"Ich Bin ein Berliner"

Last weekend we went to Hamburg and Berlin. All the guidebooks say that a trip to Germany is not complete with out a trip to Berlin and boy were they right! Hamburg was nothing to write home about, the highlight is the shopping. We spent the night there but are glad we stayed 2 nights in Berlin. When we arrived in Berlin we drove around the city before checking into our hotel to try and get better acclimated. The city is huge and pretty spread out. Berlin is ever-changing and still recovering from WWII and the soviet rule. You can still very clearly see the destruction from the war and the footprint of the wall. There is so much history it really is hard to put into words. It was very powerful, solemn and exhilarating wandering through Berlin. We are really glad we got there and look forward to returning at some point. Check out our photos on Picasa to get a more detailed picture of our trip.

First Signs of Spring in Belgium

We started March off with a trip to Belgium. We spent the first night in Brussels, which is only a 2-hour drive for us. It was a beautiful day and we had a great time wandering around the city. Brussels is big and doesn’t have too many amazing sites, but the sun was out and there were signs of spring everywhere. I think one of the best parts of Belgium is the food! What could be better then waffles, fries, chocolate, mussels and beer! The next morning we headed to Bruges, which is about one hour east of Brussels. Bruges is smaller and filled with canals and chocolate shops. Again we wandered around all day taking in the sights, people watching and eating. All in all Belgium was affordable and filled with lots of yummy food.

A little news about our big crazy lives

So by now many of you have heard that Jeff, Cooper and I have decided to move back to the United States. A number of factors played a part in our decision but we feel like its the best thing for us right now. So Jeff has given his notice at Mubea and his last day will be May 29th. Our current plan is for me to find a job and Jeff to attend a full time MBA program. I have started reconnecting with my professional contacts and Jeff is working hard on his applications and studying for the GMAT. Where we land will primarily depend on those 2 factors, where I find a job and where Jeff decides to go to school. We have a lot of details to work out but we are optimistic and excited about what lies ahead. We have a few more places that we would like to travel before we come back, including a trip to Berlin and then to Italy. We will keep everyone posted as more details are firmed up.

My Valentine...

For our Valentine’s weekend we decided to go to Reims, France for a champagne tour. We left on Friday and drove through the Mosel Valley region of Germany, stopping along the way at all the little wine villages. I would not recommend doing this trip in February because everything was closed until late March. Nonetheless it was a beautiful drive by the river and through some amazing vineyards. We stopped for the night in Trier, Germanys oldest city. Trier is an ancient Roman capital and is the home of the oldest Christian church and many Roman ruins. We headed out in the morning and stopped in Luxembourg long enough to see a few sites, check out the market and get a parking ticket! We arrived in Reims by midday and went to the G.H. Mumm champagne tour & tasting. After the tour we went in search for a restaurant to have dinner. We found out that no matter what country you are in you need a reservation on Valentine’s day! After about the 15th restaurant we found a little pizza place to have dinner, at this point we were so hungry it didn’t matter! We enjoyed the sunshine on Sunday morning and bought a few bottles of champagne to bring home with us. Nothing could be better than Valentines day in the champagne region of France with my 2 faviorate boys!

Kölner Philharmonie

Last night we went to the Kölner Philharmonie courtesy of my Dad and Shelly. We saw Grigorij Sokolov play Beethoven & Schubert. It was a wonderful evening and Sokolov was brilliant on the panio. We were amazed that he could play 2 hours of music by memory without any sheet music. It was especially fun to get all dressed up and head out for the evning!

Chilly in The Czech Republic

This past week we took full advantage of our long weekend and headed to Prague. We arrived Thursday night and found that our hotel was VERY centrally located, almost too much! But we checked and headed for a little walking tour and dinner. Prague is a really neat city at night. There are so many buildings and bridges that are entirely lit up, the whole city really glows at night. We had dinner at a wonderful Argentinean restaurant that was warm and fun. The Czech Republic really isn’t known for their food so we didn’t feel like we needed to eat at a Czech place. When we returned to the hotel at about 11:30 the women at the front desk told us there was a problem with Cooper. Apparently he was barking and the people in the room next to us complained. He was quiet when we arrived so I am not sure what the problem was, but they told us that we couldn’t leave Cooper in the room when we left again. The hotel room was also really smoky and seemed to get smokier as the night went on. In addition there was a music club in the basement of the hotel that was attracting all sorts of different people and causing drunk people to gather outside our window until around 6:30 a.m. So needless to say we decided to find a new hotel for the next night! There are so many hotels in Prague that it was not a problem and we ended up finding a much nicer hotel in a quieter neighborhood. We spent the day exploring the city and checked out Old Town and The Jewish Quarter. It was VERY cold so it made it hard to fully enjoy all the sites. The best part of the day is when we stopped at a warm café to break for lunch. You can never go wrong with soup, warm sandwiches and a latte! We had a nice Italian dinner and then went back to the hotel early to visit with Cooper. The next morning we toured the Castle and the weather had gotten worse so we decided that we had seen enough and were ready to head back to Attendorn. Prague is a beautiful city that can be very inexpensive if you go to the right places. We are not really into the nightlife but I think that it would be the place to go if you were. On the way home we stopped in Plzen, CZ at the brewery where Pils beer was invented. Then we stopped in Numnerg to check out the town and the Zeppelin Field. We forgot our Germany guide book so we missed a few sights! It was a cold trip, but we are glad we had the opportunity to go.

A Swiss Adventure

We just returned from an amazing trip to Switzerland. We began the trip in the Capital, Bern. Although it was a rainy, snowy night we explored the city and had a nice Swiss dinner. We also spent some time there in the morning and got a good look at the city in the daylight. We then headed south for Zermatt. The drive to Zermatt was stunning; we wound through the Swiss Alps and enjoyed the views on the way. Zermatt is an auto free village so you have to park at the train station in the village before and ride in. Zermatt is one of the most beautiful places we have ever been. It is nestled in a valley surrounded by mountains. We stayed 3 nights and had a great time walking around and had 2 great days of skiing. We left Zermatt on Saturday and headed for Lucerne. On the way we had to take the car onto a train to get through the mountains, which was pretty neat. We arrived in Lucerne and had an evening of sight seeing and a Swiss fondue dinner. All in all it was a great trip filled with amazing sights.