just as successful as last year. After a brief stopover in Prague for one night to grab some supplies and an extra car to transport all six of us and our gear we drove 7 hours down to Austria to the same exact cabin we stayed in last year. It’s always nice to return to a vacation spot that you’ve already been to because there are no surprises: No getting lost on the way, no nervousness about dealing with the ownership, no ‘extra charge’ you aren’t expecting. We were able to start relaxing and plan our ski excursions right away.

The cabin we stay at is several miles from the ski area up a long, winding, snowy road which is inconvenient in some ways, but well worth it. You’ll see why by looking at a few pictures of the place:

As you can see, it’s a cozy place that’s perfect for relaxation and it has great mountain views right outside the door. We love it!

The Zillertal Valley is a great place to go skiing because there are actually 5 different areas you can drive to in the valley to ski at and one lift ticket works for all of them. It’s not exactly cheap (200€ for 6 days) but there is a ton of variety available which keeps the place interesting for a week of skiing. In fact last year we didn’t even go to Hoch Zillertal which turned out to be our favorite ski area this year.

The best thing about skiing in the Alps I think is the amazing views you get just from riding up the lift. It’s quite an amazing back drop to have whether you are eating lunch or skiing down the mountain. Here are a few pics of some of the great views you get:

One of the worst things about skiing in the alps is the crowds: many of the trails are so crowded here that it can be difficult to turn and steer around all of the people. Luckily, most of the skiers aren’t ‘experts’, so to speak. As long as you don’t mind skiing some of the more difficult terrain, you can avoid them. Many people come to this area just because of it’s reputation as a party town, especially the village of Mayrhofen. Austria in general is famous for its Apres Ski and I think many of the the people clogging up the trails are more interested in their next Weisbier or Jagermeister than the are their next run down the mountain. Which is fine by me: whatever keeps them off of the powder snow!

We enjoyed a little of the Apres Ski our selves (of course)… it’s a little cheesy but as long as you forget your inhibitions for a moment and try to just have a good time it can be fun. One of my favorite things about Austria is the attitude of the people there. Everyone is really just there to relax and have a good time. All of the smiles you see on peoples faces are pretty genuine and ours were no different.

While I was in Austria Adrian had a good week of work and was able to go out with some of her friends a few times. Jess and Steph also stopped back for a night before heading stateside.

Once I returned to Berlin we celebrated our 1 year engagement anniversary by walking back through the Tiergarten and grabbing a beer at our favorite biergarten. We were the only people brave (or dumb) enough to sit outside in the weather, but we had fun “reliving” our engagement. Two days later it was my birthday on the 5th of March. I turned 28 and after a night out to celebrate with some friends on the 4th, Adrian took me out for a fancy and delicious dinner at a French restaurant. We don’t eat expensive meals very often, so when we do it’s a real treat. The restaurant was called Heising and it was run by a very nice and accommodating old couple. It was a little more fancy in the interior than we are used to, but the food was absolutely delicious! I especially enjoyed the oysters and Scallops (being a native Mainer, I have always had a thing for shellfish) and they surprised us with a complimentary brandy at the end of our meal.

Adrian also surprised me with a trip to Paris as a present for my Birthday! She knows I am a bit of a Francophile and have a been wanting to go France for some time and what more perfect time to go then Paris in the spring? We are renting a apartment we found on Airbnb which is quickly becoming one of our favorite ways to find rooms to stay. We also found a great place in Budapest with them and are looking forward to seeing how this Paris room works out. Any suggestions for what to do in Paris?

For the next few weeks until our Paris trip, I expect to keep fairly busy working on my Master’s Thesis. My proposal is due in early April so I am looking forwarding to handing that in and getting it approved so I can get started on the real thing. It’s amazing how time flies; I feel like I just started school, but now it’s almost over. And hopefully the snow stops soon so we can start enjoying all the great things to do in Berlin come nicer weather!

Budapest

Posted on January 31, 2013 by daverian

We’re always up for travel and love to check out new places, but it can be hard to pick a location when you know the weather could very well be miserable. A little of internet research kept pointing out that Budapest was a great city to see any time of year and all those blogs and trip advisor reviews weren’t wrong! We got back Monday night from a wonderful, long weekend in beautiful Budapest.

We started off our mini break the right way Thursday night by meeting our friend Saskia at MarktHalle in Moabit for dinner and then drinks. It was such a cool venue and to top everything off at the brewery located on site they offer their very own Berlin brewed IPA! As much as I love German beer there’s nothing like my favorite hop-filled IPA and now I know where to find one in this wonderful city!

We woke up late the next morning, packed up and headed to the airport for our flight to Budapest. We were immediately struck by the amazing architecture, the easy to navigate public transportation system and the fact that almost everything is posted in both Hungarian and English. We learned one word before visiting- köszönöm (thank you) and while we tried to throw it in once in a while everyone we met spoke some English. It was dark by the time we got to our apartment, but the city is almost as gorgeous at night as it is by day. We had picked out a restaurant ahead of time in an effort to avoid our most common travel related argument- where to eat. It worked out perfectly- no fighting over cuisine and the food was delicious! I ordered wild boar goulasch with gnocchi and Dave opted for beef cheek with sheep’s cheese potatoes. Dinner was a long affair- more than two and half hours, but we were in the mood to just chill, chat and soak in some local Hungarian culture- so it was perfect. After dinner we took a short walk through our neighborhood before turning in for the night.

The next day we got an early start on our touristing by heading straight to the Market Hall (Nagy Vasarcsarnok). The first level of the market consists of food booths, the lower level- fish and pickled goods and the upper level souvenirs, textiles and a few little restaurants. We had fun checking everything out and I found my Christmas ornament (I collect Christmas ornaments from all the cities we travel to). My ornament is the holy family in a nutshell…literally! I made about a 100 dorky puns over the course of the weekend. We also shared a Lángos for breakfast- basically fried dough with sweet or savory toppings. Ours had cinnamon, sugar, honey and jam- so of course it was amazing.

After the market we worked off our Lángos by crossing the Danube, moving from Pest over to Buda and then trekking up Castle Hill. We spent a few hours walking around the castle, checking out the fisherman’s bastion and learning a little bit about Hungarian history (something we’re both very poorly versed in).

From Castle Hill we headed back into the city and up the trendy Andrássy Avenue. There we stopped at the Book Cafe. Located on the top floor of a book store it’s an impressive cafe. We lucked out with some of the “comfy” chairs and warmed up with espressos, a slice of cake and a glass of wine.

From the Book Cafe we headed further east on the M1 (the world’s second oldest subway after London) to take in Heroes Square and the City Park before darkness fell. When we got up near Heroes Square there were a couple hundred people waiting in front of a building. We were curious about what was going on and upon walking closer discovered that behind the building was a huge outdoor skating area with stadium style lights and everyone was waiting to get on the ice. It was awesome to watch the empty ice fill quickly with hundreds of people excited to get in some outdoor skating. After watching a bit of skating we explored the city park and found another gorgeous castle- the city is just packed with the most beautiful buildings!

We made our way home for a snack and a rest before heading out for some drinks and and dinner. We thought about trying to go out to a club or another bar, but it turned out that we were absolutely exhausted from our long (COLD!) day of touristing and decided to head home where we fell asleep as soon as we got back to the apartment.

When we woke up Sunday morning we packed up our bathing suits and headed to a much looked forward to Budapest activity- a trip to one of the city’s famous baths. We opted to visit the Turkish Bath, Rudas, which is only co-ed on weekends. Rudas has been operating since the 16th century and the spas definitely have an old world feeling. They are dark and the main bath is located directly under a dome letting in small bits of natural light. We bought the combination ticket and enjoyed moving back and forth between the pool and the bath area- with 5 baths ranging from 28-42°, saunas and steam-rooms a plunge pool and more. We spent a relaxing morning enjoying our first experience with the “turkish baths” and were so glad we decided to visit.

Rudas Baths

After lunch we wanted to get in some additional touristing as it was already our last full day in the city. We walked over to St. Stephen’s Basilica (you can’t visit a European city without at least checking out one church!). This one was beautiful and held the added excitement of being the home of a holy relic- St. Stephen’s right hand. That’s right you can view St. Stephen’s mummified right hand for just 200 forints (about 1 US dollar)! It was actually pretty cool and Dave claims it was the highlight of his trip.

After the hand we made our way into the Buda side of the city and started a steep hike up Gellért Hill to the Liberty Statue. The sun had already set and the path was slippery from snow (which started falling again on our way up), but the view from the top was unbeatable. Since we got such a late start up the hill we were also able to enjoy it with a relatively small crowd.

Post hike we headed home for dinner before braving the snow to visit a little wine bar with free live music every night at 9:00 pm. We ended up being the first patrons to show up, but we settled in and ordered two delicious red wines. Even though we’ve been in Europe for almost a year and a half now we still are getting use to being the idea of being fashionable late. The musicians (a cute old man in slacks, a button-up and running shoes and his wife- both probably in their late 60’s/early 70s) showed up around 9:20. We didn’t harbor any ill feelings towards the late musicians, but were eager for the music to start- and when it did we forgave any lateness. The man was so energetic and an absolutely amazing piano player. A few songs in his wife joined him in singing. He had the most eclectic taste- playing everything from Bach classics, to Louis Armstrong, musical favorites and an especially awesome version of Chattanooga Choo Choo– sung in Hungarian of course! We ended up staying for more than two hours and it was definitely the highlight of the trip for me. The last song we heard was a breathtaking version of a Bach piano sonata that was strangely both calming and exhilarating.

Monday we woke up extra early to fit in a few last things before heading to the airport for our 4:30pm flight. We decided the best way to spend our last morning was by taking advantage of another bath. We jumped on the train and headed out to the Szechenyi Baths. The main draw of this bath are the three large outdoor pools. They have a variety of indoor pools, saunas and steam rooms as well, but the outdoor pools were by far the highlight of this location. It was an especially romantic day to enjoy them as snow littered the ground and was continuing to fall during our visit.

After spending all morning at Szechenyi we headed back to the apartment to pick up our things, make one last stop to see the Parliament Building up close and grab some lunch before heading to the airport. We had a fantastic weekend exploring Budapest and our already itching to plan our next trip. Luckily we have a lot to look forward to this next month with my friend Jessie coming to visit for the first week of February, Valentines Day, an Eisbären game and Dave’s ski trip to Austria! Thus far 2013 is off to an amazing start!

Tis the Season

Posted on December 30, 2012 by daverian

We LOVE Christmas. The music, the food, the decorations, the feeling of hope and happiness that the season brings- it’s one of the best times of the year. And no where does Christmas quite like Germany. The Christmas Markets that pop up all over the city come the end of November are one of our favorite things about living in this country. We made it to quite a few of the markets this year including Alexanderplatz, Potsdammerplatz, the Kulturbrauerei and the one down in Potsdam with it’s special Polish theme. Beautiful booths with some unique goods as well as some yummy Polish cuisine! When we were down there we also took a stroll around the grounds of Schloss Sanssouci to work off all the tasty treats.

Polish Food! Potsdam Fun in Potsdam

It’s a little sad to bid the markets “tschüss” now that the season has come to an end, but we frequented them plenty these past few weeks as well as enjoyed a variety of other Christmas parties, fests and traditions.

The conclusion of Thanksgiving means it’s Christmas music season. Dave and I both have a fondness for Amy Grant’s rendition of the Christmas classics- though we have different CDs we grew up listening to- so we heard a lot of her the past few weeks. We also spun through all the other hits via our ipods and 8Tracks playlists. These tunes are always best enjoyed with some fresh baked Christmas cookies and a glass of hot cocoa or glühwein.

Glühwein

The start of the advent season also calls for an Advent Calendar- again something Germany excels at! There are so many varieties of calendars and people get pretty creative with homemade ones as well. We went with a childhood favorite of mine- Playmobile and had a lot of fun alternating days in which we could open a new window and add some figures to our Christmas scene.

Advent Calendar

Christmas season also brought about good times with friends and we were able to celebrate on numerous occasions including a dinner party hosted by Max and Sachiko, the staff Christmas party at Phorms and a festive evening at my colleague and friend Sandra’s place. Always so nice to share in the festive spirit with good friends!

Phorms Fun

One of the major perks of working in education is the break between Christmas and New Years- always a much needed period of rest, relaxation and recharging of batteries. I finished up work on Friday the 21st and have a break until January 2nd! We decided to celebrate the holiday in Berlin this year and have been having a grand old time doing absolutely nothing!

The one big plan we came up with was to celebrate by coordinating and cooking “9 Feasts of Christmas”. Why 9? Who knows? Unfortunately I contracted a gross bacterial infection on my tonsils which put a little damper on excessive eating, but one visit to the doctor and a Penicillin prescription later we were back on track. We didn’t quite make it to 9, but did get in 7 delicious feasts. We rated and debated and decided that the top three were:

1. Christmas Day Feast- turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, green beans, cranberry sauce, gravy etc…

Christmas Day Feast

2. Americana- buffalo wings, cheese burger and fries (The burgers were so good we forgot to stop and take a picture!)

America Baby

3. Deutschland- schnitzel, spätzle and German beer (Dave’s pick)
3. Small Bites Feast- jalepeno popper dip, stuffed mushroom caps, salami, cheese, crackers and olives (Adrian’s pick)

Deutschland

Small Bites

As you can tell food plays a big role in our holiday celebrations and all of the feasts were fun to plan (and eat!).

As the big day approached we finished up last minute preparations and gift wrapping and then spent Christmas Eve enjoying a variety of Christmas movies and drinking hot tea and coffee on the couch. In the evening we headed down to the American Church in Berlin to celebrate the real reason for the season and had a great time at their beautiful candlelight service. In additional to all the wonderful songs the pastor’s sermon was particularly compelling and focused on the theme of hope. After the service concluded we headed home for fondue, champagne and our favorite film- It’s a Wonderful Life.

The next morning we woke up, made breakfast and got down to opening stockings and gifts. Santa was particularly good to us this year:) Our favorite gift would probably have to be the awesome projector from Al and Melissa. We’d been thinking about getting one for awhile and we have to say watching movies projected up on our living room wall definitely beats a computer screen! Thanks again for such a great gift! We also got a great box of baking goods you just can’t find in Germany and some sweet gifts from my parents. I love my new Packers sweatshirt!

Christmas Day Santa Came! Opening gifts!

Go Pack Go! Awesome Stocking Stuffers! Smoking Frosty

We also got some new books, movies, picture frames, a few beautiful sweaters and scarfs and much more! My big gift from Dave was a trip up north to a lakeside village called Waren. We left the on the 26th for a two night stay in a classy hotel called Hotel Harmonie. The hotel features saunas, steam rooms and spa services and a massage was included in my gift! We had a great couple of days relaxing in the saunas, playing games, walking around the old city center of Waren and hiking the surrounding lakes- completing a 10K hike Friday morning! It was wonderful to get outside the city, see another part of Germany and spend a few days in a pretty, peaceful spot.

Waren Jumping Shot Hotel Harmonie Old Town Waren Floating Fish Restaurant

Dave likes the busty mermaid Lake Scene

Dave and Adrian Yum- lake fish sampler plate

We got back to Berlin late on Friday and have been enjoying our new projector, munching on leftovers and enjoying the last few days of 2012. We’re headed to a dinner party at Saskia and Mathieu’s apartment to ring in the New Year and then will try to catch some of the Rose Parade and Rose Bowl on the 1st before I have to return to work on the 2nd.

2012 has been a wonderful year. It was our first full year in Berlin and we saw and did so much. The major highlight has to be our engagement in March, but we have a lot of close seconds: our 8 week trek across the States visiting both coasts, the mid-west and attending 3 awesome weddings, the trip to Ireland for Dave’s birthday, the trip to Spain for Adrian’s birthday, family and friends visiting this Fall, exploring all the beer gardens of Berlin this past summer, Dave’s ski trip to the Alps, trips around Germany and Poland, Adrian finding a job at Phorms and many more!! We’re pretty damn lucky and quite thankful for all that 2012 brought, but are pretty sure 2013 is going to blow 2012 out of the water! Bring on the New Year!

World Tour USA 2012- Part I

Posted on August 27, 2012 by daverian

The first leg of my USA World Tour stopped in Milwaukee Wisconsin. I got to spend an amazing couple of weeks visiting family there and hanging out with my parents and Maddie who flew out for the trip- a perfect welcome back to the good old US of A!

I had a long trip from Berlin, of course because of the distance, but also due to the fact that I had to make two transfers on my way to Milwaukee. Luckily everything was on time and I made it in one piece. My parents and Maddie flew in from LA the same day and our flights were only about 20 minutes apart- so we met at baggage claim, surprising my grandfather, who had no idea I was coming! It was so good to see my family after so many months and we spent the next two weeks catching up, watching TONS of baseball (Brewers, Chinooks, high school and little league!), eating delicious American food and exploring a bit of Milwaukee. Highlights of the trip included tailgating at the Brewer’s game, visiting the Harley Davidson museum, a food tour of Brattle Street and our day at Summerfest. Of course just relaxing and spending time with my whole family, particularly my grandma and grandpa, was the best part and I’m so happy I was able to spend as much time as I did in Wisconsin.

Dave wasn’t able to join me in the Midwest given the fact that his finals went into the first few weeks of July, but we met up on July 10^th at Boston Logan. His flight was delayed by 5 hours due to a fire in the control tower at Newark, but thankfully Logan has free WIFI- why every airport doesn’t offer free internet is beyond me! We spent the next couple days hanging out with family and friends, speeding around Casco Bay in the Spensington and getting ready to head down to Massachusetts for Paul and Robin’s wedding. We went down to Sudbury on Friday for the rehearsal dinner was tons of fun and incredibly delicious. Then since Dave was in the wedding party he spent the day Saturday hanging out with the other groomsmen and the Paul while I had cocktails and gossip with other girlfriends in our hotel room. The wedding ceremony was my favorite part of the day and both Paul and Robin looked great and so in love. The reception that followed was also wonderful and the after party continued back at the hotel bar long into the night. Congrats guys and thanks for inviting us to be a part of your day!

After the wedding we headed back to Boston with friends, Dan and Alix- who were nice enough to let us crash with them for a few days. We took advantage of the weather on Sunday and spent most of the day at the beach before heading up to one of our favorite Boston spots for dinner at Red Bones BBQ. Monday morning I headed over to visit Northeastern and check out the new Visitor Center. It was great to see some of my wonderful old students and catch up with former co-workers and I wish I could have spent longer catching up with everyone! Beer was calling though and I hopped the T over to meet Dave and Dan for a tour of Harpoon Brewery. After Alix got off work we all headed over to Fenway with the intent of scalping Red Sox tickets. Unfortunately prices were a little high so we opted for beers and the view at Bleacher Bar (the bar looks out into Fenway through a panel in centerfield). The red sox are a terrible team and all their players should be traded immediately. And the Sox actually won one!

The next morning we woke up we woke up early and headed out to Sierra Madre after an absolutely stellar week in Maine and Massachusetts. The minute we landed we went into full wedding planning mode. We’re estimating that we won’t be back in the area until just a month or two before the big day, so our goal was to accomplish as much as possible in the two week period we had! And I’d say we were pretty successful! We picked a date, found a ceremony and reception venue, picked a caterer and sampled tons of cupcakes. Additionally we have some great leads on a photographer, DJ and flowers and I was also able to find a dress! It was a jam-packed couple of weeks, but really fun to finally get to do some planning!

In addition to all the planning we had plenty of time for fun. We caught both an Angel’s game and a Dodger’s game, made it to the beach, had a big bbq with friends in LA, watched TONS of Olympic events, saw the LA Philharmonic at the Santa Anita Racetrack and enjoyed a great overnight trip with the fam up at Lake Arrowhead. Dave also had the opportunity to travel up to San Francisco for a few days to hang out with friends from college and while he was gone my mom, Maddie and I went to Disneyland (which I hadn’t visited since 2005). And when you go to Disneyland with us- you REALLY go to Disneyland. We were up at dawn to make it to the park for the opening and we stayed past the official close- to almost 1:00am- trying to get on every ride possible…an exhausting, but awesome day!

At the end of our time in California Dave and I drove with Maddie up to Davis. She’s going into her senior year and I couldn’t miss the chance to see Davis and have her show me around the campus and the city before she graduated. We had a lot of fun checking out the local farmer’s market, grubbing on burgers and brew at Burgers and Brew and hanging out with her friends our first night. The next day we biked around the greenbelt and all over campus- stopping to eat a picnic lunch in the arboretum. Our flight left for Maine that night, so we had one last (delicious) Davis meal of pizza and wings at Vito’s before heading to the airport. It was tough to say bye to Maddie since I’m not sure when we’ll see her next, but I know we’ll be talking a lot this year as the wedding approaches…yay for the best Maid of Honor ever!!

This concludes Part I of our World Tour USA 2012 post! Since we did so much on our trip I decided to break our post down into two parts. I’m putting it out here (so I hold myself to it!)- look for part II tomorrow!

Thanks for reading! – Daverian

Barcelona Birthday

Posted on June 12, 2012 by daverian

Last Wednesday Dave and I finally got a couch for our apartment! Even though we had to move the thing down four flights of stairs and then up another flight to our apartment it’s totally worth it–so nice to be able to finally sit back and relax in our place. As we were enjoying our first “sitting” Dave got up and surprised me with an early birthday present: two tickets to Barcelona! We were leaving following day at 3:00 and would be spending four glorious days in a much anticipated travel destination of mine: Spain! He had even purchased a bottle of Spanish wine to start the celebration early…such a thoughtful guy:)

Even though we flew into Barcelona we were actually only going to be spending one day in the city- the other three we spent in a beach town a little south of the city called Castelldefels. When we arrived on Thursday night we were starving, so we dropped our things at the hotel and headed out for dinner. As we were walking we noticed most restaurants were closed, which we thought a little weird for 7:00 at night. I knew the Spanish typically dine late, but had no idea that restaurants and kitchens don’t often even open until 8:00 or 9:00 at night?! Luckily there were a few bars open and we found a place that served food all day. We split nachos and a cheeseburger- not quite the Spanish cuisine we might have imagined we’d find, but delicious none the less. After dinner we grabbed a bottle of wine and some dessert and headed out to the beach. We spent a couple hours dipping our toes in the Mediterranean, sipping some Spanish wine and watching the sunset- perfect start to a vacation.

The next day we got up early and walked the quick three block walk to the beach. The day was perfect and we spent all morning lying in the sand and playing in the surf. Come lunchtime we headed into the city to pick up some Spanish meats, cheeses and a loaf of bread. We ate by the pool and spent the rest of the afternoon reading and pool lounging before heading upstairs for a little siesta.

After our siesta we decided to head back to the beach, but this time to one of the many beach bars posted up every few hundred meters along the shore. After drinks we headed into the town for some tapas and to catch some of the Euro Cup action. For those of you who don’t follow soccer (“football”) the Euro Cup is currently underway and people are MAD for it. The competition is fierce between certain nations and everywhere you look people are tuning in for the big match-ups…a fun time to be in Europe as a sports fan. We sampled some Spanish tortilla and Berberechos (cockles) as we watched the Czechs unfortunate loss to the Russians. After the game we stopped for some gelato before making our way back to the hotel.

We woke up Saturday to another bright and sunny day and my birthday!! We ate a delicious breakfast at the hotel and headed back out to the beach. Since our (well mostly my) pasty white skin hadn’t seen a good amount of sun in quite awhile we were both suffering from sunburns from the previous day. We decided for a birthday splurge and rented chairs and an umbrella right at the water’s edge. It turned out to be a fabulous buy and we hung out on the beach from 9:30-about 3:30.

Following our beach excursion we headed back to the hotel for a bit more pool time and some downtime. After resting up we decided that we’d had such a good time at the beach bar the previous night we ought to go back. This time we had the good fortune to catch some live music. The band was made up of 3 Spanish musicians and the lead singer was an older ex-pat from Florida. They played old school rock, including some Elvis and all in all were pretty talented. For dinner later that night we found a spot at a place called Can Moyas. Even though we tried to be “Spanish” about the time of our meal, when we showed up a little after 9:00 there were only about 5 other tables occupied…oh well. We ordered a pitcher of sangria to start and then another round of the yummy Berberechos. Then we split an order of palella and a steak- both absolutely delicious. Since it was my birthday our waiter brought over extra shots and Dave bought me a rose from one of the vendors walking through the area. At the hotel after dinner we popped some champagne and shared a big piece of chocolate cake. I really couldn’t have asked for a more relaxing (or delicious!) start to my 27th year. Thanks baby for planning everything!!

The next morning we forced ourselves out of bed early so that we could make sure to see as much of Barcelona as we could in a day…and we saw A LOT (I have a couple ugly blisters to prove it!). We quickly dropped our bags off at the hostel and hustled downtown to catch the start of a walking tour around the Old Town of the city. Our tour guide, Gorka, was awesome and showed knew a ton about the ancient and medieval history of Barcelona. He walked us through a big portion of the gothic quarter stopping at number of different stops along the way. We learned about a few interesting Catalonian traditions and even got to see one: the dancing egg! Every year during Corpus Christi a number of sites along the city display “dancing eggs”- these eggs are supported by water fountains and they look as though they are dancing atop the water (see picture below if you don’t believe me). Another tradition we learned about takes place during Christmas. It’s common for every Catalonian home to have a statue of the “Caganer“, which you’ll see in the photo below, is a man taking a dump. It’s placed as part of the traditional nativity scene. There are many thoughts behind why he’s part of the Christmas tradition, but our guide believed the man to symbolize the circle of life and putting back into the earth what you take out. Whatever the reason, it’s a fun tradition but probably not one I’ll be implementing in our home in the future. The last part of our tour lead us to Plaça del Rei. Being a bit of a history buff this was one of my favorite stops because of it’s connections to King Ferdinand, Christopher Columbus and the Spanish Inquisition. Even though it’s long been proven false the steps in the square were rumored to be the place Columbus met King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella after his return from the Americas…pretty cool!

Following our tour we stopped for a quick bite before heading over to Parc de la Ciutadella. Before finding out that we were going to Barcelona last week I really didn’t know much about the city. I’m a little embarrassed to say that my only knowledge of the city came from an episode of the Bachelorette a few years ago when Jillian had a date there. The big thing I remember from her date is that she met the guy by this gorgeous fountain…so naturally I had to find this fountain and see it too! The fountain is not actually known as “the fountain from Jillian’s season of the Bachelorette”, but the Cascada. It’s absolutely stunning and I took a million photos as we wandering around it.

We continued our stroll through the park checking out a small lake with row boats, a number statues and small plazas and getting in a little people watching. It was Sunday and the park was crowded with groups having picnics and parties. The whole area was beautiful.

From the park we decided to head back into the Gothic Quarter in an attempt to get into the Picasso Museum (which was free after 3:00pm). Unfortunately the line just to get in the museum was probably 300 people deep. We opted to skip the wait in an attempt to see some more of the city, so we hopped on the metro and headed up to the Antoni Gaudi designed cathedral, the Sagrada Familia. The Sagrada Familia is a beautiful church in the center of the city. Construction on the building began in 1882 and amazingly enough continues to this day. Some sources put the expected date of completion to be 2025/2026, but who knows?! Again, we opted not to go inside due to time constraints, but we walked the entire length of the church’s exterior and were so impressed with everything about it.

Next we made our made our way over to Casa Batlló and La Pedrera to check out some more of the famous Gaudi architecture of the city. Gaudi is Catalan’s most famous architect and considered the “figurehead of Catalan Modernism”. His style is unique and immediately recognizable, plus it’s everywhere in the city.

We hadn’t quite had our Gaudi fix so we hopped back on the metro and headed up to our final “big stop” of the day: Park Guell. The park is located a little farther north in the city and isn’t the most accessible. From the map it looked a good 10-15 minute walk, but the map didn’t show the fact that it’s basically located atop a giant hill. Fortunately the path was well marked and there were even some escalators to help with the climb, but we definitely got a workout in as we made our way to the top. It was all worth it though and the park turned out to be my favorite site of the day. There were long winding trails leading visitors around to the many important sites within the park- many created by Gaudi himself. We spent a couple hours trying to catch everything. We also visited the park during the Spain v. Italy match of the Euro Cup and could hear cheering and horns throughout the surrounding area the whole time…it was great!

As we descended back into the thick of the city the sun started to go down. We found a nice outdoor table near the University and grubbed on some sandwiches and a couple tapas. After dinner we tried to experience a little bit of the Barcelona nightlife by headed to a bar Maddie recommended called Chupitos that opened at 10:30, however when we arrived around 10:45 they still looked to be setting up and one of the staff told us they weren’t opening for another 20 minutes. At this point we’d been walking around for 12+ hours and it was raining…needless to say we decided to be old foggies and started back towards the hostel, which actually turned out to be a smart choice given that the metro system shuts down at midnight on weeknights. We were wondering how a city that starts their nights so late could close transport so early, but we got our answer the next morning when we saw huge groups of people piling out of clubs at 8:30/9:00am!

Our flight left pretty early on Monday so the only thing left to do was find me some churros con chocolate (something my friend Becky has been telling me about for more than 6 years now)! It was a little harder to find than anticipated, but we eventually spotted a place, chowed them down and made it to the airport with plenty of time to spare. It was a perfect birthday trip and I’m already planning our return trip to Spain:)

Szczecin, Poland

Posted on May 12, 2012 by daverian

Last weekend Dave and I took an quick trip over to Poland. It had been a few months since we’d done any travel and we were itching to see some more of Europe. We decided to head to Poland’s 7th largest city, Szczecin- which is just across the Germany/Poland line. We were able to find a transport on essentially the equivalent of a commuter rail for only 10 Euros each way (Szczecin is only about a 2 hour drive/train ride from Berlin).

We left Berlin on Thursday afternoon for our two night stay. Upon arriving in Szczecin we promptly got lost and took about an hour to find our hotel (another great deal at only 25 Euros/night!). Luckily we found some friendly cabbies who were nice enough to give us directions in a mix of German, Polish and English. After checking in and relaxing for a few minutes we headed out to find some traditional Polish food. I’d done a little restaurant research on TripAdvisor the night before and we easily found Pod Kogutem. We were a little nervous about the food because we were the only customers, but pretty much everywhere in the city was dead- a total 180 from what Berlin is like any night of week.Though the dinner atmosphere was slightly odd the food was fantastic! We started with some traditional Polish perogies followed by steak medallions with Polish dumplings for me and a pork loin for Dave. Of course, there was Polish beer to be had as well. After dinner we decided to head back to rest and get ready for some sightseeing in the morning.

We awoke early the next morning and were pleased to see that rain was holding off. We headed toward the downtown area for coffe and breakfast and then began our walk along the “Golden Route”. The Golden Route takes one down the “main street” in Szczecin- highlighting different monuments and important features along the way. We saw monuments dedicated to “Polish Great Deeds”, sailors, dancing fountains and even the world oldest movie theater (we stopped by to see about tickets but all the films were in Polish..as one would imagine). The highlight of the walk came when we reached the Jana Pawla II square- a huge green square with a large statue commemorating Poland’s own Pope John Paul II. From there it lead into a large park with ample walkways, an outdoor concert venue, a rose garden and a beer garden. After wandering through the park for a bit we made our way back to the beer garden for some Kielbasa and beer. From there we continued back down the route stopping at some additional sites before heading back to the hotel to rest.

After a bit of a rest we made our way back out into the city. We’d spent the morning exploring the Golden Route and decided to enjoy the evening on the Red Route- a red dotted line near the riverfront with numbered stops delineating an important site. More than 60% of Szczecin was destroyed during allied air raids in the Second World War, but we were still able to check out a number of old churches, government buildings, a stone gate dating back to the mid-1700’s and the Pomeranian Duke’s Castle. As we walked towards the castle we were able to hear music- upon heading into the one of the castle’s courtyards we saw a stage set up with a live band playing country tunes! The 5 person band was actually really great and we stayed for about half an hour. Though it didn’t seem like any of the other audience members knew the words to the Dixie Chicks and Shania Twain tunes being performed everyone was really into the show. One man even lifted up his girlfriend, carried her up in front of the stage and they started dancing. Two very drunk older gentlemen soon joined in–a very festive atmosphere in deed.

After the concert and a few more stops along the Red Route we found a delicious and cheap Italian restaurant near the castle for dinner. We shared a plate of pasta and a pizza before making our way back through the city and to our hotel.

The next morning we woke up to dreary weather, but were determined to see some more of the city before our 6:00pm ride back to Berlin. We hadn’t yet walked along the river and we made our way down to the boardwalk. We spent the morning taking a few more sights from the Red Route we’d missed the day before. The river in Szczecin leads out to the Baltic Sea and we walked along a very pretty tree lined road with a great view of it. We were also able to see a bit of the Maritime Museum and another huge city park.

The rain started to pick up a bit in the afternoon so we decided to spend our last few hours in the city with some perogies and beer. We found a spot that over looked the river called Colorado. The interior was slightly politically incorrect, but they had some tasty food and pitchers of beer for 18 złoty (about 4.5 Euros). We were happy to have found a spot out of the rain and enjoyed a few hours in “Colorado” before heading back to Berlin.

We had a great time exploring Szczecin. The city was very walkable and easy to navigate. It’s changed hands a number of time over the years- being ruled by the Swedish, the Soviets and the Germans. The city though is home to more than 400,000 people now and from our view it looks they’re working hard to improve and modernize. Overall the people we met were friendly and helpful. Also something interesting was the immediately noticeable national pride. Polish flags were absolutely everywhere! And it was easy to find shops with Polish gear and memorabilia. Since arriving in Europe we’ve both been questioned about national pride and our thoughts on patriotism- something that’s always an interesting topic in Germany given their past. It was interesting to see such a bold display of it in Szczecin and I’m sure will provide exciting fodder for conversation in the future.

We’re headed back to the US for a good chunk of time this summer but are hoping to get at least one more trip in before we fly back. We’ll keep you posted!

♥- Dave & Adrian

The Emerald Isle

Posted on March 25, 2012 by daverian

We got back on Wednesday from an AMAZING trip to Ireland. We spent 8 nights on the Emerald Island and saw some of the most beautiful sites we’ve ever witnessed. Bear with me on this post- because it’s gonnna be long!

Day 1- March 13

We flew from Berlin to Dublin on Tuesday afternoon. The flight was direct and just over 2 hours. Upon landing we easily located a bus to the center of the city and made the trip downtown. We checked into our hostel (Generator) and headed out to see the city. Though the sun was setting the Temple Bar area of the city was just heating up. Temple Bar is the name of one of the most famous Dublin establishments and also the area dedicated to numerous bars and restaurants. We spent a little while walking around the area and taking in some sites before heading up to a pub called Messers Maguires. We chose Messers because we’d read a review about their home-brews back at home and we weren’t disappointed! I was happiest because their newest draft was a “California Style Pale Ale”- Pale Ales and IPAs are my favorite variety of beer. And while German beer is generally outstanding, they do suffer a bit when it comes to variety. I was in heaven with my “hoppy” ale and Dave was a fan of the “Rusty Red”. After dinner and drinks at Messers we headed back into the Temple Bar area where we enjoyed some live music and got friendly with some locals. The people in Dublin (and Ireland in general) were incredibly friendly. Both at Messers and the following bar we had locals buy us drinks and talk to us about their city. It was a bit of a late night and we didn’t get home until after 1:00am, but it was a lot of fun as well.

Day 2- March 14

We woke up early as it was our only full day in Dublin and we had a lot on the agenda. After breakfast we immediately headed down to Kilmainham Gaol for a tour of the facility. Kilmainham Gaol is one of the largest unoccupied prisons in Europe and the tour covers the history of the institution. The prison was opened in the late 18th century and operated until the early 1920s. It housed mainly petty criminals and political dissentients, and has quite an interesting history. In fact all the leaders of the Irish Easter Rising were imprisoned and then executed on the grounds. For anyone unfamiliar with the gaol you may recognize the largest holding chamber from movies such as In the Name of the Father and Michael Clayton.

After our tour of Kilmainham Gaol we walked though the ground of Dublin’s modern art museum and headed over to the Guinness Storehouse. The tour of the Storehouse is self-guided, but incredibly informative (and the free samples and pint of Guinness don’t hurt!). We learned about Arthur Guinness and his creation of the brand. Not only did he play a major role in crafting the beer, but signed a 9,000 year lease on the Storehouse location. The tour included more than 5 floors of information surrounding the history of Guinness, the making of the beer and the brand today. The most interesting area may have been the section of the tour dedicated to the coopers (the designers of the old style barrels used to ferment the beer), but we were also pretty impressed with the sky-high Gravity Bar. We grabbed our beers, were lucky enough to find seats near one of the windows, just sat back and relaxed for a bit, enjoying the views of Dublin.

Following our stint at the Gravity Bar we made our way back to the Smithfield area Dublin so we could hop on a late afternoon tour of the Jameson Distillery. The tour guide walked us through the process of triple distillation and showed how Jameson gets it’s unique taste and smoothness. The highlights of the tour included a look at 5 different barrels of Jameson all at different distillation periods- 1 year, 2 years, 5 years, 12 years and 18 years and the final tasting at the end. In addition to the basic tasting Dave was selected to be a “special taster”. As a “special taster” he got additional tastes of Jameson, Johnny Walker Black Label and Jack Daniels. He and the other tasters had to sit at a front table and share their favorite of the varieties, following that they each got an Official Whiskey Taster certificate for their troubles- it was very cute.

That evening we took it a little easier by wandering about Dublin a bit before enjoying a couple of pints at The Old Stand pub. It’s more than 300 years old and reputed to have been a favorite haunt of Michael Collins. After our beers we grabbed some street food before making our way back to the hostel and crashing.

Day 3- March 15

We got an early start on Thursday, because we needed to pick up our car and start the 4+ hour drive our to the northwest of Ireland. The car pick up went smooth and Dave was an old pro and driving on the wrong side of the road. We kept commenting that the scenery throughout the drive just kept getting better and better…but we had no idea what waited ahead in Malinbeg. Malinbeg is a tiny little town, located in the western-most part of Donegal country, miles from any large city. In fact the population of Malinbeg is a mere 75 people, but they make up for it with the thousands of sheep roaming around. When we arrived we were greeted by the hostel owner, Frank, who is also the proprietor of the general food store. He showed us around the hostel and directed us to the beach, just a 5 minute walk down the road. We’d seen the green rolling hills and some distant coast line, but were absolutely amazed at the beautiful site that greeted us at the end of the street. The beach consisted of a beautiful carved out bay completed with green hillside, impressive rock cliffs and a distant waterfall. We hoofed it down the long staircase and spent a good hour wading into the freezing ocean, searching for sea life and shells in the rocks and just enjoying the view. After cooking up some dinner in one of the hostels 2 fully-equipped kitchens we relaxed with some tea in front of the fire Frank set up before heading off to bed.

Day 4- March 16

Of all the things we were looking forward to about our trip to Ireland hiking Slieve League was number 1 on the list. We got an early start out of Malinbeg and took Frank’s advice on a scenic route out to Slieve League. The bit of extra driving was absolutely worth-it and we were so excited to see the main event when we reached our destination. Slieve League is basically a coastal mountain with magnificent sea cliffs. It’s among the tallest cliffs in the country and boasts some of the most amazing scenery. We were lucky that the weather was relatively clear and that we were some of the only people out at the cliffs that morning. In addition to the excitement over the cliffs for the first time in my life I was thrilled about the fact that we hit a traffic jam. The thrill being that it was a jam of sheep!!! It was seriously cool. The cliffs were seriously cool as well. We were the only visitors at the time who opted to hike up from the car park and we got some pretty spectacular views all to ourselves. Really my words can’t do it justice and to be honest the pictures don’t either, but they do a better job than I could:

After the cliffs we headed up and inland to Glenveagh National Park. We hiked the Castle Trail- which was lead provided great views of the lake and surrounding mountains. Upon arriving at the castle we stopped for a picnic lunch in one of the gardens and then explored the grounds a bit. It was beautiful, but the weather was starting to look a little rainy- so we headed back to the car and began the journey to our next destination: Derry.

Day 5- March 17 (St. Patrick’s Day!!!)

We lucked out with our accommodations at the International Hostel in Derry. Though we booked an 8-bed dorm there were only two other occupants the first night and none the second! In addition to the decent sleeping arrangement the hostel provided fresh baked bread every morning and a comfy lounging room with a great variety of movies and books…it had a very homey feel. We awoke on St. Patrick’s Day, enjoyed some coffee and fresh baked bread and then headed into the city to explore a bit before our 11:00 “Free Derry Tour”. We knew absolutely nothing about the city before arriving, but it has quite a tumultuous history. Built in the early 1600’s there were constructed in an effort to control the “Irish Rebels” and the trouble kept growing. Though Derry is located in Northern Ireland and is technically part of the United Kingdom it has very nationalistic sentiments. There’s even a debate over whether the city’s real name is (as the nationalists call it) Derry or (as the loyalists call it) Londonderry. To avoid the drama many shops and businesses in the area go by Foyle, the name of the river, rather than “choose sides”. We walked around the city center, which was gearing up for the day’s festivities and around the still-intact walls before meeting our guide. The “Free Derry Tours” are all conducted by former political prisoners and IRA advocates. Our guide Gerry was adamantly pro-IRA and he warned us from the get-go that his tour would be from his perspective. He began the tour by saying that they’re are three sides to every story- “my side, your side and somewhere in the middle what actually happened”. Well Gerry definitely gave his side. He painted the IRA solely as a victims in the conflict, only talking about the atrocities done by the British never and he ended his tour by saying he hopes that Margaret Thatcher dies a slow and painful death. Though he gave us a very biased view of the troubles, he was remarkably interesting and his personal connection to the conflict made it all the more intriguing (his brother was one of the men who participated in the first hunger strike).

Following our tour we were ready to get the drinking started. We began with a few pints at the most popular pub in the city, Peadar O Donnels. After those headed back to hostel for some car bombs (whole new meaning now) on the cheap before making our way to the parade route. We only stayed on the route for half an hour or so because it was time to head back to a bar for the big Ireland vs. England match in the 6-Nations Rugby Tournament. We decided it was only appropriate to pay a visit to the pub “Bound for Boston” and fought our way through the crowds to see the Irish get creamed. Luckily most people remained in good spirits following the loss and we made our way back to Peaders to grab some more pints and listen to some live Irish music. All in all a festive and fun Saint Patrick’s Day in a very authentically Irish local.

Day 6- March 18

Considering the amount of Guinness we thew back the day before we were feeling pretty good come Sunday morning. We hopped in the car and made our way along the northern coast. We spent the entire day stopping at spots along the causeway coastal route and enjoying the gorgeous scenery. Highlights included walking around the Mussenden Temple, hiking down to the Giant’s Causeway and taking in the view at Carrick-a-Rede. Again words (nor pictures) can really do the sites justice.

That evening we splurged a little for a comfortable B&B where we were greeted by our wonderful host, Olive, ready with a fresh pot of tea and homemade bread. It was a great ending to a beautiful day.

Day 7- March 19

After a good nights sleep we awoke to another one of our anticipated trip events: a full Irish Breakfast. Our host Olive cooked up sausage, bacon, fresh bread, soda bread, fried eggs, yogurt, fruit, fresh OJ and coffee. It was by far the best meal of our trip…I’m literally salivating now as I write about it. In order to work a little bit of it off we headed to the Glenariff Forest Park and set off down the waterfall trail. After spending a few hours taking in even more beautiful scenery we headed back down the coast towards Belfast (making one more stop for another hike to a waterfall along the way).

We arrived in Belfast just after 3:00 and after dropping our bags at the hotel we walked down into the city. I wasn’t sure what to expect of Belfast, really only knowing about it from the violence associated with the nationalist vs. loyalist conflict. I have to say that I was greatly impressed. The city center is very modern, young and friendly. After taking in some sites we made stops at Bittles Bar, Fibber Magees and Crown Bar- when in Ireland right?!

Day 8- March 20

Our last day on the Emerald Isle. We picked a hotel near Queen’s University which turned out great because we were easily able to find a great, cheap dinner for breakfast. After the morning meal we headed through the campus and onto Belfast’s Botanical Gardens. The campus was absolutely gorgeous as were the gardens.

After our stroll there we walked over to the Ulster Museum to learn a little more about Ireland’s history. The museum was not only free, but fantastic. They have six floors dedicated to history, natural history and art; we definitely learned a lot. Probably the most interesting part about our visit was getting to compare and contrast the information we’d learned from Gerry in Derry and the information we discovered here. Gerry conveniently left out all mention of the bombs and attacks on civilians by the IRA. In addition to a good deal of information on the “troubles” the Ulster museum had exhibits on the history of Ireland from ancient times. Most interesting were the displays on population growth, the potato famine and the fight for Irish independence. Also displayed were the findings from a sunken ship discovered off the coast of Ireland a few years back– gold doubloons and all!

After the museum we headed into the city center for our final tourist excursion- a bus tour of Belfast. We hopped on the double decker bus and enjoyed a fascinating (and very funny) tour of the city. One of the things Belfast is most famous for (and most proud of) is the fact that the Titanic was built in their city. The tour started out by driving by the “Titanic’s final footprint” and the docks. Opening at the end of this month is a new museum and tourism center dedicated to the ship and we were able to see the almost finished product. The building is designed to the same height as the ship and the different wings resemble the bow of the Titanic. Also pointed out was the oldest intact ship from WWI- still floating in the harbor.

From the docks we headed into the posher area of the city over to Stormont, the Parliament in Belfast. We then drove by our first of many murals- most done by the Irish loyalists.

The second half of the tour took us through the center of the city, into the area we had stayed the night before: The Queen’s Quarter and over to the Shankill area (where many of the violent attacks by the IRA were carried out).

All in all the tour was fascinating and the city lively. Belfast was a favorite city of Queen Victoria and official given the title of “city” by her in the 1888 (the year UPS was founded!). It’s had a troubled past, but is now a thriving and modern center. Dave and I agreed that it was our favorite of the cities we visited this trip and we wished we’d had more time to explore…next time!

After our bus trip we grabbed a quick lunch and a final pint at Bittles before jumping in the car and heading back towards Dublin. We enjoyed one last beautiful drive down the east coast as the sun set. We flew back to Berlin the next morning.

It was a wonderful week, made even more magical by the beautiful weather. We put over 900 kilometers on the car by the time it was all said and done and enjoyed every bit of the trip. It was a perfect way to celebrate our engagement and we can’t wait until our next adventure!

Trip to the Alps

Posted on March 12, 2012 by thedaveoflife

To celebrate finishing our first semester a few of my fellow classmates and I took a trip to Austria to go skiing. The trip turned out great! Here is what we did, with a few pictures to check out. I stole the pics from facebook so thanks to Matt and Anastasia for them!

Our plan was to leave early Friday morning around 10am, but we didn’t finish our last exam until Thursday afternoon and many of us were out late that night. We didn’t end up leaving till around 1. It was quite a hungover trip, but I had a good time riding on the Autobahn. The Germans drive really fast…. they think nothing of going 190 kpm (120 mph). No wonder their cars are so nice.

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Maddie Visits Prague

Posted on October 24, 2011 by daverian

Maddie just left this afternoon from an awesomely fun weekend here in Prague. It was sad to see her go, but so good to have her here. Maddie arrived early on Friday (while I was still in class) so she had to navigate from the airport to the Hotel Pivovar by herself. Luckily she inherited a good sense of direction and made it here safe and sound. I was able to meet her on my lunch break, let her into the hotel and allow her to get settled and relax before I had to run back to TEFL for my first teaching lesson! The teaching lesson went pretty well (not perfect, but thank God the first one’s done!!!) and I wasn’t observed- so that helped ease the nerves a bit.

As soon as I finished up I rushed back to the hotel so we could get out and see some of Prague before the sun set! Maddie and I headed first to Old Town Square, then up Wenseclas Square- just taking in all the sights.

After some sightseeing we were famished and decided we needed some “traditional” Czech food and beer. It took a little while to find, but we eventually made it up to Pivovarský dům. There we shared enjoyed some delicious goulash as well as the 8 beer sampler. The sampler ranged from wheat beer to coffee beer to nettle beer to the beer of the month: Chili! We both agreed that the coffee beer was pretty gross, but kind of enjoyed the banana flavor.

After dinner we headed back to the Prague 9 where we met up with all my wonderful TEFL peers at the Villa. We had some drinks, hung out and then headed downtown to a bar/club. It was a lot of fun to hang out with everyone, dance and relax after the long week. Almost everyone went out and we didn’t end up getting home until after 5:00am!!! It’s a big deal for me considering I typically like to be in bed by midnight and get a full 8+ hours if possible. Made me feel young again:)

The next day we woke up a bit later than we had originally planned, but still managed to fit in a whole day of sightseeing and touristing. We (of course) had to stop at Bohemia Bagel for lunch/breakfast. From there we headed through Old Town Square, down to the Jewish Quarter, over to Charles University (my study abroad alma mater) and then to take some shots of the Charles Bridge. The weather was FREEZING (33 degrees F and windy) so we had to stop and buy some pashminas. After the shopping break we headed across the bridge, over to the Lennon Wall and up the hill to Prague Castle. We took in the views, walked all around the castle and then headed back down the hill to find dinner. We managed to find a cheap and delicious pizza place where we were able to warm up by enjoying a hot meal. That night we opted for a movie and ice cream over another exciting night out due to the cold and our 7-hour sightseeing extravaganza. We (well old me) also needed to catch up on some sleep!

We started out Sunday the same way as Saturday- sleeping in a bit and then heading to Bohemia Bagel for breakfast/lunch. After stuffing our faces with bagel sandwiches and soup (it was another freezing cold day). We headed out to see the city! We did some shopping, went to down to Vyšehrad, walked up to check out the dancing house and then trekked up the massive Petrin Hill. It was a lot of walking, but a great way to see the city and appreciate its beauty…it’s also a good way to have hundreds of photo ops! By the time we covered all that ground it was getting dark and we were starting to get hungry again. I made Maddie walk with me over to my old study abroad dorm. It was cool, but so weird to be back at Pohorelec, waiting to take the 22. It made me nostalgic for 2005 and my awesome semester in Prague, but I’m glad we went to check it out (doesn’t look too different).

We enjoyed a dinner that night at a place called Jama (formerly the Dog’s Bollocks) were we enjoyed nachos, chicken wings and chicken fingers…and of course beer! We then headed back home to warm up and to spend some social time with the suitemates. Maddie had to leave early this afternoon to catch her flight back to Brussels. It was sad to say goodbye, but I’m so glad she came! I’m also hoping to visit her in Belgium sometime before her program ends, plus she’ll be coming to see us in Berlin in December…so more quality time will be spent together soon. So while I’m sad that she’s returned home I have another amazing thing to look forward to…Dave will be visiting next weekend! I’m so lucky to have my two favorite people come to Prague two weekends in a row.

Daverian's Travels

"How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives."

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