It was actually sunny in London!? Wait, no it did rain for an hour.

Hoxton and Columbia Road Area

Oh Wow, I'm terrible at keeping this thing updated.  Ok, so let's get a quick recap of my lovely London weekend with the lovely Dina Marie then at the beginning of August!  

Must Have London Pic!

I arrived super late at night by the time I took the train into downtown from Gatwick.  DM picked me up at 12:30 and we started wandering the streets to find food (we both had skipped dinner to look our Pitta girl skinniest, of course).  The thing I never realized about the Brits, is that they're a bunch of alcoholics! I thought the Americans and the Germans both drank a ton, but I'm clearly wrong. There were tons of people, on every corner, out front of every bar, just pissed (thats how the Brits say drunk).  It was like Broad Ripple combined with State Street in Madison, Kirkwood in Btown and Rush and Division in Chicago x10. 

Dinner at Brawn with Elderflower drinks! YUM!

So we're just wandering through the streets unsuccessfully trying to find a cute pub that is still serving food at 1am. Finally, we spotted a cute little French cafe. Sat and had drinks and lovely snacks and chatted til 3am.  We took the bus (filled with drunken brits) back to her place and crashed out.  

Columbia Road Flower Market! It took 10 minutes to go 100 feet.

She lived in this really cute area of London that was kind of hipster-ish-Hoxton.  So since I had already been to London and done most of the touristy things we spend all day Saturday walking around her neighborhood. We found this cute cafe with mimosas and yummy brunch.  We shopped at some really cute boutiques. I started getting wedding ideas and looking for colors.  And of course, found a pub for fish and chips! Yum!  Shopped some more. Then we had a late dinner at Brawn.  Which was really amazing food and yummy Elderflower cocktails. We started with The Light club with her friends and then the night was crazy from there, which concluded with all of us shotgunning at 4am in the park. Typical Brits :)

Going to miss her!

Sunday there's a huge flower market behind DM's place, on Columbia Road, so we wandered and got lost. It's really beautiful and smelled so good. There was every type of flower possible and everything was about 5 Pounds for a big bunch. Not too shabby. Then we went to Russell Square to have a picnic in the park.  It started raining midway through. So then we headed to the nearby bowling alley for a few games before I caught my flight home!
 
Wasn't too hectic of a weekend. Just lots of family time and chatting! But sadly, DM has just moved back to the states, so I'm alone in Europe once again. Visitors are welcome anytime!

XOXO,
~Les

SICILY and ENGAGEMENT!!!!!! What a WEEKEND!!!!

IU Represent!!

Hello Friends and Family!!

We are both insanely excited to talk about our AMAZING trip to Sicily last weekend!! Since Lesley is a quarter Sicilian it has always been a dream of hers to go and see where the roots of her family are. And sometime in early May (when it was 40 degrees and pouring rain everyday) we found super cheap flights to go for a weekend in July. At that point 85 degrees and sun with beach sounded pretty awesome!

Sergei POV- And then Lesley had sort of forgotten about the trip since her girlfriends from the US were in town. So she was playing hostess for a few days and showing them around etc. So last Friday after the girls went back to the US the trip sort of just snuck up on her.


Pick your own fish!

But I started planning it all earlier this year when I started reading article after article about the 4C’s. Because in Germany it isn’t very common to buy engagement rings so I didn’t have any experience with the process. But the research was good and I can’t even remember how many jewelry stores I walked into. Then in early June I contacted Lesley’s Dad, to ask permission or something. I could have just offered to give him some camels or goats, but I knew Les liked diamonds better :)


Sergei made a friend :)

Les and I always do weekend trips, we try and do a trip to a new place once every month or so. It’s kind of our thing to pick a place and plan to see new things, try the food, local wines and experience the culture. And I knew we had Sicily planned, so I thought that could do it somewhere romantic there. (I hear girls like that stuff.)

Les POV-So anyways, I had sort of put Sicily on the back burner and was just planning to wing it and not research a ton. I threw everything in the suitcase Friday morning, Sergei picked me up from work and then we headed to the airport. After a quick 90 min flight we were in Palermo!! We drove to Castellmare del Golfo to stay for the night. It’s this really cute beachside town. Typical touristy with a boardwalk along the beach and tons of restaurants that pull the fish out of the Med in the day and serve it up that same night. So we found this place with great Risotto del Mare and white wine. It was the perfect start to the weekend. We just walked a bit and checked out boats after dinner and then crashed out early because we had tons of plans for the next day.

Overlooking Castellmare del Golfo

S- On Saturday morning after a traditional Italian bfast of meat, cheese, bread and cappuccino we headed West to Scopello beach. It was a stony beach, but the water was beautiful and it was HOT. So since I already had snuck the ring into my swim trunks pocket that morning of course I wasn’t going to be able to swim. I told Les that my foot was still hurting (I had cut it on a glass bottle in the Isar the week before) and that I would swim later. She bought it, silly girl, Russian guys don’t complain about such weak things as a ‘cut foot’!

I want a pony!!

L-So after Scopello we went farther along the coast to a Nature Reserve that involves climbing rocks and hiking in a park. And I only had flippy floppies so it was kind of a bust. We did go to the Nature Reserve Museum so we did get SOME culture! Apparently they have turtles nesting along the coast in spring!  Then we decided to head south towards Trapani and stopped along the way at a fruit stand and bought a HUGE watermelon. Like 15 kilos? That’s 33ish pounds! The Italian man cut it in half with a huge knife and Sergei ate an entire half of it with a plastic fork. It was very impressive actually!! Trapani was ok, larger and more industrial, but the beach was nice. Then we headed up the Erice mountain to see the view overlooking both sides of the sea.


We're ENGAGED!!!

S-And I wanted to propose at the top of the mountain but there were people everywhere. So after we left we were driving along the coast between Trapani and Marsala, which the Italians call La Via Del Sale. Sale is salt, but they have areas that they mine the salt and there are huge piles of it everywhere and little inlets of the sea that they collect the water, let it evaporate and then the salt is left. 

The ring :)

We found a really pretty beach where the sea is shallow and you can walk out 500 meters from the shore and it’s only a foot deep or less. So I took Lesley out to explore. And she had her camera which I had conveniently attached to a mini tripod to the day before. The sun was just over the horizon and I said let’s take some pics. So I took one on auto-timer of us and then checked to make sure it was correct. Then I said her hair looked bad, so we had to take another, I set it up and then ran back to her and got down on one-knee.


Engagement Dinner together!!

L-OMG I WAS SOOOO SHOCKED!!!!!! And soooo happy!!!!  He asked if I would like to marry him, I was so shocked that honestly I have no idea what I said. I kept telling him that he had to put the ring on my finger and he kept saying that I had to say yes first!! It was perfect :)

Vogue at the Segesta!

After that we kept touring the coast and went in search of a hotel for the night because we had decided to wing it. We found a nice one on the beach and they had a great restaurant. We had dinner, killed 2 bottles of wine and were the only ones dancing in front of a bunch of Italian tourists to the band they had. The band leader even played Frank Sinatra just for us since we were the only ones dancing out of 200 ppl. It was a perfect night. And I’m so happy!

Sunday we hit another beach, drove to Segesta, saw the famed 1000 year old temple (and got kicked out of it), ate enough gelato to gain 10 lbs each, and visited the historical downtown area of Palermo. It was the perfect weekend, capped off by an amazing moment for us both. We’re looking forward to the future!

XOXO,
~Les & Sergei

The Actual Moment!

Zurich for the weekend? Sure, why not!

Amazing Sunset over Lake Zurich

Hi All!!

One of the best things about Munich is its close proximity to at least 6 different countries within a few hours. And since we're very fortunate to have lovely friends living in many of these countries it's easy to go and visit for a weekend! Last weekend we decided to go to Zurich in Switzerland and visit our lovely friend Klaus (a fellow MBA)!

Excited for our Adventures in Zurich!

We went to Zurich on Friday afternoon and it didn't take us long to get there as we passed from Germany to Austria in less than 2 hours and after another 10 miles we made it to
Switzerland, which was an automatic change in scenary. Switzerland is not in the European Union and Lesley (being a slightly forgetful person) completely had forgotten her passport. But thankfully our car wasn't stopped at the border! And after all those years of hearing about the Swiss being peaceful and a tax haven for rich people, it was all really true! The first thing noticed upon arrival into Switzerland was 1) That every person was driving a $100k (or more) car, and 2) They all followed to speed limit to a T! Tons of rich old dudes driving their Ferrari's, Aston Martin's and Lambo's at 120 km (65 mph). It was seriously insane how expensive everything was in Zurich and really, just how rediculously rich the people that live there are!

Sergei "Shopping" for cars :)

But thankfully, we stayed for free! We met up with Klaus on Friday and just wandered around Lake Zurich and the river. It was very clean (even swimable) with a gorgeous view on the Alps. Had dinner at this cute cafe by the river and were treated to the local culture. Which on a Friday night means that everyone under the age of 25 gets together with their friends and picnics on the park that runs along the Lake downtown.



Company at lunch

On Saturday, after getting up early and figuring out the public transportation system, we took the tram all the way up to (what we thought) was the Üetliberg mountain, but as it turned out there was a further 2 km hike at 60 degrees up to the summit and we weren't dressed for such an occasion, so that was the 1st time we failed at reaching the mountain overlooking all of Zurich.

Sailing on the lake!

We ended up having an amazing Saturday though, walking through the old town city with plenty of churches and tiny cobbled alleyways. We had a lovely lunch at the lake, joining the local kids and tourists. It was quite an adventure though to defend our food against the swans who came pretty close and wanted their share of whatever was there on the "table". They almost took off Lesley's foot!

After lunch, since it was such an amazing day, we took a short 1.5 hrs cruise on the lake with lots of other tourists. It was beautiful, sitting in the back of the boat, the sun burning down on us, chilling with a cold drink and enjoying the view on Zurich.

Feeling Cold yet?!

And of course the shopping there was AMAZING. But since neither of us wanted to become instantly destitute we settled for some Swiss Laderach chocolate. But it was pretty damn amazing, plus the guy making it gave us some almonds :)

Probably the best (for sure the coldest) moment, was when Sergei dove off a bridge and into the river. It may have been his wish to feel young and crazy again, or the combination of 2 drinks and the sun, or simply the pure joy of finally having some sun at all in Europe, which made him make the 'smart' decision to dive into the water, but whatever it was, the idea turned out to be not as good as it seemed at first, as the water was reaaaaaaally cold. But it was hilarious to watch!

FIFA HQ

Saturday night we enjoyed a home cooked dinner on Klaus' patio, watched a thunderstorm go thru Zurich and chatted with our wonderful friend Klaus until all of us passed out after a long day in the sun. No, we did not go out on a Saturday night, and yes, we are getting old.

View from the top of Üetliberg

Sunday morning after sleeping in and enjoying a lovely breakfast on the patio we went to the two highest points of Zurich - the Zuriberg with the FIFA headquarters (for all our American friends: That's the world soccer association)and we finally also made it to the top of Üetliberg (after failing to reach the top the day before).  Unfortunately, FIFA was closed but we still walked around the park, stole a few pictures and got to see where the huge zoo was.

Amazing Scenery

But after that we still really wanted to go to Üetliberg. So we all parked and then the boys had to coerce Lesley to hike/walk/climb stairs up to the summit. But once we FINALLY made it, it was completely worth it and we all enjoyed a phenomenal view on downtown Zurich and the lake.

More to come this summer from our planned adventures in: Sicily, London and even Kyrgyzstan!

~Sergei and Lesley

Tuscany Road Trip!

So we decided to finally start using this thing and attempt to keep all of you wonderful friends and family updated on our travel adventures and life in Europe! I've been here for a year and a half now and am often sad that I don't get to keep in touch with everyone all the time.  So here is a blog in efforts to get you all more informed and coerce you to come visit!


The clouds in Northern Tuscany

So since Germany is a magical place with fun accents, white sausage and beer for work lunches; they give you many holidays! Last week we had 5 days off for Easter, rented a car and headed towards our friendly neighbors to the south!  It's only a 3 hour drive to Lake Garda in the Northern region which was our first stop for a mandatory Italian pizza and glass of wine upon entering the country! I'm fairly certain that we had pizza for lunch every day in 5 different cities.

View from Il Ciocco hotel

Our first day was the most adventurous but unfortunately the weather was really crappy and we ended up driving through rain and fog for half the day.  The first hotel was on the Southern edge of the Italian alps therefore we were literally driving in the clouds on tiny winding mountain roads for almost 2 hours with about 12 feet visibility ahead. Aka, I was terrified and pestering Sergei the entire time to slow down. But once we finally made it through the clouds it was amazing to see the views from the top of the mountains! 


Sergei drinking in Lucca

Half of the reason that we wanted to go to Italy was to enjoy all the lovely Italian food. We're a bit obsessed with Italian Burrata cheese. (If you have no idea what that is: go find some-it's AMAZING! http://www.thenibble.com/reviews/main/cheese/cheese2/burrata.asp  Therefore, on our adventure into Lucca when we found some it kicked off a massive Italian good buying spree. We got tons of lovely Olive Oil since I bathe in it, Limoncello from tiny little produces and even found some Amarone wine for cheap! Heaven.

Is that the Leaning Tower of Pisa?!

The Ruins in front of Volterra, beautiful town in a mountain top

Day 2 was a blur complete with the entire Southwest of Tuscany covered. We stopped in Lucca for delicious food and to explore the tower walls, visited Pisa for the obligatory 'Leaning Tower falling on me' photo, went to a farm in the middle of nowhere and found fresh Italian cheese and played with Italian farm animals, stopped in Volterra to see the ancient ruins and clock tower and finally arrived in Montalcino (the Brunello wine region) around 10pm. Thankfully the Italians eat dinner late so we managed to score dinner in a lovely Fiaschetteria (wine and tapas bar) and had dinner in the wine cellar. One of the coolest moments was while we were having dinner. All of a sudden our waitress comes and turns off the music because the town is doing it's Good Friday processional.  We went outside to watch and in this tiny little city, there were hundreds of Catholic people walking and chanting through the streets for Good Friday at 11pm. The Priest was officiating in Italian obviously and there was a band too. It was just really cool to see.

Montalcino Good Friday Processional

With Signore Spina, the wine maker in his home

The next morning we had a private tour and wine tasting on the charming Sesta Di Sopra vineyard.  And wow, they make the most wonderful Brunello wine. All that stuff about earthy aromas with a hint of fresh grapes and old oak etc is really true!! We're wine snobs now. Needless to say after lots of tasting... we got tipsy and bought 12 bottles to bring back to Germany. It's a good thing we drove instead of fly :)  But the vineyard is so tiny, they only produce 4000 bottles of wine a year, how can they make a profit? I think they need some wine consulting!

The David

Florence was our last destination for 2 days and of course we did tons of the touristy stuff.  We started with the Duomo for Easter Sunday services, which were packed. We went to the Accademia which is where Michelangelo's: "The David" is housed. And it really was magnificent, HUGE and just breathtaking. They don't allow pictures to be taken, but I'm a rebel. So enjoy :)

Pont Vecchio Bridge in Firenze

We also went to the Galileo Museum which was really fun and Sergei was like a child playing with all the science exhibits.  We ate tons of Gelato, although to be fair, the best Gelato we had was in Modena on our way home.  We went to the Uffizi gallery and shopped and wandered around Pont Vecchio bridge.  We sat in Piazza della Repubblica and people watched and had cappuccino. And just ate a ton of great Italian food! The weather even improved and we had some sunny days in Florence!

Yummy Gelato!!!

Italy is just amazing with so much to see and do. And the people there are so friendly and welcoming. Obviously, I know firsthand about awesome Italians, but I think that they're definitely the best in Western Europe! We will definitely go back, especially to Montalcino.

Hmm, now where to find really good Gelato without driving 3 hours?!

~Lesley & Sergei

 

Football is over. Just waiting for IU Basketball in March!

I'm fairly certain that I should be excited about going skiing this weekend. But really I'm secretly scared! I mean, the first time I'm ever skiing and it's on the Austrian Alps?! I feel that a broken leg is imminent. Let's just hope I can find a teacher for a morning class tomorrow :)

Otherwise, Munich is great so far. Learning Deutsch is quite a challenge, but seems to be slowly growing on me. My accent is not as terrible as originally thought. But there is so much vocabulary that it makes me wonder how I ever mastered English without intensive courses.  Learning a 2nd language is really difficult and I really have a new respect for all those Europeans that can speak 3, 4 or 5 languages! It's awesome how diverse the people are here. Yet, somehow when asked if they speak German, they respond with, "A little bit." Only to go on and speak it perfectly to me. That's at least one good thing that America has done for me over here :)

And I am getting to travel a bit more lately.  The bf took me to Prague for my birthday and then there was the long winter trek to the US for Christmas with the obligatory 6 day stop in South Florida (it was ONLY to see my grandmother, I swear!).  But now I'm travelling a ton! Austria this weekend. Budapest, Hungary for 4 days next week. Frankfurt at the beginning of March. And hopefully, a trip to the Med for Easter. Perhaps Israel for Passover? I just need to get away from this terrible Munich weather! I'm so sick of the snow! Even Chicago wasn't so bad compared to this.

At least in Chicago they had deep dish pizza and a football team. Although the Super Bowl party last weekend was quite fun :)