Hanami

I wanted to get out of Tübingen this weekend so my friend invited me to an Anime Convention near Mannheim. I didn't bring any cosplays with me because of weight and space issues but it still sounded fun. So four hours and 3 trains later I was there and it was raining. It was very small compared to cons in the USA but there were lots of vendors inside and out and lots of cosplayers. I wandered around for a few hours taking pictures while I waited for my friends to get there by car. I loved how many League of Legends cosplays there were and all the hand made stuff (it's very hard to get costuming stuff in Germany it seems). I feel spoiled in the USA now where I can buy wigs, theater make-up, etc whenever I want and in Germany you have to either order it online for a high price or wait till Halloween and even then there wasn't much of a selection. After my friends got there we walked around more, went to the cosplay contest where people made up skits and songs to perform. Then we ate and walked around some more. Convention stuff is normally really expensive but it was ridiculous here. They wanted 12-50€ for stuffed animals...So I bought some cat ears for 4€ to feel like I was cosplaying a little bit and a key chain for my backpack and that was it. My friend is in Japan at the moment and she gets awesome anime stuff for dirt cheap so she's going to hook me up when I get home ^_^

 Guilty Crown, Sucker Punch

 Jessica Rabbit

 Ashe, Soraka, Darkflame Shyvana

 Annie and Tibbers

 Black Rock Shooter

 Lizzy, Madam Red, Grell

 Amaimon and Mephisto

 Upstairs

 So gloomy

 Sebastian and Wonderland Grell

 Iron (wo)man and Captain America

 Belle and Adam

 Thomas

 Skyrim and World of Warcraft

 Cosplay contest winners

 Ahri

 My Little Pony

 Sun finally came out and it was packed

 Fiddlesticks

 Had a good time, was just really tired by the time I got home at midnight. I look forward to my big traveling week and hope I get to go to all the places I plan to. Bis später!

The sun is finally out

After 2 weeks of almost constant rain the sun finally came out! So I took a walk near my building and took some pictures of the lovely flower growing wild and in gardens.

Tried something new from the bakery in my grocery store. It's called a Berliner but as you can see it's just a jelly doughnut haha It was pretty good though.

Back in Germany

I went home to NC for about 2 months to see family, friends, and pets. It was not a relaxing trip that's for sure but I did enjoy staying busy and getting some sewing done. I didn't get anywhere near as much done as I had hoped but that's what happens when you try to split your time in 10 different directions on a time limit. I arrived at my apartment in Tübingen 18 hours after take off from Raleigh. I was so tired I only unpacked and then slept for 12 hours. Since then I have been exhausted and can't seem to get my sleep schedule straight. I am getting closer though and trying to get back in a workout/eating routine which I know will really help how I feel. I have only run errands, taken care of classes and hung out with my tandem partner. I took some pictures around the Neckar while I was waiting for here.

 She and I went to the animal shelter here and walked a dog. Evidently in Germany they house strays and pets who's owners are out of town at the same place. So the dog we walked had a family but I'm sure he still appreciated the exercise. I didn't take very many pictures just because there really wasn't much to photograph. There was a cool looking art exhibit on the way to the shelter but it didn't open till night.

This was outside the art exhibit

We then walked around the Altstadt and got lunch at a vegetarian Döner restaurant which was very tasty. After that we just hung out and talked for a while and then I went to the gym. It has been so nice and sunny here but I am so pale that I got burned just from walking around town. It is already too hot for me! I was hoping it would stay in the 50-60's for a while longer here but it's already in the 70's.

I enjoy caring for plants and animals so, since I can't have the latter, I bought a little plant. I know I can't take it home so I'll just give it away before I leave but I though it was cute and it was 1€. :)

Mittelaltermarkt und Mayans

Today I went with Lintu and Thomas to a Renaissance market in Stuttgart. It was VERY small and not really worth what they were charging just to get in. It was cool but very overpriced. I did buy some earrings for 7€ but everything else was way out of my budget. There were a lot of cool outfits and some great performers but we only stayed for about an hour because there was so little to do. I couldn't eat anything there either because it was all meat and bread. These pictures didn't turn out great because of the lighting. Oh well...

 süß ^_^

 Fire juggler

 Want to make...

New earrings :3

After that we went to the Linden Museum to look at the Maya-code exhibit and everything else there. (Didn't think you could take pictures but I found other peoples pics online...) It was pretty interesting but I was getting pretty tired from so much walking and nothing but coffee on my stomach all day. After that we had to walk around for a while waiting for the sushi place to open at 6. The sushi was delicious and we got to watch them make it at the bar which is always fun. Then we took the train back home and it was all we could do to keep from falling asleep.

So another fun full day! Even though it wears me out I love being busy. Plus my friends are fun to hang out with . Counting down the days till I fly home! My chain I made is so tiny now ^___^ only 17 more to go! Weeee!

Chocolate and Dark Visions

I have mostly just been going to class since the Christmas break. So my friend and I decided to take a trip to the Ritter Sport Museum. I was never a chocolate fan until I ate Ritter Sport... I kind of wish I hadn't haha It is so addicting. The museum wasn't much to look at. I think we spent more time in the chocolate shop than anything. There was a small video on how they make the chocolate and that was interesting. Plus there are a lot of historic buildings in the area so we also looked at those.

After that we decided to go into town to try to find a Manga store. There ended up being one in Tübingen and one in Reutlingen. We went to both and I bought one Manga. They had so many and they were cheaper than in the USA but they're all in German so I don't want to start a collection and it be half in English and half in German. By that point it was dinner time so we went to the sushi buffet and then home.

 I then had 3 hours before Dark Visions with Thomas and Lintu. The last time I went I just hung out with them the whole time and drank. There weren't many people last time so dancing wasn't really an option. This time there were a lot of people and, even though neither of them wanted to dance, I decided dancing would be more fun than just sitting around. I am not a good dancer but I don't care haha Dance like nobody's watching and you will have fun! After a while I found them again hanging out with friends and talking and they told me I was a really good dancer... HAHA Well I appreciate it but this was my first time dancing in a gothic club, I doubt I was very good. We ended up staying there for 4 hours so I made up for missing my gym time that day. I am very sore today! 3 hours of dancing is a great workout. I will have to start adding that to my weekly routine even if it's just in my room :)

 Terrible picture of me >.<

lol I'm dancing in the left corner. Glad they didn't get a better picture XD

Pretty Steampunk

Lintu and Thomas

My second final is this week and then my last is Feb 5. I will have a lot of free time in February before I leave since I just have that one class for one day. I think I might go to Köln even if it's by myself. It is so pretty and I'm sure I would have fun just walking around for a day or two. There is also a Medieval Market near Stuttgart next weekend that I was thinking of going to. Just trying to stay busy and see as much as I can. 

A late Christmas!

My family sent me a box for Christmas at the beginning of December in the hopes that I would have something to open Christmas morning. After a lot of headache over the tracking and over a month later it finally arrived. I have no idea what took so long since the sticker says it arrived in Frankfurt on Dec 9. It took 3 days to cross the ocean and several countries but a month to make the 3 hours drive here? Oh well, better late than never. The baked goods had to be thrown out which was a bad and good thing since I'm trying to get back in shape. I don't need chocolate chip cookies tempting me. My family got me Pocky, Chocolate Pandas, How to Crochet kit, yarn, Crochet book, tumbler cup with straw, a movie, and some other little things along with items I needed from home. Thank you for your thoughtful gifts and making (even a late) Christmas away from home a little less lonely. :)