Foto-Lovestory: Amsterdam

I realised, I have so many pictures that I should not spoil the goodness with too many words. So let me just show you...

The weather was fabulously hot all weekend


I've never had a warmer welcome than Vanja gave us at Schipol airport, and before we knew what happened, we were provided with bicycles and off for a first city tour.


The next morning we took our kaffjebrodjes to a big park


before we went on the lookout for Vanja's school where we listened to a choir concert of hers and a relly cool japanese piece of music.


And then had a drink on top of the library



Since chinatown and all the inner city was packed with tourists and footballfans



we went to find more quiet spots


and decided we want a houseboat


we saw curious things






and tried bitterballen, before heading to a dutch pub that was also an indian restaurant. Then we started watching a movie but fell asleep halfway through it.


The next day we took a tour to the 'countryside' which actually lies inbetween two parts of amsterdam.




Took a ferry boat


And on our way back decided we absolutely needed to play midgetgolf


this is not the end


we played a very dirty game



finished watching the movie, watched another one and then at one point must have gone to sleep because oh so soon it was monday and our last day.
We took some culinary excursions (bouillabaisse for lunch, gelati afterwards) and had a last look around a street full of antiquity shops and another tourist hotspot, the Reijksmuseum (we didn't go in...).

And then said good bye.



What can you do if you go to visit a city that is as flat as a girl with a bicycle can wish for, where a great friend lives, and where the sun shone all weekend? I am in love, and my list of places where I wanna live is longer again.

There are many more photos on facebook! Click here to see them!

The road goes on and on

Still round the corner there may wait
A new road or a secret gate,
And though we pass them by today,
Tomorrow we may come this way
And take the hidden paths that run
Towards the Moon or to the Sun.
Apple, thorn, and nut and sloe,
Let them go! Let them go!
Sand and stone and pool and dell,
Fare you well! Fare you well!

(J.R.R. Tolkien - A walking song)

We are out to Amsterdam to visit Vanja this weekend! I promise pictures! ;o)

The big summer bubble

Remember this mysterious post? I do not like to talk about plans before they become real. Partly because I get the feeling that I could jinx them into not working by doing so and partly because I wanna be sure I really do something before telling the world about it.
So I haven't really told you what this is all about. Starting on 2nd of July we will take a weeklong course about building yurts. I can't tell you in detail how this is gonna be because I know practically nothing about them. I have a vague imagination of how they are constructed and from reading on the website of the guy who will teach us I know that the materials will not be traditional but rather simple and made to fit our climate conditions.



And after that we will hopefully be much wiser, even more inspired and know exactly what to do do do it ourselves. We found a place where we can put up this 'house' and if our resolutions are realistic then we will move into our yurt sometime this summer.

It still feels very much like a crazy dream, but with finding a place we got past the first and maybe biggest obstacle and now it really feels like nothing is gonna stop us. I can't wait to do the course and then be able to make clearer plans. Only 1.5 weeks left now!

Rain, rain, go away...

All the singing didn't change a thing. For four days we were stuck on top of a hill (100m.ü.m.) in the middle of a raincloud. The first 24 hours it rained straight through, without stopping. Either you get wet, or you can't hear anything but the drumming of the rain on the awning, it can drive you mad. It didn't help that one of our tipis was leaking after only an evening of rain and we found our stuff in puddles when we wanted to go to sleep the first night. Some of us had to move to the barn then. Well, at least there was a barn... It's quite stressful when you know that if you get wet or cold now you won't be able to do a thing, because you're already wearing all the stuff that you brought (a pair of tights, two pairs of trousers, one pair of raintrousers, two t-shirts and pullovers, a long-sleeved shirt and a jacket, hat and gloves... and still you have to run around to warm up in-between lessons), and that you might find a wet sleeping bag when you want to go to sleep in the evening. Oh yeah: My shoes were soaked after a few hours, and i spent the rest of the weekend with plastic bags over my socks...

Four days of mud, wet, cold, games, woodfire, songs, fresh air and tea.
Awesomeness!

Setting up the tipi:






View from our 'living room - window':


Kitchen and cook:


Honestly, this is what it looked like most of the weekend:


Our very cold classrom:


Even donkeys wanna study:


Games for warming up:



Tom Bombadil


Really: You don't need more than a fire, hot food and some tea to feel good!



Here's the link to the facebook-album with all the pictures:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2069216&id=1442335556&l=7a8e5bd42d

Out and about

Theres not much interesting to say at the moment, except that when I'm back from this weekend (which starts now - yay!), there will be pictures, and things to tell. :o)
I'm going on another Feuervogel-excursion, the weather is bad as it can be and well... must be fun!

Back with pa-doum!

Woah, people, there's been a lot going on since I last posted...
As you could read I had a little downwards-phase in my motivation those days. But I got over with it quite quickly by reading inspiring internet sites like planet green.
Then I had an exciting weekend and wanted to post pictures for you, but Blogger screwed it all up and I was frustrated and then I went away for some days and didn't think about it anymore. Then I had a haaaard week and then a very nice weekend. And that's it. All the excuses I could come up with. ;o)

But never mind, here are the pictures!

A week ago, Roman borrowed me his bike for the weekend, so we went off for a first big tour around Zugersee on saturday. It was beautiful weather, and we stopped for icecream in Bremgarten, a very cute little village:






As often, it got late until we were back, but not too late for a short stop at a bbq and to meet some old friends and see them playing with fire.



On sunday, I went off to Ticino over Gotthardpass. To be honest, I think it was a bit too much, for my second day on the big bike. But there was practically no traffic and I went very slowly and arrived late, but safe. And was rewarded with beautiful weather, great food and company, and a splendid day in Ascona and at the botanic garden on the Isole de Brissago.









I had to take the tunnel back due to really bad weather, but it was ok with me, I felt a bit too tired for mountaineering on the bike again. It is really very technical, and I am not yet so good with that, left alone that I didn't know the bike that well.
I like it very much though. It's a Honda CBF 500, it's strong enough for me, and still not so big.



I still managed to break it, though. I had to stop sharp at a redlight and it got off balance. Although most guys will consider it a light bike it is still very heavy for me and I couldn't hold it, so it fell down. I wasn't hurt and the man in the car behind me came and helped me put it up again in no time, but the handle of the frond brake snapped in the middle.
Honestly: I'm quite ok with that, given what else could have happened that weekend. :o)