Welcome 2013!

Hello everyone! 2013 is finally here!  I hope you had a great time celebrating and welcoming the new  year.  I  had a simple but great one.  I prepared a typical German dinner. I cooked  Schweinebraten  ( baked crispy  pork)  with  Knödel or potato dumplings. I also had a  tomato  mozzarella salad with  bell pepper.  German Christmas cookies such as Lebkuchen or ginger bread was also on the table during our New  Year's dinner.  As usual, I  also offered fruits  for a more  fruitful year.

While waiting for the countdown of New Year 2013, the glasses  of  sweet moscato wine  were already prepared.  We were watching the   live concert lived on television held  in Brandenburg  Gate in Berlin.  Exactly twelve midnight, I had a toss with hubby.  We stayed until 3:00 watching  a movie on television. It was so far a lovely evening!

Fireworks in  Brandenburg gate in Berlin.

Today, the  first day of 2013  is quite a challenging for me. When I checked my facebook, I received a message from my sister back home that my father is in the hospital. Thanks God that  it is not so bad.

I am praying and hoping that this year  will be a great one for me, my family, relatives and friends. I am wishing for a more fruitful year, full of love,peace, success and happiness.Most of all I am praying for good health always especially for my parents, bothers, sisters and the whole family and  friends around.

2012 was so far a wonderful and  great year for me. There were a lot of great things that happened. Thank you Lord for everything. You are simply the best!

Welcome 2013 and I believed this year will be full of challenges and adventures again! God bless us all!

New Year Greetings for 2012

"This bright new year is given me
To live each day with zest
To daily grow and try to be
My highest and my best!"
-William Arthur Ward.

Have a wonderful and blessed
NEW YEAR 2012!

GOD BLESS US ALL!

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Happy, happy Christmas, that can win us back to the delusions of our childish days;

that can recall to the old man the pleasures of his youth;
that can transport the sailor and the traveller, thousands of miles away,
back to his own fire-side and his quiet home!

~Charles Dickens, The Pickwick Papers, 1836

a lantern inside a Church in Regensburg!

HAVE A WONDERFUL CHRISTMAS CELEBRATION
TO EVERYONE
AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR TOO!

Remembering Oktoberfest in Munich

2008, 2009 and 2010, these are the years when I visited the most famous and biggest festival in the world, the Oktoberfest in Munich, Germany. I want to let you know that this year's celebration will start from September 17 to October 3. Don't forget to book your flights and hotels earlier. If you will be late, it might cost you more money.

Here are some images taken from 2010 Oktoberfest celebration.

this was taken as we rode the Ferris wheel in the Oktoberfest.

I took this image in one of the biggest beer tents..see how many people were inside here.....thousands of them!

History of Halloween

Historian Nicholas Rogers, exploring the origins of Halloween, notes that while "some folklorists have detected its origins in the Roman feast of Pomona, the goddess of fruits and seeds, or in the festival of the dead called Parentalia, it is more typically linked to the Celtic festival of Samhain, whose original spelling was Samuin (pronounced sow-an or sow-in)". The name is derived from Old Irish and means roughly "summer's end". A similar festival was held by the ancient Britons and is known as Calan Gaeaf (pronounced Kálan Gái av).

The festival of Samhain celebrates the end of the "lighter half" of the year and beginning of the "darker half", and is sometimes regarded as the "Celtic New Year".

The ancient Celts believed that the border between this world and the Otherworld became thin on Samhain, allowing spirits (both harmless and harmful) to pass through. The family's ancestors were honoured and invited home while harmful spirits were warded off. It is believed that the need to ward off harmful spirits led to the wearing of costumes and masks. Their purpose was to disguise oneself as a harmful spirit and thus avoid harm. In Scotland the spirits were impersonated by young men dressed in white with masked, veiled or blackened faces.Samhain was also a time to take stock of food supplies and slaughter livestock for winter stores. Bonfires played a large part in the festivities. All other fires were doused and each home lit their hearth from the bonfire. The bones of slaughtered livestock were cast into its flames. Sometimes two bonfires would be built side-by-side, and people and their livestock would walk between them as a cleansing ritual.

read more here

WW: Landshut Wedding Festival

It's wordless day again! I go for semi-wordless here because I want to say a bit about the Landshut Wedding festival. It is a festival that is held every four years in Landshut in Bavaria, Germany. Here is an image where you can see people wearing costumes during the Middle Age. Happy wordless Wednesday everyday!

Happy Halloween!

I guess, I am too late for my greetings but as the saying goes, "better late than never". How did you celebrate your Halloween? Did you watch horror movies? Did you have fun attending costume parties and wearing those scary, colourful and attractive Halloween costumes? Some of you might had visited a ghost tour or had fun in a haunted attraction? Halloween is over now. There might be no more holiday costume returns. Don't you know that there are Halloween costumes that you can return and cannot? It is very obvious that when we bought a certain item that is already used and worn-out can never be returned in a store. This is also true for Halloween costumes. If ever you bought any costume or items that you did not use and it is still in its original packaging, I believed you can still return those items.

I believed some of you especially the kids went for a trick and treat! They were e hunting the doors of house owners for candies and chocolates. For sure that would be a lot of fun besides having those candies. There are still a lot of celebrations to come. Christmas is almost here. You might need again some costumes for Christmas like acting and dressing as Santa Claus. I agree that the kids would be happy if Santa Claus will be giving gifts and presents. If you want to know some guides and tips regarding costume returns and policies, you might want to visit Costume Returns. You can also browse for the different costumes in all kinds of celebrations and parties in this site. I just remember that I spent Halloween in Warwick Castle in England last year. Sad to say, I did not wear a Halloween costume. You know why? I forget that it was a Halloween day as we visited this castle. The most important thing is, I had a lot of fun! I need to sign-off for now. Goodnight!

My 1050 Post in WWW Site

I am happy to share my #1050 entry for this site. I can't imagine that I already have more than a thousand posts for this site only. I am happy to part of the blogosphere where I can share my ideas, thoughts, opinions and even personal experiences. For now, I am just sharing this photo taken during the Fasching or Carnival in Velburg last February of this year.

Feel free to visit Wordless Wednesday to see more photos! Happy WW to all!

WW- Oktoberfest 2009 in Munich Is Almost Here

No more stopping for the biggest and famous festival in the world. Three more nights and Oktoberfest 2009 in Munich will be opening. Are you ready to party, don't miss Oktoberfest! I got here a photo taken during our visit to Oktoberfest last year! Hope to see you there!

Feel free to visit WW site to join and to see more photos. Happy Wordless Wednesday everyday!

It's Fun Time!

If you visit my other blogs, you will see more photos from yesterday's escapades that we had. That was an amazing experience witnessing the second largest festival in Bavaria, Germany, the Gäubodenvolksfest in Straubing. here I am striking a pose! Enjoy the rest of your weekend guys!

WW: Oktoberfest in Munich, Germany

The biggest beer festival around the world is almost here! Oktoberfest or October Festival in Munich, Germany is coming soon. Don't be late to book your flights and hotel if you want to have fun here. That's me taken in front of one of the beer tents in Oktoberfest..amazing festival!

Feel free to visit WW site to join and to see more photos. Happy Wordless Wednesday everyday!

Happy 4th of July

I would like to greet all American people for the celebration of their Independence Day on the 4th of July. More power to America! Peace and Prosperity to your land always! God bless us all!

These Are Huge Horses!

I always admire how Germans preserved their culture. I mean how we Germans preserved our culture..I have to consider this as a new citizen of this country. Oh men! these are huge horses! This is the first time I saw such breed of huge horses! I had seen them today as we visited the Trachtenfest in Lengenfeld, Germany. Feel free to visit my other sites for more photos and information of this German festival.

I got a great day today watching the Trachtenfest in Lengenfeld.

Happy Birthday Dear Mother

I never have a chance to contact my family back home to greet my dear Mother on her 62th birthday. I called a lot of times but to no avail to talk to my Mother. That is why I am expressing this now. I had a short conversation with my brother and they said that they had a very good birthday party for my Mama..I'm happy to hear about that!

My birthday wishes for you dear Mother:
I wish you always good things in life, love peace, happiness, contentment and most of all good health always! I love you and God bless you always!

Your birthday...
a time for warm thoughts
and fond memories,
for expressing the feelings and words
that often go unspoken,
for letting you the special person
in my life know
that you are loved and appreciated - always.
Happy Birthday Mom

Happy Easter To All!

May this celebration will give us more meaning about Christ's Resurrection! Have a happy Easter to everyone!

Easter is not a time for groping through dusty, musty tomes or tombs to disprove spontaneous generation or even to prove life eternal. It is a day to fan the ashes of dead hope, a day to banish doubts and seek the slopes where the sun is rising, to revel in the faith which transports us out of ourselves and the dead past into the vast and inviting unknown.
~Author unknown, as quoted in the Lewiston Tribune

WW: Carnival

Carnival photo for you to see!

This is just one the photos I took yesterday from a carnival in Dietfurt, Germany. It was amazing how the participants work hard to make this event very successful. This was in the Chinese Carnival which is celebrated by Dietfurt every February of the year. If you wish to see more photos and updates, simply visit my other sites. Have fun!!

Have a Fabulous Hearts Day!!

Have a fabulous and Funny Valentine's Day!!

New Year Party Fotos

The party lovers..ooppps..party eaters pala!! wink!!.another great party was held last New Year's day at a friend's house. As usual the first requirement to attend the party is..."you must not be in diet"..just visit my other sites for more party updates!! here are my other homes Simply The Best, Euroangel Graffiti and Daily Nourishment....happy new year once again!!

HAPPY 2009

2008 IS FAST ENDING!! LET ME GREET YOU A WARM WELCOME TO NEW YEAR 2009!! HAVE A HAPPY AND PROSPEROUS ONE!!