Camping!

We FINALLY went camping with Micah for the first time. It was a lot of fun and Micah really enjoyed himself. The first thing he did when we got there was unpack. ;-)





The weather was nice, but it did get pretty cold at night. Roasting marshmallows by the fire helped with the cold.



The campsite had an apple tree. For dinner the first night we cut up some apples to go with our vegetables and that was tasty! In addition to this, we also found blackberry and black raspberry bushes with berries! We also saw a bear, deer, rabbits, four different kinds of big caterpillars, and a large rattlesnake! The rattlesnake slithered through our campsite. It was the last day while we were eating lunch and had everything packed up. It didn't pay any attention to us and didn't even rattle, but I was still scared. Once it left, I said, "Oh my goodness!" and Micah said, "That was SO cool!" hahaha!

The moon was really bright when we went to bed so we couldn't really see the constellations well. But one night Micah woke in the middle of the night to "run to the potty". The moon was gone by then and he was terrified of the dark so all three of us went to the bathroom together. The one good thing about that 2am trek to the bathroom was the BEAUTIFUL view of all of the constellations. Living in the city, we haven't really seen them in a long time so that was a real treat.

We went on a hike that was supposed to take us to a waterfall, but because of the drought, everyone who passed us on the way back said that it was really a trickle into a puddle. Since the hike was completely downhill leaving us with the prospect of going all the way back up the hill, we turned around before getting to the end. The view was beautiful.



Afterward, my pregnant body was pooped! And so was Micah. I got a chance to sit and read while Brett the Eagle Scout prepared lunch. I recommend always taking an Eagle Scout on your camping trips. ;-)





All in all it was a fun time!

Nürnberg

The next day I left for Nürnberg by train: I had a presentation to give at a nearby University. I arrived early in the afternoon, dropped my things at my hotel, and ran off to explore the Altstadt or old city.


Old Nürnberg is surrounded by an incredible wall. I can't believe the view of it I had from my hotel room:


On my return flight, I sat next to a gentleman who remarked that Europe is filled with churches, any of which, were they located in the US, would be national treasures. Nürnberg is no exception.

St. James the Less, in Jakobplatz. I attended an English-language service here (Episcopal) on Sunday night.


St. Lorenz.


And others.


This particular church has a special place in my heart. Or my stomach, depending on your perspective.


The reason is that it overlooks the Bratwursthausle where I had dinner my first night in Nürnberg. The waitstaff was ... unappreciative ... of the fact I was American. However, the sausage, beer, potato salad, and pretzel (with mustard!) were fantastic.


Like Dresden, Nürnberg is situated on a river (the Pegnitz).


Nürnberg is also home to a remarkable fountain, dating to 1385 (the original is now in a museum, pictured is a replica).


And so ended my adventure in Germany! Nürnberg is definitely a city I'd like to return to when we can all go and see some of the sites, for instance, the Playmobil theme park and Train Museum!

Another day in Dresden

My next chance to go out into the city was the following Friday, after my conference was over. I hadn't had a chance to go shopping for goodies for Sarina or Micah yet, and so it was time to see what I could find before leaving for Nürnberg the next day.

It wasn't a terribly nice day out: it was cold, windy and rainy. I started out by walking along the opposite of the Elbe from my convention center. I came across the spot from which the artist Canaletto captured the view of Dresden back in 1748.


Things look a bit different 250 years later, though some features of the painting remain.

Greetings from Dresden

I'm in Germany this week. Back in September, I submitted a paper which was accepted for presentation and publication. This was great news, of course, as this was the first time I've been able to publish results from my dissertation. On Sunday, I started traveling, from Charlottesville, VA to Dresden, Germany-- over 4000 miles!

My trip started out quite well, with a free airline ticket! Apparently the flight from Charlottesville to Dulles International Airport in Washington, DC, was ''overweight.'' I checked in, I was asked if I wanted a free ticket in exchange for taking a cab instead (and of course, United paid for the cab, too).

I had a nice cab ride, and got to Washington about the same time I would have if I had flown.

Next up was my 8 hour flight to Frankfurt. I arrived in Frankfurt just after 7 AM local time (6 times zones different from EST), somehow needed to be able to stay up the whole day to beat my jet lag.

I finally arrived in Dresden at 10:30 AM local time, and by early afternoon had collected my conference things and eaten lunch. It was time to walk around a bit to try to stay awake.

The convention center (congress center, as they are called in Europe) is right on the Elbe river.


Snow? Yeah. It's been cold, ha.

I walked along the river toward the old city center. The architecture is quite different from what I'm used to in the US. There are a lot of statues.

Statues on the museum,


and statues on the church,


and some gold statues someplace else.


During World War II, Dresden was (without cause, it is alleged), firebombed by the US and I'm told that the old city was essentially leveled. Then started in 1989 and over 20 years, different parts of the old city were rebuilt from photographs. A stunning example of the restoration is the Frauenkirche, or Church of Our Lady. This was all that was left standing after the war: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Frauenkirche_Dresden_1991.jpg.

This fragment still stands in front of the restored church, as a reminder of the war that brought its destruction. The church now looks spectacular.


The stained stones are from the original church, stones gathered from the rubble.

After my walk in the cold, I still needed to take a nap to get through the rest of the day. There was a reception in the evening and the conference proper started the next day. It's Thursday now, and the conference is over. If the weather cooperates, I'll go walking around a bit more in the city tomorrow. On Saturday I take a train to Nürnberg.

First Play Date in C'ville

Micah had his first play date in C'ville yesterday morning. It was very fun and went really well. I talked to Micah about sharing with John in the few days leading up to the play date. We had a very funny conversation the night before John came over:

Sarina: John's coming over tomorrow.

Micah: No John!

Sarina: Well, John's coming and you need to be nice to him. You need to share your trains.

Micah: No! No share trains with John!

Sarina: OK, well, we don't have to talk about it.

Micah continues to play with his really long train. Then, I think he decided to practice sharing...

Micah: Here Mommy. Here's an engine for you.

He hands me an engine.

Sarina: Wow Micah! That is so nice of you!

Micah: Yeah, that's generous!

Literally, that's what he said! I laughed and told him that I was proud of him for using such a big word. Micah smiled proudly, then he got pensive and said...

Micah: I have really sharp teeth.

My ears perked up. I wanted to know where he was going with this train of thought (especially since I had just finished reading Dracula!), but Brett came home at that moment and interrupted the conversation. I told Brett about Micah using generous in a sentence and we both told him how proud we were of him. Then...

Micah: I have really sharp teeth.

Sarina gently takes Micah by the arms: Micah, you cannot bite John.

Micah says quietly, as if it is a big revelation and somewhat of a blow to his plans: Oh, not bite John.

Sarina: Teeth are for eating, not for biting.

Micah: Oh, teeth for eating.

Sarina: No biting.

Micah: No biting.

LOL! So apparently, Micah, in his two-year-old mind, decided that if John did anything Micah didn't like that he would just bite him! That is so hilarious! Who thinks of that?! Apparently 2-year-olds in their best, most rational logic think of that.

The next day, John and his Mom came over. We had a lovely time. Micah never even thought about biting John as far as I can tell. He did a great job sharing and was very kind. Brett had made two identical train tracks that overlapped so that each boy could have his own track. I was impressed with Micah because John chose some of Micah's favorite train cars and engines to play with, but Micah didn't say anything about it. He just made a smaller train than usual.

The minute John and his Mom left, Micah said, "It's time for play with John's trains!" And he ran back into the play room. LOL!

Trip to the Park

Micah and I went to the park for 2 hours today. It was the first warm day here in a long time. We spent most of our time on a muddy trail and playing with sticks in a creek. We talked about how water flows from high to low and that it flows in currents just like Marlin and Dori rode in Finding Nemo (the EAC, dude). Also, that the current gets faster when the water goes through a narrower space because the same volume has to go through that smaller space so it just goes faster. Micah said, "Water goes like finding Nemo and a train and goes choo-choo!" My translation: "Water goes in a current like in finding Nemo. It goes fast like a train. It goes choo-choo!"

On the way to the car he found a huge puddle that he had to stomp around in. My only consolation was that this helped clean off some of the inch-thick red mud covering the bottom 1/3 of his boots. He was so covered in mud and water that I had to strip him down to his diaper and shirt before I put him in his car seat (I had to take off his pants, socks, boots, and jacket).

This is an improvement over the last time we went to the same park. Last time he was playing in a huge boggy puddle and fell in...twice! That time he had to ride home in just his diaper. It was a cold day and I worried about getting pulled over and having to explain to a police officer why my son was just in his diaper with his clothes in the trunk. Of course I didn't get pulled over. When we got home Micah went straight in the bath. :-)