Blogs from Wiesbaden, Hesse, Germany, Europe
July 15th 2010
I have never written a blog or diary of any sort, so this is kind of weird for me, but I am going to attempt it so that my family and close friends can follow me and see what I'm doing and I will also have this to look bag on and remember. I am writing this quickly and off of my memory so please dont just me too much if it sounds like a 3rd grader wrote it. I have been in Ingelheim, Germany staying with a close friend of mine named Simon Ballman that I studied with in Salamanca, for a week and a half. So im getting a late start on this, but i guess its better now than never. So I finished up my last week in Statesboro with a bang, it ... read more
May 4th 2008
After returning to the Frankfurt area last night, we left this morning for the Rhine region, albeit at a more relaxed pace then the last few days in the former DDR. Our destination was to be Rüdesheim, a town along the Rhine not too far from the city of Wiesbaden. Upon arrival there, it was pretty obvious that it was Sunday and that there was not a cloud in the sky. People lined the main street while cars and a never ending line of motorcycles crawled by. The town centre is very touristy by German standards. A seemingly neverending maze of cobblestone alleys and squares all lined with shops and restaurants await visitors. The town site is at the base of a gently slopping hillside that is almost entirely covered by vineyards. We took a Gondola ... read more
September 25th 2007
After a rather non-eventful flight from LGA (via Montreal), I arrived in Frankfurt at 9 am local time (3 am EST) Friday morning. I was met by beautiful weather and my friend Paul. Paul is a British gentleman I met in New Zealand last year (Jan '06) when we were both walking the Routeburn Track on the South Island. Funny enough, I haven't seen him since but he was gracious enough to offer to host me for a long weekend. I had not expected he would organize such an amazing weekend, but the itinerary went something like this: 1) Friday - driving/walking tour of Weisbaden (where he lives) and then a driving tour of the River Rhine area. Lucky for me, Paul also likes convertible sports cars so we got to tour in his Lotus and ... read more
Weisbaden Germany to visit Ken and Elizabeth
Published: October 9th 2007Europe » Germany » Hesse » Wiesbaden
September 20th 2007
It is SO nice to see some of our good friends and Weisbaden is absolutely beautiful. We are treated like Kings and Queens by the Browns. They really should think about opening a bed and breakfast. We couldn't believe how BIG Ken and Eli house was! A fella could get lost in the underground catacombs of this place. I was so excited to watch my first taste of NFL action and it was a Charger game. Alas, we lost in the last two minutes to the Packers - much to the happiness of one Laurence Campagna. Actung Barney! We were also lucky enough to spend a day with our friends, Christian and his girlfriend Sweta. Christian and Manu are our incredible friends that we met in Thailand in 2004. Christian and Sweta took us on a ... read more
August 16th 2007
Today we are back on the road on day three of our European tour. Let’s see now… how about we head away from Amsterdam, Holland, the Netherlands and into Germany. Let’s take a river cruise down the Rhine and spend the night at Wiesbaden…I guess we can do that J We started the day with our complimentary wake up call and buffet breakfast. These early mornings are starting to catch up with us! We then jumped in the bus and headed to our first stop - Koln - pronounced ‘Cologne‘. It was also our first day doing seat rotation for the bus - it sounds pretty dodgy but it stops some people hogging the good seats and forces you to sit opposite different people every day, which is good. I must admit the front seats are ... read more
June 19th 2007
Back In Europe Again! Our flight back to Germany was a pleasant one due to Emirates high class entertainment systems, quality service and great food. While slightly more expensive than some other carriers, I repeatedly say that Emirates is well worth it. Once out of the US look for Emirates as a preferred means of getting from point A to point B, you won’t be sorry! Since we’ve been to Frankfurt many times we decided to forego the long train ride into the metropolitan area and instead opted for a cheap Accor hotel close to the airport. As an adjustment back into the cramped European way of doing things, this particular hotel wasn’t a bad one. The room was small, the bed was small and there was no A/C (80 degrees in our room every ... read more
June 5th 2007
The last three days have been very nice, slow days. In fact the days have been so slow it isn't worth writing up each day individually so I will lump them together here. I have had a chance to simply hang out with Kris, Thom and family, and see a little bit of daily life in Germany. Well, ok. To be completely fair, I am not sure that Kris and Thom represent "native" Germany since they live in Army housing and spend much of their day interacting with English speakers rather than German speakers, but it has still be a nice experience. Sunday we drove about 45 minutes from Weisbaden to the town of Schollkrippen where we visited the Brauhaus Barbarossa. This restaurant/brewery was recommended by one of Thom's German employees and it was a nice ... read more
June 1st 2007
Well, after more than three weeks of traveling occasionally with colleagues and often by myself, I have landed back in Germany and was greeted by family - My cousin Kris (McFall) Salo and her family. After a lot of time in hotel rooms and English conversations that were limited to work related issues, it was nice last night after getting here (almost 9 hours from the time I left the hotel until Kris and Thom picked me up at the Weisbaden train station) to sit in a living room and carry on an "adult" conversation (of course with Justin and Teagan jumping around). This morning I had an interesting experience that deviates from your typical "tourist experience." Thom is a Lt. Colonel with the Army here in Wiesbaden, and they were holding some official Army ceremonies ... read more
April 29th 2007
This week: Wiesbaden! This city is the capital of the state Hessen and is located southwest from Frankfurt Am Main. It takes about 50 minutes by train from Darmstadt or Frankfurt Am Main to Wiesbaden. The city is charming! As "Historical Highlights of Germany" website states: "A poet's dream of a region..." is how Heinrich von Kleist once described Wiesbaden and its charming environs along the Rhine River. We were a group of four travelling to Wiesbaden on this beautiful Sunday afternoon. We were travelling without a specific plan or pre-set high expectations. We just wanted to spend a day in the capital of Hessen and see what it had to offer us. The city looked peaceful, quiet and relaxed. It was Sunday so all shops were closed and there were only a few tourists on ... read more
Wiesbaden day #2, and I'm at a nude spa - September 16, 2004
Published: March 16th 2007Europe » Germany » Hesse » Wiesbaden
March 16th 2007
The next day dawned bright and early - it was spa day! Mike planned to drop me in Wiesbaden on his way to work so that I could enjoy one of their famous spas. I was nervous, because it would really be the first time I was exploring the city on my own. The spa wasn't open when I got there, so I wandered around the walkplatz, looking again at the sights that Mike had pointed out on Monday and investigating some of the side streets. To my excitement, I found a Starbucks! I know, I know, in Germany, I really should have made a point of going to local places and avoiding things I could find in America. But baby steps! I went inside and told the guy at the counter (in German!) that my ... read more
