A Walk in Golden October

It's been some weeks now since I did not had a walk with hubby. We were on a short vacation for one and a half weeks in Turkey and the past weeks were also busy ones. Since the weather was so friendly during the start of golden October, we finally took the chance to go walking around. October is already the start of Autumn in Germany and in most countries in Europe. The leaves on the trees are slowly turning to yellow, orange, red, purple, brown and other colors. This is another season of the year that also I love due to its colorful surroundings.

I am just hoping that we will get more sunny and friendly weather this month. Lastly, I would like to wish everyone a wonderful month of October. Enjoy and stay safe all the time.

Here are some images I took during our walk this afternoon and yesterday.

the walking and biking way, far away from the main road. it is safer to walk here.

the surroundings are getting colorful now. I love Bavaria, Germany!

The Liberty Bridge Accross Danube River in Budapest

Time truly runs so fast. It's been almost a month now since we visited Budapest, the capital city of Hungary. It was only a short trip but we had seen and experienced a lot of sights. The highlight of our visit was the fireworks during the National Holiday in Hungary.

The image you see below is the Liberty Bridge, called in Hungarian as Szabadság híd. It is sometimes Freedom Bridge. It connects Buda and Pest across the River Danube. It is the third southernmost public road bridge in Budapest, located at the southern end of the City Centre.

Szabadság híd or Liberty Bridge during our visit last Aug. 20, 2011

Cruising in Danube- From Spitz to Krems in Austria

It was only some hours cruise trip but a very fascinating and memorable one. I was with a friend Jean during that cruise. After we traveled from Gyor, Hungary to Wachau in Austria, we did had this wonderful cruise. It started in the Spitz, a wine town and ended in Krems, a riverside town in the Danube's Wachau Valley in Austria. These towns are famous tourist spots in Lower Austria.

The landscapes and scenery that we saw around are priceless. It was truly a wonderful trip last August 2011.

Spitz, this is where our cruise started.

Krems is where the cruise ended.

a castle that we passed-by during our trip.

Hohensalzburg Castle in Salzburg, Austria

It was during my third visit in Salzburg, Austria when I had the chance to go inside the Hohensalzburg Castle. The Festung Hohensalzburg which literally means "High Salzburg Fortress" is located on top of the Festungsberg mountain. It is one of the largest medieval castles in Europe with a a length of 250 m (820 ft) and a width of 150 m (490 ft).

From the you can have breath-taking views of Salzburg and the Alps. Inside the fortress is a museum of medieval weapons, life on the fortress, and torture instruments. Since we don't have so much time to hike up to the Fortress, we took the funicular. A family ticket cost 24.30 Euros.

Festung Hohensalzburg during my third visit last July 2011.
Construction of the fortress began in 1077 under Archbishop Gebhard von Helfenstein.

panorama of Salzburg from the Hohensalzburg Castle..taken last July 2011.

Blue Sky and the Inspiring Words

"Today, don't think of saying any unkind word, think of the people who can't speak.
Don't complain about the food you eat, some have nothing.
Don't complain about life, many die young.
When you're tired of your job, think of the jobless, the disabled and those who wish they had yours.
When sad thoughts seem to put you down, paint a smile on your face and thank God you're alive and still around.
Life is a gift.
Live it well."

tulips from our garden from spring 2010.

Goodbye May, Hello June

The month of May is finally over. I hope that you all had a good month of May. The last day of May was rainy in our place in Bavaria, Germany. There was a strong rain accompanied with strong wind, lightnings and thunders. It was so far the strongest rain I experienced since living in this country. I guess some people were scared during that natural phenomenon. I heard over the radio that it brought some damages in the nearby places.

The sixth month of the year is finally here. The first day of June was quite rainy and cloudy almost the whole day in our place. I never saw sunshine today compared to the past days in May. The rain yesterday and today made our garden happy. I can almost see the plants and the flowers smiling in our garden..wink!

Don't you know that the month of June was named after the Roman goddess Juno? She is the wife of Jupiter, equivalent to the Greek goddess Hera. June is also known as the month of marriages. Some considered it a good luck to get married during this month.

If you are born in June, your horoscope is Cancer and your birthstones are the pearl, the Moonstone (gemstone), and the Alexandrite which means health and longevity. Its birth flowers are the honeysuckle and the rose.

I wish everyone a good start and overall a great month of June.


Here is my yellow rose for all birthday celebrants for the month of June. This is one of the roses in our garden. All the best to all of you!

Was in Bellagio Las Vegas

I had been to some places in Italy but never been to the municipality of Bellagio. But I am very happy because I had the chance to visit Bellagio in Las Vegas. It is a luxury hotel in Las Vegas Strip, Paradise in Nevada. I love especially watching the Water Dancing Show here, also known as the Fountains of Bellagio.

I am happy to know that Bellagio Las Vegas was inspired by the Lake Como resort of Bellagio in Italy. Here is Bellagio Las Vegas during my 2008 vacation there.

I love watching the Fountains of Bellagio!

Beautiful Winter in Bavaria

The sun is shining outside.
But I still remember the last beautiful winter,
When the surroundings were all white and snowy.
But I am very glad and thankful,
That spring time finally came,
And soon lovely summer too!

Have a wonderful day everyone!

-Ruby Benz.

taken on our way to Neuschwanstein castle in Schwangau, Bavaria, Germany last January 2011. I love this scenery but but happy that we are having sunshine at the moment.

A Visit to Vatican City

It was summer 2010 when I had the chance to visit Rome. Together with Nonna, a friend from the U.S., we also visited Vatican City and landed in St. Peter's Square, the famous square in Vatican. Piazza San Pietro, as it is called in Italian, is located directly in front of St. Peter's Basilica.

We also had the chance to climb to the cupola of the Basilica. To reach the cupola, one must to climb 320 steps after taking the elevator. People especially the elderly who have ailments and heart problems must be aware of this. We had a great experience as we visited this part of Rome.

St. Peter's Square and the St. Peter's Basilica in the background. taken last August 2010.

May is Finally Here

Happy Monday everyone! Here we are again on the first week of another month. The fifth month of the year is finally here. This month has a length of 31 days. If you live in the Southern Hemisphere part of the globe, you are currently having an Autumn season. I currently live in Europe which is located in Northern Hemisphere, therefore, we are currently having a spring season. This is one of my favorite time in the year, where most flowers start to bloom.

I still have some tulips blooming in our garden but most of it are dying now. Don't you know that the month of May has been named for the Greek goddess Maia, who was identified with the Roman era goddess of fertility, Bona Dea, whose festival was held in May? If you were born in the month of May, your birthstone is the emerald which means love or success. Its birth flower is the Crataegus monogyna and the Lily of the Valley. It is quite interesting to know some things about this month.

Here some of tulips from our garden taken last month. Now, they are almost gone. I will see them again next year.

Spring 2011 in our garden.

Beautiful Sunday

It is indeed a beautiful Sunday! The weather was a bit chilly in the afternoon as we went walking. When the cold air blows, you can feel it in your skin. Good that I wore a wind breaker during our walk. The weather was friendly overall because we had sunshine the whole day.

I also did some laundry and a bit cleaning in the morning. During lunch time, a friend called me to have lunch in their house. That was a good lunch because it was exactly the food that I am planning to cook today. I ended up not cooking anymore. Thanks a lot Jo for the lunch and the chitchatting.

The two hours walk we had on the hills was also a very good exercise. At the same time, we also enjoyed seeing the nature around. I guess I need to always go walking now because the weather is getting very better since the past weeks.

The bridge where we always pass everytime we go walking. It is slowly getting green in our surrounding. I am happily savoring the spirit of spring season. I love it especially when I see the flowers blooming in our garden.

My Beautiful Tulips are Here Again

Good day everyone! The weather outside right now is just perfect. It is sunny and everything around are turning to green. I also spent some time in our garden this morning, checking about the blooming flowers. My beautiful tulips are finally here. Some are currently in good blooms and some are just starting to bear flowers. The hyacinths, narcissus, violas and primulas are also showing its beauties. I simply love plants and flowers.

the beautiful tulips in our garden. I love it!

I Love My Dolce & Gabbana from KaDeWe

I really did not plan to go shopping when I had a trip to Berlin last month. Since I had the chance to go around KeDeWe, one of the famous department store in Berlin, I ended up shopping. Actually they had a winter sale that time and most of their branded items are on sale. I had a good deal with a Dolce & Gabbana bag. I love the bag because it is perfect for a traveler like me. I can put all the stuffs that I need when traveling. It cost me a little fortune but I am happy and contented with it.

the famous KaDeWe in Berlin. It stands for Kaufhaus des Westens, called in English as "Department Store of the West". I was there!

Shopping Escapades

I always go shopping every week. That is true especially shopping for grocery items. I guess some of you might be thinking about shopping for bags, shoes, clothes and other stuffs and blingblings that a woman wants. There is a story about shopping but I wish to share it in my next post. Here is an image taken in one of the big supermarket in Schwandorf, the Globus Supermarket.

you can find almost everything here from grocery items to clothing, electronics, bags, shoes, books and many many more.

Shopping and Sightseeing in Würzburg

I would say, it was only a window shopping. Me and my friend from the United States had a sightseeing in Würzburg (Wuerzburg), a city in Bavaria, Germany. It was during her three weeks vacation in Europe last year. It was quite a nice trip we had in this city.

I forgot to mentioned that my friend had a very good deal of a yellow benetton umbrella. She bought it and bring it with her to the U.S.

a shopping street in Würzburg, Germany. taken last August 2010.

Saying Goodbye to Winter

Good morning Europe! Good day everyone! We are having sunshine again. I guess spring is fast approaching. I noticed yesterday, while looking on our garden, that the tulips are slowly growing. I hope we can finally say goodbye to winter. I don't need it right now. I can't wait to see the flowers in our garden again. I am quite excited to go gardening soon. Thanks God for the very nice weather today!

I am saying goodbye to winter. No more snow please. Here is an image taken last December 2010. I also wish everyone a beautiful and wonderful month of March.

snow time last December 2010.. such a fairytale scene but I want to say goodbye to winter now. Take care folks. I'll see you later again. Off to a Fasching or carnival in a nearby city.

I Love King Ludwig's Castle, The Neuschwanstein Castle

Schloss Neuschwanstein or simply Neuschwanstein Castle was commissioned by Kind Ludwig II, King of Bavaria, Germany. It is also said that this castle was the inspiration of Disneyland's Sleeping Beauty Castle. It is one of the beautiful castles I visited in Europe.

Literally, Neuschwanstein is composed of three German words; Neu, Schwan and Stein which consecutively mean New, Swan and Stone. I guess my German translation to English is correct.

the main entrance to Neuschwanstein Castle. It was so foggy during our visit last November 2010.

taken during my second visit last November 2010. I had been to this thrice already..and yes, if given the chance, I will still keep on coming back....simply because I love this castle.

"You'll go forth a little stronger
With a fresh supply of grace,
If each day you meet the Saviour
In a secret quite place."

-Adams

The beautiful lilies in our garden. This was taken last summer of 2010. Such a lovely nature! I miss seeing the flowers in our garden.

No More Snow Please

Honestly, I don't need snow anymore. The snow especially last December was already too much. I am just happy that the weather is getting better. I mean, not snowing anymore from the past weeks. Some places in Germany are still experiencing snow but not in our place.

Here is one of the images I took the other week.

I was driving back home when I took this image. I miss the warm weather now. We had sunshine when this photo was taken but the weather was still cold that time.

Red Poppies and the Saying

"Lord, help me to be honest
In all I do and say,
And grant me grace and power
To live for you each day."

-Fitzhugh

red poppies in the neighborhood. I took this image as we went walking on the castle ruins in our place.