Amanda Hits Germany!

From the beautiful Torino, I travelled, by train, through the south of France to Stuttgart in Germany.

 Just some views from the train

 

In Germany, I got to visit my amazing friend and former roommate from East Sussex, Sarah!

This is one Godly, generous, talented, big-hearted, considerate, encouraging and joyful woman! It is my honor to know her and call her friend!

Me inside the Old Castle in Stuttgart

The outside of the Old Castle

Outside the New Castle in Stuttgart 

The back side of the New Castle

The Opera in Stuttgart

Pretzel stand

Because in Germany, it's all about the pretzels. They're everywhere!

See??

And yes, I made Sarah take me to the Starbucks in Stuttgart! I wanted to see how it compares to 'Bucks in America (I missed out in Italy because they don't have Starbucks there...yet). Honestly, it's about the same.

 

 One day Sarah took me to the village where she grew up: Bad Mergentheim 

Town centre

So cute! 

 

Beautiful German countryside!

 

Ok, so there aren't as many pictures from Germany as there were from Italy. But that is mainly because Sarah and I spent so much time talking, eating, relaxing and basically just enjoying doing nothing. It was a great time for us of catching up on the year that we haven't seen each other--so much has happened in both of our lives since last Spring, and it was a huge blessing to be able to visit her!

 

Miss America Goes to Italy! Part II

I hope you enjoyed a little peek at the beautiful city of Torino!

 

This post is all about the food!

Food is very important to Italians; they talk about it a lot. And as I very much enjoy food, especially Italian food, well, I must admit I was in heaven. :)

Ok, so first off, it's not all about the food. In Italy the coffee is incredibly important, and not just any kind of coffee, but espresso! This was my second espresso (made Napolitano style!) and it was amazing. I like to think of it as a glorious kick in the mouth-it's fast, strong and hits hard. By the time I left, I had apparently proven myself, as Silvia's brother called me a true coffee drinker. What a compliment!

 

Gianduiotto is a chocolate that is native to Torino. It's only made there and it's fantastic!

Silvia took me to a piadineria--isn't that a fun word?? This is piadina--it's something between a sandwich and a quesadilla. Amazing.

Spaghetti and meatballs! Classic :) Best I've ever had, of course!

This is bicerin (pronounced beech-er-ine for my fellow Americans). It is also native to Turin. It is a hot drink made of espresso, hot chocolate and topped with steamed milk. I actually saw a clip of Rick Steves, the travel king, visit this very (historic) café and try this drink, which is how I knew, despite an instinctive desire to do so, you're not supposed to stir it; just drink it as it comes. So good!

Chocolate and espresso make me happy! :)

This was supper one night, made by Silvia's mom. The point of this picture is the mozzarella, described by Silvia and her family as the best in the world. They may very well be right!

Italian pastries! With, of course, espresso!

We went out for pizza! Silvia wanted margherita and I wanted spinach and ricotta, so we shared.

And yes, I ate this whole thing.

After pizza, gelato! Strawberry and chocolate for me. Amazing :) 

My last night in Torino, Silvia and her brother said they had a surprise for me. I could not imagine what it was. The whole half-hour car ride, I wracked my brain trying to think what it might be. But I was shocked when we pulled up to this place! Maison du Chocolat! 

And this is what we ate for supper (along with hot chocolate so thick we had to eat it with spoons). Mine is the bottom right one, a banana covered with chocolate and coffee-flavored ice cream and coffee beans.  

Me, Silvia and her brother Ale

After that supper--which mostly consisted of chocolate and coffee--I was pretty happy :D

And then, to book-end my trip, we had espresso! Yes, after the super-thick hot chocolate and the chocolate and coffee-covered banana, Silvia and Ale took me to an espresso bar (because I hadn't had proper espresso from an espresso bar before!). It's a wonder I ever got to sleep that night. :)

 

But I did, and woke up in time to catch my train to Germany.

My trip to Italy was absolutely incredible! Writing about it now and posting pictures actually makes me want to go back more and soon!!

 We will see what God has in store for me in the future with this beautiful country!

 

I hope you have enjoyed this glimpse into my trip.

Next up, Amanda hits Germany!

Miss America Goes to Italy! Part I

Wow! I have had the most amazing holiday! I have been back for several days and still cannot get over how incredible it was. I know that this trip was a gift from the Lord and, I believe, has greater significance than I am even aware of at the moment. We'll see what comes of it ;)

 

  

 

The best part of this trip, as I foresaw, was getting to spend time with this amazing friend, Miss Italia, as we like to call her ;) She is such a strong, Godly woman and honestly, she is one of my heroes. So it was a huge blessing to have time to share with her and to hear her heart as well. She is a precious gift from the Lord for me, and I am so thankful for her (& her incredible family who I have now adopted as my Italian family!)

TORINO

 Below are just a few pictures I took of the beautiful sights I got to see in Torino. I won't bore you with a lot of explanation; I'll just let the photos do the talking. Enjoy!

The River Po with Gran Madre (aka Big Mama!) on the left

and Monte dei Cappuccini on the hill on the right.

 

Gran Madre di Dio is a Catholic church which was commissioned in 1814 as a tribute to celebrate the return of the King Victor Emmanuel I of Sardinia to the crown after the defeat of Napoleon.

 

Monte dei Cappuccini was built in 1656 for the Capuchin friars, a Franciscan order who continue to  base their lives and ministry on the foundational elements of prayer and fraternity.

 

Beautiful Torino

 

The tall building on the left is a super ugly building built by Mussolini. Just to the right of it are several palaces (near the green park). This city is fulllllll of palaces.

 

Gran Madre and Monte dei Cappuccini are in this photo. Props if you can find them :)

 

Such a gorgeous place! On the top of the highest part of the hill is the Basilica of Superga, a beautiful church that contains many tombs of the royal Savoy family. 

 

I love Italian architecture! Torino is known for their many porticos which were apparently built for the royal family so they could walk about the city no matter the weather.

 

 This is Duomo di Torino where the famous Shroud of Turin is kept.
 

Palazzo Madama

This is one of my favorite buildings in Torino. It was originally a 15th-century castle (which you can see from the left side) that later several of the royal Italian women lived in, and of course, wanted to redecorate. However, only the front was completed, giving the palace simply a beautiful façade and leaving the back as it was. Such a unique building.

 

This is Mole, or more accurately Mole Antonelliana, a major landmark in Torino. It was originally built as a synagogue but now houses the National Cinema Museum, the tallest museum in the world. It was from the top of this building that I got to take the previous pictures of the city. 

 

Basilica of Superga :)

TORINO AT NIGHT

Mole at night.

This night Silvia and her brother arranged a pizza night with some of their friends. It was as we were walking from the pizza place to get gelato (woohoo!) that we passed Mole. I stopped to take a picture and before I knew it, three of their friends (who live in Torino) had pulled out their phones to take pictures as well. At first I thought they were making fun of me for being such a tourist but then Silvia told me that people who live in Torino are very proud of their city and really appreciate it's beauty. I understand why. 

Palazzo Reale

The Royal Palace

Beautiful!!! 

Villa della Regina

My other favorite building in Torino.

Why? Because it's the house of the Queen :D

Yeah, I was happy to be there :)

Check back soon for Miss America Goes to Italy Part II!