All in the Family

This weekend was a full family weekend, with my cousin's 47th birthday celebration in Luebeck, a Sunday afternoon with my grandmother, and an evening barbecue (they call it "grilling" here) with my aunt, uncle, cousin, and her family of four. Perfect was when my cousin asked his five-year-old son (who I've only seen as an infant) if he remembered me and, peering through his round glasses, he confidently replied with a yes. Too cute.

It's a Girl Thing

My new summer 'do. Okay, it's August, but better late than never.

Notice the Hamburg t-shirt.

I haven't had hair this short since the third grade. When I was once mistaken for a boy. Nice.

Count 'em

Only 12 more days until Johanna and Keith start their European adventure, beginning with a few days here in Hamburg. Can't wait!

Off to Market

While the U3 subway carries passengers between the stations Hoheluftbrücke and Eppendorfer Baum, Tuesday and Friday mornings finds the dry real estate below the train tracks bustling with people shopping at Hamburg's Isemarkt.

Here you can find fresh fish to meet any recipe's demands...

organic sausages, ham, and cheeses...

Fresh eggs for 12 to 33 cents each...

Sweet peaches, succulent pineapple, mangoes, oranges, and in-season fruits....

not to mention flowers, vegetables, breads, olives, jams, and anything else you might need and want for your kitchen.

Despite the rain, it was a sweet Friday morning exploring the market for the first time, sampling some greek spreads, and enjoying a latte machiatto in the festive and colorful atmosphere. While there, I couldn't help but think of the Whitehurst Freeway in Georgetown, and the great space it offers below the buzzing traffic for something like this.

Mini Me

Hamburg is home to more than 40 museums, including the Hamburg dungeon, a coffee and spice museum, an Afghani culture museum, an erotic art museum, a `blind`museum, a customs museum, and......Miniatur Wunderland, which we visited on Wednesday. This museum is a mini wonder; it showcases the world's largest model train and is -- shockingly enough -- the most-visited tourist attraction in Hamburg (at least according to claims on their website).

It's freaking weird.

They have created a mini world, including Las Vegas (shown both by day and by night).

And a lot of Hamburg's famous areas. Here is Hamburg's Michel, a baroque church built in the late 1600s and the beloved landmark of our city. The picture below gives you a sense of scale.

In addition to Hamburg and Las Vegas, the museum features other German areas like Harz and Knuffingen, additional American landscapes (Mount Rushmore, Miami, Grand Canyon), plus Scandanavia.

And detailed scense like a couple sunbathing in a field of sunflowers.

And a dead person found by police in a river.


Like I said, weird.

Z is for Zoo

Summer finally arrived and with beautifully warm weather we headed to Hamburg's Hagenbeck Tierpark (zoo) for their Romantic Night. The zoo was open until 11 pm (seriously confusing the poor animals who had to stay up past their bed times), more than 15 groups of musicians played classical music throughout the park, people picnicked around the grounds, and fireworks capped the evening.

Our first stop was at the gerbels. Okay, to be honest, I'm not sure if they were gerbels...I was too impressed by their little community, complete with a chapel (not shown), to pay that much attention.

The rabbits didn't have it bad, either. Their campus included a windmill.

Note the grey rabbit all the way on the left. One ear is sticking straight up at a 90 degree angle!

This elephant is yawning... he must be bored of all the strange people staring at him.

But he's not going to turn down a snack. No, this is not just a picture of the back of my head. It's a picture of the back of my head after just having fed a carrot to an elephant.


The zoo also had an aquarium, where we saw these friendly animals.

See you later, alligator. On the Nile, crocodile. These rhymes aren't just nonsense. This Nile crocodile is sleeping..and it turns out we will see him later. On the Nile. In November Mona is getting married in Cairo, with the wedding activities including a cruise on the famous river.


Hope to see you later, too!

More Random Pics

Some more random pics in an effort to keep things a bit fresh so you guys will keep visiting my blog (it's all for you, people. All for my readers. :)).

Me and Nins at the Block House.


Friends from school during a coffee break.


My cool friend Jessie, who even looks super cute with her eyes closed.

Me and Jessie at a Goth party. Oh yes, I am so square.