The 2nd Annual Machak Pumpkin Carving Party

We managed to squeeze quite a bit into this short weekend. Friday night we hosted our 2nd pumpkin carving party--pumpkins and wine, who would have thought it would be such a hit?

kids.... creativity at work

a little bit of politics.... 'tis the seasonand a little football (you can guess whose pumpkins those were)
the whole group...

Saturday night was equally as full. After attending the haunted house and costume party at the Marine House, we headed back to Bundesratufer to bid farewell to Kelly and Stu

some of the costumes from the marine party lingered... and got exchanged....

After that it was back across town to watch the OSU-Penn State game with fellow Ohioans. (The game started at 2 am-- who needs sleep?) We gave it a good run but alas, it was not meant to be this year.

After catching a few winks we did enjoy yummy blueberry pancakes and American sausage for brunch, though! Then back over to the Marine House to clean up after last night's festivities. After all that, in to work at 4:30 p.m. to work an event...... So it wasn't exactly a restful weekend but most of it was quite fun!

Dublin

Mike was here visiting from DC, and he and David went to Amsterdam earlier in the week (but the pictures are all on Mike's camera so they will have to wait). They came back on Friday and Saturday we set off for Dublin on Ryan Air. (Christy's first successful Ryan Air trip!). We arrived in Dublin around lunch time and after checking into our hotel and a quick lunch it was off to the Guinness factory.



Lunch at the restaurant next to our hotel on Connell Street



Guinness!



in the factory



Guinness train



we really liked the exhibit showing all the old advertisements



at the Gravity Bar on the top floor of the Storehouse

What's wrong with this picture? (St. Patrick's Cathedral, sponsored by.... Bailey's?)
in front of the Cathedral

Stephan's Green park
so they had Heinz "Brown Sauce" (like A1, we discovered), but no Heinz ketchup....
The Temple Bar is a bar, but it's also a whole neighborhood of bars

great live Irish music at this one
shout out to the Lir
Dublin Castle
we were actually allowed to take pictures inside. This is the Lady's drawing room. Supposedly that entire rug is hand-knotted.
the rooms are still used for State functions today

Trinity College was beautiful, and the book of Kells exhibit was really cool
many buildings were rebuilt or added, but the bell tower is the original
church near Grafton Street, the shopping area

Christy's Geburtstag and more

Christy had a very full birthday week. Wednesday night we celebrated afterword at our neighborhood Irish pub, the Lir (getting ready for next weekend, too!) with some friends. Then we headed back to the apartment for some cupcakes.

Thursday Christy headed to the Spreewald (Spree (river) forest) for a GSO offsite with her staff. It's about an hour east of Berlin

on the boat ride
river winding through the forest
they had lots of pumpkins and had already carved their jack-o-lanterns!
the pickle museum

Luebbenau, where we started

inside a museum of an old settlement in the Spreewald

I like the flowers in the boat

at lunch

Friday (German reunification day--i.e. no work!) David and Christy went on separate bikerides with our neighbors John and Donna. David and John rode 21 miles (David had the camera). Christy and Donna enjoyed a shorter bikeride to Schloss (castle) Charlottenburg.
tower that David found
ducks (and a lake) on David's bikeride

Saturday we snuck out for a romantic get-away to Bad Saarow, also about an hour east of Berlin. This is the back of Hotel Palais, where we stayed.

and here's the front
view from our room's balcony
and from the back courtyard on to the Schaermlesee

the thermal spa where we spend the day on Saturday (courtesy of Bad Saarow Therme website, www.bad-saarow.de/therme.)

All in all, quite a full weekend. And Mike arrives on Tuesday for a week so there will be more adventures coming soon!