A Few of My Favorite Things

Sometime in the past month it hit me that I now consider Karlsruhe my home. Which is crazy to me. Especially considering when I got here I felt like I was in an alternate universe. I absolutely love living here. But don't get me wrong, I miss home a lot. Not a day goes by that I don't dream of sand between my toes, the ocean breeze, and diving into the salty waves of the Pacific. The ocean and I will eventually be reunited, so I don't worry too much. But living here for only a short time makes me want to treasure what I love here so much. So I thought I would give you a list of some of my favorite things (that I've experienced and seen so far) in Germany.

1. Karlsruhe Schloss & the Schloss Gartens
My absolute favorite place in Karlsruhe. The castle isn't grandiose or anything, but it's adorable. But then again I'm probably partial; I love that it's yellow and grey, which are colors I've always wanted to paint my future house. But it's not just the castle that I find amazing, I love the castle gardens as well. They are ridiculously picturesque. Lots of green grass, a lake, and hundreds of huge ancient trees. A perfect place to sit and think or drink in nature.

A beautiful view of the castle from the castle grounds.

2. Friends
I have been so blessed with an amazing assortment of friends while living here. They make living far away from home easy. I love the mix of cultures (Chilean, Brazilian, Argentinian, German, American, Irish; just to name a few) because it makes anything we do like three times as fun and adventurous. We do lots of fun things like shopping, having card nights, going out to bars, going on day trips to nearby cities, and so much more. I so deeply enjoy all the time I get to spend with them.

Nacha and I striking a silly pose.

3. Changing Seasons
I feel like I talk about the weather on this blog all the time, so I'm dreadfully sorry, but it's amazing. Being a California girl is great, but I don't really get to see the seasons change. Here in Germany, I would have to be without my five senses to not notice the seasons changing. There is nothing more glorious than getting to watch this occur. I arrived in Germany in the midst of stark blue skies, cold crisp winds, and burnt orange leaves. Then I survived the ridiculous cold temperature drops, rain, bare looking trees, and everything being covered in white. Just when I thought I would never be warm again, the world came to life. All of the sudden everything was green and colorful. Sun and rain played hide and seek. I can only imagine what Summer will bring me.

4. Drinking Age
In the States, because I am not 21, I cannot legally drink. Which is utterly ridiculous. I think the U.S. needs to take a leaf out of other countries books and lower the legal drinking age. Here in Germany, you can start drinking stuff like beer at 16, and then when you turn 18 you can drink hard liquor. I find this to be much more reasonable. Since I am 20, I can legally drink here. Which has been strange and liberating all at once. I love it. But it does kind of take the specialness out of my 21st birthday (which is oh so soon), and that really is a bummer. But I think I'll survive the disappointment.

My friends and I having some wine after a yummy Chilean dinner.

5. Food
If you've ever heard the stereotype that all Germans eat is bread, meat, and cheese, then you know what I eat haha. But honestly, as much as I eat bread, meat, and cheese... I do love it. Especially in the many combinations it comes in. Probably my favorites are Käsespätzle and Maultaschen. But what's really stolen my heart here is all the foreign food. Before I came to Germany, I had never eaten Turkish food. But now, let me tell you, I am in love with it (oh, kebaps why are you so delicious?). And there are some fabulous Asian food places here that I am constantly craving. But I think what I've really loved the most is all the home cooking that my friend Nacha makes. It's this delicious blend of Chilean, German, and her own creations. All this food talk is making me hungry for dinner!

6. Walking, Biking, and the Straßenbahn
Now as much as I miss my car, I really love the how I get around Karlsruhe. Mostly I walk or bike to and from places. Which is great because I get exercise and get to enjoy the outside world all while going somewhere; something I can't do in a car. If it's raining, or I have a farther destination to reach, I take the Straßenbahn (street cars, kind of like the metro in LB). The Straßenbahn is great, but I often get lost because I take the wrong train (typical me). I'm not the most skilled when it comes to public transportation (I blame So. Cal's lack of good public transport).

Sebastian the Bike.

7. No Sheets
I know this seems random and strange. But you see, here in Germany they do beds and bedding differently. Most beds are lower to the ground, which freaked me out at first, but now I'm used to it. But what I really find fascinating is that they don't use sheets. Yes, there is one on the mattress, but there isn't one to sleep with. Usually you just sleep with a down comforter. Which at first confused me. But then I fell in love with the idea. You see, I move a lot when I sleep. This usually means my sheets, blankets, and comforter get all messed up in the night and are always a pain in the butt to fix the next morning (well, on that rare morning I decide to make my bed). Here it doesn't matter how much I move, because fixing my bedding is like crazy easy. So great.

8. Biergartens
Biergartens are quintessentially German, and I love them. While they share similarities, each restaurant has it's own personality. My personal favorite is Badish Brauhaus (four stories of amazingness). But no matter the biergarten, they are all a great place to get yummy, cheap food and enjoy a great time with friends. 

Me, Bernie, and Gabriel drinking beers at the biergarten Cafe Bleu.

9. No Contract Cell Phones
In the States it's the norm to have a cell phone contract. Which of course is bloody expensive. And you are bound to a phone company for about two years. Fun... not. In Germany, cell phone contracts are not typical. In fact most people here just use prepaid SIM cards. Which I think is so darn brilliant.

10. Spielplätze, Parks, and Green Spaces
I could go on forever describing all the green spaces that Karlsruhe has, and I haven't even seen all of them. I so enjoy that the city has provided so many places for it's population to relax, play, and soak up nature. The playgrounds here are ridiculously cool (much better than the ones back home), and I love playing on them almost as much as the little kids. The parks, big or small, always impress. Green grass, plants, trees, and cool structures everywhere. I especially love the parks with lakes in them. Can't wait to go swimming in those this Summer. Another thing I really love is how in what otherwise could have been a place for concrete, the city has created a grassy area where wild flowers often grow. It always makes me happy to see that even though I live in the city, I get to see so much nature around me.

Th dog park near my apartment.

11. City Living
To me, "the city" has always been a magical place. I think this especially due in part to my upbringing in the suburbs. So I'm delighted to get to live in a city for a year. There's nothing quite like having everything nearby and easy to get to. I also love all the tall buildings (even though most aren't over 5 stories high). I even get to enjoy living in one of those "tall" buildings. So much about city living is really new and interesting to me.


12. Getting Airmail
I have always loved getting mail that isn't bills or junk mail. And being far away from home makes me love it even more. It's so exciting to open my mailbox to find a letter. Or get a package delivered. Always makes my day. I even bought a box to keep all the letters I get from my friends and family. So would you please, please, please, write me a letter and make me a very happy girlie?

Me with a letter from Juliette :)

My letter box. Isn't it pretty?

I am amazed by all the wonderful things that Germany has to offer! And there is so much more. It totally kills me that I won't be able to see and experience it all. Oh, to have limitless time and money to travel and explore. Someday.

Four Seasons

Most Southern Californians will tell you we have four seasons. A gloriously hot Summer, a slightly breezy Fall, a chilly and rainy Winter, and a warm Spring. Don't let them lie to you. We don't have four seasons. We have two. A glorious season of sunshine and warm weather, and then a season of cloudy skies, chances of rain, and "cold" weather. We live for sunshine. When it actually goes and rains on us, we all freak out. We are a spoiled rotten bunch. So until I came to Germany, I had never really experienced "seasons" as a large portion of the world experiences them. Actual factual weather has really taken me by surprise.

I think it's quite hilarious how weather is considered a trivial topic of conversation. In fact, it's the thing you bring up when you have nothing else to say ("Uh, so I hear it's supposed to rain tomorrow..."). But considering how much weather effects us (our outfit choices, how we get to and from places, what activities we do, etc), you think we would rank it a little higher on the topic of conversation totem pole. I mean, we all talk about it all the time. I know I do. Even more so now that I have actual weather to talk about.

So after having several long months of a very, very cold Winter, I'll be honest, I've been extremely excited watching Spring arrive in all it's glory.

There is nothing more delightful than realizing it's warmed up enough to only wear one pair of socks. It's finally getting warmer (and when I say warmer I mean like in the 50's and 60's F, which is not warm at all for So Cal) and I'm so happy. I live off of warmth. But I'm also slightly freaking out. Because after wearing so many layers for so long, exposing even the slightest amount of skin (or just wearing less layers) makes me feel naked. An example my Cali friends can laugh at... I wore ballerina flats for the first time in several months yesterday. I was bike riding and I became extremely freaked by wind going across the bare tops of my feet. I bust up laughing, probably scarring the locals, and then tired my hardest not to be wishing for my boots.

But warmth isn't the only way Spring has shown its arrival. All over the city plants and animals are awakening. Every time I walk outside I feel like Mary watching The Secret Garden come to life. It's utterly magical and it takes my breath away. God really knows how to put on a show in the Spring time. There are green buds on all the previously grey looking trees, bird songs sweetly fill the air, wildflowers are popping up in all the green spaces, and little critters, like bunnies, are making their appearances in the parks.

I think my favorite thing is seeing all the dandelions sprouting up everywhere. Now, I realize dandelions are weeds. But I think they are beautiful weeds, and worthy of attention. They are lovely pop of color on normally very grey and dull walkways and sidewalks. And when they turn white, they provide quite the entertainment factor; I'll admit I still make a wish when I blow the seeds into a million different directions.

And it's not just the plants and animals that are awakening. The people are too. The sense of hope is tangible in the air, and people have a spring in their step. Everyone seems to find a reason to be outside as much as possible, especially on the clear, sunny days. After such a long Winter, everything and everyone feels a weight lifted off their shoulders. It's utterly lovely.

All this life just ties in so well with the Easter season. It's much more tangible to me now, seeing how life sprouting up around me and tie it all into finding new life in Jesus.

In celebration of Easter, Karlsruhe has an Easter market set up in Marktplatz. There are a bunch of little booths selling either craft items or food. And in the middle of all this is a giant blow up Easter egg. Nacha, Ivanka, and I decided that this was a must see and planned an afternoon around it.

Me in front of the giant egg. It says "We wish you all a happy Easter".

Ivanka and I met up and did some exploring of the booths while we waited for Nacha (who was to meet up with us a little later). It was lots of fun, and we had to restrain ourselves from buying a bunch of ridiculously cute things. But we did give in and buy a couple things. I bought a pot holder and Ivanka bought an egg warmer. Both from a cute little old lady who knitted them herself. After ripping ourselves away from the booths, we went and looked at the "petting zoo". Basically just a lot of animals in too small cages, which made me really sad. I love animals, and it was great to see them, but it wasn't really great to see them confined like that. Then we met Nacha in front of the big egg and went off on a shopping adventure in several stores on Kaiserstraße.

The Easter bunny apparently has a beer belly.

Frohe Ostern (Happy Easter)... "little" egg near the big blow up egg in Marktplatz.

Cutest lil bunnies ever.

Ivanka was excited to see the ferrets, the ferrets were excited to sleep.

 After our shopping fun, we ran into our friend Danilo, and then we all decided to go to the Karlsruher Schloss Gartens. The Gartens are my absolute favorite place in Karlsruhe because they are just so large and stunningly beautiful, no matter the season. Of course, Spring makes any garden more magical, and the castle gardens aren't immune to such magic.

Although the day was grey and quite cold, the time we spent at the castle was lovely. We walked across the large grassy lawn, making our way to the lake, while talking and people watching. The instant we made it to the edge of the lake all the ducks started swimming towards us, which was pretty funny, because they thought we had bread to feed them. But we only had chocolate with us, so we made our way over to the cement stepping stones near the lake shore and sat down. While the ducks eyed us hopefully, we ate our chocolate and talked while trying not to shiver as the wind picked up. Eventually we had to leave because Nacha had to go to a birthday party and Danilo had to go home. I think we were all quite thankful for a reason to start walking again because it was so cold.

"Omg they are coming!"

Stepping stones and the lake with the castle in the background.

Nacha and Ivanka sharing a stepping stone.

Ivanka and I decided that we would hang out a bit longer, so we strolled around the front of the castle, acting silly and talking. Then we decided to window shop at the mall. Which was a tortuous yet fun time. It's hard to see so many things that you can't/shouldn't buy. After the mall we got drinks and pizza at a nearby restaurant called Aposto. Ivanka and I can talk to the ends of time, so it was lots of fun chatting away and enjoying a good meal. A perfect way to end the day.

Ivanka striking a pose in front of the castle.

Me in front of the castle.

After several attempts we finally got both us and the castle in the picture. And our hair looking not crazy. Quite the incredible feat.

Most Germans will tell you they have four seasons. A lovely sunny and warm Summer, a cold and rainy Fall, a freezing snow filled Winter, and a warm, cold, and slightly rainy Spring. Believe them. There are definitely four seasons. And you can see them change. It's amazing.

Luck of the Irish

On my father's side of the family, we can trace our Irish roots back several hundred years. Apparently one of my ancestors was knighted. There's even a castle named after us. Fancy smancy right? So, I feel this Irish heritage gives me the right to get stoked about St. Patrick's Day and pinch anyone not wearing green.

This was my first St. Patrick's Day that I could legally drink (considering the legal drinking age in the states is 21 and I'm only 20). Which, I'm not going to lie, got me pretty darn excited. So I made sure that my friends and I had plans to go out and frolic about Karlsruhe (wearing green of course).

As usual, I ended up having to buy something green last minute. I never seem to own anything green even though it's a fabulous color on me. I tend to stick to my neutrals. Point being, I went and bought green jeans. Which I love, and plan to wear quite often. So, see, they weren't just a superfluous St. Patty's purchase. (The fact that I'm trying to justify buying green pants to you shouldn't worry you in the least bit...). And in a very Ashley fashion, the buying of pants late made me late to meeting at Nacha's. When will I ever learn? Queen of procrastination and being unable to be on time ever? Why, yes that's me. (It's so bad that this will probably end up on my gravestone: "Sorry I'm late!").

Nacha, Bernie, Ivanka, and I had a very green themed dinner (see the picture and you know I'm not lying). I had brought along a couple St. Patty's accessories that a friend (thanks Ger!) had sent me from the States. So we decked ourselves out, us girls with green hair extensions, and Bernie wearing a floppy green and white top hat. Then I drew shamrocks on Nacha and Ivanka's faces. And my face as well because both declared my shamrock drawing skills far superior to theirs haha. After our self decorating, we headed out to meet up with friends in front of the Karlsruher Schloss.

Our yummy green dinner!

Nacha, me, and Ivanka with green hair and shamrocks.

We met up with a pretty big group of friends (and friends of friends) near the front of the castle. Our original plan was to meet and then immediately go to one of the Irish pubs in town, but as we should have predicted, they were all jam packed. So we decided to just hang out a bit and try our luck later in the evening. Which turned out to be quite fun. We just stood around talking and drinking beer under the stars. Simple, yet so perfect.

After an hour or two, our group split up to pursue different adventures. The group that I was with (my closer friends), decided to go to Sean O'Casey's Irish Pub. Which is in Marktplatz and only like a five minute walk from the castle. So we gathered our things and set out into the night.

Apparently our waiting didn't help in the slightest. We got to the pub and found it to be full of people packed in like sardines. For a time we loitered out front debating if it was worth it to go in. But several of our bladders made it a necessary thing, so we stirred up our courage and dove into the crowd.

Nacha, Bernie, Gabriel, Ivanka, and I hanging out in front of O'Casey's.

Me, Albert, Maria, and Gabriel wearing green!

Gabriel, Nacha, me, and Albert in front of the pub. See! Here is evidence of my green jeans.

After our bladders were happily relieved, we began to scout for seats. Well, it was more us staring desperately at the full to the brim tables and telepathically willing the people to get up and leave. It seems that our telepathic skills are better than we knew; a whole table stood up and left about twenty minutes into our wait and we all jumped into action and claimed a seat before the other pub goers could.

The rest of our time at O'Casey's was spent drinking ourselves silly and singing along with the live music. We also had a little contest to see who could down their beer the quickest, which I won (of course). But probably the most memorable part of the night was when Ivanka and I bought a rose for Nacha (yes, a guy was randomly selling roses in an Irish pub on St. Patrick's Day). Her reaction was hilarious, I don't think anyone has ever been that excited or grateful for receiving a rose (not even The Bachelor contestants could compete with her enthusiasm).

Maria, me, and Gabriel.

Carmina, me, and Gabriel.

Me showing off my beer and Gabriel being a total goon in the background.

Me, Gabriel, Albert, Bernie, Nacha and Ivanka wearing the hats that the pub gave out to some of the crowd.

Me and Ivanka with Nacha's rose.

Nacha getting emotional over the rose Ivanka and I gave her.

Then our group of eight slip once more. Ivanka and I headed to another Irish pub, Scruffy's, that was less than a ten minute walk from Marktplatz. She and I arrived to find that it was so packed inside that people were drinking out front. We stood for a minute, figuring out a plan, when all of the sudden a very large (tall and wide) man in a kilt approached us. He talked to us a bit (figured out we were foreigners immediately), and then randomly he picked up Ivanka and spun her around in a circle. I laughed, but immediately took a step back not wanting to be next. But I was next, even though I tried to reason with the guy. Once he set me down on the ground he said "It's nothing to pick up someone as small and pretty as you." I blushed, thanked him, and then grabbed Ivanka and we headed into the pub. That guy totally made my week.

Scruffy's is smaller than O'Casey's, so we had quite the adventure getting from the front door to the bar. But Ivanka and I prevailed, getting our beers and making a dash (more like a slow crawl) to the front of the pub to drink out front. We ended up chatting it up for over an hour, enjoying ourselves quite thoroughly, before we decided it was time to call it a night.

It was a lovely St. Patrick's Day. I am one lucky girl to have such awesome friends, great experiences, beer, and green pants all in one evening. And I don't even own a four leaf clover.

17 Again? Nope.

Last week I had the pleasure of being reminded that I am most definitely getting old. This twenty-year-old body just isn't the sprite youthful thing that it used to be. Kidding... sorta. As much as twenty-somethings have youth and spunk unknown to their elders, we don't have the crazy energy of teenagers. That is zapped out of you quite quickly once you aren't a teenager anymore. This past week Johannes and Christiane's seventeen-year-old niece stayed for a couple days. I absolutely adored hanging out and going on adventures with Lea! It was one heck of a couple days. After which I proceeded to take a nap.

Lea and her family dropped by for a few days before they went on their Fall holiday house boating in France. Everyone in Germany gets a Fall holiday, how fancy is that? But Lea and I had so much fun that she decided to stay for a few days once she was done house boating with her family. This first adventure was before they went house boating, all the rest are once she got back.

On Monday (not this past week, but the week before) we visited was Karlsruher Schloss, which is one of my favorite places to just frolick about. It was a gloomy, cold, and windy day. But I love those kinds of days. Lea and I roamed about the vast castle grounds, including the Hartwald (a forest). I told Lea that one of the things my friends and I love doing is taking pictures when we are on adventures (or when we are bored haha). So I made sure we took a couple pictures while we walked around. My favorites are the ones of us walking on one of the tile spokes that show that the castle is in the middle of the city and most of the streets radiate out from it. After the castle we went to a fancy little cafe and drank absolutely amazing hot chocolate.

Lea in front of the castle.

Me walking on the blue tile "spoke".

Lea came back on Sunday with her family, and then they left that evening to go back home. Monday morning we found ourselves trying to figure out what to do. The museums aren't open on Mondays, so we couldn't go there. And other things would take too long (I had slept in a little too late). So we decided to watch the movie 'Bride Wars'. We laughed so much! But for the afternoon we did go on an adventure. Lea and I took Martha to the Karlsruhe Zoo. Now, when I think of a zoo, my mind goes directly to all the trips I have made to the San Diego Zoo and the LA Zoo. Both are huge and have a certain fancy California feel to them. The Karlsruhe Zoo is pretty much the complete opposite. It's really quaint, sprawling but not huge, and has a fanciful quality to it. It is almost like a park. I would say the main focus of this zoo is its botanical gardens (which are gorgeous) and then amongst the gardens, lakes, and rivers are the little exhibits. Another thing that surprised me was that they have animals I would never expect in a zoo because I don't consider bunnies, goats, sheep, Shetland ponies, and ducks to be exotic. There is even a petting zoo within the main zoo. This is where we spent most of our time. Martha was totally enthralled by all the goats. She spent the better part of a half an hour "training" them. It was so adorable; and Lea and I couldn't stop giggling.

See! I wasn't joking about the Shetland Ponies!

On Tuesday we once again found ourselves not being able to go to a museum because they were closed for some reason. But that morning we had more time, and were able to go sort of far. So we chose to take a train to Durlach (a suburb of Karlsruhe) and ride the Turmbergbahn. What is that? Well it's the oldest train in Germany! And it goes up the side of a mountain (more like a hill) where at the top you get an amazing view of Karlsruhe and the surrounding areas. You can even technically see France. The Turmbergbahn was really neat! But when we got to the top of the "mountain", I stopped thinking about trains. We climbed up a old watch tower from like the 1200's or 1300's to get the best view of it all. I was totally floored. The view was so amazing! The pictures I took just don't capture the vast beauty. Lea had packed us a snack (gummy bears and cookies) and we ate those as we basked in the view. It was really windy, but I like to think that it made it all much more epic.

Lea and I in the Turmbergbahn.

Just one of the epic views from the top of the tower.

Once Lea and I left the Turmbergbahn, we realized that we still had time to kill before we went to pick up Frieda from Kindergarten. Lea suggested we go and see Gottesaue Schloss, which was actually about a five minute walk from Frieda's school. The castle isn't really a castle. Nor has it ever been, so I'm not quite sure why it is called one. For a really long time it was a monastery. And then at some point it became a music college. Unlike a lot of old historical buildings, this one is not a museum. This meant we could only look at the outside. Which was fine; it was neat just strolling around the grounds  listening to all the students practicing their music.

Me in front of Gottesaue Schloss.

Lea in front of Gottesaue Schloss.

On Wednesday we finally got to go to a museum! And what a museum it was. I was super impressed by it all; I have never been to a museum like ZKM. I was really excited to go because ZKM is a modern art museum. And I do love a good art museum. But, unlike all our previous adventures we couldn't take the train (because the workers were on strike that day). So it was about a twenty minute walk from the house, in the rain. Great day for the train workers to be on strike right? Ha. The museum is in the same building as an art school, which I thought was pretty darn smart. Lea and I spent the morning nice and warm (as opposed to our walk in the cold, cold rain) looking at and interacting with the exhibits. The main exhibit at the moment is all about crazy modified cars. But the mini exhibits were all about technology. There were iPads, classic arcade games, karaoke, futuristic virtual reality games... the list goes on. It was the most amazing thing to see stuff that I am familiar with, in a museum already. I can already tell I am going to be one of those grannies that takes her grandkids to the museums and says, "When I was your age the iPad was a new fangled idea..." Nothing wrong with that right? Oh geez.

Me playing with bubbles that react to my shadow.

One of the cars from the main exhibit. It was an art piece all about the environment.

All these morning adventures combined with watching my girlies in the afternoon really made me one tired girl. When Lea left I was super bummed that I was losing my adventure buddy; but man, was I stoked to spend the next morning at home in my pajamas. Lea still has that teenage vivaciousness that I can't quite keep up with anymore (though I am pretty sure I talked her ear off). And I adore her all the more with dealing with me: the tuckered out twenty-year-old.

Being a Karlsruher

Ahh Karlsruhe. I think I am in love... with a city. Possibly the whole country. Or for that matter, maybe all of Europe. I think I am still a little starstruck at the fact that I am getting to go places I have only dreamed about. I am so blessed by this opportunity. But don't worry America, you are still my favorite.

Since I have only been here three weeks, I have yet to travel beyond Karlsruhe just yet. I know I will soon be going other places, so I am not worried. And anyways, there is just so much to explore within Karlsruhe city limits. Now, I have a gone to a good couple places (as you can see in my photos on Facebook, Picasa Web Albums, and Flickr) and I don't feel the need to go on about them all in this post. Some of them will be highlighted in a new post sometime this week. But I thought I would give you some of the observations I notice daily when I am out and about.

The first of these observations is the weather. Yes, a mundane topic, but it is an important one! Growing up in Southern California has made me, and all my fellow Southern Californians, absolute whimps when it comes to weather. The instant it starts to sprinkle, we throw on our raincoats and rain boots and walk around with umbrellas complaining how terribly cold and wet it is. When it's slightly too hot and humid we moan and groan about how darn hot it is and how terrible it is to sweat and be outside. We like our weather to not be weather at all. Karlsruhe (and all of Germany) in that respect is a Southern Californian's worst nightmare. It actually has weather. Like real rain, real snow, freezing cold temperatures, and it's known for not getting very hot at all. I'm naturally a very warm person, so the idea of being cold is nice. But when it actually happens it's not so nice. Like last Friday night, I froze my butt off (not literally haha) while walking around the city in the fog. With cold comes layers. And with layers comes a very toasty Ashley who has to strip off all her layers every time she enters a room, or she will turn into a pile of sweat. Ew. I don't want to even ponder what Winter is going to do to me. I have such a hate love hate relationship with snow. For now, the weather has been quite lovely though. It has been a proper Fall. Crisp air, mix of brilliant blue skies and cloudy, rainy days; perfect weather to wear cute clothes and an appropriate amount of layers. Today is another blue sky kind of day, I can't wait to get outside and frolick about on my bike.

This is weather from last week, so pretty. 

The second of these observations is the history. The makings of Karlsruhe began way back in 1094 when Gottesaue Monastary (which is now a music college) was created and the settlement of Durlach (which is now a suburb of Karlsruhe) bought a charter. The seat of Margrave of Baden was moved from Pforzheim to Durlach in 1565. Lots of things happened in between that I won't bore you with (wars, politics, etc) and in 1715 Margrave Karl Wilhelm started the building of a stone palace (Karlsruher Schloss) and the foundations of a city not far from Durlach. Once it was finished he transferred his seat from Durlach to Karlsruhe in 1717. Another load of things happened (such as the creation of the modern bicycle and car; no big deal). 1940 saw the end of the historically peaceful relations between Christians and Jews in Karlsruhe. Why? Because 945 Jews were deported to Gurs in the South of France. At the end of WWII in 1945, more than 35% of the city was in ruins. In 1952, the state of Baden and the state of Württemberg were combined into the new state of Baden-Württemberg. This meant that Karlsruhe was no longer a capital city. By 1967 the city has almost completely rebuilt itself from the damages that had WWII caused. And then of course a lot more history has happened since then. But those are the main key points that I wanted you to know because they really have shaped the life of this city.

Me in front of Karlsruher Schloss.

The third observation is of the city layout and the architecture. Karl Wilhelm put the Karlsruher Schloss in the middle of a big circle and city streets are like the spokes of a wheel basically. That's really for the heart of the city though, because Karlsruhe has obviously grown since 1715 and doesn't quite follow the spoke pattern. It's a really neat concept though, and actually it is one of the cities that Washington D.C. was based on. Pretty cool right? The architecture is a strange mix of old and new because of all the damage that was done to the city during WWII. I think it gives the whole city a lot of character. One moment you are looking at buildings that are several hundred years old, and then you are looking at ones that were built less than sixty years ago. The mix of old and new is a beautiful pairing and you see it in most big cities; even if they weren't destroyed by war. I am fond of the layout and architecture because it all reminds me of three cities that I love dearly: New York City, Washington D.C. and San Francisco. It's a weird mixture, I know, but it makes absolute sense to me and only makes me love the city more.

The final observation is of the city sounds. It is rarely ever quiet in a city. The wailing of ambulances and police sirens can be heard for miles. And I must say they are not at all fierce sounding like the ones back at home. Which usually makes me laugh. But I shouldn't laugh at people getting hurt or arrested... yeah, um. Moving on. The church bells are my favorite sound. Constantly ringing on the hour, reminding me what time it is. Which is great because I hardly ever know what time it is these days. The sound of a procession of cars honking, signals that there has been a wedding and you know the bride, groom, and their family and friends are on their way to the reception. Trains can be heard sliding down the tracks usually from any where in the city. I can ever hear one from my bedroom. Bike bells ringing, cars horns honking, pigeons cooing; but the most constant sound you hear is talking. Everywhere I go I hear German. I am so used to it now that I often scare myself when I talk aloud in English because the sound has become foreign to me. The city is alive with sounds. I love to just sit and listen to it all.

I have come to love Karlsruhe. I can't wait to spend a whole year living here. But I also can't wait to get outside her city limits!