Hallo! from Deutschland

I'm happily sitting in Jessica & Josh's lovely home. Their children are so well behaved. Sebastian just gave me a great big hug.

My flight arrived safely in Frankfurt and I was excited to exit onto the tarmac. There were shuttles waiting, but I wasn't sure if I was supposed to get on them or where to get off. They had German recordings and I felt huge culture shock, especially when I got to the gates and didn't know where to go. Luckily the people at the info desk are really helpful and speak English. They directed me to the non-EU citizens gate where I got my first stamp in my passport! I was so happy to see Jessica and her kids. She even brought me a bag of chips! Thanks Kelly. She drove me around Frankfurt and then took me back to the base. I was super jet lagged so I took a nap and felt better. We went out to dinner at this cute little restaurant outside of the base.

Went to the town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber and walked through St. Jakob's Church. They have a beautiful organ. We visited the Criminal Museum and saw some very interesting contraptions. Bought a schneeball or "snowball" and ate almost the whole thing. Climbed to the top of the town hall tower for a panoramic view. Stopped at a "Blumen" garden. Took some of my favorite photos of Anberlin with a sunflower. Ate some delicious pot roast cooked by Jess. Went back to Rotenburg and got the most amazing surprise ever. Saw an incredible parade and fireworks for the Imperial city festival. Took lots of night photos on a photo walk. Found Capri Sonne Kristi!
Spent our Saturday afternoon in Nuremburg. We started out at the German National Museum which was partly in an old church building. Saw a lot of church art work and a few paintings from my text books. I also got to use my "youth/student" discount which saved me 2 euro.
Next, we grabbed a pretzel and headed over to St. Lorenz Kirche which is a lovely church that we couldn't take photos inside of. From there we walked around and saw Frauenkirche. Isn't that fountain incredible? Its called Schoner Brunnern or Beautiful fountain. The original one was in the museum we visited just before arriving at Hauptmarkt. We saw lots of fountains and bridges. Jess & I went to Kaiserburg castle on top of the hill. We were lucky since it rained both ways, but never rained on us.

Jessica played tour guide with me in Wurzburg today. We toured the Wurzburg Residence first. WOW WOW WOW! An incredible palace that was dubbed "the nicest parsonage in Europe by Napoleon. We began in Hofkirche, the Court Chapel where my jaw completely hit the floor when I entered. I have never seen such a beautiful church. My first Baroque church experience was just wonderful.
Next was the actual palace. They wouldn't take my International Youth Travel Card & student ID for the student discount. I'm beginning to wonder if it was worth it to bother getting the IYTC. We had to store our purses and cameras in a locker since cameras, cell phones, and other items are not allowed in. WARNING: The following photo was taken against those rules. Yes, I break the rules when it comes to photography. I snuck my little point & shoot in my pocket. Turned off the flash and all beeping noises that it makes. ;p
So I got caught when my flash that I had turned off, flashed anyway. I was told that I couldn't take photos and I apologized. Nope, didn't get kicked out. I love warnings. :D I was good for the rest of the tour. There were only two rooms after that I wished I could have photographed. I'm pretty happy that I got the photos that I did. The gardens were lovely too. Thought about my mom and how much she would have loved to be here.

After the gardens we walked downtown where a wine & musical festival was unfolding. Street preformers were everywhere. Such incredible buildings are on every street. Found a few more cool churches, one was turned into a museum. Walked along the Alte Mainbruke, the second oldest bridge in Germany (15th century). The weather was beautiful. The clouds are drool worthy for any photographer.
I've been really lucky with weather so far. Mornings start out overcast and then it turns into a beautiful & warm day in the afternoon. Jess is making an amazing dinner and it smells yummy.
You can see more of my unedited photos on flickr, but only if you are a family or friend of mine. I have it private because I am using flickr to back up my photo in case of any accidents. If you want to see my pictures, add my account. :D I'm having a blast, can you tell?