It is true, we do finally have a fridge which we transported today in out Alfa. The car is slowly earning its keep with all the hauling we do. We have a fridge and lots and lots of boxes of stuff to assemble, and of course a whole kitchen all in pieces.
It is unbelievably hot. At 11:30 last night it was 27°C and no wind in sight. This morning at 9:30 it was 32°C and at 11:30 it climbed to 41.5°C and stayed there until about 4:30 pm. We spent most of the day at the apartment moving things, assembling the furniture, shifting boxes and packing […]
The great Danes are here. We are heading out for a quiet dinner at our favourite go to pizza place in town. Food is always great, service is excellent and the atmosphere is amazing. What more could you ask for?
Today we took delivery of an apartment full of furniture. The furniture showed up at 7:15, I was rushing to get there, I got lost! I thought I knew my way to the house but it turns out I did not. Finally I got there and opened the door and the crew of 3 started […]
So we have had a chance to drive our new old car back from Poland. We put just a bit over 2,000 km on the car and so far we absolutely love it. I don’t think this car will go faster than 250km/h or even 240km/h for that matter. In fact loaded up to the […]
We headed out to do some shopping for the apartment today and then went to the beach. Once again the sea was angry today, but the water was so nice and warm. Great way to waste an afternoon.
Storks are quite ubiquitous in Poland, they are revered and loved in Poland – unlike the post Soviet area bureaucracy which still lingers around like a nasty smell. Today I had to take another stab at it and try and file some papers, to get the papers I actually need. To do this however, I […]
As if Malbork wasn’t impressive enough on its own – there was one more surprise in store for us. Malbork Castle and its grounds are serving as a stage for a sculpture exhibit by a number of famous Polish artists. Feast your eyes.
Today, Kasia is turning 29 again. There was a small gathering of family and friends to celebrate this momentous occasion. We were quite exhausted after a full day of walking around so it was nice to just sit down and relax for a bit, listen to some crazy travel stories, eat a great dinner and […]
A short drive from Gdansk, is the seaside city of Sopot with its grand pier that stretches into the Baltic Sea. At 511.5m, the pier is the longest wooden pier in Europe. A lot has changed here, there are a lot more stores and restaurants, but don’t come here looking for traditional polish food. We […]
Tourist trap heaven, but if you know where to look – you can find a nice slingshot which is naturally what Evelina bought!
When one has the will and energy to climb the 410 stairs of Kościół Mariacki tower, one gets rewarded with spectacular views of the city.
On the other side of the great old town buildings is a narrow little street called ul. Mariacka. The street is lined on both sides with artisan shoppes where you can find all sorts of amber and silver jewellery and pretty much everything else made out of amber which in Gdansk is king. In one […]
A stroll down ul. Dluga. It still is as beautiful as I remember it – less the 50,000 Zywiec umbrellas littering the street on both sides. We could not ask for better weather, with sun and a bit of breeze this was a beautiful day to explore the old town of Gdansk.
So after almost 30 years I am back in the city I grew up in. While a lot has changed it here, not much really did. In the end it is really all a matter of perspective. What seemed bright, huge and wonderful as I remembered it, is now aged, dull and all plastered in […]
TIR stands for Transports Internationaux Routiers” or “International Road Transports. TIR-owka then is a lady that works in a service industry, that stands in a forrest, on the side of the highway, usually dressed in a very revealing and easy to spot from the distance neon clothing ready to help the big truck drivers relax for […]
We went to explore the house where Copernicus was born, where he lived, studied and in the end turned the world of astronomy on its head. His house was comprised of two buildings. Even by modern standards this was a huge house. It is also worth noting that Copernicus was a distinguished guest at the […]
Since we are not in a great rush today to get to our destination, we are taking a few stops on the way to explore some things worth seeing. First on the list today is Torun, a city where Copernicus was born. A leisurely stroll through the old town, and around the old Teutonic ruins, […]
This then is the official European Vacation Wala Family Chariot. It is a bit shorter and less powerful than the Volvo we have been driving but I think we are going to like it very much. It is an Alfa Romeo 159 Stoprtwagon Ti Turismo. It’s black and it ‘s pretty, and it converts diesel […]
We are setting off to Nordhausen to pick up our car. We are taking a train there and once we pick up the car we are setting off on a bit of a holiday/business adventure. Essentially we are pushing more paper into the bureaucratic back hole.
Remember how proud I was about getting those awkward IKEA chairs home? Well, that was nothing compared to these two women getting 5 years’ supply of Coke into their tiny car. I wish I could’ve stuck around to see it happen and document it for you all!
This is the “parking lot” at Evelina’s school. The school is grades 1 through 4 and there are VERY few kids that are dropped off and picked up by parents. Evelina rides her scooter every day and parks it here too. Without locks. She told me she wouldn’t enjoy going to school in Germany if […]
File this under: what was I thinking? Just to make sure that the first time I managed to eat the entire pizza at L’Osteria, was not a fluke, I challenged myself to do it again. Once you eat half of this pizza, it then starts fitting onto the plate. The pizza is about 42 cm […]
My wife is turning 29 today, once again. A great excuse to go out for a pizza. Kids in bed, and we are out on town.
We spent three and a half hours at IKEA today – buying everything for the apartment. From beds and mattresses, to chairs, tables and desks, a dining room, wardrobes and dressers and shelves, and coffee and end tables. It is interesting how much you can really buy at IKEA for a price of one Restoration […]
It’s official. We are finally going to go and pick up our car. We booked the train to Nordhausen for this coming Thursday. We are taking the ICE train which is the German equivalent of the bullet train. We are looking forward this experience. After all, its been at least 15 years since I took […]
Today we got our plates for the car. Running like a proper well oiled german machine should the process of registration, vanity plate making and road tax paying took about 30 min to accomplish. With driving and parking 45 min for the round trip. Now we can finally go and pick up our car. Bonus […]
Sunday is a perfect day for brunch. Today we went to the downtown apartment and had lunch with Volker’s mom and two great Danes, who have been our neighbours for the last two months. This is a proper way to laze around 6 hours – sitting around and drinking and eating.
We have finally got our lease papers. Looks like we are going to be moving.
It seems no matter where we go – there is always something fun to do… This was a quick trip the store interrupted by some bubbles.
It has not even been three hours since the breakfast was cleaned up and here is lunch.
Today we are signing a rent deal on our new home. We can’t wait to have a place of our own – I think it will be spectacular, and we are all ecstatic.
I think there is a strike at IKEA today. No furniture for you!!
It’s 8:00 pm and it’s 28°C outside – a perfect evening to explore the city in a convertible. We are unleashing the fury of Volker’s Audi S5 on the town. This car is beautiful and seeing the city with the top down gives you different perspective. In Nuremberg you are never more than a 5 […]
After the Kellerfest, we were invited for an espresso and a drink over to Volker’s brother’s house. We found out that the main portion of the estate was built in the late 1700s. It consisted of a large winter mansion, smaller guest house and a tower. There were supposed to be 4 of these towers […]
The english equivalent of a bush party. Actually what it really is – is a cellar party for local breweries that are organized on the outskirts of a village with lots of beer and good food. All food is made at home by families who run the show, the picnic is set up and if […]
Oh My Viking God! We had a great road trip yesterday. We came home, parked the trusty old Volvo and that was that. This morning we got all dressed up to go shopping and the Volvo would not start. It would turn and turn and turn and nothing… Long story short – for the first […]
On the way to Harztor we passed through the largest village in the region. Nordhausen has a population of about 44,000 and was 75% destroyed during the bombing raids during WW II. This little town is very charming and well preserved. It has been rebuilt and renovated and it certainly worth coming back to for […]
Today we were off to Ingolstadt. We are still shopping for a car and today driving by this place we couldn’t resist stopping by and looking at this eye candy. Alfa Romeo and Maserati are two sisters, but in the window, what caught our eye, was a screaming red hot Ferrari 360 Spider. There were […]
We see it when we go for a walk, we see it when we drive into the neighbourhood, we see it on the way to school, and on the way to the bakery. Its so central and majestic, and yet so medieval and rustic. It is a beacon of this community and today we explored […]
About 400 m from our front step is the city boundary between Nuremberg and Erlangen. We went to explore the typical German country side: forrest, fields, beautiful sun and the dirt roads.
Boris took us on a little tour of the school grounds. Johannes Scharrer – Gymnasium is a school located in 3 old buildings connected by a modern atrium and a courtyard where everyone hangs out during the breaks. The school starts at 7:55 am and finishes at 2:00pm except Wednesday when it is done at […]
A short walk from the restaurant, in the old castle stables is the newly renovated family hostel. Its sleek and super modern and very beautiful inside. A great place for a family to stay at, I am sure of it.
We are going to file this under culinary adventures. We could not decide where to go out and celebrate Kasia’s and Volker’s new purchase. Today they acquired a beautiful Audi S5 Cabrio. We went to celebrate at one of their favourite local restaurants. Furthering my quest to find a suitable alternative to eating two main […]
We are out looking for furniture, for the house we don’t have yet, to bring it in the car we have not bought with the German bank account that is yet to be activated. So really no change form last week, but we are planning, just in case we do get approved for the apartment […]
Our quest for champagne wishes and caviar dreams continues. We are still looking for that elusive old town penthouse with a large terrace overlooking the river or the castle or both. So far no dice. Things are further complicated by certain conditions we were not aware of: 1. Preferred rental term is – forever or until death, whichever comes […]
This is a public service announcement! Things to remember. Never, ever got to Marktkauf or any other grocery store, I would imagine, in Germany at 5:30pm. Imagine Costco a week before Christmas, with incoming snow storm of a millennium, and everything in the store is 99% off. Now, multiply this by a 100 and there […]
Boris is signed up for school that is more age appropriate. This is the courtyard of the Johannes Scharrer – Gymnasium where people go to hang out during the breaks. This school is focused mainly on Languages and Humanities. Typically the kids will take German and English and select either Latin, French or Spanish as their optional language. Boris […]
There are no other ways of describing this sighting. The original Trabant 601 DeLuxe Limousine – all in one piece. The best thing about this car was the old country sticker on the back window which read DDR with both the first D and the R faded out. This is the car that outlasted the country […]
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