Freiburg im Breisgau

Right now.... at this very moment... I'm playing my favorite game EVER: Catch up. Have you ever played it? It makes even the hardest sport look like childs play. If you're unfamiliar with it, let me lay some game on you real quick. Catch up is when you get so ridiculously behind on work, blog posts, reports, current events, and LIFE that you spend about 9hrs in the library pulling your hair out from the roots wishing there were more hours in the day. That maybe something miraculously will happen and a box of Ritalin attached to a mini parachute would fall out of the sky and keep you focused. Anything to keep my mind off thoughts such as "DAMN, I'm hungry." If I leave, you can bet all your €'s I will not be coming back to this library today so I have to fight that urge to run to my dorm and cook with the promise that it will all be worth it once I first finish this post.

Don't worry, I'm not starving myself to finish a blog post. I have a bag of almonds to keep me company. Although recently I think I've developed an allergy for them because I've already had about 5 or 6 and my throat feels like it is on the verge of closing up... Let's see if I can make it to the end of this post before having to make a trip to the ER shall we?

Seeing that this is another late post, I have to paint the picture of where we are now in my travels. 

The following takes place between 9am and 8pm April 12th, 2014.

After a bit of a stressful week of work and some things with my online course I was dealing with, I didn't really have time to make any plans for the weekend so I was open for anything.  A fellow PPP'r came down ALL THE WAY FROM HAMBURG and paid Reutlingen a visit. Him, Dawn, and I took a trip that Saturday a Southern Germany city known as Freiburg.

rural views from the train..

look at all that nature!

So before we go any further, let me just preface this right quick. Freiburg lies in the southwestern part of Germany and Baden-Württemberg. It is a college town and one of the most beautiful towns in Southern Germany. Because it is right on the edge of Germany and right in the center of two other neighboring countries, a lot of tourists go for shopping, touring or hiking. Most tourists will spend the night there and venture to the neighboring countries: France and Switzerland. Not only does it sit right dab in the middle of Germany, France, and Switzerland, it also sits right on the outside edge of Schwarzwald (The Black Forest).

I did some adventuring on my own before meeting back up with Dawn and Nial.

a beautiful theater that sits right near the city center.

old Germans plotting my demise. Cathedral in the background.

so European. check the McDonalds that's inside this old part of the town. I swear those things are everywhere.

A tunnel passage under the tower. the wording says “Denkmal der freiwilligen Freiburgs unter Major und Stadtrath Caluri und allen Waffenbrüdern des österreichischen Breisgaus, die sich durch Treue und Tapferkeit den 7. Juli 1796 für Kaiser und Vaterland kämpfend auszeichneten. Gewidmet von ihrem General Freiherrn von Duminique."

Translation: Monument to the Freiburg volunteers under Major and City Council Caluri and all brothers in arms of the Austrian Breisgau, which distinguished itself fighting through loyalty and bravery on July 7, 1796 for Emperor and country. Dedicated by their General Freiherr von Duminique.

One fancy ass Starbucks

I think I'm in France again, could it be possible?

French-style bakery. Delectable pastries that would ACTUALLY make the Diabetes WORTH it.

Macarons! (or Macaroons if you're American)

Beautiful aged building. I didn't get the history on this bad boy because I wasn't paying a tour guide. I'm sure I'll google it one day.

The statue of this boy is called "Mama No". It dates back to the Pre-Child-Abuse Era.
Children often made this pose back in the day when they mama was about to WHOOP. THAT. ASS.
Usually involed soft-held weapons such as a belt, extension cord, or one of those branches from that tree in the background of this photo.

did some wandering and found this beautiful street.

Dawn looking deep into my eyes because I had something important to say.
I was hungry.

The cathedrals in Germany are forever in construction. Check out the active grandparents on their bikes. so cute. what do YOUR grandparents do?

Seeing as though we went to Freiburg on a Saturday, there was (yet again) an open fresh market!

So many colors...

Sideview of the Münster, or Cathedral

so Gothic.

Didn't know white guys having dreads was still a thing, but hey...different strokes for different folks.

While wandering, I passed by a Biergarten so I convinced Nial that we had to try it and he was totally down. Dawn didn't even put up a fuss haha.

Lecker haus Bier.

Pufferfish face

playing around with Nial's precious Canon

After a couple Biers, we found our way to the other side of town and decided to climb up and get a view over the city.

Passing through the beautiful park. Cute hair Dawn.

On our way up the mountain to the highest point in Freiburg to get a better view of the city....

We took a lift up because it was well... cooler!

Made it to the top, and you can even see the Black Forest from here!

that area below is where I believe the Universität is located

A view overlooking the city

failed attempt at a Panorama. Dawn's head was cut off :(

Closer look at the door to the Münster(Cathedral), There are very thin wires right above our heads I believe they are put there to keep the pigeons away and ruining the detailed artwork

Cool fountain we found on the way back towards the city center. A little naked boy sitting on a Snail... a bit morbid as the water is spewing from the Snail's eyeballs.... Poor Gary.

A quick paparazzi session with the amazing Nial Tilson:

No, please. this isn't my good side.

gooftroop.

Unnhh!

You see those flowing banks in the previous photos? Well legends says that if you fall into one or the water period, you will marry someone from Freiburg and return to the city to live. FOREVER *cue evil laughter*

Granted I wouldn't mind living in Freiburg for as long as possible, but I don't think it works if you fall in on purpose.

All in all, a lovely Saturday well spent. I got back home in time to catch the sunset over Reutlingen. I would definitely recommend a trip to Freiburg and Southern Germany in the near future, because if you just simply look at the facts.......

Everything is better in the South. :)

Bis nächstes mal!

Frühling liegt in der Luft

SPRING IS IN THE AIR!

The best thing about making the decision to come to Germany rather than stay in the U.S. this past year was AVOIDING THE DAMNED POLAR VORTEX. Like seriously, did that Snow Queen from Frozen get pissed off at 3/4ths of the U.S.? Even Birmingham, Alabama (which by the way only gets inches of snow ONCE every 5-10 years) was COVERED in sheets of ice for like a WEEK. People were scrambling throughout the city TRAPPED in their cars on the interstate, forced to spend the night in stores, malls, etc. There were even several kids and teachers trapped at school.

And for those of you who were continously saying "that's what you call snow? that's nothing." No one is talking to you, so be quiet. If you're used to waist deep snow and Artic Circle weather on a regular basis, then no doubt what the Southern region of the U.S. went through was nothing, but we don't have salt/sand trucks, snow plows, etc. We hardly EVER get real snow. Just snow of the nonsticking variety, light ice, or flurries.

Bottom Line: The South just isn't prepared for snow. 

As the first day of Spring slowly approached (this was back in late March) I took it upon myself to get out of little ol' Reutlingen and venture to Stuttgart.

It was a Saturday which is the best and worst day of the week in ALL of Germany. Let me explain. Generally, stores and shops in Deutschland close around 8:00pm on the dot (with the exception of a few grocery stores that stay open until maybe 10pm or midnight). To make matters worse: NOTHING is open on Sundays except for gas stations and certain restaurants.With that being said, if you're like me and work ridiculously long hours and still need time for the gym it's hard to work shopping into your schedule (or maybe I'm just a bad scheduler).

Nonetheless, on Saturdays my day is filled with running errands around the city, shopping, markets, flohmarkts and still have time to enjoy your saturday. Things closing by 8pm can such a nuisance when you're coming from a everything-open-24/7 kind of lifestyle.

The local fresh market in Stuttgart, contains the freshest grown produce (both Bio- and Organic).  

I once thought these were a myth, Weiß Spargel (White Asparagus). I'm told that they taste just like regular green asparagus, but at 3 small baby bundles for 10€.... I'll never find out.

A view right outside the Stuttgart Neues Schloß. 

Front view of the Schloß (castle)

On my way to the Flohmarkt (Flea market)!

A day of shopping and soaking up the sun (I'm about 3 shades darker now), I headed back to Reutlingen, utilized what remains of my gym membership and relaxed with some good movies.



I get asked a lot "what are they feeding you over there?" So to answer that I did what Americans do and took a gracious photo of my food before actually praying or eating it. Below is what a typical lunch for me is like at my Praktikum with Bosch. It's crazy how much Germans eat just for LUNCH. This would be considered a soul food sunday dinner back home.

Kassler (salted/cured pork), Kartoffel Püree mit sahne, Sauerkraut, und whatever the word for "french style green beans" are in German. 

At this point in time it was early April. Just a few sweet days before my 23rd birthday (April 7th). Another friend and participant in the program, Chelsea, had her birthday on the 6th, so we decided to bring some friends together  from München and have a little BBQ near the beach. Chelsea lives in Ulm which is right on the edge of Bayern so after work on that Friday, I took a quick train to her small little village right outside of Ulm called Jettingen, got settled, and planned out our weekend. This of course involved a trip back to Tegernsee!

such a cloudy day and just a bit chilly in Tegernsee

the goods: buttcracks and loads of snacks

Laura (on left) wondering why is the Jim Bean almost halfway gone?

A German Coworker of Chelsea's(left) and Ryan(right) with his goofy (and by goofy I mean normal) face.

on the beach.
FYI: that super small silver pan near the blue beer crate is our "grill"

my fellow Aries buddy and birthday girl Chelsea, she's been growing that mustache for years.

"ECHT!!!??" KC's reaction after realzing Chelsea's mustache was in fact fake :/

good vibrations

Andechs Bier brought by Ryan, his praktikum/internship is in a Brauerei (brewery) in München so he gets free beer which lead to a series of drunken events.

Me:"I think these Biers are starting to kick in.... I feel very warm"

#Selfie ft. lips

#Selfie ft. seductive looks

#Selfie ft. Veronica's beautiful smile

We only spent the day there, but it was incredible. I'm actually surprised at how fast the day went. Once we got back to Chelsea's,  we danced and talked and laughed and ateeee and watched various episodes of Parks & Rec.

In Germany  (for whatever reason) it is custom to invite others to your birthday party to celebrate it with you, rather than having one thrown for you. I believe it is seen as a more intimate occasion.

Still a bit confused? I'll break it down like this. The person who's birthday it is, is required to do all the cooking, baking, and preparation. That means bringing or preparing cakes, cookies, drinks, and everything else for your guests. Prior to leaving for Tegernsee, I sent out an invitation email to everyone in the office so they could celebrate my birthday in the office with me on that Monday. I decided to bring a cake and cookies and other things that Germans could possibly enjoy.

A commonly made baked dish is a Käsekuchen or cheesecake. It's a lot different from the traditonal American cheesecake where there is loads of cream cheese and sourcream. In fact I don't think that a käsekuchen has any cheese in it at all and it does not even have to be kept cold. As you can see below.

an example of a traditional German käsekuchen

Nevertheless, I decided to make what I know as a cheesecake: with Philadelphia cream cheese, sour cream, and a graham cracker crust.

my very first attempt at making a cheesecake from scratch!

I also made Nutella cookies and brought in drinks and such. It turned out pretty well. I could tell my coworkers were not accustomed to an American style "Käsekuchen". One of the comments I received was that the cake tasted "very rich". No one got sick so I guess I made it through the clear. Since my birthday was on a Monday and I have done so much already I figured that I should just work rather than taking the day off. these projects are going to finish themselves!


Another fun fact that I recently learned is that in the Spring, when it is time for the clocks to spring forward, in Germany, it occurs about 2-3 weeks AFTER it has already occurred in the U.S. Weird huh?

As of right now, the weather is even warmer than before so there's been more cyclers, runners, and super old people with their walking sticks out and about enjoying the sun and I don't blame them.

Spring is in the air. Flowers are blooming. Bees are buzzing. So you should be reading this post outside instead of indoors!

Bis nächstes mal!