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Song of the Month: September

Monday, February 9th, 2015

I know I’m waaaay behind, but I’ve been busy and will attempt to catch up over the next week or so!  Let’s go back in time to September 2014…

That month brought us visitors from the US, and we spent a great week with them eating & drinking our way through northern Italy, Austria, and finally ending in Germany for Oktoberfest in Munich.  This month’s song was hard to pick because there is always music playing at the Wies’n.

Song:  “Hey Baby” by DJ Otzi

Why: Because it’s one of the few songs in English and a total earworm (this is word we stole from German by the way… Ohrworm).

Here’s one of the “tents” we visiting during a fun night in Munich!

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If it’s Thursday it must be Switzerland

Sunday, July 28th, 2013

It’s been quite a while since my last blog, but I will be catching up over the next week!  Since my last post so much has happened, so I have some good trips to post.  First, my parents came to visit in May.  This year there were 4 long weekends in that month (I love all the holidays here!), so we took the opportunity to do some exploring with them.

We first headed to Innsbruck, and no matter how many times we go there, it’s always a nice experience.  In some cities you can ofter forget where you are, with such generic buildings and shops.  However in Innsbruck, the dramatic backdrop of the mountains is a constant and beautiful reminder.

The next stop was Schaffhausen in Switzerland, but not before a quick “country grab” detour through tiny Liechtenstein.  This was the first time any of us visited Schaffhausen and a stroll through the old town is definitely worthwhile.  The Munot fortress is unique, but the Rhine Falls are star attraction here.  We finished off the day with an overnight in a lovely guesthouse in Germany, complete with a perfect little beer garden.  The next day we planned to drive directly Strasbourg, France to bring our country total for the trip to 5.  However, I had a little talk with the owner of the guesthouse and she recommended a detour to see the “real Alsace” as she put it.  It was a fantastic idea and we spent the afternoon in a town called Keyserberg, where nearly all the houses  are still half-timbered and the whole village is surrounded by vineyards.  If it couldn’t get more picturesque, we topped it off with an Alsatian version of a pizza called Tarte Flambee and a stop at chocolate factory.  We eventually did make it to Strasbourg, which is actually quite a large city, but the old town area feels very comfortable and even small.

Stuttgart, German was our next stop and we spent a rainy day at the Mercedes museum. While you all know that I’m more of  BMW person, it’s pretty hard to leave this place without a feeling that you must get one for your next car. We finished off the trip with a stay in Tuebingen, a university town with ancient leaning buildings that make you wonder how they stay up.  Finally back home to Austria to re-charge and get ready for the next weekend!

Whitewater at the Rhine Falls:

My next car??  Only if it comes with a GPS!

I’m not sure what is keeping up these buildings in Tuebingen.

The most patient pups ever…  waiting for him to drop a bit of that bratwurst.

Posted in Austria, France, Germany, Switzerland | No Comments »

What I Did This Summer – Part 1

Sunday, October 21st, 2012

I can believe it’s the middle of October already!  After Kirchtag we had a realization that summer was going to be over soon. We quickly made plans to fill up just about every weekend for the last 2 months with things that we thought we would have done earlier.  Of course that also means that I haven’t had much time to blog about any of it, so I’ll try to catch up with the highlights over the next few posts.

One of our favorite things from last summer was an overnight bike trip on the Danube cycling trail (Donauradweg).  The trail follows the entire length of the river from it’s start in Germany all the way to Black Sea, but some of the most popular stretches are right here in Austria.  We decided to try a new section of this year.

The area from Passau, Germany to Linz, Austria is especially nice, well equipped with cafes and guesthouses just for cyclists.  We rode it over 2 days staying overnight  in Schloegen, a place where the river makes two 180 degree turns to form a giant S curve.

The trail switches occasionally from one side of the river to the other (and sometimes there is a trail on both sides).  There are very few bridges, but there are ferries along the way.  Some take both cars and bikes, but others are small and only for bikes.  It’s a fun way to see the river and the countryside, as well as cross the border from Germany to Austria (there are no customs anymore, by the way).

Here’s a view of me and Danube.  More soon about the rest of our late summer adventures.

Posted in Austria, Germany, Living Abroad, Travel | 1 Comment »

Long Road to Ruin

Thursday, August 25th, 2011

After we got our fill of the mountains in Tirol and Voralberg, we cruised up to Köln (Cologne).  It was a long drive, but we were motivated. One of our favorite bands, the Foo Fighters, played there and we had tickets.  They put on a great show, and we headed back south again happy and tired.

Oh yeah, and Cologne has a nice cathedral, too.

Here ‘s the Foos in action:

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Munchin’ in München

Wednesday, June 22nd, 2011

My parents recently visited us and we got to do quite a few touristy things in the area.  The next few posts will be some short descriptions and reviews of them.

While we have a local airport about 30 minutes drive away, the closest big, international airport is Munich, about 3 hours away.  We met my parents there and spent the next few days visiting some sights in the area.  This was our 3rd trip to Munich in the last three months and it’s quickly becoming one of my favorite cities.

The U-bahn, S-bahn, and trams are pretty easy to navigate and everything you probably want to see is accessible from them.  The central area packs a lot of interesting sites into a small walkable area, and there quite a few day trips outside the city that are also easy to do.  We still haven’t seen everything, so I’m sure we’ll be back.

While we visited all the famous sites like the Frauenkirche and the Glockenspiel, this time around we also went to the BMW Welt, which is the center where you can pick up your car if you buy it there.  It has some great exhibitions and it’s free. We also drove out to Neuschwanstein to see the castle and then visited another at Nymphenburg within the city.

All the sightseeing worked up quite a thirst in us, so we made another stop at the Hofbräu Haus.  We bypassed the crowded tables downstairs and went up to the top floor.  I think this room is usually used for big groups, and there were a few obvious tour groups and some ‘company party’ tables as well. However, if there are just a few of you, you might be able to find a spot.  There is a different band that plays upstairs and the atmosphere is pretty nice.  We also tried out the Augustiner beer garden, which is near the main train station.  It’s huge, but if you can get a table in the Keller, you are in for a treat.  It’s worthwhile mentioning that everyone shares tables at these beer halls.  Don’t be surprised if the waiter seats other people at your table, and don’t be afraid to ask to sit at a table where there are a few open seats as well.  It’s actually an interesting way to meet people, or at least an entertaining way to eavesdrop on their conversations.

Here’s the fuel that kept us going:


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