Product-shooting & Summer Smells

What do I do? 

The smell of freshly cut grass, ice cream, coffee. People with smiles on their faces. Blue sky and a sun that makes you want to wear your sunglasses from morning until dawn. And in the middle of all of this I was doing a "little different" product shooting today. The new Fall/Winter collections are starting to arrive. To bring a local touch to the social media presence of B1 Mode (the store I work for on a freelance basis), we grabbed the hottest items and went to the new/hip location in Bamberg. The "Schönleinsplatz" and its current piece of art (those funny looking red people. German readers, check this out). Lovely day!

Here my new favorite jacket :) and a couple of "raw" impressions!

Jacket (top) Hugo Boss Orange  °  Scarf on red person Hugo Boss Orange ° German "Trachtenjacke" (right) from Luis Trenker ° Pink scarf matching your latest Dirndl from Codello °

Bamberg - some insights and (non touristy) tips

Bamberg is a located in Upper Franconia in Bavaria (Germany) and its city hall including the tiny cobblestone streets leading to it belong to the UNESCO world heritage. Although I didn't even hear about until two years ago (and yes! I am German) it is such a lovely place. You can go everywhere by bike or walking, the food is hearty and you will see plenty of nice buildings, gardens and other attractions. 

Today (as the weather is super hot -  39°C/100°F ) I want to talk about the places that will give you the refreshment you need. Inside out, I promise!

Swimming

There are a couple of options in Bamberg, the most popular ones are probably the "Hainbad" which allows you to swim in the river called "Regnitz" (beware of the nice and strong current. Workout included!). There are plenty more options to hop into the water, but be sure that you look out for the signs that warn you for the water dam as these aren't very nice to get into (no chance to swim away from it) 

Second option would be to go to the "tip" of the Hain or also called "Bug"

and to rent a paddleboat. From there you can paddle outward to a little camping sight. Don't forget to jump in the water every now and then to cool off!

Third option (which isn't as "cool" as the first two as you have it in every city) is the "Freibad"/Bambados in the eastern part of Bamberg. They have slides, a wave pool, beach volleyball courts and and and... If you don't have a bike I would recommend the bus as it is a pretty long walk from downtown Bamberg. 

Churches and Dom

We all know it! Churches are THE PLACE TO BE in the summer time. It is cool, relaxing and you can thank god for the nice weather :) My favorite church is the one right on "Grüner Markt" in the city center called "Sankt Martin". However, nothing can beat the big "Bamberger Dom" on top of the little "Katzenbuckel". Do not forget to walk to the opposite side though to enjoy the view over Bamberg from the "Rosengarten".

Schlenkerla and other breweries 

If you are coming to Bamberg and it is rather warm (and you forgot your bikini/swim-trunks AND you aren't all that religious) there is only one last chance how you can cool off. Bamberg is THE beer capital mostly known for its famous smoked "Rauchbier" from "Schlenkerla". However, even if you don't like that one, there are plenty of breweries to choose from in Bamberg itself (not to speak of those that are within a small radius). You have a total of eight breweries to choose from: Fässla, Greifenklau, Heller-Trum (Schlenkerla), Kaiserdom, Keesmann Bräu, Klosterbräu, Mahrs Bräu, Spezial, and one brewpub: Ambräusianum.

We are going to enjoy the first point of this post: Hainbad! Here we come!

And you - stay fresh :)

The weekend: five pictures

The past weekend was filled with American culture, volunteering for great causes and enjoyment. 

It all started with a trip to Barnes & Nobles. I was finally able to grab my macbook plus a freshly brewed ice tea :) and focus on finding some special destinations for Myh and my road trip coming up next week! I got definitely extremely excited after finding uncountable restaurants, beaches, famous places etc. that will keep us busy for 10 days! 

(As a J.Crew store is right across the B&N, I couldn't resist and finally bought the bracelet I've been lusting for!)  

Saturday was the day of volunteering fun! We (Ulrike and myself) headed out at 9am to sort some books that will go to Africa! Great idea and we were happy to be part of it. For more information click HERE  :)

 After all that hard work, we were happy to meet the local LIONS Club for a little tailgate party (incl. delicious hotdogs). Good music, nice people, games, food and drinks all for the organization "Leader Dogs for the Blind". As my breakfast didn't consist of more than a coffee and half a yoghurt this hotdog was probably the tastiest one I ever had. 

What follows a tailgate party? Exactly! A game! In this case a baseball game: Atlanta Braves vs. San Francisco Giants. Unexpected highlight. A walk around the baseball field prior to the game!

During the 3 hour long game we were baking in the sun :) Approximately 104°F/40°C ! I was impressed how "normal" we look on the pictures. It felt like our faces were burning off :) Now I also understand why the baseball hat got his name from this sport. Can't survive a game without it (at least not in the summer time)!

Last but not least: Today we celebrated the American Dad's :) We had a cozy day at the pool and went out to a Cuban restaurant. I got a feeling that Mike will turn into my 3rd Papi!  That would certainly explain why I can't say no to Ice Cream! :)

Air conditioning & other cool stuff

Keeping things cool is definitely an American thing. Even when the temperature is reasonable outside, it is preferred to turn on the air conditioning, keep windows closed and put loads of ice in the drinks. Ice is hip. Ice is hot. And I feel like I am not aging as fast as in Germany, simply because I am in a fridge which keeps me cool :)