Ich bin ein Berliner!

Last Thursday we drove from Trochtelfingen to Innsbruck, Austria to do some hiking in the Alps. The drive itself was absolutely gorgeous - green rolling hills; postcard perfect towns with German regulation red roofs and a singular church towering above all other buildings at the middle of town; blue sky and warm spring sun; the clear waters of Lake Constance. We stopped for lunch in Freierburg and sat by the lake while enjoying the cool breeze. Unfortunately the weather turned a bit darker once in Austria and most of the two hour drive was on a freeway through tunnels up to 11 kilometers in length. By the time we reached Innsbruck a lightning storm and heavy rains were settling into the valley. It was too late to do any hiking anyways, so we walked around the town was one of the sites of the 1964 and 1976 winter Olympics and was nice to just walk around the streets.The next day we hiked up Hefelekar Mountain where we had a great view of the city below and about forty peaks on the horizon. We were going to take a cable car to the top, but tickets weren't on sale when we arrived due to maintenance. They weren't sure when it would be operating again so we started hiking up one of trails. Of course it was about ten minutes into the hike that we saw the first car pass overhead. We were glad, though, that we hiked because we were able to spend most of the day outside and get some exercise. The weather cooperated just long enough for us to hike up most of the way and then back down to our car. That evening we drove back to Germany and stayed in Uberlinger, a town located on the Northern coast of Lake Constance. The next morning we rented bikes and road along a really nice bike path along the water. The weather could not have been better and it was another really nice day of being outdoors and enjoying the scenery. During the ride we also stopped for some delicious Curry Wurst and Radler.

That night we drove back to Trochtelfingen and spent another evening downing beer and hanging out by the backyard fire. It was really nice to be back 'home' at the Heinz House. We probably should have gone to bed earlier and with fewer drinks because we were up painfully early the next morning to drive to Ulm for a church service and the baptism of Solveig's niece. Nicole and I were debating up to the last minute wether to go, but were glad we pushed through the early morning pain. The service was really pleasant - even though niether of us understood a word. After the baptism we walked around the city with Sara and her friend Maria (whom we are staying with in Berlin). Nicole and I walked up the Ulm Munster Cathedral - the tallest church in the world! 732 steps and several nutt to butt decisions later, we had an amazing view of the country side - including two cooling towers....Nuke Power!! After a couple hours at a cafe we met back up with Solveig's family and had the opportunity to hang out with all seven of the siblings. It was a fun afternoon with tons of eating. (By popular request, the beard is gone)The next day we were up early again to say goodbye to Solveig - she flew back to the states - and drive up to Berlin. The drive marked the final leg of my infamous Bangkok to Berlin over land goal - a mostly absurd but, I think, a unique and interesting accomplishment. It was a fairly uneventful trip along the Autobahn and arriving in Berlin wasn't as climactic as I envisioned. Similar to Bangkok, there wasn't really a definitive cityscape or moment where we really felt like we had arrived. Actually, and this may be more of a sign that it's been almost seven months since we were in the US, the city feels a lot like being in Seattle or Brooklyn. We spent the evening walking around a trendy cafe district near Maria's apartment apartment and settled on some amazing Lebanese food.The next day we visited some of the major tourist attractions while walking through the city. The city has an incredible amount of history - especially during the 20th century. I think our favorite stop that day was The Checkpoin Charlie Museum - an odd collection of posters, escape devices, and documentary videos from the duration of The Wall. One of the most impressive displays was a full size VW Bug demonstrating an escape comparment located under the engine block used to transport someone from East to West Berlin. It was incredible to see some of the lengths people went to in order to escape East Berlin. Walking along the remanents of the wall and going to the museum was a powerful experience. Hard to believe how recently it was taken down.

Yesterday we took a break from tourism. Sara and Nicole went out in the town for some shopping while I accomplished the miraculous feat of taking a shower. That night we met up with several of Sara's friends - she seems to have inherited an international version of my mom's ability to know people everywhere - at a resturaunt and then some drinks. Today we spent about six hours in the German History Museum. It was a very well presented collection of over 2000 years of historical artifacts and correspoding explanations. More than half the exhibition was 20th century, but it was nice to learn about pre-20th century as well. We'll be in Berlin for another two days and then we're going to drive over to Amsterdam to meet up with Stephan and Reinier again. It will be an entirely wholesome weekend of family fun.

Trochtelfingen

(this blog features guest commentary from Sara)
Our bus ride to Germany ended up relatively painless. The bus was not very full, so we were able to stretch out and get some sleep overnight. . . which ended up being a good thing, because we had a full day ahead of us! Sara and Solveig picked us up at the bus station (which seemed like a great luxury after months of arriving in a new place and immediately trying to navigate public transport). As it turns out, we arrived in Stuttgart the same day the local soccer team, VFB Stuttgart was playing for the German national championship. There was a closed off area and a viewing screen in the Schlossplatz- in the same style as what you saw on TV for the world cup. So, after lunch at a sidewalk cafe (and the corresponding Euro sticker shock) we headed to the square to watch the game. At first it seemed like a really sweet set up; a sunny day, cold beer, and an enthusiastic crowd. But, it turned out there was a little too much enthusiasm- the city planned for 20,000 people in the downtown area for the game and 100,000 showed up. It was too much for us, so we left before the game even started- although fighting our way out of the crowd was a feat in itself which took a good 45 minutes. (Sara says: for a while it looked like we would never make it to freedom, and then Solveig came up with the brilliant plan to huddle behind a huge German man who seemed to be making good progress. He just took very slow, steady steps, and he was so big no one could push him out of the way. He didn't notice us behind him until we got out of the crowd, but we thanked him profusely for leading us to safety)After the VFB experience we headed back to Solveig's home town of Trochtelfingen, to the Heinz house. Trochtelfingen is a picturesque German town in the Swabian Alps complete with narrow stone streets, old wooden buildings, red rooves, and of course a brewery. The Heinz house itself is an oasis of wonderful hospitality. It has been such a nice, relaxing place for us to wind down our trip. The first night we were there they had a 'Cultural Symposium' party. Five of the seven kids, the parents, and three freinds of the family came over to the house to barbeque. After the barbeque, during which a lot of beer was consumed, all of us squeezed into The Winzig, a small wooden fort in the backyard (Sara says: the fort was originally built when the Heinz offspring were just kids... but they have maintained, and added on to the fort and they still use it for birthday parties and the cultural symposium). The inside is setup like a bar, but its only about four feet tall, so it gets pretty tight - especially with fifteen people inside. In the past the family has done these symposiums but with a specific focus; one time an art exhibit and another a poetry recital. This time it was an open symposium so there were songs, stories, and an interpretive dance among other things. Fifteen people ranging in age from 20 to 60 crammed into a children's fort, singing songs, and drinking beer. A fun night to say the least and our first indication that this family was a little be different than most. (Sara says: Andrew was the one who provided the AMAZING interpretive dance - one to represent each country, or part of the world they have visited so far. It was truly spectacular and he became an instant Heinz family favorite afterwards. One of Solveig's brother even ran over and gave him a hug after he was done. If you see him when he get's back, you should definitely ask for a repeat performance)In addition to German beer, we have also had the opportunity to sample some home cooked traditional Swabian Food. (Note from Sara: both Andrew and Nicole were too lazy to finish this blog so I am doing it for them. From now on everything is from yours truly). Two particularly Swabian dishes have been Spätzle (home made noodles) and Knödel (a kind of mashed potato ball). Andrew and Nicole actually helped Solveig's mom make Spätzle, and she thought they were very cute. We have also had quite a few bbq meals around the fire pit in the backyard.Andrew and Nicole were pretty exhausted when they got here. I think they really appreciated the opportunity to just hang out with a family in a home and not have to be on the move all the time. It's actually been difficult for me to get them out of the house! I don't mind at all because the Heinz Disneyland (as I like to call it) is one of my favorite places in the world. We have managed to take a few day trips though - one afternoon wandering around Trochtelfingen. Solveig gave us a tour, and we stopped in a beer garden for a Radler (a summer time drink of beer mixed with sprite - it sounds wierd but it is delicious).Yesterday we went to Tübingen, a beautiful city and home to one of the oldest universities in Germany. It is a great city for just wandering - complete with winding stone streets, and a hilltop castle with an incredible view - and that is mostly what we did. After another beer garden Radler we rented a paddleboat and took a tour around the river. The weather was beautiful and since Andrew did most of the peddling we had a nice relaxing ride. We even stopped under the branches of a weeping willow for some Little Mermaid moments ;)Today we are heading out for Austria to do some hiking in the Alps. I'm having a hard time convincing Andrew and Nicole to leave the Heinz Disneyland, but I would feel remiss if I didn't take these two nature lovers to the Alps while they are here. I can't say I blame them though. The Heinz home and family are truly beyond words. Andrew also has a very intense table Fussball competition going on with Solveig's dad (don't tell him I told you, but as Reiner said, Andrew was: 'taken to town and stomped!' in the first bout), so we will definitely be coming back here for another few nights before we head for Berlin.

Polska is Sweetskie

The morning after the Viking-Rock concert we took a bus from Tallinn to Warsaw, Poland. We arrived too late to really see much of the city, but what we saw of the countryside while passing through Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland was really nice. We spent our first day in Warsaw just walking through the city, hanging out in the parks, and eating. Nothing too spectacular, but it was nice to be able order food in English. I think we ate kebabs for every lunch and dinner while in Warsaw. The kebabs had, of course, a Polish flare and included cole slaw and a giant pickle along with the usual tomatoes, cucumber, and lamb. It was actually a good combo and the price was right due to the abundant competition. Some parts of town literally had three or four kebab stands lined up next to each other. The parks were perfect for people watching and the old town was a charming place to see a little of the history. The entire city was levelled during World War II, but it has been complete reconstructed to look as it did before the war.

On our second day we went to the Warsaw Uprising Museum. Dedicated to the people of Poland who fought against the German occupiers, it contained several war relics and information about their battle for independence. It portrayed their fight for freedom against the German Army as well as the eventual loss to Soviet Russia. Both the Occupation Museum in Tallinn and the Warsaw Uprising Museum demonstrated the dogged determination of the people of an occupied nation. The hostel in Warsaw filled up on Monday, so we were forced to train down to Krakow a day early. It turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Krakow is touted as "the new Prague" and is an incredibly backpacker-friendly city. We're staying in possibly the nicest hostel to date and the staff is unbelievably helpful. Along with nice accommodation, the city - especially in the old town - and surrounding area is full of rich history.Yesterday we visited Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum. It was an emotionally difficult day and seeing those places first hand was overwhelming. For me the most powerful display was a shelf of two tons of hair - approximated to have been removed from at least 40,000 women after they were gassed. The hair was used as a supplement for clothing or other fabric production. Also displayed in the room was a roll of cloth that you could clearly see included hair. We were also shown the average living area for the prisoners. Even seeing the berthing, it was impossible to imagine how crowded it must have been. Something like 800 people were crammed into prefabricated barns originally designed to house 52 horses. Afterwards we were totally exhausted - it was pretty much all we did that day.Today we walked around the old town, Warwel Castle, and the Jewish District. Unfortunately the weather isn't cooperating and the cold drizzle (home sweet home) has driven us inside. We decided to come to Poland mostly a geographically convenient break between St Petersburg and Stuttgart, but it has become one of our favorite stops despite the so-so weather. There is something about Krakow, especially- green parks, beautiful buildings, interesting history, tons of young people- I can't say what exactly it is that gives the city such a nice feel. We will be here in Krakow for another day and a half and then take our final bus ride to Stuttgart to meet up with Sara! Having some problems uploading pictures at the moment. I'll try to get more up soon.

St. Petersburg to Warsaw

The last few days have been a busy combination of celebrating, sight seeing, and traveling. The State Hermitage Museum was the most overwhelming tourist attraction that we've visited on the trip so far; the day spent getting lost in the myriad halls of paintings, sculptures, and artifacts was truly mind boggling. We mostly viewed oil paintings by just about every famous artists imaginable: Picasso, Van Gogh, Raphael, Leonardo da Vinci, Rembrandt, Renoir, and Monet just to name a few. It was too much to see in one day and we barely did the place justice, but obviously still worth every minute. Marilyn, Nicole decided she'll have to come back to St. Petersburg with you sometime to do the place justice!

Our last full day in Russia was May 9th, a huge holiday for Russians and celebration of their victory over Germany in 1945. We got up early hoping to see a parade of tanks and missile launchers, but all we found was a slightly busier than usual street and dismally wet weather. After camping out in a cafe near Nevsky street for a couple hours we gave up on our hopes of seeing a parade and returned to the hostel to rest up for the evening. We new for sure that there would be fireworks at night and hoped that more people would be out celebrating at that point. So we picked up some Oxotaca beers (2L plastic bottles of 8% alc/vol sludge...we affectionately pronounced it Exotica) and threw a small party in the hostel with Reinier, Stephan, Ron, and Sam (Ron and Sam are officers stationed in Japan that were on leave). Swigging down the Exotica, it didn't take long for us to be confident that we were going to have a good time that night regardless of the situation on the streets. So we piled out into the streets after some fine dining at a Carl's Jr. across the street...yeah, we're not in Asia anymore.

Nevsky street was crazy. I've honestly never seen that many people mobbed into a city street before. From what I've seen on TV it is reminiscent of New Year's Eve in New York City, but I wouldn't be surprised if there were even more than that. It took about 45 minutes to walk from our hostel to the Neva River, just next to The Hermitage. As far as we could see, both sides of the river were packed with people and car traffic was completely stopped. Being at almost 60 degrees North, the sun didn't set until after 10 PM and the fireworks didn't start until about 11. The crowd comprised of mostly young people and were predictably drunk and rowdy. Several people were trying to scramble up a nearby tree for a better view and the police tried, unsuccessfully, to stop them. The fireworks were nice, but nothing spectacular. It was mostly just fun being in a big crowd of excited people. After the fireworks almost everyone started walking back down Nevsky street; waving flags and singing songs sort of like a soccer match chant. The street was packed shoulder to shoulder all the way across and the column of people seemed to stretch on as far as we could see. It was one of those mob scenes where the line between riot and celebration was paper thin - the sound of glass bottles breaking, people climbing up light poles to steal flags, small scuffles, the dull roar of a crowd, and public urination. All the necessary elements of mild chaos and a hell of a good time.

The next morning we woke up early, and a bit hung over, to catch a bus to Tallinn, Estonia (yes, two n's). Fortunately, it was only a six hour bus ride and comfortable enough to sleep for most of the trip. Estonia ranks 2nd or 3rd in our list of random places we've been while traveling. I don't think I knew it existed before we started planning our way out of Russia a few weeks ago, but I'm not exactly a geographical wizard. It turned out to be a pleasant stop on our way to Germany. Even more European than St. Petersburg, the Medieval old town is a UNESCO World Heritage site and home to St. Olav's Church (the tallest building in the World from 1549 to 1625). It's an attractive and interesting city with a tumultuous history. We spent most of the one day we were there in the Occupation Museum - an account of Soviet, then German and then Soviet (again) occupation during the better part of the 20th century.We noticed during the day that a stage being setup in the old town square early in the day and I made a point of returning later that night, a Friday, to see if there was any free music. The concert was one of the most hilarious live shows I've ever seen. I would call it, for lack of a better term, Viking-Metal-Rock. The smoke machine had just started pumping out its first few puffs when I arrived and there was some pre-show music playing along with a bit of green lighting. There was a small, but lively crowd of about 200 people packed up to the stage - a strange mix of tourists and rock enthusiasts. Nothing very interesting. The bass player walked out first and the crowd let out the usual mildly approving screams that a bass player usually gets. He picked up his bass and started playing some a few notes. The lead singer and drummer walked out next - more screams. It was at this point that I noticed that they were wearing tunics and chain mail. All three had long blond hair and the the lead guitar had some nice mutton chop side burns and a handlebar moustache. The three of them started playing a slow intro riff and I had seen just about enough when the fourth member of the band strutted onto stage, also wearing a tunic but no chain mail, with his electric bagpipe! That's when the crowed went ballistic and I noticed two men dancing in full mascot-like-costumes: one a giant orange fox and the other a man sized bunny rabbit. It was as if Spinal Tap, Rammstein, and a Viking had four children and they formed a band. Amazing. The bagpipe player also played a recorder and a lap harp and if you can rock those three things I think you can rock anything. It's hard to pick a favorite song, but they had an amazing Gregorian chant intro followed by early Metallica-esque thrash metal that I think takes the cake. All that combined with guteral Eastern European lyrics and rolled r's and was too good to be true.

The next day was spent entirely on a bus from Tallinn to Warsaw, Poland. Nothing exciting to report there, except that Poland is surprisingly reminiscent of Western Pennsylvania. On the whole, our time in Poland has been great. The weather is nice and it feels just like Spring at home. Nicole is out doing some shopping - throroughly enjoying the reasonably priced clothing stores. We'll probably spend another day in Warsaw and then head down to Krakow for a couple days before meeting Sara in Stuttgart this weekend! More pictures soon.

Mother Russia

The Trans-Siberian ended up being an okay ride, if a little bit anti-climactic. Siberia IS really beautiful, but the part we saw is pretty much birch forests and wooden houses. . . for three full days. Interesting variety came from the change in seasons as we traveled north and south- some places where still covered in snow while others where quite green with even an occasional patch of flowers (that was exciting).

Monotony aside, there where a few definite highlights. The first day we shared the room with a Major in the Russian Army who is a tank commander. He was friendly and willing to try to communicate with us (he spoke a little English and we have a Russian phrase book). He introduced us to pine nuts eaten out of shell like sunflower seeds, and was generally a really good roommate. The language barrier was frustrating, though. We where so interested in hearing what he had to say, and he seemed interested in us, too- but the scope of conversation was sadly limited by the language.The language barrier continued to be a frustration for the rest of the trip. We ended up taking a local Russian train, which meant a lot of Russians. It was cool, but we wanted to talk to them and there was no way. I interacted most with a little girl from the cabin next door. It took her a little while to get up the courage to talk to me, and probably a full day for her to understand that I didn't speak Russian. But after that she came by a lot just to look (she especially liked watching me play solitaire). She also taught me the names of all the barnyard animals in one of her books in Russian (which I promptly forgot).

Some of the best monotony breakers where the vendors outside the train when we stopped. Women selling a wide variety of interesting food and drinks swarmed the trains with boiled potatoes, whole smoked fish, dumplings, bread, coleslaw, beer, pine nuts, and quite a few things that I could not identify. But it was fun to look, and to supplement our diet of cup-o-noodles.

After four days, we finally reached the big city bravado of Moscow, quite a change from the stiletto heels and mullets of Irkutsk (Scott, if you do ever make it to Baikal you won't need to spend much time in Irkutsk- Dostoevsky in exile and wooden houses aside it is pretty much just like the Big Town). An incredible city, but, unfortunately, also one of the most expensive in the world. We paid way to much for our hostel and, consequently, booked an onward ticket to St. Petersburg after only one day. We were still able to see most of the major attractions including St. Basil's Cathedral, Red Square, The Kremlin Armoury, and the Subway Stations. It may sound strange to list the subway as a major attraction, but it was amazing. Elaborate mosaics of Lenin and Soviet era workers line the ceiling of almost all of the major stations. It is easily the most ornate subway I've ever scene and also one of the most effective.We previously mentioned May 1 as a big holiday, but Russia is also in the midst of preparing for the 9th of May - celebrating it's victory over Germany in World War II. It's sort of a combination of Veterans Day and 4th of July. Statues of famous veterans crushing swastikas are all over both Moscow and St. Petersburg. It is understandably a major event considering the massive loss of life during the war (over 23 million as compared to 400,000 Americans). St. Petersburg was under siege for 900 days ; over 1 million people died of starvation. There is also a lot of news related to the Estonia-Russia conflict inflamed by a war memorial being moved out of the Estonian capital city of Tallinn - the Estonians say because it reminds them of Soviet occupation. The timing, however, has led to riots in Tallinn and Moscow as well as most companies in Russia banning Estonian made products.We arrived in St. Petersburg yesterday morning and have thoroughly enjoyed the European vibe of the city. We've spent most of the time walking up and down Nevsky Boulevard and have visited St. Isaac's Cathedral, Peter and Paul Fortress, and The Church of the Savior on Blood. Tomorrow we're going to The Hermitage. So much to do! We plan to stay until the 10th, both to see the rest of the city and to experience the 9th of May festivities. We met up with Stephan and Reinier again - the picture below was taken today in front of the Peter and Paul Cathedral.