Prague

Two weekends ago we took advantage of another long holiday weekend here in Germany (where *everything* shuts down, save for some restaurants, gas stations and the trains) and went to Prague, Czech Republic (where everything was open).  Why, you ask?  Well, why not?!  It's a straight 5 hour drive from Stuttgart to Prague (like driving from Detroit to Chicago) and is supposed to be a beautiful city that fortunately escaped most of the bombing of WWII.

We rented a small apartment in the heart of Prague in the Old Town section, right in the middle of all the action.  (Tip: check out Trip Advisor for "vacation rentals" instead of hotels.  You can get a nice place for roughly the same price as a hotel room and probably even much cheaper.  And with small children, it's a nice way to go so you're not stuck in a room with lights out at 8:00!)  Our place was right next to a mall of all things.  A real American-type mall!  After a much longer trip than the 5 hours we planned, the boys were thrilled to see the Golden Arches of McDonalds right next to our place and that was our first Czech meal.  Yippee.  But, the boys were excellent on the car trip and - as Peter pointed out - it was his birthday so he should get to pick the place to eat.  :)  We had fun bumming around that evening and saw many American and UK type products and stores, unlike in Germy.  It's funny the things that will give an expat a small thrill like seeing things that remind us of the comforts of home.  I think there's alot more American and english stuff there as when the Iron Curtain fell (1989?) there was a great opportunity for companies to charge in and set up shop.  Also, tourism is now Prague's largest source of income and they really do seem to cater to Americans and it was both strange and wonderful to hear so many American speakers in the crowds.

(As always, you can click on picts for a slideshow/larger)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY BIG BOY PETER WHO IS NOW 8 YEARS OLD!!! 

Typical european bathroom...
shower "hose" in tub, washer / dryer located in bathroom

On our street / square facing the mall next to us.  Not a bad setup!  We had a rare moment of sunshine (just as it was time to get the kids to bed darnit!) on Friday night after returning from our friends' house so you can how beautiful things are with blue sky.

SO... what did we do in Prague?  Not much.  Or I should say, not nearly as much as I wanted.  If you've seen the world news lately, many cities in the Czech Republic, Germany and Austria have had epic rainstorms and I swear I would not have been surprised if I saw the Ark floating thru the city.  We arrived late Thursday afternoon and left on Sunday just before they closed the subways and many other things due to massive flooding.  It was that bad.

But it wasn't a total loss.  We saw friends we hadn't seen in years (he: American from Michigan  she: Czech... we met years ago when we all lived in Chicago) who now live in Prague and met each others children.  They had us over for a wonderful dinner on Friday night and we met up on Saturday evening for dinner at a train themed restaurant which the boys just loved.  The boys also loved the electric trams that ran crazily thru the city as well as the subways which had some of the longest escalators leading down that we've ever seen!  (As we have found in Germy, the trains/trams are the best way to get around!)  We went to a model train museum (for the birthday boy who is ever the train nut) and despite the deluge of rain we walked thru Old Town Square and took a peek at the beginning of Charles Bridge.  Even soaking wet in the rain I loved walking thru Prague.  The city is beyond amazing and the pictures just can't do it justice.  It is everything you would hope for as a tourist in an old european city.  Cobblestone streets and amazing architecture, statues and breathtaking views at every turn.  I will let my photos do the talking but... I definitely want a re-do!  I would love to take a walking tour and learn some of the amazing history of this city.  I am in love with Prague (as you can tell from my over-use of the word "amazing")!  The boys would like to visit the zoo which is one of the top 10 zoos in the world!

Some views from Old Town Square...

Clock tower on the Old Town City Hall.

It has the world's 3rd oldest astronomical clock, dating back to 1410,

and is the oldest astronomical clock still working.

Entrance to the Charles Bridge (14th century) from Old Town side and closeup...

I would love to walk thru Mala Strana on the other side of the bridge...

We did not walk the bridge and had to turn back due to bad weather.

Above Mala Strana is Prague Castle which is the largest ancient castle in the world.

 There are 30 statues on the bridge of saints and patron saints...

Buildings near the bridge....

The streets were lined with tons of souvenier shops.  Many sold jewelry with

garnet gemstones, marionettes and Bohemian crystal.  I have some of this crystal

I received as a wedding gift and would like to return to add to my collection! 

Dining with friends at a train themed restaurant.

All beverages are delivered to your table via train!

The National Museum (as seen from car while leaving town... wah wah).

It is closed for 2-3 years (?) for renovations.

Zurich

Since I have not been stellar at keeping up with my blog as much as I'd like this year, I'm now going into overdrive and finally sharing some little adventures and everyday things here in Germy.  So for the next few emails I may be going backwards, detailing a few happenings from our recent past here.

My mom - Grandma Sweetie - came to visit us over the Easter holiday break.  Our first "real" visitor!  We had a lot of fun despite the crummy weather we had most of her time here.  Of course, her favorite part was devouring Peter and Marky as much as she could!

We did a few day trips with Grandma including one to Zurich, Switzerland!  We drove there in under 3 hours.  It is just amazing how close we are to so many fabulous destinations.  Zurich was just beautiful!  Unfortunately, almost the entire area was shut down due to the holiday Easter Monday.  Who knew?!  The europeans LOVE their holidays here (there are 4 in May alone!).  While we all enjoy a day off of school and work, we do not love that almost everything closes on these days with the exception of gas stations, trains and a maybe a few restaurants.  No grocery shopping... nothing!  So was the case with our day in Zurich.  First, we had a horrible meal of highly suspect "fish" and chips at a Nordsee in the main train station (fast food seafood is probably never a good idea).  The rest of the time was spent walking up and down some main city streets oohing and aahing over the beauty that is Zurich.  We walked down the famed Bahnhofstrasse past uber high-end boutiques and window shopped, strolled along Lake Zurich, took a short inner-city train ride around nowhere in particular and was able to go inside one of the amazing churches downtown.  I definitely want to go back on a nice day when things are open for business!  Not really to buy anything but just to take everything in and maybe do a scenic boat cruise on the lake.  As you can imagine, Zurich is a world-class city with world-class prices to match!  For example, a large soft pretzel that is typical around these parts for under 1.00€ is 5 francs there!  Switzerland has not adopted the euro and still uses the Swiss Franc.

Here are some picts of our sightseeing trip to Zurich!  Can't wait to go back!  (Click on pict for larger view)

Main Swiss train station (Hauptbahnhof)

Cool fountain in front of Hauptbahnhof

My mom and I along Lake Zurich

 

Smaller train station with cool clock

Grossmünster (Great Church) - c. 1220
One of 3 major churches in the city.
The twin towers are one of Zurich's most recognized landmarks.

Charlemagne on Grossmünster's southern tower.
This church was built on the site of a
Carolingian church commissioned by Charlemagne.

Peter (with new glasses!), Grandma Sweetie,
Marky and Mike in a lower level of Hauptbahnhof

Fancy pay toilets in Hauptbahnhof.  Worth every franc!
Strangely, no separate men/women sides.
Also, lights above each stall door.  Green = go in.
Yellow = just used / needs cleaning.  Red = in use.
Yes, I am oddly fascinated with the European toilets.

Peter at the Hauptbahnhof showing off a Swiss train.

Frühlingfest

Frühlingfest translates to Spring Festival and is held every year in Stuttgart between the middle of April to the beginning of May.  It's the largest spring festival in Europe!  It's the "little sister" to Stuttgart's 3-week Fall Festival the Volksfest which is the 2nd largest beer fest in the world after Munich's Oktoberfest.  Obviously, they LOVE their beer here in Germany!  I have to say I am loving it too.  It is rich in flavor and (watch out!) much stronger in alcoholic content than its American counterpart.  (Bud Light is considered tap water here.  Ha!)  The festivals begin with the Lord Mayor of Stuttgart trying to tap the first barrel of beer with as few hits as possible.

The festival(s) consist of many beer tents which are open to all until about 5:00p when it turns adult-only.  When I say beer tents (as they are called), the term is used very, very loosely.  The "tents" are giant structures the size of football fields built specifically for the festivals and hold hundreds (thousands?).  They feature stages at one end with live bands.  Some tents have more german oom-pah-pah type stuff and some "good" tents, like the one I was in, features a huge soundstage with singers, dancers and musicians.  They sing all kinds of stuff but mostly lots of stuff that the crowd can sway, sing and dance to including American classics like "Sweet Caroline", "We Are Family" and "YMCA".  There were some german standards sung to which the crowd acted out all the parts, similar to a YMCA type thing only they were pretending to ride horses and waving.  The beer tents are about 5,000 degrees inside, almost unbearably loud and if you are *not* wearing the traditional Dirndl or Lederhosen then you stand out like a sore thumb.

A group of 1st grade moms and I all met at the first night of Frühlingfest 2013 last Saturday for a very rare girls night out and yes, we all wore the traditional Dirndl.  A dirndl is a type of Bavarian dress based on historic Alpine peasant wear.  There are 3 parts to the dirndl... first, a cropped blouse with pouffy sleeves that shows various amounts of cleavage, depending on how chaste you are.  There are a LOT of women who needed to "cover that up"!!!  But I'm sure the men would disagree.  Next is the actual dress.  If you are younger (or have a "special" mirror in your house) and have nice gams to show off or are trying to attract the guys, you go with a shorter "mini" dirndl.  The typical dress falls at or just below the knee.  Then there are the floor-length versions which look more Little House on the Prairie to me.  The 3rd part of the outfit is the apron which ties at the waist.  You must be careful how you tie your apron as it dictates your "status" as follows:

- bow tie on right = married

- bow tie on left  = single

- bow tie in back = widowed

Mike said, "Just don't tie it in the back!"  Ha!

You can buy dirndls at a lot of places prior to the festivals (and year 'round at special dirndl shops) for various prices.  They begin at around 99€ and go upwards in the thousands.  Seriously!  I went for the less-expensive option at a lower-end german clothing store where I got all 3 pieces for the price of 1 but still ended up with something nice looking.  Since I will only wear it a few times here (for the twice yearly fests) and then *maybe* as a Halloween costume back in the States I thought it wouldn't pay to spend alot of money on it.  Plus, you are bound to get beer spilled on your fabulous dirndl.  If you are interested in seeing some pretty nice dirndls, visit this site http://www.krueger-dirndl.de/en/homepage/

One more thing on dirndls... typically, brighter colored dresses are worn for the spring fest and darker hues for the fall fest.  Mine was more "fall-ish" but unless you buy 2 dirndls you are only "in season" for one fest.  But trust me... everyone is drunk and nobody cares!  ;)

OK... this is getting quite wordy so time to wrap it up (yeah, right!).  My friends and I each paid 29€ in advance which got us a ticket to the "good" beer tent, seats at a table, 1/2 chicken and roll dinner and 3 beer tokens.  Our "seats" were a space at one of the loooong picnic styled tables.  You had to fight to maintain your seats as friends left for the bathroom (which was a loooong line).  The chicken... the best I have ever had!  The skin is crisp and super salty and just tastes like heaven.  I was told they make it extra salty so that people will consume more beer (as if we need a reason).  They must cook a million chickens and they are all perfectly done and steaming hot when you cut into them.  The beer.  Oh dear!  The beer comes in LITRES.  They are as big as my head.  I had about a litre +1/4 or 1/2.  Many were doing Jagermeister shots (obviously very popular here and sold in mini bottles at the store checkouts like gum or candy bars) and I very very wisely declined and stuck to my garbage-can-sized beers.  A good tip: wear very comfortable, old shoes.  Why, you ask?  Well, everyone *stands* (precariously balances) on the bench seats of the picnic tables for hours while belting out tunes, dancing and drinking from gigantic glass mugs of beer.  I thought I had comfy shoes on but ended up hobbling to the trains home due to my poor blistered feet.  Also, as you can imagine, with everyone swinging around giant mugs-o-beer some is bound to get spilled.  Well, alot gets spilled.  And it ends up on the benches, the floor and your shoes.  (And yes, as with every festival - indoor and out - and biergarten you get *real* glass mugs and dishes with real silverware!  No red plastic Solo cups here... and no trash!)  And BTW... to say, "Cheers!" here you say, "Prost!"  (One more BTW... thanks to one "seasoned" mom who brought a giant trash bag to keep our coats dry in under the table!)

One more thing.  This I'll bet you won't get from Rick Steves' european guides!  The bathrooms.  The germans are *brilliant* on this front.  Wherever you go you need to carry pocket change for the WC (water closet - pronounced Vay-Say here) or Toilets (never "bathroom" over here.  That's where you take a bath.)  Even somewhere that holds hundreds and hundreds of drunken people, the toilets are exceptionally clean.  You pay 50 cents euro to the attendant and walk in to a *clean* stall!  There's someone constantly cleaning the toilets, sinks, floors, etc.  As a person who absolutely *dreads* public restrooms I think 50 cents is well worth a clean potty!  They have portable WC trailers at outdoor events too where you pay a few cents and get a clean private stall and sink.  Can you imagine?!  No germy, disgusting, sewer-smelling port-a-potty!  Thank you Germany!  :)

OK... on that bright note... here are the picts!  I will definitely be attending the Girls Night Out for the Fall Volksfest!  Stay tuned!  :)  (Click on picts for larger/slideshow)

Something to Remember

This blog is primarily a place to share our european experiences with you.  But after the tragedies in Boston I kept seeing this quote pop up and I think it's pretty wonderful and worth sharing.  Something nice for adults and children alike.  Hugs to you all!

Helloooo!

Can you believe it's almost the middle of April already?!  I can't!  Yes, I am still here in Germy.  We are still alive!  ;)  For those of you who still actually take the time to check this blog... yes, there will be more postings.  I keep thinking to write things and time gets away.  Or I am too lazy.  Or too tired.  Or in a funk about being in Germy.  Or busy enjoying Germy.  Sometimes being an expat can definitely lead to a Jekyll and Hyde type sensation.  One minute missing home and cursing the strange place that we find ourselves in and the next ooh-ing and aah-ing over it.  Also, it's easy to feel very distanced from "home" in the U.S. and life there since "home" is now here and this is where life is for us now.

Anyways, lots to tell and as soon as I download picts from my camera I will be sharing some of our recent happenings here.  And in the future I will try to post small updates, whether thrilling or not, instead of my usual every-3-month or so novels!

Hope you all are doing well and check back soon!  New stuff to come!  :)  Much love!