flight and first impressions

ok much better now after some sleep. although it is 5am here..got about 5 hours sleep.
it was a gorgeous day in nyc leaving. as i rode in the car to newark, we passed thru soho and i was thinking how different it will be here in freiburg. also, how wonderful nyc is, i feel very lucky to have been born there. i take it for granted sometimes, but it really is amazing if you loök at it thru objective eyes. such vitality and energy! but i´'m ready for the change of place.
the floight on continental was delayed a bit boarding, and then a generator problem..always comforting! got in the air about an hour later..boeing 767..in a middle seat, middle aisle. but it was ok, a little kid (12) on my left and a german national on the right. gabrielle is a photographer, specialising in horse photography..ok. she assured me i would love germany and it,s bread! my kind of person.
read a bit..dozed.. passed up on airplane dinner. had a taco at the airport before i boarded. put on the ipod then really fell out. yes i can sleep with music blaring in my headphones, kinda trippy actually..all sorts of music related dreams and scenes in my head.
woke up to some fresh fruit, coffee and a croissant, half hour before landing, just great.
customs was a breeze, very efficient and painless..my luggage came in short order and i was out of there.
gisi was waiting at the gate, it was so great to se her after six weeks. we went and got the car..a fiat barchetta, about 10yrs old, very cool. a 2 seat italain sports car, real nice body lines, very small trunk barely fit my bag. we did measure it beforehand and our calculations were spot on!
onto the famous autobahn...a 2 lane hiway...nice road surface. we were soon doing about 160 kms, and being passed by all sorts of powerful german cars...lots of audis and mercedes, bmw´'s.
it,s about 3 hors to freiburg from frankfurt airport, but it seemed to go quickly. it started to rain quite heavily. we stopped at a autobahn chapel, to pray together. it was very nice and serene, we were the only ones in there. back in the car, i fell asleep again..and awoke just getting into town.
freiburg is a beautiful, old town. look up the links on the previous posts..it really is steeped in history..we,re talking thousand of years, unlike the states..
got to gisi's apartment, a 60's era (?) 6 story apartment bldg. she's on the top floor, with terraces in front and back, views of the black forest and into france. very nice. small apt, 1 bedroom, miniscule kitchen and bath..but again very efficient as i imagined the germans would be. freiburg is a university town, and very progressive with regards to green policies..going back to the early 90's, they have laws regarding bulding sustainability, major recycling and energy use. seems every one is very consious of this, they recycle and bicycle...hundreds if not thousands of bikes all over. and truly dedicated bike lanes that drivers respect. wow, very nice. can't wait to go riding.
we rested a while ;-), then had some late lunch. ya gotta taste black forest ham in the black forest, to die for. then for a short walk around town..the old section of town is only minutes away. all very nice, old buildings in pristine condition, clean streets, lots of folks walking about..great electric street cars, nice shops. of course i made her take me to the nearest butcher and baker immediatly!
i need to figure out how to post pix here, i will be posting also on my facebook page.
well it's just past 6am, the sun is rising over the scwartzwald, on top of one of the mountains are some windmills...oh, it's the 4th of july...indefuckinpendance day indeed. we will be going to a celebration at the carl schurz house, a american german cultural center, for a, what they say..american bar b cue and drinks..live music and hopefully fireworks. i'll let ya know how this turns out.
have a safe and happy fourh...enjoy the long weekend!
Happy birthday kevin s.....hope you have many more!!
toso 'sta bien, chevere!