Gallivanting around Germany

I finally had a ten day break from school and got to spend my time relaxing in Germany with my friend Lee! :)  Now, I know what some of you may say (I don't even have school on Fridays) but believe me it was a much needed break.  Germany was great!  It was a really nice trip, relaxing, full of site seeing, hanging out with Lee, and meeting some of the nicest people I have ever met.  I was greeted at the airport with flowers, and then driven to Lee's house where there were American Flags flying and a bottle of champaign waiting to welcome me to Germany.  It was so nice and I couldn't have imagined anything more welcoming.  

Lee and I in a HUGE PURPLE chair!

My first full day we took the train into Hamburg with Lee's Parents.  We walked around, took some boat rides, and explored the harbor.  Lee's Dad works in Hamburg so he knew a lot about the city and was really excited to share what he knew with me.  Lee and I climbed over 400 steps to look out on the city of Hamburg from St. Michael's Bell Tower.  That was my workout for the day, but definitely worth it!  We came back to Bargteheide (Lee's home town) and had a barbecue and then Lee and I went back into Hamburg with her friends later that night to explore the German night life.  It was a really long, but very fun day.

Lee and I in a beach chair

On day two we went to Lubeck which I think was my favorite town in Germany.  It was all so old and really pretty.  The whole town looked like a Medival Fortress.  It was all so different from any other city I have seen in Europe. In Lubeck we had marzipan which is a sugary dough like candy.  It was good, but kind of had a different taste.  After Lubeck we went to the coast and had ice cream by the Baltic Sea.  Then we finished the day by having supper with Lee's Grandparents, Parents, and Aunt and Uncle.  They were all so nice!!  It was really fun to just hang out with a whole family again and chat.  That's something I haven't had a chance to do in awhile.

The next two days we spent in Berlin.  They were a blast!  We took a boat ride and got to see some of the main attractions.  Then we went to a Jewish Memorial, the Berlin Gate, and the Dom (Dome).  The Dome is supposed to be similar to St. Anthony's church in Rome.  It was so big and gorgeous.  I could have spent hours in there and not have been bored, because there was so much to look at!  That afternoon we headed to the 1936 Olympic Stadium.  At this stadium we actually got to go inside and look at the field and the swimming pool.  It was really nice, I'm glad that we got to go in.  We finished the night by having amazing Turkish food for dinner. :)  

Me and the Berlin Bear

Our second day in Berlin was pretty relaxing because we did so much the first day. We started the day by going to where pieces of the Berlin Wall are.  That was really neat and really informational.  We even got to watch a movie (in English not German) which was really interesting.  I think the wall was my favorite part about Berlin.  Then we went to find this church that was bombed during WWII and only the tower was left and so they built a really modern church onto the tower.  However, when we got there the whole building was covered in construction tarp! :(  We weren't able to see any of it.  That was sad, but we did get to try currywurst there.  It's a type of sausage that is well known in Berlin.  It was really good.

We made our way back to Bargteheide for my last day there.  Lee and I went to a concentration camp that is outside of Hamburg.  I really enjoyed that, because I am not really into history very much, but WWII was one of the things that I did like learning about.  So it was kind of neat to be somewhere where that history actually occurred.  It was pretty sad but really informational.  We came back and had asparagus dinner.  I've never had asparagus before, but I now know that I love it!  :)  

And maybe my favorite part of the whole trip was that in between all the sight seeing, traveling, and meeting new people, Lee and I would watch Gilmore Girls!!  Oh how I have missed that show! :)

I can back with three days left of my break to experience the joys of Semanta Santa in Granada. I was really excited to see all of the extravaganzas of Semana Santa but then...to be continued.

I was welcomed with American Flags