back to the grind

After pulling an all nighter last night on the flight I arrived to LAX around 7pm california time. We had some issues with the landing gear which was a bit scary...we where actually about to land and they pulled back up and we had to circle around for 10 min while they tried to fix it. Then when we made our second attempt to land there was all of the fire trucks and paramedics next to our runway... I guess our front wheels where not able to turn right and left....we landed alright after a few pumps and such.

I was able to get to sleep around 10:30 and now Im at work today...currently I feel okay but I have a feeling that this afternoon might be a bit rough. I guess we will see.

This trip was a trip of a lifetime and something I will remember forever. Sad its over but i did take about 1,000 pictures that I have to go through and clean up a bit. Well, I have tons of work to do now so I should get back to the grind...

Berlin then back to the states... :(

Once we got back to berlin shane and I decided that we had to do it...against everything in our body saying it was a bad idea for multiple reasons we went to Burger King and got this grilled cheese steakhouse burger that we had seen heavily advertised throughout germany.  I guess its only in german BK’s and it had a breaded slice of cheese that was thicker than the burger smothered in grilled onions and barbeque sauce.  We split one as neither of us wanted to have a heart attack. haha it actually wasnt that bad i guess. 

After the elegant dinner we had shane took me to this really cool bar where they have old school video games set up to play.  We played super nintendo and sega genesis and had some beers.  This place was cool and could never be in the us as people would steal the games and systems or just break them.  Like I have said before much of what I have seen is people are more mellow over here and kicked back.  

Well, today I am off to check out the east side gallery and the bombed out church after getting we head to get some veggie kebabs for lunch.  Shane will need his computer for much of tonight because he has a paper to do so this will be the last post before I take off tomorrow.  Tonight we are going to keep it mellow and head to a christmas market maybe go on a ride or two and then I will go to bed early and shane will prob work til about 4 am.  I have to get up around 7 and leave by 8 tomorrow to make sure I get to the airport on time and dont miss my flight.

I have had a great trip and the 3 weeks went by way to fast but I am sooo glad that I was able to see so much and do so many fun things.  One more night then Im back to the grind on the 3rd which I am not looking forward to..haha

Prague

I am now back in berlin with shane and Prague was awesome.  It is such a cool city and has sooo much to do like many other big cities along with some good czech history.  We got into prague from Dresden Friday night and due to the fact that it was already dark we where not able to do much sight seeing but we did get there just in time for dinner.  Using the little guide book that shane brought with him we where able to find a czech restaurant after about 20 min of walking around trying to track it down.  Once we got there the food was great.  I had this beef dish smothered in a cream gravy topped in a slice of lemon and cranberries... mmmmm not to mention a few dark pilsner beers.  

After dinner we dropped Pam off at the hotel and Shane Mike and I went out to find a bar.  We walked around a bit and then ran into a group of guys from the UK who where in prague for one of their birthdays.  We where all looking for a decent bar to head to so ultimately we dropped into one.  I say dropped as almost all the bars are under ground about one level.  This particular bar was alright...very loud and smokey but still fun and it had some good scenery :).  So after hanging out with these brits I think that I may have had a bit more trouble understanding one of them than I did with the germans in berlin...haha  It was crazy how thick his accent was.  After this bar we dropped mike back at the hotel and shane and I went out to another bar to grab another beer or two.  They really do have some great beers in the czech republic.

Saturday was a busy day with tons of walking.  Our hotel had free breakfast every day which was super nice and since we had to be down there by 9:30 to get any food it forced shane and I out of bed haha.  Well, after breakfast we made our way out into the city to see some sights.  We walked over to a charles bridge which is a super cool bridge and is older than the USA.  Its actually built before columbus “discovered” america...haha.  From this bridge we could see Prague castle which was huge and on top of a giant hill.  We end up there later... After walking around a bit more and checking out some of the awesome architecture we came across the hotel that Michael Jackson dangled blanket out the window...well, I have to check youtube for confirmation but we are pretty sure.  We also got the the see the center of prague in the new town square...i forget the name but its the main square there and it has some famous history.  This is the square where jan palach burned himself in protest of the soviets soviet communism in January 1969.

After walking around and seeing the main parts of the city and kinda just getting a feel for prague we went to get some czech mex food.  I guess its their attempt to make mexican food which I insanely miss... It was good but definitely not mexican as they used kidney beans and cucumbers in the burritos and stewed tomatoes with paprika for salsa.  Odd.  After lunch we went on a proper walking tour with a guide.  Jana was cool and full of energy.  She took us all over about half the city and we ended up at the castle that was up on a hill overlooking Prague.  The gothic style cathedral that was up there was really cool looking too.   Unfortunately we where unable to go inside as we got up there in the late afternoon and it had closed to the public about 30-45 min before.  

After the walking tour we made our way back down from the castle and to our hotel for a bit of R and R/ quick nap before dinner.  For dinner this night shane found a small brewery that...well, surprise! had really good food.  I had some Pork platter that had ham, pork neck and sausage with sauerkraut and dumplings on the side.  Again, sooooo good.  Mike Shane and I all got a liter of this black beer and it was huge and taste so good we got a second round :)...well, half liters the second time cause we where so full from all the food.  The People eating next to us literally had an entire roasted goose on a huge plate set between them and they just went to town on it.  After dinner we made our way back to the hotel to drop Pam off again and we went out for some beers.  

We took Mike to the bar that Shane and I went to the night before for a few beers and then shane and I went out after that.  We made our way to a club that my cousin Erick told me about that was this odd bar that had a lounge, dance club and topless dancers... it was kinda a weird club as you turn a corner or walk down a few steps and you are in an entire different club.  The dance club section was total euro trash club style...lazers a glass ceiling where you could see the floor above you and there where creepy guys groping girls...shane and I hung out in the lounge most of the time drinking some beers.  All in all I am glad we made it to this club because it was a lot of fun and totally different than any club I have been to before. haha.

As shane and I did not get to bed until around 4 or 4:30 and woke up at 9 to get breakfast we kinda made sunday a mellow day :)  We walked around prague a bit more and tried to go to the jewish museum but the line was very long and it was kinda expensive so we just kept walking around.  We made our way back up to the square where Jan Pallach did his demonstration and at the top was the National museum which was full of fossils, stuffed animals from lions to monkeys to snakes and buffalo.  Also it had a lot of other cool things and the building itself was pretty rad. 

After the museum we wanted to still see some stuff but didnt want to walk anymore so we decided to go on a boat tour down the river.  This was cool and mellow and we got to sit down so that was nice.  We got the see the Castle from a different perspective and a few other areas that we did not get to see.  After the boat tour we made our way to another brewery and Mike and I literally split an entire duck.  Well, we are not sure it was the same duck but we each got 1/2 a duck and with sauerkraut and dumplings... It was sooo effin good and sooo much food that my stomach felt like it was about to pop.. and we had a few beers and it only cost about 17 dollars.  Kinda crazy!  We kept sunday night mellow and where in bed by around 11:30 or 12 cause Shane and I where pretty darn tired after the night before and all the walking we did on sunday.

Monday we decided to go on a walking tour again with the same tour guide as the previous free walking tour.  This time we stayed on the other side of the river and went through the old town, new town and jewish quarter.  This tour was nice because we went to parts of prague that we had not seen before and got a bit more of the history of prague.  After the walking tour Shane and I had to get over to the train station to catch our train back to berlin.  

dresden

Dresden was a lot of fun. We got there in the late afternoon on thanksgiving and had some time to walk around the city a bit. Dresden was a really pretty city even thought it was fire bombed during the war. Most of the xmas markets where open and we spent a decent amount of time walking around them and eating good food and drinking gluhwein (hot red wine with spices), Met (hot honey wine) and Grog (hot water mixed with rum and sugar). All of these drinks where nice as it was a bit cold out and a hot drink was good. I will say that getting use to warm wine took a bit :)

After some xmas markets we walked around a bit and saw some of the cool buildings, churches and the river which splits up the city. For dinner for our night in dresden we found this place that had really german food. A lot of bars and places to eat are actually underground as you have to walk down a bit before you get to them. Its a cool use of space and above a lot of them are either office or flats where people live. The food and beer at this german restaurant was sooooo good. For dinner I had a rolled beef dish that was stuffed with all kinds of things and covered with gravey. On the side I had apple flavored cabbage and dumplings. It was all super rich and super good. I have discovered black beer which is very dark and very smooth and it is sooo good. Now on to what mike and shane had. They both had pork knuckles which was a giant piece of pork with a huge bone running down the middle. The skin of the pork was all crispy and soo good as shane let me try a bit of it. The meal was sooo good and german food in general is really good. Not sure its the best for you but who cares right?

We where all pretty beat and turned in early in dresden due to the fact that we had some more exploring to do the following day before catching our train to prague at 5. The next day we went into a couple churches, the opera house, and this area that is filled with museums and such in a really old, almost castle or palace building. It was huge and really pretty. In there we went into the armory which had some of the first german guns along with swords that where very cool. Mike shane and I where into it but I think Pam got a bit bored and took a rest on one of the benches.

After wondering around and checking out a bit more of the city we ended up at another xmas market. They are cool and have tons of little shops with all kinds of different xmas things that all seem to be hand made and painted. A bit more drinking and we had a few monk brewed beers that we bought from a nun which was kinda funny but the black beer they made was actually pretty good.

Ultimately we made out train to prague and got a little cabin with just the 4 of us. Pam and I actually went to the dining car and hung out/talked so we would not bug shane and mike who wanted to read/nap for a bit on the way to prague. We made it to prague alright and its a very beautiful city but I will get into that later.

I know Im probably cutting some things out from our time in dresden but I am not going to lie, Im a bit tired as we walked around prague today for about 6 hours...i will get into the details tomorrow or something. But for now we are off to dinner.

happy turkey day

Oh yeah I almost forgot... 

Happy Thanksgiving!!!! 

Hope everyone has a great turkey day! 

-Scott

p.s. if i dont get a chance to get on a computer in the next couple days HAPPY B-DAY JONNA!!!!

frankfurt to berlin to dreseden

okay so this one will be short as I dont have much time.  After JR got back from walking the girls to school we had some breakfast  and hung out a bit at his place.  We walked a little bit through his town to check out some of the sights before catching the bus to head into town...  For lunch JR took me to  an authentic german restaurant where I had very good schnitzel with the infamous green sauce that is popular in Frankfurt.  Also, I had some of their award winning apple wine which was very different but good.  It was almost like a cidery wine with a hint of apple... After lunch, which was soooo good :), we made our way to the Frankfurt main station so I could catch my train back to berlin where I was going to met up with the boyles. We had about an hour to spare so JR and I hung out at a bar in the station and talked for a bit longer before having to take off.  Again, it was very cool to see JR, meet his family and hang out for a few days.

On my trip from frankfurt to Berlin I met a man who was working in berlin for the couple years but was from northern Germany.  He was super nice and actually very helpful.  When I got into Berlin main station he helped me find my way to the correct Sbahn and actually sold me his extra ticket for 2 euros so I would not have to wait in line and end up missing my train.  All in all everyone has been sooooo nice.

As soon as I got to berlin I met up with the Boyles and we ended up going to dinner at a place where we got...well, first off eally good beer!!! and second, a half of a deep fried chicken which was probably really bad for me but sooooo frickin good!  I guess shane was saying its a very popular place in berlin and it was actually busy and we had a bit of a wait but it was well worth it!  After dinner shane, his friend and I went to a cafe and got a beer and just hung out a bit.

Well, that brings me up to today... today Mike, Pam, Shane and I are off to dresden germany for a night then on our way to prague tomorrow night for a few nights.  My trip is winding down but I still have a lot of adventure ahead and am still having a great time!

frankfurt

Yesterday I had a lot of fun. I took the bus then the Uline into town from JRs house as he was a bit under the weather he stayed home to rest but gave me some directions on where to go to check out the city. One of the main things I wanted to check out and JR said it was something I had to see was the oldest church in Frankfurt.

After making my way into town and following JR's directions I made it to the church after about 30 minutes. Oh, on a side note this is the first day of rain I have had the whole trip which is crazy because I was expecting to get dumped on the whole trip... okay back to it. So once I got inside the church there was a lady who worked at the church who decided to walk me through a bit of the history and stages the church was built / rebuilt after the wars. There was one section of the church that was not burned when the rest of the church was. This is one of the only original alters in the whole church. I guess during WWII they took most of them out and stored them in bunkers but since this part was built into the walls they decided to build walls of brick around it to keep it safe...crazy things to think about. Also, this is the church where the king of Germany was crowned...well, at least where the ceremony was held.

After the church I went for a walk in the rain along the river that runs through Frankfurt and along many really cool buildings and a couple other churches...Once it really started coming down I decided that it was time to start to head back to JR's place as it took about 30 min or so to get there by public transport. I knew his girls where getting home from school soon and I really wanted to meet them before before they went to bed.

When I got back JR and I hung out for a bit then Verena, Sabrina and Sophia got home. At first they where a bit shy but then after playing peek a boo from behind a corner for a moment they seemed to warm up and we played a bit. They are soooo cute and funny. They had me read them a few story books but at first they handed me a book in german and I had to let them know that I was from California and did not know how to speak german. hahaha. They where kind enough to get me a book to read to them in english which was nice as I would have not done so hot trying to read to them in german.

JR, Sabrina, Sophia and I had dinner together but Verena had to go to her Sax lessons. At dinner the girls actually both fell asleep at the table after eating which was very cute and funny. I guess yesterday they had school then sports so they are usually pretty tired on those days. Jr put the girls to bed and read them a bedtime story and then we hung out for a few minutes before Verena got home...we had plans to go to a jazz club in town.

Verena and I went out becuase JR was still feeling a bit under the weather with a cold and needed to rest a bit. We made our way into downtown Frankfurt and through a shopping area that was all closed...very different vibe than when I was there earlier in the day. Eventually we made it to a club that was down some stairs and was actually underground. It almost looked like we where in a cave. We took a seat at the bar and grabbed a couple of beers and waited for the band to go one. There was a drummer, guitar, sax, trumpet and electric organ...all in all they where very good but the trumpet player got a bit out of control at times with this crazy high pitched solos....anywho, the place was very cool and I had a lot of fun getting to know Verena.

When we got home we where both pretty tired and JR and the girls where all sleeping so we made our way to bed. I decided to set my alarm to make sure I was up in time to see the girls and Verena one last time before they took off for school/work. When I got up the girls where already up and running around and playing so I got up and joined them. We sang a few songs like old mcdonald and such from one of their books. These girls looove their books which is cool. After a little while it was time for Verena to go to work and JR to walk to girls to school. Well, I guess that brings me up to date thus far.

Today JR and I are going to head into town again and he said I have to try green sauce and apple wine before I leave Frankfurt so we are going to grab some lunch and then around 3 or 4 I take off to head back to berlin to meet up with the Boyles who got in last night.

I had a great time reconnecting with JR and meeting his family. I really look forward to seeing them all again either on a second trip to europe!! :) or when they come out to the states to visit.