London Calling!

We just returned late Sunday night from a weekend get-away to London. Our friend Dave was visiting London with his dad, so we decided to hop over to meet up with them. We also spent some time with our German friend, Markus, who is dating a girl that lives in London. Coincidentally, Matt also had a few meetings at the London office of Munich Re on Thursday and Friday. So, as they say, the stars really aligned for this trip!

We got into London on Wednesday night. On Thursday, I explored some of the shopping districts of the city while Matt was at work. Although I remembered enjoying London the most out of all of the cities on our trip to Europe in 2010, I forgot how much I really enjoyed it. Plus, it's always nice to be in a country where you can speak the native language :) Since we already did most of the main tourist attractions a few years ago, we mainly spent our time exploring different areas of the city and just enjoying the atmosphere. We made it to Chelsea for the first time, which is a really quaint, somewhat "posh" area of London, with many shops and restaurants.

On Thursday evening, we enjoyed a nice dinner at a cozy Italian restaurant in Kensington. On Friday night, we met up with Markus, his girlfriend, and another one of his friends (and girlfriend) for dinner. On Saturday, we had plans to go to a British soccer ("football") game. The game was Fulham vs. Wigan, two English Premier League teams. The game was at Craven Cottage, which has been the home stadium for the Fulham F.C. since 1896. It's not a huge stadium, but it holds about 25,000 people, so still a decent size. 'Craven Cottage' was originally a royal hunting lodge, and it still stands in a corner of the stadium. To our surprise, we had seats in the 4th row behind the goal! It was really cool to be up that close to all of the action. Although we aren't huge soccer fans, we really enjoyed the experience. The game ended in a 1-1 tie, so we definitely saw a solid match up.

After the game, we went to dinner with Dave, his dad, and a friend of his dad who was in town, as well. We went to a restaurant in Notting Hill, which is one of our favorite areas of the city. The next day, we explored the markets of Camden before heading to the airport to catch our flight. All in all, it was a great weekend. Matt and I often comment on how we would have liked to live in London for a few years, and how we probably could have done that instead of living in Munich. It certainly would have been easier, as the culture in London is much more similar to that of America. And of course, we wouldn't have to learn a new language. But we also both agree that Munich pushes us outside of our comfort zone just a little bit, which we believe is really good for us. Not many people get to have experiences like this and we are so thankful.

We're headed to Austria this weekend for a ski trip with some friends, so we're staying busy during the dreary month of January!

Below are some pictures from the trip, enjoy!

Cheers,
Kristin and Matt

Silvester!!

Happy New Year everyone! We hope everyone's 2013 is off to a great start. We had a wonderful holiday break and finished it off with a fantastic New Year's Eve (or Silvester, as it is called by the Germans) in Munich.

We headed over to our friend Mandana's apartment with a group of about 10 people. I had brought over a few New Year's Eve hats and glasses from America. The Germans were loving it.

Mandana prepared a delicious meal for us, complete with wine specifically selected with our meal in mind. We had a fondue dinner with pork, beef, and a variety of vegetables. There was an oil blend to cook the meat in, a chicken broth blend, and also a cheese blend. She also prepared several "dips," including guacamole, chutney, a tuna dip, and a curry dip, just to name a few. It was all delicious! Apparently, fondue is a very traditional NYE meal in Germany. Here's a pic of the spread...

While we were eating dinner and enjoying the wine, we also enjoyed another German Silvester tradition, the viewing of a British stage skit called "Dinner for One." It's part of an annual German custom that began in 1963 when German TV first broadcast this 14-minute sketch. It was actually pretty funny. Just a little strange that it's a German tradition to watch a program that is all in English. Our friends said that they have asked English people about the show and it is not popular there, only in Germany. Very strange.

Another tradition is "Bleigiessen," or "lead pouring." Germans purchase packages of small lead trinkets. They then melt the trinket by holding a spoon over a flame. When the lead is completely liquified, they quickly dump it into a bowl of water. The "object" or "shape" that results is supposed to tell you something about your future in the coming year. Matt and I tried it 3 different times and every time, our friends insisted it was a baby. As they say in German, "Kein Chance" ("no chance"). It was pretty entertaining trying to determine what everyone's shapes were. The back of the box has a list of possibilities and the supposed meanings.

When it was close to midnight, we walked to one of the nearby squares for the fireworks. The city does not set off any official firework displays ("Feuerwerk"). Instead, all of the people set off their own. And I'm not talking about the little ones you set off in the street for 4th of July. We're talking legit, large, high in the sky fireworks. I can't believe this is legal! But it is pretty awesome. They go on forever. We also popped a bottle of Prosecco in the street (drinking in the streets - another bonus of living in Europe!)and lit some sparklers, or "Wunderkerzen," which literally translates to "wonder candles."

We went to another small party afterwards and were home by about 3 AM. It wasn't the wildest New Year's Eve, but it was pretty great for us. We were really glad that we got to participate in a lot of the unique German traditions with some of our fantastic friends over here. It was truly a "Silvester" that we will never forget. Hope everyone enjoyed theirs, as well! Here's to a prosperous 2013!

Cheers!
Kristin and Matt