From Wiesbaden to Horben: The first day’s discoveries…

Saturday morning, we woke up to a beautiful sunny day. The sky was perfectly clear and blue, and the temperature was warm. I thought it would be a good day to visit the nearby city of Freiburg. But first, we’d have our first breakfast at Luisenhöhe. After our first dinner, I knew breakfast would be an unusual experience.

A smiling waitress, who ended up taking care of us every morning of our visit, led us to a table on the other side of the dining room. We had a view of the surrounding hills and valleys. Bill looked at the waitress’s nametag and got the sense that maybe she hails from Ukraine. She spoke excellent English that was charmingly accented, and she seemed genuinely friendly and service oriented as she offered us coffee. As she poured it, and brought me cream (rather than the usual milk), I realized that the coffee at this hotel was some of the best I’ve ever had, anywhere.

Just as it is at dinner time, breakfast at Luisenhöhe consists of small plates of different things which are brought to you at your table. They offer cold cuts and cheese that you can help yourself to, as well as juices and water. During our visit, they also offered fresh fruits and vegetables and smoothies, with a different thing offered every day. For example, on the first morning, they had vegetables. On the second and third, they had the smoothies. On the last morning, it was fresh fruit. Then after we had our four small courses, we were offered a “sweet” selection. On the first morning, it was a waffle.

Another server brought a big basket of bread, and we chose the pieces we wanted, which ended up being one of each kind. Bill likes hearty full grain breads with nuts and raisins and such. Much to my shame, I like refined white breads. It was no problem. They had several different varieties, all of which were impeccably prepared and very fresh. We had a small “globe” of butter, and jams were available. Below are photos of the first breakfast.

I enjoyed the first morning’s breakfast, although the French toast was made with Bergkäse (mountain cheese) that was too strong for me. It was too bad, too, because I really liked the idea of a savory French toast made with cheese. I’d like to try it at home, only I’d use a much milder type of cheese. It’s not even that the cheese they used was that strong. I just have very sensitive tastebuds when it comes to certain flavors. The musty, barnyard flavors in certain cheeses and other foods make me gag, and if I’m not careful, I will vomit. I guess it’s a good thing I didn’t become a chef! Anyway, I think we’ll try to find a recipe for savory French toast and use cheese that doesn’t make me puke.

After breakfast, I decided I needed to get some photos of the surrounding area. It was a good thing I did, since the skies weren’t nearly as clear the rest of our time there. Below are the pictures I took on the biking/hiking trail near the hotel.

We decided to try out the heated pool after our walk. I had a feeling it would be a good time to do that, since the weather was so nice. I figured people would be out and about. I was right about that, as we would find out after our swim. Below are a few photos from the spa area. We did not have any treatments or use the saunas, but if we go back, I’ll make a point of doing that. One thing I hope this hotel will eventually have is a hot tub or two… I’m sure it’s just a matter of time, especially at their current price point.

*This was a kind of rain shower, which took a moment or two to figure out.*

I have a feeling they use heavily vanilla scented products in the spa. I came to that conclusion on the first night at dinner, when a young woman sat near us and smelled really good… of vanilla. I thought maybe it was perfume, but then noticed she looked like maybe she’d been at the spa. When I later smelled someone else with that same scent, I realized that was a spa product. I loved the scent, although it did kind of obscure the smell of the food in the dining room. I’m not sure that was the proprietors’ aim.

After a swim, and trying out the massage functions in the pool, we got cleaned up and headed toward Freiburg. I took more photos on the drive there. I was excited to see the city… but alas, the parking garages were all FULL! And there were long lines of cars waiting to park in them. Bill made a couple of wrong turns and we soon found ourselves in “Walkplatzes”, where people were giving us dirty looks and making gestures at Bill. We didn’t know Freiburg was such a “green” city, so unfriendly to cars. The GPS sent us to the wrong part of the town, which was positively TEEMING with people who were walking and on bikes.

Here, I want to make a statement to anyone reading this, thinking it’s helpful to shoot dirty looks and make gestures at people who end up driving into the wrong place. We KNOW we’re in the wrong place, and we’re trying our best to rectify the matter. We don’t need you to add to the situation by wildly gesturing, giving us dirty looks, or shouting at us. It just makes you look like assholes. And before anyone points this out, we know that being in the wrong places makes us look like assholes. But, unlike you, we’re trying to fix the situation, rather than engaging in shaming and ridiculing people who simply made an honest mistake. What? You’ve never made a mistake? It must be nice to be so perfect. /sarcasm

Anyway, we did finally get out of that mess, although any relaxation gleaned from the pool was now totally gone. Bill was trying to figure out where we could go with the car. I looked around at what was admittedly a very cool looking city, and I realized that all of those people were a huge turn off to me. So I suggested that we go to France.

“But I forgot to bring my passport.” Bill fretted.

In almost ten years of living in Germany, no one has EVER asked for our passports at the French border. Of course, there is a first time for everything. But what was the worst that could happen? We get sent back to Germany?

We headed to the border, even though Bill didn’t have his passport. Before we knew it, we were driving over the Rhein… and I realized, we were passing Breisach again! As I was getting my bearings, Bill said “I really need to pee.”

I looked up and noticed a “welcome center”. Bill wondered if maybe there was a public restroom there. He pulled into the parking lot and found the place boarded up. Then he turned his head and saw a sign for a “Piscine.”

“Piscine!” he exclaimed. “Perfect!”

Naturally, I had a good laugh at the joke. Yes, we know that “piscine” is French for pool. But it does sound like one could “piss” there. One probably can, if one pays the entrance fee. I had noticed the pool from the German side of the river the day before. As we were trying to escape the parking lot, we were confronted by a bunch of confusing road signs advising us not to make a left turn. Left was where we needed to go to get out that area.

After a few minutes, we found ourselves being funneled into a parking lot where there were RVs, and then we saw a hotel… and they had the patio open for lunch! As it was almost 2:00 PM by then, I suggested we stop for lunch. Bill could use the potty while we were there.

The waitress asked us if it was okay if we had salads. Yes– it was fine. We were still kind of full from breakfast, anyway. We sat down at a table in France, at Hotel Le Caballin, with a view of Breisach, Germany. We had tarte flambées (Alsatian pizzas) with beer, as I marveled at how we ended up in Vogelgrun, France for lunch.

*I’d like to get a closer look at this building in Freiburg…*

I said to Bill, “I am fascinated by borders. It’s so cool to be sitting in France, listening to people speaking French, as I gaze at the German border town we visited yesterday…”

Bill said, “That’s true. Whenever you’re near a border, you gotta cross it!”

And I said, “Especially if it’s the border of good taste…”

We headed back toward the hotel, thinking maybe we could take the Schauinsland Bahn… but there was no parking to be had. Not surprising, given how beautiful the weather was. So, we went back to the hotel and hung out on the patio before dinner. It was a perfect Saturday afternoon…

And then we had dinner, which was, once again, a stunning experience. My one complaint was that we ended up sitting at the big communal table, which meant climbing up on a stool. However, because people didn’t want to sit in the middle seat at the big table (just as they wouldn’t on an airplane), we ended up with a slightly more private dining experience on Saturday night. As you can see in the menu, they had mushrooms on the menu, and I can’t eat mushrooms. I substituted a delicious wild boar dish for an upcharge of 13 euros. It was worth the extra money.

Bill selected a Sylvaner wine to go with our dinner. The sommelier praised his choice. Bill told him that we’d visited Würzburg in February and visited a winery that specialized in them. Much to our surprise and delight, the guy said “Weingut Am Stein?”

Yes! That was where we stayed, and we had a wine tasting there. It turned out the sommelier knew all about it, and in fact, they had some wine from Weingut Am Stein on their wine list. That was a pretty cool moment.

holidays

Mr. Bill and I celebrate 20 years of marriage… Part three

Arran’s medications make him hungry. They also make him need to go potty more often than usual. Consequently, on all three nights of our stay, Bill got up in the wee hours of the morning to take him and Noyzi out for walks. Then, he’d come back to bed, and try to go back to sleep. The apartment where we stayed was easy to keep dark, so on Thursday, we slept until 8:00 AM. We almost never do that anymore!

Our morning habit, whenever we visit France, is to get baked goodies from the patisseries. I am a big fan of FRENCH croissants– and yes, they are different to me than the ones we can get in Germany. Kugelhopfs are also very popular and prevalent in Alsace, as well as in parts of Germany and Austria. Personally, I can take or leave the Kugelhopfs, although I will admit to thinking they look very pretty. They usually include raisins and almonds, though, and I generally prefer my baked goods without fruit and nuts. One can also score delightful Pain au chocolat– flaky pastries filled with semi sweet chocolate– which are very decadent. I love chocolate, but again, the one must do French breakfast treat for me is the lowly croissant.

Bill went to one of the nearby patisseries and brought back the usual, then scrambled some eggs. We bought some clementine juice, ham, and cheese, at the local Carrefour grocery store, located very conveniently about a five minute walk from our gite. Once again, I was marveling at how flaky and delicious the croissants were, and kind of wishing we had more of them. But the last thing I need is a plentiful supply of baked goods!

After breakfast, we all took a walk around Ribeauville. It’s a very pretty little village, not unlike other pretty villages in Alsace. Riquewihr, which is only two miles from Ribeauville, is considered one of the most beautiful villages in France. However, I prefer Ribeauville, because it feels more lived in to me. It’s obvious there are a lot of locals in Ribeauville, even though it’s a tourist destination. Riquewihr feels a little more touristy to me, and it has a lot more tourist oriented businesses. For that reason, I like to stay in Ribeauville, and visit Riquewihr and some of the other, more famous towns, like Kaysersberg, which is where Anthony Bourdain, sadly, took his life in June 2018. Of course, I also like Ribeauville, because we know Yannick, and he’s very cool with our dogs.

I took lots of pictures of the town, as usual, because even though we’ve been to Ribeauville so many times, it’s always a pretty town. We usually go there in the winter, rather than the fall. We’ve only managed one visit in the late spring, when everything is open, but crowded. Once the dogs were sufficiently exercised, we took them back to the gite and went looking for lunch.

As I mentioned before, only a few restaurants were open during our visit. The ones that were open had plenty of business. We were wanting to go to a little lunch spot that was once called Chez Martine, but now has new owners and a different name. Schaal’É Sucré offers a menu that is very similar to that of what Chez Martine used to have, only now it’s open later and is run by men instead of women. On Thursday, it was clear that it was every bit as popular as its predecessor was, as the dining room was completely full when we stuck our heads in, looking for a bite.

We ended up eating at Caveau de L’Ami Fritz, a restaurant that is affiliated with the hotel of the same name. We have eaten at L’Ami Fritz before, and I remembered that the dining room is in a very charming “cave”. I also remembered liking what I had there the first time we tried it. The dining room was full of people when we arrived, but everyone looked very happy. Bill and I sat down and enjoyed some local specialties.

I had Quiche Lorraine, while Bill went for pork and Baeckaoffa, basically cheesy potato casserole made with Munster. The quiche was delicious, although it was made with a slightly “musty” cheese. I am very particular about cheese, and this one just bordered on “offensive” to me. Still, I managed to eat the whole thing, anyway.

We also enjoyed a local Riesling. Bill had asked for a 28 euro bottle, but when we got the bill, it turned out they had given us a 55 euro selection. Oh well. I suppose he could have complained, but we enjoyed the wine and we could afford it. And of course, we had dessert, too… Chocolate mousse for me, and a myrtle tart for Bill. He had leftovers from the Baeckaoffa, so we had that packed up and brought it to the apartment. I probably should have done the same with the mousse. It was a very generous portion.

By the time we were finished with lunch, it was early afternoon and a bit drizzly. I decided to have a rest and try to read more of my latest book. Naturally, that led to a two hour nap. 😉

Our lunch was so filling that we ended up staying in for the night, eating a light snack at dinner time and, of course, enjoying more wine. It’s a lovely thing to go to France to recharge! I liked the French weather lady’s dress, too. I also notice the fine for not cleaning up after your dog has gone up a bit.

holidays

Mr. Bill and I celebrate 20 years of marriage… Part two

On Wednesday afternoon, Bill and I loaded up the car with a couple of small bags and lots of supplies for our two dogs, Noyzi and Arran. Both dogs were excited at first, because they enjoy going places. But then Arran got decidedly sullen. I could see that he was upset, because he noticed Noyzi was in the car with us, and probably figured we would be taking him to the Hundepension. There was a time when Arran didn’t mind being boarded. Bill and I have noticed that lately, he’s a lot more interested in hanging out with us. So, he looked pretty sad at the beginning of our trip. Depressed, even. Noyzi, on the other hand, was barking and carrying on. He likes car rides, and loves going to the Hundepension. Last time we took them there, Noyzi actually banged on the gate to be let in!

I noticed that Arran’s countenance was decidedly less dour when he realized we weren’t on the familiar road to the Hundepension. He knew that he was going on a trip with us, something he and Noyzi’s predecessor, Zane, used to do fairly regularly. Zane was a lot smaller than Noyzi is, so it was easier to take them on trips. We could even get the two of them in my Mini Cooper. Noyzi won’t fit in my Mini by himself, let alone with Arran. He takes up the entire back of our Volvo. So traveling with the dogs is more challenging than it used to be, and, for that reason, we don’t do it as often.

When we got to Ribeauville, Arran knew EXACTLY where we were, even though it had been about 4.5 years since his last visit. We used to go to Ribeauville fairly often, but we didn’t bring Arran on our last visit, back in January 2020 (before we had Noyzi), because we had Bill’s mom with us, and we wanted to be free to take her to different places without worrying about Arran making a fuss. I watched in amusement as Arran pulled Bill toward the Riesling Gite, where we always try to stay when we visit Ribeauville. I had to remind myself that it was our 20th anniversary, as I played Keb’ Mo’s song, “France”.

This could be our theme song when we go to France…

Noyzi had never been to France before, so he was a bit bowled over by everything. I let our host, Yannick, know that we had arrived, and he said he’d be coming over in about an hour. We set up in the apartment, and fed the dogs, as it was time for them to eat. Yannick came over with treats, which impressed both dogs. He told us that he loves dogs, but his wife doesn’t like them because their hair gets all over everything. I can see why that would be annoying, but I don’t think I could be married to someone who didn’t let me have a dog. 😉 They are the best company, as far as I’m concerned.

After Yannick left, Bill and I went looking for dinner. We ended up at a restaurant we had never tried before. The Cheval Noir is at the edge of the main drag, and while the outside of it is very cute and quaint, it has a decidedly unromantic ambiance. We ate there because there were only a few restaurants open in Ribeauville, as many places closed in preparation for the upcoming Christmas market. They had space for us, although there were lots of people dining there on Wednesday night who had made reservations. We sat in a corner, where we perused the very Alsatian menu. They had all of the usual stuff one finds in Alsace– Choucroute Garni, pork knuckles, potatoes with Munster cheese, and faux filets. Alsatian food is a lot like German food, just with a French accent. I ended up ordering one of the specials, a salmon fillet with Beurre Blanc sauce and roasted potatoes. Bill had a faux fillet with Munster sauce and roasted potatoes. Both dishes came with side salads.

We ordered a bottle of local wine, giggling that it was our 20th anniversary. The waitress, who spoke English, promptly wished us a “happy birthday”, which only made me giggle more. The food was good, but very basic stuff one can find at a lot of the local places. It wasn’t the kind of special dinner I expected to have on our 20th anniversary, but I found that I wasn’t upset or disappointed about it. Maybe that was the point. We’ve had a pretty wonderful 20 years, with many special evenings and occasions. It somehow made sense to have a somewhat run of the mill 20th anniversary. At least we were together, which is more than I could say about our 19th anniversary, which Bill spent alone in Poland.

We did opt for dessert, which was also nothing special. We’re big on desserts, as one can tell just by looking at us. I had profiteroles, which are ice cream filled pastries with chocolate sauce. Bill went with, torche aux marrons, a local speciality we never saw before, but saw twice on this trip. Basically, it’s a dessert that is support to look like a stork’s nest, as storks are very prevalent in Alsace. Or maybe it looks like a torch. Nearby Colmar is the birthplace of Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi, the artist who created the Statue of Liberty.

Torche aux marrons consists of meringues topped with chestnut cream squeezed out as if through a grinder. Bill said it was interesting, but he probably wouldn’t order it again. I enjoyed the profiteroles. I think we spent about 70 euros, which is pretty reasonable.

When we got back to the gite, we found that Arran had raided the trash can. Yannick’s treats came in packages, which we threw in the trash and forgot to lock in the bathroom. We cleaned up the mess and went to bed, as we were both tired. Of course, Arran needed potty breaks and snacks in the night. Below are some photos from our first night. As you can see, 20 years of marriage leaves a mark on the ol’ ring finger.