Random Stuff

Bailey and Camden were on Spring Break this week and it was the first one in a long time that we just stayed close to home. It was quite relaxing for them though and I think they both got a much needed rest. Because we live in the city, one of Camden's favorite things to do is to spend time with his friends in the country. Over the break, he and his friend had an interesting adventure in the forest late at night when they saw 2 wild boars. I think it is a cool story and will become one of those stories that is amplified as he gets older (he'll tell his Grandchildren that they were 800 pounds and running right for them ;-). ). It is interesting though, as I looked it up on the internet, more than 1 in 3 Wild Boars in Germany are too radioactive to eat (as a result of Chernobyl) - makes you stop and think for a minute??? Yikes!!!

We did get to Bamberg for a few days (did I mention how much I love and miss Bamberg? :-)). We ran into to some old friends on the the bike path and stopped to chat for a while. As we were chatting, Mia and her friend were using the zipline on the play ground. There were a couple of guys a few years older than Bailey there speaking English (on the zipline too - yes - it was the weekend and they had had a few drinks :-)). After we left our friends, we went over to chat with this group of kids. It is funny because now that Bailey is looking at colleges, we have discovered that lots of schools in the U.S. have exchanges with the University in Bamberg. These kids that we talked to were students on exchange from the U.S., Canada, and France. It was super interesting talking to them and hearing their perspective on; University, living in Europe, costs of living, Bamberg etc. After living in Bamberg for 7 years, I had no idea that so many American (and international) students were there on student exchanges. The kids sounded very wise and had very interesting perspectives - and then they brought up this little point and I think my heart sank... The 2 guys from the U.S. go to a top 50 school. They were majoring in Political Science (same as my undergrad) and they pay $60,000 a year!!!! Yes - you read that correctly - $60,000 per year! After a Semester overseas, they realize how ridiculous that is and wish they had done things differently. The school in Bamberg is free, but their school still charges them the same rate as if they were there. The Students in Bamberg get to go to their school back in the U.S. on exchange for free tuition. Crazy!!! 

Bailey and I had a nice time one day shopping in Nuremburg. We were just about to head home, when I suggested that we go down one more street to see if it had any good shops. We saw a bunch of Police officers and a very long red carpet. I asked a Policeman what it all was for and he told us that the King and Queen of the Netherlands were about to arrive to go visit with the Mayor in the City Hall. We found ourselves waiting in a great spot to see them (we were right by the Sectret Service). It was funny too because the German Police and Dutch Secret Service had to speak in English to one another (because even though German and Dutch have some similarities, they are completely different language). We could understand everything they were saying to one another. A really fun experience!   

Klose mit sauce! (a favorite of  German kids - it is pronounced: kloza mit Soza)

The first ice cream of the Season :-) in our favorite city!

And the first outdoor prost too in Bamberg (Even if it is still a little chilly :-)) 

Nuremburg

It was so nice spending the day with Bailey!

I love this girl!

Ok - enough pictures Mom :-)

And this is what we ran into  (if you see the little blue sign on the left - this is where we ended up standing...)

They allowed us over by the blue sign, and then when we looked around us, it was just police, secret service, and us - so funny!

Here is our view from the signpost..

The only bad thing is that when the King and Queen got there, they walked up this row of people shaking hands... Another funny thing was that the Windows all around had people peaking out of them. Bailey and I talked about how relxed it was

Almost here (we could listen to these Secret Service guys speaking in English :-)

The Motorcade

And finally - the arrival. Funny enough - I didn't even know the Netherlands had a King and Queen (had to look up information about them when we got home :-)). Here is Quenn Maxima

... and King Wilhem - Alexander to her right

And on the way, I had to take this picture as Bailey and I are talking (and as we are stuck in traffic) to remind me that it is pretty neat to go shopping in a town that looks like this and to just happen to run into a King and Queen. Such a great day with such a great girl!