Greetings from Germany!

 It has been another busy week as all of our stuff arrived last week and I have been unpacking and trying to organize everything with the limited storage we have. The issue is that Germans don’t have closets so there nowhere to put things until I buy some sort of organization system. We know how I love to organize so I’m excited to see what I can put together in the next few weeks.

 

 

Before our stuff arrived Mike and I travelled to Berchtesgaden which is in Southern Germany(Bavaria), very close to Austria and surrounded by the Alps. It is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been and we definitely need to go back! Oh, and to prove we traveled into Austria I made Mike stop the car so I could take a picture:

 

On Saturday we went to the Kelsteinhaus which was named the Eagle’s Nest in English. This is a house that was given to Hitler during WWII to use as a retreat and tea house to entertain diplomats and important guests. It is literally on top of a mountain with tiny roads that needs specially geared buses to get to the top. The day we visited there was some cloud cover so we were literally above the clouds and as the clouds would come in and out we would lose visibility for a few minutes – it was breathtaking. The house itself is not overly ornate or large, but it does have some impressive views on a clear day and a beautiful wooden beam ceiling in the main room which is now a restaurant. The house was taken over by American forces during the war and used as a lookout and base. After the war the mayor of the town had to fight to prevent the building from being destroyed. It is definitely weird to walk through the tunnel to the original elevator which takes you up to the house and know that you are standing exactly where Hilter did at one point! Anyway, here are some pictures:

The walkway leading to the elevator to go up to the house.....and Mike showing off his heel clicking skills :)

The original elevator, the inside is entirely brass!

 As the clouds were clearing you could get a view of the house.

 

 

On top of the mountain with the alps in the background.

 

Saturday evening we explored the town and ate some very yummy southern German food. The interesting thing about Southern Germany is that they are their own little world with a different dialect of German called Bayrish, so its hard to understand what they are saying even if you are fluent in German. Its similar to the deep south in the United States, they are sometimes in their own little world. And both Northern and Southern Germans feel that they are superior to the other – it is quite funny to hear them talk about each other. I will admit I might be preferential to Southern Germany seeing all the Alps and potential skiing I could do down there!

 

Sunday we visited the Konigsee which is a lake surrounded by mountains. With the leaves changing, it was another stunning site. We were going to spend a few hours hiking and then visit the salt mines, but we decided to find the waterfall which Mike did not get to hike to several years ago when he was here. Let’s just say there was a lot of hiking, but we did find the waterfall. And every bit was beautiful. When you get to the lake you have to take an electric boat to get to the areas to go hiking.

 

 

During the boat ride, there is a tradition where the boat capitan gets up and plays a song on the trumpet in the middle of the lake due to the perfect echo that returns the music – it was amazing.

There is also a monistary on the lake shown here.

 

 

 

At the end of the lake you hike to another smaller lake, obersee and hike around this lake to get to the waterfall. And, finally, here is the waterfall:

 

 

After a long hike back we got a late lunch and then met up with some friends for dinner. It was a very nice and relaxing weekend, which was needed after the stress and craziness of the last few months.

 On the way home there were lots of speed unlimited sections and I drove 100mph several times, here is the proof (taken very safely, may I add):

 

 

Also, because we live on a river, the GPS decided the fastest way to get home was to take the ferry across the river. And just for the fun of it I decided to do it. Pretty fun and only 3.60 euros.

 

 So, that’s the news here. Misty will be arriving to Germany in a few days! Very exciting. And then hopefully in the next two weeks we will be more settled and feeling like we are more at home.

 

Until next time!

 

~ Katie and Mike

Oktoberfest 2012

Hey everyone!

This update is definitely overdue but there has been so many things to do since we moved into our house! Hopefully, in the next few weeks things will be settling down.

So last weekend we experienced Oktoberfest in Stuttgart. Since it was a long weekend, we went down with a bunch of people on Sunday and came back on Monday. It was a super fun night, but I can see why it is not the German's favorite fest. Basically you drink beer (not a special beer) and stand on tables dancing to a band. Which, don't get me wrong - it was fun, but I'm excited to attend other fests and make my own judgement on the best one. Also, we heard that the night we went was unusually quiet and less crowded - we'll see how it is next year.

So, I'll just post some pictures now....let me just preface with the fact that the mug of beer (a mass) we are drinking out of holds 4 beers. Yeah, that's a lot of beer!

 Welcome to the fest!

 Our first mass of beer!

 Dancing on the bench!

 Brian having a good time!

 More dancing. I'm definitely going to need a dirndl (traditional German dress) for next year.

So that is how we started out this week. Other fun stuff that happened this week is that our household goods arrived in Germany. They are getting delivered on Tuesday so we will finally get the house set-up!

In other news, I was presented with an awesome opportunity at the medical clinic on post. They currently do not have any TBI Occupational Therapy services and asked me to become a volunteer at the clinic to provide these services. So, not a paying job, but if I get enough clients I might be able to convince the command to pay me. Also, being a volunteer means I can work any kind of schedule I want! This is a great way to keep my skills and certifications current and have a flexible schedule to travel or work a part time job, etc. I also applied to be a substitute teacher. It will probably be a few more months before I am working either job, but at least the process has started and soon doing some pretty cool things!

Anyway, that's the big news here. Mike and I are off to Berchtesgaden this weekend which is about 5 hours away. I'll try to take a break next week to update you all again!

Oh, and today marks one year until Mike and I have our big wedding! So excited!

Hope you are all doing well and planning your visits out to see us!

~ Katie and Mike