Independence Day

Our day began with American spirit - both in clothing and in shopping.

We stopped at IKEA so I could get a frame for my new letterpress print, which is simple and inspiring.

I came prepared for their ice cream and brought my red, white, and blue sprinkles along to spruce things up. I can't think of a better breakfast.

At the grocery I needed to pick up a few last minute things for the weekend and I was beyond excited to find corn on the cob, which seems to be a rarity here.

Stefan kept commenting how delicious it was and I had to remind myself that there are quite a few foods that we both associate with family events or holidays that are entirely new and foreign to each other.

It's still unbelievable to me that he'd never had corn on the cob before.

Lunch, dinner, and left overs were, and still are, plenty. In addition to the corn on the cob, I made: baked potato salad, deviled eggs, fruit salad, wasabi crusted tuna, and an oreo dessert.

It was nice to talk to family celebrating at my Grandma's house. She sure was being the jokester and answered the phone saying, "city morgue, you stab `em we slab `em" as she hysterically laughed. It's good to see she was having such a great time and her sense of humor is alive and well.

Between serenading me with various patriotic songs, Stefan asked if people exchange gifts on the 4th. I gave him my smarmy response - the best gift of all, time together.

Hopefully your 4th of July was wonderful as well, even if you weren't celebrating the American way.

purple flower

My Grandma has these flowers in her backyard. They seem so comical and as if they came from a Dr. Seuss book.

Fire Rainbow

Yesterday I called my Grandma's house to chat with everyone and wish them a Happy Mother's Day. It's so nice to catch the entire family in one place. It really makes me miss those American family get togethers.

As they passed the phone around I kept hearing about the most beautiful rainbow and how unique it was. Once my sister sent me a picture I immediately recognized it as a rare Fire Rainbow, thanks to the WebEcoist.

Isn't it so beautiful? I never realized wishing my Mom a beautiful day would end up being so special!

They said it was stretched out and slowly became thinner. It only lasted 15 or 20 minutes, so it was definitely great they caught it.

Another work of art is the Sistine Chapel puzzle that my Grandma finally finished. She said it took 5 or 6 weeks from when she began and it was so much work that she thinks she'll be glueing it and having it framed.

Sounds like a wonderful get together had by all... wish I could have been there too!

(photo courtesy of my sister Meem)

Auer Dult

Stefan and I went on a bike ride where he reluctantly joined me to the Auer Dult. After last year I was pretty fortunate, but the carney foods always work in my favor to win him over.

There are so many beautiful details hiding amidst the oddities. I love the covers on these old books. They would look beautiful framed or as a large collection.

I know Stefan was counting his blessings again that we took our bikes and couldn't buy any of the whiteware. I'm always impressed by the large variety and how inexpensive things are. The fish saucier was one of my favorites, but I never really make any sauces, so it would be pointless for me to buy it.

Since this is the largest crockery market, I always look for cookie jars for my Grandma that collects them. There are plenty of 'Rumptöpfe' - which are used for making a fruity liquored punch, however it's really difficult to find a cookie jar. There are so many beautiful designs, but I guess I'll have to commission one of the artists if I want a cookie jar.

As we walked around Stefan slowly gained a bit of excitement once he saw the antique maps, which we both love. I searched through the large box and came up with one of the Alps, where Stefan grew up, and another of Mid-West America, where I'm from. They are both from 1862!

I'd like to frame them to make a collage of important places in our lives. It looks like I'll have to track down Iceland and the Maldives as well.

If you're in the Munich area, the Auer Dult runs until the 3rd of May.

There are also the Jakobi-Dult from 25 July - 2 August, and the Kirchweih-Dult from 17-25 October.

All are located at Mariahilfplatz, which you can get to by taking the U2 Frauenhofer / Klenzestraße, Tram 27, Bus 52 or Bus 152.

Grandma

My Grandma received her Sistine Chapel puzzle a couple weeks back. I hear she's putting it together, although it is quite a struggle. All of the little intricate boxes definitely make things more complicated, but my sister and Mom were visited when she received it and she was so excited. I'm hoping my sister sends me a few pictures once she completes it... and I'm also hoping she is still happy we sent it.

I thought of my her the other day again when I saw the cookie jar that I wanted to get her for Christmas. Remember her enormous cookie jar collection?

This cookie jar I went to buy in December, but it was sold out, and then we raced around trying to figure out what to get her. Let me just say cookie jars aren't very common in Germany. Now I just have to get back home for her birthday or give it to her at Christmas.

Vatican: Day 2

Today we ventured past the Spanish steps to the subway. There weren't too many tourists since it was still a weekday, which was part of our rational for going to the Vatican today.

The area is so beautiful. There is something wonderful about the old architecture and all of those cobble streets.

As always the subway didn't disappoint. There are always so many beautiful designs and patterned tiles. I really appreciate the urbanness of it.

When we arrived in Vatican City, I instantly noticed clergymen and women walking around the area. Some appeared to be tourists, while others looked as if they were conducting their daily business. And then we came to Piazza San Pietro. Talk about grand!

The area was really immense. It's also crazy to think this building is from the 4th century. It's even crazier to think that St. Peter, one of Jesus' apostles, is buried under the Basilica and was the reason it was built. Coincidentally it's also the largest Christian church in the world. Stefan kept comparing it to Allianz Arena since they both hold roughly 60,000 people.

We noticed the line to enter the Basilica was moving along rather quickly, however we had 11:00am tickets to the museum, so we couldn't take advantage of that just yet. When we arrived at the museum we were once again surprised to find short lines, even though we were able to bypass them with our tickets.

The museum is rather ridiculous and opulent. It really made us ask a lot of questions about the Catholic church, their wealth, and their secrets.

Every ceiling was better than the next and they were so elaborate and carefully thought out. Many of the rooms were crowded, so I can only imagine what it's like during high tourist season. There were so many beautiful things to see and it took quite some time to walk through and admire this extensive collection.

We were awestruck as we looked at pieces - from mummies and Egyptian works to sculptures and paintings by the masters: Da Vinci, Raphael, Titan, Caravaggio, and of course Michelangelo. Impressive doesn't even begin to describe it. And then we went into the Sistine Chapel.

This is the only time throughout the museum that we felt as though we were slightly herded through - or at least packed in, since we could linger. Due to a filled chapel, I didn't notice the sign saying that photography wasn't permitted. There were people with video cameras blatantly filming and taking photos. I was doing the same until I realized I wasn't supposed to. Oops! The second picture I took by placing my camera on the floor with the self timer since I didn't have a tripod... I wasn't trying to be sneaky. We did the same thing at the Pantheon and the results were perfect.

On our way through the museum we passed several makeshift gift shops that were set up. I noticed a puzzle of the Sistine Chapel and instantly thought of my Grandma, who absolutely loves puzzles and always complains she can't find much variety. We decided carrying a puzzle through the entire day would be a bit much. Then, as we were sending our post cards from the Vatican Post Office (which is reputed to be faster than Italian mail), we got the idea of sending one from there to surprise her. The unfortunate thing is they didn't have boxes large enough to fit it, so we had to break the box down before putting it in the mailer. I'm really looking forward to hearing what she thinks, because I know she'll be very surprised.

After spending a large part of the day at the museum we decided to wait in line for the Basilica. Lucky enough we were behind a group of young American girls who were trying really hard to be cultural. We almost lost it when we heard one of them say, 'It's just like Disney World - they just try to herd you in and out.' I'm embarrassed for this girl and clearly understand why Americans are given a bad wrap when I hear things like that.

After going through a bit of security we walked into the Basilica. I quickly noticed the Pieta to the right. The entire basilica was very ornate. There were so many details. Stefan deciphered most of the Latin for me while I tried to take in every last detail.

I love how every detail seems like it was meticulously planned. Rome, and the Catholic church in this instance, definitely enjoyed displaying their wealth. And the talent of the artists is so impressive and surreal. In situations like this I think of our new found love of building for the moment and not for posterity.

The sculptures are glorious and knowing how much time and skill was invested to make them makes me appreciate all of it that much more.

I would love to see what a modern day Leonardo da Vinci or Michelangelo would create, especially considering they could create so much without using our modern technology.

Again, so much detail was shining down from above. The ceilings and domes with the ornate details, colors, and patterns sparkled in the sunlight. The entire basilica had a warm glow to it, which was very inviting.

The baldacchino over St. Peter's resting place is 98 feet of bronze. I can't even imagine how long it took to plan and bring to fruition, especially with various men working on it. I'm sure they had conflicting ideas as to how it should be done.

Next, we opted to be slightly lazy when visiting the cupola by taking the elevator and then walking 300+ steps, as opposed to a few hundred more. Once we arrived at the narrow walkway around the cupola designed by Giacomo della Porta and Fontana, we noticed all of the mosaics. In several of these photos you can see the scale in comparison to a person. Unreal.

Once we arrived at the top we could see the fantastic reward and beautiful panoramic view of the city. It struck me just how small Vatican City truly is. I can understand how the Holy Roman Empire continues on and on once we tried to pick out the ancient ruins in the distance. Coincidentally I also learned that the black and gold flags in Munich represent the Holy Roman Empire. I also get a good laugh out of fully understanding that Salzburg aspired to be 'Rome of the North'. Those are some pretty big shoes to fill!

There was another viewing deck and of course gift shop, on a lower level roof. I loved the curving lines of this rather androgenous religious figure. So very pretty! After climbing high we decided to go into the crypt and see Pope John Paul II's grave. It was quite moving, especially since there were so many nuns praying in front of it. It also allowed us to get a closer view of St. Peter's burial place.

After a rather long day at the Vatican we continued walking on towards Castel Sant'Angelo and the Angel's bridge. At this point I would have really appreciated having a subway nearby, but every time they work on constructing more they run into ruins and must excavate. Walking for 8-9 hours each day is a lot. Thankfully there was more gelato along the way. The dark chocolate was my favorite.

We walked back to the subway at dusk and then decided that we would stay closer to our apartment for dinner. I will write a separate post about that, because we had a very pleasant surprise.

Grandma's Cookbook

My grandma gave me her old cookbook when I went to visit yesterday. It was a wedding gift from my grandfather's grandmother (my great-great- grandmother) and is a first edition Betty Crocker.

The pages are in shambles and it is very well used, but I am looking forward to trying a few old time classics. My mom said she remembers this cookbook always being around, so I am really happy to have it. Here's to hoping the recipes are better than the photos!

Fish pond

I went to say goodbye to my Grandma before I head back to Munich. It was nice to see her and hang out in her garden. I saw the 4 o'clocks (flowers) that she has passed on to my mom. I am just amazed at how much everything is flourishing in her back yard too.

She also has a beautiful fish pond with enormous fish. I loved watching them swim around and the lily pads would shake as they passed underneath.

While I'm home I always take a lot of pictures and try to take it all in and remember the little things that make my visit special.

Grandma's cookie jars

My Grandma is an avid cookie jar collector. She began her collection in 1962 and it continues to grow. It's a bit of a funny collection, but it does make gift buying rather simple. When I was a child we told her that she should bake a different kind of cookie for each jar, but that never happened for obvious reasons. I was even guilty of breaking one - a San Francisco row house... oops. Anyone who knows my Grandmother has memories of her and her cookie jars.

I love bringing friends to my grandparent's house because they are always amazed by what a collection she has. At last count she said she had roughly 300 scattered around her house, and then she has some holiday cookie jars in storage.

One of my favorite things about them is that each contains a scrap of paper inside referencing what year and sometimes date she received it, as well as who it is from and who wants it down the road. Whenever people travel she requests that they look for one, which can be rather difficult in foreign countries. I did find a makeshift handmade covered jar in Ireland, and of course a Bavarian motif in Munich.

My favorite cookie jars are the NYC taxi, from my great-grandma, and the little white 招き猫 (Maneki Neko) 'beckoning cat' that Stefan and I gave her last year, which brings luck, creativity, and purity. The Dutch girl is also quite sweet.

I should start looking now for something cute and unique to give her this year.

Food from Home

Yesterday when we went to the grocery store, I could vaguely feel how a foreigner would entering the immense sea of variety. The cereal aisle alone is so consuming with so many choices. I also have to get accustomed to not going to the store nearly every single day or to a separate bakery. It sounds so mundane, but it's really fascinating to have a bit of reverse culture shock. I lived in the US my entire life, until a year and half ago. I was last home in October, yet these small things still strike me. That is one of the joys of living abroad - having something to compare with and grow accustomed to and then suddenly something that was familiar for so long seems new.

Thankfully I'm not entirely foreign to this culture, and I know what I like and what brands I'm loyal to. Plus, I always have some great family recipes to come back to that can only be made at home.

My Grandma makes an amazing baklava at Christmas and she keeps the recipe top secret. Fortunately she always freezes some, so I can enjoy it when I come home. We aren't even Greek, but people often tell her it's the best baklava they've ever had.

Since today is Valentine's Day, my Mom makes her delicious chocolate Kahlúa cheesecake into tiny bite sized hearts. It is a great consolation if I must spend Valentine's day apart from Stefan. I'm already looking forward to picking him up at the airport tomorrow night. I'm also looking forward to hearing what his food requests are. He always tends to have a huge list of restaurants and grocery items.

I definitely notice how much more of a consumer society the US is and how infectious it is. Especially with the exchange rate in our favor, it will be difficult not to come home with a new wardrobe.