I WISH EVERYONE A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS, FROHE WEIHNACHTEN, FELIZ NAVIDAD!!!
Saturday, December 24, 2011
Sunday, December 18, 2011
GERMANY AGAIN
18. August – 26. August 2011
From Vienna I took the bus to Dresden to visit my friend Ruediger. Last time we met was
for the hiking trip in Patagonia and we had a lot to talk about
everything that happened in between. My sister, her friend and our
family dogs Funny and Joshy came to Dresden as well for a day. 
We
went for a nice walk in the hills of the Saechsische Schweiz, a
national park near Dresden. We had a beer in a small kneipe (kind of
a beer). Very “Ossi” style with extremely unfriendly personal but good German beer.
From Vienna I took the bus to Dresden to visit my friend Ruediger. Last time we met was
for the hiking trip in Patagonia and we had a lot to talk about
everything that happened in between. My sister, her friend and our
family dogs Funny and Joshy came to Dresden as well for a day. 
We
went for a nice walk in the hills of the Saechsische Schweiz, a
national park near Dresden. We had a beer in a small kneipe (kind of
a beer). Very “Ossi” style with extremely unfriendly personal but good German beer.
From there it was time to go back to
Lissa, to spend some more time with my family. At the weekend was my
cousins wedding. The wedding party was very nice and it was great to
see all my cousins, aunts and uncles. And we also had fun taking lots
of pictures.
Anja + Oliver – I wuensche euch
beiden ein glueckliches und erfuelltes Leben zusammen.
I spent the next view days relaxing,
walking the dog, organizing my stuff and the next trip to Egypt.
Thursday, December 15, 2011
ROADTRIP V - AUSTRIA
13. August – 17. August 2011
O
ur actual plan for the day was to go
to Slovakia but thanks to the navigation system we ended up at
Paula's campground in Austria. On the way out of Budapest we weren't
really decided where to go and so we followed the navigation system
to the closest campground with pool. And that was in Austria.
O
ur actual plan for the day was to go
to Slovakia but thanks to the navigation system we ended up at
Paula's campground in Austria. On the way out of Budapest we weren't
really decided where to go and so we followed the navigation system
to the closest campground with pool. And that was in Austria.
The campground was quite nice and the
owner Helmut very friendly. We relaxed, tried balancing on the
slack-line and had some drinks and an entertaining evening with some
guys from Bavaria. On the second day we did a little side trip to
Bratislava, Slovakia's capital city. 
But since the night before was
rather long we all didn't really feel like sightseeing. There are a
lot of places in Bratislava that remind you of it's communist past
with ugly buildings and streets. But there is also a very pretty
historical center. We had delicious lunch there, wrote some postcards
and walk around before driving back to Austria. On the way back we
stopped at an outlet center = three happy girls shopping. Anyways, we
only had one hour before the stores closed and didn't buy much. Later
that day, we enjoyed the sun at the Neusiedler See and 
at night went
to a local Volksfest, but couldn't stand it longer than an hour (bad
music, drunk old people, ...)
But since the night before was
rather long we all didn't really feel like sightseeing. There are a
lot of places in Bratislava that remind you of it's communist past
with ugly buildings and streets. But there is also a very pretty
historical center. We had delicious lunch there, wrote some postcards
and walk around before driving back to Austria. On the way back we
stopped at an outlet center = three happy girls shopping. Anyways, we
only had one hour before the stores closed and didn't buy much. Later
that day, we enjoyed the sun at the Neusiedler See and 
at night went
to a local Volksfest, but couldn't stand it longer than an hour (bad
music, drunk old people, ...)
The next morning we drove to Vienna.
Beautiful city. Very clean, friendly people and beautiful old
buildings and palaces. We enjoyed the city, walked around all day –
sightseeing and relaxing.
After a day in Wien it was time to say
good bye to Christiane and Karina. While I could stay a few more days
relaxing and enjoying Vienna, Christiane and Karina had to go back to
Munich to work.
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
ROAD-TRIP IV – HUNGARY
10. August – 12. August 2011
Our first stop in Hungary was at lake
Balaton. 30 years ago this lake was a popular vacation destination
for people from eastern Germany. I'd been there myself a long time ago, after finishing school,
with some friends . This time we rented an
apartment in a family house for one night. The apartment hadn't
been renovated for a very long time and the furniture was rather old
as well. For us “Ossis” it felt like travelling back in time and for
Karina, from the south of Germany, it seemed like a museum. The lake
itself wasn't very beautiful. The town wasn't nice either. Lot's of
Germany tourists on a cheap trip to Hungary. We spent our evening at
McDonald’s to use the free internet. ;-) From lake Balaton it was
only a one hour drive to Hungary's capital city Budapest. After
arriving in the morning, we walked through the beautiful old town and
had lunch. The design at the place where we had lunch was somewhat
different but artsy – and as it turned out we had lunch at
Budapest's most popular gay bar.
In the afternoon we went on a
sightseeing tour with “free city tours”. The guides were very
knowledgeable and friendly. We learned a lot about Budapest and
Hungary, visited a few of the main sights and had a good time.
Our first stop in Hungary was at lake
Balaton. 30 years ago this lake was a popular vacation destination
for people from eastern Germany. I'd been there myself a long time ago, after finishing school,
with some friends . This time we rented an
apartment in a family house for one night. The apartment hadn't
been renovated for a very long time and the furniture was rather old
as well. For us “Ossis” it felt like travelling back in time and for
Karina, from the south of Germany, it seemed like a museum. The lake
itself wasn't very beautiful. The town wasn't nice either. Lot's of
Germany tourists on a cheap trip to Hungary. We spent our evening at
McDonald’s to use the free internet. ;-) From lake Balaton it was
only a one hour drive to Hungary's capital city Budapest. After
arriving in the morning, we walked through the beautiful old town and
had lunch. The design at the place where we had lunch was somewhat
different but artsy – and as it turned out we had lunch at
Budapest's most popular gay bar.
In the afternoon we went on a
sightseeing tour with “free city tours”. The guides were very
knowledgeable and friendly. We learned a lot about Budapest and
Hungary, visited a few of the main sights and had a good time.
Unexpectedly there was a huge music
festival in Budapest, the Sziget festival, 
while we were there. So,
we decided to check it out the next day. And it was great. Good
music, lot's of different music types on many stages, interesting
entertainment and many people. We had an awesome time and I enjoyed
it a lot. Listen to good live music is always great.
while we were there. So,
we decided to check it out the next day. And it was great. Good
music, lot's of different music types on many stages, interesting
entertainment and many people. We had an awesome time and I enjoyed
it a lot. Listen to good live music is always great.
Our plan was to spend the next morning
in one of Budapest's many thermal baths but unfortunately many other
people had the same idea. We didn't feel like waiting for hours to
get inside and left Budapest. After a little side-trip to a small
town near the Slovakian border we spontaneously decided to go to
Austria next.
ROAD-TRIP III – CROATIA
04. August – 09. August 2011
Our first impression of Croatia wasn't
very good. There were narrow, rocky beaches and German advertisement
(ich sage nur: “LIDL lohnt sich. Auch im Urlaub”) along the road.
And many German and Dutch vacationers. The first two days were not
the best ones of this trip. No nice beaches and way too many people.
We almost turned around and left Croatia, but - luckily - decided
otherwise. 
We hung out at a crowded campground with an acceptable
beach for two days and relaxed before going further south. And it
paid off that we did give the Dalmatian coast a chance and drove all
the way to Dubrovnik. A beautiful old town directly at the crystal
blue Adriatic sea. We walked around town along narrow cobblestone and
marble streets; between very old buildings with thick walls and on
the city wall that goes all around the town with amazing views. But
the best thing was a tiny bay just a short walk from the city center
with extremely blue and clear water that we had almost to ourselves.
We went for a swim and enjoyed the sun in between sightseeing tours
in town.
Before leaving Dubrovnik we drove up to a lookout point above the city.
The road was extremely narrow and
dangerous but the view over the city with it's old buildings and city
wall, the blue water and the islands, was beautiful.
We hung out at a crowded campground with an acceptable
beach for two days and relaxed before going further south. And it
paid off that we did give the Dalmatian coast a chance and drove all
the way to Dubrovnik. A beautiful old town directly at the crystal
blue Adriatic sea. We walked around town along narrow cobblestone and
marble streets; between very old buildings with thick walls and on
the city wall that goes all around the town with amazing views. But
the best thing was a tiny bay just a short walk from the city center
with extremely blue and clear water that we had almost to ourselves.
We went for a swim and enjoyed the sun in between sightseeing tours
in town.
Before leaving Dubrovnik we drove up to a lookout point above the city.
The road was extremely narrow and
dangerous but the view over the city with it's old buildings and city
wall, the blue water and the islands, was beautiful.
From Dubrovnik it was a long over night
drive to Zagreb, Croatia's capital. We spent a day there, walking
around the center and up a little hill with an old castle before
leaving for Hungary.
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
ROAD TRIP II - SLOVENIA
1. August - 3. August 2011
POST BY CHRISTIANE
After our one-day
visit in Venice we decided to stay two - three days in Slovenia. Since no one
of us has ever been there we did not know what we should expect from
this part of Former Yugoslavia. Slovenia borders Italy to the west,
Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria
to the north. And although Slovenia is a very small country it is
touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean.
We entered Slovenia
by driving a fabulous scenic route through the Julian Alps. Our first
destination was the camp ground at Lake Bled. This place is one of
the most popular tourist destinations in the Julian Alps and we were
blown away by the beauty of this impressive landscape, too. 
The
lake is situated in a picturesque environment, surrounded by
mountains and forests. A medieval castle stands above the lake on the
north shore. Kind of Disney like – but real!
After two days in Bled
we headed over to the Capital City, Ljubljana. Arriving there, we
checked in at the hostel (actually a university housing…), than
visited the old town and tested the Slovenian ice-cream. Its raving
beauty shows Lubljana at night: many bars, a cozy summer night,
drinking pivo (beer) and watching young people on the streets.
POST BY CHRISTIANE
After our one-day
visit in Venice we decided to stay two - three days in Slovenia. Since no one
of us has ever been there we did not know what we should expect from
this part of Former Yugoslavia. Slovenia borders Italy to the west,
Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria
to the north. And although Slovenia is a very small country it is
touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean.
We entered Slovenia
by driving a fabulous scenic route through the Julian Alps. Our first
destination was the camp ground at Lake Bled. This place is one of
the most popular tourist destinations in the Julian Alps and we were
blown away by the beauty of this impressive landscape, too. 
The
lake is situated in a picturesque environment, surrounded by
mountains and forests. A medieval castle stands above the lake on the
north shore. Kind of Disney like – but real!
We decided to stay
at this beautiful place for two days, doing nothing but enjoying life
and nature, hanging around and relaxing. We had buffalo mozzarella
with tomate and olives and red wine on the beach, rented a small rowing boat and
surrounded the biggest Slovenian Island by boat (Slovenia only has
one island ;-) ). We did a hike in a canyon with a crystal clear
river towards the Vintgar Gorge and waterfall and
enjoyed the local cuisine (porcini mushroom, Cream cheese strudel and
world-famous „Bledsky Kremschnitty“).
We spent the evenings on the little strand bar, improving our slack
line skills and hanging around in beach lounge chairs.
After two days in Bled
we headed over to the Capital City, Ljubljana. Arriving there, we
checked in at the hostel (actually a university housing…), than
visited the old town and tested the Slovenian ice-cream. Its raving
beauty shows Lubljana at night: many bars, a cozy summer night,
drinking pivo (beer) and watching young people on the streets.
We completed our
stay in Slovenia by visiting UNESCO World Heritage listed Škocjan
Caves, which are one of the largest known underground canyons in the
world. It includes the largest discovered underground chamber in
Europe and one of the largest in the world. To walk through this
natural monument was really impressive and exciting.
ROAD-TRIP I - ITALY
29. July – 31. July 2011
My sister Christiane, her friend Karina
and me left Munich Friday night for a 16-day road-trip through Italy,
Slovenia, Croatia, Hungary, Austria and a short stop in Slovakia.
The next morning we were on our way to
Venice. We parked outside the city and took the ferry to the center.
The city is beautiful and different than other cities. But still, I
didn't like it very much. There are just way too many tourists to
enjoy it. After walking around for a few hours, we left to continue
our road-trip and leave towards Slovenia.
My sister Christiane, her friend Karina
and me left Munich Friday night for a 16-day road-trip through Italy,
Slovenia, Croatia, Hungary, Austria and a short stop in Slovakia.
The start was a little rough. Traffic
in Munich was chaotic and we had to chance the rented car before
leaving the city later than planned. Luckily, everything worked out
great from there. Unexpectedly, the Autobahn was empty and driving
was easygoing. We decided that our first stop would be Italy's lake
Garda where we arrived and set up our tent at 11pm. After a bottle of
wine at the lake it was time to sleep.
The next morning we drove
directly to Verona. Spontaneously we decided to spent the night there
and watch the opera Aida in the famous Arena, an roman amphitheater,
built almost 2000 years ago. Verona is a very beautiful historical
city with lots of old houses with nice balconies.
The next morning we drove
directly to Verona. Spontaneously we decided to spent the night there
and watch the opera Aida in the famous Arena, an roman amphitheater,
built almost 2000 years ago. Verona is a very beautiful historical
city with lots of old houses with nice balconies.
The afternoon was spend walking around
town, visiting Romeo's and Juliette's balconies and eating our first
ice cream of this trip. After refreshing in the hostel we were ready
for the opera. The old building and the stage setting were very
beautiful. The opera was good but since we didn't understand anything
we left after three of four sets.
The next morning we were on our way to
Venice. We parked outside the city and took the ferry to the center.
The city is beautiful and different than other cities. But still, I
didn't like it very much. There are just way too many tourists to
enjoy it. After walking around for a few hours, we left to continue
our road-trip and leave towards Slovenia.UPDATE
I know, it's a very long time since the last post. Meanwhile, I've been enjoying the beach and relaxed life in Canoa, Ecuador. Between walks at the beach, weekend partying, working, a little travelling and reading, I spent some time working on the blog. And in case anyone still wants to read what I did three months ago, posts are coming.Thanks for still reading my blog. And even bigger thanks to everyone how left comments.
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