join the johnson journey: June 2016

Let me catch you up on the past month of activities :)

In late May after our big anniversary trip, Nick and I headed to London to see the Sevens rugby tournament! We went with a lot of the friends we have made in Hamburg. It was loads of fun and a packed weekend full of rugby. Obviously being from the U.S., we do not know as much about rugby nor are we into it as much (although I think Nick is becoming a real fan!). But we thoroughly enjoyed the entire experience. You have to dress up for the tournament so we decided to go with the German theme since we are all living here and dressed up in dirndl's and lederhosen. Funniest part... Germany was not even playing in the tournament haha! The U.S. had a team and overall they did well but lost in the semi-finals. We stayed at our friend Rick's parent's house right outside London close to Heathrow and they were nice enough cook for us the entire weekend. His father is from Sri Lanka so we had some authentic Sri Lankan curry for dinner on Friday, yum. Rick's dad is a safety instructor in gun shooting in London so he took Nick shooting with him on Sunday morning. Nick was in hog heaven haha! It was the first time he has been able to go over here. Overall, it was a fun-filled weekend with friends!

this is actually a picture of a bar in bochum but I HADDDD to put this up because the chick that sings at this club is American and she is so great - she was in Germany's version of The Voice

the yummy curry

sevens

some pals at Sevens!

The weekend after we returned from London we did about absolutely nothing and it was glorious. We were so exhausted from traveling around to Greece and Croatia and then straight to London and we needed a weekend just to chill. On Friday, we went to a nice steak dinner then just watched Netflix. Then on Saturday it was so sunny and warm in Hamburg so we checked out the beach and grabbed an early dinner and a brew and just soaked up the sun. Overall, a very nice and relaxing weekend.

the "beach" - in the hamburg harbour

one year complete in Deutschland!

The relaxing weekends ended there as my so-called "friends" here made me bike 30 km the next Saturday in Altes Land right outside of Hamburg. Anyone who knows me knows I DO NOT BIKE. Lord.. that was intense. It was also quite warm. It was a very fun day with friends though. We biked to a town called Jork and grabbed some lunch. I had asparagus soup. Germans are so obsessed with asparagus (aka spargel) and it is literally called "spargel season." They are famous for white asparagus here and it is VERY yummy. After that we started our bike back but our friend Erin's tire popped on her Stadtrad (these are the city bikes that you can rent) so we ended up grabbing the bus the last few km back the ferry to get back to Hamburg. After a quick shower, we met everyone back in the Portuguese quarter for dinner.

the before picture -- we didnt take an after one, haha

biked past a HUGE airbus factory

asparagus soup, yummy but the weirdest bowl, ever...

The next weekend Nick had headed to Houston for a wedding so I was living it up in Hamburg solo! And I actually did live it up for once :) Our pal Chloe had a going away party that I attended on Saturday evening. After we spent some time at a cafe, we headed out dancing. Soon enough it was 4am and we decided to stay up for Fischmarkt. Fischmarkt is this super cool thing in Hamburg on Sunday mornings at 5am. Basically, you either have to stay up all night or wake up super early. They are literally bands playing at FIVE AM. So odd but cool at the same time. After we hung out at Fischmarkt for a bit, I headed home and crashed. Sunday night I grabbed dinner with my pal Alina that I had made during my German exchange program over 10 years ago. It is so special to have this friendships still after so many years.

chloe watching her going away video at her going away party <3

The next weekend Nick was gone.... again (thanks husband). I had been in Bochum for work the week in between and I just decided to crash. I literally holed up in my apartment and watched netflix on Friday night and Saturday it was so pleasant. On Saturday night, I grabbed dinner with our pal Chloe as she was headed out to make her big move on Monday. It was so great seeing her one last time. We will sure miss her. She became an instant friend in Hamburg and we hope to visit her and her boyfriend in the next few years in Melbourne, Australia!

Last weekend, Nick was FINALLYYYY back in Hamburg! On Friday, we met two of our pals for drinks after work at the craft beer place called Schankwirtschaft. Guys, the tacos were unreal. I was shocked. The best taco I've had in Europe! And it is RIGHT in Hamburg. I'm just praying this is not a seasonal menu. :) On Saturday, it rained, all day. We stayed inside and did some chores around the apartment then we cooked some jambalaya together for dinner. Absolutely delicious and such a nice relaxing day together finally! On Sunday, we woke up bright and early and checked out Schloss Schwerin. Wow, does Europe (but really Germany) know how to do castles. They are everywhere and just gorgeous. Once we got home from our Sunday adventure, Nick went and met some friends at an Irish pub to watch the Ireland/France Euro Cup match. Then he came back and grabbed me and we went to the public fan viewing area for the Germany/Slovakia game that is near our apartment. There were so many people! It was mind-blowing. Europeans truly love their football (yes now I say football ...) Guess I'll be cherring for Germany go all...the...way...

The last few weekends have been fun being able to catch up on sleep, enjoy our host city, and seeing some sites close to Hamburg. But you guys know us and you know we have an itching for traveling so you know we have a lot coming up. Actually this weekend we will yet again be in Hamburg ONE more weekend and be able to celebrate another pal's birthday but after that it is slam packed until October. We have ONE free weekend. So here's to our last six(ish) months in Europe: Riga, Amsterdam, Helsinki, Oslo, Stavanger, Mom comes to visit, USA!!!, Dublin, Barcelona, Madrid, Lisbon, Porto, and a few more places!!! Cannot wait to get started!