Europe, Fall 2007, the next days

We visited the beautiful and very large baroque Basilika in Weingarten, Germany on Monday



I realized that my friend Eric Buck has satellite offices all over the world



This part of Germany is well known for the storks



The storks are everywhere



On Tuesday we we tried to see all kinds of touristy things. Here Amy is feeding popcorn to one of the 200 Barbary Macaques at the Affenberg in Salem



These Barbary Macaques like apples too



The castle in Salem, Germany



In the courtyard of the Salem castle, Amy got friendly with a local



The church in Salem is in the center of the castle



That afternoon we visited the beautiful castle in Sigmaringen



I made a new friend at the castle in Sigmaringen



On Wednesday we went to see my relatives in Rottweil, Germany and for dinner we had a traditional Swabian meal in a traditional Wirtshaus



Since it was Halloween we went out to a Halloween party where we saw former Pogues guitarist Jamie Clarke with his new band



Jamie Clarke and his band Perfekt in action

Europe, Fall 2007, the first days

We arrived on Saturday around 8am and our rental car was a Citroen C4



After a long nap we went out for a meal



On Sunday morning Amy and my sister Sandra get to know each other



I am earning my keep and assist with shaking the apples from the apple tree in our yard



Amy also helps out by gathering the apples



Posing at the carneval fountain in my home town of Ostrach



My dad enjoys his new hat



A very rare sign in Germany. No bikes allowed here.



Amy enjoys the sights in Ueberlingen, Germany



The very beautiful baroque Basilika Birnau between Meersburg and Ueberlingen overlooks the Lake of Constance



Meersburg, Germany is a very beautiful town too



Amy with my friends Mandy and Eugen inside the Franziskaner bar



Amy and I enjoy the smoke free bar environment in Germany. (Germany went smoke free in most bars and restaurants late this summer)



Eugen shows us a "smoker tent" outside the Franziskaner bar.

Rumor has it that they stink

but they are so cute

Raikkonen wins 2007 F1 crown

It was all but certain that new sensation Lewis Hamilton (GBR) would win the 2007 F1 World Championships, but in the end it was Kimi Raikkonen (FIN) who won the final race and the title. Go Ferrari.

Vacation soon

Amy and I are going on a little vacation soon. Oh boy.

The 2007 ARTpARTy

Friday night Amy and I hosted another ARTpARTy and the turnout was great again despite the fact that some good friends could not attend. We had some very unique pieces of art and at the end of the night everyone went home with someone else's creation.

Here are some of the artists and their work:

Tim and Berry made this metal wine rack



Michelle and Jordan decided to each do a piece of art



Betsy with her work of art



Sharon and Eric with a a nice piece of pottery



Rick and Mary created these sunflower paintings



John and Terry with cool photography from Europe



Janelle and Martin created an artsy Jack-o-Lantern



Emma showed that she has a passion for art and cycling



Peter and Erin created these artworks, but only Peter could come



Karen and David always surprise with a different genre of art



Monty brought this beautiful painting



This was my contribution to the ARTpARTy



Kelly and Justin made these very cool bookends, and Amy and I were lucky enough to get them at the end. :-)

All talk, no go?

Does Yuri featured in this funny Nike spot really represent a good amount of "athletes" out there? All talk, no go?

My younger brother finally off the couch

My younger brother Manfred was a standout soccer player in our region but has not done much recently in terms of workouts. A few weeks back though he truly came off the couch to run in a big half marathon in Karlsruhe, Germany and managed to run it in sub 2 hours. He even had time to wave to the cameras. Nice.

Prosumer camera

I have wanted a digital SLR camera for quite some time now and I think I have found what I am looking for. The new Canon EOS 40D should give me all and more what I as a wannabe photographer / news editor could possibly want.