The holidays

First of all, I would like to start with a Merry Christmas or whatever you're into.

This past holidays, I tortured my girlfriend to the extreme. it wasn't because she didn't get any gifts, it was even worst!!!! My family came to visit from Italy (it's a long story why they came from Italy instead of the USA).

My girlfriend "German" her way throughout the ordeal. Making sure that everything was perfect with an iron fist. Most of the time you'd hear "no, you sit I will do it." Or "It's not perfect and it should be trash". I'm not complaining about my girlfriend at all. But it got me thinking about the mentality here. That certain dedication to make everything wonderful and friendly for everyone. I'm happy to report that after a week everyone is alive and well. 

Even if it's a little late. Merry Christmas, happy Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa for anyone reading my little ghost town blog.

Be safe this holiday season. Cheers!

Idstein and the food lady.

I was in Idstein. Which is basically one of the oldest towns in Germany their castle dates back to the 12th century. It even comes with a witches tower. But that isn't the amazing part.

Idstein

From the moment I set foot in Germany people have been respectful and well behaved. A complete 180 from my experience in Italy. As I mentioned this old town is small but packed with tourist and locals. We decided to try one of their coffee shops/hangouts. As we entered we were greeted with a big smile and a hearty 'hallo'. Deciding what to snack on was difficult because, everything looked good. One thing that seems universal when it comes to food is this. If you add corn and a touch of hot sauce to anything and you can call it "Mexican" or "Southwestern" style. I opted for what it seemed the most American thing on the menu a Mexican sandwich and a piece of Nussecke, that I'm not sure how to described besides delicious.

The "Mexican" sandwich and "Nussecke"

We took our food and drinks and sat down in this quiet place. Shortly after an older woman sat in the table next to us, she said hello as is customary here (I'm guessing). A few minutes later her food arrived, it smelled delicious and looked amazing. It was sort of like a French pizza. My girlfriend and I looked at each other while inhaling the wonderful scent this thing was dispersing around us. We complimented the dish. "It looks good", the lady then said "thank you". I expected something like I'll tell you what it tasted like later, or I'll let you know if it's good. Instead, the nice woman offered half her meal. We politely declined, she insisted. I thought we were gonna have to hose her down. I'm not used to that kind of people. The nice, no hidden agenda, wanting to do good kind. It was weird to me but also opened my eyes to the type of people I will be dealing here with. I might just become a better person on this journey.

Mr. Brawny and the Christmas tree

Yesterday I became a lumberjack. Or at least that's what It felt like. I for the first time in what it seems like 5000 years cut a tree, a Christmas tree, it was a colossal 3 FT or so tall. Before we start laughing about my accomplishment let me start by saying. I have never cut a tree, branch, or anything remotely close to a tree. The closer I ever came to it was going to the flower shop and ask for a dozen flowers. Yesterday, in my head I was part of the long tradition of lumberjacks, I was as manly as Mr. Brawny, or Wolverine from the X-Men. As I walked up hill to the forest with my adopted German family, I realized how many other families were doing the same. This is a tradition that I liked and could adopt.

After we got there, we went to check on Santa (yes, there was a Santa) as well as the reindeer. We all had hot cherry wine (Kirschwein) and hot apple juice (heißer Apfelsaft), (yes, that's a thing here) then we proceeded to find our price. We found for us what my gf's father described as a one hand tree, they cut one similar to ours, twenty euros later, as we're making our pilgrimage back to the cars, I realized how far from being a lumberjack I was. I had tree sap on me, the small tree was getting heavier by the second and I couldn't throw the tree on my shoulder because I would dirty my new jacket. Nevertheless, I carry our little tree on one hand. Later that day we decorated as it was my 7ft tall back home.

Prost! to the genius who invented hot wine

Our tree. You can imagine what it looks like.

Germany, Germany, Germany.

Where to begin? As an American, I have to say the USA is the best place in the world...then, there's Germany, it has nothing to do with the fact my German girlfriend reads my blog (wink). I must admit, I didn't know what to expect when I first arrived here. I had lived in Italy before, and I envisioned the way of life in Germany to be very similar. After all they are very close to each other. The more I thought about this theory in my head, the more I realized how different the two countries are. But also how much I feel like I'm home, I think, yeah, wait...does everyone speak German here?

Welcome to my journey. Here you will find my experiences and my views as a foreigner in a strange yet familiar place.