In which the rain smells like Glühwein.

It's been a busy few months. Lots of adventures and wonderful visitors from afar, lots of rehearsals, lots of work. Lots of time spent baking instead of sorting through photos in the rare moments of free time at home, as the last thing I want to do after a long day at the office is look at a screen. Lots of pumpkin and chocolate-pumpkin pie, lots of cookies -- from ma's classic gingerbread (one of the best ways to introduce Germans to the rich, spicy flavor of molasses) to soft, almondy, meringuey, cinnamony Zimtsterne, to hilariously ridiculously delicious chocolate peppermint marshmallow cookies that, when brought to work, instigated emails from my colleagues with such subject lines as "OMGOMGOMG!" and "OH MEIN GOTT DIESE KEKSEEEEEE" (= omg these cookies). Lots of pumpkin spice truffles. Lots of recipes I have yet to try.

I spent more time than usual at the Christmas markets this year -- still not a lot, but more than usual. Here are some scenes from Hamburg during the longest nights of the year. 

Christmas was very quiet this year, spent in the company of a few fellow far-flungs, a brisk walk along the beach in Blankenese followed by a fab meal. Good food, good friends, damn good eggnog, a good deal of snoozing, and more downtime than I've had in weeks. Just the ticket.

One of my favorite people recently made the voyage all the way from San Francisco to Hamburg, and a couple days ago we took a little stroll in nearby Lüneburg, picturesque even on the rainiest, gloomiest of December days.

Speaking of picturesque, I spent 10 days hiking/exploring with friends in Ireland and Northern Ireland in November, and gahh, it was glorious. The weather was mostly miserable, but the hours spent wandering through those wild, remote landscapes were totally worth the Authentic Irish Headcold I had in the weeks that followed. Photos to come, sometime.

And snow? We've had a little. Just for a couple days, and just enough to make this ecstatic Minisnowmensch come to life. I'm hoping he'll make a comeback in 2018.

 

In which we spring on the springtime train.

The bright burst of springtime at its prime and looking for a change of scenery, I grabbed some good company and hopped on a train to Lüneburg for the first time in many a month. It’s common knowledge that this adorably slanted town is always game for a stroll on a sunny Sunday, and indeed there were many two-, four-, and wheel-footed creatures and contraptions clopping over its cobblestones. All eateries and drinkeries lining the Ilmenau hit the sunny day jackpot, their outdoor seatings packed with persons seeking the biggest, tastiest, dastardliest ice cream sundaes in town. Everyone else just went to Eiscafés, fiercely determined and undaunted by the comically long lines. New forsythia brightened up old, old walls, the air bloomy with plant poppings of all sorts. A favorite moment was crossing paths with a chocolate lab puppy on the Kalkberg – I cranked up my dog magnet to the max and puppylove bounded right over and wrapped my muffin-scented hand in its fresh, soft tongue before bounding back to its hyoomanns. And then there was the ad for a 3 kg, 23 EUR Monsterburger. And the busking harpist with husky. And the cool stillness of an old, pink church. And the sitting, standing, strolling, and soaking up this particularly beautiful day.