Fulda Gap...

On the way up (over? I really need a refresher on my geography) to Berlin we stopped in Fulda, Germany. Before we left the house Sam told me that this was a place he was excited to visit, I politely asked why. This turned out to be a small mistake. Sam started by telling me about cold war strategy how there were only a few places soviet forces could come through to invade West Germany and the most likely of these places was in Fulda through the Fulda Gap. This is when I made my really big mistake I encouraged Sam by asking him questions and acting interested, because up until  this point this sounded like a place I was interested in too. Encouraged Sam then read me information he researched online for the next half an hour! Turns out I should have listened more closely then maybe when we arrived in Fulda, Germany I would not have been so disappointed that the was no actual gap!

Adventure is Out There...



The Dome



With our spirit of adventure firmly back in place and no sign of warm weather approaching Sam planned us a spring break trip. This trip, for lack of a better term, was a farce the destination, which Sam saw on an American TV Channel, was a spring break impersonator. Tropical Islands is a huge dome that was built for air ships,  more commonly known as blimps, the structure sat empty for years  before someone turned the inside into a tropical island complete with sand, lagoons, tropical plants and birds. Tropical Islands boast 13 restaurants and lounges, a camp site, hotel rooms, a few carnival rides, temperatures in the 80s, and Germany's tallest water slide.  How Tropical Islands, which is located just south of Berlin, differs from the traditional spring break location should be obvious, you are indoors. Although the dome has a partial glass roof which lets in enough sun to sustain the large selection of tropical plants, there is no sunbathing.  Laura does not mind the lack of sun, she is too distracted by the water-slides, whirlpools and water falls to notice that sunscreen does not have to be applied regularly. My favorite time in the dome or in the Islands is near sundown, the light are on in and around the pool the employees are cleaning up and you can actually trick yourself into believing you are outside somewhere warm and exotic. 

Sam trying to catch some rays

Sam and Laura in the "rainforest" with a tropical bird 

Sam and Laura in front of a few slides.

Sam and Laura in front of one of the pools.

A quick catch up...



We ended the last year relieved and thankful. Sam had fully recovered from his surgery and was well on his way to being his old self after chemo. All of his tests were coming back with reassuring results and he had even started slowly getting back to the gym. We were all ready to put this behind us and continue our adventures in Europe, unfortunately by this time we had another obstacle to overcome. The weather, everything in Germany was literally frozen.



This is 9:45 am ouside tempature 10, that's fahrenheit!

 Earlier in December Sam went on a TDY, military speak for business trip, to Garmisch, a small German ski town in the Alps on the Austrian border. Laura and I, well mostly just me, felt we could not pass up the opportunity to check this town out although school was in full swing I decided we would make it a long weekend. I planned on picking Laura up from school around lunch time on Friday thus ensuring not only that she would have the chance to take her spelling test but also that we would not be driving late into the night. But of course the weather was uncooperative all those weeks we sat home sequestered from germs we received nothing but a dusting of snow, now on the day I have a 5 hour drive into the mountain planned a full fledge blizzard rages outside, emails come in from the school suggesting you pick up your kid early due to deteriorating conditions. Our departure was pushed off a day, when we finally arrived Saturday afternoon it was to snow piled up on the side of the road higher than the car. We had a short but great weekend sledding" just past the old Nazi hospital. “While it was great to go away for the weekend and there are still so many interesting places we want to visit, I did not want to be sightseeing in this weather. We planned a ski trip back to Garmisch in February but decided to put off any sightseeing trips till warmer weather has arrived here in Europe. Unfortunately it is now April and we are still anxiously awaiting that warmer weather.  This combined with Sam’s work schedule have made for a slow couple of months, not that you will hear any complaints about that.



These are the gates to the old Nazi hospital, I was expecting something alittle more dark.



Laura Sledding!