Doich-land

Yeah, I know that's not how you spell it...
I know its been awhile since I've been back, but I've been working, and doing homework and sick. So if you haven't already seen some of my pics or heard the story of my trip to Germany, here it is...


I was sent TDY to Ramstein Air Base for 9 days with a couple guys that I work with. We had to drive up to Atlanta to catch a direct flight to Frankfurt (about 9 hours). Long flight? yes, but no biggie...Megan and I went to Barnes & Noble the day before and I got a good novel to enjoy, I had my headphones with the double-pronged airplane attachment so as to avoid the hefty "entertainment fee," and I had a bag of Swedish Fish, what could go wrong?









How about sitting next to a lady with a cat on her lap for 9 hours when you are allergic to cats. That'll ruin your day and quite possibly the next 3 days. The flight attendant even kept coming back to her and asking her to put it back into its carrying case and under the seat. The lady just wouldn't comply for very long. She also thought it was hilarious when the cat would reach out and scratch my shoulder. I'll admit, if I had been watching this scenario on a movie screen with the audio of my inner-dialogue, it would have been hilarious. Unfortunately, this was really happening...for 9 hours.

When we got to Germany, we got our rental cars and headed out on our 1.5 hourish drive to Ramstein. Germany is beautiful. The stretch of the Autobahn between Frankfurt and Ramstein (just outside of Kaiserslautern) was sprinkled with quaint little towns which were connected to each other by a neverending stretch of vineyards on either side. While there we got to visit Schloss Heidelberg and Trier, the oldest city in Germany. I was a little disappointed because I had really wanted to attend a European soccer match. FC Kaiserslautern's stadium was a mere 5 miles from base, but my work schedule did not permit me to attend any games while there. However, while wallowing in despair I decided to go up to the stadium gift shop and buy myself something to feel better. It was cold, so I bought a scarf. On my way out, I took a back road and stumbled upon the practice field where the team was practicing. It was no game, but a good consolation prize. The markets were amazing, the food was even better. I even got my piece-o-junk Ford Fusion (the tiny European model, not like the US version) to go 102mph on the Autobahn. All in all, it was a good trip. I was happy to get home to my family where I was welcomed home with open arms, kisses, the flu, a sore throat, and pink-eye. Here are some pics...