When in Rome...

Drink from the water fountains: They were everywhere, and Patrick was thirsty. I report no lingering illnesses a week later, so apparently it is safe! Also, this one was in the Vatican so although it's not Holy Water, it's pretty darn close.






Say "Hi" to the Pope: OK, we regretfully missed one of his last appearances, but we did check out his country, and the nun who sold me a beautiful St. Peter charm told me they were friends. Close enough for me!




Catch some rays through the Pantheon sunroof: We were in awe of the Pantheon 2,000+ year old precisely round domed roof. Apparently we are not alone, since over 1,000 years later, architects were still so stumped by such a large dome with no interior supporting columns and they allowed Brunelleschi to cut into the dome to figure it out. Armed with the Rick Steves free podcast, we walked around and easily spotted the "wound" above the door. We loved how the Pantheon was always a place for the masses; everyone was always welcome regardless of social status.




Sit on the Spanish Steps: Just kidding - look how many people were on the steps in February! We skipped this for the shopping nearby.







Have a beer at McDonald's: Yep. You read that correctly. But in our defense, it is the largest McD's in the world, 3rd coolest, and we didn't seek it out, we just happened to pass by. Leather chairs and artsy decorations sure made it feel like a step up from the dirty, french-fry coated jungle gyms we are used to...





Throw a coin into the Trevi Fountain (at night!): So maybe the locals don't do this, but they don't have to wish to return to Rome! The Trevi, powered by a natural aqueduct, is unbelievably beautiful at night. I can understand why tourists throw over €3,000 in coins per day. Apparently, a local charity collects the coins each week to make sure they are put to good use.








Pay our respects to Caesar: It's pretty amazing that over 2,000 years later, people still adorn the spot where Caesar's body was burned with bouquets of flowers. This spot is easy to miss in the Roman Forum, so it was a treat to find it!



Sample the local fare: Patrick literally picked this orange from one of the beautiful orange trees that lined the street. Though they were beautiful, the orange might have suffered from city smog. No need to try for yourself.

 Decide a gladiator's fate: Thank goodness we had the Roma Pass and could skip the surprisingly long line (again - why so many tourists in February!?) to check out the Colosseum  It was pretty cool to imagine hippos, lions, rhinos, and leopards in the now exposed tunnel system underneath the floor. I find it amazing that they were able to even capture and transport the animals, but of course tragic that their lives were used so frivolously.

Frau Robertson and the Schokolade Factory

I'm not sure if it's the clean-cut, square branding, the seemingly unlimited variety, or the fact that it's German, but I have been hooked on Ritter Sport chocolates since arriving in Germany. This Christmas, I developed a serious addiction for their winter coconut macaroon flavor right before they decided to take it off the shelves. After searching through all the local grocery stores, I decided to go straight to the source: the Ritter Sport ChocoShop in Waldenbuch, Germany.

Ritter Sport headquarters in Waldenbuch, Germany 

In case you haven't heard of Waldenbuch, neither had I. Thankfully, it lies just outside of Stuttgart, and the Ritter Sport compound looks like a green, square-themed oasis right off of the main street.
The Ritter Sport factory offers three attractions for their fans: a free exhibit detailing the history and process of making such delectable square morsels, a museum of 3rd generation co-owner Marli Hoppe-Ritter's square art (literally), and, of course, the ChocoShop.
Unfortunately, for sanitary reasons, there are no factory tours. Also, when debating the €5 entrance fee to the museum, we asked how the museum was. "Squarey" was our answer. Needless to say we skipped the culture to fast-forward to the chocolate.

Though not extensive, the exhibit was pretty interesting. Ritter prides itself on being socially and environmentally responsible in everything from cocoa bean farming straight to their eco-friendly packaging; therefore. there is a heavy emphasis on their work in Central America and their green production process. They did also have two free samples - one of cocoa beans (I will never make that mistake again) and one small Ritter square. At least it was delivered cleverly!

The grand prize was definitely the ChocoShop. All of the flavors in one spot, and for €0.50-€0.60 a bar! In the back, they had a section for "damaged" chocolate (though I saw no evidence of such) and test flavors in mysterious white wrappers. If we spoke German, we would be able to decipher what the test flavors were made of, but for us it turned into a Ritter surprise section, which was probably even more fun! Hours and contact information are below and on their website, and in case you were wondering, they did have my winter coconut macaroon favorite...and it was on sale!!


RITTER SPORT SCHOKOLADEN
Alfred-Ritter-Strasse 27
71111 Waldenbuch
Info-telephone: 0 71 57 / 97-704

CHOCOSHOP opening hours:
Mo-Fr 8.00am to 6.30pm
Sa 9.00am to 6.00pm
Open on selected Sundays and holidays from 11.00am to 6.00pm. Inquire at the CHOCOSHOP for dates.
Please note that the CHOCOSHOP has closed on the following dates: January 1st and 6th, Good Friday, Easter Sunday, Easter Monday, Whit Sunday, December 24th – 26th and December 31st.

Weekend Getaway: The Alps!

A huge bonus of living in Bavaria? The Alps are literally a short drive away! We took advantage of our prime location and a base-organized trip which included transportation, lodging, breakfast, and super-discounted ski and snowboard rentals for a long weekend skiing in the Alps.
Though skiing in Axamer-Lizum, Austria (home of the 1964 Olympic alpine skiing events) and Garmisch, Germany sounds advanced, it sadly didn't magically improve my ski and snowboard skills. Regardless, here are some of the most memorable pieces of the trip:



Après-ski at the top of the mountain:

Though I was not skilled enough to make it to the authentic ski-in Apres-Ski on the Olympic run, the huts I made it to still had a way of making Jager shots (thanks, Chris!) seem chic.










Crazy European outfits:

I honestly felt like I had stepped into a mid-70s ski lodge movie set at times. It was harder than I thought to capture this on film, so these may or may not be American stand-ins...










'Learning' to snowboard:

A reliable source told me that the bunny-hops on the Alps are equivalent to double black diamonds in Colorado.

The views: 

Almost everywhere you looked there was another absolutely breathtaking view. Thanks, Dan for snapping this one since I didn't make it that far on the snowboard!






Staying in the bachelor pad:

That's right, I was the lone girl in a hostel apartment with seven guys. Girls - they are all in the Army so you know they are fit, and did I mention there are a few doctors in the mix? If you hadn't planned your trip to Germany before, I bet you're looking at flights now!
Photo credit: thanks again, Dan!

Rheinfall (Rhine Falls)

How about stumbling upon this on our drive home for a Christmas Eve present?

Formed by glaciers during the ice age, the Rhine Falls are pretty spectacular, and for €5 per person, we walked down the narrow stairs on the adjacent hill to the observation deck where these pictures were taken. Though they were a marvelous site, we were pleased that we did not take a separate trip just to see the Rhine Falls; however, if you are in the Zurich area, it is worth the detour and admission fee on a pretty day.

Some Rhine Falls trivia - fish are not able to swim up the falls, but crafty/evolved eels have figured it out. Reminds me of our  late pet eel, Slider, who I'm pretty sure climbs the Rhine Falls in eel heaven for exercise. 

Luzern

Trying to check out my Swiss heritage, Patrick and I visited the picturesque city of Luzern on Christmas weekend. We were very lucky that the small town was teeming with Christmas spirit, so all stores and attractions were open. Combined with the 50 degree weather, we couldn't have asked for a more perfect visit! This city is ideal for a romantic getaway - highlights below:

The Dying Lion of Luzern monument was spectacular. Carved out of the natural stone and overlooking a well-maintained reflection pool, this was my personal favorite sight of our trip. The monument was built to commemorate the 300+ Swiss guards who were killed at the Tulleries during the French Revolution in 1792. After the two tour buses cleared, it was a peaceful stop in our day.

I loved crossing the Chapel Bridge, which leads right into the center of town so it's one of the most convenient sights to check out in Luzern. The wooden pedestrian bridge was built in 1333, and the roof contains paintings of the city's history. Sadly, we did not find the painting of the giant, which was inspired by a large mammoth bone found in Luzern that people believed to be that of a giant. At the advice of Rick Steves, we spotted the security cameras that were almost as camouflaged as Barbara Walter's microphones. After the bridge suffered a fire in 1993, they are particularly careful to preserve this landmark sight.

The swans around the Chapel Bridge and in Lake Luzern almost looked planted. Locals trace the swans back to a thank you gift from Louis XIV in the late 17th century for the protection of the Swiss guards. I thought they were beautiful, but apparently some people did not enjoy them so much...

We got an amazing deal at the Palace Luzern hotel from Booking.com. The hotel is situated right on Lake Luzern yet a short 5-10 minute walk to almost every attraction including the city center, Dying Lion of Luzern, and the Chapel Bridge. The above picture is the view from our hotel room!

We were lucky to get last-minute reservations at the Rathaus Brauerei for dinner. Known for their own micro-brew (I had their unfiltered wheat beer which was delicious) and traditional Swiss meals, Patrick and I were both very pleased. We were a little perplexed when the waitresses dropped off three toothpaste tubes with our bread. Adventurous Patrick discovered it was actually squeezable mustard - all different varieties! Interesting at the very least...

62 square miles of Liechtenstein

I promised Patrick early on that we would not take trips just to "cross another country off our list." Perhaps that is the reason we had yet to check out the 6th smallest country in the world, Liechtenstein, which lies just four hours away from us. Much to my delight, it happened to be on the way to Switzerland, so we took a detour through the principality and tried to hang on to our paychecks in the country with the highest GDP per person in the world.

Jumping through Liechtenstein (or trying...)

Liechtenstein is a very interesting country. With only 36,500 inhabitants, they rely on neighboring Switzerland for military support. They have rock-bottom tax rates which have helped them attract several large companies. The Prince of Liechtenstein, Prince Hans-Adam II von und zu Liechtenstein, who himself is worth over $4B, proposed a referendum expanding his powers in 2003, then said he and his family would move to Austria should it not pass. Thankfully, it passed, and again in July of 2012, over 76% of the Liechtenstein people backed the Prince's powers by rejecting a referendum to reduce his authority. His castle is seen below - I personally think it would be amazing to wake up and see your entire, beautiful country every morning, particularly if I had $4B to play with as well...

We stayed the beautiful, recently renovated Hotel Oberland on the mountain. Not only did they have free breakfast buffet (standard European cheese, hard-boiled eggs, and meat), but this was our hotel room view:

Unfortunately, most everything in the capital city of Vaduz was closed on the Sunday before Christmas; however, I can tell you that there weren't many places on my list anyway. We did check out the beautiful tourist information building and shamefully paid the €2.50 to have our passports stamped.

Note to drivers: if you are driving to Liechtenstein via Austria, the €2 Korridor Pass does not take you all the way to the exit the GPS wants you to take. You either have to spring for the 10-day, €8.30 full vignette or exit the freeway and find a non-highway route into the country. Silver lining: Liechtenstein does not have their own vignette. 

Our Local Weihnachtsmarkt!

Walking in a winter wonderland

Who has two thumbs and can walk to a wonderful Christmas market in under 10 minutes? This girl. There is something for everyone at the Amberg Weihnachtsmarkt - no fighting over the fabulous nutcracker stand for me, kebabs for Patrick, and hand-cut wooden ornaments with the Amberg city square for our tree!  Oh - and the Glühwein was the cheapest yet at €2! 

Glühwein stand 

Hours for the Amberg Weihnachtsmarkt below:

November 29th - December 23rd

Monday - Saturday: 10.00 - 20.00

Sunday: 13.00 - 20.00

P.S. Though we have not witnessed it ourselves, our good friend Donnie claims to have participated in a Christmas karaoke on the stage in the center of it all. George Michael Christmas songs? Amazing.