Lisbon Trip Report - Heat, Tired Feet and good Seafood Meat

I took 699 pictures. Dawn took close to 200. This was a new record for us on a four day trip and should indicate a couple of things; 1) Lisbon is a picteresque place with many interesting sites and features, and 2) The weather was nice enough to pull the camera out often.

Lisbon is a crazy place compared to most European cities we've visited. It's big, crowded, dirty, hot, stinky, and the traffic is absolutely bonkers. But, we also found this city to be vibrant, friendly, fun-loving, beautiful and a great place to visit. Not once did we ever feel we were in any danger or threatened from the numerous beggars and drug pushers in the city. More than anything, they added a bit of character to the place due to their comfort with who they are and what they were doing. They were part of the scenery, and in a way, part of the charm of the city, mixing in perfectly with the busloads of funnily-dressed geriatric tourists from all over the world.

If anything, Lisbon is a city full of contrasts. I've never seen a place where people are so polar-opposite in their actions. The traffic and drivers in the city are crazy-aggressive, making full use of the horn on the steering column. I read a lot about Fado music while in Lisbon and how it is the heart and soul of the area, but to me, the honking of car horns is more representative of this city's soundtrack. On the other hand, when they aren't in their cars acting out scenes from 'Mad Max', the Portugese people are one of the most laid-back people I have ever met. Rarely are solid plans made - things just happen when they happen. I had a tough time grasping this concept at first, but slowly began to appreciate this outlook on life. It's such a drastic change from the go-go-go of America and even Germany.

If I only had three words to describe our first day in the city it would be these: Hot, Walk and Tired. We landed in Lisbon at 8am after a 3 hour flight from Munich and were at our hotel by 9:15am. Our hotel was located right off of Liberdade Street close to the central congregation point for the city tour buses and this is where we headed after getting checked in. One of the first things we always do when visiting a new city is buy a ticket for the Hop on / Hop off tour bus so that we can get better acquainted with the sites in the city. Usually, this works out well and we enjoy the tour. This was not one of those times, however. As we later found out, Lisbon is a place built for touring on foot or by the much more intiment street and cable cars. The Ho-Ho bus here just wasn't up to par and we ended up hopping off it at the Praca do Imperio Palace, the farthest point away from where we started the tour. We thought a nice, leisurely stroll down the waterfront would be great from here and that we could hop back on the bus further down the road as we made our way back. Well, this didn't quite work out either. It had gotten hot - like 100 degree hot by the time we embarked on our foot journey. The waterfront also turned out to be not-so-scenic and more industrial than anything. After about a mile of walking, we tried to find a bus stop so we could get back downtown, but this proved to be impossible due to a really crappy map they provided us and due to the fact that the roads along the water front are a mess and make no sense what-so-ever.

We eventually did get off of the waterfront, ending up on a narrow street in the Bairro Alto neighborhood. At this point, Dawn's feet were killing her and she was desparately in need of some new shoes. Her flip flops just weren't cutting it (well, they were cutting her feet) with all of the walking we were doing. Luckily, after a few blocks, we stumbled upon a family-run shoe store. At this point in time, we were both a bit disenchanted with our experience in Lisbon. I would have to say the visit to the shoe store is where things turned the corner, however. The people in the store were extra friendly and went above and beyond to find a pair of sandals for Dawn that would be comfortable and fit her needs. With new sandals and some new-found energy and optimism, we left the store and continued on with our journey. The rest of the day found us walking the narrow streets and alleys of Alfama where we visited the Se de Lisboa Cathedral and then Castelo de Sao Jorge. We also witnessed an attempted bag-snatching which was foiled by some street workers, were asked for money from a 20-something who claimed to be from Prague and hungry (sorry buddy!) and were approached by a guy selling the cheapest looking watches I've ever seen.

Our day ended by us getting lost on our way back to our hotel, eventually finding it in the most roundabout way imageinable. We ended up eating a very late dinner at our hotel, then collapsing on our bed. It was a very long day that started at 2:30am and found us walking for around 11 hours in the blistering sun. Still, it was a gratifying day and very memorable.

Part II of the trip will be posted soon. In the meantime, you can check the pictures out from the trip HERE and pictures of Dawn and I on the trip HERE

We're off to Lisbon, Portugal for the weekend

We've been so busy with prepping for the wedding, work and life in general that we really haven't had much time to do any research on this place called.....Portugal. I think it's south of us, but I'm not really sure. Does anyone else ever get annoyed when someone says something like "We went down to Canada this weekend and it was great!"? DOWN? If you're in the US, it almost certainly is UP in most cases or OVER if you live in Alaska. I swear, I hear Americans at work doing this all the time and it bugs the crap out of me. The geographer in me, I suppose. But anyway, I digress. I do believe we will be going DOWN to Portugal and luckily we are meeting up with our good friends Johannes and Carla. Johannes is a British-educated German (meaning he speaks English better than I do) and Carla is his lovely trilingual British-educated Portugese wife. They met at University in England, and I met them when we all lived in the same building in Weiden. We will be leaning heavily on them for guidance on what to see, what to do, how to avoid the pickpockets that I've read so much about and most importantly, the best places to eat. And, if I'm physically feeling up to it, a good surfing beach in and around Lisbon.

So, we may not know much about this place now, but we'll assuredly be experts when we get back late Monday night. We'll make sure to take plenty of pictures, as always. Enjoy your weekend! Alegrias!

How to fit in as a German while in Germany

This entry is meant to be a simple guide to help those who may be planning on coming to Germany at some point in their lives. The great thing about Germany is that things really don't change much as the years roll on, so feel free to bookmark this and use it even if Germany isn't in your plans until 2025. Everything written will still hold true, probably until the turn of the next century. This guide can also be helpful for those that may never even step foot in this wondrous country. Use a few of the hints written here to gain favor at your local German restaurant, because everyone knows more gravy is better than less gravy on your knodel.

No matter what they say, Germans still love David Hasselhof

It's seriously freaky. I've seen grown men weep when one of his videos comes on at the local Gasthaus. I think it's out of respect and joy, but sometimes German emotions can be hard to read. The picture to the left was taken at the local Rewe grocery store in my town. The Germans try to indoctrinate the kiddies at an early age. I think there is even an hour of "Hasselhof Appreciation" at every kindergarten in Germany twice a week ensuring the youngsters carry on the love-fest for this cultural icon. But, ask a German while in Germany how many Hasselhof records they own and they will look at you with a quizzical expression as if they have no idea who or what you are talking about. They go to great lengths to keep Germany's love affair with the Hof a secret - I'm not sure if it's out of selfishness or shame. Either way, never approach this topic directly. Before coming to Germany, watch some Knight Rider, endure a few episodes of Baywatch, learn a couple of the Hof's songs - they will just know you are one of them without you saying a word. If you put in the effort and truly learn to embrace the Hof, don't be surprised when you get invited to sit at the Stammtisch (locals table) hoisting brews with dudes in lederhosen and slamming one liter mugs together while shouting, Prost!

German Fashion - the socks and sandals thing is true

I still remember being laughed at by a large group of German High School students when I was on exchange in Germany the summer before my senior year. Our group had been in Berlin the week before and I had found a screaming deal on some Birkenstocks at the KaDeWe department store. Both Jamie Peters and I bought a pair. However, I was the only one who decided to wear them to our first day of classes at the Gymnassium (German HS). To this day, I still believe I was laughed at because I didn't wear socks with my sandals. Oh, I tried to at first, slipping the sandals over my socked feet as I was getting ready to leave in the morning. I felt silly, though, and ended up going sans socks for a more natural, and in my opinion, more comfortable sandal-wearing experience. To this day, I still won't wear socks with my sandals even after experiencing this humiliation. I am in the minority, however, while living here. Check out the chap in the picture on the right (taken today). Fair enough, I've gotten used to seeing such things over here, but this guy had Mickey Mouse socks on for craps sake! Mickey Mouse! Anyway, I still get looked at funny when going sockless in my Birks or Tevas but I just don't care. For anyone visiting, though, I do recommend packing some sandal socks to avoid getting stared at, or worse yet, laughed at. There is a fine line with acceptance over here and this can only help you.

More German Fashion - this one geared towards the ladies

I don't have a lot to say on this. I can only pass along what I have observed and learned while living here. For some God-awful reason, 85% of Bavarian women above the age of 40 dye their hair. I'm not talking highlights or casual touch-ups either. I'm talking dye colors that defy nature. Colors that will never be found in a box of Crayolas. Colors that don't exist on the ROY G BIV color spectrum. I don't think it is absolutely necessary for a visitor to go to these lengths since the practice is not ubiquitous, but doing so may gain you A LOT of favor with the locals. If you do decide this is an avenue you want to take before coming to Germany, just be aware that you may experience a lot of stares and even spontaneous crying from little kids who happen to gaze upon your 'do before landing in ze Vaterland.

That's it for tips tonight. I'll add more in the coming days. Hey, I'm here to help. If you have any specific questions about Germany or any worries before coming over, I'd be happy to address what I can. I don't know everything about this country - yet.

Okay, time to go put some of Hof's music on and slowly drift off to sleep.........

Dublin- The greenest green I've ever seen

So, it’s been a few weeks since our trip to Dublin. As you might have guessed we’ve been busy with wedding stuff, Nate’s hands haven’t really been working, and other stuff I can’t even think of right now. Since you’ve all been patiently waiting, I figured I’d do a quick recap before we get too far behind.

We took our first trip out of a new Ryan Air airport in Memmingen, about 2 and a half hours from our house and 1 hour west of Munich. The airport was very small, but we got through quickly. We saw many other Americans heading out to Dublin for the Memorial weekend as well. While waiting in the airport we were asked if we were ‘from the island.’ Didn’t think we looked that Irish, especially since between the two of us, I don’t think we have a drop of Irish. The plane came and everyone rushed to the line. We bought a pass to board before everyone else, since Ryan Air has a free for all run to grab a seat kind of excitement included.

We landed in Dublin, grabbed our bags and headed for a taxi to drive us to the hotel. Our driver was nice and mentioned a few place to make sure to see. The hotel looked good from the outside, but our room was hardly big enough for us to both stand in the room with our suitcases at the foot of the bed. We couldn’t even walk around the bed. The bathroom got better; the half shower door thing fell off the wall while showering. But, the staff was nice.

We ventured down to the Liffey River and walked back through the Temple Bar area and checked out the mostly pedestrian area. This is the main street with all the night life and restaurants. There was also a jazz festival going on, so random groups were playing around in little squares.

After wandering around for some time and long lines at many restaurants, we settled for some Chinese, which left something to be desired. We wandered down towards the Grafton shopping area for some night pictures and headed back to the hotel to have a rested day on the bus tour.
Saturday started out well. It seemed that we wake up before most people, since the road were a bit quiet starting out. We wandered down Dame Street to our bus pick up spot. Off we were on a big green bus to begin our tour of Dublin. The bus driver was awesome. He sang songs, told crazy stories, and made you feel welcome to the city. Since this was our Hop on, Hop off tour, we stopped at the Kilmainham Gaol first; it was the farthest place from our hotel.

Kilmainham Gaol, was a prison built in 1789 to replace an old dungeon type jail and offered single rooms to try and reform prisoners into not wanting to reoffend. It didn’t really work and became overcrowded and found many people committing crimes to have food during the famine. Several people trying to fight for Ireland’s freedom were also incarcerated here, including Joseph Plunkett, who was married to Grace Gifford the night before he was executed. We had a great tour guide here, and learned a lot about the history of Ireland, very interesting.

We completed the tour and decided to head back to the Guinness Storehouse and our free pint. We walked, as I didn’t think it was too far away. We walked more than a few blocks, but the pint was worth it. We bypassed the tours and crowds and headed straight to the Gravity Bar. I don’t really like Guinness, but if ever in Ireland again; I’d have to have one. It’s so dang good! We enjoyed with some guys from France and decided to have lunch in the restaurant a few floors below.

It was time for more of our bus tour, so we waited at the stop outside the storehouse. Would you believe there were Germans that came and waited behind us, only to push in front of us to get on the bus while they were helping a man in a wheelchair off the bus? Of course, just like back in Germany, which I thought we were trying to escape. So, our new bus was not as fun, all the information was recorded and monotone. It was good we were off to the Jameson Distillery. We found it down a few streets from our stop, although the line was long for a tour. We skipped the tour and Nate got a coffee with Jameson whisky and sugar. The sugar was good at the end.
We walked back to the Temple Bar area again and in light rain, the busses were all full. We looked for a pub to duck into, but alas, this side of the river had no pubs to be found. Strange for what we thought about Dublin.

We wandered back to our side and down Dame Street. We came to a pub and went in to enjoy the atmosphere. After finishing our first beers, we found the place starting to fill up and the TVs were all switched to rugby pregame interviews and game recaps. The place was packed as the rugby game started, so we decided to stay and join the festivities. The beers kept coming and they even brought out snacks for all the fans. The game was between Ireland and England, we cheered for Ireland. Ireland scored, the crowd roared, and Leinster Ireland won the Heineken Cup.

Our last full day in Dublin, began quiet again. We walked down to Trinity College to check out the Book of Kells. Here we found the greenest grass we'd ever seen. It looked fake and almost neon in color. Since the college didn't open till noon, we decided to come bakc later. Things are open on Sundays, just not before 10, and the college till noon. We wandered to Grafton Street for more pictures, then to St. Stephen’s Green. A nice walk around the park and back to the St. Stephen's Green Mall, so see the architecture, similar to the Gaol, and get a few souvenirs. This was our day to hit up the Boxty House for lunch. They serve a large potato pancake with meat surprises in the middle as a specialty called the Boxty. Found a recipe for these. They are sooooo good.

We rounded out our last night with some Celtic music and Riverdance. We were sat at a table between Americans from Virginia and Germans. It’s always interesting who you run into or can’t get away from while you’re traveling. The band started playing music about halfway through dinner, the guys were really funny. Then dancers came out moved their legs so fast for 30 minutes that no picture has them not blurry. The Legends of Tara singing group came back out for another hour, but stopped early, because they close bars early on Sundays. It was a great show and very entertaining.

We came back late Monday to an empty house with work and Osu waiting for us the next day. I’d like to go back to Ireland, but it won’t be to Dublin. Next time, I want to see the pretty countryside.

Doctors don't always know best - an excuse for the lack of posts recently

For about a third of my life, I've dealt with debilitating arthritis attacks that come out of nowhere. Depending on the area of my body that is affected, I often can't walk, can barely dress myself and many times have problems with simple tasks such as opening a bottle of pain pills. I have been to doctors all over the world trying to find a remedy. I've tried acupuncture, massage, numerous drug treatments, vegetarianism and some even more obscure avenues trying to find a way to stop these attacks from happening. My most current effort is to stop all intake of alcohol, cut red meat from my diet and to really curtail my ingestion of wheat-based products. After the last attack that I just experienced and am still suffering through, I am highly-motivated to stick with this diet to see if it will work.

Last Thursday I woke up at 1:30am in horrible pain. My elbow was throbbing, I couldn't bend my wrist, both of my ankles were hurting and two of my fingers were extremely swollen and very, very painful. I very gingerly worked my way down the stairs to the kitchen where I grabbed a couple of ice packs and some anti-inflammatory pills. Because of the pain, I couldn't sleep and ended up watching a movie then some TV. I was miserable. It then occurred to me why this had happened. I had been to the clinic two days before to get some more medicine for my headaches (from the broken jaw). While talking to the doctor, he noticed my slightly swollen finger and I told him about my arthritis. He then recommended I try a certain medication and said it should work in curing me of this malady. I proceeded to tell him that I had been down that road before and it didn't work. He then went and looked up my records and said that they had never given me a high enough dosage of the meds to really work.

Anyway, the way the meds work is by increasing the arthritis-inducing bad stuff in your blood stream so that your body will react by eliminating the excess bad stuff. This is supposed to bring the levels of the bad stuff down to normal. Once you reach this normality - no worries beef curry - the arthritis is gone. I should have known better. The doc gave me such a high dosage of the meds that it kicked off a horrible arthritis attack. My body wasn't able to handle all the excess bad stuff which manifested in to me being in a lot of pain.

The worst part is, the doctor is no longer at the clinic so I won't be able to go down and there and yell "told you so!" while I kick him in the shins.

So, just in case anyone was wondering why there have been so few posts lately, this has a lot to do with it. Today is really the first day I've been able to type in a while. Before that, I had such bad headaches that staring at a computer any more than necessary just wasn't going to happen.

Yes, this has been a trying two months. Dawn is a very, very patient woman!

Wedding Plans

Hey everyone,

Just wanted to write a quick note and let everyone know about the wedding plans. All of the detailed information can be found on our wedding website that Dawn has put together. The wedding is to be held on September 19th, 2009 in Parsberg, Germany. We realize that this is way too far for many of you to travel and we apologize for that. Because of our jobs, vacation time and other factors, having the wedding in the US at this time was just out of the question. But, we will be getting married in a castle - how cool is that?

If anyone needs any further details or information, please feel free to email either Dawn or Nate and we'd be happy to answer any questions you may have.