Wow! We were up early. Everyone was up though and getting ready. Alex and Ramona had frozen Bretzel to make for us at home. This reminded me of us in the south making frozen biscuits. They're good at home! The Bretzel were also very, very good this way! We had our last Brotzeit meal in Germany for breakfast. We've gotten very used to eating this way.
We had brought an extra empty bag to load up with stuff for the trip back and that's all we ended up needing. The luggage all worked out very well and wasn't too much to manage on the walk to the train station. I still remember my struggle with luggage on my way from my apartment to the train station 19 years ago - I had ALL I could carry! We did ok. There was some excitement as we got down to the train platform and realized that none of us had stopped to buy subway tickets. Alex dashed up the stairs and came dashing back just as the train pulled up and opened the doors. We made it just in time!
There is a train stop inside the airport, but we still had to walk a good distance to get upstairs and around and across to the Delta counter. This was the only crowded counter in the whole airport of course. We got checked in ok. Alex and Ramona stayed with us for a few minutes after checking in so we could talk and thank them. We decided to head on through the security check so we wouldn't have to worry about the clock.
The plane left a few minutes late and they warned us in advance that we would be making an extra refueling stop in Maine on the way back. This should (and did) only delay us 1 hour on our arrival time. I sent a text message to Asaad to warn him that we would be delayed.
The flight was very long - 11 hours - and since it was in the middle of the day, it was almost impossible to get much sleep. They showed three movies and fed us several times. It wasn't such a bad flight. At one point, the boys were sitting together behind us and the flight attendant spoke to them in German. They thought that was pretty cool.
Back in Atlanta, our friend Asaad was there waiting for us. He helped us with our luggage and brought us to our car! He had taken such care of the car too - checking the oil, fluids and tires before driving back to Atlanta. He was a sight for sore eyes too! While the rest of the family fell asleep, Asaad stayed awake with me in the front and we came back home to Auburn.
Home again, but we'll be going back to Germany as soon as we can!
Long flight - all day - three movies - still not bad
Asaad!
Monday, April 27, 2009
Stuttgart - 27 March (Fri)
This will be our last full day in Germany. We aren't homesick a bit. We've been treated so well, slept very well and been very comfortable the whole time. We're not missing our beds or our house (it's nice that we have friends staying in our house while we're gone).
Penny and Alex made another run this morning. This time they rode the train downtown to start running at the castle park. There is a very long network of paths and trails. They ended up running beside the zoo and were able to see the Polar Bears from the trail.
Meanwhile, Finn and I popped out of bed again to head to the bakery and market. We were determined to redeem ourselves from getting lost yesterday. Finn lead the way. We walked straight there and got exactly what we wanted. The women behind the counter at both places even seemed to recognize us. That felt nice. We could get used to this routine!
We had a slow start. The kids watched some television. This morning we watched some Dora the Explorer, which was funny. In the US, Dora (a Hispanic girl) speaks English and then throws in occasional Spanish. In Germany, she speaks German and throws in occasional English. It's a good idea for beginner German because she keeps things simple and also repeats herself a lot.
About mid morning, we went to the Zoo and Botanical Gardens - Wilhelma. This is the best zoo I've ever seen. The setting was beautiful. The grounds, the walls, pathways, buildings and even the habitats were beautiful. The botanical garden green houses were also very old and had some incredible collections.
For the animals, the favorites were the penguins, the monkeys, elephants and the polar bears (which are famous in this zoo).
We had lunch at one of the cafes in the zoo. We also stopped afterwards at the snack bar to have some ice cream and coffee. Penny was tired. Ramona was getting a little bit tired too.
We started back and I got this idea that a good souvenir would be a sew on German flag or German soccer patch. I could put that on my bag. The boys could put it on their backpacks. It'd be cool. Alex offered to go downtown with me while the girls rode back home with the boys. Alex and I walked through the pedestrian zone, trying several different stores. We didn't really find what we were looking for. Eventually, we bought some sew on patches for the Stuttgart soccer team. These will do just fine. The best part was for Alex and I to be walking around. We could walk fast, without worrying about the kids for a change. It was kinda fun! We walked all the way from downtown to the apartment. I got to see some other areas of Stuttgart. (Forgetting, of course, that Alex had already been running in the morning and then in the zoo all day too!)
Back at home, we had a little time to rest before we left for dinner. We went back downtown to a place that Alex had picked out. This is a local microbrewery. They make some very, very good beers on a small scale and have a traditional German menu. The place is called Calwer-Eck-Bräu. We met some friends of Alex and Ramona - Felix and Steffi. Felix had done study abroad in Toronto at the same time Alex was in Auburn. I had seen pictures of Alex's trip to Toronto. We also had a special visitor from south of Stuttgart - our friend Cathye. She was in Auburn for the Fall Semester when Alex was there - doing an exchange semester. I had e-mailed her that I would be in Stuttgart and she drove up (over 1 hour) to meet us. It was great to see her again! She has finished her degree (and Masters!) in Textile Engineering. She started working recently.
[insert picture of Cathye]
The boys were tired again. They fell asleep in the pub (again!) so we did some piggy backing of Keane back to the train and then up to the apartment. We put the kids to bed and then stayed up a little while longer for one last time. We made plans to get up early (5:30) to eat breakfast and head to the airport. Alex and Ramona would go with us.
Ride to downtown
Shannon and Alex search for Patch
Back to rest and pack a little bit.
Dinner at Brewpub with Cathye, Felix & Steffi
Kids fell asleep
Home for a few more drinks
Make plans to get up early
Penny and Alex made another run this morning. This time they rode the train downtown to start running at the castle park. There is a very long network of paths and trails. They ended up running beside the zoo and were able to see the Polar Bears from the trail.
Meanwhile, Finn and I popped out of bed again to head to the bakery and market. We were determined to redeem ourselves from getting lost yesterday. Finn lead the way. We walked straight there and got exactly what we wanted. The women behind the counter at both places even seemed to recognize us. That felt nice. We could get used to this routine!
We had a slow start. The kids watched some television. This morning we watched some Dora the Explorer, which was funny. In the US, Dora (a Hispanic girl) speaks English and then throws in occasional Spanish. In Germany, she speaks German and throws in occasional English. It's a good idea for beginner German because she keeps things simple and also repeats herself a lot.
About mid morning, we went to the Zoo and Botanical Gardens - Wilhelma. This is the best zoo I've ever seen. The setting was beautiful. The grounds, the walls, pathways, buildings and even the habitats were beautiful. The botanical garden green houses were also very old and had some incredible collections.
For the animals, the favorites were the penguins, the monkeys, elephants and the polar bears (which are famous in this zoo).
We had lunch at one of the cafes in the zoo. We also stopped afterwards at the snack bar to have some ice cream and coffee. Penny was tired. Ramona was getting a little bit tired too.
We started back and I got this idea that a good souvenir would be a sew on German flag or German soccer patch. I could put that on my bag. The boys could put it on their backpacks. It'd be cool. Alex offered to go downtown with me while the girls rode back home with the boys. Alex and I walked through the pedestrian zone, trying several different stores. We didn't really find what we were looking for. Eventually, we bought some sew on patches for the Stuttgart soccer team. These will do just fine. The best part was for Alex and I to be walking around. We could walk fast, without worrying about the kids for a change. It was kinda fun! We walked all the way from downtown to the apartment. I got to see some other areas of Stuttgart. (Forgetting, of course, that Alex had already been running in the morning and then in the zoo all day too!)
Back at home, we had a little time to rest before we left for dinner. We went back downtown to a place that Alex had picked out. This is a local microbrewery. They make some very, very good beers on a small scale and have a traditional German menu. The place is called Calwer-Eck-Bräu. We met some friends of Alex and Ramona - Felix and Steffi. Felix had done study abroad in Toronto at the same time Alex was in Auburn. I had seen pictures of Alex's trip to Toronto. We also had a special visitor from south of Stuttgart - our friend Cathye. She was in Auburn for the Fall Semester when Alex was there - doing an exchange semester. I had e-mailed her that I would be in Stuttgart and she drove up (over 1 hour) to meet us. It was great to see her again! She has finished her degree (and Masters!) in Textile Engineering. She started working recently.
[insert picture of Cathye]
The boys were tired again. They fell asleep in the pub (again!) so we did some piggy backing of Keane back to the train and then up to the apartment. We put the kids to bed and then stayed up a little while longer for one last time. We made plans to get up early (5:30) to eat breakfast and head to the airport. Alex and Ramona would go with us.
Ride to downtown
Shannon and Alex search for Patch
Back to rest and pack a little bit.
Dinner at Brewpub with Cathye, Felix & Steffi
Kids fell asleep
Home for a few more drinks
Make plans to get up early
Stuttgart - 26 March (Thu)
Finn and I were up early and volunteered to go to the bakery and the market before breakfast. We thought we remembered the way, but we had already made so many different trips out from the Apartment, that we got turned around pretty quickly. We ended up at a different bakery, so decided to try this. Finn apparently had something particular in mind that he had seen the day before at the bakery. This new bakery didn't have what he wanted, so we left without anything. We tried one more street and viola! We found the bakery and market. This time we walked back the way we should have come and we made a note of all the landmarks along the way. We would be ready tomorrow!
The weather was pretty decent looking right now, but it looked like it would be changing. We decided to head downtown and get some shopping done. We rode the train down toward the main pedestrian zone, which begins right at the main train station. Since the weather was good right then, we went up into the tower at the train station. This gave us a pretty good view of the whole city except for the weird netting that stretched over the whole thing. We managed to take some pictures anyway.
In the train station, there was an elaborate display of the upcoming train station renovation. The train station is called a head station because the trains come in and out from the same tracks (instead of passing by the train station). The new train station will pass underground and follow a completely different path. The heart of downtown will be completely different and be revitalized. This will take 10 or more years to complete.
The first thing we shopped for were soccer jerseys for the kids. I really wanted to buy German National team jerseys, but mom was opposed to them because the home jerseys are white (and boys tend to get dirty). We both started to get cold feet because all the jerseys were about $60 each and the kids would be growing out of them soon. We ended up compromising with athletic jerseys with a Stuttgart team logo patch on them. This worked out just fine because the boys STILL love these shirts!
We finally got to do shopping for other people - which mostly included candy. I went to the bookstore and bought several books for myself - including a copy of one of the Harry Potter books and a computer book! The Stuttgart pedestrian zone was lots of fun, but we were getting tired. We had decided to eat Doener for lunch. This Turkish sandwich - a lot like a greek Giro - is very popular all over Germany. Doener restaurants are everywhere! This was one of my favorite foods when I was here as a student! Penny and the boys even loved it! They're HUGE and cheap and delicious!
After lunch, we headed to a large, LARGE toy store. We knew this would be tough - to get the boys to buy something unique (not just Lego or Hot Wheels), something not too (TOO!) expensive and something small enough to fit in the luggage. We found some nice things. Finn bought Playmobil. Keane bought some cars that were German cars we had seen - a Police car SMART with the word "Polizei" written on it and also an bright orange Fire Truck like the ones they have. We also got a very cool memory card game with German pictures and words on it. The boys had been playing memory with Alex for several days. This was a great suggestion from the toy store clerk!
Finally, we headed home to rest. Shopping can really wear us out....but not the boys! They wanted to go back home, put on their soccer shirts and go down to the park to play. Alex and I went along. This was a cool little urban park. The soccer field was inside a fence, was small and the ground was artificial. We kicked the ball around a little before the boys wanted to head over to the playground.
It started to lightly rain. We were really tired and the boys were getting grouchy anyway, so we headed back to the apartment. The girls had rested some. Now we turned on the TV, dried off and relaxed a little bit.
Ramona and Alex were working on a popular regional dish called dampfnudle - Steam Dumplings. They made the dough, let it rise (yeast dough), shaped them into pretty big dumplings and then steamed them. They served them with a vanilla sauce - very good!
After dinner (which was an early dinner), we all went out to a neighborhood pub - one of Alex and Ramona's favorite pubs. We ordered some appetizers and some beers. We also took along a Yahtzee game and some coloring books. Finn has learned to play Yahtzee. It's pretty easy to play in a loud place.
We got home late. The boys were exhausted again. After we put them to bed, we all stayed up late again talking, listening to music and playing games. I'm learning that the Germans really like to play games together! It's really a fun way to hang out and talk....better than TV!
The weather was pretty decent looking right now, but it looked like it would be changing. We decided to head downtown and get some shopping done. We rode the train down toward the main pedestrian zone, which begins right at the main train station. Since the weather was good right then, we went up into the tower at the train station. This gave us a pretty good view of the whole city except for the weird netting that stretched over the whole thing. We managed to take some pictures anyway.
In the train station, there was an elaborate display of the upcoming train station renovation. The train station is called a head station because the trains come in and out from the same tracks (instead of passing by the train station). The new train station will pass underground and follow a completely different path. The heart of downtown will be completely different and be revitalized. This will take 10 or more years to complete.
The first thing we shopped for were soccer jerseys for the kids. I really wanted to buy German National team jerseys, but mom was opposed to them because the home jerseys are white (and boys tend to get dirty). We both started to get cold feet because all the jerseys were about $60 each and the kids would be growing out of them soon. We ended up compromising with athletic jerseys with a Stuttgart team logo patch on them. This worked out just fine because the boys STILL love these shirts!
We finally got to do shopping for other people - which mostly included candy. I went to the bookstore and bought several books for myself - including a copy of one of the Harry Potter books and a computer book! The Stuttgart pedestrian zone was lots of fun, but we were getting tired. We had decided to eat Doener for lunch. This Turkish sandwich - a lot like a greek Giro - is very popular all over Germany. Doener restaurants are everywhere! This was one of my favorite foods when I was here as a student! Penny and the boys even loved it! They're HUGE and cheap and delicious!
After lunch, we headed to a large, LARGE toy store. We knew this would be tough - to get the boys to buy something unique (not just Lego or Hot Wheels), something not too (TOO!) expensive and something small enough to fit in the luggage. We found some nice things. Finn bought Playmobil. Keane bought some cars that were German cars we had seen - a Police car SMART with the word "Polizei" written on it and also an bright orange Fire Truck like the ones they have. We also got a very cool memory card game with German pictures and words on it. The boys had been playing memory with Alex for several days. This was a great suggestion from the toy store clerk!
Finally, we headed home to rest. Shopping can really wear us out....but not the boys! They wanted to go back home, put on their soccer shirts and go down to the park to play. Alex and I went along. This was a cool little urban park. The soccer field was inside a fence, was small and the ground was artificial. We kicked the ball around a little before the boys wanted to head over to the playground.
It started to lightly rain. We were really tired and the boys were getting grouchy anyway, so we headed back to the apartment. The girls had rested some. Now we turned on the TV, dried off and relaxed a little bit.
Ramona and Alex were working on a popular regional dish called dampfnudle - Steam Dumplings. They made the dough, let it rise (yeast dough), shaped them into pretty big dumplings and then steamed them. They served them with a vanilla sauce - very good!
After dinner (which was an early dinner), we all went out to a neighborhood pub - one of Alex and Ramona's favorite pubs. We ordered some appetizers and some beers. We also took along a Yahtzee game and some coloring books. Finn has learned to play Yahtzee. It's pretty easy to play in a loud place.
We got home late. The boys were exhausted again. After we put them to bed, we all stayed up late again talking, listening to music and playing games. I'm learning that the Germans really like to play games together! It's really a fun way to hang out and talk....better than TV!
Stuttgart - 23 March (Wed)
Now that we were back in Suttgart to stay, I felt glad to think about staying in one place for three nights in a row. We didn't feel too much pressure to rush around and do many things. The main thing we needed to get done is a little shopping. Everything else would be bonus. We have been having a busy vacation, but we've been sleeping very well, sleeping a little late and having slow mornings. I think those are the things I don't get during the normal working days. We really shouldn't start working until 9:00 at least!
Penny and Alex went running together, but didn't leave until 7:00 or so. Alex lead them on a very steep climb to a beautiful view of the city. I think they both overdid it a little bit. Alex assumed that Penny would want a challenging run. They were worn out when they got back, but the view was apparently very good!
Meanwhile, Ramona took Finn, Keane and I around the corner. We stopped at a neighborhood bakery and then went right next door (and downstairs) to the PennyMarkt (small grocery store). We came back here the next two days too and it started to sink in how cheap some of the groceries are. Dairy products - milk, yogurt, quark (between sour cream and cream cheese) - were incredibly cheap and very high quality! The breads were cheap and extremely good. I really couldn't understand how it could be so cheap (subsidies?) and how ours could be so terrible and un-varied and how we can stand it.
Back at home, we had another simple (Brotzeit) breakfast and then started out to a swimming place in the south of Stuttgart - Fideraldo. There are several of these places in Stuttgart. This whole area is popular for "Bad" - mineral baths, hot baths and everything in between. Saunas and spas are popular and also indoor swimming places. It was similar to the place that we had visited in Schongau with Marget and Burkhard. There were three different water slides. One was reserved for people taller than Finn. It was like a ski-jump slide because you slid down (on your back) and then shot out of a slot and flew forward 10+ feet. You land on a soft, wet trampoline slide where you slam down into the water at the bottom. I tried it once, Penny once and Finn wished he could try it.
The hot pools were perfect. Alex helped me perfect the phrase "this is why we work" - to earn a few relaxing moments in such a place. It was very nice - complete escapism.
This had been a pretty good trip, which a short walk to the train, then a bus which dropped us off a couple of blocks from the place. Two things to note about this.....Alex was able to go to a nice website where he put in two different endpoints and it showed him a range of times when we could make the trip. We knew, for example, that we could be out on the bus stop at 15:18 or 16:50. The other thing is that I can't remember any trains, buses or streetcars being late the whole time we were there. It really made things luxurious - no worrying or confustion at all.
We knew we would be worn out from the swimming. Back in their neighborhood, we went to their favorite pizzeria. It was very cool to hear German spoken with a heavy Italian accent. All of the courtesy words were spoken in Italian - both by Alex and the waiters. The pizza was very good. We ate slowly. There's never a rush to be finished and to pay and leave. In Germany, if you don't ask for the check, it might never come. The owner came to our table and brought us complimentary shots of liqueur. Ah luxury.
The girls took the boys back to the apartment. Alex and I headed in the opposite direction so we could pick up some more beer. I always loved shopping for beer in Germany. The bottles are larger for the wheat beer - 0.5 l = about 16 oz (we usually get 12 oz beers in the US). AND - the beer (and wine) are so cheap too! (compared to the US). We won't even start talking about the quality or the variety again. We got a sampler case - which was about $20, but we paid several dollars in bottle deposits. Alex will have to bring the bottles back to this store to get the deposit.
The boys were ready for bed. They stayed up a little late reading bedtime stories, but they were pretty tired. The rest of us stayed up talking and playing games and sampling beers.
Penny and Alex went running together, but didn't leave until 7:00 or so. Alex lead them on a very steep climb to a beautiful view of the city. I think they both overdid it a little bit. Alex assumed that Penny would want a challenging run. They were worn out when they got back, but the view was apparently very good!
Meanwhile, Ramona took Finn, Keane and I around the corner. We stopped at a neighborhood bakery and then went right next door (and downstairs) to the PennyMarkt (small grocery store). We came back here the next two days too and it started to sink in how cheap some of the groceries are. Dairy products - milk, yogurt, quark (between sour cream and cream cheese) - were incredibly cheap and very high quality! The breads were cheap and extremely good. I really couldn't understand how it could be so cheap (subsidies?) and how ours could be so terrible and un-varied and how we can stand it.
Back at home, we had another simple (Brotzeit) breakfast and then started out to a swimming place in the south of Stuttgart - Fideraldo. There are several of these places in Stuttgart. This whole area is popular for "Bad" - mineral baths, hot baths and everything in between. Saunas and spas are popular and also indoor swimming places. It was similar to the place that we had visited in Schongau with Marget and Burkhard. There were three different water slides. One was reserved for people taller than Finn. It was like a ski-jump slide because you slid down (on your back) and then shot out of a slot and flew forward 10+ feet. You land on a soft, wet trampoline slide where you slam down into the water at the bottom. I tried it once, Penny once and Finn wished he could try it.
The hot pools were perfect. Alex helped me perfect the phrase "this is why we work" - to earn a few relaxing moments in such a place. It was very nice - complete escapism.
This had been a pretty good trip, which a short walk to the train, then a bus which dropped us off a couple of blocks from the place. Two things to note about this.....Alex was able to go to a nice website where he put in two different endpoints and it showed him a range of times when we could make the trip. We knew, for example, that we could be out on the bus stop at 15:18 or 16:50. The other thing is that I can't remember any trains, buses or streetcars being late the whole time we were there. It really made things luxurious - no worrying or confustion at all.
We knew we would be worn out from the swimming. Back in their neighborhood, we went to their favorite pizzeria. It was very cool to hear German spoken with a heavy Italian accent. All of the courtesy words were spoken in Italian - both by Alex and the waiters. The pizza was very good. We ate slowly. There's never a rush to be finished and to pay and leave. In Germany, if you don't ask for the check, it might never come. The owner came to our table and brought us complimentary shots of liqueur. Ah luxury.
The girls took the boys back to the apartment. Alex and I headed in the opposite direction so we could pick up some more beer. I always loved shopping for beer in Germany. The bottles are larger for the wheat beer - 0.5 l = about 16 oz (we usually get 12 oz beers in the US). AND - the beer (and wine) are so cheap too! (compared to the US). We won't even start talking about the quality or the variety again. We got a sampler case - which was about $20, but we paid several dollars in bottle deposits. Alex will have to bring the bottles back to this store to get the deposit.
The boys were ready for bed. They stayed up a little late reading bedtime stories, but they were pretty tired. The rest of us stayed up talking and playing games and sampling beers.
Monday, April 20, 2009
Black Forest - 24 March (Tue)
It snowed last night! The path that we had been able to see from the house down to the compost pile below the house was covered in several inches of snow. The rest of the yard was still thick with snow, but now had a new layer of nice powder on it. The boys were THRILLED! They gobbled their breakfast (remind me to figure out what Qwitter fruit is - like a pear/apple - nice jelly!) I felt terrible, but recovered by late in the morning. Angelica gave me some aspirin and gave me a Reiki treatment (which she had learned). It was a fantastic help. The Reiki and the snow and fresh air made me feel much better. Gerhard recommended "Schneekopf" - "snow head" for treatment of a hangover.
The boys had to improvise with the footwear. There were some big moon boots that had been left by Angelica's God children. They almost fit Finn. For Keane, we found some rubber boots that would have probably even been a little big on Penny. At least they weren't girly colors, so we got him to try them on. We stuffed socks in the toes and then he wore two pairs of socks on his feet and they worked pretty good. Climbing up the hill was a little bit of extra work, but he was having such a great time he didn't care.
Alex brought out three different kinds of sleds. One was a big wooden sled like we had used in Bavaria. One was a sled with a seat and steering wheel that was slightly broken, but still worked fine enough. The simplest sleds were like little plastic shovels that you sit on and slide on your butt. These worked pretty well on the hills that we had, so we had lots of fun.
Alex was also very good in the snow. He could smooth out the pathways and also showed us how to use the sleds. Eventually, the boys wanted to dig in the snow. Alex and I (mostly Alex) helped them start building a tunnel between two sides of a snow drift. It was over 15 feet across in the end and right in the center, we built a round room with an igloo top. It took a long time to build, but all of us pitched in. The boys had a great time! Alex was their hero!
We earned our lunch that day! Angelica had made a pumpkin soup that the boys loved. We also had bread. cold cuts and cheese. Gerhard came home at lunchtime. We got some rest while some of the clothes from the morning dried out a little bit. Finn was able to use their computer to update the blog at his school. His teacher had asked him to post a few blog entries for the class to see.
After resting, Alex and Keane went back outside. Finn and I watched a little television and I even fell asleep for 20 minutes. It was a nice recovery from last night and from an active morning!
Alex had made dinner reservations in Achern at a nice wine restaurant called Ihli. They serve a very popular local dish called Pfannenkuchen (pan cake). This is actually much more like a pizza. The basic variety doesn't have a marinara sauce, but has a cream/sour cream sauce with onions, bacon and maybe mushrooms. The crust is very thin. We ordered several different kinds and shared them.
After dinner, Angelica and Gerhard drove us to the train station in Achern. We waited on the Stuttgart train which left at 19:00. Angelica waited with us and then hugged us goodbye. She is definitely another generous, loving person. We would love to see her and Gerhard again. We can definitely see why Alex is such a nice guy!
We were able to buy a Baden-Wurtemburg ticket (state ticket) for the day for $28. This is great because it covered our U-Bahn/S-Bahn tickets when we got back to Stuttgart. We had to change trains in Karlsruhe (which I recognized from 20 years ago). The whole trip took less than two hours.
We got back to the apartment and Ramona. We put the kids to bed - they were exhausted! Then we stayed up late again with Alex and Ramona. We played a card game they taught us called Dog. We were back in Stuttgart to stay now.
The boys had to improvise with the footwear. There were some big moon boots that had been left by Angelica's God children. They almost fit Finn. For Keane, we found some rubber boots that would have probably even been a little big on Penny. At least they weren't girly colors, so we got him to try them on. We stuffed socks in the toes and then he wore two pairs of socks on his feet and they worked pretty good. Climbing up the hill was a little bit of extra work, but he was having such a great time he didn't care.
Alex brought out three different kinds of sleds. One was a big wooden sled like we had used in Bavaria. One was a sled with a seat and steering wheel that was slightly broken, but still worked fine enough. The simplest sleds were like little plastic shovels that you sit on and slide on your butt. These worked pretty well on the hills that we had, so we had lots of fun.
Alex was also very good in the snow. He could smooth out the pathways and also showed us how to use the sleds. Eventually, the boys wanted to dig in the snow. Alex and I (mostly Alex) helped them start building a tunnel between two sides of a snow drift. It was over 15 feet across in the end and right in the center, we built a round room with an igloo top. It took a long time to build, but all of us pitched in. The boys had a great time! Alex was their hero!
We earned our lunch that day! Angelica had made a pumpkin soup that the boys loved. We also had bread. cold cuts and cheese. Gerhard came home at lunchtime. We got some rest while some of the clothes from the morning dried out a little bit. Finn was able to use their computer to update the blog at his school. His teacher had asked him to post a few blog entries for the class to see.
After resting, Alex and Keane went back outside. Finn and I watched a little television and I even fell asleep for 20 minutes. It was a nice recovery from last night and from an active morning!
Alex had made dinner reservations in Achern at a nice wine restaurant called Ihli. They serve a very popular local dish called Pfannenkuchen (pan cake). This is actually much more like a pizza. The basic variety doesn't have a marinara sauce, but has a cream/sour cream sauce with onions, bacon and maybe mushrooms. The crust is very thin. We ordered several different kinds and shared them.
After dinner, Angelica and Gerhard drove us to the train station in Achern. We waited on the Stuttgart train which left at 19:00. Angelica waited with us and then hugged us goodbye. She is definitely another generous, loving person. We would love to see her and Gerhard again. We can definitely see why Alex is such a nice guy!
We were able to buy a Baden-Wurtemburg ticket (state ticket) for the day for $28. This is great because it covered our U-Bahn/S-Bahn tickets when we got back to Stuttgart. We had to change trains in Karlsruhe (which I recognized from 20 years ago). The whole trip took less than two hours.
We got back to the apartment and Ramona. We put the kids to bed - they were exhausted! Then we stayed up late again with Alex and Ramona. We played a card game they taught us called Dog. We were back in Stuttgart to stay now.
Sinsheim - 23 March (Mon)
We stayed up late on Sunday and ended up making a list of possible things to do while we were in Stuttgart. It basically filled up the rest of the week, but all depends on having good weather. We're heading to the Black Forest today (Monday), but we're going to take a day trip to a really nice technology museum north of Stuttgart - in Sinsheim.
We had a nice breakfast (Brotzeit) again with coffee and the day looked pretty good from the balcony. It wasn't sunny, but it wasn't raining. It was windy though. That was ok with us because we were going to be in the car or inside for a good part of the day. Alex had borrowed a car from his parents (a VW Passat), so we were able to drive on the Autobahn north of Stuttgart to Sinsheim. This is not far from Heidelberg and directly across from Hoffenheim. (Hoffenheim is one of the fast rising teams in the German soccer league - we could see the brand new stadium from the highway).
The Sinsheim museum was incredible. It was a huge collection of cars, motorcycles, airplanes, military vehicles, engines and other mechanical things (they even had a collection of sewing machines). The car collection was huge! I've never seen so many Ferraris, but they also had 8 or more Rolls Royces, countless Mercedes of all ages, American cars and just about everything you can imagine. There were huge train engines and even a submarine engine. There were small airplanes inside and then outside they had a Concorde and a Russian Tupolev (rival of the Concorde). There was so much to see that the boys were able to run around and around. We were able to take our time and see a good bit of the museum ourselves!
We took a break in the middle of the tour and had lunch in the museum cafeteria. Here they served some regional specialties - Spaetzle and Linzen Wiener (Lentils and Sausage). They also had a very nice playground. Even though it was very windy and ours were the only kids in the whole museum, the boys had a really great time!
We left the Museum in the middle of the afternoon and headed south, past Karlsruhe through Achern to Sasbachwalden. Achern is the largest (small) town near Sasbachwalden. Alex and Ramona actually went to high school (Gymnasium) in Achern because Sasbachwalden doesn't have a high school.
We stopped by Ramona's parents' house in Sasbachwalden to borrow a snowsuit and some gloves. The snowsuit was from one of Ramona's younger siblings. It fit Finn pretty well. It was nice to meet Ramona's mother, but we only saw her for a few minutes. Alex had assured us that there was still lots of snow, but we were in Sasbachwalden and still didn't see any snow. Still, we didn't have any snow clothes for Keane. We drove back to Achern to try a couple of different stores. We weren't ready to buy him $30 pants so he could play in the snow for one day. We stopped by the "Kik" discount clothing store (which reminded me of a Dollar General). We found some rain pants that were just his size for $1 Euro! We also found some fleece hats for $0.10 Euro (that's right 10 cents!) We bought four of them!
So, we were pretty well equipped - except for good shoes, but we would make due. We drove through Sasbachwalden and then up and up and up. It turns out that Alex's parents live in upper Sasbachwalden! There was a LOT of snow on the ground. Some of the snow drifts were 5 feet high!
We had heard so much about Angelica and Gerhard from Alex. It was great to finally meet them. They were incredibly nice and were thrilled to finally meet us too. They were already preparing dinner. We got to bring our things inside and get to know them. Angelica can speak a fair amount of English and her German was very clear to me (I think she had lived in the Augsburg area when she was younger, so she didn't have such a strong Badisch accent as Gerhard). Maybe I was already accustomed to the Badisch accent from talking with Alex, because I could understand Gerhard's German pretty well too.
Angelica had made a wonderful dinner which she served in several courses. Alex had made some special requests, but the presentation of everything was very special. The boys thought this was really fun! They also tried and loved everything she served. We had Flädlesuppe (broth soup with thin strips of pancake in it). Next was salad. Third was Sauerbraten (marinated for 4 days) and then roasted (this was incredibly tender!). The meat was served with cheese Spaetzle. Dessert was Ice Cream with home made strawberry sauce that Angelica had made and canned herself. Wow! We felt like royalty!
Gerhard had to leave dinner early because he works as a volunteer fireman and they had a drill during the night. He came home around 11:00 (they had practiced an auto rescue with the jaws-of-life). He got to finish his dinner. The boys were already asleep. Alex and I had continued testing different beers and even some Schnapps. (Note to self: "Schnapps" in German is the word for liquor (higher alcohol content). They use "liqueur" for schnapps (lower alcohol, flavored with fruit or herbs.) We had to share one more beer with Gerhard since he had been working all night outside. I would regret that last one in the morning!
We had a nice breakfast (Brotzeit) again with coffee and the day looked pretty good from the balcony. It wasn't sunny, but it wasn't raining. It was windy though. That was ok with us because we were going to be in the car or inside for a good part of the day. Alex had borrowed a car from his parents (a VW Passat), so we were able to drive on the Autobahn north of Stuttgart to Sinsheim. This is not far from Heidelberg and directly across from Hoffenheim. (Hoffenheim is one of the fast rising teams in the German soccer league - we could see the brand new stadium from the highway).
The Sinsheim museum was incredible. It was a huge collection of cars, motorcycles, airplanes, military vehicles, engines and other mechanical things (they even had a collection of sewing machines). The car collection was huge! I've never seen so many Ferraris, but they also had 8 or more Rolls Royces, countless Mercedes of all ages, American cars and just about everything you can imagine. There were huge train engines and even a submarine engine. There were small airplanes inside and then outside they had a Concorde and a Russian Tupolev (rival of the Concorde). There was so much to see that the boys were able to run around and around. We were able to take our time and see a good bit of the museum ourselves!
We took a break in the middle of the tour and had lunch in the museum cafeteria. Here they served some regional specialties - Spaetzle and Linzen Wiener (Lentils and Sausage). They also had a very nice playground. Even though it was very windy and ours were the only kids in the whole museum, the boys had a really great time!
We left the Museum in the middle of the afternoon and headed south, past Karlsruhe through Achern to Sasbachwalden. Achern is the largest (small) town near Sasbachwalden. Alex and Ramona actually went to high school (Gymnasium) in Achern because Sasbachwalden doesn't have a high school.
We stopped by Ramona's parents' house in Sasbachwalden to borrow a snowsuit and some gloves. The snowsuit was from one of Ramona's younger siblings. It fit Finn pretty well. It was nice to meet Ramona's mother, but we only saw her for a few minutes. Alex had assured us that there was still lots of snow, but we were in Sasbachwalden and still didn't see any snow. Still, we didn't have any snow clothes for Keane. We drove back to Achern to try a couple of different stores. We weren't ready to buy him $30 pants so he could play in the snow for one day. We stopped by the "Kik" discount clothing store (which reminded me of a Dollar General). We found some rain pants that were just his size for $1 Euro! We also found some fleece hats for $0.10 Euro (that's right 10 cents!) We bought four of them!
So, we were pretty well equipped - except for good shoes, but we would make due. We drove through Sasbachwalden and then up and up and up. It turns out that Alex's parents live in upper Sasbachwalden! There was a LOT of snow on the ground. Some of the snow drifts were 5 feet high!
We had heard so much about Angelica and Gerhard from Alex. It was great to finally meet them. They were incredibly nice and were thrilled to finally meet us too. They were already preparing dinner. We got to bring our things inside and get to know them. Angelica can speak a fair amount of English and her German was very clear to me (I think she had lived in the Augsburg area when she was younger, so she didn't have such a strong Badisch accent as Gerhard). Maybe I was already accustomed to the Badisch accent from talking with Alex, because I could understand Gerhard's German pretty well too.
Angelica had made a wonderful dinner which she served in several courses. Alex had made some special requests, but the presentation of everything was very special. The boys thought this was really fun! They also tried and loved everything she served. We had Flädlesuppe (broth soup with thin strips of pancake in it). Next was salad. Third was Sauerbraten (marinated for 4 days) and then roasted (this was incredibly tender!). The meat was served with cheese Spaetzle. Dessert was Ice Cream with home made strawberry sauce that Angelica had made and canned herself. Wow! We felt like royalty!
Gerhard had to leave dinner early because he works as a volunteer fireman and they had a drill during the night. He came home around 11:00 (they had practiced an auto rescue with the jaws-of-life). He got to finish his dinner. The boys were already asleep. Alex and I had continued testing different beers and even some Schnapps. (Note to self: "Schnapps" in German is the word for liquor (higher alcohol content). They use "liqueur" for schnapps (lower alcohol, flavored with fruit or herbs.) We had to share one more beer with Gerhard since he had been working all night outside. I would regret that last one in the morning!
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Stuttgart - 22 March (Sun)
The direct train from Munich to Stuttgart was perfect for us. We could just relax. It wasn't very crowded either. We left Munich around 17:05 and arrived in Stuttgart at 20:15. Because we got the Schoeneswochenende karte (beautiful weekend ticket), we could travel with up to five people for $28. The next good thing about it was that when we arrived in Stuttgart, the ticket also covered our U-Bahn or S-Bahn tickets (~local subways).
Alex met us on the train platform! I think he grew! He's pretty tall - about 6'4", but he didn't really grow. It was perfect to meet a friendly face! The train station was getting dark because it was late on Sunday. The boys were starting to get a little tired even though our arrival perked them up a little bit. They also knew Alex, so they were excited to see him - not shy at all! This made it easy to make the S-Bahn ride to Schwabstrasse. After that, it was only a 4 minute walk to their apartment and then FIVE flights of stairs where we found Ramona waiting for us.
They were very wonderful to let us come a day early. They had only arrived back home from Sasbachwalden 15 minutes before our train arrived, so Ramona stayed behind to do some quick cleanup. This weekend had been the birthday of Alex's father - Gerhard, so they had been at home celebrating.
Alex met us on the train platform! I think he grew! He's pretty tall - about 6'4", but he didn't really grow. It was perfect to meet a friendly face! The train station was getting dark because it was late on Sunday. The boys were starting to get a little tired even though our arrival perked them up a little bit. They also knew Alex, so they were excited to see him - not shy at all! This made it easy to make the S-Bahn ride to Schwabstrasse. After that, it was only a 4 minute walk to their apartment and then FIVE flights of stairs where we found Ramona waiting for us.
They were very wonderful to let us come a day early. They had only arrived back home from Sasbachwalden 15 minutes before our train arrived, so Ramona stayed behind to do some quick cleanup. This weekend had been the birthday of Alex's father - Gerhard, so they had been at home celebrating.
Munich - 22 March (Sun)
We all slept very well. Even Marc's back felt a lot better on this morning. Marc unfortunately (for him) had a little bit of work to finish in the morning - only about 45 minutes. Later that night he and Lena would be preparing for an early start to their work week. Marc would have to get up at 4:30am on Monday morning to head to the airport. We arranged with Alex in Stuttgart for us to leave Munich for Stuttgart on Sunday night instead of Monday morning. That turned out to be the easiest possible trip anyway. Marc was able to drive us to the train station and help us buy our tickets and get loaded onto the train. Since we traveled on Sunday instead of Monday, we could buy the Schoeneswochenende Karte (beautiful weekend card). This allows up to five people to travel anywhere for $28 Euro. We also found a train that travels direct without any changes. Beautiful!
So, Sunday morning, Penny and I left the boys watching cartoons at Marc's place. We walked around the corner to the bakery to buy bread and treats for breakfast. I could really get used to this routine. We had some breakfast and then left Marc at the apartment to get some work done. The weather was incredible, so we walked around the neighborhood a little and looked in the shop windows. Eventually we ended up at a coffee shop (San Fransisco Coffee Shop) for another cup of coffee (and more people watching). We went back to get Marc and then we all left together for the English Garden (Englischer Garten).
This place, especially on such a beautiful day, is incredible. This is the Central Park of Munich. It's tucked right in between several hot neighborhoods and it's HUGE. There are lakes and pathways, several beer gardens, stages, large fields, playgrounds and more. We could only cover a portion of it, but it was a perfect place to be to walk, talk with Marc, people watch and unwind.
We made it around the lake to one of the popular beergardens. We had a light lunch and some drinks. Our table was right on the lake, which made it cold and windy, but we really enjoyed the view.
Lena had been having a girls weekend with some of her best college friends. They had stayed at the apartment on Friday night, but then moved to another place last night. Finally in the afternoon, the other girls headed home. Lena met up with us at the English Garden. I had met Lena when she visited Marc in Auburn. Her English is also incredible from her time living in South Africa. Now that we're back home, I realized that we don't have a single picture of Lena!
So, we walked back to the apartment slowly. We stopped by a Conditorei - which is more like a pastry shop than a bakery. There wasn't enough room to sit down (since it was such a gorgeous Sunday afternoon there were tons of people everywhere). But that was ok. We got our treats "to go" and went back to the apartment to have coffee together. Visiting the Conditorei was always one of my favorite afternoon treats in Germany, so this was perfect! The boys got to try several things. They inherited my sweet tooth. This is what the cakes looked like in the conditorei....
After that, we packed up our bags, Marc went to get the car and then he drove us to the train station. It was great that he walked us in and made sure we got on the right train. It was a quick visit, but it was so great to see him and Lena again. It was another wonderful visit - where our hosts took excellent care of us and we didn't have to worry about anything. We can't wait to come back to see more of Munich in the future.
So, Sunday morning, Penny and I left the boys watching cartoons at Marc's place. We walked around the corner to the bakery to buy bread and treats for breakfast. I could really get used to this routine. We had some breakfast and then left Marc at the apartment to get some work done. The weather was incredible, so we walked around the neighborhood a little and looked in the shop windows. Eventually we ended up at a coffee shop (San Fransisco Coffee Shop) for another cup of coffee (and more people watching). We went back to get Marc and then we all left together for the English Garden (Englischer Garten).
This place, especially on such a beautiful day, is incredible. This is the Central Park of Munich. It's tucked right in between several hot neighborhoods and it's HUGE. There are lakes and pathways, several beer gardens, stages, large fields, playgrounds and more. We could only cover a portion of it, but it was a perfect place to be to walk, talk with Marc, people watch and unwind.
We made it around the lake to one of the popular beergardens. We had a light lunch and some drinks. Our table was right on the lake, which made it cold and windy, but we really enjoyed the view.
Lena had been having a girls weekend with some of her best college friends. They had stayed at the apartment on Friday night, but then moved to another place last night. Finally in the afternoon, the other girls headed home. Lena met up with us at the English Garden. I had met Lena when she visited Marc in Auburn. Her English is also incredible from her time living in South Africa. Now that we're back home, I realized that we don't have a single picture of Lena!
So, we walked back to the apartment slowly. We stopped by a Conditorei - which is more like a pastry shop than a bakery. There wasn't enough room to sit down (since it was such a gorgeous Sunday afternoon there were tons of people everywhere). But that was ok. We got our treats "to go" and went back to the apartment to have coffee together. Visiting the Conditorei was always one of my favorite afternoon treats in Germany, so this was perfect! The boys got to try several things. They inherited my sweet tooth. This is what the cakes looked like in the conditorei....
After that, we packed up our bags, Marc went to get the car and then he drove us to the train station. It was great that he walked us in and made sure we got on the right train. It was a quick visit, but it was so great to see him and Lena again. It was another wonderful visit - where our hosts took excellent care of us and we didn't have to worry about anything. We can't wait to come back to see more of Munich in the future.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Munich - 21 March (Sat)
We slept in a little bit, but of course the boys were up early. We let them eat earlier than the rest of us. Marc and Marcus showed up around 9:30 for breakfast, so we all ate together. Gabi rides horses every Saturday, so we didn't get to see her. We were able to pack our things and left around 11:00. Marc joked that he was ready, but he was destined to forget something one day soon! (foreshadowing) We had really enjoyed getting to know Mary, Charley, Marcus and Gabi. They were such interesting people to talk to about everyday things and they were very generous. We would love to see them again in the future! We've only started to explore the upper Franken region.
Marc had rented a small car, but they gave him a free upgrade to a nice Jetta. Munich was only about a 2 hour drive from Buchbrunn. The weather was clear and beautiful. Marc told us about the area as we drove. We drove past Erlangen (world-famous Triathlon location), Nürnberg, Ingolstadt (Audi's largest location) and Hallertau (world famous for growing Hops). It was a nice, fast ride.
In Munich, we drove past Allianz Arena, which is where Bayern-Muenchen (NY Yankees of German Soccer) play their games. It is an incredible stadium - possibly the most beautiful until they built the birds nest in Bejing.
We had to drop off the car at the main train station. Due to construction and general complexity of the large city, it was hard to find the place to drop off the car. Then, we remembered that we should put gas in the car, so we had to find gas quickly. Penny and Finn used the bathroom in the stinkiest gas station bathroom in all of Germany. At the train station, Marc had to file the paperwork for his car and then found out he had left his cell phone in the car, so had to run back for it (luckily he runs really fast!).
We took the U-bahn (underground subway) to the Schwabing area of Munich, which is not far from the city center and is a very hot place to live. Marc and Lena travel most of the week right now with their jobs. Their apartment is about 40 square meters (~420 square feet). We decided to put down our things, eat a snack and rest for a minute before heading back downtown. Penny and Marc went around the corner to a market to get some sandwiches for everyone. They were back in 5 minutes.
You can see how big Munich is from this picture in the direction of Schwabing.....
After this quick rest, we got back onto the train to go downtown to the famous pedestrian zone - Marienplatz. This long street has several very old and very famous landmarks. The most defining for the Munich skyline is the Frauenkirche.
I had forgotten about the Glockenspiel (musical clock) that chimes on the hour. We arrived there at almost exactly 5:00 and there were tons of tourists waiting to snap some pictures.
We passed through the Pedestrian areas on our way to the Viktualienmarkt. This famous market is filled with little booths selling all sorts of foods and gifts. You could really easily eat lunch or dinner here just buying things from the vendors. It was close to the end of the day here though, so we got a beer and did some people watching. The whole area was filled with people since it was Saturday afternoon.
On our way back, we stopped by a bookstore to warm up and to get some books for the kids. We found coloring books, colored pencils and markers. Penny also found some English books that Marc had recommended. I started to realize that it was going to be very hard to decide on which German books I would buy. I wanted all of them. Here's what Hugendubel looked like on the inside.....
We walked through the Pedestrian area a little longer and then headed back to Marc's apartment. We had already picked out a place that we wanted to eat that evening - only a stone's throw from his apartment. Marc stopped by to make a reservation for us and then we went back home to warm up and rest for a minute.
Our reservation at Wasserman's was for around 7:30 - a little late for the boys. It was a nice place that had advertised some regional specialties and also had a special on starkbier (e.g Bock and Doppelbock). It is currently Starkbierzeit (strong beer time). This time, during Lent, when people are fasting more often, is a time when you need a heavier beer to fortify yourself. Unfortunately, Wasserman was completely sold out of the Starkbier, so we stayed with our regular Hefeweizen. The food was great again - very basic, but traditional.
The boys fell asleep in the pub. We stayed a little longer - one extra round of beers and then I piggy-backed Keane back to the apartment. They fell asleep very easily. We stayed up a bit longer. Marc's back had been bothering him and he tried to insist that he sleep on the floor. We insisted that the boys would be better on the floor. Penny and I slept in Marc's bed. Marc slept on the fold-out couch. We all slept very soundly after a very fun-filled day of exploring.
Marc had rented a small car, but they gave him a free upgrade to a nice Jetta. Munich was only about a 2 hour drive from Buchbrunn. The weather was clear and beautiful. Marc told us about the area as we drove. We drove past Erlangen (world-famous Triathlon location), Nürnberg, Ingolstadt (Audi's largest location) and Hallertau (world famous for growing Hops). It was a nice, fast ride.
In Munich, we drove past Allianz Arena, which is where Bayern-Muenchen (NY Yankees of German Soccer) play their games. It is an incredible stadium - possibly the most beautiful until they built the birds nest in Bejing.
We had to drop off the car at the main train station. Due to construction and general complexity of the large city, it was hard to find the place to drop off the car. Then, we remembered that we should put gas in the car, so we had to find gas quickly. Penny and Finn used the bathroom in the stinkiest gas station bathroom in all of Germany. At the train station, Marc had to file the paperwork for his car and then found out he had left his cell phone in the car, so had to run back for it (luckily he runs really fast!).
We took the U-bahn (underground subway) to the Schwabing area of Munich, which is not far from the city center and is a very hot place to live. Marc and Lena travel most of the week right now with their jobs. Their apartment is about 40 square meters (~420 square feet). We decided to put down our things, eat a snack and rest for a minute before heading back downtown. Penny and Marc went around the corner to a market to get some sandwiches for everyone. They were back in 5 minutes.
You can see how big Munich is from this picture in the direction of Schwabing.....
After this quick rest, we got back onto the train to go downtown to the famous pedestrian zone - Marienplatz. This long street has several very old and very famous landmarks. The most defining for the Munich skyline is the Frauenkirche.
I had forgotten about the Glockenspiel (musical clock) that chimes on the hour. We arrived there at almost exactly 5:00 and there were tons of tourists waiting to snap some pictures.
We passed through the Pedestrian areas on our way to the Viktualienmarkt. This famous market is filled with little booths selling all sorts of foods and gifts. You could really easily eat lunch or dinner here just buying things from the vendors. It was close to the end of the day here though, so we got a beer and did some people watching. The whole area was filled with people since it was Saturday afternoon.
On our way back, we stopped by a bookstore to warm up and to get some books for the kids. We found coloring books, colored pencils and markers. Penny also found some English books that Marc had recommended. I started to realize that it was going to be very hard to decide on which German books I would buy. I wanted all of them. Here's what Hugendubel looked like on the inside.....
We walked through the Pedestrian area a little longer and then headed back to Marc's apartment. We had already picked out a place that we wanted to eat that evening - only a stone's throw from his apartment. Marc stopped by to make a reservation for us and then we went back home to warm up and rest for a minute.
Our reservation at Wasserman's was for around 7:30 - a little late for the boys. It was a nice place that had advertised some regional specialties and also had a special on starkbier (e.g Bock and Doppelbock). It is currently Starkbierzeit (strong beer time). This time, during Lent, when people are fasting more often, is a time when you need a heavier beer to fortify yourself. Unfortunately, Wasserman was completely sold out of the Starkbier, so we stayed with our regular Hefeweizen. The food was great again - very basic, but traditional.
The boys fell asleep in the pub. We stayed a little longer - one extra round of beers and then I piggy-backed Keane back to the apartment. They fell asleep very easily. We stayed up a bit longer. Marc's back had been bothering him and he tried to insist that he sleep on the floor. We insisted that the boys would be better on the floor. Penny and I slept in Marc's bed. Marc slept on the fold-out couch. We all slept very soundly after a very fun-filled day of exploring.
Buchbrunn - 20 March (Fri)
Today will be an easy day. We have some ideas of things to do, but nothing too ambitious. It's Friday after all. Marc is supposed to come to Buchbrunn tonight by train to meet us. We will all go out tonight after he gets in, so we'll save our energy for going out with him. Tomorrow we will go to Munich.
We were up early, before Charley left for work. Penny wanted to run and she found her way to the bike/hike path on the edge of town. It went in to Kitzingen and was a beautiful run. Marc was impressed later that she had found her way and said it was one of his favorite runs. There were several nice views of the whole valley.
We had breakfast and started some laundry. The plan was to head to an animal park (petting zoo) nearby that has a very nice playground. They weren't kidding! The petting zoo was very large. We fed lots of animals, but didn't actually pet so many. The playground had so many nice, creative pieces that my boys will never forget it!
We headed back around lunchtime. I suggested that we eat a simple, fast lunch, so Mary stopped at the Edeka market (our new favorite grocery store). This one was huge, though. It seemed more like an American store (funny that Kitzingen used to have a huge American army base in it). There were other, smaller stores around the front of the grocery store. We ate at a quick food place that was great. The boys tried sausage and a pretzel. I had Wienerschnitzel and fries. Penny got something new too - some kind of patty. Beer also for lunch was well deserved because it had been very cold and windy during the day and the kids wanted to stay at the playground for a long time!
Mary took the scenic route through Kitzingen on the way back. It is a very beautiful little town. I think they have about 20 - 30,000 people. The Army base is owned by the German government right now, but is still mostly empty. At home, it was time for coffee and Bienenstich (cake). We had an afternoon outing planned as well, so we just rested. The boys watched some television. I could get used to them watching these goofy pre-teen American shows (like "iCarly" or "Drake and Josh" if they were always all in German. Although, since I understand everything in the show, they're still goofy.
Charley came home around 4:00. Often on Friday he works from home or has an easier day (no travel). I think he traveled today. They had arranged for us to tour the Longhouse and the local museum in the late afternoon. About 2-3 years ago, while they were building the section of neighborhood where Gabi lives, the construction crew found some artifacts. An excavation began where they found artifacts from a settlement and eventually some human and animal remains that dated back to 7000BC!!! This kinda put construction on hold for a year, but it was a very interesting find for everyone. They found remains of several houses from the same time period. We went to a site only two blocks from Charley and Mary's house where the local villagers (including Charley) had constructed a replica of the type of longhouse that they found. The replica is built right outside the local elementary school, so the kids can learn about it. At the local museum, they have a beautiful display. Mary and Charley had arranged for the local curator to show us everything (her English was perfect!).
After the longhouse tour, we had some time for the kids to play on the playground again. They really loved the zip line - they want one in our yard now!
Back at the house, we waited for Marc. We watched a crime drama on television. Finn especially got into watching it even though he didn't understand much, he found he could tell what was going on. He would re-play the story to me during the commercials. It was good because there was a mystery and we could see them solve the mystery, flashing back to the key moments. Again - I'm wishing I could get German television at my house! That'd be more fun than a zip line!
Gabi and Marcus arrived and shortly afterwards, Marc arrived. He had arranged a rental car, so he drove himself home from the Kitzingen train station. Dinner was at a local restaurant (forget the name of the adjacent town). These little places (like the one we visited in Burggen or Illach) are all over the place. They're called "Heckenwirtschaft" or "Besenwirtschaft" (Hecke = hedge, Besen = broom, Wirtschaft = inn). They're often small, country places that have limited hours. The Broom part might come from the tradition of setting a broom outside the door so you'll know when it's open. This one is apparently only open 8 weeks in the year and only 3 days (or so) each week. So, we were really lucky.
We sat at one long table with benches on either side - very simple. The wine here was great (Gabi recommended what we should buy). The food was very simple and traditional. I tried a Fraenkish dish that I had heard of before - Blauezipfel - roughly, sausages in a onion, vinegar and wine soup/sauce. The boys fell asleep in the restaurant, which was very crowded and loud. We hauled them into the car and into the house for bed. The adults were only able to stay up for one more glass of wine before Marc, Gabi and Marcus were too tired to stay awake. Marc went with them to sleep. He said later that he fell asleep as his head hit the pillow ("sofort weg") and then slept like a stone ("wie ein Stein"). It's nice to learn everyday German this way.
We were up early, before Charley left for work. Penny wanted to run and she found her way to the bike/hike path on the edge of town. It went in to Kitzingen and was a beautiful run. Marc was impressed later that she had found her way and said it was one of his favorite runs. There were several nice views of the whole valley.
We had breakfast and started some laundry. The plan was to head to an animal park (petting zoo) nearby that has a very nice playground. They weren't kidding! The petting zoo was very large. We fed lots of animals, but didn't actually pet so many. The playground had so many nice, creative pieces that my boys will never forget it!
We headed back around lunchtime. I suggested that we eat a simple, fast lunch, so Mary stopped at the Edeka market (our new favorite grocery store). This one was huge, though. It seemed more like an American store (funny that Kitzingen used to have a huge American army base in it). There were other, smaller stores around the front of the grocery store. We ate at a quick food place that was great. The boys tried sausage and a pretzel. I had Wienerschnitzel and fries. Penny got something new too - some kind of patty. Beer also for lunch was well deserved because it had been very cold and windy during the day and the kids wanted to stay at the playground for a long time!
Mary took the scenic route through Kitzingen on the way back. It is a very beautiful little town. I think they have about 20 - 30,000 people. The Army base is owned by the German government right now, but is still mostly empty. At home, it was time for coffee and Bienenstich (cake). We had an afternoon outing planned as well, so we just rested. The boys watched some television. I could get used to them watching these goofy pre-teen American shows (like "iCarly" or "Drake and Josh" if they were always all in German. Although, since I understand everything in the show, they're still goofy.
Charley came home around 4:00. Often on Friday he works from home or has an easier day (no travel). I think he traveled today. They had arranged for us to tour the Longhouse and the local museum in the late afternoon. About 2-3 years ago, while they were building the section of neighborhood where Gabi lives, the construction crew found some artifacts. An excavation began where they found artifacts from a settlement and eventually some human and animal remains that dated back to 7000BC!!! This kinda put construction on hold for a year, but it was a very interesting find for everyone. They found remains of several houses from the same time period. We went to a site only two blocks from Charley and Mary's house where the local villagers (including Charley) had constructed a replica of the type of longhouse that they found. The replica is built right outside the local elementary school, so the kids can learn about it. At the local museum, they have a beautiful display. Mary and Charley had arranged for the local curator to show us everything (her English was perfect!).
After the longhouse tour, we had some time for the kids to play on the playground again. They really loved the zip line - they want one in our yard now!
Back at the house, we waited for Marc. We watched a crime drama on television. Finn especially got into watching it even though he didn't understand much, he found he could tell what was going on. He would re-play the story to me during the commercials. It was good because there was a mystery and we could see them solve the mystery, flashing back to the key moments. Again - I'm wishing I could get German television at my house! That'd be more fun than a zip line!
Gabi and Marcus arrived and shortly afterwards, Marc arrived. He had arranged a rental car, so he drove himself home from the Kitzingen train station. Dinner was at a local restaurant (forget the name of the adjacent town). These little places (like the one we visited in Burggen or Illach) are all over the place. They're called "Heckenwirtschaft" or "Besenwirtschaft" (Hecke = hedge, Besen = broom, Wirtschaft = inn). They're often small, country places that have limited hours. The Broom part might come from the tradition of setting a broom outside the door so you'll know when it's open. This one is apparently only open 8 weeks in the year and only 3 days (or so) each week. So, we were really lucky.
We sat at one long table with benches on either side - very simple. The wine here was great (Gabi recommended what we should buy). The food was very simple and traditional. I tried a Fraenkish dish that I had heard of before - Blauezipfel - roughly, sausages in a onion, vinegar and wine soup/sauce. The boys fell asleep in the restaurant, which was very crowded and loud. We hauled them into the car and into the house for bed. The adults were only able to stay up for one more glass of wine before Marc, Gabi and Marcus were too tired to stay awake. Marc went with them to sleep. He said later that he fell asleep as his head hit the pillow ("sofort weg") and then slept like a stone ("wie ein Stein"). It's nice to learn everyday German this way.
Monday, April 13, 2009
Würzburg - 19 March (Thu)
After leaving the Wine Production tour, we had a nice ride along the Main river to Würzburg. It is over 1000 years old and beautifully set along the Main river. The Burg (Berg = mountain, Burg = castle, but more like a knights' castle than a king's castle) sits on a hillside overlooking the river and the main part of the city. During World War II, over 90% of the city was destroyed, but it was rebuilt immediately after the war by Trummelfrauen (= rubble women), which is a famous German expression.
With the river, naturally there are also beautiful bridges. The old, Main bridge is a pedestrian bridge that has statues of patron saints of the city - most importantly St. Killian.
As we were crossing the bridge to go to the Burg (Castle), we learned about the Staustufe (locks) in the Main river. The river drops down pretty far, so every so often there are locks that let the ships down gently. There was one right under the Main Bridge and we arrived just as two ships were passing through. There could not have been 12" of room on either side of the canal for the ship that moved through.
We walked up the hill to the Castle. The castle has a museum inside now and it was difficult for the kids to fake interest in the painting and carvings and incredible collection of art from area artists. Penny and I saw some amazing things when the boys would let us. We knew that they would love to see the knights' armor and weapons. That was definitely their favorite part.....but also there was a nice view from this side of the river.
We came back down from the Burg and to the downtown area. We saw the place where Mary works - a tourism office right near the river. She walked us through the Rathaus (city Hall) and out onto the Marktplatz (Market Plaza). We decided to have lunch. We had lunch in a restaurant right on the Plaza. Finn has been crazy about Hawaii Pizza for some time, so he ordered one. Keane had a Ham Omlet. All I remember about lunch was the Wheat beer. It was nice to sit down and rest for a few minutes.
After lunch, we were in the Fussgaenger zone (Pedestrian Zone), which was always one of my favorite parts in any German town. This is the main, downtown shopping area. It's a great place to window shop and people watch. The products and the prices and the people are so different, that I could easily fill up an entire afternoon.
We stopped by the tourism office to find out if there were any playgrounds for the kids nearby. The good playgrounds were far away, so we would have to drive to them. We made it to the Cathedral in the city center, which was very impressive - even to the boys. Penny took many pictures inside.
Mary had really wanted to show us the Residenz - the home for the Bishop, which is very ornate and very famous, but the boys were at the end of their ropes and we could tell that it wouldn't be a good idea. We decided to stay in the Pedestrian area and walk around a little more. We stopped by a bookstore for a few minutes - which was very interesting for ME. I wanted to buy lots of books, but managed to resist for now. We bought some good books for the kids though.
We also stopped by a department store (Mueller) where the boys bought some Lego toys and used the bathroom! Just as we were leaving, it started to rain a little bit, but by the time we drove out of downtown, the rain had stopped.
Mary took us to a playground in Kitzingen. The sun was out and it was a gorgeous afternoon. The boys played for awhile and we rested in the sun. Next, we headed back to Buchbrunn. We stopped by Gabi and Marcus' house and got to see a little of the inside of it. Marcus was home from work because he hadn't been feeling very well. The house was pretty big and very bright inside. Charley (Gabi and Marc's father) had built the house in the last few years.
After we got home, I walked with the boys down the street to the local playground where they found a zip line - this was easily the favorite part of the day.
Back at the house, we had coffee and cake (Bienenstich again!). This revived us enough to make it until dinnertime. While we were here in Buchbrunn, the boys got to watch a little television. In Auburn, when I put German childrens' videos in, they reject them immediately. But, here there was no choice, they watched lots of things. Here in Buchbrunn, they tried "I Carly", "Drake and Josh" and some other things that they had already seen in English.
Charley came home around 5:00. We talked until Gabi and Marcus came over for dinner. Dinner was a regional Shish-Kebab dish with rice and a salad. The boys really loved it again! The adults stayed up past 11:00 talking about lots of different things. Marcus and Gabi helped with translation whenever I would get stuck.
With the river, naturally there are also beautiful bridges. The old, Main bridge is a pedestrian bridge that has statues of patron saints of the city - most importantly St. Killian.
As we were crossing the bridge to go to the Burg (Castle), we learned about the Staustufe (locks) in the Main river. The river drops down pretty far, so every so often there are locks that let the ships down gently. There was one right under the Main Bridge and we arrived just as two ships were passing through. There could not have been 12" of room on either side of the canal for the ship that moved through.
We walked up the hill to the Castle. The castle has a museum inside now and it was difficult for the kids to fake interest in the painting and carvings and incredible collection of art from area artists. Penny and I saw some amazing things when the boys would let us. We knew that they would love to see the knights' armor and weapons. That was definitely their favorite part.....but also there was a nice view from this side of the river.
We came back down from the Burg and to the downtown area. We saw the place where Mary works - a tourism office right near the river. She walked us through the Rathaus (city Hall) and out onto the Marktplatz (Market Plaza). We decided to have lunch. We had lunch in a restaurant right on the Plaza. Finn has been crazy about Hawaii Pizza for some time, so he ordered one. Keane had a Ham Omlet. All I remember about lunch was the Wheat beer. It was nice to sit down and rest for a few minutes.
After lunch, we were in the Fussgaenger zone (Pedestrian Zone), which was always one of my favorite parts in any German town. This is the main, downtown shopping area. It's a great place to window shop and people watch. The products and the prices and the people are so different, that I could easily fill up an entire afternoon.
We stopped by the tourism office to find out if there were any playgrounds for the kids nearby. The good playgrounds were far away, so we would have to drive to them. We made it to the Cathedral in the city center, which was very impressive - even to the boys. Penny took many pictures inside.
Mary had really wanted to show us the Residenz - the home for the Bishop, which is very ornate and very famous, but the boys were at the end of their ropes and we could tell that it wouldn't be a good idea. We decided to stay in the Pedestrian area and walk around a little more. We stopped by a bookstore for a few minutes - which was very interesting for ME. I wanted to buy lots of books, but managed to resist for now. We bought some good books for the kids though.
We also stopped by a department store (Mueller) where the boys bought some Lego toys and used the bathroom! Just as we were leaving, it started to rain a little bit, but by the time we drove out of downtown, the rain had stopped.
Mary took us to a playground in Kitzingen. The sun was out and it was a gorgeous afternoon. The boys played for awhile and we rested in the sun. Next, we headed back to Buchbrunn. We stopped by Gabi and Marcus' house and got to see a little of the inside of it. Marcus was home from work because he hadn't been feeling very well. The house was pretty big and very bright inside. Charley (Gabi and Marc's father) had built the house in the last few years.
After we got home, I walked with the boys down the street to the local playground where they found a zip line - this was easily the favorite part of the day.
Back at the house, we had coffee and cake (Bienenstich again!). This revived us enough to make it until dinnertime. While we were here in Buchbrunn, the boys got to watch a little television. In Auburn, when I put German childrens' videos in, they reject them immediately. But, here there was no choice, they watched lots of things. Here in Buchbrunn, they tried "I Carly", "Drake and Josh" and some other things that they had already seen in English.
Charley came home around 5:00. We talked until Gabi and Marcus came over for dinner. Dinner was a regional Shish-Kebab dish with rice and a salad. The boys really loved it again! The adults stayed up past 11:00 talking about lots of different things. Marcus and Gabi helped with translation whenever I would get stuck.
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Buchbrunn - 19 March (Thu)
We slept very well after another long day yesterday and a wonderful meal last night. I heard the boys waking up, so I went to check on them. They were nervous to come out of their room without me since they were in a new place. They weren't so nervous that they were quiet though. I brought them out into the main room. Charley leaves for work before 7:00 normally. They already had the paper (Main Post) and were having breakfast and coffee - breakfast was brotzeit, which was good because the boys were used to it and knew what they wanted.
Penny slept a little late.
Charley travels in the area for his job as a salesman for industrial equipment. He would be back around 4:00 or so in the afternoon.
We had already made plans with Mary to go to Würzburg today, so we got ourselves ready and headed out around 9:00. We got a good view of the area - which is very close to an autobahn crossroads.
Kitzingen had a U.S. military base for many years, but it closed between 2005 and 2007. This means that the town of 25,000 lost 10,000 soldiers and their families. The German government owns the buildings from the base now. The town of Kitzingen is going through an adjustment now. The village of Buchbrunn never had many soldiers living in it, but many German families from the village worked in Kitzingen.
There are many vineyards in this area. Frankish wine has become very popular in the last several years. One particular Frankish wine is known for it's special bottle - Bocksbeutel.
Right outside of town, we stopped to see the place where Gabi works. The growers in this area cannot afford to do all of the processing, fermentation and then bottling and distribution of their wine, so GWF does it for them. The factory was huge. At one point we could see stacks of pallets of cases of wine for more than 100yards.
We entered the building through their tasting room - Vinothek. Of course our camera was in the car the whole time, so I knabbed this picture from their website.
Leaving this place, Mary took the smaller roads to Würzburg. We went through several small villages right on the Main river. It was a beautiful drive - about 20 minutes or so.
We saw lots of modern windmills on the hillsides.
Penny slept a little late.
Charley travels in the area for his job as a salesman for industrial equipment. He would be back around 4:00 or so in the afternoon.
We had already made plans with Mary to go to Würzburg today, so we got ourselves ready and headed out around 9:00. We got a good view of the area - which is very close to an autobahn crossroads.
Kitzingen had a U.S. military base for many years, but it closed between 2005 and 2007. This means that the town of 25,000 lost 10,000 soldiers and their families. The German government owns the buildings from the base now. The town of Kitzingen is going through an adjustment now. The village of Buchbrunn never had many soldiers living in it, but many German families from the village worked in Kitzingen.
There are many vineyards in this area. Frankish wine has become very popular in the last several years. One particular Frankish wine is known for it's special bottle - Bocksbeutel.
Right outside of town, we stopped to see the place where Gabi works. The growers in this area cannot afford to do all of the processing, fermentation and then bottling and distribution of their wine, so GWF does it for them. The factory was huge. At one point we could see stacks of pallets of cases of wine for more than 100yards.
We entered the building through their tasting room - Vinothek. Of course our camera was in the car the whole time, so I knabbed this picture from their website.
Leaving this place, Mary took the smaller roads to Würzburg. We went through several small villages right on the Main river. It was a beautiful drive - about 20 minutes or so.
We saw lots of modern windmills on the hillsides.
Buchbrunn - 18 March (Wed)
We had met Mary and Charley Schleyer in Auburn when they visited their son Marc. We had them both over to our house for dinner in Spring 2008. Last Fall, Mary and her daughter, Gabi, visited Marc again. We had them for dinner again. Mary had invited us to come to Buchbrunn both times we met her. We knew we would have a great time in their company.
They met us on the train platform in Kitzingen and we felt at home right away. They had brought two cars to the train station to meet us. We loaded all of our bags into one of the cars and rode the 3 kilometers to Buchbrunn. We had already heard so much about the area from them that they were able to point out some of the things that they had told us about. They don't speak any English that I know of - only a few words, so this would be a fun test for all of us.
Mary said that we would be having dinner in about an hour and a half. Gabi and her husband Marcus would be coming over for dinner (they both speak English very well). In the meantime, Mary had made a very wonderful cake that we had discussed in Auburn - Bienenstich ("Bee sting"). This cake is like a layered, light poundcake with vanilla pastry cream in the middle. The top has honey and layers of almonds. It is great! We had a coffee too. What a nice treat!
Gabi and Marcus live around the corner from Mary and Charley. Charley built both houses! We saw some construction picture from the building of Gabi's house.
Dinner was another work of love. Sauerbraten and Knodel with sauerkraut and wine. The Sauerbraten is a roast beef that marinates for 3-5 days in wine, vinegar and spices. It was incredibly tender. Knodel are large, poached bread or potato dumplings. Mary's were potato with bread in the center!
Gabi works for the second largest Wine Distributor in Germany - GWF - Winzergemeinschaft Franken - it is HUGE! But, we had some very nice wines when we stayed with them.
Finn finally remembered to take a picture of us eating!
(Shannon, Penny, Charley, Mary, Gabi, Finn)
(Marcus, Penny, Shannon, Charley, Mary, Gabi)
Mary and Charley have two empty bedrooms (from Gabi and Marc). Penny and I slept in Gabi's room. Finn and Keane had beds in Marc's room. We set up a movie for them in the bedroom (on my laptop). The rest of us stayed up talking. We switched between English (for Penny) and German (for Mary and Charley). It was a great evening. Gabi and Marcus should be coming over for dinner again tomorrow.
We made plans to get up and go to Würzburg tomorrow morning. We will also visit Gabi at her work.
They met us on the train platform in Kitzingen and we felt at home right away. They had brought two cars to the train station to meet us. We loaded all of our bags into one of the cars and rode the 3 kilometers to Buchbrunn. We had already heard so much about the area from them that they were able to point out some of the things that they had told us about. They don't speak any English that I know of - only a few words, so this would be a fun test for all of us.
Mary said that we would be having dinner in about an hour and a half. Gabi and her husband Marcus would be coming over for dinner (they both speak English very well). In the meantime, Mary had made a very wonderful cake that we had discussed in Auburn - Bienenstich ("Bee sting"). This cake is like a layered, light poundcake with vanilla pastry cream in the middle. The top has honey and layers of almonds. It is great! We had a coffee too. What a nice treat!
Gabi and Marcus live around the corner from Mary and Charley. Charley built both houses! We saw some construction picture from the building of Gabi's house.
Dinner was another work of love. Sauerbraten and Knodel with sauerkraut and wine. The Sauerbraten is a roast beef that marinates for 3-5 days in wine, vinegar and spices. It was incredibly tender. Knodel are large, poached bread or potato dumplings. Mary's were potato with bread in the center!
Gabi works for the second largest Wine Distributor in Germany - GWF - Winzergemeinschaft Franken - it is HUGE! But, we had some very nice wines when we stayed with them.
Finn finally remembered to take a picture of us eating!
(Shannon, Penny, Charley, Mary, Gabi, Finn)
(Marcus, Penny, Shannon, Charley, Mary, Gabi)
Mary and Charley have two empty bedrooms (from Gabi and Marc). Penny and I slept in Gabi's room. Finn and Keane had beds in Marc's room. We set up a movie for them in the bedroom (on my laptop). The rest of us stayed up talking. We switched between English (for Penny) and German (for Mary and Charley). It was a great evening. Gabi and Marcus should be coming over for dinner again tomorrow.
We made plans to get up and go to Würzburg tomorrow morning. We will also visit Gabi at her work.
Friday, April 10, 2009
First Train Ride - 18 March (Wed)
Schongau is a very small train station - only one platform. The train we took looked more like a modern streetcar. Something like this:
The trip took about 4-5 hours. We thought we got a good deal on the tickets - four people for about 80 Euro. Later we found that we could have bought a Bavaria ticket for only about 30 Euro - live and learn. Bavaria and Baden Wuertemburg have these kinds of tickets allowing up to 5 people to travel together within the state. Pretty cool.
We had two pretty easy transfers - one in Augsburg and the second one in Nürenburg. Each time we changed to larger trains and on the second train we had a small compartment to ourselves. The tracks changed in Nürenburg, but I was able to figure that out from the overhead announcements and then confirmed with someone who worked at the train station....hey! My German is coming in pretty handy right about now!
I had hoped that we would see something from Nürenburg when we passed through, but you can´t really see any of the famous sites from the train tracks. Ah well - something for a future trip.
The trip took about 4-5 hours. We thought we got a good deal on the tickets - four people for about 80 Euro. Later we found that we could have bought a Bavaria ticket for only about 30 Euro - live and learn. Bavaria and Baden Wuertemburg have these kinds of tickets allowing up to 5 people to travel together within the state. Pretty cool.
We had two pretty easy transfers - one in Augsburg and the second one in Nürenburg. Each time we changed to larger trains and on the second train we had a small compartment to ourselves. The tracks changed in Nürenburg, but I was able to figure that out from the overhead announcements and then confirmed with someone who worked at the train station....hey! My German is coming in pretty handy right about now!
I had hoped that we would see something from Nürenburg when we passed through, but you can´t really see any of the famous sites from the train tracks. Ah well - something for a future trip.
Leaving Burggen - 18 March (Wed)
This has only been the first stage of our three stage trip. We had originally planned to leave Burggen around 9:00am and head north to Buchbrunn, but we found that the train tickets would be almost half as much if we left at 1:00 instead of 9:00. We called Mary Schleyer in Buchbrunn to make sure that arriving around 6:00 was ok with them. She, of course, said no problem. That gave us an extra morning in Burggen.
Keane definitely wanted to go to school with Jakob. This time he wanted to go first thing in the morning instead of waiting until mid-morning. So, he popped out of bed, got dressed and went down to eat breakfast with Jakob and Dominik. When the neightborhood kids showed up, Keane headed to school with everyone. Jakob was nervous on the first days to use his English, but by Monday afternoon, he really started to use it more and more.
Finn wanted to wait until later to go to school, so Finn and I drove Burkhard to work in Schongau, because we thought we would need the car to get to the train station. Burkhard drove on the way so I could make sure I knew which way to go. Then, I got to drive in Germany for my first time AND try to remember where I had to go. Finn helped me remember and we got back home just fine.
Finn, Marget, Penny and I walked to the bakery and to the grocery store to pick up some things. We didn't quite realize that Marget was packing a bag of goodies for us to take along with us. We also bought some treats and some stamps for the postcards we were going to write on the train. (Stamps for mailing a postcard back to the states cost 1 Euro).
Back at home, we decided to ride to Schwasoien - a small village north of Burggen, west of Schongau where Marget grew up. Her father was at home working in the yard - splitting wood (with a machine log splitter). They also have a farmhouse with a barn. They still keep cows in the barn. The main walls in the house are over 300 years old! It was fantastic to meet and talk to her father (he also speaks no English).
Fresh, raw milk was delicious. The signs on the wall are awarded from a local office that show the average milk production for the cows in his barn each year. Each sign has a year written on it near the top - his oldest one is 1978. (Notice the scar on Keane's chin from the bike wreck yesterday).
Marget's brother is building a new house behind the parents' house. Marget's sister-in-law walked up just as we arrived, so we got a tour of the house under construction. It was a beautiful two-story house (plus a basement with an office) and was already a year and a half under construction. They should be moving in very soon.
Back in Burggen, we packed everything, which went very quickly - we only have a few bags. We made lunch and the boys (except Dominik) came home from school. Marget made us spaghetti with sauce and then we loaded up the car - everyone squeezed in and we even picked up Burkhard at work on the way to the train station.
We left at 13:04. We'll definitely be looking for a time in the future to come back to Burggen and see the Scholz family.
Keane definitely wanted to go to school with Jakob. This time he wanted to go first thing in the morning instead of waiting until mid-morning. So, he popped out of bed, got dressed and went down to eat breakfast with Jakob and Dominik. When the neightborhood kids showed up, Keane headed to school with everyone. Jakob was nervous on the first days to use his English, but by Monday afternoon, he really started to use it more and more.
Finn wanted to wait until later to go to school, so Finn and I drove Burkhard to work in Schongau, because we thought we would need the car to get to the train station. Burkhard drove on the way so I could make sure I knew which way to go. Then, I got to drive in Germany for my first time AND try to remember where I had to go. Finn helped me remember and we got back home just fine.
Finn, Marget, Penny and I walked to the bakery and to the grocery store to pick up some things. We didn't quite realize that Marget was packing a bag of goodies for us to take along with us. We also bought some treats and some stamps for the postcards we were going to write on the train. (Stamps for mailing a postcard back to the states cost 1 Euro).
Back at home, we decided to ride to Schwasoien - a small village north of Burggen, west of Schongau where Marget grew up. Her father was at home working in the yard - splitting wood (with a machine log splitter). They also have a farmhouse with a barn. They still keep cows in the barn. The main walls in the house are over 300 years old! It was fantastic to meet and talk to her father (he also speaks no English).
Fresh, raw milk was delicious. The signs on the wall are awarded from a local office that show the average milk production for the cows in his barn each year. Each sign has a year written on it near the top - his oldest one is 1978. (Notice the scar on Keane's chin from the bike wreck yesterday).
Marget's brother is building a new house behind the parents' house. Marget's sister-in-law walked up just as we arrived, so we got a tour of the house under construction. It was a beautiful two-story house (plus a basement with an office) and was already a year and a half under construction. They should be moving in very soon.
Back in Burggen, we packed everything, which went very quickly - we only have a few bags. We made lunch and the boys (except Dominik) came home from school. Marget made us spaghetti with sauce and then we loaded up the car - everyone squeezed in and we even picked up Burkhard at work on the way to the train station.
We left at 13:04. We'll definitely be looking for a time in the future to come back to Burggen and see the Scholz family.
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