Heidelberg Visit Part 1

Prosecco toast with Caro and Suse

"My" beer :)

Caro and I night number 1

Night Number 2 - Love of friends

Nadine and I

Clastrophobically climbing the stairs to the top of the church tower

Top of the tower

View of the Rhein Neckar

Heidelberg Castle

I’m here! Landed in Frankfurt airport Friday at 5 in the afternoon. I think if anyone would have been watching me on the plane as we arrived they would have wondered what the heck I was thinking based on the huge smile I had on my face. Caro picked me up and we headed to Heidelberg. It was little bit surreal being able to give her a big hug for the first time in over 8 months. Not wasting any time, we got home (still feels like it’s partial mine), made dinner, got ready and hit the town. Good thing I had a few hours of sleep on the plane and it was later at night here but I was still running on an earlier time zone. We went to a familiar club and met up with good friends Nadine and Suse. After a long fun night, we slept in pretty easily. Was nice to get a deeper sleep than I have had in a while. At about 1 we decided to go for a run and because I am with Caro, she wanted to show me her new ice cream place. So we ran to the ice cream shop, had ice cream, and ran/walked over the old bridge and by the river. Yes, I said ice cream as a mid exercise snack/breakfast/lunch (I’m mean those three all in one, not three times :)). With Caro, it wouldn’t be any other way :) We tend to influence each others eating habits for the better. She gets me to mental-healthily eat non-nutritious from time to time and I get her to eat a few fruits and vegetables from time to time. All and all it was an in-the-moment experience and I'm lovi it! After the run, we got ready and went to Freiburg to watch her brother, Janis’ basketball game. I was able to finally see her mom and dad for the first time since my return. I love her family and it was so good to see them. We got home late from the game but of course, it was Saturday night and we once again hit the town. Again, the jet leg helped makes it pretty easy for me to hang on this schedule :)

Sunday was another great day! We have been on the run since I got here so it was nice to just get up, throw on some sweats and chill at the house for a bit. We then walked down the Hauptstrasse to go grab some food for the day. Caro, Nadine, Caro’s friend Ade, and I picked up some Doener (a wrap with lots of veggies, chicken scraped off the spit, and a yogurt sauce, kebap style). We got it to-go and decided to climb the tower to the top of one of the big church towers downtown. It was gorgeous up there, a great view of the entire city. After eating we climbed back down the stairs and into the sanctuary. We walked around quietly admiring the architecture, ambiance, and the prayer wall. We added our own prayers of thanks, lite a candle and shared a little time in a sacred place. It was a very special time, not really even planned out. Afterward, we walked back up the Hauptstrasse to the house and hopped in the car making our way out to Caro’s parent’s house. We were meeting them for afternoon/early evening kaffee und kuchen. I LOVE this afternoon ritual here! It is one of my most favorite things I have done in Germany since I first came to this new country. It is just time in the afternoon spent drinking coffee, eating some cake and visiting. Very special and memorable ritual to me. After a couple hour visit we headed back into the city and decided we would finally go for a run. It was raining and dark but very enjoyable. It was so great to have one of my old running partners back and run along the river and through a city I fell in love with a little over a year ago. I find myself smiling a lot here. It is so awesome to be back. It strangely feels as though I really wasn’t gone that long. Everything is still so familiar and normal. It may also be because this is the same time of the year that I was here last. My German speaking has even come back to me much easier than expected. Love it! My time spent with Caro is very treasured. It’s a connection you don’t find in many people and it is so nice to spend time with her again if only it is just for a short time. Close friends are incredibly important to me and I’m very fortunate to have been blessed with ones through out my life and all over the world. I only wish I didn’t have to be so far away from many of them. Tis life. For now, I’m in the moment with one of my bestest; quality time will be had; and I’m making the most of my time here in Heidelberg.

Enroute to Heidelberg once again!

NOVEMBER 5th: As I sit here in the London Heathrow airport once again, I still struggle to believe the fact that it was 8 months ago that I sat here waiting for my flight back to the states with tears streaming down my face. This time I’m waiting for my flight to Germany! Wahoo!!! I cannot believe I have been living in Chicago all this time. So much has happened and it seemed like forever in the beginning but these past few months have flown. Looking forward to 10 days in Heidelberg. I can hardly breathe just thinking about it and how familiar it will all be to me. I’m gonna try to blog while I am there but if not I will be sure to post stuff right when I return. Germany in 5 hours!!!

Week One November

NOVEMBER 4th: I cannot believe it is already November! One of the busiest weeks of my life in Chicago. It was all good though! Monday night I had the privilege of chefing a dinner at the Museum of Science and Industry for 12 people in the state of art “Smart Home” exhibit. I created the menu and served it successfully with the assistance of my co-worker and good friend Megs. It was such a fun experience doing what I love: menu planning, recipe creation, cooking and plateing. The dinner was requested to be Gluten and Dairy Free. Appetizer was a Cashew Cheeze Pesto on Campari Tomatoes topped with pine nuts. Extra pesto was available to dip with Gluten Free Mary’s Gone Crackers. The salad was a mixed green, pear, and toasted almond salad with pear vinegarette. The main course included brussel sprouts topped with toasted garlic almond meal along side brown rice pasta topped with a butternut squash cream sauce, sort of like an alfredo. I wanted to go seasonal hence the brussel sprouts, butternut squash, and pears. Dessert was a flourless chocolate cake with a dollop of chocolate mousse (main ingredient avocado) a raspberry and two slices of pears. Everyone was very satisfied and said they loved it. Very encouraging for my first community dinner chefing experience in Chicago. Loved it!
Tuesday was followed by a dinner event at my store and Wednesday and Thursday included training another woman starting the same job as me in Michigan. After early mornings, late nights, and limited sleep, I was extremely exhausted by tonight as I was unable to even really acknowledge the excitement I felt for going to Germany this weekend. On top of the busy week, I found out I have time off for Thanksgiving so need to purchase a ticket and Sari and I finished the first part of our project and now await feedback. Emotionally exhausted but all good stuff. I have been hammering the EmergenC and Airborne so I don’t get sick from completely beating myself up this week. There is NO way I’m getting sick for this trip :) It’s been a long time waiting and I am SOOOOO excited to see one of my bestest friends in the whole wide world.

Catchup

Man, my writing ability and blogging creativity has been slightly null lately. Either that or my life has been boring? Nah! Things have been busy. Work is going well and lots of new opportunities are arising. With that said, I'm feeling pretty good about how things are playing out.
On the food front, my friend Jorge and I went to Little India last weekend. It is a small area in Chicago with a large population of Indians and Indian Shops, grocery stores, and restuarants. I LOVE Indian food! So we went to Jorge's favorite on there for lunch and they had a great buffet of Indian items. That is the best way to do it because then you can try all sorts of dishes rather than just ordering one or two. It was delicious. I had some pictures but I can't seem to transfer them from my phone so you are just gonna have to picture me in my Indian attire, eating chana masala, and chanting. It was awesome going to the little market grocery stores too and seeing all the Indian specialty items. Made me want to cook something up, right then and there. We walked through a few shops and saw some really cool authentic indian clothes, housewares, and cooking items. I really really wanted to buy this old cooking skillet. It was super cool cause it was all raggedy and old and used and straight from Indian. (So it said, they probably lure all the Americans into buying it :) ) Anyway, I don't really have my own place to store and use it so I decided to wait. I'll be back for it though when I finally settle into my own home. Ha, whereever that may be and who knows when. Until then, I will just window shop. OR, I will just buy it when I go to India! Speaking of traveling, I am on my way to Germany next week. I CAN NOT WAIT! I can't believe it has already been 8 months since I left and moved to Chicago and started a new job. It is all so surreal. I remember getting here and thinking 8 months was soooo far away. AND now it's here. Hopefully this is just the beginning to many more travels abroad.
If I have any say in it, it will be.
My project with Sari is still underway and we are putting the finishing touches on our little filming so we can do what we will with it. It will be nice to let it go and see what happens. We will either be moving forward or I will have to deal with a little fork in the road. Whatever may happen, it is how it is supposed to be.
This week is gonna be busy week.

Fall in Chicago

Wow...I realized that I haven't written on here forever! It has been a busy beautiful fall here in Chicago. My work is going very well. Days are sometimes long and exhausting but the program I am helping to create is really taking off. Very encouraging and at some time overwhelming but feeling very successful. Lots more to do but finally feel like I am being more of a nutritionist than a marketer.

The weather this fall has been incredible so I have been trying to make the most of my time outside: walking through the leaves in the park, running by the lake, and just taking it all in. I love the colors, the brisk air, and the sun brightly shining. Gearing up for winter.

Last weekend Sari and I did our third round of filming for our project. I think we finally have what we need to put something together. It was alot of fun. We spent the morning in Chinatown again and had some great interactions with the locals. Fingers crossed now for some positive feedback.

Two weeks from today I am headed back to Germany for 10 days. I can't wait!!!! I can not believe it has already been 8 months since I moved to Chicago. Crazy! I am looking forward to lots of time with Caro and her family and other friends. I get to visit another piece of my heart again. It's been way too long.

Weekend in Ohio

Me n Kristi

In the corn tire

Butterfly pose

feets

Pumpkin patch

Last weekend was my very first trip to Ohio. One of my bestest buds, Kristi and her fam moved to Ohio this summer and I was able to take the weekend to go visit. It was a great weekend of girl time, relaxing, family time, and fun. It is always great to spend time with someone I feel so close to. Very good for the heart. On Saturday we took the kiddos to the corn maze and a little pumpkin patch. I love fall and the country is so beautiful and green there.

Another day of filming...stay tuned

So it looks like the audio was a dud on our first day of filming. Ugggghhh....but the good thing is that Sari says it at least looks really good. So we have to find another day this week to go do a few more shots in order to put something together for our project. Chinatown here we come AGAIN! Maybe we can get a few more interactive shots with some locals and sneak into a market that will let us tape. What shall I eat this time? :) Awwww....the day in the life of a TV star ;)