Dunkin' Donuts in Munich

Big news last month, Dunkin' Donuts opened shop in Munich, Germany. Other nearby locations include Bulgaria, Turkey, and Spain so this was HUGE for fans of the Americana couture. Can you even call donuts couture?

Being the naive American I am, when my British friend casually asked "Dunkin' Donuts on Wednesday?"  I replied, "Sure. Why not?"

What I would later come to find out... Wednesday was the Grand Opening!

In a city of 1.3 million residents and only a few local versions of American donut shops...(Simpson's decor? Really??) you can imagine how many people turned up for the event. Every radio station shared the exciting news, it was a popular topic at work, and slowly plastic bags bearing the bright Dunkin' Donuts logo started appearing out on the streets.

They say the line started forming well before 6 a.m. When we arrived at 16:30 the line wrapped around the building. It continued to snake along well inside the Ostbahnhof. I daresay we were also among the senior citizens in line at an age averaging around thirty years. The other patrons seemed a decade or so younger and I felt my bright clothing seemed a bit out of place. We waited a whooping 45 minutes.

With a line that long, you can imagine how quick the ordering process was handled. As a person who normally is overwhelmed by long menus, comparing and contrasting items to make the most perfect decision possible, I knew now was not the time to engage in such thought. Stepping up to the glass counter, I ordered "Two Boston Creams, Two Chocolate with Sprinkles, and Two Glazed." Not making eye contact with the iced aqua blue donut or the pretty iced pink heart donut or the one with chocolately swirls, I moved down the line quietly whispering to myself "I'll be back."

In reality, I'm not a big donut fan. Back in The States on the rare occasions when I do stop into a donut shop, I order sausage and cheese koloches. Visiting Dunkin' Donuts in Munich was a nice change from the typical German bakeries.  For a little bit it was nice to feel at home reading a menu in English and feeling as if I was in a familiar space. 

In honor of Throwback Thursday, this is a photo of my last visit to a Dunkin' Donuts during Spring Break on a roadtrip with friends back in 2010. I remember we drove for miles trying to find a Dunkin' Donuts because their coffee is so delicious. I don't think one donut was ordered during that drive thru run.

Now that Dunkin' Donuts and Duck Dynasty have arrived in Munich I think we can expect Here Comes Honey Boo Boo any day now. God Bless American Culture. 

Are you a big Dunkin' Donuts fan? How often does your household get donuts?

Day Trip to Pompeii, Italy

After spending Easter weekend in Rome, Husband and I drove 3 hours south to Pompeii. Husband is very interested in Roman history and was very excited to spend the day in walking the ancient streets. I on the other hand...was just along for the ride.

Basilica Ruins

There we visited the ancient Roman city that for decades was buried under 4 to 6 meters of volcanic ash. A victim of tragedy, Pompeii was rediscovered in 1738 and has been a tourist attraction for over 250 years. Today millions of visitors stop by to see the well preserved frescoes and building remains each year. Pompeii is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Frescoes and Mosaics

Husband and I got to Pompeii early in the afternoon. This is one of the few attractions we did not purchase tickets ahead of time. There was a line but it moved relatively fast and we only waited about 20 minutes to enter Pompeii. 

Uneven Cobbled Streets

Inside Pompeii I quickly learned how slippery the cobble stoned dusty roads could be. I wore my Toms after hearing advice from a friend to wear good walking shoes. Toms might not be the best walking shoes but I refuse to wear my tennis shoes with tunics! My flat bottomed Toms slipped under my feet several times. Twice I had to grab Husband's arm and hold back a few four lettered words . The stones are often laid a few inches apart and there are deep dips in between. If you plan to visit Pompeii, wear good shoes!

Slippery

Husband and I walked around Pompeii for close to three hours without any water. Many times we saw people filling up plastic bottles from water fountains but we were not prepared. We kept our eyes opened for a vendor or snack bar but deep inside the city such things did not exist. It was only when we were back up near the entrance to Pompeii that we realized there was only the one snack bar. Luckily, the temperatures were not too high but Husband and I were feeling dehydrated during our walk around the city.

A Home's Courtyard

Loving Pompeii

My favorite part of Pompeii was getting lost among the many ghost like streets. When Husband and I first entered the city we turned to the right after seeing the masses heading up a straight road. On the outskirts of the city, we felt alone walking around and were able to poke our heads inside rooms off the beaten path. What we were able to view might not have been as amazing as the sites that attract the tourists, but seeing near perfect mosaic floors surrounded by wild growing Spring weeds is still quite a site.

On the Outskirts

"Cooking" in a Fast Food Establishment

Towards the end of our visit to Pompeii, Husband and I stopped by one of the collection exhibits. Behind massive barred gates, we saw row after row of everyday ancient Roman items discovered underneath the ash. Nearly perfectly preserved, were wine jugs, dining tables, water fountains, and 100's of dusty crates holding thousands of other items not on display. Seeing the bodies of a mother protecting a child, frozen in time, or a dog gasping for his last breath really brought Pompeii into prospective for me. 

A Boy's Last Prayer

If you are visiting Rome, Naples, or Sorrento make sure you plan a day visit to Pompeii. You can spend 2 hours, half a day, or a full day exploring the ancient ruined streets. Just remember, wear comfortable shoes and take a water bottle!

Make Life Beautiful,

On My Nightstand

A day late and a euro short, I'm linking up with Andrea at Momfessionals to show you what is on my nightstand.  I thought this would be a fun link up because it is so random! I have never thought about what other people's nightstands look like but now I am curious. 

Welcome to my side of the bed!

 Currently on my nightstand you will find:
-Ikea Lamp (and a hanging dog hair)

-Two bird journals (Husband says we live in an aviary)

-DIY Bedside Tray (You can read the directions here)

-Vintage candy dish

-Thermometer

-Lip Gloss

-And the ever evil, much dreaded, alarm clock

I bought the vintage glass candy dish at a flea market here in Munich for 1 Euro! It is the perfect size to collect at the end of the day earrings, forgotten bobby pins, and obviously my lip gloss. My lip gloss is cherry flavored Baby Lips by Maybelline. For the longest time I used just plain Vaseline at night but Husband hated the taste ;-) and requested I find something fruity. The thermometer has been on my nightstand since a few days before Easter when I came down with a 24 hour bug. Yuck.

When I originally bought the lamp from Ikea, I intended to spruce it up somehow to make it look less Ikeaish. It has been about a year now, and the lamp is still plain Jane. What do you think of the lamp? Do you have any ideas of how I can make it more exciting? 

My actual nightstand is the Rask dresser from Ikea. I bought it used for around 20 Euros when we first moved to Germany. Husband stained the outside and I refinished the drawers. Inside the drawers are painted green apple and the bottoms lined with bright coordinating scrapbook paper. You can read all about the DIY process here! 

In other news, today is Shelby Dog's 4th birthday. I love to tell people that she was born on Seis de Mayo! Someday, I want to throw her a backyard birthday party and invite over our friends and their pups. Husband loves to BBQ, we could sit out on the patio, and let all the dogs run around together in the yard. How fun would that be?

Shelby Enjoying a Birthday Treat

Happy Seis de Mayo,

Something Old, New, Borrowed, and Blue

I'm not discussing anything wedding related today. Nope. Instead, I thought I would share with you a few of my favorite things. Each item happens to either be old, new, borrowed, blue or a combo of those descriptions.

Something Old:
Around a year ago Husband and I went for our first time to a vintage market called Auer Dult here in Munich. An item that caught my eye was an old German hotel hanger. For some reason I kept walking, didn't purchase the hanger, but kept thinking about it. Well Saturday, Husband and I went back to Auer Dult. We walked every single aisle looking in all of the antique booths and I kept my eye out for the vintage hanger I saw over a year ago. You know when people joke and say "It was in the last place I looked"? Well, one of the last few remaining booths at the end of our "route" had a box of old vintage hangers stuffed in a box under a table. 

Upon seeing the box of hangers, I thought "Be cool. Be cool. Don't show too much excitement..." So as casually as possible, in my best Deutsch, I asked the lady how much. She responded 3 hangers for 5 Euros and I had to ask again just to make sure I had heard her right. Can you believe I have been thinking about a less than 2 Euro hanger for a year now?! Now the 3 hangers are displayed in our entryway with the jacket hooks.

Something New:
While staying on the Amalfi Coast, Husband and I took a day trip to a nearby town called Positano, Italy. There we walked the colorful streets, shopping and making our way down the cliff-side town to the beach. Along the way we stopped inside a bright shop that was just screaming my name. Hanging on the door frame at the front of the shop were ruffled aprons, oven mitts, and the cutest quilted kitchen towels my eyes have ever seen. Some people have a couture purse buying habit, I, on the other hand, am a sucker for pillows and kitchen towels. 

I picked out a kitchen towel with a turquoise edge and two quilted oven mitts. Unfortunately, Husband tried using the oven mitts last night and he told me the pivot from the oven to the counter took too much time. (literally a 10 second movement) He felt the hot dish between his hands and said it would be way too much heat for me. Now the oven mitts are hanging on hooks as new decoration for the kitchen.

Something Borrowed:
This really isn't borrowed because it belongs to Husband but what is his is mine, right? hehehe. This week I bought Husband two egg cups. I do not eat eggs unless baked with sugar and flour so these really are for Husband. In the mornings, lately, he has been boiling himself eggs for breakfast. The eggs are too hot to crack between his fingers so the egg cups will be helpful. I found them at a store called Butler's here in Munich. 

Along with the egg cups, I bought two cappuccino mugs and saucers. They happen to be the exact same color as our Crate and Barrel cereal bowls we received as a wedding present nearly two years ago. Husband always uses the cobalt blue because green apple is my favorite color. It is the little silly things that can make relationships so fun! 

Something Blue:
Well green really. Before finding the vintage hangers Saturday at Auer Dult, I picked my way through a basket of old linens. My mom is constantly hunting down beautiful linens at flea markets and antique stores claiming the embroidery is going to become a lost art. I think in such a digital age she may be partly true as the years are passing. Anyways, when I saw these napkins I fell in love with the cheerful colors. Have you noticed how much I love bright colors?! 

I am not sure how old the napkins are and they could be fairly "new" but they are still handmade. When the seller showed me the place where the flatware slips through the center flower, I was sold. Each napkin was just 2 Euros a piece so I bought 4 and left a dodgy looking fifth one behind. I think these napkins will be adorable and fitting during springtime tea parties or luncheons. 

These old, new, borrowed, and blue items might not be raindrops on roses or whiskers on kittens but I hope you enjoyed looking at a few of my favorite things! Which item do you like best? Any suggestions on antiques I should be looking for while living in Europe?

May Your Week Be Blessed,

Five On Friday

It is 10:15 p.m. here in Munich so naturally I would start a blog post. Here's why... For the past few weeks I have enjoyed reading other people's tad bits of random things in the "Five on Friday" so this week I decided to join in on the fun, linking up through Darci's blog "The Good Life". 

Eins:
At the beginning of the week I could not put down my latest read The Daughter of Siena by Marina Fiorato. The historically accurate fiction novel takes place in Siena, Italy during the Medici era. Today the city of Siena continues to hold it's famous horse race twice a year in which the story is based around. I cannot wait to read next The Glassblower of Murano also by Fiorato.

Source

Zwei:
Thursday was May Day and a public holiday for all Bavarians. I stayed at home all day and did some online shopping for a friend's new baby boy. Does anyone else find it hard not being able to touch the items when buying items off of a website? I was not impressed with Gymboree's selection and settled on Carter's for easy mix and match sets.

Source

Drei:
Last week Husband and I were in Italy for an Easter vacation. We picked up some massive lemons. Two nights in a row Husband cooked a lemon cream sauce with tortellini and salmon. It definitely compared to the lemon cream sauce I had on our trip. How often is a meal so good, you make it twice in a week?

Vier:
Each Friday I teach four baking classes in English. This week I did not have a theme planned so I pulled out one of my favorite recipes. Regretfully, it somehow had been over a year since I last baked The Best Banana Muffins Ever! I had been thinking about these delicious muffins for the last few weeks so it was the perfect solution. These would be a delicious breakfast treat this weekend!

*Sorry- the muffins did not last long enough for a photo.

Fünf:
In these parts of Germany it is customary to take off your shoes when entering a home and even in some work places. House shoes are worn inside and do the same thing as regular shoes but without the traces of nature left behind. My last pair of house shoes were purchased in September so they were quite old, cracked on the bottoms, and unable to maintain any sort of "fresh" feeling. Today I finally bought new house shoes. I found neon green espadrilles and couldn't resist these cute shoes for summertime.

Source

Happy Weekend to All, and to All Goodnight,

All Things Rome- The Ladies' Room

If potty talk is not your cup of tea, then you might want to skip out on this entry because I'm about to discuss in All Things Rome, the bathroom situations.

I want to address toilets. Specifically the toilet conditions found in Rome. In a city so full of reminisces of Roman Gods, you would think there would be a better kept "Porcelain God" but there is not.

Every toilet in Rome is the same; too thin on top, wet rims, soaked floors, and no toilet paper to be had. And why, oh why, are all the seats unattached? Each and every time I visited a bathroom stall, I clearly saw two empty holes at the back end of the toilet top where a seat could and SHOULD be attached to the rim. 

Jokingly, or maybe not, Husband and I theorized that the establishments in Rome do not want you to "linger" any longer than necessary. Almost a "Take care of your business at home" attitude. 

The lack of seats forces an intense squatting on each potty visit. Thankful for a four story workplace with constant moving upstairs and down, my legs have some muscle tone. Still not quite enough that I feared an accidental "peed my pants" episode with each torturous squat.

This brings me to the wet rims and gross enough, the soaked floors. When given a seat, some women sit and some prefer the peeing squat. If the toilets had seats, wouldn't there be less pee on the rim as the sitting position is almost 100% aim accurate? Wouldn't the floors become a bit drier with less unpracticed squators? To add to the already tough situation of squat peeing, avoiding pools of urine while wearing canvas shoes and a tad-bit-too-long straight leg jeans takes it to a whole other level. 

Lastly, in the Land of Bidets, toilet paper is STILL and always will be a necessity. Where is your toilet paper, Rome? Luckily, well not for him, Husband had a cold in Rome so I was carrying tissues in my bag. After lunch I had to restock my purse taking my napkin and four paper towels for later "just in case" use. Only four years of Girl Scouts, and I was prepared. 

So ladies, just remember...When in Rome, stash away some toilet paper. 

All Things Rome- Sephora

One of the great things about planning our trip to Italy was knowing there are three Sephora locations in Rome! Unfortunately, Munich and possibly the rest of Germany does not have a Sephora store. Here in Munich, the closest resemblance to the black and white striped makeup mecca is a similar store called Douglas...and that is about all I know of that place. The name.

Shopping under the bright lights and within the floraly scents of Sephora just feels more at home. (Same goes for when I make an Ikea trip) Every Sephora store looks almost exactly the same inside across the oceans, I know the products, and it is uncomplicated.

Sometimes living in a different country can be a bit stressful when researching or buying products of the unknown. Let's face it, buying makeup in English is a whole lot easier than reading and translating the German labels. For almost a year now I have been interested in replacing my mineral foundation. Not wanting to hassle with figuring out the best brands in Deutschland, I have just been procrastinating. I know I could have ordered online or even made a purchase when we were in Texas over Christmas, but...things like cuddling with newborn nieces and Mexican food can be distracting. <3

As you can tell, finding Sephora in Rome, Italy became a "tourist" attraction for me. I just HAD to stop by one of the locations and Husband won HUGE points for helping me track down the closest Sephora to our hotel. What a guy in the midst of Roman ruins and artistic masterpieces to agree to such a detour!

A little bit late, I know, I have finally jumped on the Bare Minerals bandwagon. It has been a fun week playing with my new makeup and I'm never going back. The difference in Bare Minerals and my old mineral makeup is noticeable in the application, how it feels (or hardly feels), and the coloring is just perfect.

When in Rome,