Well, well, well. It has been quite the busy weekend. It all started on Thursday, when Carola had her next-to-last exam up in Munich. We started off from Oberaudorf, and headed to the train station to catch the train to Munich. However, the trains were not going for some reason. We called Carola's grandmother, and she quickly came to pick us up and take us to the train station in Rosenheim. From there we could take the next train to Munich. However, that train was running a bit late too. So, time was getting short for Carola to get to the University in time for her exam. The train we were on went into the Munich main train station. We pushed our way to the front of this train so we would have less ground to cover once we got off. The door opened and we were on our way, sprinting through the crowds. We ran underground, hoping to catch the subway to Marienplatz, the downtown area of Munich. We had luck, and got on a train just as it was leaving the main station. Then, we got off at Marienplatz, and had to sprint down an escalator even further underground. Now, in order not to get in trouble, Carola had to validate our tickets. I ran ahead to see if I could hold up the subway train. We had luck again and there was a train just sitting there with the doors open. However they started to shut just as Carola was sprinting toward the train. I held the doors open as best I could and somehow we both squeezed through and exploded into the train car, welcomed by a few wide-eyed German commuters. All the effort payed off, and Carola arrived at her exam five minutes early!!

After Carola got a good grade on her exam (I have to brag), we met her Grandma. We went to a cafe for tea, coffee and cake!! I am told this cafe has some of the best cakes in Munich. I tasted them and I think it is possible. Carola ate a strawberry cake (Jenna: Erdbeeretorte) with a big smile on her face.

Then, while Carola went to go talk with her other professor, I got a guided tour of Munich from Carola's grandma. It was really nice and I got to learn alot of the history and meaning behind the buildings, parks and shops. Everything was in German too, which was really good for me.

After Carola was done with her professor, she met us at Marienplatz. Now it was time for her to meet some friends for a bachelorette party. I stayed with her long enough to meet with some girls and then I left to get on the underground train to meet an old Estonian friend who now lives out in the suburbs of Munich. I found her ok, and I got to see a part of Munich that I had never seen before. This is an area that is mainly state-subsidized student and low-income housing. All in all it is quite nice and nothing like what one imagines inner-city US cities to be like. I had a nice dinner and walk with Liis, and we caught up on what each other has been doing, and then it was time to head back into Munich proper.

Carola was having too good of a time to come back to Rosenheim with me, so she decided to spend the night in Munich and come to Rosenheim in the morning.

We had a nice day hanging out with Magnus, who has just gotten back from Ireland. Friday night we went to the Polterabend for Carola's friend. The Polterabend is a tradition in Germany. It is a reception for friends and family that is generally held the night before the wedding. People bring all kinds of porcelain - plates, cups, dishes, and even sometimes a toilet or sink - and they smash it on the front steps of the engaged couple. The couple then has to clean up the broken pieces. Carola and I brought two plates and we smashed them for good luck. If you smash glass, it bring bad luck.

After all the smashing was done we had BBQ and pot-luck. Carola and I made cookies. They were a big hit. Everyone loved them. I just used the Tollhouse recipe off the internet. The only chocolate chips I could find were in little tiny bags and intended for placing on the top of a cake (why else would they have such a small box of them ;) ). No big bags of chocolate chips here.

Then, after we woke up the next morning, it was Carola's birthday!!!! Magnus was really thoughtful and he got the breakfast table ready for Carola with a newspaper, tea, and decorations. She was indeed the birthday girl. Then Walter and Nora came, and we had a really nice relaxing time. We went into Rosenheim, did some shopping, and came back and played a board game.

The next day was busy, but nice. We got a train ticket that allows for unlimited travel for 5 people, and so we went for a hike above Oberaudorf. It was really nice to get outside, and it was a great sunny day. The Alps were clear and we could see all the mountains in Austria as well. The bad news is that the Alps are alot more crowded than the Rocky Mountains, however, the good news is that when you get to the top, there is usually a nice lady waiting to serve you a cold beer. On the way down we took a luge that runs all the way to the bottom of the hill. It was a ton of fun - I can't wait to do it again. Magnus and I raced to the top of the jungle-gym and then we went to go meet Carola's grandma. She was very very happy to see Magnus, as he has been in Ireland for the past six-months. We had a nice time there, and then headed back to Rosenheim to watch the European Cup final, German v. Spain.

It was a hot summer day, and I have never seen so many German flags. They were everywhere. In America flags everywhere usually means fireworks and hot dogs and parades. In Germany, it means that there is about to be an important football game. So, along with a few thousand of our friends, we headed in to downtown Rosenheim. We walked through Max Joseph Platz where there was a live band and thousands of football fans waiting to watch the game on a huge outdoor screen. We were not up for such things and headed to a small beer garden instead. They also (of course) had a tv where we could watch the game. It was a fun, festive atmosphere - until Spain scored their first goal. Then it became really clear which team was the better team as Germany could hardly get any shots on goal.

After the game we got the last train back to Oberaudorf, and Nora and Walter headed back to Kufstein, Austria continuing on the same train line. There were big thunderhead coming over the mountains and Carola and I got home just before the skies opened up. It was nice to have some relief from the heat of the day.

Now today was much more relaxed. I just did some research and read a bit. Carola is back studying hard for her final exam on Friday. More about that later.

Last weekend was the Langenpfunzen beer festival. I had gone to it last year, and it was nice to see things repeat again. All the locals got dressed up in their lederhosen and dirndl. It was a very nice time and Carola's brother, Walter and his girlfriend, Nora, were also there. Each of the beers served is one liter - so no light drinking allowed.

Well, I am now sitting here in Oberaudorf, in southern Germany. I have recently accepted a contract with the Frankfurt School of Finance & Management. I will be working for their microfinance spin-off, the European Fund for Southeast Europe, or EFSE. This is where I did my internship last summer, so it is not anything so new, and it will be nice to already know some people when I start.

This is an article from the Financial Times about EFSE: http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/9114deb4-33e1-11dd-869b-0000779fd2ac.html

...and in German:
http://www.ftd.de/karriere_management/karriere/:Neu%20Handelsroute/370597.html


Above is a picture of where I will be working.




However, despite all this progress, I still need to get a work visa. And due to the way the system works, it could be as late as mid-August before I start. So now I have a bit of a vacation time, which has been great. I can spend some time with Carola while she is working hard on her final exams. It looks like she will be done on the 4th of July. So if you see some fireworks on that day it is most likely us celebrating the fact that Carola and I are both done with school now.

As for Oberaudorf, it is a small village tucked here in the shadows of the Bavarian Alps. It is really nice to be out of Denver and in a small town where the pace is a little less hectic and everyone knows everyone else. Everything is really safe here and everyone looks after one another. It is really nice. To the left is a photo I took of the house where I am living. It is Carola's aunt's house. Her Aunt Renate is currently living for a year in Scotland with her family, so Carola is house-sitting while she is studying for her exams. The house is situated quite nicely next to a big hay-meadow. In the photo you can see the wood stacked under the carport in front of the house. It seems to be much more common for people to heat their houses with wood here. The main Catholic church for the village is just off to the left. The priest of this church is the one who led Carola's trip to Israel last year.

I just thought everyone would like to see a photo of my office, i.e. the place where the magic happens. In the foreground is the coffeepot, the power-house of any german outfit. I work right behind the coffee pot, which is nice, because then I am always in the center of what is going on.

Last weekend Carola and I went on a little holiday to France. We went to Strausbourg and Colmar. We also visited Freiburg, which was quite interesting for me as I had done a project in my German class on Freiburg. It was all very pretty.



There was huge Cathedral in Strausbourg that was built in the 13th C. Napoleon used this church for his signaling system to communicate troop movements throughout France. At night they had a huge light show on the facade of the building and it was very nice to see.



We went to the Strausbourg city museum, which was very interesting (and cheap) and it gave us a good sense of the history of the city and Carola made me wear the costume of the city.




We spent most of the time walking around the city. Here you can see the Cathedral behind some old houses.





As Straubourg is located on the Rhine, it was of great stratigic importance for many many years. Behind Carola is one of the defenses used to defend the crossing of the river.












Next we went to Freiburg, which is back on the other side of the Rine, so it is in Germany. It was nice to be back in a place where I could understand people and they could understand me. However, this does not include the Korean kids in our hostel.





Freiburg is quite cool in that it has intricate stone designs in front of every shop. It must have taken quite a while to lay all these stones.





On the way home we traveled through Colmar, FR. It is quite a pretty little town. They produce alot of wine in this region, mainly white wine.




The sculptor who made the Statue of Liberty was born in Colmar. And we had the pleasure to visit his old house. Inside were his original clay models of the Statue. It was all very interesting and an unexpected place to find someone so involved with America.

Dear All,

First let me say how many times I wanted to update this blog, but have not found the time. I have been working a lot at my internship. It seems like every night there is something to do, and despite having no tv or really anything to, it seems like I am always busy shopping for food, taking my clothes to the Laundromat, or something like this.



One of the most important things that I did, was when I went to IKEA and purchased a table and two chairs for my apartment. This I needed desparately, and it was very good to get. Allthough without a car I had to take a bus and train to get home. The photo is of me waiting for the bus.







Carola and I had a nice dinner with her flatmates. The guy on my left taught me the proper way to pour a German beer into a German bottle. I have been practicing, but I am not as good as he is.








Carola got these very beautiful flowers for her birthday. She was very surprised.









A couple weekends ago we went to a festival that reenacted roman times. They had centurians there that would bark orders to each other in latin. Very interesting.





We went to the festival with Carola's Aunts family. They live in Oberaudorf, close to where the festival took place. It was a very relaxing time and I think everyone enjoyed it. They also had a huge catapult which flung stones very far. They said this was the only catapult of its kind in the world. I thought that they should go see the Manitou Springs fruitcake throwing contest.




Near the place where the festival was held there was a huge cave which had been made from where people took their mill stones from. The type of rock was very well suited for making mill stones so I guess over hundreds of years people always came here to chip out their new mill stone. Very interesting place. A man-made cave.






A few weeks ago the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (DAX) had an open house. So Carola and I went to see what goes on. It was surprisingly quiet, as most trading is done electronically these days, but interesting nonetheless.

People gathered at the most scenic square in Frankfurt for a Catholic service this morning.



The view from my "kitchen" window.

Okay, I know the blog name is luke in Colorado, but I didn't feel like setting up a new blog just for my time in Frankfurt. All is going well here, I live in a nice, but spartan place near the German stock exchange. It is a nice part of Frankfurt to be in. I have gotten as settled as I can for the moment. Today is a public holiday so only cafes are open for business. I was going to get some things that I need for my apartment, but that is going to have to wait for another day. Work is going well. Things are a little slow there right now as I think alot of people are away on business and will be back on Monday. I think I will like it and it is very interesting. I bought a cooler to keep my milk and cheese and stuff in, so that was very necessary. Food at the grocery store is very very cheap here, so that is wonderful. This weekend I will go to Munich and hopefully get a bike and a hotplate to cook on. This will improve my life greatly. I am tired of instant noodles. The weather is warm and humid here. Yesterday I finally got my visa. It was a crazy affair where Carola and I ended up running throught the streets of Frankfurt trying to find the American consulate (after being mistankenly told to go to the Mexican consulate) P.S. if you ever get lost in Frankfurt the Mexicans are very helpful about it. Well, I can say that the smoothies are good and the beer is better here. Allthough a word of caution to those who would consider starting a war out of some egoism of the nation: Frankfurt used to be a beautiful city, but in the rushed reconstruction that took place in the 1950s, there are still some huge scars of ugliness on this city.



My refridgerator.

Over spring break I went with Carola to visit Tim in St Louis. We had a good time. More posts to come. I am back!

Today I went up to Loveland and saw my cousin Carson play football. It was an extremely windy day, so I did not watch all of the game, but I did get to see most of it. The team is looking quite good, and I look forward to seeing other games this fall. It was very nice to see relatives again. I hope to get out to Julesburg to watch a game. It would be exciting to see on on home turf.

We have snow!! We awoke the other day to the first major snow up on Pikes Peak. What a great sight! Autumn is coming!

In other news, I have started graduate school at the University of Denver. I am very excited about starting, but there are a couple of wrinkles that need to be ironed out before I really feel like I am there. First, I have come to the conclusion that commuting up to Denver everyday is a bad idea. Well, it is not a bad idea, per se, but there are many better reasons to live close to DU. I think once I get settled near DU I will feel much more like I am at school. Tomorrow morning I go and look at a house to live in. The lady who is renting it out is the owner occupier, and this I like. It sounds like a comfortable, relatively close place to live.

The second wrinkle is the rain. We have had a spate of rain lately, and only today did we get the final coat of paint on the deck. The deck will be done soon and then I will post heaps of photos of the finished product.

Tomorrow I will go and watch my cousin play American Football. I am excited to see this. I can't wait. I will have some photos to upload tomorrow hopefully.

Oh! last weekend we had a hot air balloon event in town, and a hot air ballon came near our house.

This morning I awoke to a nearby rock formation, The Garden of the Gods, bathed in early morning sunlight. It was a very nice way to start the day, and as I said earlier, it is one of the things I like best about Colorado. I just wish I had been closer, in order to get a more detailed photo.


Once I got to work, we had some bagels, and then it was time to unload a flatbed truck. The truck was loaded with steel that will be used to build a huge lean-to shed in the back of the shop. It took a lot of concentration to get everything off safely. It was nice to do some work that didn't have anything to do with pipes or a deck.

After that, Bob and I went around campus to check things out. It turned out that one of our irrigation clocks had stopped working. We had to get into the German House in order to fix it. Inside the German House I saw all these old movie posters in German. I figured that maybe some German-type people would be looking at my bloc, so I decided to include a photo of it for all of you.













After that, Bob and I went to my irrigation system on the west side of Slocum Commons. They have recently laid sod down upon the earth there, and so we went to check and see that everything was getting wet. It was.



For those of you who have been reading this bloc earlier, you know by now that we have undertaken a major deck restoration project. Tonight we entered a new phase. Replacing the trek Decking back on the stringers. It is nice to see part of the deck take shape again.

My friend Tim was heading down Interstate Highway 80 the other day. He was on his way to architecture school in St Louis. He called me and asked if I could meet him in Cheyenne Wyoming for the day. So, I took a day off of work and headed north. I took along our mutual friend, Miss Holly, for some company on the ride. It was a pleasant drive up, and it was very nice to see Tim. We sat by a lake with ducks floating by when the wind changed directions. A foul odor came wafting by. Tim noticed the smell first and commented on it. Miss Holly said, "There is a factory over in that direction." Tim responded, "What do they produce, stink?" Miss Holly smiled wryly, "Actually, Tim, they produce the odorous chemical that is used to make natural gas have a distinct smell. So they indeed did produce stink. But that was the only unpleasant moment over the next two days. We had a wonderful time together talking about old times and old friends.


Holly's parents live in Cheyenne, and I used to live in Cheyenne as well. So, I had to stop by my old house and see how it is doing. It is fine. But back then I was half the size I am now and everything seemed twice as big to me then. It felt as if I was in a miniature world. A very strange feeling. But I think the house has held up quite well, which is nice to see.


Miss Holly and I headed back through Denver on the way to Colorado Springs. I stopped at Denver University to ask some questions of the Financial Aid office. It was nice to see the campus again.


Oh Dad and I had some success last weekend getting the deck primed and painted. Very good news indeed. We spent quite a bit of time tonight putting the decking back on.