Oops.

My poor, abandoned blog. I left it for a Tumblr account, which I've also deserted. I've been too busy skimming other blogs [mostly food blogs] to even bother with this one. After reading a few past entries, I've decided to give it more attention.

My travels since my last post include Utrecht, Rome, and Tübingen [again]. I still vote that Germany is so far my favorite country.

When I returned to Tübingen, I brought Evelien with me. We explored Stuttgart and Ludwigsburg while Sam studied [something I should be doing now], mostly spending our time wandering Christmas markets with a mug of warm glühwein in our hands. We were lucky enough to catch the chocolate art fair in Tübingen as well.

My favorite part of my trip back was a small gypsy residence outside of French Quarter. Every Tuesday night, they host a quiet dinner in a small tavern lit only by candles. Vintage nude pictures were tacked up tastefully against one of the far walls. Sam and his friends ordered vegetarian plates, while I ordered the chicken. For €3, I received a marinated chicken leg with bulgur and a small salad. Delicious. The vegetarian meal consisted of thick slices of roasted eggplant, smothered in peanut sauce and topped with pine nuts. So much for thinking the veggie plate would be a scarce meal. The specialty that night was homemade feuersangenbowle, which is glühwein with rum-caramelized sugar melted into it.

Delicious. After our meal, we washed our dishes [after a harsh reminder from the owner] in warm water and soap. I couldn't get over how much I loved the idea of a cheap, homemade meal in a cozy [as the Dutch say, gezellig] tavern.

Unfortunately I had to leave the next morning, but not before loading up on fresh German bread. I need to find a bakery that sells something similar when I return to San Francisco.

Due to the freezing temperatures and snow, the trains were somewhat inconvenient. However, Die Bahn knows what they're doing [unlike most transportation agencies in SF, ahem] and if they required the passengers to change trains due to technical issues, a new train was waiting for us across the platform. Again, I love Germany. They've got everything: good transportation, delicious food and beer, and Christmas markets.