Kory's German Adventure...

Hey all! What a week it's been! My dear friend, Kory, arrived in Germany last week, and we had such a wonderful time exploring Germany together!! We tried to fit in as much as possible during the 5 days that she was here, and let's just say that we were quite successful! :) We spent our time exploring old castle ruins in Singen, wandering through the streets of Strasbourg (France), hiking from Germany into Switzerland, traipsing through the flowers on the island of Mainau, strolling through the streets of Meersburg, buying lots of fruit at the Farmer's Market, shopping in Konstanz, experiencing a German dance club, and dining with friends... Overall, we had a great time! And, needless to say, time flies when you're having fun! Sadly, I had to drop Kory off at the airport yesterday so that she could head back to the U.S. It's always hard to say goodbye, but one thing that did make it easier is the fact that I'll be heading home for a visit in 3 months... Yay! :)

In other news, I'll need you all to keep your fingers crossed for me today... I've been in a desperate need of a haircut for quite some time, but being that I'm super finicky about my hair (my friend, Sherry, is about the only one who I will allow to touch it!! :)), I've been trying to wait until I get back to the U.S. to get it cut... Well, being that that's 3 months away, and my hair is in a very poor state, I've decided that I can't wait that long... So, I'm taking a chance today and heading to the hair salon to get my hair cut... Yikes!! Fortunately, my friend, Maike will be there with me to help translate, AND I have an appointment with a younger woman who speaks English.... I have also printed off pictures of what my hair normally looks like... So, I'm putting on my brave face today and heading to a German hair salon... Gulp!! I'll keep you posted on the outcome... Wish me luck!

Here's some pictures of Kory's adventures in Germany... Enjoy!

Kory's 1st day in Germany!

Becky, Kory, and I at Hohentweil Castle in Singen...

Hohentweil Castle...

This was the dinner we attended that celebrated Matt & Becky's recent wedding and move to Germany...

Prosting! :)

This was at the end of the night... Can you tell by our eyes? :) We attended Matt and Becky's celebration dinner at the restaurant at 7:00. After dinner, everyone stayed for drinks until 12:30. The restaurant closed at 12:30, and instead of heading home, the whole group of us (about 20 altogether) decided to head to Metropol (a German dance club) to do some dancing. We finally left at 4 a.m. What a night! :)

And after only about 5 hours of sleep, we decided to get up the next morning and head to Strasbourg, France... :)

The Cathedral in Strasbourg...

Kory and I at dinner in Strasbourg...

Strasbourg, France...

Strasbourg, France...

The following day we hiked from Germany to Switzerland... 15 km! The guys wanted to stop for a photo op with the sunflowers... How cute! :)

What a motley looking crew... The was the group of us that went hiking (minus Matt and I)... We called ourselves the North American hiking group, considering we're all from North America (U.S. and Canada)... The only person not from North America was Benjamin... He ended up being our German guide! :)

Kory and I taking a break... That's Switzerland in the distance...

Brian and Kory on the way down...

We ended up in this cute little Swiss town called Stein am Rhein... Unfortunately, we didn't have too much time to walk around... So, I'm definitely planning a return trip! :)

Kory in Stein am Rhein...

Kory in front of the Meersburg Castle...

She decided to befriend the knight! :)

From Meersburg, we took the car ferry over to Konstanz... Notice our very windblown looks! :)

Kory at the helm... :)

After we wandered through Konstanz, we headed to the island of Mainau, which is known for their flower displays... They were gorgeous!!

Kory taking a break and enjoying the flowers... :)

Isn't this the cutest statue?!

Gorgeous!!

The island is known for their tulip display in the spring, the rose display in August, and the dahlia display in the fall... Fortunately, we were able to see the dahlias in full bloom... Beautiful!!