January in Tubingen - SNOW!!

Well, as we debated about whether or not to buy snow tires for the winter, several Germans said, "It only snows for a day or two, then it's gone."  NOT.  It has snowed nearly every day in January!  Needless to say, we didn't pay the $750 dollars for snow tires so we've been homebound or taking the bus.  They really don't use much salt (costs too much) and so now we know why they actually buy snow tires!!  The "regular" tires aren't considered all weather like in the States.   We even had one day that we woke up to a crystal world - icy crystals were on everything.  The pictures say it all.

As you may have guessed the snow has proven to give the girls quite a bit of entertainment that they never get in Texas.  We've been sledding more days than I can count and we've had a few days where the snow would actually pack and we could make a snowman or fort (see above - it kind of looks like a toilet paper fort, doesn't it?).  Karissa has gotten a little bored with the regular sledding so now they are making "ski ramps" and she's trying to snowboard on a sled.  I hope to get her to a ski slope nearby if we can ever work out the rental details and the snow and roads are good at the same time!  There are many slopes within 1 to 1 1/2 hours that would be perfect for a beginner.  Dayna isn't sure she wants to try but Karissa can't wait.



The second to last picture is taken from the apartment tower next to ours overlooking Tubingen.  The other is a picture of our apartment from the street (ours is right above the top of the swingset).

Today is officially our 172nd day and we have 172 left to go.  I'm buying our return tickets tomorrow for a July 22nd return to Texas.  The second half will fly as we have several trips planned.  The girls get at least one week off every month except for March until we leave (school doesn't end until July 28th!).  Jay begins his second session of German classes tomorrow which will last 3 weeks.  He is the oldest in the class and feels every year his age in terms of his ability to soak up the language.  The girls are doing quite well although Dayna doesn't think she is.  My German is basically non-existent.  It is a tough language and we are in an area where there is a strong dialect which many northern Germans find hard to understand!!  That adds to the confusion!! 



Happy February!

Paris Day 4 Invalides, Tuilleries Garden, Orsay

We had a harder time getting up today, but it had snowed and was really pretty outside.  We headed out, this time by bus, to Hotel des Invalides and Louis XIV's personal church - the Dome Church where Napoleon's tomb lies.  The sun was shining and it was fun to do a little travel "above ground".  Of course, the people were much more fashionable here than in Germany - women wearing makeup and chic coats vs. granola looking women in parkas!  It was fun to notice the differences.

The destinations today were lower on our list but didn't disappoint.  Invalides was built by Louis XIV as a place for wounded and homeless veterans and is huge and at one time housed 6000 soldiers.  It still houses around 100 soldiers as well as the Musee de l"Armee (War Museum).  As we all know Louis liked opulence and the Dome Church is considered the Versailles of churches.  It is over the top!  The surprise of the day was how much we all enjoyed the War Museum.  We began thinking we would indulge Jay a little but to their dad's delight we had to slow down for the girls!  It was very well done and we only went through the section on World War I and II.  Lots of war clips, dioramas, uniforms and all in English for the most part.  We also went to a documentary movie about Charles de Gaulle - as one American travel writer said "I never knew he won the war for the Allieds!!"

From there, we decided to go to Place de l'Concorde and Tuilleries Gardens back across the Seine.  We felt the girls were ready for some age appropriate fun and had heard that there might be some things open in the park despite the weather.  To their delight the in ground trampolines and the merry go round were open.  That was a huge hit along with an English language bookstore (had to drag Scout out) and most of all the ferris wheel ride that Dad indulged in.  As Dayna put it, "Dad, just don't think about how much it costs!"  The three of them went up and Dayna took some great pictures from the top of the Champs Elysees including one toward the Arc with the modern city skyline in the background.  They loved it except Jay got a little motion sick!!  From there we went up the Champs Elysees to see the beautiful lights along the boulevard, ate some dinner and then thought about calling it a day but decided to go for a trip to the Orsay Museum rather than squeeze it in the next morning.

The Orsay is housed in an old train station and is a great "little" (by Paris standards) art museum.  It was the night it stayed open until 10:00 so again it wasn't crowded at all.  Amazingly the girls hung in there and we saw some of our favorite artist's work - Monet.  Jay is also shown with his art tutor - Van Gogh!

On Friday, we packed up and did some major league souvenir shopping (guess what one of things purchased was...)  and then caught the train back to Tubingen - definitely the way to travel!!  Once home, we were greeted by about 5 inches of snow and more pouring down!  Great trip and the girls were troopers!

Paris Day 3 Louvre and Notre Dame

I'm finally catching up with things.  The girls are back in school and Jay is just finishing up 3 weeks of intensive German at a language school.  He can now converse with the girls a little.  The girls keep thinking they'll have their own secret language when we get back but now maybe Dad can crack the code!!



Anyway, back to Paris.  This blog also serves as my travel log so even though we've been back for 3 weeks I've got to catch it up!  So, if you want to skip Paris, check out my next post!

On the third day in Paris, after freezing on Day 2, we chose to make it an indoor day!  We had read the guidebooks which tell you to buy a Museum Pass (let's you into all the major sites and to skip ticket lines) so we breezed right into the Louvre.  It was busy but not unbearably crowded.  The Louvre's beginnings were in the early 1300's and a succession of French kings kept adding on and remodeling.  Some of them actually made it their residence but as a building it was used for quite a number of purposes.  Today it is immense - the world's largest art museum.  The architecture was amazing, everything from 900 year old frescoed
ceilings to I M Pei's amazing Pyramide entrance with circular staircase and elevator cylinder in the middle!  It was substantially more art than one could view even in several days unless you ran through.  I believe I read that they is something like 12 miles of artwork on display.  Needless to say, with two kids in tow, we took some guidebooks and hit some of the highlights.  Jay returned that night and toured an Etruscan wing but forgot the camera.  The kids recognized a few things and actually enjoyed it quite a bit.     We even got a personalized Get Well wish for our friend Matt from Mona Lisa!

We raced on to Notre Dame via the subway to catch a 2:00 guided tour in English.  It was freezing but the church was a little warmer.  The cathedral was built in the 1100's so it is nearly a thousand years old but beautiful.  It was one of the first churches to be built using "flying buttresses" as support for the immense walls - these supports of course are topped with a new adornment for that era - gargoyles!!  It was too cold for Quasi Modo but the gargoyles were still standing at attention!  The tour guide got a little more windy than Dayna could take so she and I went on a photo taking extravaganza of the famed round or "rose windows".  Karissa remained glued to the tour guide along with Jay and because of the tour we got to go into the altar area that the normal public doesn't get to.  The windows are fabulously beautiful even without bright sunlight streaming through.  Unfortunately, because of the weather we didn't get to climb up to the bell tower which was disappointing but not unusual - they open it when they feel like it from what I've heard!  The upside - absolutely no lines or crowds!!

Within a few blocks (and a couple of souvenir shop stops) we were back in our cozy warm apartment for some dinner.  Afterwards, Jay headed to the Louvre and the girls and I walked next door to the Centre Pompidou with its amazing "inside out" architectural design (everything that is normally hidden is exposed - pipes, escalators etc.) and its Musee National d'Art Moderne.  The escalator ride up is pretty cool as you look out over Paris and at the top you get a great view of the hourly light show on the Eiffel Tower (photos courtesy Dayna).  The girls decided they preferred the modern art over the classical art of the Louvre.  One of Dayna's favorites was this awesome "wedding dress" designed with spray paint and junk (click on the picture to note the baby dolls embedded up near the neckline!).  To each his own but it was fun to expose them to some different things and we even saw some Knoll pieces and a tribute to Florence Knoll!  Another great day.

Paris Day 1 and 2

Fearing that the 3 week school break with cold weather in a 600 square foot apartment might put us over the edge we decided to venture to Paris to check it out.  It wasn't exactly "springtime in Paris" but we considered our options and decided that there were just too many other places we want to see in the spring and early summer.  Besides, we wouldn't be outside that much and it's supposed to be in the low 40's in Paris in January, right?  NOT!!  It was icy cold and damp but hey we were in Paris so who cares!!  We made a very smart decision and took the high speed train from Stuttgart - it made a 6 1/2 hour drive by car in around 4 1/2 hours.  It was definitely the way to travel considering that with the snow we never would have made it in 6 1/2 hours and it was oh so much less stressful.  We read, ate, played games, listened to books on tape and watched the scenery.  The seats are much like airline seats with a tray table and it was a really smooth ride. 

We arrived Monday the 4th and headed to our fully equipped apartment (very common in Europe for families as most hotel rooms come with only one bed) only about 5 blocks from the Seine and Notre Dame Cathedral.  We headed down to the cathedral which was all lit up with a large Christmas tree in front.  They call Paris the City of Lights and it was especially lit up with all the added Christmas lights.  On our way home we passed the Hotel DeVille which had twinkling light all over it and a large outdoor ice rink in front with people skating in the cold night air.  There were antique carousels as well. It was really festive.  I thought that the Hotel DeVille was a hotel!  Duh, when the building was named the French used the word Hotel for "any building seeing lots of visitors".  It actually is the equivalent to city hall!  A really beautiful introduction to Paris in spite of the cold!

On day 2 we decided that it was going to be the warmest day forecast (a whopping 34 degrees) so we would do the Eiffel Tower and the Arc de Triomphe (the two outdoor sights).  We figured out the subway (called the Metro) and headed to the beautiful tower built in the late 1800's.  The tower was absolutely beautifully designed and an amazing engineering feat.  Unfortunately, due to the weather we could only go up to the first and second (about 38 stories above ground)viewing platforms.  The top was closed but we had been told that the best views were from the 2nd platform.  The view overlooking Paris was amazing and it was actually sunny.  What a crowded city!  Jay and I now know why they fear the swine flu so badly - everyone is packed in like sardines everywhere!!  The girls enjoyed the tower in spite of the cold and then we headed out by foot to the Arc de Triomphe about a mile or so away.  About halfway there, we realized how slowly one six year old can walk when cold and hopped on the Metro again.

The Arc de Triomphe was begun in 1806 by Napoleon and finished after his demise in 1836.  It was equally amazing but actually had a better view because you could see the Eiffel Tower and the Champs Elysees (the most famous Avenue in Paris where all the people go to see and be seen).  We hung around until sunset and got some beautiful pictures of the Eiffel Tower as well as the Christmas lights up the Champs Elysees.  It was especially nice since there weren't any crowds to contend with and the girls were able to see more than people's stomachs!

Christmas and New Years

Well, it has been a while so I'll try to catch up.  Our Christmas here was very different, as expected.  We were all a little out of sorts at not having our regular schedule of things we do but had a good time anyway.  As I mentioned in a previous post the Germans do not put up their tree until Christmas Eve morning and then have their family festivities that night.  Much to Dayna's dismay, we didn't do the tree thing - we just decorated our window sill (it's huge) with greenery, decorations and lots of lights and presents.  We truly had no room for even the smallest tree unless it would fit on the coffee table!

Our apartment complex had a Christmas dinner the week before Christmas which was a lot of fun.  The apartment manager asked people to sing, tell a story, etc. as part of the entertainment.  There weren't a whole lot of volunteers so I rallied the kids in the complex and we did a nativity play.  The kids loved it.  It was very interesting in that some of the people had never heard the story of Jesus' birth before!  Our Chinese neighbors even asked to take Dayna's Kids' Bible home with them so they could read the story for themselves.  Needless to say, our experience here has been eye opening.  As Americans, we forget that there is a whole different world out there.

On Christmas Day we bucked the German trend and had Santa come visit (they don't do that either) so the girls were thrilled when they woke up to a mound of presents.  Karissa was pretty sure that there wouldn't be much Christmas this year - she said she'd settle for an extra big Christmas next year!  We managed to find some things that are disposable or small and they were delighted mostly with their "crafty" items.  Later in the day we joined quite a few people (including our Icelandic friends) at the indoor ice rink.  Christmas Day here is less of a holiday than Christmas Eve!  We had fun and spent the weekend snuggling up inside since everything was closed from Thursday through Monday.  NO after Christmas sales here!!  We also enjoyed some special goodies shipped from home which was a big treat including some homemade cookies ready for decorating - the girls loved that of course.  Thanks to all who remembered us vagabonds!



New Year's Eve is a completely different animal in Europe.  They celebrate in a BIG way.  We were invited to the home of a German couple (from what used to be East Germany) through our Icelandic friends.   People do a lot of small parties at home and then at 12:00 everyone (I mean EVERYONE) shoots off fireworks  at home for a solid half hour at least.  It was absolutely crazy and we could see fireworks in every direction and there was smoke everywhere.  The Germans couldn't believe that we don't do fireworks on New Year's.  Nearly all European countries celebrate with fireworks.  Our Icelandic friends said that the German display was very "small potatoes" compared to the Icelandic fireworks!  We just sat there with our mouths open!  We were amazed.

As you may have heard Europe is having one of the coldest winters in a decade (figures!!).  We had several small snowfalls which kept the girls quite busy during their break.  See the photo taken from our balcony.  Our apartment is unusually warm so we haven't suffered much.  People don't let the weather stop them here.  The Germans have a saying, "There is no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothes!"  They pile the layers on and everyone regularly sports "hat head".  So much for the blow dry and style!!



As the year ended we count ourselves so blessed.  In spite of the beauty of this land, we feel so privileged to be called Americans and to have so many freedoms that we take for granted.  We had dinner with a young family from Bulgaria on "Boxing Day" (the day after Christmas) who studied in the U.S.  With much sincerity, they marveled at the freedoms we have in the U.S., we were humbled by what they had to say.  They shared with us the days of communism in their country when the government would make people work on Christmas Day and then shut off the power at 6:00 pm so that people could not prepare or enjoy any kind of normal Christmas celebrations when they returned from the normal workday.  We just can't imagine those kinds of things taking place in our day but they have and they do continue.  May God bless and protect our country and may we all fight to uphold the freedoms that we do have.  Amen!