Misadventures at Hohenzollern Castle

Last weekend's plans fell through so we decided to take advantage of our stolen time by taking a rather industrious day trip into Baden-Württemberg to check out the famous Hohenzollern Castle.  A six hour drive there and back didn't seem so terrible.  Heck, we used to make that drive down to Columbus and back when we lived in Akron just to have dinner (at a German family restaurant, oddly enough).  Anyway, it all sounded perfectly reasonable.

So, we left early in the morning of Sunday and headed down to the castle.  The drive went along smoothly, albeit insanely dull.  One highpoint was getting stuck in a small town that was holding a parade for people dressed as witches.  Whether that was some sort of traditional Carnival activity or not was never determined.  After escaping the witches we arrived in the village below the castle (this is starting to sound like a work of the Grimm brothers).  The plan was to go to the park on a hill opposite the castle to take some pictures than head to the castle for a tour.  Well, when we arrived this was the view.

Fujifilm X-E2 ISO 800 55m f/10 1/500

Not exactly what I was hoping for.  Additionally, as you can see, it had snowed quite a bit.  While making the surroundings extremely beautiful, it made finding a trail to the park impossible.  Ah, if only there were things you could hang up on trees or posts that could indicate to visitors the proper direction for such attractions.  I believe they're known as signs in my neck of the woods.  Eh hem.  Anyway, even if we had found a sign that indicated the correct direction of the viewpoint to the castle, the low laying clouds completely enveloped the castle and the hill where this park supposedly existed.  So, after taking a few shots in the forest we decided to head over to the castle for the tour and hope for better weather afterwards.  

Fujifilm X-E2 ISO 800 55mm f/13 1/500

Hohenzollern Castle is considered one of the most beautiful castles in Germany.  It is.  However, besides its aesthetic qualities, the castle itself isn't a very interesting attraction.  The castle was built by the Hohenzollern family in the mid-1800's to replace a ruin from the mid-1400's.  At this point the Hohenzollerns were an important dynastic family in Germany.  Kings of Prussia and the emperors of the short-lived German Empire (1871-1918) were members.  The castle was basically built as showpiece for the family, much like the better known Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria.  No one lived in Hohenzollern Castle, so anyone hoping for a peep into the lifestyle of the German emperors will be disappointed.  Basically, it is a shrine to the glory days of a family long past its time of influence or importance.  The tour, thankfully inexpensive, takes the visitor through a handful of dusty, unheated rooms that apparently never really served much of a purpose when they were constructed.  Non-German speakers are given a book in their language to read on the tour, an activity, quite frankly, which could be attempted more comfortably in the visitor center.  Perhaps audioguides along with signage will some day catch on in the future.  If the grounds are wet, the visitor is obligated to wear giant slippers over their shoes making the somewhat dull tour more interesting with the prospect of oneself or someone else tripping on the uneven floors and crashing into a "priceless" yet tarnished decorative item.  The tour concludes in the treasury where you can see the crown of Wilhelm II, among other things.  However, like the castle itself, the crown was never used either.  So, the visitor (unless they are fans of the Hohenzollern dynasty) walks away feeling like they just visited a roadside attraction which cost an ridiculous amount of money to construct so some folks could play act at being fairytale royalty.  

But, that doesn't mean it isn't a remarkable photographic subject.  While regretting the time and money spent on the tour, the view from the castle of the surrounding countryside was worth taking the paid bus ride to the top of Hohenzollern Berg.

We never made it back to the hill overlooking the castle.  The sun was already heading down by the time the tour had ended and we climbed back down the hill to the car.  So, I never got the shot I had dragged us three hours down the autobahn to take .  One of the lessons I'm learning during this experimentation with landscape photography is how important proper planning is.  Don't try to fit too much.  But, most importantly you can't account for the weather.  As it worked out, I ended up taking the last shot of the trip from the side of the road below the castle.  The light of the ending day ended up being pale and subtle as the heavy cloud cover cleared away.  While nothing really ended up being the way we hoped and some plans went awry, this unexpected view ended up being quite satisfactory.

Canon 600D ISO 100 19mm f/9 40secs, 10 stop ND filter, two exposure blend with Photoshop

The rest of the photos from our Hohenzollern misadventures can be viewed on Flickr and some will be up on Instagram and for sale Twenty20 as well.

Three Shots from Aschaffenburg

While the weather isn't particularly pleasant over the next few months and there aren't any state holidays on the Hessian calendar until Easter, we're pretty much staying close to home on the weekends.  It's kind of nice not to have anywhere we need to be.  It gives time for leisurely Saturday morning bike rides to a cafe for a pastry and a coffee, Sunday lie ins, Netflix binges, backgammon tournaments and strolls along the river.  The first few months of the year can be pretty dull now that the holidays are over, and Winter still remains.  But, there is one thing about Winter that makes it worth going out, the light.

Since we don't have anywhere to be, we thought it'd be a good chance to do a little exploring around the area and to take some photos around sunrise or sunset.  Sunrise is around 8:00am, so that doesn't require any ridiculous alarm times.  Sunset happens around 5:00pm, providing plenty of shooting time before dinner.  So, even though the temperatures are polar, Winter is really the best time of year for city night and landscape shooting.  Plus, around here at least, the sunrises and sunsets can be pretty spectacular because of the unique cloud cover and position of the sun.

This past weekend, we headed into Aschaffenburg, one of the larger cities on the Main River, about 45 minutes upriver from Frankfurt.  Aschaffenburg used to belong to the Prince Bishops of Mainz and then was passed to the Kingdom of Bavaria.  Consequently, it has several rather impressive constructions, the most famous being the Schloss Johannisburg.  We ride by the Schloss pretty regularly on bike rides and even after a year, I still can't get over the size.  I've taken many pictures of it, usually with my phone in passing, but never intentionally came to the city to focus on it as a subject.  This weekend it was my second priority so I plan on going back to it again soon.  On our way to the river,  it became clear from the glimpses of the sky through the buildings that we were missing a particularly brilliant light show.   By the time we got down to the river sunset was just ending.  We didn't have enough time to set up before it was over, so I whipped out my X-E2 and snapped the shot below quickly from the bike path.  One of the things I love about this camera is that I can get a shot in low light like this handheld.  I took this using the Vibrant film simulation, but other than adding the watermark I didn't edit it any further.  One of the great things about Fujifilm's X-Series is that they are WiFi connectable.  So, I was able to post this directly to Instagram shortly after taking it.  One of my goals over the next couple of years is to stop using my phone as a primary camera.  Having a WiFi capable camera makes that possible.

Fujifilm X-E2 ISO 1600 18mm f/6.5 1/30

After taking that, we headed down to the bridge over the Main and set the tripod up.  The bridge is the main route over the river from the western bank and sees a lot of traffic.  So, there's quite a bit of shake.  I switched over to the Canon because I wanted to use its wide-angle lens.  I enabled mirror lock-up, disabled image stabilization, and used a remote shutter.  But, with the bridge shake, there was no way to get a perfectly sharp image.  I'm not a pixel peeper, but in editing I noticed there was some blur in the details.  Oh well, there's nothing that can be done about a shaky bridge!

Canon 600D ISO 100 16mm f/9 6.0secs

I didn't do too much with this in post except crop it down a little and remove a buoy in the river that I found distracting.  The image here is showing somewhat brighter and more saturated than it does elsewhere, which may just be a Blogger glitch.  While I like the view and the Schloss, I'm not really "into" this particular shot.  In hindsight, I wish I had made it there while the sunset was doing its thing because I think it would have highlighted the building a bit better than the lights and would have added more interest in the sky and water.  So, this is on the list of things to try again in the future.

Where was I which made me miss the sunset?  There's a rather large park in the center of the city that was part of the royal grounds back when the King of Bavaria had his summer residence in Aschaffenburg.  While the king and kingdom are no more, the palace and park remain and it's full of interesting little sights.  One of those are ruins of a medieval church that are on an island in the middle of a small lake.  The ruins were my primary location and I was hoping to get them while the lowlight of the sun cut through the park a bit.  We spent a lot of time walking around the ruins trying to find a good angle.  But, while it's an interesting spot, it wasn't so interesting to photograph.  The site is closed off from the public with a barred gate and windows that take away from the visual impact of the ruins on one side.  It is one of those things that the eye overlooks, but the lens cannot.  On the other side there's some debris and warning tape that makes the whole spot look like an unsightly construction area.  So, that left me with the back end of the apse, and on the side of the lake furthest from the ruins.  It took some time for me to find a spot that didn't have fencing, trash cans, walking paths, or benches in the shot, but I finally found a little corner (nearly in a bush) that gave a view of the ruins without showing all the uninteresting and somewhat ugly "city stuff."  I originally planned to use the X-E2 when I was thinking about the ruins, but when I found this spot I immediately switched over to the Canon so I could use the 10-22mm wide angle lens.  There was a little brook that fed into the lake with an attractive angle and I wanted to get that in the frame more than I wanted the ruins.

Canon 600D ISO 100 10mm f/9 1.6s, edited with Photoshop

Unlike the other two, I spent a lot of time with this one in post.  With the low light, I wanted to take a long exposure in order to capture the silky movement of the water.  Of course, doing that meant the little bit of sky peeping through the trees was going to get blown out.  I haven't started using ND filters yet, though I have recently picked up a few to begin experimenting with soon.  However, because the horizon here wasn't clear cut, I probably wouldn't have used a graduated ND filter anyway.  So, I decided to take multiple exposures, one long to get the water and the fading light on the ruins in the background, and another much faster to get the sky.  I didn't want a full HDR look for the final result, so I blended the two with a much slower process using multiple layers.  While it clearly has undergone some processing to get the final result, I wasn't going for a completely natural look to begin with.  It was a place that imparted a feeling of mystery.  I wanted to sift through all the junk of a modern city park and create a photograph that might bring that mysterious vibe back to the surface.

So, those were the three shots from the weekend.  Thanks to some early birthday presents, I've replaced my worn out Manfrotto tripod with a slick and funky Three Legged Thing "Brian" and the awkward Lowepro Slingshot with a Hama Daytour 230.  I'm really looking forward to trying them out in the coming weekends.  This weekend, however, we have friends in to town, so I'll be foregoing landscape shooting in favor of just the X-E2 with a new lens (that just came to the door about 5 minutes ago).  More on that next week!

Paris in December

When I sat down last week to write this post it was the morning after the Charlie Hebdo attacks.  I had "write about Paris" at the top of Thursday's to-do list since Monday.  But, in the wake of the tragedy, I found myself staring at a blinking cursor for over an hour, completely incapable of finding anything to say.  Writing about photographing Paris seemed inappropriate or insensitive, I'm not sure.  I closed out Blogger and decided to come back later.  So, here I am back the following week still not 100% sure about this post, and troubled in my spirit.

There are three cities that I adore, love so much they almost seem a part of the family in some way.  I'm not from them, and I haven't lived in them.  But, when we visit them, being there always brings us joy, a joy you can't help but mention, one that causes a smile to be plastered rather stupidly on one's face for the extent of the visit.  Most cities have the opposite effect.  In fact, I would happily exchange a weekend in a city for one in the mountains 9 out of 10 times.  But, New York City, Ghent, and Paris are special and will draw us back again and again.  Paris, well, it stands above the other two.  It may be cliche to say Paris is my favorite city, but honestly I don't care.  It's magic.  If you go, you'll get it.  If you don't get it, then you didn't do it right.  There's more to it than its architecture, history, shopping (if you're into that), food, and cultural spots.  It's all that and more.  There's a soul, a feeling of depth, memory, and insight coming from its very stones.  I'm not sure if I will ever be able to put my finger on it, so the only solution is to keep going back and get to know the place a little better each time.

Our most recent trip to Paris was the last week of December.  We popped over on the train, rented a loft apartment for four days, and spent the majority of the trip walking The Dog's feet off all over the city from Trocadero to Sorbonne from the 2nd Arrondissement to Chaillot and back (because he refused to ride the Metro).  It was clear and cold for the entire trip, so we bundled up in long underwear, fleeces, parkas, hats, and mittens and strode the streets undeterred though bulkier than preferred.  It was a trip designed just for a little exploring with The Dog, cafe loitering, and some photography thrown in.  It has been a long time since we went just the two of us, so finally I felt comfortable to tote along the tripod and try my hand at those big wide night shots I'd yet to capture on previous trips.  Granted, it was mighty cold and uncomfortable when the sun wasn't around, but I'd gladly go through it again to have the privilege of capturing more of this glorious city in the low light.

I love experimenting with night photography, arriving well before sunrise or sunset to get set up and watch the light change across the landscape.  Depending on where, sometimes it's an opportunity to chat with another photographer.  In Paris, being among many in one spot is a given.  The downside is that it takes a little more planning than just walking around taking photos of whatever catches the eye.  The good "blue hour" light is only around for a short while, so I had to choose one location each evening that would be my priority.  It's a hard decision in the most photogenic city in the world.

For this trip I carried the Canon 600D fitted with the EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM and the Fujifilm X-E2.  I used my Lowepro Slingshot to carry my tripod through the day since going back to the apartment three times a day wasn't convenient (without using the Metro) nor easy (the apartment was a 6th floor walkup accessed by one of the most ridiculous staircases I have ever encountered outside a castle tower).  More on how this kit worked out at the end of the post.

I'm not a morning person, and I'm even less inclined to get up when it's 20F and I have to climb down a bazillion stairs.  Plus, this was vacation and vacation means relaxing.  But, this is Paris and sleeping instead of shooting before sunrise must be some kind of sin.  We were staying pretty close to Les Invalides so the first early morning session was there.  We walked all around the massive complex, before choosing to shoot the rear of building where Napoleon's tomb is housed.

Canon 600D 10mm f/13 .6s

Because we had The Dog with us we couldn't get into the inner courtyard, which was less than ideal.  However, this position did result in Paris' most famous landmark making a cameo.  While the focal point is certainly Napoleon's tomb, the lines of the stone walls tend to lead the eye over to the Eiffel Tower.  While it wasn't what I was originally going for, it's an interesting result I suppose.  Travel photography is teaching me to work with the situation I'm in and to make the best of it.  Sometimes I can't get where I really want to be, or I can only to discover there's a giant tarp over the building, or it's just too darn crowded.  I'm learning to compromise, experiment, and to always have a Plan B.

Another morning we walked over to Trocadero to shoot the Eiffel Tower (because you have to).  Everyone, their mothers, and pet monkeys were up on the Esplande du Trocadero waiting for the sunrise, so we opted for down below near the fountain (which was off for the winter).  I liked the angle from that level better anyway because it's in front of all the scaffolding currently draped all over the area.  There was only one other photographer down there and so we had a lovely private spot to watch the changing colors of the morning dance behind the Eiffel Tower.  I didn't want just a silhouette of the tower so the final edit is a blend of multiple exposures, hence the repeated jet streams- another result I wasn't planning on but kinda like.  Oh, and that other photographer was in the dead center of the shot, but he was wearing all black and didn't move a muscle the whole time, bless him.  I even have a hard time finding him.

Canon 600D 12mm f/10 1/50

After the sun came up each day, I stowed the Canon in the bag and switched exclusively to the X-E2.  I found myself shooting in black and white almost the entire time.  Paris lends itself so well to monochrome that it felt like the natural choice, especially with the harsh light of clear December days.

Fujifilm X-E2 24mm f/7.1 1/1000

Pont Alexandre III is one of my favorite things to gawk at in Paris.  I'm pretty sure I could spend a good portion of a day just taking its picture.  No matter how many times I walk over it, take a boat under it, or glimpse it from afar I think, "Man, that's a beautiful bridge."  It's an extravagant piece of architecture and I absolutely adore the thing.
 

Fujifilm X-E2 32mm f/9 1/400

This shot is, of course, a pretty famous view.  You'll see it on countless postcards and posters.  Despite it not being "unique," it's a classic example of good composition and I had to take it, kinda like every art student has to do a still life with some fruit at some point.  I did very little editing on this as the contrast and details were captured nicely in JPEG, JPEG, with the Fuji.  I only felt the desire to add a bit of a vignette and slap the watermark on.  Have I mentioned how much I love my X-E2?

Fujifilm X-E2 55mm f/5.6 1/500

I took this walking back from taking the Eiffel Tower shot.  When the forecast called for morning fog, I had hoped for a thick, luxurious blanket over the city.  It didn't happen, but a little clung to the trees in the park below the tower.  There was something about the scene of the park in the early morning with its maintenance tractors, mud, and garbage collectors that caught my attention.  It's a side of one the most popular tourists destinations most people don't get to see.  In a few minutes buses would unload their cargo and the area would be covered in selfie taking tourists, but for this time it was just another park on a cold winter morning.

Fujifilm X-E2 10mm f/2.8 1/125

One of the terrible things about shooting anywhere in the winter is that it's crazy cold in the morning, but one of the great things about shooting in Paris in the winter is that a warm cafe and a Chocolat Chaud are never far away.  We spent a lot of time cafe hopping that week trying to get feeling back in our fingers. 

When the sun started to head down again, we headed to the spot chosen for "Blue Hour."  The first one was Notre Dame des Paris, from below on the banks of Seine.  I had taken pictures of the famous cathedral down here before, but I've always hankered to get an evening shot when the lights were on.  

Canon 600D 10mm f/13 10s

We had quite a bit of time here while I watched the light, and I'd like take the opportunity to formally apologize to my husband and The Dog for having them sit in the wind tunnel so long.  But, I really did appreciate their company as I think it kept those creepy drunk guys at bay.  Despite the cold, I'd say this is one of the more enjoyable sessions we had.  Except for those drunk guys and one other photographer who came and went quickly, we had the place to ourselves.  I love walking along the Seine and this scene captures the mood of that experience.  Paris at night is truly something special.

Canon 600D 12mm f/13 10s

On the way back to our apartment for the night we paused at Les Deux Magots.  I do love a good Parisian cafe, and this one is a venerable establishment.  I can just imagine Monsieur Hemingway in there arguing with some unlucky soul about bullfighting technique or something.  Oh, I should mention that while our apartment's access was torture for an asthmatic, it did have quite the rewarding view at sunrise...

Fujifilm X-E2 30mm f/13 1/30

And sunset.

Fujifilm X-E2 25mm f/6.5 1/100, vibrant film simulation

My other priority "blue hour" spot was the Louvre courtyard.  It's another well know location, and a particular favorite for night photography.  There was a massive tourist presence and quite a few of us with tripods trying to get the shot without getting in each other's.  The after hours crowd in this part of Paris was pretty insane because of the nearby Christmas market on the Champs-Elysees.  It was here that I was particularly thankful to have The Dog with us as he prevented a very oblivious individual from crashing into me and my tripod.  The kid may have wet himself in fear, but I have found a new appreciation for our mean old dog.  Setting up at the Louvre was also compounded by the Museum's stupid, in my opinion, idea to set up a hideous red trailer in the courtyard.  Apparently it's going to be yet another Museum store, but I don't get the point and its location is absolutely inappropriate.  Say goodbye to any panoramic shots or, for that matter, views from the opposite side of the courtyard.  Not really a fan of the red squiggle in the pyramid either, but that's just me.  It's a beautiful location and I'm thankful to have had the opportunity to capture it, despite the difficulties.

Of course, I took quite a bit more shots on the trip and the rest of them are up on my Flickr and I've been posting a few to Instagram and Twenty20 as well.

Now for some final thoughts.  For the most part the kit worked out pretty well.  Of course, carrying everything around for several days wasn't so great.  Normally, I would leave the tripod back at the apartment and wouldn't have carried the second body, but this was a unique situation.  What it taught me was that the Slingshot bag does not work for all day carry.  The tripod positioning is awkward and tends to bash the head into walls or tourists (who may or may not deserve it).  And, the wrap around fit it crazy hard on the back.  The experience has me set on getting a regular backpack with a vertical tripod mount for days when I'm carrying a lot with me for a long period of time.  I don't do that very often, but if it comes up again, I never want to use the Slingshot.  Another weak spot in the kit is my tripod.  Its an inexpensive model, not particularly sturdy, and I knew that when I bought it.  But, after several years it's starting to get sticky and uncooperative.  In the cold, the poor thing freezes up really tight and getting it to the proper position is a battle.  I think I'll be retiring it soon.  As for cameras, carrying two around was a bit overkill, but I haven't added any new Fujinon lens yet, so that's the way it's gotta be for a while.  Their stuff requires some fancy budgeting and I have a lot of things vying for top position on my wish list.  For the time being I'll continue to use my Canon with the wide-angle lens until I can add a superior (and smaller) Fujinon.  The more I use the X-E2 the more I desire to work exclusively with their X cameras and lenses.

Fujifilm X-E2 21mm f/5.6 1/500

Taking a camera around Paris is an overwhelming, exciting, and inspiring experience.  It's one of the first places we went after we moved to Europe in 2011, and it certainly can be credited with igniting a love for photography in me.  What better place in the world to pick up a camera?  We try to get back to this beautiful city at least once a year.  I have to admit it was jarring to return home and read about the terrible events of last week taking place not far from some of the areas we were exploring.  As I said, Paris almost feels like a family member, a really artsy, eccentric, gorgeous family member.  The events of the attacks and aftermath break my heart and anger me.  It's the most beautiful city in the world and this escalation of violence on its streets is an insult.  But, we'll go back.  We'll go back soon.  I have a lot more I'd like to photograph there.  There are places we haven't been yet and spots I haven't been able to capture quite right.  I hope to be on its streets again soon with all those other photography lovers, weaving through the crowds of tourists, and snapping away.  The only way I feel we can show our support and solidarity is to not let these barbaric acts keep us away from the City of Light.

The Spirit of Christmas

Someone back home in the States said to me recently that the Germans probably have a better understanding of the meaning of Christmas and the holiday season than Americans.  I don't know about that.  I can't think of one person back home who lauds the commercialism that the season now seems to represent.  Despite what the TV, store displays, and radio would suggest, I think that most people still value traditions, time spent with family or friends, and the time of reflection of the season, not to mention the food.  It seems that every year the shopping season gets longer, the music gets worse, and the decorations more frivolous and tacky.  We all complain about it.  And, while so far the wretched inflatable decorations haven't really caught on over here, I think Germany also struggles with a corruption of the season. I've heard repeatedly from several sources in solemn tones that when it comes to the insanity of the holidays, Germany is getting out of control just like everyone else.  Seriously, with barely an observance of Halloween and certainly no Thanksgiving, the shopping season started, oh, somewhere around October 1st.  While the leaves were still mostly green, loaves of stollen and bottles of Glühwein started appearing on shelves.  While we've been spared the media inundation since we don't watch local TV or listen to radio, a trip to the grocery store last night was the only proof I needed that the Germans are just as wacky three days before Christmas as Americans.

But, there is one thing I can honestly say makes the season better in Germany.  I give to you the humble Christmas Market, known in these parts as Weihnachtsmarkt or Christkindlmarkt.  Christmas Markets started in the German speaking world sometime in the late Middle Ages.  The one downriver in Frankfurt has been going on since at least 1393.  They coincide with the four weekends of Advent.  Traditional ones end the weekend before Christmas, but nowadays some of the larger ones stay open until Christmas Eve. They've since become regular features around the Western world.  There's one on the Champs-Élysées, you can visit one in Leeds, and Akron even used have a respectable offering about 10 years ago (it has, alas, become a sad shadow of its former self.  Oh, Akron...sigh).  But, the best ones are still to be found where it all began- Germany.

Market square of Rothenburg ob der Tauber

Fujifilm X-E2 18mm f/9 1/125

This season we decided we were going to take advantage of this most wondrous cultural offering and visit as many as possible.  Somewhere between steaming cups of Glühwein, nibbling on a Schneeball, and strolling through endless stalls of goods we discovered that we started feeling, well, Christmassy.  I have this vision of what Christmas is supposed to be like, it's some sort of mashup of Dickens, pre-Christian yule, and It's a Wonderful Life.  I imagine big pots of hot drink, lots of sparkly candles, carolers, simple or elaborate food items being showcased on festive tables, and a general feeling of goodwill amongst strangers.  In short, I think Christmas is supposed to be fun, to do exactly what the old yule celebrations did- scare away the dark, cold, and general unease of winter.  Here, for the first time in I don't know how long, it felt exactly this way.  We attended 6, and maybe we'll squeeze in one more this evening.  We went to tiny ones and we went to huge ones.  We had good weather and we had truly wretched weather.  But, at every single one we had fun and there was none of that oppressive and overwhelming stressed out commercial feeling at any.  Never once did I hear a single pop Christmas song.  There wasn't an inflatable Santa on a Harley in sight either.  So, without further ado, here are some shots from the markets.

Fujifilm X-E2 18mm f/10 1/160, edit Photoshop

 This spot is one of the quintessential shots of Rothenburg ob der Tauber.  Rothenburg o.d.T is probably one of the most well known stops along the Romantic Road, a tourist route from Würzburg to Füssen.  What it is known for are the Christmas shops, museum, and the fact the old town is trapped, architecturally speaking, in the Middle Ages.  It's a beautiful place to explore, but getting a wide shot without brightly clothed and bumbling tourists is nigh impossible.  I had hoped to stick around late so the crowds would thin out, but the weather was atrocious so we high tailed it home early.

Fujifilm X-E2 42mm f/4 1/180

Paper stars are a traditional decoration at Christmas.  They are typically hung in windows, and as you can see throw off a rich and festive glow.  I found myself drawn to the stalls that sold them, and finally after much jostling in Rothenburg o.d.T I found this one that was positively infested with the beautiful things.   Of course, while trying to get the shot, about a half dozen other tourists decided I must be onto something and immediately stepped in front.  Oh, the trials of the 5'3" photographer...

Fujifilm X-E2 55mm f/5 1/250

 Würzburg is a regular haunt for us, just being about an hour down the Autobahn.  It's the northern terminus of the Romantic Road and known especially for its Baroque architecture.  I was absolutely enamored with the cream yellow facade of the Haus zum Falken in all its lavish Rococo glory.  I found the bright red of the Marienkapelle a nice contrast to its more ornate neighbor.

Fujifilm X-E2 39mm f/4 1/125, Fuji Vibrant Film Simulation

For unique shopping, the winner this year was the Ronneburg Castle Historic Market.  The parking for this one was utterly atrocious and we found ourselves climbing a rather substantial hill for about an hour before we finally entered the gates of this market.  However, it was totally worth it, and an excellent test of my new Holdfast Gear Moneymaker strap system (more on that some other time).  Here are some olive wood items for sale outside of the castle.  The grain of the wood makes for some striking patterns on the objects, so I decided to utilize the Vibrant film simulation so they'd pop just a little more.  We ended up walking away with a wonderful snack bowl and polished horn spoons from this stand.  

Fujifilm X-E2 33mm f/4.5 1/500

 The weekend of the Ronneburg market was rather brisk, which caused some excellent steam action off our clay Glühwein mugs.  It was also a great opportunity to showcase the bright clarity of the Fujinon 18-55mm lens.  

Fujifilm X-E2 41mm f/6.4 1/250

There was something about this scene of smoke wafting around the straw strewn grounds of Ronneburg Castle, the laughter, the smell of meats roasting on open fires, and the folks strolling about in tunics with swords hanging from their waists that had me saying, "This is what I always imagined Christmas to be like."  Weird, I know.  Please bear in mind I spent a good portion of my younger years studying medieval customs and architecture.  Anyway, this isn't the best shot in the world, but it captures a moment.  That's what photography is for, right?

Canon 600D 100mm f/5 1/80

I've been carry a two camera kit to the markets, the Fujifilm X-E2 for mostly wide shots and the Canon 600D with the 55-250mm for close-ups.  Most of the action the Canon saw was at Ronneburg because of the wonderfully photogenic crowd that only a Medieval Fair can attract.  This lens is no where near fast (a constant struggle at cycling races), but it works well enough for the time being when I'm trying to zero in on one person or thing and crowds or my limited height won't let me get any closer.

Canon 600D 154mm f/5.6 1/80

 These two, St. Nicholas and the Christkind (a really perplexing character who is called the Christ Child, but most definitely isn't, being an adult female and all.  I hope to get her figured out by next Christmas), were a bear to photograph.  St. Nick is, of course, a favorite with the children and his partner was handing out candies to every child in the joint.  So, they were surrounded by quite the crowd of kids hell bent on nabbing a chocolate and parents hell bent on getting a photo of their children with the pair.  This was the best I could pull off, being smaller than the average German child or parent.  Plus, good St. Nick seemed overwhelmed with the whole situation and insisted on hiding behind his counterpart for most of the time.  I didn't blame him.

Canon 600D 135mm f/5 1/80

I spotted him just as we were leaving Ronneburg for the day.  Thankfully, he didn't make for much of a moving target for my sluggish long lens.  It was only after I was looking at it in post that I noticed the wonderfully carved head on the guitar. 

Canon 600D 100mm f/5 1/150

 Here is an example of handmade Christmas decorations that you will find all over the Markets.  This one happened to be on one of the trees at the market in Würzburg.  Something about the delicate simplicity of the straw creations paired with fruit on the tree hinted at an image of Christmases long past.

Fujifilm X-E2 23mm f/5.6 1/80, Vibrant film simulation

 The light on the day we went to Michelstadt was a bit gloomy, so I shot mostly with the Vibrant film simulation.  Michelstadt is known for its timber frame buildings and the whimsical Rathaus (Town Hall) is its most famous structure.  I would have loved to have had some snow on this day, for this town is just saturated in old-timey Christmas goodness already.

Fujifilm X-E2 55mm f/4 1/180

These are the famous Franconian Schneebälle pastries.  They're basically slices of dough that are wadded up and fried in a special contraption and then covered in something.  Traditionally, they are covered in powdered sugar (my favorite), but there are many variations of the ancient treat (supposedly the recipe has been around for 300 years).  Now you can get them filled with cream or soaked in rum and covered in chocolate.  The sugar coma possibilities are endless.

  

Fujifilm X-E2 18mm f/4 1/250, Vibrant film simulation

 Every market has a giant Christmas Pyramid.  The pyramids are traditionally from the Erzgebirge Mountains, but now are popular all over Germany.  Traditionally, they featured nativity scenes or angels, but now some feature more secular scenes of village or woodland life.  This is a more modern rendition featuring one of these secular scenes.  I took this snapshot for folks back home to have an example of some typical market scenes, without thought to composition.  The light was terrible all day and the sun was heading down at this point, but thanks to my X-E2's amazing ability at high ISO levels (1000), I was able to get it handheld.  

Fujifilm X-E2 55mm f/4 1/70

 Another time I was thankful for my X-E2's lowlight capabilities (ISO 1250).  Gosh, mirrorless is a wonderful thing! We went to this market with some friends so I didn't want to carry the full set up that day and just worked with the X-E2.  It was a great opportunity to test its wide range of capabilities with just the kit lens.  

Fujifilm ISO 1250 26mm f/11 1/70

I snapped this as we were leaving Michelstadt in the evening and the sun was getting low on the horizon.  Michelstadt ended up being our favorite market of 2014, maybe it was because we shared the time with friends or it was our first one of the year, but this one had just the right ambiance.

I find myself slightly saddened by the thought that the Christmas market season has come to a close and for the first time a feeling that there is a little magic to the season.  It's not the handmade goods, or the lights, or the food, or the spiced wine (ok, maybe it is the spiced wine).  I think that it mostly has to do with these wonderful markets fostering a feeling of well being amongst the vendors and attendees.  People go, and not just tourists, to have basic seasonal fun.  At the markets you can sing along with the carolers and fight the cold with a mug of mulled goodness just like the yule celebrations of yore, buy wonderful little homemade Christmas wreaths like those in a Dickens tale, and happily wish everyone you pass a "Frohe Weihnachte!" like one would in a German speaking Bedford Falls.  That just warms the cockles of my heart.  I hear there's still one market operating today down the road.  If you need me this evening I'll be standing around a barrel laughing with some strangers, sipping Glühwein, snapping some pictures, and feeling mighty pleased with the whole situation.  Who knows, maybe it'll even give The Dog a feeling of goodwill toward men.  Christmas miracles do happen...

More photos can be viewed on Flickr and will be popping up on Instagram

New Theme

Since we're rapidly approaching the end of 2014 (gah!), I thought it was time to turn more focused attention to this blog.  Should I keep plugging away, call it done, or revitalize it somehow?  I've had a blog in one form or another for almost 5 years, so the thought of giving it up fully is not my first choice.  Continuing on in the same way, however, is unappealing.  Writing up posts on what we did over the weekend or how cycling is going is getting a bit boring to write and probably even more boring to read.  Being an expat is no longer a new experience.  We're closing out our third year over here and despite the fact we're still not 100% sure what is going on and I haven't learned much German, this experience feels pretty normal.  We don't know what home is anymore, but I think that's because we feel evenly split after our second relocation.  Being on the banks of the Main in Unterfranken feels just as comfortable as being on the Cuyahoga in Summit County.  Sometimes, more so.

Anyway, my blogs have always been about sharing new experiences, be it becoming a bike commuter in Akron, Ohio or moving across the Atlantic.  It only makes sense to continue this approach.  So, Relish will be changing just a bit for taking a more focused theme.

Right before we moved to Luxembourg, the only camera I had was the one in my iPhone.  We thought, "Hey, we should get a decent point and shoot camera before we go because we'll probably want to take some pictures."  So, we picked up a Canon Powershot.  It's a great little camera.  But, something about this continent flipped a switch in me.  The people, the architecture, the food, the cities, the cultures, and the incredible landscapes inspired me.  I took that camera everywhere and despite its great performance, I wanted to shoot beyond its capabilities.  After six months I had upgraded to my Canon 600D, shortly thereafter I began adding lenses to my kit, and "taking pictures" became "photography" to me.  Miraculously, some have taken a liking to my work and have been willing to purchase items from my Twenty20 gallery.

So, in future posts I'll be turning Relish into more of a photography focused blog.  I plan to give background on pictures in my galleries and narrate how my exploration of photography is going.  I have a lot to learn.  There is a lot I don't get or know about.  Most of what I've discovered so far have been by trial and error or by accident.  It's not the easiest activity to get into or keep up with, but it is a heck of a lot of fun to try.  And, well, I relish the experience.

Anyway, that's what's up.  Don't worry, there will still be bike stuff from time to time.

Fujifilm X-E2, XF 18-55mm ISO 800 f/4.5 1/500

BIG Breath and....

It's been quite some time since I punched a few lines onto this blog.  August and September was all about training for a Century ride, leaving me with surprisingly very little say.  We had a rather pleasant 100 mile ride in mid-September and then after that a tight schedule leading up to our annual trip back to Akron.  Now, here we are at the very end of October.

The trip "home," the definition of which is up for debate, is an interesting experience for expats.  For those that can travel back and forth to their native land regularly the disconnect probably isn't as acute.  For those of us who only get back once a year or less, the experience can be, well, rather bizarre.  The more time that passes on assignment the greater the gulf can grow between then and now, here and there.  Sometimes, when faced with the reality that this is just an assignment and home will most definitely be over there again, the feelings are mixed.  Unless someone's expat journey has been completely negative, we feel a kinship with the new place sometimes equal to or even exceeding our native home.  But, for now here we are back in Germany for the time being with at least another year to enjoy it.

Besides all the fun parts about the home leave trip like sharing a drink at our favorite craft beer bars with good friends, enjoying a proper steak, and an early Thanksgiving meal with family, one of the annual events of home leave is making the rounds to all our medical professionals to make sure we're still doing good health wise.  I was looking forward to this year's checkup because I had a question.

My last post on here was about a particularly brutal climb that almost did me in.  After that I started paying close attention to my performance on hills and during other activities like mountain trekking.  It became clear to me that something was up with my breathing.  In the past I assumed my complete meltdowns on hills had to do with overall fitness.  I assumed I was struggling because I was out of shape.  But, as the year passed this excuse didn't seem pertinent.  We were cycling every day and during our century training we were averaging 130km a week.  Our diet has changed to being mostly vegetarian.  My weight and other vitals were in the right places.  I was sleeping normal.  But, every single time I hit a hill on the bike, a set of stairs, or an uphill track while trekking I started struggling, big time.  Off the bike I manage, but always slow way down and need breaks now and then to catch my breath.  On the bike, things get bad on those hills.  For anything above a Cat 4, I often have to dismount to calm my breathing.

Then, one day we were climbing a hill at a particularly slow pace.  We had taken a break not long before for a snack and to replenish our water, but I was in a bad way already.  My husband led for a bit, then I took over, hoping that if I found a steady pace I could relax my breathing.  It wasn't working.  The wide spot in the road was a welcome sight and I pulled over, dismounted, and sat down, certain I was going to black out.  When I finally got back to a comfortable heart rate and breathing, I looked up at the hill, the road winding above me.  As I did so, a woman went past.  On a steel city bike.  In khaki shorts and tennis shoes.  She was breathing through her nose.  That was the last straw.  I was mad.

Something was definitely up.

So, I sent my doctor in Akron a note.  I have an amazing doctor back in Akron, and having her just an email away is a lifesaver.  Thank you, modern technology!  Anyway, after tracking my symptoms and performance it sounded to me that I might have been suffering from exercise induced asthma all this time.  She concurred with my theory and set me up for some tests when I came back to town.

Asthma tests are something else.  You spend two hours in a room with a technician blowing into a tube after inhaling a progression of medications as the tech instructs "BIG breath and..BLOW, BLOW, BLOW!"  All of that tests lung capacity.  People with asthma will have a marked reduced capacity during the test.  People without it will have the same results from beginning to end.  When I sat down with my doctor a few days later, she said, "I'm so glad you contacted me, because you totally have asthma!"  Apparently, I have had it my whole life, explaining why I could never run the mile in PE or keep up in any sports like soccer when I was a kid, hence being assigned more stationary positions like fullback.  I was under the impression that I wasn't "good at running" or that I wasn't "athletic" back then.  But as I've gotten older I've realized that being "unathletic" isn't a real thing.  My doctor confirmed.  She said we choose to be active or not.  Sure, not everyone is built to run a marathon or bench 250lbs, but everyone should be able to find something they can do comfortably that keeps them physically fit.  If you struggle despite being fit, then there is a medical reason for it.  Anyone should be able to exercise.

I don't know what my doctor thought, when I responded to to my diagnosis with, "Oh, thank God!"  I can't begin to describe the relief I felt with finally having a reason for why climbing nearly kills me, why I can't keep up in the mountains, why climbing the stairs to the top floor our house has me leaning against the door frame for a bit.   The thought of climbing no longer fills me with dread.  I know what will happen when I start heading up and I know why.  It's not because I'm a failure.  I have the tools to deal with it and now the odds are in favor of me getting to the top without passing out.  Sometimes an answer is all you need.  And, albuterol.

The mountains are my favorite place on earth.  Now, spending time in their heights shouldn't be such a struggle.

Yeah, folks, I'll be "doping" when I'm out on the roads.   Let me get that out there right now.  Along with my patch kit and PB sammies, I'll be packing an inhaler.  I've accepted that in order to keep this managed properly I have to reign in my riding when I have a respiratory illness to avoid aggravating the disease (hence why I'm typing this up today instead of HTFU on the bike with this head cold).  I shouldn't take up extreme altitude mountaineering either.  Sigh.  Oh well, I don't have the money for that anyway.  But, there is no risk of having to give up the bike.  I'm not expecting to take all the local QOMs, but climbing the stairs, yeah, I can do that now.

So, look out, Bavaria, as soon as I kick this darn cold I'll be back.  Here's hoping none of you in khakis and sneakers will pass me on a climb.  But if you do, let's be clear.  My chain slipped.

Fifteen Percent

Saturdays are the big ride days.  We haven't hit the big mileage yet.  This past Saturday was only 35 miles.  No big deal.  We could knock that out in about 2 hours, and be home in plenty of time to run errands.  I've been spending a lot of time thinking about what route to use for the century and decided that Saturday we would test out the terrain in one of the of the possible areas, a hilly, sparsely populated region east of the Main that's known for it's hiking and mountain biking.  There aren't that many villages, so traffic should be light.  The hills would be a challenge, sure, but challenges are good and it's not like there would be anything beyond a category 3.  They call the hills a "mountain range," but that's definitely a bit of an exaggeration to say the least.

We headed out about 8am.  The shot of espresso hadn't kicked in yet, and my eyes were watering like crazy, the way they always do on morning rides.  The route was completely new as soon as we crossed over the river.  There wasn't any moment along the way that we could warm up and ease into it.  People who aren't cyclists don't understand that being on the road requires 100% focus.  You have to watch everything, everything, cracks in the pavement, stones that can send you flying if hit just the wrong way, drainage grates, stuff that's fallen off of cars that can also send you flying, big tire slicing shards of glass, piles of sand that are always randomly spread across turns, tree branches, roadkill, oil slicks, piles of animal waste, mud, children who haven't been taught to look both ways before crossing the street, old people who never learned and have miraculously survived all these years, loose dogs, horses, various types of balls rolling out of playgrounds and driveways, other bikes, skateboards, scooters, wheelchairs....oh, yeah, and the cars.  We have to do a lot of thinking and thinking for everyone else around us.  We have to be three steps ahead.  It's like chess- fast paced, things could get really bad if you make the wrong move kind of chess.   It's not just the physical exertion of cycling that's tough.  Sometimes a quick pedal to the grocery store is more intense than a 4 hour training ride depending on what we encounter along the way.

Saturday's route passed a rather nice castle.
Castles make climbing better.

The first several miles of Saturday's ride was one of those intense, nonstop experiences.  Saturdays are the one day a week people can run errands and they have to start early.  Shops are closed on Sundays and most close before 1pm on Saturdays.  During the week, most close by 6pm.  If you work all week, Saturday morning is your one shot to get what you need.  The first stretch of the route was along a particularly busy main road.  So, we were hauling right off the bat.  Then, we hit a construction zone which closed one side of the road with no traffic signal or worker controlling the flow.  That had us sprinting uphill a good ways to avoid getting creamed by a car coming up over the top from the other direction.  Thankfully, there weren't any cars, but I was close to the red after that.  It took a while to recover.  It wasn't too much later that we were off that highway, but when we left the traffic, we were in the "mountain range."  The climbs weren't that bad, except for the two times I dropped my chain.  There were a couple of cat 4's.  The biggest climb was a steady 2.5 mile, category 3.  It seemed to go on forever, but it wasn't horrific.  None of the climbs were horrific.  Climbing isn't the soul crushing experience it used to be.  It just is what it is.  The longer they are, the more are tackled, the better it gets.  Cycling becomes something else.

Then, in the last 5 miles, I had my soul crushed.  On the profile the last bump was nothing, just a blip.  You can't really tell what a climb is going to be like from a profile, a grade percentage, a distance.  This one started humanely enough.  We shifted down and got into the rhythm.  I shifted down again a few minutes later.  Then again.  Then again.  The grade just kept getting steeper, crazy steep.  I was tired.  This was the fifth climb of the day and I didn't have it anymore.  I started paperboying a little.  My husband was doing the pulling.  I kept wishing he'd go a little faster.  I didn't have the strength to take a pull, but my front tire was millimeters from his rear tire.  I was afraid my weaving was going to take him down.  I couldn't come alongside since the road was too narrow.  For some reason, cars kept coming up behind on this little road to nowhere.  Didn't they have somewhere else to drive?  There's nothing up there but a barn!  I had a stale Haribo frog in my mouth.  I didn't have the energy to chew through it; I was too busy trying to breathe.  The frog was in the way of the breathing.  I tried shifting down again, but I was out of gears.  I pushed the frog into my left cheek and tried to slow down the breathing.  I was in the red, way into the red, and I was out of gears.  One more gear would have been enough.  I was mashing the pedals, my legs were on fire, and we were barely moving anymore.  Then it happened, the same thing that happens on every climb like this.  You think you see the top, only to have the hope ripped away when the top just reveals itself to be a false flat.  This was supposed to be the little climb.  Breathing was becoming an issue.  I wasn't getting the oxygen to keep the legs moving and the heart beating at a bearable rate.  I looked up from my husband's rear hub to his back and called out in a really high pitched, raspy voice, "Need to stop.  I need.  Break."

"Yeah, ok. Yes."  I was relieved to hear what sounded like relief in his voice.  I climbed off and laid my bike down in the grass,  my breathing was what could probably be termed as hyperventilating.  I bent over trying to slow it down.  The frog was gone.  I don't remember eating it.  A car was coming up the hill, flying actually.  I cursed.  I can't just quietly die up here on this hill without some driver flying past staring agape at my physical failings and the drool running in a ladylike manner down my chin.  Seriously, where the heck are these cars going?  I gulped down a ton of water and unzipped my jersey.  It was humid.  I should have worn a lighter-weight jersey.  Or something.

It took a few minutes to get back to feeling somewhat normal again.  We clicked back in and finished the climb.  It was a little longer before I could speak properly again, though.  We got back to the house and after a giant egg burrito and a cold glass of chocolate milk, I looked at the profile again.

Oh, so that's what a quarter mile with a 15% uphill grade feels like.