2 Weeks in Manchester

We first spent a weekend in Manchester for a wedding and were charmed by its unique architecture, character and history. In a good mood from the festivities, we weren't sure if it was just these rosy personal feelings or if the city really kicked ass. Especially after we agreed to a house trade that had us spending 2 weeks of summer break in this industrial northern center and locals first question in response to our plans was a polite "Why?".

Lucky for us, we did enjoy. A lot. Staying in a place for longer than a night or two allowed us to gain a insiders' perspective and explore the greater north (including York, Edinburgh, Port Sunlight, Liverpool and Chester - watch this space for posts!).

And much like the vacation to Ischia (but in a less island paradise kinda way), one of our primary goals on this vacation was to relax. The baby is coming and a whole different, slower and hopefully just as fulfilling way of traveling will be necessary. Let's consider this a successful test run into our new life.

Nazi Rally Grounds in Nuremburg

Germany Travel Front Page

Working for about.com as the Germany Travel Expert has me seeking out new places in Germany and dredging up all sorts of posts and pictures from my travels. Sometimes this makes for a great new post for the site and sometimes they may have already been written about, but I still want so share.

In light of my lax new postings on this blog (due to the growth) and exploring the Germany Travel archives - how about a hybrid? On our first year exploring this country (and unintentionally falling in love) we tromped all over Germany. On one of these cross-country trips we found ourselves in Nuremburg and Ian's love of all things WWII history guided us to...

Berlin's Allied Museum

We hadn't planned on visiting the Allied Museum. It is located by the American embassy all the way down in Dahlem and we had never even been that far south except on the U3 Ublau.

But then a friend visited at Christmas, was surprised by his wife at the airport, and promptly lost his passport. It was a bit of a roller coaster.

Impromptu visit of the American Embassy at Christmas time!

Day trip to Brandenburg an der Havel

Our conflicting issues of never ending wanderlust and near poverty mean we make a lot of compromises. While we dream of trying not to break ourselves on the ski slopes of the Czech Republic, we settle for a day trip anywhere out of Berlin. And if anywhere looks like this ---------------->
we have no right to complain.

Brandenburg an der Havel is a medieval town located about an hour away from Berlin (about 60 kilometers west) by train and lies in the state of Brandenburg on the River Havel - hence the name. A quiet village with a rich history and many historical sites, the town was the ideal day trip from Berlin.

An Accidental Visit to the 9/11 Memorial in NYC

I always feel hesitant to share deep thoughts about politics as it usually turns into an ugly circle of cynicism, doom and depression. While I am informed enough to know the basics of what's happening, whenever I delve further I am inevitably frustrated with the state of the world. Can't we just talk about bizarre Americana and drinking on the Berlin UBahn?

Offbeat Washington: Leavenworth - A German Village in America

Growing up in Washington State, trips to Leavenworth are practically mandated. Christmas, summer, or for one of the largest Oktoberfests in America (not quite like the real Oktoberfest). It's cute. It's kitsch. It's a tourist attraction.  

We love it.

East German Loving: Dresden

Wanting to simply go anywhere, but lacking the important element of money, we stumbled on neighboring city Dresden. It's always been a bit embarrassing that we haven't gotten there, and what better time than now.

Dresden, capital of Saxony and home to many of it's princes and kings, is famous for its picture-perfect riverfront and majestic Old Town (Altstadt). Most public buildings have been impeccably rebuilt following the annihilation of the 1945 bombings. It is estimated that 75% of the historic center was destroyed during WWII and about 30,000 people died in the bombing.

A former city of Eastern Germany, it's unique geography once totally isolated it from the outside world, creating an unusually insular community. Today the city hosts around 10 million visitors a year and has a growing reputation as a must-see. What follows are observations form our visit.

Visiting the Site of Gruesome Demise: Pompeii

Ian & Steves

On our trip to Naples, I'm going to be honest and say I didn't want to go to Pompeii. Something about it "being too touristy", "just ruins", and "taking time away from pizza eating in Naples" crossed my lips. But for once - Ian was adamant and Kyle was on his side (traitor).

We went & I take it back. Pompeii is filled with tourists, some armed with Rick Steves guidebook like Ian, but that's because it is a MUST SEE. Much more than just ruins, the site is impeccably set-up for awe inspiring history. 

Where to take Your Texan Nephew in Berlin

Do you know what 18-year-olds like? I've got no idea. And I've got one coming to our house in Berlin tomorrow, straight off the plane from Texas.

My sister, Brandy, is almost exactly 10 years older than me. My elder nephew is 10 years younger. We're like those Russian nesting dolls. Brandy has trusted us to guide her first-born, Kyle, on his first trip to Europe before he enrolls in the Navy. This kind of trust - I simply don't know what to do with myself/him/etc. I am hoping my Berlin favs will stand up to test and we will have an amazing time. Press your thumbs for all of us....

To document how it all goes down, I am going to track our progress. I am expecting a lot of "okays" and mumbles in response from Kyle. That's how teens communicate, right?  We pick him up tomorrow.

A Somber Visit to Hohenschönhausen

I took a Facebook poll of what I should post about next (Like our page - pretty please. We need affirmation.) and people actually answered! Pleasantly surprised, I went with the vote of the people and finished this half-done post about Hohenschönhausen.

A truly thought-provoking spot, I was moved and intrigued by our visit. So why did this post sit half done? Berlin is beyond being "discovered" at this point, and almost everything I want to blog about has been done before, and better. (Check out Chasing Heartbeats beautiful coverage). But by that logic, why should we do anything that has been done before? Why'd I even come to Berlin (twice) if it had already been "done" by other expats? Therefore, post I shall.

Whew. Enough boring introspection and a little more about a place you should want to get to know better....

Our visit to the Museums of Paris

During our trip to Paris in December, we got all cultured. We did this (primarily) through buying the Museum Pass and going museum crazy.

We are museum lovers and prefer to visit a museum over & over, slowly absorbing the incomprehensible displays of grace and beauty BUT a week long trip to Paris only affords a precious hour or two in each place. Even then we missed some must-sees. We're sorry. This action packed museum itinerary was exhaustively carried out over 2 days and was so incredibly worth it.

Foucault pendulum

A glimpse at some greatness.

First stop:

Panthéon

This was the major landmark by our airbnb apartment. Located in the Latin Quarter in Paris, it is a secular mausoleum containing the remains of distinguished French citizens such as Marie Curie, Victor Hugo, Voltaire, Rousseau, etc. Modeled on the Pantheon in Rome, the building is known for Foucault's pendulum a simple device conceived as an experiment to demonstrate the rotation of the Earth. While it had long been known that the Earth rotated, the introduction of the Foucault pendulum in 1851 was the first simple proof of the rotation in an easy-to-see experiment.

Stepping back in Hungarian Time

My parents aren't ready to give up on car trips, even when traveling in Europe. While Ian & I are full fledged fans of train travel and have a growing love for cheapo plane trips (yes- even Ryanair & EasyJet), we have to admit seeing Europe by car is an entirely different experience.

Belgium Beer Run

Once again, I am off planning other trips instead of finishing the one I just got back from. Let's pick up from our impromptu road trip on our Belgium Beer Run.  

Pics of our trip down to Cologne

Cardiff Love

With the whole getting conned thing & looking for housing, we kinda left off on our UK adventure. We did manage to showcase Cambridge, practiced the English accent, cheered on our favorite horses at the track and showed some of our favorite pictures in London, but we have yet to talk about our final destination- Cardiff.


Unlike our trip to England in 2007, we wanted to see more of the UK than just London. With limited time & resources, the easiest option was to get ourselves to Wales. We took off that morning with plenty of time...we thought. After 5 trains- yes 5- went by that weren't for us, we started getting worried. As we hit unexplained stop mid-station after unexplained stop mid-station in the tube we positioned ourselves to run. As we exited the train we attempted to use the machine to claim our ticket. 10 min later, it kept claiming a random error message. Now in a  total panic, we sprinted to the information center on the other side of Paddington Station. I got in line while Ian tried to claim the tickets from another machine. 5 min later- success! Ian had the tickets & we raced to the departure board to find which platform we should be sprinting for. 2 min before departure- no train. We stood in another line to ask at information. The man kindly explained the train would have left already (yeah right) and we would need to go to the ticket desk. FRUSTRATION.

The Proposal - Tower Bridge in London

A few months after relocating to Berlin, we were ready to stretch our legs and try another foreign country - England! The craziest thing was something I knew nothing about...

To facilitate all our London dreams we had purchased a one-day London Pass which allowed for free access into many attractions, but only for one day. Thus, a strategy was needed: See everything FAST!

The Plan:

Hit Shakespeare's Globe Theatre right at open, take the Tube over to the Winston Churchill Museum War Rooms, make brass rubbings beneath a church, ride over to the Tower of London and explore the grounds, then finish off with a view of the city at Tower Bridge- Break!

Shakespeare's Globe Theatre

First- the theatre! Though the Original Globe burned to the ground in 1613, this theatre is a pretty close replica on the exact same spot. Our tour guide- Annette- was amazing & gave a great low-down of the dirty, dark past.