Winter holiday

As the winter had a tight grip on Germany til last week we decided to stay in Hesse at Astrids family for our winter holiday.

It was the week of karneval whis more a tractor show here. ;-)

We went skiing in Willingen and had fun with our horses, the dogs and the new 4-wheel drive Volvo.









On our way home to Mannheim Astrid started this year's dressage tournament season with a good placement.



Next week I will be in Bangkok for 3 days.

Summer in the city

We have two weeks of vacation and decided to stay in and around Mannheim.

The first days have already been exiting. Sunday I participated at the Heidelbergman, an Olympic distance triathlon. Monday we did a short trip to the Hunsrück to visit a friend who is breeding Haflinger horses. He had invited us on a coach ride and bbq.







In the next days I plan to do some running and horse riding, we have another tournament on Friday and there is plenty of things to do in the garden and home, if I get bored of relaxing.

Moreover I will practice a bit with my camera. Here are some impressions from our garden...







...and the fields around our horse stable in Straßenheim:







Sunset over Mannheim:

A new home

Last Tuesday Lea celebrated it´s 3rd birthday. And she became a proud owner of a new home. :)

BBQ season opened

We became quite a bit nervous yesterday, as it was continuously raining the whole day after a week full of rain and we had invited some friends for bbq on Sunday afternoon.

But when we opened our eyes on Sunday morning, the sun was out. After riding I mowed the grass and we got out our bbq stuff.

Lea was exhited because of all the guests and fresh meat on the grill. :)

Mud race

Today I was supposed to run the Strongman Run, the big mud challenge where I have been last year. But we decided to swap this challenge for the first dressage tournament of this year in Bensheim.

And as it was raining heavily the last days, I had my mud challenge with the car and horse trailer...



...while Astrid had her challenge. We were pretty excited because it was the first tournament in 2 years and Ray is always a bit excited in new environments.



But the worries were unnecessary, she was cool as ice and both did a great job. Yes, I love them!



At the end of the day Astrid won back some money to make up the lost registration fee of the Strongman Run.



It seems like the winter has really gone now. Our garden is awakening in full speed and Lea is happy to see us more often outside to play with her. :)

The last warm and sunny sunday this year?

Last Sunday was a big exception in the last weeks with its very warm and sunny weather. So it was a perfect fit for our small trip to Freinsheim in the Palatinate where a wine festival was hold.



We met some actual and former collegues and had nice food, fresh and old wine.
And Lea had a big hangover afterwards. At least it looks like. ;)

Yearly birthday

September is birthday time. As the weather continued to be rainy, I invited for a bbq session in the garden on short notice and some friends could really make it.

As a preparation we temporarily changed a part of our living room into a dining room. As we liked it we kept it. So we have now a new dining room and a sofa in the kitchen. :)



Below one of my birthday presents, a new phono player from my Camelot colleagues.



Lea also likes it. As she rests and relaxes in the living room every morning, she is happy about the new phono as well.



We are still very happy with our garden and especially the previous tenants which managed to plant colourfull flowers for every season...





...and present us with some really delicious apples. Yam yam!!!

Happy 2nd birthday, Lea!!

We love you!



Leave a message on her website if you like.

Berchtesgaden Alps

We are on a week long holiday to the Alps near Berchtesgarden. We went hiking, but its very rainy and cold and the snow still covers most of the higher trails.





But independent of the weather I love the mountains and especially running in the mountains. Below you can see a face shot of myself right after climbing one of my running hills.



On one of the last days we went to Salzburg to the zoo and met our new favorite animals, the cute Alpakas (see here).

Easter holidays

The last weeks have been busy working in Switzerland. Moreover Astrid´s horse was ill and we made some visits to the clinic in Baden Baden, not forgetting to entertain Lea all the time. :)



Luckily my parents have been on a short visit last weekend, because I won`t go home before May this year. Next week we'll go skiing, I am really looking forward to it!

Autumn holidays

Last week Astrid and me did a short family trip. We visited my granny in Thuringia, then made short visit to Berlin before staying some days home in Schwerin. Sadly the weather wasn't that good for holidays and we had a cold. Anyway, it was nice to see the family again. Here are some impressions:


Astrid and Lea in front of the Reichstag, the German parliament building


The Brandenburg Gate


The Park Inn Hotel and the Berlin tv tower. The hotel building is the one where I will perform my house run next year thanks to a nice birthday present :)


Astrid and my sister with myself in front of the Schwerin Castle after a city guiding tour by my sister.


Astrid and Lea enjoying the Baltic Sea beach. And me as well ;)

A hut in the mountains

We just came back from a nice short trip to Austria. Toni celebrated his 30th birthday in the mountains, so we also used the trip for a small hike and a visit to the Bodensee on Sunday.


The party hut in the mountains...


...with this wonderful view!



A small hike next day, Lea is checking the path :)

A summer weekend in North Hesse

I visited Astrid and her family in North Hesse last weekend. We went to an open air Shakespeare play at a forest stage and rowing on the Edersee near Kassel. It was nice. Thanks!