Hopfensee, Germany

Nestled in between miles of lush farmland and the commanding German Alps is a small lake called Hopfensee. If you were just in town visiting Neuschwanstein, you'd likely miss it. In fact, had D and I not done our research before our weekend in Bavaria, we would've missed it, too. The town surrounding the lake is quaint, but quintessentially German. Half-timbered houses, colorful flower boxes adorning each window...the ideal place for a German holiday. The locals seemed to think so, too, seeing as the town was bustling with families paddle boating and couples strolling along the lakeside path. D and I scored ourselves a lakefront hotel reservation at Residenz Hofensee and made this mountain view town our home base for the weekend. 

Upon arriving, we were in awe of the beautiful views of the Alps that surrounded Neuschwanstein castle. If you looked close enough from our 2nd floor balcony, you could see the tippy top of the castle spire dropped in between the mountain peaks. Talk about some Bavarian magic! After dropping off our luggage, we took cues from the locals and wandered along the lakeside trail, stopping for photos and a sweet treat at the eis shop. A storm was rolling in, so we cut our walk short and grabbed a covered al fresco table at a local pizza parlor. Not a single soul in town spoke English, so we took the opportunity to practice our German...a lot. We were as submerged in German culture as we possibly could be, and we loved every second of it. We spent the next two days enjoying nature, darting into cafes to avoid rain showers, and feeling positively German as we mixed and mingled with other vacationers. If you want to holiday like the locals, explore the Füssen/Hopfensee area and experience the beauty of Bavaria. Prepare to have your mind blown and your idea of a magical vacation taken to new heights.

For more from Bavaria, check out my WANDERLUST page!

The Anatomy of a Date Night...and a Really Delicious Recipe

Parmesan & White Bean Orzo

Adapted from How Sweet It Is

--Serves 6--

Ingredients:

2 cups uncooked orzo pasta

1 medium red onion, diced

1 1/2 cups of button mushrooms, cleaned and sliced

3 cups of raw baby spinach, rinsed

1-15 oz. can of white beans (Navy, Great Northerns, or Cannellini beans will do), drained & rinsed

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

2 Tbs. olive oil

1/2 Tbs. Italian seasoning

1/2 tsp.  crushed red pepper flakes (omit if you don't like a little spice)

1 tsp. dried rosemary

1 tsp. tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp. fresh ground black pepper

Directions:

1) Cook orzo according to directions on the package, place in large bowl, and set aside.

2) Sauté red onion in olive oil in a skillet set on medium heat until onions are translucent.

3) Add in the sliced mushrooms and cook for another 3-4 minutes until mushrooms are browned.

4) Add in the garlic and baby spinach. Allow spinach to wilt then turn heat down to low. Stir occasionally.

5) Add white beans to the skillet and stir together. Allow the white beans to warm up a bit. Add in the crushed red pepper flakes, dried rosemary, and Italian seasoning and stir again.

6) Pour the contents of of the skillet into the large bowl of orzo pasta. Add salt, pepper, and 3/4 of the grated parmesan and toss together until incorporated.

7) Garnish the top with the remaining parmesan cheese. Serve with a nice crusty bread and ENJOY!

You can revisit all of my Lake Constance posts here.

The Day I Saw My First Pair of German Boobies

It was a beautiful, sunny day at Lake Constance, so D and I decided it was time to get rid of our winter white skin and sunbathe on the shore for a few hours. Let me just tell you, it took us FOR-EV-ER to find a patch of "beach" around this lake. There were signs that said "shoreline" scattered about the town, but everywhere they pointed lead to dead ends and places that weren't fit for sunbathing. We finally found this Alice in Wonderland type path that took us through a maze of shrubbery right to a few patches of shoreline beside a small lakeside campground. We spread out our blankets, rubbed on the SPF, and managed to catch ourselves some serious rays. It was nothing short of amazing...until...I looked to my right and there were boobs. German boobs. Just hanging all out there, in the open, for everyone to see. 

Now, at the time, we'd been living in Germany a little over a year and we'd yet to come across any nude beaches or lakes the entire time we'd been traveling around Europe. I knew good and well that they existed, we'd just never stumbled upon them. Ok, so I lie. D had stumbled upon some nude sunbathers while he and his troops were out running along the Rhine River during PT one hot afternoon last summer, but we pretend that didn't happen. I can only imagine what all those running boys were thinking. Ahem...anywho, as soon as I saw this woman, I immediately turned into an immature teenager, slapped D on the arm, and told him to feast his eye on the peepers at 9 o'clock. He did and subsequently slapped me back on the arm. And then we both proceeded to try to scoop out our eyeballs, because, you know, there some things in life you just can't un-see and forcibly removing your eyeballs seems like the only rational thing to do. Let's just say that this woman was an original card-carrying member of the AARP club, who'd indulged in eating many a schnitzel, and had already lost her battle with gravity, many, many years ago. {{Shivers}} Isn't that how it always happens, though? The people who are birthday suiting it up are always the ones you wish weren't. I say it's probably because all the good looking people know better. Or, once you hit a certain age, you just don't give a crap anymore and it's "breasts to the wind!" any chance you get. More power to them? Eh, who knows. What I do know is that D and I didn't follow suit (or lack thereof) with any of the 4 other nude sunbathers on our little patch of beach. All of which were the complete opposite of eye candy. More like eye Brussels sprouts. Call me a prude, but my goodies are reserved for viewing by my eyes (and D's eyes...hubba, hubba) only. ;) Case and point, nude beaches/lakes=not a fan. America, you do sunbathing right by me!

{Sorry, no photos of nudies for you today. You'll just have to take my word for it. Believe me, my word is so much better than photographic evidence...at least where this beach is concerned.}

In other news, I may or may not have overdid it on the sunshine that afternoon. Obviously it had been a while since my skin had seen the sun, so it just absorbed all of it. At one time. Sadly, that's as tan...umm, err...red as I got all summer. Thanks, Germany.

Oooo,  and don't forget guys--today and tomorrow are THE VERY LAST DAYS to snag any size ad on my sidebar for 40% off this month!! Use code NOVEMBERLOVE at checkout. Happy Monday, ladies and gents!

Flower Island: Mainau, Germany

After hopping on the ferry boat at Meersburg, we began our 20 minute journey to Mainau Island at the Northwest end of Lake Constance. The boat ride over was absolutely breathtaking. I've never seen so many sailboats on one lake in my life! No speed boats or jet skis zooming around making waves on the lake...just handfuls of pristine sailboats quietly floating along the crystal blue water. Oh, what I wouldn't give to be back on that boat right now. 

When we arrived at Mainau Island we realized it was past 1pm, so we decided to make a beeline to the nearest restaurant to settle our grumbling tummies. The name of the restaurant escapes me, but the view from the patio was so lovely and the food was to die for. Nothing like a nice, cold hefeweizen, yummy schnitzel, and dining with a really cute boy. Germany's got it all, folks. Book your plane tickets now!

When all the beer had been consumed and the boat watching subsided, D and I made our way into the acres upon acres of flower laden gardens. There's nothing more to say except that this place smelled heavenly! The aroma of rose and wisteria filled the whole island--a true gardeners delight. Germans really have a knack for gardening and this stunning island was absolutely no exception.

There were lots of quiet places where you could sit back, relax, and watch the boats sail by. And that's basically what we did all afternoon--smelled flowers, sat, and watched boats. I'm pretty sure that is what heaven is like. At least my kind of heaven. :) After wandering around the entire island of flowers, we boarded our ferry back to Meersburg and then drove back to our apartment in Hagnau for dinner and a night cap. Day 2 at Lake Constance complete!