Wow, as you can tell by how long it has been since my last blog entry, this has been a busy time. I can't believe Christmas and New Year's are over and gone, and 2008 is chugging right along. IT'S SO GOOD TO HAVE MY HUSBAND HERE!! Ben is settling in, applying for jobs, driving me around, and generally making himself useful. What did I do without him?? He is my spider-killer, my anchor, my love, and my handyman (no longer my pool boy!). And, man, does he ever love this hearty German cuisine! The look of bliss on his face when eating potato pancakes with sauerkraut and potato salad, or Jagerschnitzel with red cabbage and spatzle- and of course, the great German beer!
Christmas was wonderful, as we were able to not only be together, but also to see our son Stephen, his wife Megh, our son Drew, and of course, 'the girls', Lola and Bella ( Steve's dogs!). But we thought often of Jake, and Cait and Jeremy. Fortunately, there are plans in the works to see all of them in the next couple of months. as they prepare to come visit us.
We were able to go to several Christmas markets over the holidays and enjoyed lots of hot Gluwein as well. Then over New Years, our Dutch daughter Fabienne and her boyfriend, now our Dutch son, Thomas, came to visit us. On New Year's Eve we went to Regensberg with our friends Eva and Terry and Monet and heard a great Bach concert in an old church in downtown Regensberg. Then we went to an excellent brauhaus, or brewery, and had a delicious meal and beer, too. Afterward, it was time for fireworks to bring in the new year, but that turned out to be quite traumatic! It seems that the Germans, who can be so inhibited and careful normally, go crazy during certain times of the year. They were setting off dangerous fireworks all around us, throwing them in the street right at our feet! It was nuts. But other than that, we had a good time. On Jan. 6, the Three Kings (Drei Konenig) visited our house and marked a new year's blessing on our front door. They were willing to pose for a picture too. See picture above. (Yeah, I don't know why there are five of them!)
There are many interesting traditions here, and Fasching is one of them. It is celebrated just before Lent, so it is similar to Mardi Gras or Carnival. In fact, this past weekend ( Feb. 1-3), was Carnivale in Venice, Italy. Here in Lupburg, Germany, the partying began on Saturday and continued on Sunday with a cool parade down the main street. There were several 'bands' dressed in different costumes- pirates, doctors, knights, the Addams family, Civil War soldiers (!), clowns, and yachtsmen. They were throwing out candy, of course, as we would see in the States, but an additional German touch was throwing out small bottles of booze and regular bottles of beer (these were not thrown but handed out from the floats.). It was lots of fun, but I think the celebrating in town will be ongoing most of the night tonight!
Ben and I took two trips in January- one to Salzburg, Austria, and one to Garmisch, Germany. The trip to Salzburg was a train trip with another couple, the Cohens. We got up reallllly early one Saturday, caught the train at 0615, rode and changed trains and talked and rode and talked some more, and we arrived in Salzburg around 1 pm. We walked around town, had a great lunch and dinner, saw Mozart's birth place and home in his teens, and visited the Dom, a large cathedral in Salzburg. It was a long day but a wonderful trip. We got home that night at about midnight, after getting a bit lost in the fog and icy streets. So glad Ben was with me!Then, last weekend, we went to Garmisch-Partenkirchen, a picturesque little German town in the Alps. It is the home of the Zugspitze, the highest mountain in Germany. We had more prima German food, visited the small Army post there, and took the train up to the top of the mountain and the tram/gondola back down. We stayed in a cute little Gasthaus called the Hohe Tannen, which means high pines. What a beautiful visit and great views! We definitely want to go back.
I am leaving tomorrow to drive to Schwetzingen, a town near Heidelberg where I have to attend a librarian's update workshop until Friday. Ironically, Stephen, who lives in Heidelberg, will be over here at Hohenfels for training most of February, so I won't get to see him, but he did visit with us on this past Friday night. It was good to catch up with him and his plans for the immediate and long term future.
We are still enjoying ourselves but missing our friends too. Next week my Bunko group is hosting the husbands for a Valentine Bunko. Should be interesting!
Ben sends his love and greetings to everyone back in NC!
The invitation is still open.... come on over!
Love, in Christ,
Nan and Ben
