Things That My Mom and Dad Would Like

The hardest thing about traveling is being away from my family in Minneapolis - my parents, sister, aunt, uncle, cousins, and grandparents. This post is just a bunch of things that reminded me of my mom and dad - you guys will know which things reminded me of who!

Fresh potato chips at the Christmas market in Prague

 Decorated Easter eggs at a little shop in Prague

A dollhouse kitchen at the gastronomy museum

stainless steel knives, also at the gastronomy museum

marzipan!

tiny Christmas scenes in walnut shells at an ornament store in Berlin

golden bison at the Berlin Zoo

really good clouds in Salzburg

almond paste cookies with slivered almonds on top

a nice chunk of bronze

The Milka Chocolate World store in Munich

More marzipan! In the funniest shapes

amazing looking French bread

Weißewurst sausages

A seemingly random gathering of old American military trucks in Prague

 A store in Salzburg with piles and piles of Easter eggs - it reminded me of our favorite picture book, when the bunny goes to the castle where all the eggs are kept.

I miss you guys!

Around Berlin

When my friends were in town last week, I finally got out and did some more touristy things around Berlin. We walked along part of the wall, covered with colorful murals...

...walked through Checkpoint Charlie...

...and saw the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church. It is quite striking; the church was almost totally destroyed by bombs, but they left the one remaining tower as a memorial. (Part of the outside is under renovation.)

The ceiling of the inner lobby has a beautiful mosaic. We read that even after it was bombed, in November, the citizens cleaned it out enough to hold a service there on Christmas Eve.

For dinner, we headed to the Yellow Sunshine Vegetarian Diner to try a vegan version of the ubiquitous currywurst. I have to say, I was underwhelmed. It was just a soy sausage with some ketchup and a barely detectable sprinkling of curry powder. Not a lot of effort was expended here.

The fries, however, were great, and the vegetarian bacon cheeseburger was fabulous - probably the best veggie burger I've ever had. It was moist and flavorful, with a satisfying savoriness that stood out among vegetable proteins aspiring to meatiness. I'd happily go back for another.

For dessert, we had a not-particularly-German-but-delicious-nonetheless waffle with ice cream.

Hard to go wrong there.

Munich (aka "Munchin' in München")

I spent a lovely two days in Southern Germany last week, in Munich and in a nearby town to visit a castle.

 The night we got into Munich, we wandered down one of the main streets, past the famous town hall with the giant clock, and past lots of little stands selling roasted almonds.

We got two kinds, the classic spiced almonds, and chocolate, crunchy roasted nuts covered with a thick layer of dark cocoa.

They were a perfect snack as we wandered through the Victualienmarkt, where you could find all sorts of produce, cheese, and other tasty things.

 Across the street, a row of tiny, narrow butcher shops advertised weißwurst, a traditional Barvarian sausage. 

Inside, you could order roasted meat sandwiches wrapped in paper, and stand at tiny tables to eat them. The smells wafting from the shops were amazing.

The next day, I took the train two hours to a little town, the closest stop to Neuschwanstein - commonly known as the Disney or Sleeping Beauty castle.

Due to a small miscalculation, I ended up walking about four miles from the train station. Luckily, it was sunny and not too cold, and after two miles, I could see the castle in the distance, getting closer and closer. I stopped to try a kind of donut made with quark (a light, fresh, cream-cheese-like dairy product). It was light and sweet, with a slight tang from the cheese.

It was especially good since I ate it with this view to my right...

 

...and this view to my left.

From his extravagantly decorated castle, Ludwig II would have been able to gaze down on the peasantry below. Although apparently he was quite shy and mostly like to read and listen to music.

The throne room was decorated in the style of a Byzantine Church.

Even the ceilings of stairwells were intricately painted.

The Grand Hall had chandeliers set with jewels.

It was absolutely stunning and well worth the trouble of getting there. Back in town, after another four mile walk, I was hungry and cold. I stumbled upon a small restaurant near the quiet town square. The chairs were mismatched, there was a candle on every table, and just one waiter stopping to chat with diners in the cozy, narrow space. I ordered seasonal vegetables gratined with cheese, a perfect choice for a cold day. Carrots, broccoli, peppers, peas, and cauliflower were covered with a flavorful cream sauce and topped with melted cheese (there's German vegetarian food for you). So satisfying, and it warmed me to the core.

Beautiful Austria

I spent a few days in Salzburg last week with two good friends from high school who are traveling around Europe.

It has to be one of the most beautiful places I've ever been. Even their airport is scenic!

 

The city has many small, winding streets, with little shops and cafés advertised by wrought iron signs. This one had very artistic bread (and excellent cookies!).

For breakfast, we had the classic warm apple strudel

and Sacher Torte, another traditional Austrian treat: chocolate cake made with a layer of apricot jam under the frosting. They were both delicious.

That afternoon we took a cable-car ride up a mountain, to 1800 meters above sea level.

The views were stunning.

When we got back down, we headed to the fortress, built over 900 years ago.

This picture is especially for my dad:

The castle crest included a very majestic...turnip.

Walking though the courtyards felt like stepping back in time to a Medieval village.

For dinner, we wanted to try some traditional Austrian fare. After a brief misunderstanding during which we nearly ordered bread made with pork fat (delicious I'm sure), we got dumplings with cheese and crunchy onions.

It was a lot like macaroni and cheese: melty, gooey, hot, cheesy, and amazing.

The next day, before heading to Berlin, we stopped by the Stiegl Brewery for a tour and beer tasting. I tried one that was lemon-flavored. I'm not usually a fan of beer, and when I do drink it I like the Belgian fruit beers, but even I could tell this was bad. It tasted like a half-beer half-7-Up mixture. The elderberry beer was tasty though, and the house chocolate stout was too strong for my liking, but seemed like a more reasonable concoction.

Then we were on to Munich for more treats and exploring!