Germany: 15 Dezember 2009

Hello friends! I am sorry I am tardy in getting up my first post for you. I had a little Internet access snafu and have resolved that now. Our flight into Germany was, for the most part, uneventful. (Which is exactly how I'd like my 8-hour flights to be quite frankly.)

We were immediately immersed in the German culture at the airport and I was able to put my six years of German language training to use. What I am finding though is that the Germans want to practice their English on me and I want to practice my German on them. (We end up meeting somewhere in the middle.)

We arrived at the airport and immediately boarded a train to the central part of Frankfurt. We arrived at the Colour Hotel and made our way to our room. I have included a picture here for your reference. Doesn't European style seem nice? (and small...and minimalistic?)

Since we had essentially spent the entire night awake, try as we might to fight it, we had to rest a bit. After a brief nap (okay, maybe four hours isn't brief but who's counting on vacation, right?) we headed straight out to find the Christmas Market. (After all, that's a big part of why we came here this season.)

Along our way we came across the this great view thanks to our hotel staff that recommended the location at the Galeria Kaufhof (Frankfurt am Main). At the top of the building they have a great outdoor cafe that shows you Frankfurt by night from this vantage point.

If the view from the top weren't enough, they happened to have this AMAZING Lego display in their windows. Check this out: (the last is an entire city built out of Legos)

So after the mall, the lego display and fighting the crowds we finally made it over to the Christmas Market. Here are a few photos below.Beautiful lights on all of the stalls and most of the homes and businesses surrounding the markets.Amazing candy ropes in about 20 different flavors.
The Market was so thick with people that we retreated to a top-rated Italian restaurant just on the other side of the Main River. Dinner at Trattoria i Siciliani didn't disappoint. It's quaint atmosphere and kind staff were a treat.

With full bellies we headed back over the river to try and get Frankfurt's best ice cream to top off the night, but sadly the joint was closed until February. (It's amazing the number of times these sorts of things happen when you are on vacation and trying to get the "best" whatever you have in mind.) Alas, on to another adventure.

You know how sometimes you just come across something so random you think you should share it? (Be forwarned that I will do this frequently on this blog.) We saw this leaf on the ground while walking and since it was larger than my entire torso I thought you should see it. Can you imagine the size of the tree this 24" wide leaf must have come from? I mean, really? That's one hell of a tree my friends.

We ended our evening at Cafe Karin for a couple of late-night snacks and warm drinks to head back to the hotel. More to come tomorrow!