If time and money weren’t an issue, where would you go?

We’ve spent the past two years working while traveling.

Both time and money have been a daily challenge.

But the work we do ,(and the people managing the Internet and power grid in the countries we’ve been to) has allowed us to successfully work and travel for over 2 years.

We are now returning back to America because we want to once again spend time with our families and be part of their lives in-person.

But given unlimited time and money…

Here are 29 places we have already been that we will love to return to.

(In some cases we’ve noted the things we would do there.)

1. Tanzania, Africa – tour the tanzanite mines, see the Serengeti
2. El Cid Resort, Cancun, Mexico
3. Munich, Germany – Could live here
4. Germany – Pretty much most places we’ve been
5. Puerto Iguazu, Argentina (see the falls at midnight with the rainbows)
6. Mendoza, Argentina – spend another weekend enjoying the wineries
7. Lake Atitlan, Guatemala
8. Chichicastenango, Guatemala
9. Granada, Nicaragua
10. Boquete, Panama
11. Quito, Ecuador – neurotic crazy city, but awesome too.
12. Cuenca, Ecuador – See the surrounding hill country and take Spanish classes
13. French Polynesia – this time I would go to Bora Bora or Moorea
14. New Zealand – almost anywhere in New Zealand. We could probably live here if our family did.
15. Bali – do more diving and see more of the island
16. Malaysia – but see more of the country outside of Kuala Lumpur
17. Hong Kong (Hong Kong Island)
18. Brunei
19. Chiang Mai, Thailand – stay inside the old city walls during a cleaner air quality season.
20. Hoi An, Vietnam
21. Udaipur, India
22. Bilaspur, India
23. Hyderabad, India – Nothing can prepare you for a trip to India except a trip to India. This time we know what to expect – and the food… oh the food was so good.
24. Slovenia – Viktorija and family, thank-you, thank-you, thank-you!
25. Krakow, Poland
26. Budapest, Hungary
27. Northern Italy
28. Rome, Italy – live in an apartment for a month
29. Mallorca, Spain – Stay at an all-inclusive resort, see the castle on the hill above Palma, see the old defensive castle on the water, go diving.

3 years ago, Jonathan and I spent nearly a month in Munich.

While we were here, one of our favorite experiences was a trip to Andechs. Andechs is a Monastery where they’ve been brewing beer, following the same recipe, since the 1200s.

The 1200s! That’s 292 years BEFORE Columbus sailed the ocean blue.

Now, let me tell you, these monks, they know what they’re doing. Their beer is go-oo-od.

So good, that I’ve been dreaming about it for 3 years.

As soon as we knew we were going to be in Munich again, I put another trip to Andechs on our must-do list. Above Oktoberfest. Yeah, that’s right.

To get there: Take the S8 to Hersching. That’s the end of the line. From there, it’s a nice 45 minute walk. If you know where you’re going, and there’s no snow. There are signs that mark the pathway.

And, if you don’t want to properly earn your beer, there is a bus from the train station as well.

The hike is uphill. And there are a fair number of stairs. But once you reach the top, it’s so worth it. The hike itself is a good one as well. It’s a lovely stroll through the forest, with fresh air and even a small waterfall.

The beer is something better than beer. It deserves a name of its own.

And the food. It’s remarkable.

Please, please, go to Andechs when you’re in Germany. And drink their Doppelbock dark beer. And eat the delicious cheese spread onto fresh pretzels., and the sauerkraut, and the apfel streudel with vanilla sauce.

It’ll change your life.

This year Jonathan and I got to do double duty. Or triple actually.

We got to visit our good friend Anne. In one of our favorite cities in the world – Munich. And, because of this, we got to visit the greatest festival of all time. A tribute to beer. And all things German.

Oktoberfest.

Oktoberfest is iconic Germany at its best. Beautiful girls each wearing a dirndl. Showing off their…well, you know.

Handsome men wearing Lederhosen. Showing off their calf muscles.

Ladies, that’s how you choose the best husband – by his calf muscles.

Men, if you’re looking for a special lady, look at how her apron is tied. It will tell you everything you need to know.

If it is tied on her right, she’s already married to someone else. If it’s tied in the middle, down her back, she’s widowed.

But, if it’s tied on her left – she’s free and clear.

Or, so I’ve been told.

Our friends Anne and Anja got together and found a dirndl for me to wear. (Thanks Anja!) I loved it. I can’t wait to own my own someday.

After I was properly dressed (Jonathan had to masquerade as an American Tourist), we headed out to the Oktoberfest in search of a lively tent and a good liter of beer.

We found them.

Unfortunately, our camera battery died, so we didn’t get too many pictures.

But, I can sum the evening up for you.

Our friend Anja, used her … assets … to secure us a table of Italian men in the Augustiner-Brau tent. We then proceeded to drink oh about 3 liters of beer each.

The Italian men were a bit frisky. They just wanted to kiss everyone. Jonathan didn’t like it.

Never before have I been kissed by 4 different men in one night. On the lips. (One was my husband.)

Awkward.

After 3 foreign kisses too many, we decided that we’d had our fun for the night, and headed back home.

It was, afterall, Monday. And we all had to go to work in the morning.

Oktoberfest is awesome. It’s loud, beery, and packed with people. But for anyone who likes beer even remotely, it’s a must-do in life.

At some point about 120 years ago, there was a man with two sons.
(Yes, there were many…)

One of those sons stayed in Germany near a town called Bad Zwischenahn.

The other son came to America.

The son who came to America was Carrie’s great-great-great-grandfather.

The families stayed in touch over the past 100+ years, and today, Carrie and I are about the same ages as Joern and Sabine.

Joern is Carrie’s 16th cousin-twice-removed (or something like that).

Joern and Sabine now run the family Baumschule in Northern Germany.

Baumschule = Nursery (for plants)

Baum = Tree
Schule = School

I like the idea that the word for nursery (in German) is the place where trees go to school. I think that’s fun.

But I digress…

We came to Bad Zwischenahn while on our honeymoon 4 years ago.

While driving from the Baumschule in Bad Zwischenahn to the cemetery in Twistringen where my Great-Great grandparents are buried (about 1 1/2 hour drive away), we realized that it’s quite likely that hundreds or maybe thousands of years ago, Carrie’s ancestors and my German ancestors were trading partners, or maybe warring tribes.

Returning to this part of the world is returning to our roots – which (coincidentally or not) are not that far away from each other.

We stayed with Elsbeth in her beautiful new home. It didn’t exist when we were here 4 years ago, but it’s beautiful, and is the first home we’ve stayed in which uses a geothermal coil for heating and cooling the house. Really neat to see how that works.

Her house was built on the land at the Baumschule (which is on about 75 acres).

We had a wonderful time enjoying the good company of Elsbeth and Haarold, Joern and Sabine, and their son Kevin. We even got to play Monopoly City (a whole new way to play Monopoly) with Kevin.

The high speed Internet allowed us to get a lot done, and the peaceful quiet all around us gave a place to rejuvenate.

I really like that returning to Carrie’s roots can happen in nearly the same place where I return to my roots too.

Carrie’s Mom responded with these notes:

1) Christian Bernard Oltjenbruns–born in Edewecht, Jeddeloh Germany 27 Feb 1843-died 02 August 1926 Osmond or (Plainview? ) Nebraska buried in Plainview
2) Son- Gerhard Hinrich Oltjenbruns –born in Edewecht, Jeddeloh Germany -18 December 1867- died 08 January 1926 – Amherst Colorado ( buried in Plainview Nebraska )
3) Son- Harry Frank Oltjenbruns – born 12-May 1894 York, Nebraska- died 26 April 1988 in Sterling, Colorado ( buried in Amherst, Colorado )
4) Son – Elton Gerald Oltjenbruns – Born 23 August 1920- Holyoke, Colorado=
5) daughter- Susan Eileen Oltjenbruns- born 19 January 1949 Holyoke, Colorado=
6) daughter Carrie Lynn Roll – born Holyoke, Colorado 13 June 1981=

Bumping along the broken asphalt roads around Bad Zeischenahn, Germany, the fields around sit at least 15 feet below the level of the road.

This ground has been moving and shifting since long before these roads were paved over with asphalt. The movement of the soggy ground causes the asphalt to crack. However, lots of changes have taken place here. 50 years ago, the streets used to be level with the surrounding fields.

The streets have remained at the elevation they were built at, while the fields around have been significantly lowered in elevation.

The fields have been harvested for their peat moss.

If you get out of the car, and very carefully walk along each side of the road, you will discover that the ground is quite soggy.

You have to be careful that you don’t slip and fall 15 feet down the hill into the ditch, which is actually just the field next to the road.

It’s quite amazing to think actually…

Peat Moss that took hundreds of thousands of years to develop can be chopped out of a field in blocks, stacked for a year or two until it dries out, the blocks can be heat treated, and they can then be sold nurseries and farms all over the world.

Once a whole field has been harvested, the company which sells the peat will plant over the land with grass and move on to the next plot of land they will buy, where they will repeat the process.

The once amazingly fertile land will take thousands of years to get back the peat it once had (if ever).

Carrie’s cousin Joern, who took us to see these fields, told us that selling peat used to be big business in the north of Germany.

Today, there is significantly less peat here to sell, and significantly more competition from places like Russia.

I know through our GreenJoyment site about the multitude of ways the 7 billion of us have dramatically altered our planet in the last 50 years, but this is one of the most visually astounding things I’ve seen with my own eyes.

A road that sits 15 feet above the surrounding ground… not because dirt was piled to build the road, but because the earth all around was harvested by machines and sold all over the world.

I don’t know if there will come a time when peat moss is simply unfindable, as apparently (at the current rates of extraction), there are hundreds of years worth of peat in Russia.

However, I do wonder what the extraction and alteration of the landscape (in such a dramatic way) means for future growth in this area.

The Universum Museum in Bremen, Germany is one of my favorite museums on the planet.

It’s like a children’s science museum, but for big kids like Carrie and me, it offers hours and hours of entertainment and fun.

The museum is designed like a space ship coming out of the planet (from one side), or like a space ship that crash landed (from the other side). Either way you look at it, no worries… it’s safe to go inside.

The museum is split into 3 parts. Mensch, Erde, und Kosmos, (or) People, Earth, and Space.

I’ve been to the museum twice. The first time I went was when I was in Germany 10 years ago with our friend Anne (who we’re going to see in Munich soon), and now with Carrie – 10 years later!

In these two visits, I’ve spent a combined total of 5 hours in the Universum museum, and still only seen 1/3 of it: Mensch. When I went there this time, I forgot which part I had seen, so we went to see Mensch. Most of the experiments and displays were again new for me (even though I’d seen them before), so even though I remembered having seen a lot of it, everything felt new.

And I learned a lot about humans. A lot.

Did you know that there were only 1 billion people on the planet in 1900? This means that in the last 110 years, we have (as a species) grown by 7 times. In all of human history up to 1900, we only reached 1 billion. Millions of years (or at least 8,000 years depending on your beliefs) to reach 1 billion, and then BOOM! huge population growth to 7 billion (the 7 billionth person will probably be born in October in either India or China – no way to know for sure).

I’ll spare you more learning for now, but I find this kind of thing fascinating.

I felt bad for Elsbeth and Harald who took us there – they got through the full museum in 1 ½ hours and had time for a coffee. Carrie and I spent 2 ½ hours there, and were the last ones out of the building as they were closing at 6 PM.

Moral of the story – if you go to a museum with us, come prepared to spend a lot of time. We like to see everything!

And the other moral of the story – if you’re in Bremen, Germany, take an afternoon and go to the Universum Museum. We loved it, and I think you will too.

Like all countries of the world (apparently), Germany has parades.

We got to enjoy the harvest festival erntgedankfest (ernt = harvest, gedanken = thanks/thoughts, fest = festival) and one of Northern Germany’s Thanksgiving parades this past weekend.

We went to the parade with Carrie’s (distant) cousins Joern (pronounced: yourn) and Sabine (Suh-bee-nuh), and their son Kevin (you probably already know how to pronounce that).

It was a lot of fun!

There were modern and antiquated tractors pulling trailers filled with dancing people, marching bands playing fun SchlagerMusik (Think Oom-Pah-Pah on a Tuba), and costumes a-plenty!

Some of the floats were also decorated with slogans.

Most of them said something like

“It’s been a wet year and we had very little sun,
But we had a good harvest, so let’s have some fun.”

There were also people throwing candy, and some even passing out sausages, pretzels, and giving out shots of various liquors.

Afterward, everyone made their way to a field where they pulled up the festival crown onto a pole with a metal arm attached so that the crown could swing freely. The crown was decorated with some of the year’s harvest including potatoes, corn, and assorted squash.

Germans have been doing this for hundreds of years.

Traditionally, it was good luck to dance under the crown.

Today, it’s more of a celebration of tradition.

After the opening festivities and some people giving speeches in Platt Deutsch (think Old/country German), most of the people dispersed to the tents set up to have a beer and a bratwurst.

Having had (more than normal amounts of) beer the night before on WallStrasse in Oldenburg (and having had a shot during the parade), neither Carrie or I felt much like a beer, so we let the others partake of the festivities.

I asked Carrie, “How many parades have we seen or been in, in other countries?”

Her response: “How many countries have we been to?”

Parades are a great way to get a feel for the culture of a place, and also a way to feel at home.

Who doesn’t enjoy a good parade?

Anne Link is a family friend who worked for my Uncle Walter when she lived in San Francisco in the 1970s. Anne lives outside of Hamburg, Germany. Carrie and I visited Anne on our honeymoon and it was nice to be back visiting her again four years later.

Her son Michael has a girlfriend named Jasmin (Yaz meen) and it was her 30th birthday.

We had never met Michael or Jasmin before, but we were honored to be invited to her birthday.

Hamburg has a part of town called the Rot-licht viertel (Red light district). But this place calls itself the Schwarz-licht viertel (Black light district).

During most of the party, we didn’t take many photos because it was at a place that was all black lights.

But we did get some fun pictures of the black light mini-golf!

We had a great time. Thanks for the invitation Michael, Yasmin, and Anne!

Short explanation of how to get an extension:

• Speak the language of the country where you are applying (not required, but helpful).
• Go with someone who speaks the language and has a residence where you are staying.
• Call in advance to find the foreigners office that is closest to wherever you are.
• Go to the office for foreigners (in a smaller town might be a good idea) and apply. Take cash and any paperwork which may be required -proof of health insurance, passports, proof of marriage (if applicable), proof of income (in the form of pay stubs or a last 90 days bank account printout)
• Pay – in cash most likely. (In Germany, the extension cost us 50 Euros each.)

Overall, as we have learned elsewhere – if you don’t get the answer you want or need, keep asking – either ask the same person, or if they are unhelpful, go somewhere else and find someone else to ask.

Longer explanation of how to get an extension:

When Americans come to Europe, they automatically get a visa.

It’s a free visa, and it’s known as a Schengen Visa.

It is good for the countries in the Schengen area of Europe.

The Schengen Visa is good for a 90 day period inside if 180 days.

How this works: Let’s say you’ve spent 80 days inside the Schengen area, and you go to England for 3 days (England is in Europe but is not part of the Schengen area), and then you come back to continental Europe.

You still only have 10 days on your Schengen Visa, and then you must leave the Schengen area for 90 days before you can come back. It’s 90 days inside of every 180 days.

Because we came to Italy in June, but we will be in Europe for 6 months altogether (we leave from Mallorca, Spain at the end of October), we needed to extend our Schengen Visa.

We thought it would be best to extend our visa in a country where we speak the language and understand what’s being said to us (mostly).

We tried by going with Nasser in Wiesbaden to the Auslanderbehoerde/auslandsamt (the office for foreigners).

We got the proper forms, got all the proofs of everything that they said were required (insurance, passports, proof we’re married, proof of income) requested, but then when we went back to see the guy who gave us the forms (in Wiesbaden), he was downright unhelpful.

Basically he told us that we needed to go to a different office.

Because we were leaving Wiesbaden anyway, we decided to go while in Hamburg.

Our friend Anne Link, whom we were staying with outside of Hamburg, helped us make the call.

We found out that we didn’t have to go to the audlandsamt in Hamburg, that there was one closer in the small town of Bad Oldesloe.

Anne took us to the office and even had the cash on hand so that we could pay without making a trip to the ATM (and pay her back later).

In short, having a local friend made the experience much, much easier, both in Wiesbaden and in Hamburg.

So, again, our recommendations for extending your Schengen Visa:

• If at first you don’t succeed, talk with someone else at a different office.
• Speak the language of the country where you are applying (not required, but helpful).
• Go with someone who speaks the language and has a residence where you are staying.
• Call in advance to find the foreigners office that is closest to wherever you are.
• Go to the office for foreigners (in a smaller town might be a good idea) and apply. Take cash and any paperwork which may be required -proof of health insurance, passports, proof of marriage (if applicable), proof of income (in the form of pay stubs or a last 90 days bank account printout)
• Pay – in cash most likely. (In Germany, the extension cost us 50 Euros each.)

Thank-you Nasser and Anne for all your help in sorting this out!

“Blind persistence will often result in getting something done by the exact same person that just spent the last hour telling you it couldn’t be done.”

Erika Warmbrunn
Where the Sidewalk Ends

Even though we were in Wiesbaden, Germany for a week, I don’t feel like I spent much time seeing the town. Instead, we spent the time with Doro and getting to know her husband Nasser.

It was a wonderful week in Wiesbaden including a visit to Doro’s parents near Bergen, some great cross-cultural cooking (we made Thai food for Doro and Nasser and they made some Moroccan favorites for us), and a celebration of Eid (the end of Ramadan) with Nasser’s family.

One of the things I learned about Wiesbaden is that it was built on a hot springs.

There is still a well where you can go to try the sulfuric water.

There are, however, limits on how much water you can drink.

Apparently, drinking too much sulfuric water isn’t good for you.

It’s not surprising, but it is pretty crazy that you can drink up to a liter every 24 hours, especially considering the strong sulfuric smell.

Like most German towns, Wiesbaden has a regular market (at least twice weekly) in the square outside the church, and lots of summer festivals.

We were here to hear some of the choirs warming up for “Wiesbaden Singt”, which is like a weekend celebration of singing in Wiesbaden.

We also had lunch one day at Best Worscht.

This is a restaurant where you can get currywurst, and it is, in fact, some of the best currywurst we have ever had.

If you’ve not had the joy of Currywurst, you should try it out next time you’re in Germany. Apparently the best currywurst is in Berlin, but Best Worscht in Wiesbaden is also good, and gives you a lot of flavors and spice levels to choose from.

Spices are rated A – F, with F being the spiciest. We ordered C spicyness, and a few different seasoning samples. The spicyness was just right, and getting to try lots of flavors was a good overview of what was available, as well as being delicious.

Thank-you Doro and Nasser for giving us such a nice week in Wiesbaden!