Ginta Lapina by Greg Kadel for Vogue Germany July 2011

Steffi Graf plays a backhand during the Warsteiner Champions Trophy of the Gerry Weber Open at the Gerry Weber stadium on June 4, 2011 in Halle, Germany.

Steffi Graf in action during the Warsteiner Champions Trophy of the Gerry Weber Open at the Gerry Weber stadium on June 4, 2011 in Halle, Germany.

Germany is a country filled with spellbinding scenery and marvelous historical buildings but there are plenty that elude even the savviest German.

The German government has obtained information that the United States may have monitored the mobile phone of Chancellor Angela Merkel and she called President Barack Obama on Wednesday to demand an immediate clarification, her spokesman said.

Steffi Graf reacts during the Warsteiner Champions Trophy of the Gerry Weber Open at the Gerry Weber stadium on June 4, 2011 in Halle, Germany.

After the morning trip to the Black Forest, we decided to take a walk through the little city of Breisach which is in the Rhine Valley situ...

Browse Bayreuth Festival 2011 Opening latest photos. View images and find out more about Bayreuth Festival 2011 Opening at Getty Images.

EUROPE - Live Look at Eden - Amazon.com Music

In the 1960s, Turkish workers arrived in Germany to fill the demand for cheap labor in a booming post-war economy. Many of them never left, creating a minority community that changed the demographics of Germany forever.

A lot of kids play soccer, others play chess, and some kids do handstands on the backs of galloping horses. It's a risky pastime, but parents say it teaches concentration and is a lot less expensive than other equestrian sports — even if it does take their breath away sometimes.

29.05.2008

Es gibt 9 Wechselpräpositionen (Dativ oder Akkusativ):in, auf, vor, hinter, unter, über, neben, an, zwischen Der Dativ ist mit einem nicht zielgerichteten, statischen Zustand verbunden (Frage: wo?)…

Xanten with its dominating St. Victor's Cathedral is one of the oldest towns in Germany and the only town that begins with the letter "X". It is best known for its adjacent Archaelogical Park and Colonia Ulpia Traiana, one of the most important settlements in the Germanic provinces of Rome in antiquity. While some have been partly reconstructed, a few original remains of Roman buildings can be seen here, such as the Amphitheater (used for live performances these days) and one of the Temples. Around 800.000 tourists visit this place every year. * Xanten ist eine der ältesten Städte Deutschlands und die einzigste Stadt, die mit "X" beginnt. Ca. 800.000 Touristen kommen jedes Jahr in die Domstadt. Besonders beliebt ist der angrenzende Archäologische Park: das Gelände der römischen Provinzstadt Colonia Ulpia Traiana bietet römische Geschichte als hautnahes Erlebnis. Es ist die einzige größere Römerstadt, die seit der Antike kaum überbaut wurde. Ihre Überreste liegen nur wenige Zentimeter unter den Wiesen des Parks! map - Colonia Ulpia Traiana Exploring the entire park extensively on foot takes around 3 - 4 hours at a leisurely pace. There are modern sculptures dotted around the park which I love! The proximity to the Netherlands is unmistakable. The windmill in the photo below is not part of the park, but it is one of the last working windmills. Here you can discover how the wheat turns into organic bread - which you can later purchase. Yum! * Das gesamte Gelände lässt sich in gemütlichen Schritten in circa 3 - 4 Stunden erkunden. Hier und da entdeckt man moderne Skulpturen. Die Kriemhildmühle (Bild weiter unten), die man vom Park aus sehen kann ist ein seperater Besuch allemal wert, denn sie ist eine der wenigen Mühlen, die noch täglich in Betrieb ist. Hier erfährt man wie das Korn zum Brot wird. Selbstverständlich kann man das frischgebackene Brot anschließend kaufen. Lecker! The hedges delineate the living quarters. Archaeological findings show that the Roman houses stood close together on strip-like lots. They had two storeys and a common front facing the street. It was pretty cool walking through there :) Three of these houses have beeen reconstructed complete with their interiors. * Die Hecken stellen die damaligen Hausgrundrisse dar. Dem archäologischen Befund folgend, stehen die Häuser auf streifenförmigen Parzellen mit einer gemeinsamen Front zur Straße. Drei dieser Häuser wurden mitsamt Inneneinrichtung rekonstruiert. Sehr interessant! ancient oven * alter Backofen One of the highlights of this trip was the Roman Museum located at the far end of the park. Museums are a great place to take some time out from the daily grind. This modern steel and glass structure sits atop the massive foundation of the ancient Roman town baths. Inside it's airy and open-spaced with fun multi-level galleries. The remains of a Roman ship is suspended between two levels. Impressive! Among the numerous artefacts I most enjoyed looking at the gemstones and jewelry Roman ladies wore. Wire-wrapping was very much evident and statement rings look pretty much like they do these days! Also, the Romans copiously used essential oils, such as lavender, rose and cinnamon. They kept them in tiny, very pretty green and blue glass amphoras. The exhibits are interactive. There are things to touch, smell, try out and listen to. Exciting! * Der Höhepunkt dieser Tagesreise (für mich) war der Besuch im dazugehörigen Römer Museum. Leider durfte man drinnen keine Fotos machen. Das Gebäude, eine moderne Stahl- und Glas-Konstruktion sitzt auf den massiven, gut erhaltenen Grundmauern der römischen Basilika Thermarum. Innen ist es luftig und offen mit mehreren Ebenen. Die Ausstellung bildet einen faszinierenden Gang durch die römische Geschichte Xantens. Es gibt Exponate zum Anfassen, Ausprobieren, Beschnuppern und Zuhören. Toll! Ein Teil eines römischen Lastkahns hängt "freischwebend" zwischen zwei Ebenen. Interessant: auch die Römer wussten ätherische Öle, wie z.B. Lavendel, Rose und Zimt zu schätzen. Aufbewahrt wurden sie in hübschen kleinen Amphoren aus Glas. After walking around on the archaelogical site we were hankering for a sit-down and a meal. We went back to the town center which boasts plenty of cafés and restaurants. We settled on a restaurant inside the historic building in the above photo. This is a typical German restaurant that serves solid meat-based meals, so I was pleasantly surprised that they also offer a few delicious sounding vegetarian and even vegan dishes! Well, this is a tourist town after all. I opted for the herbed gnocchi with fresh rucola, but the pasta with walnut pesto and tomato coulis also sounded good. This restaurant is popular with tour groups, so it's advisable to book ahead. We were lucky and snagged the last available table :) * Nach dem ausgiebigen Rundgang im Park gönnten wir uns eine wohlverdiente Verschnaufpause. Rund um den Marktplatz in Xanten gibt es zahlreiche Cafés und Restaurants. Wir entschieden uns für das Gotische Haus (siehe obiges Bild). Hier bekommt man vornehmlich gutbürgeliche Küche, aber auch eine köstliche Auswahl an vegetarischen und sogar veganen Gerichten! Immerhin. Ich empfehle eine Tischreservierung, denn dieses Restaurant ist bei Touristengruppen besonders beliebt. Wir hatten Glück und konnten den allerletzten Tisch ergattern :) Happy Friday!

Hi friends, how was your weekend? I already feel so out of touch with blogging since I’ve been here in my hometown. I barely get a second to myself and don’t have much time to write anything. But I do have lots of time to take photos and as I was walking down main street,...