I should be packing right now...

To start with some long overdue business--two weeks ago as I was walking out of the front door of my apartment with Jonathan to grab some coffee before he caught his train to Berlin, I spotted a wonderful surprise waiting for me in the mail area.  What's better for a midweek pick-me-up than a care package from mom?

Half of an awesome care package

So not only did I get three pairs of thick socks and my new contacts (both badly needed), but I also got a stash of Skittles, Reese's Pieces and Sour Patch Kids (not pictured--halfway consumed at time of photograph).  Shout out to mom!

This weekend Jackie came to visit me from Berlin.  After our unhealthy "junk" dinner on Friday night, we spent Saturday trekking out of Hannover to go see Schloß Marienburg (about 22 km outside of Hannover).  We knew that after our train ride we would have a 3 km hike to the castle (which I knew was on the side of a mountain), but we didn't know that there wouldn't be a marked path from the road.  It turned into a 5 km hike, but it was worth it in the end--the castle was really cool and it has an interesting history around it (ties into the royal House of Hanover in England).

 

 

After our tour, the sun was setting, so we asked about the quickest path down the mountain which incidentally resulted in us hiking down a steep unlit path through the forest at night.  Oddly enough, not the first I've trekked down a forested mountain path at night after touring a German castle.  We then got stuck at this old, creepy train station for an hour before finally getting back to my apartment just in time to start cooking before Bill and Sara came over for dinner & drinks before a night on the town.

                                    

 Waiting at the old creepy train station

This week I also kept up my trend for adventure Tuesdays...last week saw me hiking up a frosty mountain, but this week I decided to go on a long bike ride.  I slept in a bit and had a big breakfast before setting out on my bike adventure, and I somehow managed to time it just right because the weather was beautiful.  For most of the ride, I followed the Leine River (which flows through Hannover) with a roughly northeastern path before looping back to the north of Hannover past the Herrenhäuser Gärten.  The nice thing about Hannover is that it's a pretty nice sized city, but you don't have to go out too far to be in the country with cows and open fields.  On my way back to Hannover I also encountered the mythical Hannover Mini-Golf course which I had heard of but never seen.  While it doesn't look as exciting as the Pirate/Dinosaur/Safari themed courses at the beach, I'm very excited for it to open back up in the spring.

    

All in all it's been a very good week in Hannover.  The weather has been a bit nicer as of late with not quite as much rain and it has been significantly warmer.  But, after staying in town for a few weekends in a row, I'm looking forward to my trip to Amsterdam this weekend.  I'm leaving tomorrow directly after I'm done teaching, and I'll be getting back late Sunday night.  Expect a much more exciting post soon detailing that adventure.

Lastly, I leave with a picture of the front of the Hannover Hauptbahnhof.  This week they have been frantically working to finish setting up this one of many Weihnachtsmärkte (Christmas markets) in Hannover.  I'm starting to get incredibly excited about Advent in Germany!

 

 

P.S. A quick shout out to Carole, who is turning the big 5-0 this year.  Remember, after you get over the hill you just start gaining speed!