Countryside Trip

I want to go back to Barcelona! Yes, I really want to! Visiting it for a day is not enough. Barcelona is one of the cities I visited in Spain last year.

Sagrada Familia, one of the famous sights in this city is truly a must-to-see.  This Roman Catholic Church is designed by Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí. It is still incomplete but was already proclaimed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

One of the reasons why I want to go back to Barcelona is to go inside the Sagrada Familia.  We did not have the chance to go inside during our visit last summer 2012. Our  time was just limited.

The Nativity Facade o Sagrada Familia, taken last July 2012 by myself.

Some more weeks and winter is almost over. This also means that spring is also coming soon. I am hoping that we we have some nice weather in the coming days. There is this Volksfest or festival that we always love to visit in Hohenfels. It is the German-American Volksfest inside the US Base in this area. There are live bands playing. If I am not mistake they use electric drum set everytime they perform. There is one group of band and musician that I always love to hear. They play country music which I seldom hear.

There are also carnival rides during the festival. Different foods from different countries can also be tasted. I can’t wait to visit again this festival this spring time.

The festival beer tent where you can drink and eat.You can also find a live band playing on the stage.

Menton is a town located in  French Riviera. I  had the chance to visit this city last spring time  of 2011,  together with some places in Italian Riviera.   From our hotel in Pietra Liguria in Italy,  we proceeded to San  Remo and afterwards to Menton.

Menton  is nicknamed  as “The Pearl of France” or la perle de la France (French).  One of the sights we visited was the baroque basilica of Saint-Michel-Archange (Saint Michael Archangel). It was built by  the Genoese architect Lorenzo Lavagn in 1619. We went inside this church and my friends who  went with me there was amazed by the beauty of its interior. And talking about unibody construction chairs for churches, you can already find modern ones in many churches now.

That was only a short visit in Menton but I am glad that I was there  once in my life. This historical town is also worth to visit if  you are in French Riviera.

St. Michael Archangel Basilica in Menton during our visit last April 2011. This is such a nice place particularly it location along the beach.

Have you been to Cinque Terre? If you do, I believed you are also very familiar about Vernazza. This  town  is one of the 5  towns that make up the Cinque Terre region.  I love the location of this town, along the  water and its beach  has really crystal clear water.  It is one  of the truest fishing villages  on the Italian Riviera.

It was early spring time when we visited  this place and the weather was really nice. As you can see the pictures have clear blue skies which is perfect for sightseeing. Just be sure to have your sunglasses on.  During our trip in Cinque Terre, we also visited Monterosso Al mare and Riomaggiore.  We only passed Corniglia and Manarola during our mini-cruise there.

That was truly a countryside trip we had because of the setting of these lovely towns.

The tower of the Church of Santa Margherita d’Antiochia which was built around 1318. Unique for its east-facing entryway, it has a nave and two aisles, with an octagonal bell tower rising from the apse area. It is located in the town’s main square Piazza Marconi.

Boats and colorful buildings in Vernazza.

I was in this hospital to visit friends and family members who are sick. My last visit was last autumn in 2012. My friend’s daughter was diagnosed with leukemia and they stayed in Regensburg Uniklinik (University Clinic) for some weeks for her daughter’s medication. During the first week, Dre was confined at the ICU, I guessed. There is always a patient monitoring from time to time like checking her body temperature and giving shots and medicines. My friend said that they are thankful because their health insurance will cover the cost of the hospitalization.

Now, they are back home but still they have to visit the doctor for check-ups from time to time. Please pray for my friend’s daughter. Dre is over 4 years old and we keep on praying for her fast recovery.

Everytime I visit this town, I always see tourists from different countries. Many are from China,  Japan or Korea  and even from different countries in Europe.  I noticed they way how  they  speak and their  looks. Rothenburg ob der  Tauber is a beautiful medieval town in in the district of Ansbach of Mittelfranken (Middle Franconia), the Franconia region of Bavaria, Germany.

I had the chance to visit this town many times. When my friends have visitors, they always asked me to escort and guide them when they visit any town or city especially in Bavaria. I am always happy to escort  and show  to them how beautiful Germany is.

Among the sights to see here are the Rathaus (Town Hall) Criminal Museum, Plönlein, Spital bastion, St. James’ Church, Imperial City Museum, Christmas Museum (Weihnachtsmuseum) and many more.

Plönlein with Kobolzeller Steige in Rothenburg ob der tauber.  Taken during our visit last July 2011.
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The beautiful Medieval  town  of Rothenburg ob der Tauber. I was there many times.
© www.countrysidetrip.com

The name “Rothenburg ob der Tauber” means, in German, “Red fortress above the Tauber”. This is so because the town is located on a plateau overlooking the Tauber River. As to the name “Rothenburg”, some say it comes from the German words Rot (Red) and Burg (burgh, medieval fortified town), referring to the red colour of the roofs of the houses which overlook the river. The name may also refer to the process of retting (“rotten” in German) flax for linen production. wikipedia.

We drove early in the morning yesterday to Neumartk for our trip to Berchtesgaden. I was thinking we will come back earlier that night so that we can go to the supermarket in this area but when we arrived there, it is almost 8:00 PM and all of the stores were already closed. I even planned to stop by in a hardware store but to no avail. I will rather look at www.reidsupply.com this weekend. We need some hardware stuffs for our kitchen renovation this coming spring time.

See you later!

I am travelling back in time through the photos I took from my travels. One of the beautiful cities I visited in Spain  particularly in Castile-La Mancha is Toledo. I fall  in love with this  city considering all the historic sights I experienced during my first visit in  Spain last winter 2011.  The weather that time was not so cold compared to some cities in Central Europe but of  course, you still need warm clothes of ever you are visiting it during winter season.

Our tour guide led us to some of the many interesting points in the city. Among  the few were the Gothic Cathedral, the Alcazar fortress, Puerta del Sol, Puerta de Bisagra, the Alcántara bridge,Synagogue de el Transito, Zocodover square and many more.

I also found the city very romantic especially with its setting along Rio Tagus or Tagus River.

Beautiful Old City of Toledo, Spain.
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That was a long  4-hours trip we had yesterday but I believed I cannot complain about it.  I was also telling this to the ladies I invited for this trip.   You cannot complain if you only pay for  5 Euros for the trip and it already include breakfast and  lunch.

I thought it is only a Valentines trip to Berchtesgaden in Bavaria, Germany. Before going to that town, we  had a stop-over in Salzburg, in one of the factory there who sells mattresses, pillows, memory foam topper, comforters and other products with regards to home and bedroom accessories. They also had a speaker who share about health tips and how important it is for us to have a good sleep during the night.

I still conclude that the  our Valentines trip to Berchtesgaden was a memorable one. I still want to go back to that town for more sightseeing.  Photos will be shared once I am done uploading it.

Budapest is the capital city of Hungary. It is the seventh largest city in the European Union. I had the chance to visit this city twice. My first  visit  was last July 2011  and was followed last  June 2012.  So far with my experience, this city is not so expensive compared to other major cities I visited in Europe like London, Zurich, Monte Carlo, Nice, Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam.

There are many  sights  to see in this city. Among the few ones are the Parliament, Heroes Square and the Millennium Monument,  Gellert Hill with the Citadel, Fishermen’s Bastion, Matthias Church,  St. Stephen’s Basilica, Opera  House, Széchenyi Thermal Bath, Chain Bridge and more.

view of Budapest from Gellert Hill.
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view of Budapest from Gellert Hill. The Parliament building on the right side along Danube River.
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