What to take for a week up north around New Year's Eve

Not much! Make it handluggage: two trousers, two sweaters, two t-shirts (one preferably of the glitzy kind so it might be worn at parties as well), a skirt (party!), lots of warm socks, silk stockings (to match the glitzy t-shirt), black leggings, two pairs of boots (one high-heeled aka glitzy to party with), warm slippers, a silken nightie (not to show off, just because of weight), underpants (one pair red, as is the custom in Italy for New Year's eve - more luck in the new year then), a bra (red - hah!), a warm jacket, hat, scarf, gloves, some jewellery (party!), soap, tooth paste, make up, perfume (partyyyyyyyyy!) - all wrapped up in one of those zip-open, zip-shut see-thru bags they ask for according to european law for flights (pffffff!), hmmmmmm...
Presents, Berlin bears, passport and stuff, mobile, camera, hearing aids (sigh), a spare pair of glasses just in case, a small booklet with all the informations on flights, busses, phone numbers (if I loose this I'm buggered), a book, hmmm...
Sweets (little sugar piglets), horoscopes to laugh about, games to play....
I guess that's about it!
6 kilo - beat that!
And at 10 am off to the airport and Helsinki to meet my friends! Under the balls! The twelve grapes to be swallowed around midnight I'll buy in Funland! :)

24 hrs of hosting

Ivan stayed for just over 24 hours only. He left in the middle of the night, we hugged good bye for the week, and will meet again in Riga next saturday. By now he should be with his girlfriend in Elsis' flat, enjoying each other's company after long months of being apart.
Yesterday after some heavy shopping in Schöneberg, we bought daytickets for the public transport (less than 6 Euro per person) and went to a few places he hadn't visited or even known about so far. He loved learning about the wall at Potsdamer Platz, hated the crowds at the turkish market, but enjoyed the Xmas markets and illuminations of the streets. And marvelled on ice skating and skiing facilities in the middle of the city. Crazy Berliners in a crazy artificial winter world!
He loved my flat as well and took lots of pics. Well, it's a cozy little place, spacious enough to hold a few guests. I will host again as soon as I'm back from my new year's trip to Helsinki and Riga. Kliment - you know him. Looking forward to all those days when I'll meet lots of friends I have made this year when travelling! :)

Xmas market again! And again! And again!

Surprise, surprise: Xmas markets in Berlin. Lots of them. All over Germany it's the tradition to close them down on Xmas. Not in Berlin.
And sales started already. They used to go strong for a week end of january. We might find the first easteregg soon. There's no seasons in shopping any more. It's buy-buy-buy all year through.
Shops are open on sundays in Berlin now. Shops are open until late at night every day of the week. I wonder where the money comes from to buy during all these extra hours. And starting Monday we'll have to pay more taxes, 19 % instead of 16.
So now we have more time to buy stuff which is more expensive, we don't need and can't afford anyway. Lovely.
I didn't get the books I wanted though yesterday. So my dear hosts from Turkey will have to wait until next year. So sad.
I'm hosting myself now. Ivan aka Lovas from Madrid arrived at Schönefeld airport shortly before midnight. He will leave again tomorrow very early, at around 3 am. We might as well stay awake, cos today we went to bed at 3 am. Not much sleep until the man with the new modem rang. But now I'm connected with the world again. Bit tired, but online. ;)

Back in the flat without any cat - sigh!

Home sweet home, but no cats, no dogs, and no kids around. So sad!
After a somewhat late flight cos of a left suitcase that was supposed to hold a bomb or something, and a fast and cheap taxi ride back to Crellestraße (you learn to bargain when travelling), I read the mails I got during the last ten weeks (mostly bills), watered some flowers, bought some berlin food, couldn't chat or check my online mail - internet didn't work and they will repair it tomorrow only (pffff). So I'm sitting in the local library hacking away for 50 cent per hour.
Outside my spacious flat, a lot of new shops and restaurants opened in the last weeks, as is the rule in this area or kiez - that's what we Berliners call it. Ok, I'm not really a Berliner,but still.
One just round the corner where I never saw any guests eating or drinking in any of the several restaurants opened and shut during the last five years. It's a shop-cum-cafe called "Kloster", selling biologically grown food. I'll have to try it, though I'm not into religion nor spirituality. And they seem to be very much so, check here. I wonder how long they'll survive.
And the Kaiser-Wilhelm-Platz at Hauptstraße has changed a lot, too: there's less streets and more space to sit underneath trees. Just like it used to be a hundred years ago. :)
By the way: It just started snowing! Hence the pic. :) :)
And now on to do some shopping! Lots of vouchers in the mail as well, so they have to be spent. C ya tomorrow! :)

Last day in Stuttgart

No walks through the white winter woods for me yesterday. Neither for Alex and Anna, but she at least had been walking a nice dog from the animal home the two days before and will again today.
Instead I cleaned my tiny room underneath the sky (and then the cats took over) and cooked (pumpkin cream soup, delicious) and packed. Not only handluggage for me today, I'm taking the Xmas presents with me. So it will amount to more than 8 kilo and won't fit into my backpack either. I'm flying Lufthansa and already checked in online. Alex will drive me to the airport just after lunch.
Ahhh, I'm looking forward to the first cup of Illy coffee done in my Carmencita and drunk out of my far travelled Hoops and Yoyo mug. In my Berlin flat, after having been away for more than two months. I wonder what it will feel like to be back there again.

A walk in the woods ? Or movietime?

Lots of movies on tv during Xmas. And Alex buys all the best on dvd. So yesterday whilst the kids were invited to Xmas dinner at their father's place, I stayed at home and - instead of cleaning my room underneath the roof - watched "Pirates of the Carribean II". And when they were back, a few more films with Anna.
Today, after packing my lightweight backpack and hopefully doing up my room, we might go for a walk around Vaihingen. Bärenschlössle in the middle of the woods by the lakes, maybe. It's the Stuttgarters' favourite weekend area, after all, and only around the corner from our little old house.
Or maybe movies again? ;)

White Xmas! :)

Wow! What a great surprise! I woke up this morning, looked out the window just opposite my bed, and saw there's SNOW everywhere! Isn't that ever so wonderful! White Xmas after all! :)
Yesterday we had a nice quiet day and evening at home, great food (Raclette) and some fun movies. It was sunny and cold outside, but we preferred staying in our cozy house close to the Xmas tree.
The gifts were just lovely! Anna enjoyed her first latte macchiatto with her brandnew coffeemachine, and Alex loves his new books and the money, both of which he needs for university. I got a small (verry small) flask of my favourite perfume Paloma Picasso - perfect to travel with, Anna said -, a Hoops and Yoyo mug sent all the way from the US - ordered by Anna, of course -, the coffeemaker I told you about, and from family in Düsseldorf a beautiful green woollen and silk pashmina scarf. And lots of little homemade sweets, all done by my niece Helen.
The parcel we had sent them still hasn't reached them yet. The post website says it's stuck somewhere around Düsseldorf. Let's hope it didn't get lost!

Fröhliche Weihnachten euch allen!

Have a wonderful time and enjoy some great days with family and friends!
Merry Christmas - God Jul - Glaedelig Jul - Häid jõule - С Рождеством Христовым - Feliz Navidad - Vrolijk Kerstfeest - Buon Natale - Wesolych Swiat - Bom Natal - Joyeux Nöel - Veselé vánoce - Boldog karácsonyt - Καλά Χριστούγεννα - Весела Коледа - Noeliniz kutlu olsun - Hyvää joulua!

Last chance to buy Xmas presents

Today shops and malls were full of stressed people searching for last presents. We only bought fresh bread, cheese and as a special treat some sausage for Alex who's not into meat that much any more. I found goose rillettes from France - funny, we had talked about it in chat last night, two chatfriends from France and me. So I got some, of course.
And we bought a magazine to know about the tv program over Xmas. Nothing like a nice relaxed 24 hours with the Xmas tree watching tv with the family. ;)
Anna and Alex are invited to parties and Xmas dinners in the evenings, whilst I stay at home with the cats. My shoulder and arm are still annoying me, so I don't feel like doing much. Not even visiting my dear old friends in Stuttgart. I sent Xmas cards, of course, and seeing the stamp from Stuttgart post office, Heike thought I was at home and called. We talked for more than 30 minutes - so much to catch up on! :)

Getting ready for Xmas

We bought the Xmas tree, and had it cut so it fits into our Xmas tree stand. It's a nordmann fir, on the red list of threatened species, but grown especially for Xmas tree use in Denmark mostly. It will add a nice look and smell for a long time to our house. 35 Euro is some money though! The Xmas tree we bought in the black forest when Alex had his first Xmas ever was only 3 DM, which is 1,50 Euro. Sigh.
Now all it needs is to be decorated. This will be done today, by Anna and me. Alex isn't into it since many years. But I bet he likes it all the same.

Winter solstice

Days are getting shorter and colder. It's the longest night tonight. (Exact time this year when the sun is farthest from the earth: 22nd, 0:22 am.)
But what a lovely view in the early mornings from my window underneath the roof in the middle of the old village of Vaihingen! :)
Up north in Lapland around ths time there's misterious hunting ! I didn't know that until my friends from Suomi told me. Watch the video here. And the follow up here.
Beware though! This is from Finland!

Season's greetings

What a day! Writing Xmas cards, wrapping up gifts, packing parcels, and queuing at the post office to send them in time.
Here's our favourite cookies just before they were packed and sent.
Ever so often the postman rings to bring more parcels. Time to buy the Xmas tree, set it up in Anna's livingroom, and put the presents underneath!
Back home, I found more good wishes in my e-mail. Some from friends I haven't seen since a long time. But also from the airlines I've been flying with this year, this here is an interactive one. Have fun!

Lovely smells from the kitchen

Xmas is getting closer. You can even smell it: cookies baking in the kitchen. Alex and Anna are preparing their grandma's favourite "Strohhütle" (little straw hats). It will be sent in all the parcels to the family. I'm lucky, I had the first. Yummy. :)

One more week

to go until Xmas. The kids don't like decorating this year, so we only have a few wreaths, like this one at the main door, welcoming our guests.
Well, it didn't feel like winter even lately, leave alone Xmas time. Roses are blooming, and a few days ago I picked a strawberry in our small garden.
Still Anna and I are thinking about buying a Xmas tree soon, and we'll turn the kitchen into a cookie heaven on Tuesday, so I guess the decorating spirit will come after all.
Until then it's time to read.
"Jules et Jim" - remember the film by Francois Truffaut? I'm enjoying the book by Henri-Pierre Roché now, comfortable in my warm and cozy bed until the early hours of the morning. :)

Teletubbies and moomins

Ok, I kept the hat and turned into a Xmas teletubby. ;)
I got the new glasses as well, and went to the finnish village in my new outfit to meet Patrick aka urg and his friends for a glögi (hot spicy wine). We hadn't seen each other since August in Riga, but of course met in chat.
Later Anna joined me, and we browsed the malls and shops for gifts. Again.
We found some (psssst - can't tell, they're a surprise), and I got a few books in 2001. One by Tove Jansson: "Die Mumins. Eine drollige Gesellschaft". It's a new translation of "Finn Family Moomintroll", the third book of the series. A gift for myself. Luckily, it's getting colder and greyish outside, so it's comfortable to stay at home, have a tea and read. :)

Home, sweet home ;)

Staying at home yesterday, not able to do much without my glasses. They should have been ready in the afternoon, but weren't. Maybe today.
So I read a bit (quite fine without glasses) and checked the web and friends' blogs a bit and chatted a bit (nose close to the screen). And took some pics, like this one: Alex in our kitchen.
When browsing the web, I found this amazing story about "How God created the world.". Enjoy here!

More Xmas shopping

Yesss! We bought the De Longhi (another one, but seems to be even better and was only 300 Euro at amazon.de) and my Carmencita for six cups, allowing to invite friends to have espresso with me. No muff, my sister will sew one herself. But Poptarts for Anna in the english shop. I meant them to be a special Xmas treat, but she saw them in the bag and wanted one at once. I gave in. Sigh.
Browsing the colourfully decorated shops I found a red and black woollen hat, nice and warm and funny. At home the kids thought I looked like a teletubby with it. So I'll take it back. Who would like to look like a teletubby? Not me.
More good news: Gipsy's new family called (Anna had sent them a parcel for Xmas - hint, hint), and our friendly, but shy shepherd doggy is feeling fine, and wants to be visited this sunday. Now Alex can't go because he'll be skiing this weekend. (Seems like winter is slowly coming, it's getting colder, and there's some snow in the mountains.) They try to arrange for another day or maybe Alex can come back from skiing earlier. We'll see.
Oh, by the way, talking about seeing: my long cherished glass frame (I bet this is not the correct word) broke yesterday all of a sudden. It had looked nice on me and me with it for fifteen years now. But where to get some new glasses very fast around Xmas? Luckily I had brought a spare pair of glasses from Berlin, but they're only for working on my computer. Anything in any other distance would look a bit blurry. So I went to a few opticians and found a nice one from Berlin (!), who will fix my old glasses in a new frame until this afternoon. Pffffff. Lucky me!

Xmas shopping

Yesterday I was looking around Stuttgart Xmas market, museum shops and lots of other shops and malls downtown again to find some presents for friends and family. It didn't quite work so far, so I will have another look today, Manufactum store and the Piccadilly english shop in the center should have some nice gifts.
My father would love one of those oldfashioned fur thingies you can hang around your neck and put your freezing hands inside, like this one here. Muff in german. They are the fashion again this year, too. Not for men, but still.
Anna wants a coffee machine, De Longhi. Prizes varied from 280 to 600 Euro during the last weeks. We should have bought one when it was cheapest. Now we're waiting for the prizes to drop again, after Xmas, and hopefully before Januaray 1st, when the tax will be higher. 16 % so far, then 19. Take it from the poor, not the rich, our government seems to think.
And I will get a coffee machine as well, but a simple spanish style one - Carmencita - , which you put onto the stove. I like those best. Nice coffee! :)

You got mail - from your dog ;)

Our cute, though not so small dog Kali sent us an e-mail today, wishing us all the best for Xmas and telling us about her latest adventures.
My daughter Anna had found her and her friend Gipsy in the animal home Stuttgart and managed to talk us into hosting these wonderful and lively dogs. After a few months this spring and summer, we had to give them away, cos the cats didn't get on well with them and vice versa. We were so sad!
But Anna found very nice new homes for the two doggies. And today good news, Kali is feeling better every day, having fun and running wild. Now we would like to hear from shy and quiet Gipsy. Hope she's fine with her new family, as well.

Finland's calling

I guess I told you already that Sami (my nice finnish host from May) had put a spell on me saying I can't leave Finland, and if I do I suffer. Hence the fall in Sofia and cracked shoulder, most probably. ;)
So I miss Finland, of course. And my finnish friends. Imagine my joy when I read that there's a finnish village at the Stuttgart Xmas market.
Yesterday I felt a bit better than usually after a night of tossing and turning and swearing about my b** f*** shoulder, so I went downtown to look for Xmas presents. And since the finnish village is close to my tram station Charlottenplatz, I went there first thing and last as well. In between I walked around for more than eight hours, but couldn't find any of the gifts I was looking for. Sigh.
It wasn't as nice as it might have been, and of course rather expensive, but still! I had some tasty lakka liqueur (very finnish xmassy like) to start my shopping trip, and bought some Sandels beer to take home and enjoy there just before going back to Vaihingen. (The beer was cheaper than in Finland, imagine!)
Later in the evening, in chat, I met Elsis again (her moomin party had been a success, of course, and lots of our friends had been there), and we decided to celebrate New Year together - in Helsinki, in Kliment's flat! :)
Today I booked the flights, and Elsis will invite our mutual friends! :)
Oh, by the way, Kliment won't be at home then, but in Sofia celebrating with his family. On his way back to Helsinki, he'll stop for a day in Berlin to visit me. And I'll stay in Riga in Elsis' flat on my way from Helsinki back to Berlin. Confusing? No, nice!

More travelling...

...in my dreams only :(
My shoulder keeps me from doing much, especially from travelling on now. After Xmas it'll be fine, the doctors told me. So in the meantime I stay at home and read a lot. I can't even redecorate my room (admire the view from my window), what with my right shoulder and arm still hurting. Patience is not for me, really.
Well, next year it's gonna be better, so I bought some cheap tickets from Tchibo to travel around Germany - two for 58 Euro only. My sister invited me to come over to Düsseldorf for carneval. Now I'm pondering on going there with my newly bought cheap tickets, and staying in Berlin in early February when the Berlinale is attracting movie lovers.
Maybe go to France before? I'm invited to Cannes and Paris. Or just wait for the Lufthansa offers of the week in early January and then take off to whereever those might lead me.

Fresh food for fresh people!

Whilst I was away in Berlin or travelling around Europe, my kids decided to live and eat healthy. Great.
First Alex, then Anna as well. So when they heard about this offer from some farmers close to Stuttgart to bring vegetables and fruit and even milk and Anna's favourite drink Bionade, they couldn't resist.
Now every Wednesday, Anna is making up a list of what to order from Laiseacker, and on Friday we find three huge baskets full of farm goodies at our front door.
Tonight they showed a documentary about long forgotten veggies and Laiseacker on tv. Now we know what all those nice people working for our good health are looking like. And they said they give away special recipe books on those forgotten but tasty veggies. For free. We'll have to have one with the next delivery!
On the picture, you see Anna in our kitchen having some more of this wonderful apple juice, tasting of ripe apples, not preservatives. :)

What flower are you?

I'm a snapdragon. "Mischief is your middle name, but your first is friend. You are quite the prankster that loves to make other people laugh." Hmmm.
This quiz said so. Well, actually I like snapdragons. Especially this one. :)
I found this quiz and quite some more ideas for my blog (admire the timeticker at top and the visitors' map down below to the right) on my friend Tanja's blog. Remember her from Lahti in July? If you are into knitting as she is, you have to visit her blog!
Oh, by the way, she's a snapdragon as well. :)

Eating Moomins

In chat yesterday we were exchanging recipes for Xmas cakes and cookies. When checking for the finnish joulutorttu, I found this cute gingerbread Moomin house. There's even a guide for building your own on this blog - a great source for finnish cooking, I'm sure I'll check it quite often from now on!
But it reminds me: I can't join Elsis' Moomin party in Riga this weekend. :(

Santa Claus - Sinterklaas - Nikolaus - and Hoops and Yoyo

December 6 is the day of Nikolaus aka Santa Claus in Germany. When the kids were younger, they polished their biggest boots, set them up in front of the door (inside) on the evening of the 5th, and lo, behold! next morning they were filled with huge chocolate Santa Clauses, nuts, oranges and apples. And a small extra, like a book. Now since they're grown up, they said they didn't feel like doing it any more. And they don't like the cheap chocolate anyway.
I felt sooo bad all day! :(
So late in the afternoon I went to the mall and bought some good quality chocolate Santa Clauses, nice bubbly chocolate and xmassy smelling bath bombs and such, and on the morning of the 6th went softly-softly downstairs to set up the not polished at all boots and fill them with the goodies.
And - can you believe it - Santa Claus had already been there and put some great xmas chocolate and small bottle of champagne into my not-polished-at-all-since-weeks sneakers. :)
In the evening Anna found this cute Hoops and Yoyo calendar and set it up on her laptop. You can download it as well (here) and enjoy the fun like we do!

Free hugs against the cold

December, winter time - grey sky, grey streets, grey people, running around the shops to buy-buy-buy. Money can't buy you love and warmth though, can it? And we need a lot of it, especially in cold winter. So a big hug would help, hein?
Last week a message in Hospitality Club told about the "Free Hugs Campaign" started in Australia a few years ago and spreading around the world by help of a video clip on Youtube. And of course not even 24 hours later members had decided to meet and offer big hugs to passers-by on Saturday December 2nd from 11 o'clock onwards.
Everybody had lots of fun, despite the cold weather, and wants to do it again, most probably on December 16, the "Official" Hugging Day. Or even before, cos they're more into spontaneous action.
I was sorry I couldn't join my friends in Helsinki, and glad they took pictures and published them on the web. I'm sure you'll recognize a few of them.
You'll find all the links to photos and online news in the HC-threads: Berlin - Düsseldorf - Graz - Helsinki - London - Lyon - Warsaw
Hey, how about joining the campaign? Either check the web and especially HC to meet with others. Or just put up a sign for yourself and huuuuuuuuuuuuugggg!

Happy International Volunteer Day!

Did you know it's International Volunteer Day today? I didn't, till I was told in HC-chat a few minutes ago.
Searching the web a bit, I found how important volunteers are to achieve the UN goals all United Nations Member States have pledged to meet by the year 2015. You find a few of these Millennium Development Goals (MDG - the UN loves abbreviations) in the pic, and all of them here.
I learned as well that "every year, the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme and its Online Volunteering (OV) service honour ten exceptional women and men who have made an exemplary impact on human development by sharing their expertise over the Internet and by demonstrating their commitment to volunteering." The winners of the 'Online Volunteer of the Year' award for 2006 were announced today. Check here.
Hmmm - something to think about doing when I stop working in just over five years from now.

New books!

Like every year we bought lots of books at Vaihingen Xmas market, from members of the the Lion's Club. No need to pay a lot for crime literature earlier, cos the best published during the year will be available for one Euro here. I left with quite a few, among them another Gervase Fen by my favourite british author Edmund Crispin (turns out I had read it in 1984 already, then published under another title), and some books on home decorating and colours, only 3 Euro each. :)
On Sunday, I made it to the artists' market in the beautifully renovated old fire engine house in Vaihingen center, and of course left with two great pics. I might have bought a lot more, they were really cheap as well as amazing!
So now when back in Berlin (when, I wonder) I'll have to paint a few walls and find a place where best to admire the new paintings!

Weekend of the Xmas markets

On Thursday, Xmas market in Stuttgart was opened - I missed it, cos I had to go from one doctor to the other to find out my shoulder bone is slightly cracked. I will for sure go there next week, especially since they offer a finnish market this year! :)
And this weekend, all over Germany there's more Xmas markets everywhere. Even in Vaihingen center, just round the corner from where we live. It's getting more commercial by the year, but there still are those volunteers and kids baking and knitting and helping do great Xmas presents and decorations for free which are sold to get some money for people and projects needing it badly. Pics of the last years you'll find here.
At Fanny-Leicht-Gymnasium, the secondary school my kids visited a long time ago, the 14 years olds set up those stands. I remember the cold winter when we had six children in our kitchen baking and filling up bags with Xmas cookies for days and nights on end, with friends coming ever so often to bring more goodies.
All in all we had three huge baskets full of cookies, more than 12 different kinds of them, plus gingerbread men and women. They were sold on the very first day, and we had to bake all thru the night to have one more huge basket full for sunday.
We used to buy all our Xmas decorations on the Vaihingen market, wreaths and mistle toes and lots of Xmas presents as well. This year all we got was some cookies from the "Katzenhilfe Stuttgart", volunteers helping stray cats to find new homes. Of course Anna's cats Felix and Emily are from there. And of course the cookies were so great, they were eaten up the same afternoon.
Today Alex went to help his friend Annelie and her family at the Xmas market in Münchingen, and Anna is off to the Tierheim Stuttgart where she volunteers every first sunday in a month to sell cookies and cakes. The one she baked yesterday smells yummy! Pity I can't go and have some. ;)

Stop AIDS - keep the promise!

Yesterday was World AIDS Day - an opportunity for people worldwide to unite in the fight against HIV and AIDS. And I couldn't wear my red ribbon which I had left in Berlin. :(
In 2000, state leaders made a promise to stop and begin to reverse the spread of AIDS by 2015. New reports by UNAIDS and the World Health Organization (WHO) say that the epidemic continues to spread in every region of the world. By now more than 65 million people have been infected with HIV and well over 25 million people have died of AIDS since 1981, 2.9 million in 2006 alone.
The UN started a campaign to remind the politicians and make them keep their promise. We all should help. Read more here.

December 1st: Calendartime!

The tradition in Germany in the weeks before Xmas is to give each other a calendar, with sweets or little presents. Each day you open one more window or box to find a nice surprise.
After many years without on its website, my trade union ver.di has one again. Congratulations! No idea what we'll find each day. We'll see! Check with me here! ;)