In which Andy just sums it up and gets it over with, part 2

4) Dad and Kim come to visit! Way back in January or December or so my Dad and Stepmom Kim had been making plans to come out and visit me in Hamburg, and right after Voicestream left they arrived in Hamburg after a little stay in Paris. This was especially exciting for them, considering this was my Dad's first trip to Europe ever, and Kim hadn't been here since high school or so. It was a really good time seeing them and catching up after having been apart for so long (I haven't seen anyone in my family since the beginning of September!). I did a lot of the same stuff with them that I did with Voicestream: gave them the city tour, took them into school for an extended visit with some of my classes (which the students all loved), ate out, did a little shopping, etc.

On that weekend we all loaded into a train to head down to Dresden for the weekend. A few friends I've made over here have made trips down to Dresden, and they along with a few other Germans I met said Dresden was really beautiful. And they were definitely right. East Germany is so different from the West, especially in a city like Dresden. In Berlin there are almost no original buildings left from before WWII, but in Dresden a lot of the old Baroque-era buildings were rebuilt. Very strange walking around town and seeing these huge, beautiful buildings juxtaposed with really harsh, angular Communist architecture.

Our hotel room in Dresden. Surprise suite (Rick Steves called it "cozy" or something).

Dad and Kim admiring the sights.

Climbing the stairs to the top of the Bastei.

A look down on the Elbe (it flows through Dresden too!)

Observation area in the Bastei. Really amazing place.

The three of us up at the top.

Downtown, with the dome of the Frauenkirche on the left.

The old center of Dresden, completely restored after the firebombing.

5) Hafengeburtstag (Harbor Birthday)! A couple weekends ago Hamburg celebrated the 125'th anniversary of the harbor, which is one of the central pieces of the town, and one of the biggest reasons why Hamburg is the city it is today. I had no idea it was going on--the occasion somehow slipped my notice--but it was a huge event. Lots of ships of all kinds heading up and down the Elbe--sailing ships, military battle ships, cruise liners, you name it, it was all there. And there was a huge crowd on the docks for the whole weekend, it had a really awesome carnival atmosphere.

The highlight of the weekend, however, was the Queen Mary 2, the biggest cruise ship in the world. It docked in Hamburg for a few days, and left Sunday evening. Seeing it was just unreal. You can't understand how big the thing is until you see it with your own eyes. For a little perspective: I looked up some info on it afterwards, and apparently it's like 10 meters longer than a Nimitz-class aircraft carrier.

The Queen Mary 2. Enormous.

Another shot of the ship.

6) Grünanlage: After the Hafengeburtstag (actually, on the very same weekend) I ended up getting hooked into a group of people who were going to check out the Grünanlage. What is this you ask? Well, it's an ENORMOUS outdoor techno festival that they host every year in Hamburg (that particular was full of "big" things, come to think of it). I thought I was staying for about a half hour (as it was Sunday) and ended up staying for about three. I'd never been to anything like that, nor do I think I'd go just on my own, but it was a really...unique experience. I'm actually really glad I went.

Grünanlage. A tiny, tiny view of the crowd.

Every once in a while someone would light of a traffic flare
in the crowd and dance around with it. Insane.