The Adventure Continues...

So, Oktoberfest isn't all beer and pretzels, ya know! There's rides too! To get the full experience, we indulged! First up was the swings like they have at the fair...only these swings could be raised WAY into the air - see my picture. It ended up being a great view of the Munich skyline as the sun set! I'm so proud of Jaime. We also took the giant Ferris wheel, this time with a great view of the fairgrounds. We happened into our cart with some Danes who had had a GREAT time...except that when their buddy passed out in the cart, they took off when the ride was over and left us to remove him (with the German Ferris wheel operator scolding me in German)...oh well.


We walked through the grounds one last time, and headed back for the hotel, totally exhausted.

The next day, we ventured to my automotive Mecca - the BMW museum. If you've known me long enough, you know that I'm a car guy, and a BMW car guy. We started off in the building where BMW shows off it's current cars/technologies, and where customers taking European delivery come to meet their reps and start their factory tour (sigh). As we wandered around, a man on a motorcycle began crisscrossing the room and going up and down the stairs on his motorcycle. Crazy stuff...



After that, and some lusting after a 118D (a diesel 1 series we don't get in the states) we headed over to the museum. This is the part of the story where my jaw drops, and Jaime is forced to wipe drool from it. Seriously, cool car stuff abounds. Engine history, racing history, and a big 'ole exhibit on my car - the 2002 being famous for reinventing BMW as a small car maker known for sportiness, and saving them from bankruptcy. It also sparked their first major entry into the US market, and the rest is history.

(BMW's M12 engine from Formula 1 in the 80s, before turbo charging was banned - this engine was capable of over 1,000hp)

(the 507, BMW's first big post war coupe, and the inspiration for the Z8. Jaime called this car sexy!)

(the 2002 - what more can I say? And in Inka Orange! This particular model was a 2002ti (touring edition) and not available in the States)

(that right there is a purdy front end!)

It was all that I expected, radness all around.

After the museum, we headed back into central Munich for an afternoon of much needed relaxation. Kind of dull, but we had a great time lounging in the sun, enjoying some ice cream, and playing cards. For our final dinner in Munich, and Germany for that matter, we ventured down the street from the hotel to a German Chinese restaurant called Win Wah. I mean, when are you going to get to have German Chinese food again? It was good, too!

(The town of Bacharach, in the Rhine valley)

The next day was a travel day, back to Amsterdam. Driving wasn't too bad (at least in Germany). Midway through the day, we stopped at a beautiful town in the Rhine valley for some lunch and a break. Unfortunately the weather had turned and it rained on us most of the time. As a result, we hit some traffic after our departure. Oh well, some things are universal. We didn't realize it, but our biggest challenge of the entire trip was upon us. It was just before 7pm Friday night, and we were on the outskirts of Amsterdam. We punched the address of the hotel into the GPS, and continued on our way. As we proceeded, the streets started getting narrower and narrower, it was getting darker and darker, and the number of people on bicycles kept increasing exponentially with every kilometer we got closer to the hotel. It was, in one word, COMPLETELY FREAKING NUTS!!!

After a slight detour (a street closed to cars) and navigation around the canals, we made it to the hotel. We felt a small bit of relief, dropped our bags, and then prepared for our trip to the train station to return the rental car. It was bad before, but now it was raining, was totally dark, and the bicycles had multiplied again. Between our hotel and the train station was one of the better nightlife spots in Amsterdam. With Jaime as an awesome spotter (Bike left! Taxi right! PEDESTRIANS - they're not stopping!) We trudged on. After navigating what I'm pretty sure was a 12 way intersection, we arrived at our destination per the GPS. Alas, no Sixt rental agency to be found. ACK! It's night, there's people/bicycles/traffic/TRAMS! circling all around us, and we can't figure out where the fracking rental car place is. So, in desperation, we pull into the train station parking lot to regroup (and head to the surface on foot to find the agency). With the car parked, we make our way to the exit. Then, like a miracle, we head up the stairs one floor, and there it is, a tiny office, tucked into the staircase, for Sixt. Holy crap, we found them! After paying the bill (and vowing NEVER to drive in central Amsterdam EVER AGAIN) we head upstairs and outside into the night. Ah, this is a better pace - walking, knowing where we're headed, no luggage, and not in any hurry. After surviving our trip, we stayed in, got room service, and called it a day...

To be continued...

Oktoberfest!!!

(Our flight out of Vancouver - yes, that's a tri-engine MD11, KLM being the last passenger operator)

Well, that was an adventure...flight from Vancouver to Amsterdam - rental car from Amsterdam to Utrecht. And then, after arriving at our Bed and Breakfast for the evening, and strolling out to explore the city a bit, Geoff learns his first valuable lesson of the trip - bicycles are silent killers. Ok then, so I'll keep my head on a swivel.


Our first night in Europe we stayed at a nice B&B in this college town. It was very comfy, casual, and provided for some much needed rest. The next morning, after a fresh breakfast (including some awesome fresh squeezed orange juice) we ventured out onto the Dutch highways, and headed for Munich.


Funny moment of the morning - passing through the countryside, not seeing a speed limit sign, freaking out that you don't know what the speed limit is, seeing a sign that says "ausfahrt" and suddenly realizing you've crossed into Germany, you're on the autobahn, and there IS no speed limit! Unfortunately our rental car was a bit underwhelming - A Volvo C30 with a 2.0 liter engine, no turbocharger, and only 5 forward gears. Not really an Autobahn cruiser. I DID manage to get it up to 175kph at one point, but not for long. We averaged ~140kph. Ok, that's fairly decent...

To break up the length of the drive (~8 hours from Amsterdam to Munich) we stopped in Wurzburg for lunch. Got a much needed walk in, and had some recommended fresh Italian food from a restaurant where they didn't speak English. Lots of pointing at the menu ensued. Thank god "Coca Cola" is universal!

(the palace above the Rhine river in Wurzburg)

Another few hours on the Autobahn, and we were finally nearing Munich. I'll admit it, we had a Garmin...which leads to our next insight - the freeways run all around Munich, our hotel was in central Munich, and there was no direct route there. "Turn onto (insert weird German road name here) and continue for 7km" then "turn onto...and continue for 9km" Finally, the little finish line flag was visible on the map. We had arrived! We parked the car and greeted friends Lian and Mike in our hotel room. After an authentic German dinner (and a beer warm up) we headed to bed to prepare for the main event!


Wednesday, 9:30am, our journey to the Theresienwiese begins. We began our day at the Augustiner tent, where Lian talked to a waitress setting up who promised us she'd get us seated, since most all of the inside tables are reserved. We walked around for a while and checked out the rest of the tents, and then as people started multiplying on the fairgrounds, we headed back. After again locating our waitress, we sat down, I bought some giant pretzels, and we ordered our first round!

(Live every moment, and prost!)

With a toast to my late boss to start, our Oktoberfest experience is on. This is what it's all about. I know in the picture it looks like there was a lot of foam in the glass, and there was, but it was the first pour of the day. We'll cut them some slack, after all, I'm pretty sure the folks at Oktoberfest know how to pour beer...


Food was ordered (1/2 chickens, more pretzels) another round was ordered, Phase 10 was played (awesome card game!) and the tent slowly filled. A nice couple from New Jersey sat down with us. Then the Austrian Police force K9 unit sat down with us.



Madness ensues, more beer is ordered, German phrases are taught (ask Jaime!) Music is played, and slowly, the afternoon begins to run together. Funny thing about that...yes Judy, the beer probably is a bit stronger, but after 4 liters, ANYONE is going to start to feel it.

Time to stretch our legs. We part company with our Austrian friends, and head outside into the sunshine. Good lord it's bright out here! So, what do you guys want to do? Hey, let's head to a beer tent and have a drink! Awesome...


I'd love to tell you about the rest of the afternoon, I know we ended up in the Hippodrome tent...that's really the only detail I'd be able to confirm...maybe ask Jaime...

Gonna pause for now - will continue the story tomorrow...in the meantime, here's the link to the Shutterfly album (some of the pictures have captions)
Address:

Catching up...

Ah, Labor day weekend...the last gasp of summer. And judging by the weather, it's VERY true this year.


Jaime and I spent the weekend at the property/cabin with niece Kendal...and yes, we volunteered for it (well, Jaime did anyway). The weather was at least a little better on the other side of the mountains, got some sun in (and some wind). Wasn't warm enough for swimming (oh well) but we had a good time anyway. Kendal was wonderful the whole time! Only snafu would be the cricket that was chirping from the ceiling at 2am. BUT, a flashlight and a broom took care of that. I swatted him off the ceiling and "took him outside" (translation for those without kids - I squished him).

Housework continues...I'm now a lighting expert - can change out a fixture in about ~30 minutes! We've only got 4 fishbowl fixtures left, so after that, I guess I'll have to develop some other specialty. Thank god Jaime enjoys painting. Also working on the slow process of replacing every outlet in the house (they're all beige and worn out). I've only managed to shock myself twice. Whoever wired this house decided to randomly assign outlets/switches to breakers, because it makes absolutely NO sense! Oh well, the joys of homeownership.


Summer of 30 was a HUGE success - sorry to those that could not make it! Unfortunately, I was so busy socializing that I didn't get any pictures! If anyone has a picture of the hot dog cart, please send it my way. Also, Craig's a rockstar for letting us borrow his Subaru to tow the cart out of the backyard (and hopefully not destroy his clutch!)

Beyond that, summer is drawing to a close. Jaime's folks will be in town next week, and the weekend after that, we're leaving for Oktoberfest. Where has the time gone.

Ok, I'm gonna get back into a rhythm and keep things updated.

Later!

Somewhere, lost in the 'Quah

We're working on rekindling the ole blog, it's been a LONG time! Something about having a house and fixing stuff and planning stuff and summertime and Facebook. Trying to come up with a new title - we're no longer geographically "left" of Seattle on the map, but we're certainly still more "left" of Issaquah (Not talking maps here, people) though maybe less so than when we were in West Seattle...

So "Right of Seattle" is out for sure...I guess "Left of the Quah" would still work...thoughts?

Slighty Right of Seattle?

4 years ago today

Four years ago today we got married in a beautiful location with all our family and friends around us. It was one of the greatest days of my life and I wouldn't change a thing.

I am so blessed to have the best husband and friend a person could ever want.

I can't believe time has gone so quickly, but I'm glad we've made the time to do everything we have done together. Its been a great four years and I'm looking forward to the rest to come.

-wifey

One more quick personal update

For those of you who we haven't spoken with recently, I want to let you know that you don't have to hate children's hospital on my behalf anymore.

They opened up another position, in the same group with the same title, and offered me the position. So I start working at Childrens and the Therapeutics Development Network of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation on June 14th!

I am really excited about the job. Plus now I don't have an unfounded grudge against an amazing non-profit institution.

Also, we moved into our house this weekend, which is AWESOME! But I know Geoff will give a better update about that soon so I will leave it to him.

Way to go, BP! (That's sarcasm, btw)

Granted, there are MANY people to blame for this disaster (including oil hungry Americans)