St. Patrick's Day in the Windy City

One great thing about coming back is we were able to bring a bit of Europe with us, for a while at least. Some of Tom's colleagues from Germany were traveling to the city for work and we were fortunate enough to have two of them join us for St. Patrick's Day weekend and all of the adventures that entailed!

The Saturday before is always about dying the Chicago River green. It is a mellow, scenic way to kick off the morning. None of the hard party-ers have been partying too hard yet, and if you time it right, you can avoid the body crushing crowds. I made sure to start everyone off on the right foot with a solid meal of bacon, eggs, and toast before we boarded the L around ten am.

We began at the dyeing of the river, where I lost all of those in my charge during a crowded bathroom break. We were soon reunited and I told them all off for deviating from the plan. We survived massive pedestrian street crossings and got a great view of the river.

From the river we followed the masses to the St. Patrick's Day parade. There we weren't able to score the best view. However, we weren't planning on staying that long and our location made for some interesting people watching... The beginning of the parade kicked off with bagpipes and I was able to get a decent view for that part!

I commend, yet am horrified with, the parents who bring their young children out to the parade! They are far more daring than I would be! Post parade we headed to a not too crowded bar before heading back to Lakeview for food and ice cream. While some people in our neighborhood had a much more traumatic St. Patrick's Day, we thoroughly enjoyed a beautiful day in the city!

We're BACK!

Okay, technically we have been back on glorious American soil for over a month now. We spent our first married Valentine's Day flying back to sweet home Chicago. And how did the city prepare for our return? With freezing cold temperatures! I instantly regretted not bringing my heavy duty winter coat and shipping it home instead. 

Two days later, our belongings were delivered from storage. To say this lead to a chaotic scene was an understatement. Boxes were everywhere, so much so we had no space to unpack and the first day was spend moving chaotic piles from one area to the next. Don't get me wrong, I love to clean and organize, like love to clean and organize, but this was too much all at once. 

A week and a half later we finally were unpacked, just in time for our shipped items to arrive. But hey, that was only five boxes. We easily handled that after our initial trauma! All of this packing, unpacking, reorganizing, and purging of our items left me in need of some inspiration, more inspiration than Pinterest could deliver for me. 

Enter: my latest read. The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up speaks to my soul. The title itself calms me and leads to hallucinations of the smell of a newly scrubbed floor. 

Moving and resettling in can lead to anxiety and a sense of overwhelm. Just reading the table of contents in this book brings about a feeling of calm. It really speaks to the idea that you are the space which surrounds you. Clutter equals chaos, a lack of cleanliness leads to a lack of mental order. If you're on the look out for a new read, or in need of a kick in the pants for your spring cleaning routine, check out Marie Kondo's book.

That being said, we have a lot coming our way. We've hit the ground running and have been going constantly since we returned. Europe was an experience I loved, it made me a stronger person and more aware of the world, as well as myself. However, it is so unbelievably good to be home.

My European Must See List

I hadn't a clue what I was getting myself into when we packed, shipped, and stored all of our belongings in the days immediately surrounding our wedding back in August. At the very least, I figured, I would get a first hand glimpse at another culture. 

In the grand scheme of things, six months isn't a large period of time. You have enough time to settle in, hardly enough time to get home sick, and daily opportunities to step out of your comfort zone. By two months in I guess I meshed perfectly already, as people were stopping me and asking for directions. This wasn't often successful for either party as German is still not my strong suit...

Regardless, this time has been filled with more than I could have ever begun to imagine. I like to think Tom and I knew each other quite well before moving to Germany. Together eight years, living together for three, totally comfortable around each other; we were fully knowledgeable about one another, weren't we? Oh but travel and ex-pat adjustment will bring you closer than you could ever imagine. Want to test your relationship? Travel constantly, live in close quarters, and be able to communicate only with each other. That will be an adventure in and of itself.

Through all of these experiences, we have built such an extraordinary base of memories and once in a life time opportunities that I simply had to share our top recommendations with you.

Favorite life long dream realized: London, England
London has been on my bucket list for as long as I can remember. London is also the one city I found hardest to leave. I am actually missing it dearly just thinking back on our four days there.

Things to see:

• Changing of the guard/Buckingham Palace
• Hampton Court Palace: You can spend an entire day there. Behind the golden leaf door at HCP's entrance was where Kate Middleton's wedding dress was made.
• Trafalgar Square: Walk from Buckingham to Trafalgar, it's so peaceful.
• Abbey Road: The iconic Beatles picture location, near St. John's Wood.
• Tower of London: Walk across the Tower Bridge and stroll along the Thames.
• Joe Allen's: Craving American food? Go here. It is also located in the theater district so you can catch a show while coming or going.

Favorite City: Ghent, Belgium
Why Ghent? Because Ghent was a total wildcard. We weren't initially planning on going there, we were thinking Brussels instead. It was on a whim, and a fantastic recommendation from a coworker of Tom's, that we ever heard of Ghent. It embodied everything I love about European cities. Ghent is located on a series of canals and had a very historical, even medieval, feel to it. A person will more than likely never go to Europe solely to visit Ghent, but if you are ever in the proximity, it may change your life.

Things to see:

• Canal tour
• Gravensteen Castle
• Shopping district: Their Zara Home store is heavenly.

Favorite country: Switzerland
Let's lead into this one with a dose of honesty. The one downside of Switzerland is the cost. It is a very expensive country to visit and, I would imagine, live in. I am partial as we honeymooned in Lucerne, but we've visited that city three times in all weather and I love it just as much.

Things to see:

• Lake tour (Lucerne, Switzerland)
• Lion Monument (Lucerne, Switzerland)
• Kapelbrucke (Lucerne, Switzerland)
• Swiss watch shops and chocolate shops

Best things in Germany:

We've done a great deal of traveling in Germany, so I had to give it it's own category.

• Heidelberg Castle: People say it's touristy, but I consider Heidelberg very worth your while. They have a 212,000 liter wine barrel. Argument made.
• Stuttgart Cannstatter Volksfest/Wasen: I have to pay tribute to our beloved Stuttgart. The Wasen is Stuttgart's Oktoberfest, and is far more fun and less touristy (says the tourist).
• Hiking behind Neuschwanstein. The castle tour is cool, but the trails are where it's at.
• Berlin's German History Museum: Easily two to three hours of reasonably priced entertainment. I promise you will learn a few things there, too.
• The Berlin Wall Memorial: There is something about this that really intrigued me.
• New Year's Eve in Stuttgart. People are blowing of fireworks, sparklers, and anything else that can get their hands on for hours. It's crazy, it's fun, and you can drink a great beer while watching.

Best things to eat in each country:

Because good food can make or break a trip.

• Austria: You must try the local wiener schnitzel
• Belgium: hot, fresh street waffle
• England: fish and chips or fresh fish, depending on your preference.
• France: Hot chocolate at a cafe
• Germany: Kase spatzle. The Swabian mac and cheese.
• The Netherlands: Dutch pancakes. Pancakes Amsterdam has huge ones, the best are the ones with whole strips of bacon cooked inside the batter.
• Switzerland: Their pizzas are on point.

Best travel tip:

We didn't have wifi abroad. Before leaving our house or hotel, we loaded the city map in our Google Map app on our phones. I would save locations of restaurants and sites on the map. Also, create a note with a list of back up plans and places with addresses. You can also load the route so it makes remembering trains and buses easier. Second best travel tip: use a backpack, instead of a suitcase, as often as possible. You can easily spend pre-train/airport time touring with a backpack.