To Flohmarkt, To Flohmarkt...

To buy a fat...

Wild boar's head!

There were so many cool and fascinating objects at the flea market today... Here are just a few photos of our trip.





The one thing on our actual shopping list: a moka pot!



Aw, it's a pile of little leather shorts!

Makes me wish I had a boy. Not to worry-- look at this little vintage coat from the Netherlands!!

(Yes, it was very cold and rainy.)

Can you guess where I'm headed?...

Of course! Unfortunately, it was much to0 big to fit in our car.


Lots of fun today! We came home with quite a few items, which I'll show you soon!

This weekend I died and went to Flea Market Heaven.

I am lucky enough to have already made a friend here. She is an older woman named Indgrid, and we got connected with her during the first week we arrived in Amberg. There was a woman staying in our hotel who spoke English, and through Amelia's charms we quickly befriended her. It was great to have someone to ask relevant questions, like "Are there thrift stores here? Where can we buy cheap stuff?!" Although most of the facts about 2nd hand wares were discouraging, she was still able to help us out. She called Ingrid, who was downsizing and moving to a tiny studio apartment. She gave me Indgrid's number, and we went over there and bought a lot of her stuff! It was such a huge blessing, because I was able to get cookware, houseplants, platters and vases and that sort of thing from her-- it saved me SO much money and work! She has been really kind and helpful to us-- she spends the cold part of the year in Australia, so her English is excellent and she knows what it's like to be a foreigner. I have been able to call her and ask her cultural questions, and she has given me lots of helpful advice on where to find various items, when it's OK to haggle, etc. She called to tell me that the very best flea market in the area was in a town called Neumarkt, and it was being held this past Saturday. She assured us that there would be plenty of antiques, unlike the "flohmarkt" here which was mostly people selling their junk on card tables, like a neighborhood yard sale (although that was not so bad-- we came home with a drill-- it wasn't what we'd hoped for.)

We are still lacking SO many household goods-- even as people who like to live minimally. So we ventured out, and were very well rewarded. The size of this market was surprisingly big, and the stuff was all amazing. I just walked around, smiling-- it was all so beautiful, unique, interesting and cool! We didn't even get to see everything, there was so much! I swear I could have taken one of everything there, but I was very happy with what I walked away with. Five euros seemed to be the magic price of the day, and it certainly helped that we were there right before everyone was packing up, and eager to unload a few more items. Here are all of my Five Euro Finds:

Isn't this the coolest little tea kettle?

I had been hoping to find something like this, and I had seen some on various websites, but of course for much much more.

This is solid iron and super heavy. It's hard to see the size from the picture, but it's big-- about a foot wide.

I could have seriously gone crazy with all of the beautiful table linens-- embroidered, striped, etc., and all pure linen. This one was a good bargain, and just the right size for our tiny dining table.

No matter how many fancy ways I've tried preparing coffee, nothing beats a cone drip. I love the ceramic ones, and although it's hard to find them in stores here, there were plenty of vintage ones there. Now to find a matching Melitta coffee pitcher...

A little enamel bowl. So practical, so irresistible.

A couple other things were definitely worth a little more, but were still very good deals:

An antique Swiss military first aid box! This will be perfect for vitamins...

And, my favorite, a vintage educational poster on brassicas. Our walls need to be painted really badly, and this is not only wonderful to look at, but covers a very awful-looking wall in our kitchen.

Driving away with all of our new things, I felt so lucky! I really felt like was taking advantage of living in Europe, and although everything else seems to be much more expensive here, I had finally hit the jackpot. This market is held once a month, and I think Jeff and I will try to be there every time.

Let's Get Down to It.

Yes, I am rather backlogged on things I want to share with you. First, we'll talk about Munich.
Three weekends ago, we planned a rather last-minute trip to Munich. We found a European version of Hotwire and locked in a great price on a "top secret" hotel near the English Garden. It turned out to be a gigantic Hilton, in a truly amazing location. Our hotel room, while not anything special, looked out onto a river on the edge of a forested area surrounding the garden.

The weather was sweltering-hot. I had no idea it would be the last warm weekend here in Bavaria-- I might have enjoyed it a little more in that case! But the cement and stone of the city just made the heat and the sunlight really intense. It was a three hour drive because of terrible traffic, and our car doesn't have any A/C. The evening that we arrived, we a took a bus to a nearby shopping district and mostly walked around, and did some clothes shopping for Jeff. I also found my very own dirndl at a quirky little shop there. (As a side note, people really wear dirndls and lederhosen here! I couldn't believe it. Sure, there are the older gentlemen in the full ensemble, including feathered hat-- but also young guys chilling at a coffee shop in their lederhosen! And whenever there is a festival, women are seen everywhere in their cute dirndls, and it's a common restaurant server uniform as well.) We had some wonderful Greek food for dinner, and called it a day.

The next morning, we set out to really "see" Munich. Unfortunately, it was Sunday and most everything was closed. But cafes and restaurants were open, and plus you don't have to go through any doors to see all of the incredible Gothic architecture of the city. We wandered around for a very long time and finally came to the Marienplatz, where we found some breakfast. The sun was so hot and bright, that we tried to stay in the shade us much as possible. The place was just crawling with tourists, and we were right next to the city hall with a famous Glockenspiel that people were crowding into the square to see every hour. We mostly walked around for the morning, then were looking for some refuge from the sun.

The English Garden was the perfect shady escape. It's not so much a garden as I would think of one, but a really big, beautiful green space. It was actually kind of like a nature amusement park. It is one of the worlds largest public parks, even bigger than Central Park. It was fairly crowded, and there were various attractions-- the Chinese pagoda, a lakeside restaurant, meadowy sunbathing spaces, etc. Also, lots of live music, of the oom-pah-pah variety. It was really nice! One highlight was a rickshaw ride from one end to the other. I didn't get many good pictures, but you'll just have to trust me that it was like a movie set akin to the "Jolly Holiday" scene in Mary Poppins.

Crammed into the rickshaw!
One of several stream that help keep the whole place cool-- we had fun taking our shoes off and wading in it.

After the long, hot drive going to Munich, we decided it would be best to hit the road early in the afternoon. Fortunately, we made great time getting to Amberg, and having the full evening ahead of us here made us feel more refreshed after a fun weekend. Although I don't have any more plans to travel for now, it was so much fun to get out and be a tourist for a couple of days, not needing to worry about anything but having a good time as a family-- such a welcome relief after all of the packing, moving, unpacking, adjusting, etc! We really look forward to going back again, and can't believe it's such a reasonable drive for us.

Seattle!
Well, first of all, our destination, as it turns out, was not actually Seattle. The conference was in Seatac-- a city of mediocre hotels and fast food restaurants clustered around the airport that serves Seattle and Tacoma. We did get into the city a couple of times, but we mostly stayed in the hotel where the conference was being held. Jeff really enjoyed the conference, and Amelia and I had a nice time being someplace new. Events included:
-- Going up and down the outdoor glass elevators.
-- Me not cooking any meals for three days, but wishing I could at breakfast (but only breakfast,) since the hotel food was so bad, and ludicrously expensive!
-- Amelia taking naps while I towel-dried the bathtub, filled it with pillows and read fashion magazines.
-- Getting the goahead from J to buy some much-needed winter clothes, and a fruitful pilgrimage to Loehmann's in Bellevue.
-- Taking the bus into Seattle down to Pike Place Market for some great Ethiopian food and the best gelatto I've ever tasted.
-- Just driving around Seattle while Amelia napped, thinking how great it was that I was practically on the set to Grey's Anatomy. Also wondering if Seattle Grace Hospital really exists (it does not, as it turns out) and wondering if it would be worth finding it and going in. Then my pride got the better of me, I came to my senses, and I found an Anthroplogie.
-- Stopping in twice to see the Olympia Shacks.
-- Driving-- yes, I enjoyed it. I don't drive that much these days, and got to listen to a couple of great podcasts.

The most notable thing about the trip was that we were staying in a hotel with hoards of cyber athletes. Apparently, the World Cyber Games were being held there, and there were 15- 25 year old geeks from all over the world there (over 700 total.) I saw two girls, the rest were guys. I couldn't help but notice that Canadians were the only ones to have full red and white, maple leafed, track suits made for the occasion. I asked one of the Canucks (is that the right nickname?) if they were all really here from all over the world to play video games against each other. "Yes!" he said, beaming with pride. "That's hilarious!" I said (maybe it was unkind, but I was completely genuine in my amusement.) "It's not funny," he said, "it's AAAHHHsome!"
So, that was Seattle.

We're going to Idaho!

Amelia and I are taking a trip tomorrow to visit and encourage a dear friend and new mama in Boise. This will be Little A's fourth round trip flight already! I'm a little anxious about travelling alone this time, but there will be help on both ends and our flight times are in the middle of the day-- perfect! My main concern is that Amelia will have a rough transition, especially in the sleep department, and will keep the exhausted new parents awake even more than their own little babe. If you think of it, please pray that Amelia will adjust well to the new surroundings and have mercy on us all! I am so excited to spend time with a friend and to meet this sweet little one. We'll be back on Saturday.

So do we look like a Northwestern family? Can we pull it off?


I'm sure you've all been waiting for the report about our trip up North. I've been putting it off because it seems like it would take too long to write it all down, but I need to just get it done! I think I will interview myself for you.

Q: How were Jeff's job fairs?
A: Well, he almost missed the first one, since getting a flight there was quite a fiasco. In the end, we were scheduled on three different flights, had to go to three different airport terminals, and ended up with a layover on the way to PDX. The fair ened at four, and Jeff got there (straight from the airport) after 2:00. But all's well that ends well, and he was able to visit the districts he wanted, and even got a couple of on-the-spot interviews. Most importantly, he went back the next day to interview for a really great position he had been interested in, and he feels like he aced that one! This position is exciting because it is not a classroom teacher job, but he would be working as an autism specialist. He would visit schools and help teachers work with their students with autism, teach inservices, work with students one-on-one, and in the end, train other autism specialists. I think it would be very challenging, but I also think Jeff would excell at these tasks and be very fulfilled in his work.
Q: Any downsides to the job?
A: For starters, I have a crazy fact to share: Almost any job in OR or WA, even if it is a step up careerwise, would entail about a 15K pay CUT. YIKES!! I'm not sure how that will play out, but we are still planning on moving and making it work. The other thing is that this particular job is based in Salem, not a city we had ever considered living in. On the other hand, given the pay situation, Salem may be one of the only cities we could afford to buy a house in!
But that is not the only position we're thinking about. It was such a boost for Jeff to get phone calls from a lot of different districts in both states, telling him how great his resume looked and how much they'd like to have him in their district. Jeff is applying for a teaching position in Longview, WA, with the plan that we would live in Vancouver-- in between Portland and Olympia. Housing also looks affordable there, plus no state income tax is always nice. There were some other interviews and more possibilities continue to open up, but I won't mention them until they become more significant. In a month, there will be a lot more clarity, and I will let you know where we're at in the game.

Q: How do you feel about the move?
A: Well, I am so ready to start setting up shop in a new home. I love our apartment, but I have made the mental break away from it, and am itching for some permanence, not to mention new paint, hanging things up, starting a long term garden, etc. etc. When I think of moving, this is what I think of the most, and I am excited to turn a new space into home, and the idea of actually owning something seems too nice to even think about. I have about three more months here, and although I am a "live in the moment" person who rarely daydreams about the future, I am beginning to make a peaceful separation with my life as I know it now, and have put the brakes on investing and putting roots down for the moment. So as far as I'm concerned, I might as well make the move tomorrow so I can get on with it!

Q: How was Amelia on the trip? Did you get to take some naps?
A: This was not Amelia's best week and a half. She's never really been sick (she's had some vomitting episodes as an allergic reaction, but never even a cold,) and she was SICK for about a week at the start of the trip. She had a fever for three days, a body rash, diarrhea, etc. It could all be traced to teething, but she has never teethed like that before! She was completely out of sorts, and cried a lot at night. One night, she didn't sleep more than a couple 45 minute naps, and other nights she couldn't settle till after midnight, and woke up about every two hours. Poor baby. I was so disappointed because I didn't feel like our family we visited got to see her shiny little personality that we love. Plus, I think ten days is too long for a little one to be in a new environment, although she did love having so many new people around all of the time. She was back to her old self as soon as we got home-- maybe even happier than her old self! All in all, she was a real trooper, and I think she has a newfound contentment with being at home! Oh, and yes, I did take some naps-- but I have to admit that I needed them a lot more than usual. Oh, well.

Q: When is your next trip?
A: I don't want to talk about it. No, just kidding. I think in the next month or so, we will go up again for final interviews and city scouting. Then hopefully we won't need to go up until we move, but you never know.

Q: So when is it that you are actually moving?
A: Mid- July. The plan is that Jeff's dad (Phil) will come down here, and Amelia and I will fly up and stay with Jeff's mom (Amy) while the boys get us moved. I think this is a great arrangement! Jeff's school year ends in late June, and we will be focused on packing up in the following weeks.
By the way, if you live here and are feeling sad about us moving, why don't you call and make plans to spend time with us? Or just Amelia, if you insist! We may be "checking out" in certain ways, but we would love to spend as much time with people in the next few months as possible. Don't wait until our last week!

Any questions I didn't ask or answer?