GERMANY

What? Germany? Didn't I go on exchange to Italy?

December 6, 2007, my host parents and I packed our bags and got on a cute little yellow plane and flew to Stuttgart, Germany. WOO HOO! I was so excited. We stayed with Giuseppe's brother, Davide, and his wife Brigitte. When we first got there it was dark so as hard as I was looking out the window, I couldn't see a thing! We drove about an hour or 2 to the house. Still couldn't see anything it was super dark. We went inside and it was a small but a very pretty house, with lots of Christmas decorations and this big weird stove thing they use to heat the houses there. We had a big dinner, just talked and the families caught up and stuff, then went to bed. I could tell this wasn't going to be one of my typical vacations with the fam, where my Dad has every day planned and we get as much out of it as possible. The attitude was go with the flow and plan at the time..so I was a little aggravated because I wanted to SEE GERMANY! But I got over it and just was happy to be there.

Germany is EXACTLY how I imagined. Grey sky's, endless green, hilly landscape, with tiny, white houses with dark, pointed roofs scattered everywhere. With little yards and smoke coming out the chimneys. Like a country in the clouds. Everything was silent and still. It was so peaceful and there was no sense of hurry. It was really beautiful in its own way. Driving along the small highway in between cities I could spot over the fields all the little towns. Every single one has a church you can spot right away, taller then the rest of the buildings with a large clock and cross. They were amazing.

I was so excited to go to Germany at this time, because its Christmas! And Christmas originates from Germany. In fact, December 6th, the day we arrived, is the national holiday for St. Nicholas. Anyways Germany is also famous for their Weihnachten Markets at this time of year. Christmas markets. Ahh they were so cool! We went to a small one in our town, then a huge one in Ulm. It was like walking into a little elf town, like a little town in the north pole. Christmas music was playing, people everywhere, tons and tons of stands full of everything you can think of, and every decoration possible. Also lots of food stands and little huts people can stand under and drink their hot chocolate or tea or whatever and just talk. All the stands are lined in Christmas lights and it just was such a fun happy atmosphere. I was so overwhelmed I didn't even know what to buy or what to do, but I was lovin it! Also this Christmas market in Ulm was right under the towns cathedral, one of the largest in Germany. It just fascinated me.. It was huge and old and just so pretty. Inside it was like an echoe huge stone chapel kind of room, with beautiful statues and bells and beautiful stain class windows. I wish my pictures turned out better... but yeah it was amazing.
Also in Ulm we visited a very old street full of typical German houses. I loved it. It had the cobble stone small rode, and a river flowing by it. The houses lined the street, or on stilts in the water, with bridges and trees and wow it was just so pretty. The houses are beautiful with all these different colors, and they all have tall pointed roofs. I'd never seen anything like it. Oh and we also saw the Danube river, the longest river in Europe that goes through all of Germany. It was.....cool. Just a river haha.

Monday was my favorite day. Thanks to me bringing it up, and thanks to Isaac for telling me about it, we went to Neuschwanstein. You know, the gigantic castle that supposedly Walt Disney based his castles on? Ya..it was...incredible. I still can't believe it. We were driving in the car and it had been a while then I looked out the window, and up in the mountains I spotted this HUGE amazing magical castle ha. I was just thinking NO WAY the whole time. Cant be real! We walked up a windy road to the bottom of it. I turned and looked over the valley below. Breath taking. There was a lake...you could see the little houses..and of course the church.. Then I turn and look up at this unbelievable castle towering over me. I bought a ticket for the English tour, and got to go through it. You aren't permitted to take pictures so sorry. But just trust me...it was absolutely amazing. Every single wall covered with murals, so many sculptures, breath taking wood work...I kept trying to picture what is was like when the King (King Ludwig II) and all the people who lived in this castle..it just seems so unreal. So that was my first castle experience. It was hard for them ( my host parents and the people we were staying with) to understand how exciting and incredible this was for me...Because they are used to amazing monuments and things like this..I just had to say you have no idea what this is like...there is nothing like this in America the new continent..so let me be crazy excited ok! And I definitely was. I can't wait to visit all the other castles and things like that around the world (because I will someday).

Also in Germany I hung out with Brigitte's niece, who is American (half American half German). She moved to Germany with her mom when she was 14 (now 20). At first her english was a bit rusty butafter a little, it and all the good American sayings came rollin in. So that was fun to talk to her and find out more about Germany's history and what people are like in Germany and the life. She was really nice and took me shopping to some of the shopping streets. I would say shopping malls but they are just long normal streets lined with stores haha so not really malls. I also asked her if we could go back to the Christmas market. I really like those...haha.

So food in Germany? Zwei grillwurst bitte, mit semf und ketchup! I can't remember exactly how it went, but Sabrina (the half American) made me order all our food in German haha. That was "2 grillwurst thanks, with mayo and ketchup. Or..yeah something along those lines. Haha wow I have never seen so many types of "hot dogs" in my LIFE! and as big! That grillwurst was like a footlong hot dog in a tiny roll in the middle haha. I just looked at it and was like what the..where do I start. But once I did start I didn't want to stop! It was sooooo good. I will never go back to Oscar Meyers again. In the grocery stores they have ISLES full of just meat and salami and hot dogs and grillwursts and whatever else they are called. It just kind of made me laugh...silly Germans and their hot dogs. But ya very yummy. And yeah their bread is pretty good too...not that the Italians would admit that. I liked the fresh croissants in the morning or fresh super pretzels. Yumm.

Well the last part of the trip was the plane ride home. Such a weird experience. Its hard to explain...I was ending my vacation....getting on the plane...and going home. Right? But wait a second... I wasn't going home. I was going back to...Italy. I don't know how much you can understand without being in my position, but it was hard! I have been away for 3 months now! I miss my home and family and friends soo extremely much. It was really hard! I had to go on and continue being away from you all! I had kind of a little homesickness breakdown on the plane...it was really tough. But after a week of cloudy Germany, and flying in to beautiful sunny Cagliari, and seeing all the palm trees and the beach side...I did get that fuzzy home feeling :) Of course nothing compared to what it would be like going to Utah, but good enough.

So that's my trip to Germany. I loved it. I can't wait to go again. Now I am here in Italy, back at school, back to this life. We have one more week of school than 2 weeks of Christmas break. YAY! I am excited to see what Italian Christmas is all about. I will tell you all about it don't worry, just takes me a little while sometimes:) I am happy, life is great, and yeah! Thanks for caring about me still even though Im miles away! Well I hope you are all enjoying the snow and your holidays! Lots of love from Italy!!

Auf weidersehem!

Laurie