KikiBlog

Weihnachten 2009 - Happy New Year 2010!

2010-01-05T15:27:00.007+01:00

Ein wunderbares Weihnachten 2009 ist zuende gegangen -- ein neues Jahr getartet.

Happy New Year 2010!

Unter unserem Weihnachtsbaum lagen viele Geschenke :-) John's Eltern waren zu Weihnachten bei uns zu Besuch. Wir hatten eine sehr schöne Zeit!

John hatte mich am 1. Dezember mit einem Adventskalender überrascht :-) Ein menschengrossser Weihnachtmann mit 24 Taschen, jede war gefüllt mit einer Überraschung! Was für eine liebe Überraschung :-)

Walk along the Themse....

2009-11-05T19:31:00.006+01:00

John and I are enjoying our walks in London very much!
So sind wir vor ein paar Tagen entlang der Themse gelaufen, vorbei am Tower of London, in dem Kronjuwelen sicher aufbewahrt sind.
Dann über die Towerbridge bei Sonne.....

Weiter sind wir so oft bei der HMS Belfast vorbeigekommen. Und anstatt vorbeizulaufen sind wir diesmal rein... und es war erdrückend eng...und das war das "Heim" der Soldaten monatelang, auch jahrelang... Hut ab!
Die HMS Belfast war 32 Jahre für das Königreich im Einsatz, im 2. Weltkrieg und Korea Krieg, bis es 1971 vor Zerstörung gerettet wurde und als Museumsschiff in London verankert wurde.
Hier sitze ich auf dem Captain-Stuhl mit Blick auf die Themse....

Revisiting the Berlin Wall

2009-11-04T19:58:00.000+01:00

Twenty years on from its collapse, BBC News has been to some of the key sites in the Berlin Wall's history to see what is left.
Watch this about the history of the Berlin Wall!

the Factory at our house....

2009-10-14T20:48:00.004+02:00

...für alle die nicht in facebook meine Freunde sind (hier sind schon viele Fotos, wie dieses): vergangene Woche hatten wir John's Team von webjam (Technik & Produkt) bei uns im Haus :-) Es war ein sehr schöner Nachrmittag/Abend!
Und es ist wunderbar, wieder Gäste in den Mengen einladen zu können, nach den drei Jahren in unserer kleinen Wohnung ;-)

Blick vom Eßzimmer :-)

2009-09-25T15:13:00.006+02:00

Blick von unserem Eßzimmer auf unsere Terrasse, Garten und Garage im Hintergrund. Auch zu sehen die Satteliten Schüsseln. Die weiße Große ist für deutsches Fernsehen, die kleine darüber für englisches Fernsehen.Unser Weber Grill ist abgedeckt. Wir nutzen ihn viel :-) Besonders schön bei so schönen Wetter wie heute :-)
(auf das Foto klicken, um eine größere Ansicht zu haben)

Wohnzimmer fertig!

2009-09-22T19:08:00.003+02:00

Jetzt haben wir auch unser Wohnzimmer fertig eingerichtet. Bilder hängen noch nicht, lehnen noch am Fenster. Müssen uns noch eintscheiden, welches Bild wir wo hinhängen wollen. Und wir haben viele :-)
Jetzt müssen wir nur noch unsere Büros in Ordnung bringen. Viel geschafft haben wir -- YIPPIEH!!!
(für eine größere Ansicht des Bildes, einfach auf das Bild klicken)

Unser Haus nimmt langsam Form an :-)

2009-09-15T14:31:00.005+02:00

Langsam wird unser Haus präsentierbar :-)
Esszimmer, Küche, Schlafzimmer und Gästezimmer sind fertig! Yipphie!!!
Unten sind Fotos vom Esszimmer und Küche. Büros und Wohnzimmer sind noch sehr chaotisch. Aber wir arbeiten dran :-)
Am Wochenende hatten wir schon erste Gäste: John's Eltern haben uns besucht :-) Es war sehr schön!
Und da sie mit dem Auto gekommen sind, hatten wir die Chance genutzt, die Massen von leeren Umzugskisten zu der Mülldeponie zu fahren :-)

Der "Spaß" mit unseren Umzug -- aber wir haben es geschafft!

2009-08-24T15:24:00.012+02:00

... nach 10 Tagen wir sind jetzt in unserem Haus :-) John hat seinen Sommerurlaub dafür genutzt, und wir haben 10 Tage intensives - kostenloses - Stepper Training gehabt :-) Von unserer Wohnung im zweiten Stock Kisten in das zweistöckige Haus geschleppt .
Das Foto oben zeigt John in der leeren Wohnung... und das Foto unten zeigt das zu erwartende Chaos im Haus!

Wir haben noch viele Kisten zum Auspacken und alles zu ordnen. Aber immerrhin hängt schon unsere Satelliten-Schüssel... wir werden neben englischen sogar deutsches Fernsehen empangen können...sobald wir die Fernbedienung für den deutschen Empfänger finden können... in welcher Box ist sie nochmal?

Aber wir brauchten auch mal 'ne Pause und haben uns mit Freunden -- alle von Webjam -- für Cocktails und einem sehr leckeren Essen - Thai - getroffen.

Wir sind sehr glücklich, dass wir jetzt endlich mehr Platz haben. Das Haus ist sehr schön! Ich werde mehr Fotos davon machen, sobald es "präsentierbar" ist :-)

Bigginhill Air Faire: Schaufliegen nicht weit von London

2009-06-29T15:48:00.016+02:00

Am Wochenende warem John und ich bei der Bigginhill Air Faire ausserhalb von London. Ein Schaufliegen von Flugzeugen des letzten Jahrhunderts vom Jahr 1909 bis heute. Höhepunkt waren die Red Arrows der Royal Air Force (RAF). Oben auf dem Bild auf einen grossen Poster zu sehen. Und unten 9 Red Arrows in Action eine Formation fliegend.

Anderer Höhepunkt die atemberaubenden "Wing walking" Flugzeuge. Unten zu sehen, wie zwei Akrobatinnen einen Handstand auf den Flügeln des Flugzeuges machen.

Mehr als 5 Stunden gefüllt mit ununterbrochenden Flying Displays. Die größte privatwirtschaftliche organiserte Air Show in Europa. Beeindruckend!!!

Queen Elizabeth II. feiert Geburtstag: Tausende bei Parade -- wir auch

2009-06-15T14:42:00.011+02:00

Mit einer Militärparade "Trooping the Colour" hat die britische Königin Elizabeth II. im sommerlichen London ihren 83. Geburtstag offiziell nachgefeiert. Eigentlich hat die Queen am 21. April Geburtstag, aber in der Hoffnung auf besseres Wetter feiert sie auch am einem Wochenende im Juni.
Und wir haben John's Geburtstag nachgefeiert, da wir an seinem Geburtstag am Donnerstag bei der Webjam Party waren. Beides SEHR schöne, ein wenig unterschiedliche Feiern. Aber die Webjam Party war in einem Royal Nachtclub, wo wohl auch die Prinzen verkehren sollen :-)

Flugshow für die Royals
Die königliche Familie beobachtete vom Balkon des Buckingham-Palasts die akrobatischen Luftmanöver von 29 Kampfflugzeugen.

John und ich sind nicht auf dem Balkon des Buckingham-Palasts gekommen - Frechheit :-) Wir haben auf den Boden gesessen und haben einen wunderbaren Blick auf die Flugshow gehabt ...

Ein königliches Wochenende

2009-06-15T13:00:00.008+02:00

Wir haben die Queen gesehen (siehe Video oben) und John's Foto der Queen wie sie bei uns vorbeifährt in ihrer Kutsche :-)

Abends haben wir bei dem super leckeren internationalen Restaurant "Michal Moore" auf John's Geburtstag angestossen und es uns gut ergehen lassen. Der Chef Michael Moore hat auf allen Kontenten gearbeitet und sich inspirieren lassen. Seine Biografie ist beeindruckend: Das schmeckt man -- sehr empfehlenswert!

Grosse Schiffe vor Anker in London :-)

2009-06-01T16:58:00.006+02:00

Ja, grosse Kreuzfahrtschiffe können bis nach London Zentrum auf der Themse fahren! Siehe das Foto unten :-) Es ankert gerade neben der HMS Belfast! Die HMS Belfast ist ein britisches Kriegsschiff, das heute als Museum auf der Themse in London verankert ist.
Die Baskülen der Tower Bridge werden immer nur so weit geöffnet, wie es für die Passage des jeweiligen Schiffes erforderlich ist. Die volle Öffnung ist heute nur noch für große Kreuzfahrtschiffe erforderlich. Doch bei der London Bridge ist Ende. Diese kann nicht geöffnet werden. Diesen imposanten Blick haben John und ich haben am Wochenende gehabt auf der London Bridge stehend...

Sommer in London

2009-05-28T17:34:00.003+02:00

Der Sommer ist gestartet in London :-)
Um die warmen Temperaturen und die Sonne in vollen Zügen zu geniessen, waren John und ich letztes Wochenende im London Zoo. Wir waren noch nicht dort, somit war es mal Zeit.
Und es war himmlisch, blauer Himmel und exotische Tiere. Unten nur eine kleine Auswahl vom Fotos... wir haben es sehr genossen!

Beautiful Day

2009-05-27T16:27:00.001+02:00

Today is World MS Day! Take a look at this great video. U2 sponsored their song "Beautiful day" :-)

Misconceptions about MS....

2009-04-23T19:37:00.004+02:00

The UK MS Society has started a great campaign to clear the misconceptions about MS.

Read more about it here.

Kiki geht "tauchen"

2009-04-17T21:35:00.001+02:00

Wir schreiben das Jahr 1972... ich war ein Jahr alt...im "tiefen" Wasser ...

Einmalige Erinnerungen...

2009-04-16T13:12:00.004+02:00

Danke, Papa!
Du hast uns mit Super8 während unserer Kindheit gefilmt. Das sind einmalige Erinnerungen!
Unten ist ein kurzes Beispiel von unserem Sommerurlaub im Jahr 1976 auf Bamuki...

Schnee im Frühling...

2009-04-15T12:53:00.004+02:00

... ist es nicht :-)
Die Bäume entledigen sich der Blütenpracht uns bereiten sich auf den Sommer vor. Sommer ist schon da in London mit 24 Grad heute!

Das Foto unten ist von vor einer Woche. Jetzt liegen die Blüten alle auf dem Boden...

Traum Wochenende in London

2009-04-05T19:26:00.005+02:00

Wow, was für ein Wochenende! Sonne und fast 20 Grad in London. John und ich sind gestern nach Picadilly Circus gefahren und von das aus weiter zur Southbank an der Themse gegangen, wo wir die vielen Street Performer uns angeachaut haben. Ich fand den oben auf dem Foto so süß, dass ich ihm Geld (1 Pound) gegeben habe. Er hat sich dafür bedankt :-)

Von da aus weiter über den Fluß zum Parliament und Big Ben. Oben auf dem Foto ist Big Ben, London Eye und ein typischer Londoner Doppeldecker Bus und das typische schwarze Londoner Taxi zu sehen. Von da aus sind wir weiter durch den St. James Park zum Buckingham Palace gegangen. Es war traumhaft!

Blütenpracht in Ealing

2009-03-23T18:28:00.007+01:00

Ealing in voller Blüte! Frühling ist da....
John und ich sind gestern durch Ealing spazieren gegangen und haben die warmen Frühlingstemperaturen und Blütenpracht genossen :-)

Frühling in London!

2009-03-16T14:34:00.004+01:00

15 Grad und Sonne -- der Frühling ist in London angekommen :-)
John und ich waren gestern im Hyde Park lange spazieren und haben die Sonne und warme Temperatur genossen!
An einem Teich im Hype Park stand noch ein Überbeleibsel des Winters. An einem Schhild wird vor der Gefahr von dünnen Eis gewarnt: "Danger Thin Ice" :-)

John's version of our magical day :-)

2009-02-17T10:01:00.006+01:00

Read John's blog post of our great day -- click on the link below

It went like clock-work... "Willst du mich heiraten?" 14 Feb 2009... Valentines Day

John und ich sind verlobt!!!!

2009-02-16T20:15:00.021+01:00

14. Februar 2009: John hat mich am Valentinstag überrascht -- wir sind verlobt :-)

Es war sehr romantisch -- John meinte zu mir nur, dass der Abend schon von ihm für uns geplant sei. Es ging los mit einem Glas Chanpagner in Selfridges. Wir machen das ab und zu. Ich dachte, passt gut zum Valentinstag.
Von da aus weiter zu einem Restaurant mit dem Taxi. John hatte es mir nicht gesagt welches. Und es war der Pub "Princesse Victoria" in White City (West London) -- kein normaler Pub, genütlich wie ein Pub, Essen und die 10seitige Weinkarte aber besonders!
Und ich immer noch nichtsahnend...
John ist während des Essen nach draußen gegangen, um ein Taxi für unseren Weg nach Hause zu bestellen. Es sei ihm zu laut, um in den Pub zu telefonieren ....
Nach einem sehr leckeren Essen, einer Flasche Barolo und einem Kir Royal, sind wir dann zu unserem Taxi gegangen.
Ich immer noch nichtsahnend...
Im Taxi habe mal wieder meinen "sehr guten" Orientierungssinn bewiesen. Erst als wir buchtäblich vor dem London Eye waren, fiel ich aus allen Wolken :-)
Wir gingen zur Kasse am London Eye...schon kam uns eine Host mit einem grossen Korb in den Händen entgegen.
"Welcome, I am your host for tonight in den London Eye", hatte sie uns begrüßt.
Entlang des "Fast Track" sind wir vorbei den Valentinstagmassen direkt zu unserer Capsule gegangen. Und aussser uns und dem Host, ist niemand anders zugestiegen. Normal sind etwa 20 Passsagiere pro Capsule. Aber wir hatten unsere private Capsule :-) Was für eine tolle Valentinstag-Überraschung von John, dachte ich.... und immer noch nichtsahnend...
In der Capsule hatte unser Host dann eine Flasche Champagner für uns geöffnet und uns eine Packung Pralinen gegeben und mir eine rote Rose. Dann hatte sie sich aber dezent von uns abgewandt.
Und jetzt kam die romantischte Überraschung meines Lebens, John : "willst Du mich heiraten?"....ich war zunächst sprachlos, überwältigt von den Eindrücken, dann aber sagte ich laut "JA!".
Ein einzigartiger, kaum beschreibarer Valentinstag -- ich werde diesen Tag nie vergessen!

Schnee in London!!!!

2009-02-02T12:07:00.013+01:00

Ausnahmezustand in London!
Massen von Schnee haben heute alles lahmgelegt: KEINE Busse fahren mehr in London, nur eine Underground fährt noch, viele Flüge wurden gestrichen.

John auf dem Weg zur Arbeit, er hat Glück, daß seine Undreground noch gefahren ist. Wollen wir hoffen, daß er heute abend noch nach Hause kommen kann. Es soll heute abend noch schlimmer werden.
#
Der Eingang zu unserer Wohnung in der Thorpe Hall ist bedeckt von Schnee.

Der Blick von unserem Fire Escape. Der Mülleimer mit einer dicken Schicht von Schnee.

Die typische Londoner Postbox kaum zu erkennen :-)

Schnee in London ist sehr selten, vor allem in den Mengen. Das gab es seit 20 Jahren nicht in London. Wir leben länger als zwei Jahre in London -- das haben wir noch nie erlebt in London :-) Ein Paradies für Kinder! 500 Schulen in London sind geschlossen heute! Viel Zeit um Schneemänner zu bauen :-)
Und nicht nur Kinder bauen :-) Der Schneemann unten ist von unseren Nachbarn unter uns. Gebaut auf dem Fire Escape mit dem Schnee auf der Treppe....

Kunstwerke aus Eis

2009-01-12T16:27:00.002+01:00

John und ich warem bei einem IceSculpture Festival in London am Samstag. Aus großen Blöcken von Eis wurden wahre Kunstwerke geschaffen, wie die Penguine unten. Leider war deren Leben sehr kurz, da es schon am Sonntag weit über Null Grad waren in London. Arme Penguine...

2009 ist da :-)

2009-01-02T20:09:00.005+01:00

1. Januar 2009 in London... die Weihnachtsdekoration ist immer noch inm vollen Glanz, und London wird überrannt von Menschenmasssen auf der Suche nach Schnäppchen. Viele Geschäfte werben mit "up to 70%" für viele Artikel. Der Winterschlussverkauf hat begonnen.

John und ich haben es gewagt uns darunter zu mischen. Die Fotos zeigen den Piccadilly Circus im Herzen Londons. Wir sind auch fündig (nicht schwer :-) ) geworden haben und zwei DVDs gekauft bei HMV.

Weihnchtszeit in London

2008-12-05T10:22:00.006+01:00

London ist traumhaft weihnachtlich geschmückt. In der Carnaby Street hängen Monster Schneemänner. die auf einen runter blicken. In der Regent Street sind große Lichterketten gespannt, die die bekannten Einkaufsstrasse mit einem weihnachtlichen Licht verhüllen.
John und ich habe es gestern sehr genossen, diese Weihnchststimmung einzufangen :-)

Advent, Advent... eine Kerze brennt!

2008-12-02T17:05:00.006+01:00

Gestern, am 1. Dezember, haben John und ich die Adventszeit mit einer Adevnetskerze und zwei Adventskalendern eingeläutet. Einer ist von Lego und hat jeden Tag eine kleine Lego Überraschung. Gestern war eine kleine Lego Figur mit einem Truthahn in der Hand die Überraschung :-) Der andere Adventskalender ist von den Simpsons mit Schokolade. Hm...lecker :-)
Ich wünsche allen eine besinnliche Adventszeit!

BBC television centre 1956 - 2012 ?

2008-11-29T11:54:00.013+01:00

Diese Woche hat Alan wieder ein paar Ealing MS Society branch Mitgliedern eine private Tour von dem ehrwürdigen BBC television centre gegeben. Alan hatte 20 Jahre im television centre bei BBC gearbeitet und kann uns Ecken zeigen, die der normale Besucher nie zu Gesicht bekommt.
Im BBC television centre wurde Fernsehgeschichte geschrieben. In den vielen Studios sind viele bekannte Serien, Shows und Filme produziert worden.Für das Television Center werden leider momentan Käufer gesucht. Es ist zu teuer... also, wer ein "kleines" Häusschen in London gerade sucht....
Der Plan ist bis 2012 ausgezogen zu sein.
Ein paar Teile werden nach Central London in ein neues Gebäude ziehen, andere nach Manchester.

Nach dem zweiten Weltkrieg konnte BBC das damals noch sehr ländliche Grundstück in West London bei White City erwerben. Der Grundstein für das BBC Television Centre wurde 1956 gelegt. Siehe das Foto....er ist im Keller des riesigen Gebäudes, in dem man sich ohne Probleme verlaufen kann....

Auch im Keller kann man berühmte Film Requisiten finden, wie zum Beispiel den Tardis von "Doctor Who". Hiermit ist Doctor Who durch "Time & Space" gereist.
Unten ist das Original zu sehen:

Man kann den Tardis aber auch als Spielzeug mit einer Doctor Who Puppe kaufen :-)

Das weltweite Web....

2008-11-12T16:55:00.007+01:00

...ich liebe es!
Bei Naymz, einer der vielen Social Networking Plattformen, wurde mein Profil weltweit besucht. Man kann sich auf der Karte anzeigen lassen, woher die Besucher kommen.
Diese kamen wohl in den letzten Wochen aus Peking (China), Berlin (Deutschland), Kalifonien (USA), Texas (USA), Schweden, England und Süd-Amerika....siehe die Karte oben.
Das WWW macht die Welt in der Tat kleiner :-)

Der Jahrestag des 'Gunpowder Plot'...

2008-11-11T17:25:00.010+01:00

... oder die Zeit der Feuerwerke vor Silvester.
John und ich waren am Wochenende bei einem der vielen Feuerwerke, die um den 5. November anlässlich des Guy Fawkes Tag gemacht werden. Wo man hinschaut, rechts, links, vorne, hinten wird "geschossen".
In England feuerwerkt man am 5.November anlässlich des ‚Guy Fawkes’ Day.
Damit halten sie die Erinnerung an den ‚Gunpowder Plot’ wach, der 1605 in London statt fand. Mehrere Verschwörer, darunter Guy Fawkes planten damals die ‚Houses of Parlament’ in die Luft zu sprengen, in dem sich auch der König von England aufhalten sollte. (James I.)
36 Fässer Schießpulver waren heimlich in den Keller des Gebäudes transportiert worden. Die Verschwörung flog auf und Guy Fawkes, der zum Bewachen der Fässer abgestellt worden war, wurde festgenommen und später hingerichtet.

Wir waren im Chricket Club Ealing. Das Feuerwerk war bombastisch. Die Pyrotechniker, die es manuell gestartet haben, standen direkt im Rauch, umgeben von Feuer. Das nennt man wohl Berufsrisiko :-) Siehe das Foto unten.

Niagara Falls....breathtaking !

2008-09-06T17:54:00.011+02:00

We drove from North Carolina with the stop in Virginia to West Virginia. And then all the way to the Niagara Falls. This short video shows the Canadian falls. This was indeed the highlight on our East Coast Tour.....

It is no surprise to see those signs all over there...who wants to jump down there?

We did the Maid of Mist and got very close to the falls. This picture shows one boat fighting its way towards the falls.

Of course, we also wanted to get wet in the mist and got the fashionable blue plastic rain ponchos. The picture below shows the American falls in the background.

On the boat we had an amazing view of the Canadian falls as we were approaching the Canadian falls. Well, the view was nearly zero the closer we got because of all the mist. It was hard, or impossible to keep your eyes open.
By the way, I took the video from the upper right corner, when we were watching down the falls.

The Niagara falls were the highlight of our vacation! We indulged in having a very nice hotel with a room with a fall view. Waking up with this view of the Canadian falls with a rainbow is unforgettable! Because of the mist there was a rainbow most of the time when the sun was shining ....

Morgantown .. a new way to go by train

2008-09-06T17:31:00.000+02:00

We continued our tour from Radford to visit John's sister in Morgantown. West Virgina.
One of the features of this great University town is a small almost personal train system. By selecting a destination at the station, soon a small electric wagon shows up with room for up to 8 people - all of whom are going to the same destination. The wagon then takes off and goes non-stop to your selected destination, bypassing all stations in-between. Something new to me. Very nice!

"Kick ass ...on grass!"

2008-09-05T16:30:00.004+02:00

...was our motto when I played Field Hockey at the Radford University in Virginia. Onr stop was Radford, where we met up with my coach and his wife Maria. What a great thing to dive into your past and have all the great memories come back!
To keep that up and to stay in contact with former teammates, I was talking with my coach about an Alumni website. He liked the idea very much. So when returning home, I created the Radford University Field Hockey Alumni webjam. It is growing fast and there are more and more members. Check it out by clicking on the link above.
On the picture below you can see the current team at practice. All potential members of the Alumni webjam :-)

From NYC to Hollywood....

2008-09-01T15:30:00.002+02:00

We contnued our East Coast tour and drove to friends in Hollywood, Maryland. They live right at the Chesapeake Bay. The weather was sunny and warm, perfect to enjoy the water. As it was Labor day, our friends threw a great party. Guests arrived either by car, boat or Seedoos. Was a totally different feeling, like in a movie.
Here John and I trying a Wave-Runner Seadoo. That was a LOT fun!

As our friends live right at the water, they have a boat and their own pier. The picture shows John making his way down to their boat.

Here you can see Captain John :-)

After the party, our friends took us out on their boat to watch the sunset over the Bay. That was spectacular!

Wheaton Arts Glass Blowing

2008-08-29T16:46:00.000+02:00

Another highlight: we made our own bowls and paperweights at Wheaton Arts.
They have a great program where you can do you own glass-work under the tutelage of an expert glass artisan. So we made a day trip from Connecticut to Southern Jersey.
The picture below shows John working on his paperweight while it is still molten glass and very hot. He wears an arm protection to be safe. He brings it into the shape he wants.

On this picture he is looking proud at the finished paperweight, but still very hot. The cooling process takes 24hrs in a special oven.

And here is the final paperweight. Yes, is blue, not red or white. That was amazing!

NYC .... a great start of our vacation

2008-08-28T17:59:00.002+02:00

We landed at JFK airport and stayed with friends in Connecticut. From there we headed to New York City for a day and visited some of our favorite places. We were at the M&Ms World. Always fun! On the piscture below John is walking towards it. They have big advrtisement as you can see. And of course, we also just had to go to our favorite Chinese restaurant. Delicious!

On one shopping window there was a big billboard counting Bush's last day as the elections are coming up. I wonder which candidate they are supporting :-)

2500miles or 3700km... our East Coast Vacation

2008-08-28T14:28:00.004+02:00

John and I spent two weeks in the US. We drove along the East Coast and met up with many friends and did and saw lots of exciting things.
it was a great trip. I took 512 pictures. You will fine some in my blog very soon :-) Here's the map with the major stops flagged.

Fantastic weekend at Land's End

2008-08-27T14:52:00.006+02:00

John and I had a breathtaking weekend at Land's End, Cornwall! Situated on the westerly point of Britain, it is surrounded by spectatcular views of the Atlantic Ocean. New York is just 3147 miles away :-)
It is named "Pen Sans" in the ancient Cornish language, meaning "Holy Headland".
Penzance enjoys the most temperate climate of the British Isles while early spring flowers, vegetables and other produce demonstrate the mild weather conditions experienced here. I was amazed about the numerous sub-tropical flowers and palm trees.

The last Inn in England can only be found here! The Atlantic Ocean being next.....

Edinburgh Military Tattoo

2008-08-20T18:18:00.005+02:00

Last weekend John and I were in Edinburgh to see the Military Tattoo. It was amazing and we had luck with the weather. Though it was grey, it did not rain. And that is what Scotland is known for.

The picture below shows the Tattoo celebrating the celebrating 100th birthday of the Territorial Army. The Edinburgh Castle is in the background.

We were also at the Bank of Scotland. John is embracing one million pounds :-) Too bad that we didn't get a sample...

Red Bull Air Race London 2008

2008-08-05T13:23:00.021+02:00

On Sunday, John and I had an amazing day at the Reb Bull Air Race. We were sitting next to the 02 dome. The planes were flying by us with up to 370kmh, impossible for me to get a good picture with my "point-and-shoot" camera.
But have a look at John's Blog. He took amazing pictures and posted a very good description of the event! He has the right camera to take those amazing pictures, very professional.

Click here to get to John's Blog!

And have a look at the videos to get more impressions ;-)
Click here to get an overview of the race track by somebody who raced humself at the Red Bull Air Race London 2007:

Video Track Introduction

And here is a video of the race:

Above the videos is our view we had. Big screens in front of us. Below is a picture of a Blue Eagle demonastartion before the race. Those amazing helictopters can do amazing things, like flying vertical (as shown on the picture) or upside down.

Tall Ship's Race in Liverpool

2008-07-23T13:44:00.019+02:00

Last weekend John and I went to Liverpool to watch the start of the worldwide known Tall Ship's Race. It includes a dazzling array of vessels, from 30 foot yachts to square-rigged ships over 300 feet long.

The picture above shows crew members all the way on the top of the masts setting sails. They look like Ants on the picture! But they are humans -- amazing!

The race will head for Norway before ending in the Netherlands. It will bring almost 100 tall ships with more than 3,000 crew members.

Blustery winds meant few of the Tall Ships were actually in full sail at the Tall Ship Parade.

And we were able to go on board of the amazing Tall Ships. Highlight for us was to be on board of Alexander of Humboldt -- or better known from the Becks' commercial. Unfortunately Becks is not a sponsor of the ship anymore. But it still has the green sails.

Last year we met the Becks' ship the Baltic Sea and were sailing right next to it.
Watch my video

The ships are from more than 18 countries, like from Brazil, Poland, Oman and Germany.

And since we were in Liverpool we went by the birthplace of the Beatles -- the Cavern Pub.

MS Society Walk in Windsor Great Park

2008-07-13T19:54:00.006+02:00

Our sponsors are great! Over the last few weeks, John and I have been searching for sponsors for the MS Society Wheel & Walk. Our goal was £1000 and with a late flurry of action, we nearly made it to £1600! It's great to see the generosity of friends and family.

After the great showing from our sponsors, Kerstin and I headed this morning to the Queen's weekend residence - Windsor. The Queen has a rather nice little house there.

From there, a rather long taxi ride to Virginia Water at the very southern end of the Windsor Great Park. While listening to start briefing for the 180 participants, I was ready to go and getting impatient!

The wait wasn't long and we were off. After a few hours, here I am crawling across the finish line after setting a pace that was perhaps a bit too quick.

Okay, in reality it was a great day - cool, mostly sunny. The 7km walk wound around the Virginia Water area led through forest and meadows - all with great views of the lake.

And at the finish line, everyone was cheered and those who finished the course were given a medal as proof of completion.

Many thanks to all of our sponsors and well-wishers! You guys are the best!

Germany came in 2nd and I won a prize from Webjam

2008-07-04T10:16:00.006+02:00

What an exciting tournament the EURO2008 was! I really get addicted to soccer when European championships or even better World championships are on. This Euro2008 was especially exciting for me to watch as Germany was sooo close to win it. Only beaten be one team, Spain, in the Finals. Germany stand still during the games.
School kids in Berlin got free from school earlier on Monday to welcome the team.

Since Germany came in 2nd at the Euro2008 after a good game, I got the 2nd prize from the Webjam Euro2008 pool...
This means that I got a) 10 GBP in cash and b) the two keychains as shown in the pictures ;.)I think I will spend the cash on a massage to recover from the EURO2008 :-)

Read more about the good performance of Germany in my Euro2008 - Germany Webjam

Thanks to the German team and to Webjam!

Wimbledon...

2008-07-01T14:43:00.007+02:00

John and I were yesterday in Wimbledon...not to watch the Championship that is going on right now. But we would have been interested to go in to take a look. But the waiting time was still almost two hours -- and it was 6pm! We were only able to have a peek on the courts when we were driving by with the double-decker bus ...
Only in Winbledon the phone boots are decorated with a tennis ball :-)
Roger Feder won at Wimbledon 5 times and is heading for the sixth time. Quite impressive!

Sunny day with friends

2008-06-30T14:38:00.005+02:00

On Saturday John and I had a very nice day with our friends Sophie, John and Sacha and enjoyed the nice weather in the Kensington Park.
In the evening John and I enjoyed an Organ concert in the Royal Albert Hall. As I don't want to replicate what John wrote in his blog, take a look at his blog. You find a desciption and also nice pictures there :-) Click here to get to John's blog

John and I are fundraising....please sponsor us!

2008-06-25T16:55:00.007+02:00

We are doing the MS Wheel and Walk event on 13 July 2008 and every sponsorship goes to the MS Society. Every little bit helps. Please sponsor us -- thanks!

Scan-My-Media is scanning again....

2008-06-25T16:05:00.004+02:00

As we have a new customer from Austria for Super 8 film, John and I set up the whole equipment to digitize Super 8 reels in our small flat. We kind of hesitatet to do since we moved to London. But it turned out very nicely with smart arranging of the stuff. So Scan-My-Media is in the Super 8 scanning again :-)
And we found a very nice store "The Widescreen Centre" in central London. They are family owned and has been since it started in 1971 (Wow, that is when I was born).
We needed necessary film cleaner for the old films as we were running low on it. We also have many Super8 films from my dad, which are overdue. Sorry, dad! But now we can do it again.
The son of the store owner recommended to me where I could find compresses air cans, which we also need to clean the films from dust. I can only recommend "The Wiescreen centre ltd." if you happen to need film equipment.

Bank

2008-06-15T18:13:00.003+02:00

A "Bank" at "Bank Station", which is amusing if you know German. In German "Bank" means "Bench". The sign signals that there is a bench below as it is easily to miss :-)
"Bank Station" is called this way because of the Bank of England, which is right at the tube station.

A look to New York....

2008-06-15T17:33:00.010+02:00

Hardly anyone knows that a secret tunnel runs deep beneath the Atlantic Ocean. In May 2008, more than a century after it was begun, the tunnel has finally been completed. An extraordinary optical device called a Telectroscope has been installed at both ends which miraculously allows people to see right through the Earth from London to New York
and vice versa. Read more on the website.
And John and I were there yesterday and had a peek to the other side of the world
View to New York through the tunnel. We saw people waving at us and the Broolin Bridge in the background, whereas the Tower Bridge in London can be seen from New York and us waving. We saw people who had arranged to "meet-up" with their friends on the other side this way.
The picture below shows the view through the tunnel to New York we had...

Throught this below you were able to have a peek to New York. John is standing next to it...
The Tower Bridge in London can be seen from New York. John ist watching the Tower Bridge above...

Graffiti at the Tate Modern....

2008-06-01T21:31:00.004+02:00

Hard to belíeve, but this is Graffiti at the Tate Modern. I saw it already in the news: Tate Modern hired Graffiti artists to decorate the huge Tate Modern.
Some of them were in disguise so that they couldn't be recognized on TV. They fear that their style could be recognized from other perhaps not so legal locations.
John and I walked by there today and to check it out and saw they used some kind of foil. So in fact, the graffitis were done somewere else and then glued on the Tate Modern... maybe the only possiblity to create such a big piece of art in short time.

London skyline....

2008-05-22T19:55:00.003+02:00

Today I had a project meeting in Central London. To get to it, I had to walk from the tube station over the Thames. Just want to share with your the beautiful view. I enjoyed it so much that I just had to take a picture :-)

Prove that I have a brain...

2008-05-17T18:05:00.003+02:00

I just had my first digital MRI done. Very nice! Instead if a pile of images, you get one small CD. Very useful. And it is amazing to look through all the images at home on my monitor.

A beautiful weekend in London with surprises....

2008-05-12T09:47:00.015+02:00

John and I had a great weekend .
We started out at the Royal Albert Hall listening to Filmharmonic concert. Classical pieces from movies were played, like Mission Impossible, Superman, Harry Potter and many more. Was amazing!!!
Before the concert started we were able to take a picture of the three London icons: Royal Albert Hall, and in front of it double-decker bus and a typical London taxi cab.
On Saturday we met Sophie, John and Sacha in the Hyde Park and used the beautiful weather to play some soccer with Sacha. Later we drove on to Ealing where we had a nice lunch. This was full of suprises as a thunderstorm hit us there. We had to take a taxi cab nack to our home as it was raining so strongly. But it lasted not very long and the sun came out soon again.

On Sunday John and I got up early (for us on a Sunday) to watch the changing of the guards at the Buckingham Palace.
There were lots of people already and we had luck to get a place in the front. It is not even the tourist season yet. Can you imagine how it will be in the summer....

It was a big Surprise when we saw those guards walking up :-) We asked a bobby where they are from. His answer with a smile on his face: "we ran low on guards, so these are from Malasya to help out". As Malasya being a former crown colonie from the UK, they were the guards this time :-)
From ceremomy at the Bukingham Palace we went on to do Big Bus Company's tour of London. Very interesting and we had a good tour guide. In the price of the ticket is also that you can take the boat on the Themse. So we changed from the bus to a boat and then back again in the bus. If you know the Board Game "Mister X", that is how we felt :-)

The pictutre below shows John at one of our stops when he is holding the London Eye :-)

A walk in the summer in London

2008-05-06T19:43:00.008+02:00

Summer is here :-)
John and I went for a long walk through some of Londons parks (Holland Park, Hyde Park) and enjoyed the beautiful weather.
The British really love their dogs and provide toilets for them :-)

See also John's blog with more pictures from our walk....Click here

SEASONS -- change of one tree within a bit more than one month...

2008-05-01T18:27:00.004+02:00

It is amazing to follow the change of seasons... the picture below shows of what one tree had to go through :-)
You find bigger versions of the images all in my blog, I posted them under the corresponding date.

NOW spring is here....

2008-04-28T21:39:00.005+02:00

What was blossoming tree not long ago, is now a full of leaves (see earlier entries). And it is only less than one month ago that this tree was covered with snow. It is nice to follow how it develops...

The talking Rabbit :-)

2008-04-14T10:15:00.005+02:00

We have adopted a talking rabbit (white with big ears)! We named him Paddingon Bear!
What really impressed us that he is always connected to the Internet, because he is a Nabaztag.
He reads news and even the E-Mails he gets to us.
Very sweet!

See the picture below of him with his friend Paddington Bear.

For Hugh Laurrie Fans...

2008-04-09T10:29:00.002+02:00

Hugh Laurrie in the David Letterman Show. During Season 2. Worth watching :-)

House MD -- what will happen in season 4?

2008-04-08T20:26:00.002+02:00

We have watched Seacon 1 to 3, but Season 4 is not out yet in Europe.
We can't wait!!!!!

Good April Fools' Day joke from BBC :-)

2008-04-07T15:51:00.001+02:00

Flying penguins :-)

Snow in London!

2008-04-06T10:54:00.004+02:00

I welcomed Spring too early... today we got snow in London!!!
I looked at the weather page on my webjam and saw this...

And then I looked outside and saw this.....

It is the first time this winter that we have snow in London! But it won't stay for long, it is too warm.

Spring is springing....

2008-04-01T19:02:00.003+02:00

The trees are blooming! We had 17°C today and lots of sun. Spring is here :-)

Spring...

2008-03-19T13:34:00.002+01:00

Spring is coming. Trees get ready to show their full potential :-) I love it!

Classical Spectacular

2008-03-16T18:14:00.006+01:00

John and I had a marvellous evening at the Classical Spectacular in the Royal Albert Hall. Framend by incredible lights, lasers and special effects world's best classical music was presented, including Orff's "Carmina Burana" and Ravel's "Bolero", and many more.

CeBIT and sun in Hannover

2008-03-09T19:42:00.000+01:00

Yep, we had a safe landing in Hamburg :-)
From Hamburg we drove on to Hannover where we had an interesting time at the CeBIT, which is the world's largest trade fair showcasing digital IT and telecommunications solutions. The fair ground is huge, lots to see!

I was one day at the CeBIT. At the booth of a Digital photography company I had the chance to get a picture of me taken and got a large print of it, as well as the digital image. This company works for the Messe AG and collected "Faces of the Cebit". Really nice and free :-) Okay, in return I had to sign that the Messe AG can use the image for advertising, if they wish. But oh well, that is fine for me...

The next day I met up with my father and sister as they live in Hannover. John continued to explore new technologies at the CeBIT.

I had had a wonderful sunny day with my father and my sisterat the small lake "Maschsee" in the center of Hannover.

We were enjoying the sun in beach chairs. Perfect to recover from one day at the CeBIT.

Lufthansa A320 escapes after wing-tip strike Hamburg storm 01.03.08

2008-03-05T10:23:00.005+01:00

... and John and I will fly to Hamburg tomorrow -- wish us a better landing :-)

Freddie found a new home

2008-02-29T12:46:00.009+01:00

After more than a year, Freddie, thr frog, found a new home in a charity shop.
We enjoyed him very much. But after sitting on our couch in the living roon all the time, we thought he needs to make some new friends.
Read
here in a previous post how we "adopted" him.

Meeting celebrities in London!

2007-10-13T18:33:00.000+02:00

London is a great place to "meet" famous people!
Meeting R2DS and C3PO from Star Wars.,...

..and the rat named Remy who dreams of becoming a great French chef despite his family's wishes and the obvious problem of being a rat in a decidedly rodent-phobic profession.

Oktoberfest Munich ;-)

2007-09-28T18:07:00.001+02:00

Last weekend we had a great time at the Oktoberfest Munich :-)

View from the Ferris Wheel

John, Micha and Antonia walking towards the Ferris Wheel...

Walk along the thames

2007-05-01T18:59:00.001+02:00

John and I walked along the Thames from Tower Bridge to the Parliament. A very nice walk!
And there was some excitement at the Tower Bridge as they were shooting a movie there. The Bridge was opened only for it, smoke produced, cardboard tanks moved and police boats were speeding and stopped behind the bridge when they had all the needed footage. Was fun to watch!

Summer in London

2007-05-01T18:37:00.004+02:00

How beautiful ... summer is here: blue sky, sun, warm temperatures at the end of April!

We visited Sophie, John and Sacha on Sunday and walked through the lovely Windsor. Birgit, a friend from Munich, was also there for a visit.

Sacha, 8 months old, was again the sweetest boy :-) John enjoys taking care of him.

Windsor is very close to Heathrow Airport, the planes fly right above the Queens' weekend castle.

Easter Sunday at the white cliffs of Dover

2007-04-09T21:19:00.001+02:00

Easter Sunday we drove to the white cliffs of Dover at the English Channel. We walked along the entire length of the cliffs which is a 2 mile walk one way. The white cliffs are facing France which was visible. A really nice walk, also as we had beautiful weather! Along the way there were warning signs as below. But luckily we didn't fall :-)
John brushed up his driving skills for driving on the "wrong" side. He is doing a great job!

Stonehenge ... one wonder of the world!

2007-04-07T19:16:00.004+02:00

Yesterday we drove to Stonehenge, the great and ancient stone circle which is one of the wonders of the world. Stonehenge is about one hour away from London.
What visitors see today are the substantial remnants of the last in a sequence of such monuments erected between c. 3000 BC and 1600 BC. Each monument was a circular structure, aligned with the rising of the sun at the solstice.
Just imagine building something like that with only very basic tools from about 5000 years ago. Amazing!!!!

Sacha & Lily

2007-04-02T09:18:00.000+02:00

Yesterday we met our good friends with two of their kids Sacha and Lily. 8 weeks and 7 months old.
Very cute :-) See picture...

PAM in London

2007-03-23T21:57:00.000+01:00

On their way to their vacation in South Africa very good friends of ours from Germany had a stop over at Heathrow Airport in London. And Heathrow is not far away from us, so we met up up for a coffee. On the pictures you see Pammi and their cute daughter Toni.

Spring is here....

2007-03-16T16:56:00.000+01:00

Blue sky, lots of sun and cherry tree blossom: spring in London :-)

London at 8am...

2007-02-03T09:25:00.001+01:00

It is said that it rains only in London. This is clearly not what I have experienced since living in London. Just take a look at the picture I took this morning from our flat -- blue sky and a beautiful sunset. And it has been like this since for many days :-)

New York, Monaco, Pompeii....

2007-02-01T22:15:00.001+01:00

We just came back from wonderful - exciting - trips.
First we were in New York City for John's graduation. Yes, he is done! The graduation ceremony was very special in the chapel on the the Columbia Business School campus -- seeing John in his Columbia Blue Cap & Gown made me even more proud! On the picture you see him with his Gown.

Afterwards we had a great dinner with John's parents who flew in from Switzerland for John's graduation at our favorite chinese restaurant Shun Lee Palace in New York -- the best chinese place! Delicious!
Then we had a big graduation party with the other students. The location was with a view to the Hudson River and of course some sky scrapers-- was a great party!

From New York we flew back to London just to get some new clothes and flew on the same day to Nice, France. There John's parents picked us up at the airport who drove from Switzerland to Nice. They flew back earlier from New York to Switzerland than us to have some time to rest before picking us up in Nice.

Now our next event started -- our yearly event the International Circus Festival in Monaco.

It was our sixt year in the row that we watched the amazing performances of the world best artists.

Following Monaco we continued our journey and drove to Pompeii in Italy to travel more than two thousands years back in history..
On August 24, 79 AD, the volcano Vesuvius errupted, covering the nearby town Pompeii in ash and soot, preserving the city in its state from that fateful day.

Pompeii is an excavation site and outdoor museum of the ancient Roman settlement. This site is considered to be one of the few sites where an ancient city has been preserved in detail - eveything from jars and tables to paintings and people were frozen in time, yielding an unprecedented opportunity to see how the people lived two thousand years ago.

The picture above shows the excavation of the Temple of Apollo in Pompeii with the vesuvius in the background.

Kiki in London

2007-01-08T17:59:00.000+01:00

Kiki's Blog continues -- finally....

After a long pause I will start again to post what is happening in my life ... and that is a lot :-) Hope you will enjoy it!

Thought the blog needs a new look & feel to represent the new city we are living in since my last post in November 2005...

John and I won yesterday the giant frog you see on the picture at the London fair. We call him Freddie the Frog. He is already part of the family and sitting on our sofa in the living room. Freddie was a big celebrity on our way home yesterday. I carried him on my back and he was sitting next to me in the London underground. The new color of my blog is dedicated to Freddie :-)

Jerry -- we miss you, too!!!!

2005-12-13T23:59:00.000+01:00

After losing Ben nearly two months ago, Jerry was also put to sleep this evening. He also suffered from the same Virus as Ben and got sick shortly after we had lost Ben.... it is very hard to loose them both and we will miss them very much!!!!

Find more pictures of Jerry and Ben in John's blog. Click
here.

Robbie Williams comes to Germany...

2005-11-23T13:55:00.000+01:00

... and the hopelessness to get a ticket ... both concerts in the Olympic Stadium in Munich were sold out within hours, even minutes... and that's 130.000 tickets in total.

Ben -- we miss you!!!

2005-10-25T11:02:00.000+02:00

Today we had to put Ben to sleep. He was almost 15 years old when he got sick. He had the feline leucosis virus, which can*t be cured.
Ben, we send you many treats to wherever you might be....

Read also in John's blog about Ben. Click here

At our favorite cheese city "gruyere"

2005-10-23T14:12:00.000+02:00

We just spent a sunny, relaxing weekend in Switzerland staying at John's parents house enjoying their hot tub :-) But we also drove to the city Gruyere famous for its cheese and its picturesque village. The picture below is taken from the Gruyere city wall,

John at a vineyard close to his parents house.

A dream castle in front of our door....

2005-10-21T13:58:00.000+02:00

With our guests Bella and David from Armenia we went to Schloss Neuschwanstein again. It is always worth the trip, especially if one hasn't seen it yet. King Ludwigs Castle is impressive!

Back to the past

2005-10-09T11:43:00.000+02:00

Shortly áfter our trip in France, I flew to the Alumni Meeting of my fieldhockey team in Radford, Virginia. And it was great! To see everybody again after so many years is very special!

Also, in a surprise ceremony head coach Jeff Woods was recognized for his 20 years of coaching the Highlanders with an endowment fund in his name.

You find more pictures and a link to a news article about the event on this page: www.kiki.info/RUFH_Alumni_2005/

Mont-Saint-Michel -- breathtaking!

2005-09-29T11:20:00.000+02:00

We finished our trip to France and drove to MONT-SAINT-MICHEL in the Normandie. Perched on a rocky islet in the midst of vast sandbanks exposed to powerful tides between Normandy and Brittany stand the 'Wonder of the West', a Gothic-style Benedictine abbey dedicated to the archangel St Michael, and the village that grew up in the shadow of its great walls. Built between the 11th and 16th centuries, the abbey is a technical and artistic tour de force, having had to adapt to the problems posed by this unique natural site.

John taking pictures at the bay which is flooded at high tide.

Castle Tour through the Loire Valley

2005-09-27T10:36:00.000+02:00

Since we were already in the Loire Valley, we added some days to tour through the beautiful Loire Valley. The castles there are just amazing. We saw 9 castles in 2 days and haven't seen all the castles. It is nearly impossible -- there is a castle at every corner...

The château d'USSE, Sleeping Beauty's castle, is a chateau of dreams... Charles Perrault, visiting in the 17th century, took inspiration from it when writing "Sleeping Beauty".

Wedding in a kilt

2005-09-24T12:39:00.000+02:00

Our friends Sophie and John got married! It was a wonderful multicultural wedding: John being scottish wore a kilt, Sophie wore a beautiful wedding dress. The wedding was in the Loire Valley close to Sophies home Paris. Friends and family from Scottland, France and Germany celebrated a beautiful wedding in a chateau, a backpipe player was of course also there ;-)

Boh, why do you wake me up? I was asleep... my brother still is.....

2005-09-16T11:08:00.000+02:00

Settlers of Catan World Record

2005-09-13T16:10:00.000+02:00

Last weekend John and I drove to Chemnitz, which is about 4 hours away from Munich, to participate in a world record record attempt: Biggest Game of the world! And we made it :-) 806 players in totals played the game "Siedler of Catan" on one board distributed over two floors. Lots of fun!

Below part of the board on the first floor, ready to start!

Klaus Teuber, the author of the Siedler-Game was of course also there to watch this event and sign Siedler boards...

Click here for more info about the Game Siedler of Catan and "our" world record!

Intel inside -- Jerry outside :-)

2005-09-12T15:07:00.000+02:00

No further comment needed...

4 Countries in 2 Hours

2005-09-06T19:39:00.000+02:00

We just came from a wonderful weekend in Germany, Austria, Liechtenstein and Switzerland. On our way to Liechtenstein, we had to drive through 4 countries within only 2 hours.
The picture above shows a castle in Liechtensein with a vineyard in front.

Floods....

2005-08-25T12:36:00.000+02:00

Dozens of people have died and thousands of homes have been destroyed across central Europe after days of torrential rains caused lakes and rivers to flood their banks, prompting some evacuations by helicopter.
Fatalities were also reported in Southern Germany, Switzerland, Bulgaria and Austria.
I took the picture above today. It shows the river "Isar", which is near our house. The photo spot is a about 5 Minute walk away from our house. As you can see, we are lucky, the "Isar" is below our house, so no danger for us.
The picture shows which is normally a peaceful river as a wild stream, that found ways to relieve pressure by spreading out. The water electricity station in the picture is being "ingnored" . The dam normally needs to be open to generate power. Now the water just goes around, no chance to control the water.

A day in Ben and Jerrys life

2005-08-14T19:13:00.000+02:00

Tough Life! The daily schedule of Ben and Jerry is as follows: Sleeping 22 hours, eating (Ben 1 hour, Jerry 10 minutes), and toilet, cleaning, puking, playing. Oh, what a simple life...

Following King Ludwig II traces...

2005-06-20T13:13:00.000+02:00

Bavaria once used to be a kingdom. One of their kings was Ludwig II, the "Märchenkönig". And all of his castles are not far away from us: Neuschwanstein, Linderhof, and Herrenchiemsee. We have been to all of them.

He is known by many nicknames: the Swan King, the Mad King of Bavaria, the Dream King, and Mad Ludwig. Was “Mad King Ludwig” mad? This is only one of many mysteries that surround the former Bavarian regent to this day. Ludwig II (Ludwig Friedrich Wilhelm) has become one of the most legendary figures in Bavarian and German history, a history full of legendary figures.

He managed to finish only one of them: Linderhof. John and I were there this weekennd. Like all of his castles quite impressive! Especially the artifical grotto near the castle, that was build by Ludwig as his personal opera house, but never used. The Swan boat on the picture shows one kitsch element of it.

Our "trip" around the world

2005-05-21T15:41:00.000+02:00

I just visited my sister Heidi, my brother-in-law Uli and my nephew Luca. Main reason for my visit was Lucas birthday! One ofJohns and my gift for him was a puzzle. But not an ordinary one, but the world, round shaped out of many round shaped pieces. And it was lots of fun to see the world develop piece by piece, to discover land, to feel just like Columbus. The picture shows Luca dressed in world-fashion :-)

Lap Cats

2005-05-15T14:18:00.000+02:00

Ben develops to also being a lap cat, just like his brother Jerry. So he took over Jerry's spot, "owned" by Jerry for many years. Confused that his spot is taken, Jerry decided to sit on John's leg to be close to "his" lap...
Old age doesn't mean that one cannot change, including cats ;-)

Poisonous Viper in our garden?

2005-05-04T08:06:00.000+02:00

Yesterday we were informed by a local official that a poisonous viper might hang out in our garden. A garden worker from our next door neighbor was bit by it! Yikes!
According to an information page about viper poisoning, the so called "Kreuzotter" (Vipera berus) causes real pain, nausea, vomiting, headache, up to collaps and even respiratory paralysis....
Oh, by the way, we plan to have a garden party soon -- everybody is invited ;-) Maybe our special guest also shows up... (don't forget to bring your heavy boots and long trousers)

Cherry Tree Blossoms

2005-04-28T15:37:00.000+02:00

Cherry Tree Blossom in Switzerland