London Calling

Two years ago during our honeymoon, my husband and I fell in love with London. I am actually a country girl in many ways but still there are some big cities that I really could picture myself living in - and London's one of them (or rather on top of the list). 
Consequently,  we went to London again last year. And this year.

One thing I like about London is the tube - it's so easy to travel even for tourists and you feel soooo cosmopolitan when you pass the ticket barrier with your oyster card and a "I don't give a fuck" attitude or when you roll your eyes because somebody stands on the left at the escalators (no offence, Marina *g*).

Another thing is its multiculturality.
And that the city is vibrant with activity. 
And its interesting history.
And Shakespeare's Globe Theatre.
And ... I really could go on like this forever!

So here are some of the things we did this year:

We stayed at a very nice hotel called "The Royal Horseguard" - it had a TV in the shower. I watched Scooby-Doo on it. However, the bedroom was somehow more comfortable for watching TV. But then again, I am just a commoner.

We visited Dr. Johnson's House - a real gem and definitely recommendable! Johnson's ideas about the imagination were part of my master thesis - I really think that he was a genius.

This year we finally went INSIDE the Tower of London. The last times we didn't because of the extremely high price for the tickets. I still think they are expensive but you really get something for your money. You can easily spend several hours there.

We went to the theatre to see "Ladykillers" - very funny though the second act wasn't as hilarious as the first one.
 

We also met Marina and Matt in London. Their hotel even featured gadgets that our hotel didn't: a bottle opener!

We attended the Even Song in Westminster Abbey - to hear the choir in this gothic cathedral really was a sublime experience!

After we joined the Jack the Ripper tour near the Tower on our last evening we had dinner at the Dicken's Inn at the St. Katharine Docks. A nice ending to a nice holiday. Next year we're planning to visit Edinborough - but then again I heard London's nice, too. Who knows?

Leaving One's Beaten Track

Yesterday I went running again. As I have been staying at my Mama's house for some time I was happy to be back on my usual running track. But life can be quite ironic sometimes and I was confronted with a traffic sign telling me the street was closed due to construction work ahead. So I was forced to leave my beaten track and took an unknown one, a small track leading into the forest. I wasn't too happy at first: I tend to feel quite insecure when I'm on an unknown way. There are too many questions in my mind which usually keep me from enjoying the run. Where does the track lead to? Will this track be too long or too short for me? Will it suddenly end and force me to turn around (I can't stand this when I'm running)? Will the track lead me to a degenerated, incestious, cannibalistic tribe deep in the woods? (The usual questions, you see.)
However, this time I was able to enjoy the new way nevertheless! It offered a splendid view over the river loop and provided a surrealistic fairy tale atmosphere which made me even forget that I was running. Plus: it was neither too long nor too short and led me back on my usual track in the end but with the advantage of having had the opportunity to receive new perspectives and to learn that the unknown is not necessarily hostile or insecure.
It is nice to have one's beaten track, to be sure, but it turns out that it is also very advisable to leave it from time to time!
Have fun, good luck, take care!
Sibylle

Not part of the running track (neither the usual nor the new one) but a new track we found during a nice summer evening stroll.

Red June

A wonderful evening in June surrounded by the color red in an Italian restaurant

Even though we're already heading towards the end of July I just have to share my June impressions with you! Curiously, the color red seemed to be a recurring theme during that month: e.g. the dinner in the Italian restaurant with a very red and very delicious rosè wine, the iconic red roses, the red tablecloth and the red peppers in my spaghetti aglio e olio (without the aglio and parmesan to make it stomach and vegan-friendly - not on the photo); the red poppy near the street on my way to work - so beautiful against the luscious complentary green of the meadows; and a lot of red food in general (tomatoes - dryed, in paste form and fresh, peppers, and berries).

July has faded the luscious colors of June a little - suddenly summer is THERE: Saturday is expected to hit the 40ºC limit. Still I try to enjoy the hot temperatures - I complained too much about the cold and long winter. And the hot temperatures in combination with our family fest revived some nice childhood memories which were epitomized when my sister Marina and I ran through the water jets of the lawn sprinkler. As the red was the dominant color of June, July was probably light blue - the color of the mainly unclouded sky (or when it was clouded the clouds were of a light blue color as well).

I wonder what color will be dominant in August. Maybe the faded yellow of the corn,  oats, and wheat fields near my Mama's house where I'm staying at the moment (my apartment is again too hot for poor fluffy Leopold)? We'll see. I'll let you know!

Have fun, good luck, take care!
Sibylle

Gone

Last Wednesday my sister and her husband have moved to Ireland. It is still something I can't really grasp - as they weren't living nearby I am used to not seeing them every day. But naturally, Ireland is further afar and so I must become reconciled to the fact that I will see them less often.

The plus is that they own a big house and having two sisters living in Ireland will certainly result in me going to Ireland much more often - yay!

Anyway, the last weekend (or rather Saturday, Sunday, Monday, AND Tuesday) was under the motto "Saying Good-bye to Anke and Adrian". And it was awesome!

Saturday:
The Saturday evening farewell party was made a little complicated by severe weather in our hometown. Timo and I were just driving to my Mama's place (the location of the party) when it started to hail. We took refuge in one of the underground carparks in the town where we were forced to stay one and a half hours because it was bucketing down all the time. When we left the carpark we saw that the thunder storm had left extensive damage and it took us ages to arrive at the party. But in the end we finally all had a nice evening with even nicer food (kidding - both great)!

The odyssey to the farewell party.

Sunday:
We made a trip to Miltenberg - a lovely town near the river Main with a lot of timber-framed houses and a castle with a beautiful view over the city, the river and the surrounding landscape.
I wanted to go to Miltenberg with Adrian and Anke because I knew she would especially love one spot there: At one point you are still in the town of Miltenberg, walk through an old gate in the town wall and you suddenly find yourself in an enchanted forest (or that's what it looks like). A really dream-like experience!

Not the gate I am referring to in the text but also picturesque!

Monday:
Anke, Adrian, and Mama visited Timo and me in the evening and I cooked vegan Pancakes and made vegan Icecream (at the moment I am doing the so-called 30-days vegan challenge from the German vegan chef Attila Hildmann). I don't want to blow my own trumpet but the food was great! We really had a nice time together and Anke and Adrian were able to say farewell to Emma and Leo, too!

Tuesday:
After work, Timo and I went to my Mama's place again and Mama made potatoe salad and Klopse (some sort of little flat meat balls - I had a vegan alternative of course) and Anke prepared apple crumble and even a small vegan wholemeal apple crumble for me - yummy! Different to most of the other people who know about my vegan challenge plan Anke is very understanding and interested and she even encouraged me to try it out. And I know that it is not self-evident that others prepare a special meal for me. @ Anke: Thank you, Spatzl!

Later that evening it was time to say good-bye and at one point I was close to bursting into tears. However, I was able to keep my composure because I knew it would have made their going so much more difficult. 

Anke and Adrian - stepping into a bright future!

Speaking of the devil...right now, I received a text message from her! Luckily, today distances do not have the same meaning they used to have in the past. 

Gone...yes, but still so close!

Lots of love to my two Hiberno-Sisters Marina and Anke!

One Wedding and a Holiday

It's been a while since I published my last post. I feel a little bad about this but then again it gives me more things to write about. 
For example I finished my dress and was able to wear it for the wedding of a friend of mine.

I wore it with black opaque tights, black pumps, a black vintage (well...at least from the 1970s!) belt from my mother in law and a golden studded black clutch. I tried to set my hair in a Old Hollywood glamour style kind of way but ended up with large - "I've put my hand into a power socket" - curls. But it looked all right after some combing.


I was able to give them a DIY-Card for their wedding (the crabs are an insider-joke):

And was secretely amused by the phallic table decoration:

All in all it was a very nice evening. Contrary to popular opinion I actually like to go on weddings because they offer good food (and lots of it!), dancing, a reason to dress up excessively, a feeling of being moved to tears (always when the couple enters the church and the organ plays a traditional wedding march - love it!), more food, and the knowledge that you can relax because you're not in the center of attention (that's the best) and ... food!

Another reason why I haven't written for so long is that Timo and I went on holiday. For the first time in more than ten years I was able to be with my sister on her birthday! I was so excited especially because it was a very special birthday: her 30th. We had a great time and went on a mini-holiday within our holidays - a nice trip to Dingle the town on Dingle the peninsular.
As usual, Timo and I ate a lot and slept a lot because the change to the Irish climate somehow always make us tired and hungry. But weren't idle the whole time. We went running, shopping, for beach walks, to an exibition launch of Thomas Ryan, to the Blasket Center, more shopping, and ...for many lunches and dinners and snacks!
Some impressions from our holiday:

Marina`s birthday table

Ennis cathedral

Beach on the Dingle peninsular

Add caption

Beach near Marina`s chalet

Running...

I can't remember the time when I started to go running. But I do remember that at the beginning I wasn't even able to keep running for much more than a kilometer. Over time I got better and these past years I was at least able to run twice a week during the summer months albeit only 4 to 5 kilometers. However, I never really enjoyed running - I did it to keep fit and healthy and to stay in shape but I always had to overcome my weaker self when I went for a run. The high feeling so many runners described was absolutely unknown for me.

That's why I am very proud to say that finally this has changed! A little over a year ago I started to go for longer runs. It wasn't a conscious decision - I had had a bad day and was angry and sad and disappointed of myself and all that at the same time. The decision to go running then was rather a meant as a punishment for me. And so was the extension of my usual running route. But curiously enough somewhere on the way all my bad feelings vanished into thin air! I returned home a different person and the new running route (about 10 kilometers long) became my new normal route. During the last summer I managed to go running three times a week and the great feeling during and after the run usually returned most of the times. And even though I had a winter break I am happy to say that I have now come back to go running three times a week.

Last weekend I went into a sporting goods shop to get a running analysis and new running shoes. The fact that my sister Marina has problems with her knees at the moment (and I really hope she's getting better again now) really was a matter for reflection for me. And the trainers are certainly not an item where saving costs is advisable. In the end I bought black nike shoes. I tried them on in a different color and my first thought was: Oh my God, they are the ugliest trainers ever! But they felt rather like wearing socks and not shoes - they are extremely light and have a quite soft sole. I've been running three times since my purchase (the magical number three again!) and I think it was a good one. 

I really can recommend running to everyone and to those who wonder why they don't feel exalted after a good run: Keep on trying - when you finally attain that level where your body releases pots of endorphins it is worth the hard work!

Progress

I have mentioned before that I want to become more prolific in all kinds of creative work. And I am happy to say that - at least compared to the time before I have made that resolution - I have made progress.

Some examples:

I have finally managed to paint the frame for my poster. 

I love how you can still see the grain of the wood. All in all it is not a perfect frame but I am still proud of it. However, I must admit that my father-in-law helped me. (Oh, and yes - that's Leopold in the back in one of his favourite poses - leg-up!)

I have changed a dress which didn't really fit.

I tried to paint a picture with oil colors.

I can't really paint with oil colors. Originally, I wanted to paint a somber and eerie landscape. Instead, it looks like the gruffallo will pass at any moment. I am definitely not a great painter. But somehow I like it all the same.

I certainly could have produced more...but it's a start!