München - Arriving

Really, we are excited to be here. Just a little tired.

 After a 6 hour drive full of traffic, "Rude" on the radio, and occasional tickle fights, we finally found our little hotel in Siegertsbrunn on the outskirts of München. So did nearly a million other people, and as we rode the S-bahn into downtown there was an unusual busyness in the city. There were also  black thunderheads rolling our way.

Goslar and the Hartz Mountains

The arrival of Erin and John in Germany kicked off a new round of touring with Anne as our host, guide, and driver. We started with a massive breakfast at the Stein house in the Harz mountains of Niedersachsen (Lower Saxony).

Berlin Blitz

I have blitz-visited Berlin once before, as part of a class trip during my 2008 study in Bremen. We were there only a evening and a day, but I was impressed by its size, its freshly minted sparkle, and the rawness of the story it has to tell. It's changed since then, but only a little. Cranes still fly high over the skyline, but there are fewer of them in the city center. The wall is still crowded by tourists, but the people I met who are my own age don't remember a divided nation.

Graz

Graz Landhaus

After a great morning visit to TrainBlue OG (CrossFit), I spent my afternoon in Graz visiting my old haunts.

Aufsteirern

From the second I boarded the train at Wien Meidling, it was so familiar. Buy a ticket with my ÖBB youth card, stop in Wiener Neustadt, over Semmering, downhill to Brück an der Mur, then home...

of Cottages and Mountains

Petra has told me often about the "cottage" in the mountains that her group of friends spends every New Year's Eve at. Their parents are about 300m away at Mat'y's parents'cabin, and the two generations gather at midnight for toasts and songs in the yard. In the summer, the cottage is a favorite retreat. So when Petra suggested we spend a day or two there, I was all for it!

Vitkovice Iron Works

A few years ago, while visiting Ostrava for the first time, we drove by an old steel mill. Petra pointed it out with a frown, like it was a scab on the city. Tall brown stacks and a mad maze of pipes and conduits around 19th century brick workshops. It is a short streetcar ride from the city center and visible from nearly everywhere.
Since that first visit, the site has begun to be transformed.

a Walk through Prague

I'm back in the Czech Republic! This place fascinates me. The food, the people, the national identity, the language... It is so similar to the other places I love, but has it's own distinctly Czech twist. You can see the impression of Austrian, Prussian, and Russian occupations in the architecture. Concurrently there is a national pride for contributions to art and industry in which they see themselves not as underdogs, but leaders in the international community. Did you know that "robot" is a Czech word?

Gothic towers galore!

the Wreck and Rebuilding of the San Juan

Jone asked me what I wanted to do monday afternoon, and I thought we would just hang around Tolosa. Then she suggested going to see the construction of the San Juan in Pasaia. Why not?

Pasaia San Juan from San Pedro. Photo by Jone

Tolosa Hike

My voice was back Monday morning, and I felt completely recovered from the festivities of the day before. Jone and I had a hike planned, so after a light breakfast we headed for the hills.

Donostia Regatta

Jone walked me to the train station Sunday morning to make sure I got my ticket, then I jumped on a train with hundreds of colorfully dressed enthusiasts headed to Donostia. It was regatta weekend!

Flysch

Gurutze had arranged on Saturday for us to go to Zumaia to see a unique geological phenomenon, flysch. Layers of roc sediment and organic matter were laid down at the bottom of an ancient lake or bay and were them lifted up at a crazy angle to make the amazingly rugged coastline of the Basque Country.

Adventures with Kike, Liere, Jone, and Gurutze

Euskal Herria

People ask me why I keep going back to the same places (Basque Country, Germany, Europe in general), our for that matter, why travel? I think my reasoning breakdown looks like this: 40% friends (old and new!), 40% food, 20% culture, history, and all that good stuff.

Stuttgart Preview and Quiet History

I am realizing throughout this trip just how amazing my friends are. It isn't really news (they've always been great), but every once in a while it hits me even harder. I spent a few days in Stuttgart this week, and it was one of those moments.

Myself, Anne, and Bea in Heilbronn

Anne, Bea, and I hung out Thursday evening in Heilbronn for pasta, ice cream, and swapping stories an a mash up of English and German (I think Anne is the only person who got 100% of it!)

Lower Austria (Niederösterreich)

After a drizzley but historically rich weekend in Innsbruck (castles! armor! art!), I took the early train across Austria to see Ulli, my former tandem (language partner from UniGraz) in Lower Austria.