Umag, Croatia

Jason and I packed our bags and were off to Umag, Croatia this past weekend. What a trip!

The trip didn't start off too well. After leaving Austria, we entered Slovenia where we were immediately pulled over (as soon as we left the tunnel from Austria) for not having purchased a sticker (vignette) that is needed to use their highway (kind of like a toll). The ticket and sticker cost us $215. Bummer! We won't make that mistake again!

We made it to our hotel in good time. Would have been better if we didn't get pulled over, but I don't want to dwell in the past. Included in our room rate was breakfast and dinner so we dropped our bags off upstairs and then grubbed on some food in the restaurant. After dinner we went to the bar and grabbed a drink. My favorite part of this was when I was reading the drink list, their name for a virgin sex on the beach was called safe sex on the beach. I thought this was so clever!

Saturday we spent our day we walking around Umag and then driving down a good part of the coast. It was gorgeous!! Reminded me of Italy in so many ways. Especially our lunch, which was by far the best pizza I have ever eaten in my life (even better than the pizza I ate in Italy). Just thinking about it is making my mouth water! (and I'm not even a pizza person!!)

Picture of downtown Umag

Love the little streets!

Boats on a dock...

Random records that were thrown in the water...



The pizza place is in the far left corner. We sat outside because it was a gorgeous day!

After perusing around for the day and dinner at the hotel, we went to a local pub. It was fun but we were definitely the oldest people in the bar being that the drinking age is 16 and up. We still had fun, as always!



The next morning we had to check out. Our trip went by way too fast!! We can't wait to explore more of Croatia!

Lake Königssee

On Sunday, Jason and I took a little road trip to Lake Königssee, which is located in Germany right near the Austrian border.

Lake Königssee is Germany's third deepest lake and was formed by glaciers during the last ice age. It is known as being Germany's cleanest lake.  For this reason, only electric driven passenger ships, rowing and pedal boats have been permitted on the lake since 1909.

About half way down the shoreline there is a gorgeous monestary, St. Bartholomä. In order visit it you must either take a ferry or hike several kilometers. Outside, there is a pretty beer garden and several trails to hike.

As soon as we arrived, we grabbed some lunch and beers at the beer garden before walking around some of the trails along the lake. It was still pretty cold and the lake still had ice on it. Sure did make for some great pictures! Enjoy!!

What was interesting was during our ferry ride we could see Eagle's Nest, Hitler's famous retreat that was given to him by the Nazis, on top of one of the mountains. I guess even the Nazis appreciated the beauty of Lake Königssee.

Definitely a beautiful and peaceful place!! Loved it!

Gelato

...Is going to be the death of me. I think God's plan for me is to be fat because he just so happened to put a great gelato place right around the corner from our flat (and I just can't seem to stop myself!). That, or he's trying to teach me self-control and I am failing... badly.

Ok, you can get jealous now. This is the stuff I live for:

And this is the kind of cone that Jason lives for:



(Yes, that's a hamburger cone)

Either way, we are both happy campers!!





Upcoming Travels...

Looks like we are going to be traveling a lot before we come home for the wedding. Here are our upcoming travels plans.

March 25-27: Umag, Croatia
March 31- April  3: Madrid, Spain
April 8-10: London?
April 15-17: Munich, Germany
April 17: Atlanta, GA
April 18: Jason is off to Asia for nearly 2 weeks
April 21-26: NYC for my bachelorette party with my girls!!
May 4-8: Missouri for Kaitlyn's graduation
MAY 21- OUR WEDDING DAY in Alpharetta
May 23- Honeymoon in Mexico for 2 weeks!! :)

So many exciting things pretty much every weekend! I love it!!

One Year Ago...

One year ago yesterday, we got ENGAGED.

The wedding is 2 months from today.

Eeek! I can't wait!!

That's all! ;)

F*cking, Austria

I was debating on whether or not to write this post. I didn't want anyone to take it the wrong way or to get offended and I know that I have family reading this. My Mom has eyes in the back of her head, after all. But, I still think it's funny. Please know that I have good intentions and am just being silly. If you even think that this might offend you, please click the "x" in the right hand corner of your screen. You have been warned. ;)

Before we moved to Austria, Jason and I heard that there was a town called F*cking (I am using a star because I don't feel comfortable putting that word in writing, even if it is the actual name of the town). It is pretty close to Salzburg. We joked around that we needed to get married in F*cking, Austria and invite all the F*cking people to the F*cking church and have a F*cking party.

Last Sunday we decided to go for a nice drive to check it out. After arriving, we realized that our joke could never become a reality. One, the town is so small it doesn't even have a church. Two, there are more cows than people. And lastly, it certainly is not a party town. There are 32 houses in all.

As you know, I am quite keen on taking pictures. This was the sole reason for our trip, in fact. When you enter and leave towns here, there are signs that tell you when you are entering or leaving that town. So naturally, I thought it would be hilarious if we got pictures by the ones in F*cking. Apparently we weren't the only ones who thought so because online I found tons of articles about how the people in F*cking don't think it's funny because their road signs are constantly being replaced due to people stealing them. If you are bored, I suggest googling F*cking, Austria and reading some of the articles. Pretty F*cking funny.

Our goal was to take our pictures as fast as possible. We didn't want to piss off the locals or have to explain that we didn't want to steal the signs, we just wanted pictures by them. We got out of the car, Jason set up his tripod and we were good to go. Until we started walking to the sign, that is. Of course, right when we went to take our picture by the sign, a truck slowly crept by. The driver rolled down his window, laughed and said something like "stupid tourists" and kept driving. No, I'm not sure if he really said that, but that makes this story so much better since we don't really know what he said since he was speaking German. Good times!

So, without further adieu, here are the pictures. Drumroll please....dump dump dump dump ba dump dump chshshshshshshsh

Entering F*cking...

F*cking cows... 

Leaving F*cking... 

In case you were wondering, there are many other towns in Austria and Germany (F*cking is on the border) with weird names. In fact, the writer of this article recommends a road trip from Kissing, Germany to F*cking, Austria. A direct route from Kissing to F*cking takes just over two hours. A suggested scenic route includes stops in Petting or Tittmoning. A detour through Condom, let alone Wedding, takes much longer.

I can't make this up!

Safe travels! :)




Hallstatt, Austria

Last weekend Jason and I went to Hallstatt. It is a quaint little town about an hour and a half from Salzburg. We have been trying to do day trips on the weekends and Jason read about it online. Somehow, I don't think the pictures did it justice. It was such a gorgeous little town, so quiet and peaceful.

One of the more interesting things about Hallstatt is The Beinhaus or Bone House, home of more than 1,200 skulls. Creepy, I know. Basically, there is a beautiful church in the middle of town (the one in our pictures with the clock tower) that has a small but beautiful cemetery. Since cremation was forbidden and there was not enough room in the cemetery, graves were dug up 10-15 years later and bones were collected so someone else could be buried in that spot. A crypt was then made to store all the bones. Each skull was drawn on with flowery designs. It was very interesting to see in real life (and sad of course). If you want to read more, google it or click here.

Ok, enough with the morbid stuff. After we walked around the town, Jason and I found a cute little dock by the lake. We had a mini photoshoot and had a blast.

It's days like this that make me realize how truly blessed I am. We have a great time seeing new places and just being silly together and appreciating life. Isn't life sweet?

Untersberg Mountain

A couple Saturdays ago, Jason and I decided to hike Untersberg Mountain. And by hike, I mean take the cable car to the very top and then walk around the trails on top of the mountain. We were actually going to hike to the top but then decided against it. I am very thankful for our decision because there was still a ton of snow on the trails and they were very steep and slippery. There is no way we could have reached the top without snow shoes. We couldn't even go as far as we would have liked but are definitely going to go back in the spring when the snow melts. There was so much snow, in fact, that several other people sat on their jackets and went sledding down the trails rather than walking when they got too steep and slippery. After a couple of hours, we grabbed some lunch and zwei große Biere. What a great day!!

New Kid On The Block... The Real Life Southerner

I was very blessed to have started out with a group of friends when I moved to Salzburg. Another expat wife introduced me to a group of English-speaking ladies that had just started to meet who all live in Salzburg. We hang out almost once a week and go out to lunch, dinner, and whatnot. Some of us are also participating in a book club, which I LOVE since I love to read. In the group there are about 12 of us, although it's never that many that all hang out at once. We are all different ages and at different stages in our lives. And the best part... we are from all over the world. We have people representing Atlanta, Pittsburg, North Carolina, California, Holland, France, Australia, and England. Maybe even more. I love that we can all learn from each other. We always have something to talk about!

Since I am the new kid on the block, I was roaming around one afternoon looking for the cafe we were meeting up at for a birthday lunch. I could not find the darn place and just kept walking and walking. Just as I grabbed my cell phone to call one of the girls, Geana pulled over, honked at me and picked me up (since I was so obviously lost). My first thought was, "OMG, I actually know people here!" I was excited. Anyway, I hopped in the car and we embarked on our "finding a parking spot" adventure. Never fun. As we drove around like vultures "preying" someone would leave (ok, I'm lame), we got to chatting. As we were talking, I mentioned that I am from Atlanta. Shortly after, Geana commented on my strong southern accent... and here's my favorite part... she said, "Oh my gosh, you are the first real life southern person I have ever met. I have only seen you guys in the movies but never in real life." That moment instantly made me think of the M&M commercial where Santa sees the two M&Ms and says "They do exist" before he faints. I just loved it!

Long story short, I am blessed and am loving life in Salzburg thus far. I am also proud of my southern roots...

I am proud to be from the South - where tea is sweet and accents are sweeter; summer starts in April; front porches are wide and words are long; macaroni and cheese is a vegetable; pecan pie is a staple; Y’all is the only proper pronoun; chicken is fried and biscuits come w/ gravy; everything is darling and someone is always getting their heart blessed. Have a good day y'all! ;)

In case you were wondering...

People love to be naked here and it is very awkward.

My first experience was the first time we visited Salzburg in July. I wrote about it in my blog tittled Hallo!

My second experience was when I was looking for a gym to join and on the walk through, the woman brought me into a co-ed sauna are that was filled with naked people who didn't have a stitch on them. Not only were people looking at us because we were fully clothes, but I'm sure I turned bright red too (my signature when I am embarrassed). I couldn't get out of there fast enough, especially when three guys in their birthday suits were walking straight towards us trying to get in. Yikes!

Then, Jason and I were walking through town a couple weeks ago and passed a public indoor swimming area and when we looked in, there was a topless woman sitting near the window. Now come on people, we know you aren't topless to get sun in an indoor pool area!

After joining my gym, I am trying to get used to the fact that the woman's locker room is full of naked women walking around, drying their hair, and just chatting together like it ain't no thang.

It always seems that the people that are naked are the ones that should have the most clothes on. Go figure.

There are some things that I will never get used to...

Stubai Glacier

Last week my friend Jessica and her brother Jordan came to Austria to go skiing at Stubai Glacier. She emailed me and told me her plans and explained that she would love to see us if we weren't too far from where they were staying. Since Jason works during the week, I knew he wouldn't be able to join. I was super sad that he couldn't join us but was so excited to go skiing! I love to ski and Jason does not so I figured this would be the perfect opportunity for me, expecially since it is slowly starting to get warmer here and I don't want to miss out on this ski season all together.

There was only ONE slight problem about going skiing. I would have to drive... a stick shift car... two hours... by myself. As the date approached, I had knots in my stomach because I had never driven a stick shift car by myself (until the day before), let alone in a foreign country with crazy road signs and the infamous AUTOBAN (which, STOP READING MOM, is a dream by the way...). So on Tuesday night, after meeting our landlord for the first time, I took off on the open road at night, putzing around trying not to speed but also trying not to stall out. I'm lame, I know. My main concern was finally reaching the mountains and having to stop on a hill. Thank God this did not happen!

After only 1hr and 45mins I reached my destination (thanks autoban). I snuck up to the room (since it was only reserved for two people and I was crashing on the floor), had a glass of wine, and got caught up with my friends. I was so proud of myself because I DID IT!! I feel so much more comfortable driving now and will gladly welcome and drive around more visitors. Hint hint!

The next morning we woke up and went to Stubai Glacier. It was amazing! Definitely one of the most amazing views I have ever seen. My first thought was... isn't GOD amazing?! Seriously! Maybe it was because I was so high up but I could feel Him in my bones (or maybe it was the chill... either way it was AWESOME!!).

Overall, we had a great time skiing and I already can't wait to go back (and drag Jason next time!). So, if anyone is up for another ski trip, I'm game! ;)

Prague

Last Thursday morning we left for Prague. Jason had meetings and we decided to stay the weekend. It is by far one of the prettiest cities we have been to. Carnival started this weekend, so there were several people dressed up, walking around the city center. We had a great time, minus the fact that it was super chilly. We didn't make it to the castle but we are definitely putting it on our to do list next time.

Yesterday on our way home, we stopped in a town called Cesky Krumlov, and it was gorgeous!

Overall, it was another fabulous weekend in Europe. :)