Germany/US Week 50 - Coming to a Close

My very final (half) week in Germany. Wow, what an incredible experience it has been. I spent my last few days saying goodbye to friends and experiencing what Dresden had to offer. On Tuesday, Trez and I were off to Frankfurt after saying goodbye to our host families. We met up with other PPPlers in Frankfurt, eating at Chipotle and drinking beers on the street just one last time. On Wednesday we flew to New York, arrive at 1 PM US Eastern Time. We settled in to our hostel and were off once again to Chipotle in New York, where the CBYX team had already said that they would take us. We walked about an hour instead to Taco Bell and enjoyed the glorious Americanized Mexican food. Thursday, we had a few different presentations from the German Consulate, German Ambassador to the US, and the former US Ambassador to Germany. They were all great talks and very enjoyable. Thursday we all hung out for the last time, exploring the city the night before I had a flight to catch. Friday, I flew from New York to Philadelphia, had a layover, and then from Philadelphia to Cincinnati. I met my parents at the airport, it was like a scene out of a movie. It was wonderful to see them and I have since seen many friends of mine that I also missed dearly. We had many adventures during the weekend, and that is when this year-long project comes to a close. You can expect to see videos from me in the future, but they will not be quite as frequent. I hope you all have enjoyed watching this year abroad, and I hope that you guys may decide to do something like it!

Germany Week 49 - Last Week in Germany

This week has been full of goodbyes and I can honestly say that it has been kind of sad. I have said by to so many good friends, ones that I will cherish for a lifetime. On Friday, Janne and I visited Königstein, a place we sort of ended up by chance. It is an epic fortress that sits on top of a "mountain." It was absolutely beautiful there. On Saturday, we went to the US Car Convention in Dresden. I saw so so many beautiful American cars. Muscle cars and boat cars are always my dream cars. On Sunday, they did a tour/drive through the city, which I filmed as much as possible. The full video will be below this paragraph. Later on in the day, we set up the grill, tables, and everything to prepare for the World Cup Finale, Germany vs. Argentina! So proud of Germany, they played great and won it all! It has been a wonderful time here, even still with all of the goodbyes.

Germany Week 48 - Baltic Sea

My 2nd to last full week Germany, oh how the time has dragged on and flown at the same time. On Monday was Germany vs. Algeria, and they won, moving on to the quarter finals, woot! Tuesday was a day spent in the middle of nowhere filling for an MDR news story. Later on was the USA vs. Belgium game, the USA sadly lost, still proud of you Tim Howard! On Friday, my host parents, Trez, Kelsey, and I left for the Baltic Sea at 5 in the morning. We were at the beach at about 10 and promptly had a beer at noon. We were able to see a public viewing of the Germany vs. France game, Germany winning again, putting them in the semifinals! The whole weekend was a lot of fun, and most likely my last trip before I head back to the US. Two more weekly videos to go guys!

Germany Week 47 - We've Made It

Week number 47 in Germany and the days are winding down. Every hour in Germany is becoming precious. The hourglass is finally starting to run out. Besides all that nonsense, this week was another chill one. Tuesday I went out to a field and made an image film, looks pretty decent I would say, plus there is an epic song to go with it. Thursday was the Germany vs. USA game, Germany won but the USA is still in the final 16! The weekend was relaxing, filled with lots of good food and drinks and friends too! Hope you guys enjoy this week's video.

Green Wheat Fields Forever

We were filming on June 24th for a client that wanted to make a short image film about the event. I decided since I was there, I would use my own little camera and material, and make my own image film!

Germany Week 46 - Let the World Cup Begin!

The World Cup 2014 has begin! This is honestly my first year ever watching anything from the World Cup. I am not a soccer fan, but I have to say it has been pretty fun so far. This week was not quite as exciting as my trip to Finland, but cool nonetheless. On Friday we had a birthday party for Trez. We had tons of good food and a lot of cool guests. Saturday, I visited a baseball game with a coworker and my host brother, it was cool to see it even know the actual players looked like 2nd graders playing. Later on in the day, Trez, his Munich friends, and I grilled out and watched the Germany vs. Ghana game. The match was pretty intense! Only 3 weeks left in Germany, boy am I counting the days!

Finland Week 45 - I Could Live Here

This entire post is dedicated to Finland. That was the neatest trip that I have taken during my time here in Europe. I absolutely love it there! Monday was spent at the Finnish Artillery Museum and later on enjoying Finnish food. Tuesday was spent at the Finnish Armour(Tank) Museum and a surprise afterwards. We went to the shooting range where I shot a Finnish version of the famous M91/30 Mosin Nagant. I had a field day at both of those places. On Wednesday, Janne and I took a day trip to Helsinki where we saw the sights of Suomenlinna and of Helsinki Zoo. Both of those places are on their own separate islands! On Thursday Janne, Juha, and I went to the country of Estonia, where the weather was absolute garbage but the city was pretty (and cheap!). These 2 epic day trips left us exhausted on Friday, where we spent it exploring Hämeenlinna and watching "Shawshank Redemption" which Janne or his mother had never seen before. The trip was wrapped up on Saturday and I flew back home and finally got back to Dresden around midnight. It was an epic trip and I recommend EVERYONE to go to Finland! It's an absolutely beautiful country with awesome people.