SCHLAND!!!!!!!!!

I thought Mainz was crazy during the Euro, but Munich is a whole different ballgame! Last Friday night Bonnie, Kathi, Julia, and I went to watch the Germany-Greece game that would decide which team would play in the Halbfinale (semi-finals). It was insanity. We watched at a beer garden and had to get there at 6:00 PM for the 8:45 game. By the time the game started there were no open spots at any tables in the entire place. Watching these games in the beer gardens is so great because they put up a giant screen and there is so much enthusiasm. Whenever a goal is made everyone stands up screaming and yelling. It is so infectious! I never thought I would get so excited about a sport...until now.

The game finished 4-2 Germany and once the game was over, everyone was singing and standing on tables. Some guys were close to tears because they were so happy about winning...

The next game is Thursday and will be against Italy. Italy played England last night in an exhaustingly long game. They went all the way to 120 minutes still at 0-0, and I couldn't take it anymore so I turned it off. This morning I learned that Italy won 4-2 during the final shootout. So, Germany-Italy this Thursday!

Here are some pictures from the game last Friday.

Hofbräuhaus beer

Kathi, me, Bonnie

Julia! 

What it looked like after we won

Munich

I made it to Munich and so far so good! My family is fantastic and the kids are adorable. I already know that it will be a great year. Although I am already here in Munich, I'm not au pairing yet. Bonnie, the current au pair, is still here and it's been so great getting to know her and having her help me get acquainted with the job. My host family invited me to come ten days early so I could see the Bayerische Oper opera studio put on the Cunning Little Vixen. It was..........interesting! If you are familiar with this opera, it is not what you would expect...at all. There was a lot of blood. That being said, the singing was soooo great. It was also exciting because L (I have decided not to use names or pictures of the children I au pair for on here due to privacy reasons) was in the children's chorus and even had a small acting role. It was such a great introduction to Munich, my host family, the kids, and L's singing!

After this, things got a bit more tricky. We all walked back together to the S-bahn, and after going one stop were told in an announcement that a BOMB from WWII was found and that we must exit the train! Apparently this type of thing happens often in Germany, maybe 3 times a year. Bombs from the war are found and everything shuts down to make sure they are disabled correctly. After we got off the train we tried to get on the tram, but it was no surprise that the tram was completely full and not even stopping to pick up more people. After an hour or so we made it home. It was exhausting but, needless to say, a very interesting first day in Munich. Here's an article (in German) about the bomb:

http://www.welt.de/regionales/muenchen/article106682679/S-Bahn-wegen-Fliegerbombe-stundenlang-gesperrt.html

Yesterday we watched the Germany- Greece Euro game and we (Germany) WON 4-2! I will write about the game sometime soon. In the meantime, I will enjoy this

and watch the France-Spain game for a relaxing night in. Bis später! 

Das Rheinland

On Monday, Julia and I spent the day in the gorgeous Rheinland. We first went to the small town St. Goar, which is about an hour northwest of Mainz. St. Goar was so beautiful and quaint. The population is less than 3000 and is frequented by tourists. We walked around and stopped in a tiny wine shop (very touristy) and sampled tons of Riesling, eiswein, and flavored brandy. The eiswein was definitely the best but the cheapest one was 80 euro for just one bottle! Eiswein is made in the winter from grapes that are frozen on the vine, and you need very many grapes to produce only a small amount of wine, causing it to be so expensive. Although I couldn't buy a bottle, I was glad I got to try it. After our wine tasting we walked along the Rhine and then stopped for a glass of Riesling at a cafe on the river.

Along this part of the Rhine is the famous rock the Loreley, which marks the narrowest part of the Rhine from Switzerland to the North Sea. Because of the Rhine's width by the Loreley, it is known as a spot where many shipwrecks have occurred. The German poet Brentano (the same author of the Brentano poems set by Strauss, my singer friends) wrote a story about the Loreley that was adapted throughout the years, most famously by Heine. The story goes like this- there is a beautiful woman who sits at the Loreley, singing and distracting the ships passing by, causing them to crash into the rock. Cool story!

Anyway, after St. Goar, we hopped back on the train to another small town, Bacharach. This town is even smaller than St. Goar, with about 2,000 residents. By the time we got there, around 6 PM, everything in the town was already closed except for bars and restaurants. Even so, it was a beautiful place to stop. We had another glass of Riesling, and then headed back to Mainz. It was a fantastic day.

It's asparagus season in Germany!

Vineyards 

Ruins of a church in Bacharach

creepy wine man

Have you ever visited the Rheinland?? 

Deutschland vs. Dänemark

Wir haben gewonnen!!!!!! What better time to move to Germany than during the 2012 UEFA Euro Championship. Last night Germany played their third game of the tournament against Denmark. They already won their first two games, making last nights game even more exciting for Deutschland. Julia, her friend Enrica, and a few others gathered at a local Mainz pub called Porter House to watch the game. We wore German flag sweatbands and face paint, doing our best to fit in with the other German fans. The game was definitely intense, but so much fun to watch. We won 2-1, ending the "group stage" with 9 points- the highest you can have at this point in the tournament. On our walk home, cars sped through the streets honking their horns and yelling. It was great!

Julia and I are going to go to the England- Ukraine game tomorrow night to keep up with the EURO! We spent the day in the Rheinland, but I'll post about that another time :) 

I made it!

After many months of anticipation, I am finally here! I packed up 2 bags and headed first to NYC to see friends on the 12th, and then to Germany on the 14th. At the moment I am in Mainz, a city along the Rhein that is only 20 minutes from Frankfurt, visiting my friend Julia! I will be here until Thursday, at which point I will head to Munich and meet my Au Pair host family.

After a sleepless flight, I arrived in Frankfurt yesterday at around 9 am, found Julia, took a nap for a few hours, and then got to it! I had the privilege of seeing Julia in Così fan Tutte last night, but have to say that, although the singing was fantastic, it was a bit of a struggle to stay awake. After the show we had a few beers with one of Julia's colleges and by that time I was very ready for bed. I slept until 2 PM today! What a waste, I know, but it was a gloomy day anyway. After lazing around for a few more hours, Julia and I ran some errands which included buying some German flag paraphernalia that will make an appearance tomorrow night when we watch the Germany v. Denmark game. So far Germany has won both of their games, so I hope they continue in this direction. I'll be sure to post about the game later. Another exciting thing I did today was buy a German sim card! I now have a German phone number but just need to figure out how to unlock my iPhone and all will be well...I've already spent many hours on this issue.

Tonight for dinner Julia and friends took me to a fantastic restaurant in Mainz called Kamin. It is known for having the best Flammkuchen in town. Flammkuchen was entirely new to me, but I'm so glad I got to try it. It is basically German style pizza that has extremely thin crust, is covered in crème fraîche, and topped with onions and bacon pieces. I got this one, Der Klassiker, because it is the typical Flammkuchen, but there are lots of other topping combinations you can get too!

I was so hungry that I wasn't able to contain myself and take a picture before having my first bite... 

Anyway, it is 4 AM here (I got woken up by a bunch of loud kids in the street) so I think I will try to sleep some more. Stay tuned!