A life in progress

I haven't posted for a while, largely because my internet access in Berlin left a lot to be desired.  I blame communism.  That is probably not the problem, but that is what I blame.  :) Rather than spend a lot of time going over the ins and outs of my last few weeks in Europe, I'l start with another how-to (in my opinion).  I found my European summer was, for the most part, very affordable.  And many of you are thinking "yeah, right".  But I'm serious... here are a few of my take aways for how to afford your own summer in Europe. 1.  Choose one destination and live in it.  Aside from airline tickets, housing will be your biggest expense.  Over the years, I have learned that apartments or vacation homes are much cheaper than hotels for a lengthy stay.  For a day or two, there's no real difference.  For more than 3 days, an apartment will generally save you money, especially if you are traveling with friends or family.  My Fr...

When we first came to Germany about 2 weeks ago, it was miserable.  I was hot and tired and couldn't figure out how the public transportation worked.  It lacked the mystique of France while managing to be incredibly confusing at the same time.  It did not help that I wasn't particularly prepared for the German leg of my journey.  I hadn't studied maps, or worked out the public transportation, or even bothered to learn any German.  All of these things are my fault.  Germany is not to blame:  it simply went on being the same country it had been for the past decades. There are some things that Germany could do better, but they are not meant as affronts to me personally.  I'd like to see more air conditioning.  I would like to see better internet connections.  I would like the public transportation to be connected.  As it is, I have to leave one station and walk a block to transfer to another line.  This is irritating. Fortunat...

So I just finished my delicious raspberry beer. I thought this might be the best time for the dark horse in this race: pinecone. I thought maybe it would be ok... Or maybe the pinecone thing was an advertising gimmick.  Let me tell you. I was wrong. Imagine having a mediocre can of beer an accidentally dropping a pinecone in it.... And leaving it there to steep. It tastes like that. Or if you spilled your beer on a pinecone and decided to lick it off. TERRIBLE!!! To top it off, it has a slight green tint to the otherwise amber ale hue. I could not get a great photo, but trust me. That itself was off putting.  So, I don't like beer a lot, remember... So I decided to pass this one over to Mike for a second try. He took one sip and scrunched up his face in confusion. His review:  "this is just weird. I guess it is supposed to taste like nature & maybe if I was camping and there was no other beer available.  But I wouldn't buy it if there was other beer on the shelf....

I've finally finished the pink beer. The more I drank it, the less I liked it. I actually considered pouring the second half out.  For my second beer, I moved on to the red Kindl beer.  This photo doesn't do it a lot of justice. It really is a deep magenta color, like strawberry soda.  And, it is delicious. I've had this before and I really enjoy it. It has a deep raspberry flavor, similar to a wine cooler, but somehow fruitier. According to the label, there is some actual fruit juice in it -- so while I have no illusions that it has any nutrients, I think the flavor is natural, rather than chemical. It more than makes up for the horribleness of the Becks. I wish I would have bought more than one of them.  If I could get this at home for a reasonable price, I would buy it all the time. ALL. THE. TIME. perhaps it's best that I can't.  Score: 8/10. Delicious, but not life changing. Actually, after another swallow, I'm revising to 8.5. Delicious.  I will surel...

First, I'm trying Becks Summer Hollander, for no reason other than it is pink. That makes it first in my rainbow.  Honestly, it's a little disappointing. While it is pink, it tastes a lot like regular beer, which I mentioned that I don't love. There is a little bit of a fruity aftertaste but mostly it tastes like a standard ale or pilsner. Initially, I was excited about this one, because I love the cherry Kirsh beers. I thought this would be similar. Personally, I feel that if the beer is pink (and only 3% alcohol), it should taste like fruit. This does not. I will not be buying this again.  Score:  3/10 (on my arbitrary 10 point scale)

I don't love beer. I know, crazy. However, Germany has some very interesting beers.  Tonight I have devised a personal taste test of some of the most colorful beers I found at the store...  Pink, red, green, purple...  And this one, which I think might be pinecone. Who knows. It's Germany.  I will drink each one and review them separately, just for the heck of it....

I realized last night that it is almost exactly 13 years ago since I packed a giant suitcase and embarked on the first of my international endeavors.  In the summer of 2001, I moved to Shenzhen, China (with a few weeks of training in Beijing) to teach English in a private school for nearly a year.  That was also my first forray into the world of teaching -- and as we can see, both things have stuck pretty well. Since then, I have traveled pretty regularly.  I have returned to China a few times and explored various parts of Europe - in typical American vacation fashion - a week or two here and there.  I have never had the opportunity to travel as extensively as I have with Mike since we have been married.  Our honeymoon was nearly 3 weeks of Italy and the Medditerranian, and now, we are spending six weeks in France and Germany.  These two trips combined are probably more time abroad than many spend in their lifetimes.   Our weeks in France were amazing....