Holiday in Hamburg, part 1

Hello everyone! Hope you’re all fine. We’ve just got back from our five-day trip in Hamburg. Hamburg, a major port city in northern Germany, is connected to the North Sea by the Elbe River. It’s crossed by hundreds of canals, and also contains large areas of parkland. Near its core, Inner Alster lake is dotted with boats and surrounded by cafes.

Here’s the view from our room.

We walked along the Alster lake.

Here are the main train station and the theatre.

Here’s me in front of the town hall. The city’s central Jungfernstieg boulevard connects the Neustadt (new town) with the Altstadt (old town), home to landmarks like 18th-century St. Michael’s Church.

We went to see the International Maritime Museum. There’s a huge collection of model ships, art, uniforms & photographs in Hamburg’s oldest preserved warehouse.

Sunset from our room.

Last but not the least, our hamburger in Hamburg.

So, what made you smile this week?

For: TToT – 8/18/17 , Weekly Smile 85 #weeklysmile, #ThreeThingsThursday – What made me smile this week…, Nurt Thurs – Lessons from Cameras, Skywatch Friday – 17 August 2017 Edition

#Bathwater

Weekly Smile 84 #weeklysmile

On this day and age, I’d say thanks
To big and small things I received
Giving me light when it is dark

Being able to climb the mountain
See what’s wise and what isn’t wise
On this day and age, I’d say thanks

To have my family and health
To be able to travel, too
To big and small things I received

The sun shines, birds sing, flowers bloom
Thanking God for all His blessing
Giving me light when it is dark*

(c) ladyleemanila 2017

* Cascade, a form created by Udit Bhatia, is all about receptiveness, but in a smooth cascading way like a waterfall. The poem does not have any rhyme scheme; therefore, the layout is simple. Say the first verse has three lines. Line one of verse one becomes the last line of verse two. To follow in suit, the second line of verse one becomes the last line of verse three. The third line of verse one now becomes the last line of verse four, the last stanza of the poem. See the structure example below:

a/b/c, d/e/A, f/g/B, h/i/C

(5) Words: | AGE | SEE | DARK | WISE | CLIMB |

So, what made you smile this week?

For: Weekly Smile 84 #weeklysmile, Weekly Writing Prompt #101

Also for: Nurt Thurs – Return to Childhood, #ThreeThingsThursday – What made me smile this week…, TToT – 8/11/17

Our Austrian Trip

Hello everyone! Just got back from our Austrian holiday and we had a smashing time. We drove to Mittersill, which is around 3 hours away from Munich, passing by St. Johann, Kitzbuhel and other lovely towns and villages.

We reached the castle where we stayed for 4 nights. Here’s the view from our balcony.

Here’s my back while I enjoyed the view. What a life!

Some of the food we’ve had. Delicious!

We walked during the day. On the first day we walked to Mittersill town.

“These boots were made for walking.”

On the second day, we drove to Salzburger Land and walked up the mountains. That was hard work! But worth it!

The horses were so cute!

We reached Hinter See and stayed there to have our picnic.

“The hills are alive with the sound of music!”

So, what made you smile this week?

For: TToT – 8/04/17 , Weekly Smile 83 #weeklysmile, #ThreeThingsThursday – What made me smile this week…, Nurt Thurs – Oh the Lessons!, Skywatch Friday – 3 August 2017 Edition , ALL SEASONS – AUGUST (6) FUN, Faux Summer of Love Street Signs at de Young Museum (Sundays In My City), Jo’s Monday walk : Hovingham

#Bathwater

#ThreeThingsThursday – What made me smile this week

Hello everyone!I met my friend C in town last week. We haven’t seen each other for quite some time so it was nice to meet again. We went to our favourite Japanese restaurant and had sashimi and yakisoba plus tea. Then we went shopping and had some ice-cream. It was a good thing we were in the tea shop when the rain poured hard. We just stayed a little longer there catching up with our news.

Yesterday I went to see my friend N for lunch and she cooked chicken curry, fish with black bean sauce and rice. They were delicious! I made leche flan for our dessert. R came, too. We spent the afternoon just talking and laughing and having tea.

This morning, Him Indoors and I went swimming before we went to work. Such a good way to start the day.

It has been raining for a couple of days but today is a bit sunny. That made me smile, too.

What made you smile this week?

For: #ThreeThingsThursday – What made me smile this week…, Weekly Smile 82 #weeklysmile, TToT – 7/28/17

#Bathwater

Weekly Smile 81 #weeklysmile

Hello everyone! Hope you’re all fine. I have been busy this week, work, meeting fiends, eating out, cycling everywhere, ringing up my mother and so on. That’s my first smile – being busy! Positive stress I call it. It’s better like that than being bored. Sharing with you some of the food we’ve had.

My brother has been operated this morning on his right shoulder. My mother and his family were with him at the hospital. I hope for his full recovery soon.

I have just finished filling a big “balikbayan box” for my mother and other relatives in the Philippines. They will get it here by Friday and will be shipped to the Philippines. My mother will receive it in two months. It’s full of “goodies” – 2 and 3 liters of red and white wine, coffee, tea, oatmeal, chocolates, sweets, cans of sausages, corned beef, old clothes, etc.

On Saturday, I’m going to a “wellness” holiday with my friend in Bad Füssing thermal baths. We’ll stay the night and be back on Sunday afternoon. It’s my birthday present to my friend and I’m sure we’ll have a great time swimming, talking, being pampered, etc.

So, what made you smile this week?

For: Weekly Smile 81 #weeklysmile, #ThreeThingsThursday – What made me smile this week…, TToT – 7/21/17

#Bathwater

Ten Things of Thankful – 7/14/17

I am thankful for the oatmeal which I have been having for the last couple of days. Oatmeal with milk, cinnamon and berries in the morning. Savoury oatmeal for lunch, for example with onions, tomatoes, mange tout and carrots. And for dinner, either vegetable soup like a minestrone or savoury oatmeal with chicken. This “oatmeal diet” has helped me reduced my blood sugar values, therefore, I also reduce the amount of insulin injection, and hopefully will help me lose weight. There’s always hope!

I am grateful for the lovely weather last Saturday, conducive to our cycling trip to one of our favourite beer gardens, the Waldwirthschaft. It was an hour cycling from our house to the beer garden, passing through the Perlacher Forest and the river Isar. We had beer and grilled fish and pretzel. There was a jazz band playing some lovely tunes. Such a lovely Saturday.

What other things am I grateful about?
Him Indoors with me who’s free from gout
Just rang my mother and she’s fine
She talked about her friends, that’s a good sign
My brother was sent home from his ship
Got to see a doctor, he needed the trip
His right shoulder will be operated
Glad he came home to be aided
HRH the son and his beautiful bride
A friend came for a visit, they’re the guides
And of course, our flowers in the garden
Always different, give us a lot of fun

So, what made you smile this week?

For: TToT – 7/14/17 , Weekly Smile 80 #weeklysmile, #ThreeThingsThursday – What made me smile this week…, Boundless Challenge #2, The TGIM Weekly Challenge

#Bathwater

Cycling in Munich

What do we usually do on Sundays? Cycling, of course! Everyone cycles here, from small kids to seniors. As soon as the weather is warm, out with our bikes to see places. It’s fun to cycle – everything is geared towards the cyclists, with the bike paths, parks, lakes, river, beer gardens and mountains.

Things I like this summer
The sea and the field azure
Cycling to the park and having ice-cream
Everyone happy and carefree like a dream
Flowers in bloom with birds, butterflies and bees
Walking in the fields, enjoying the summer breeze
Reading in the garden and watching him gardening
Working to have a good tan under the sun basking
Having some grills with different types of salads
And for Him Indoors, don’t forget some spuds
Having a break from working, clients are on holiday, too
Having tea and cakes with friends and our coffee brew
Spending time with Him Indoors swimming, cycling, walking
Going to the cinema, eating out, staying in and a lot of bonding

So, what made you smile this week?

For: ALL SEASONS – JULY FAVORITES, Weekly Smile 79 #weeklysmile, Thank God, It’s Monday! – Week of July 10th 2017: With a confession and a commitment made public