Friedberg, Hessen… where Elvis Presley did his Army duty…

But surprisingly enough, that’s not why Bill and I visited there yesterday…

One might think Americans would be teeming in a town where famous fellow American, and the so-called “King of Rock n’ Roll”, Elvis Presley has such a strong connection. After all, this town has two intersections Elvis Presley inspired walk-don’t walk lights (since December 2018), an Elvis Presley Platz (completed in November 2014), and a statue of the man!

But no… we didn’t notice any American Elvis pilgrims during our brief visit to Friedberg. In fact, we weren’t even there for him, ourselves. I had heard of the German town where Presley is celebrated, and had meant to visit in years past. However, by the time we actually laid eyes on Friedberg, I had forgotten all about Elvis’s Army connection to my adopted “home” country for 13 years of my life. It wasn’t until we were driving into Friedberg that Bill mentioned Elvis and his stint living in Bad Nauheim, a nearby town where he’d rented a villa, so he could do his military service in Friedberg. It was during his German stint that he also met his wife, Priscilla Beaulieu Presley.

So what the hell were we doing in Friedberg, if not to worship “the King”?

A few days ago, someone in a Facebook group dedicated to the German state of Hessen posted some pictures of Adolfsturm, a medieval tower that dates from 1347. I love a good tower challenge, especially when the views at the top are particularly rewarding. Adolfsturm is also very charming, as is the castle complex where it is located.

We’d never been to Friedberg before, and it is the capital of the Wetteraukreis district of Hessen. And since we didn’t have anything better to do yesterday, and the weather was pretty much perfect– partly cloudy, breezy, and only about 72 degrees Fahrenheit, we decided it would be a good day to climb Adolfsturm and get some photos. Of course, there’d also be lunch and people watching.

Friedberg is maybe a 40 minute drive from where Bill and I live. From 1956 until 2007, it was the home of Ray Barracks, which was a U.S. Army installation and, indeed, where Elvis did his patriotic duty for America. One of Bill’s co-workers once lived and worked near Friedberg, before it was “BRAC’d” (a victim of base realignment and closure) in 2007. In fact, Ray Barracks closed a month before Bill and I arrived in Germany the first time, back in September 2007, when he was still serving in the Army.

So, given all of that, you’d think we would have visited this charming town before yesterday. Alas, yesterday was indeed our first time ever there, but hopefully, we will be able to go back, and I can get some photos of all of the Elvis Presley shit. After we climbed the tower, I had completely forgotten about Elvis, and wanted to get home and take a shower! 🚿

I think the pandemic really stifled our desire to get out and explore as much as we used to. We’re only just now getting our mojo back. I also don’t have as many readers as I once did, so that sort of takes away the self-imposed pressure I put on myself when we lived near Stuttgart.

Here’s the story of how our visit went…

Bill and I left our house at a little after 11:00 AM. In the car, we had a deep discussion about our time in Germany thus far. As I lamented about how our previous rental experience vastly contrasts with our current one, and how disappointing it was that we had to leave the Stuttgart area on a sour note, we noticed an idiot driving a car with a full horse trailer cut off at least two cars with Dutch license plates.

As we approached Friedberg, we passed a rest area with a curious looking observation tower. Then I noticed that from the tower on the side of the Autobahn, one can easily see Frankfurt’s familiar skyline, the only one of its kind in Germany. Someday, we’ll have to stop there and take pictures while Bill gets gas for the car.

As we drove into Friedberg, Bill mentioned Elvis, and I looked him up on my phone. I was still reading about him when we pulled into a mostly empty parking garage, and walked toward the main drag… Below are some photos from the walk into the happening part of town. I love the house in the first picture. It’s so cute!

As we got closer to the Stadtkirche Friedberg, I noticed an unhoused person sleeping under a thick red cover, sheltered by the church’s facade. I guess if one must be homeless, the church is a good place to find some rest. The Stadtkirche Friedberg dates from the mid 13th century. It is the only surviving church of Friedberg’s seven medieval churches. I was immediately impressed by its beauty, and of course, I took lots of pictures!

After a brief visit to Friedberg’s marvelous city church, we started walking down the main drag toward the Castle of Friedberg’s grounds. But first, we decided to have lunch. We stopped at a charming German restaurant called Die Dunkel. It was such a nice day, everybody was sitting outside. Bill went in and asked, in German, for two places, and the bartender, who appeared to be of Indian descent and, as it turned out, spoke perfect English, misunderstood and thought he was ordering beer. She brought out the unordered Pils beers, and we were momentarily confused, but I said, “Never mind. We’ll drink them.” Problem solved!

Bill and I both had salads. His had falafel in it, while mine had grilled chicken breast. And, of course, we drank beer and people watched. One guy had on a t-shirt Bill liked. It looked like the Walt Disney logo, but actually said “Malt Whiskey”. He laughed and pointed it out to me. I turned around, and the guy noticed us noticing. He smiled and showed it off, then bowed. We had a good laugh at that! Friedberg seems to be a place where people are friendly and relatively happy. I also noticed a lot of Muslims there, which isn’t a statement on anything other than the town seems to enjoy a diverse community.

At one point, a young couple with a baby sat next to us. I was enjoying watching their teamwork handling the baby, who looked like perhaps she was about 6 or 7 months old. She was quiet and content, playing with a spoon, while her parents ate. Then her mom breastfed her at the table. No one batted an eye. In fact, Bill didn’t even notice. Isn’t it nice that women in Germany can feed their babies without getting the side-eye from chauvinistic jerks who can’t understand that breasts serve a function other than turning them on?

I liked Die Dunkel. The service was friendly; the food was good; the beer was cold; and I noticed a lot of locals were enjoying each other’s company there. It seems like the kind of place where friends can meet up for a drink and then hang out… and that’s actually what I noticed some people doing. The main drag has lots of trees and is very pleasant. It reminded me a little of when Bill and I used to live in Fredericksburg, Virginia, back when we first got married. Friedberg is actually prettier, though.

After lunch, we walked to the castle grounds. There’s a large, impressive gate there, as well as what used to be a moat. Behind the gate there is a gymnasium (school for smart teenagers who plan to attend university), the castle itself, St. George Fountain, and of course, Adolfsturm. Friedberg Castle dates from the 12th century, and has a long, rich history. According to its official Web site:

With its 3.9 hectares, Friedberg Castle is one of the larger castle complexes in Germany. But it is not only the extent of its grounds, which have retained the closed character of a medieval fortified complex, that makes it stand out. For many centuries, it also occupied an exceptional legal position.

From the 12th century until 1806, the castle, which had been built before 1180 to protect the Wetterau, was the centre of a unique Burgraviate. From 1431 onwards, it was the only castle with a small territory subject to the kings and emperors of the Holy Roman Empire alone; its cooperative constitution was another special feature.

I don’t think it’s possible to tour the castle itself, but St. George Fountain is in front of it, and the tower is a short walk away. And as we approached Adolfsturm, I paused to take a few photos. It really is a pretty tower, and it only costs 2 euros (1 euro for children under 6) to climb it. It’s open from 2-6 PM on weekends and holidays, from the beginning of April until the end of October.

Somehow, I didn’t manage to get photos of the Friedberg Castle itself! I was too fixated on the tower, which dates from 1347, and had its turrets added in the late 19th century.

To access the tower, you pay the guy minding the “Kasse”, then climb up some steps that lead to just below the midpoint of the tower. When you enter the tower itself, you will see a barred door that has a sign that reads “Verlies” (which means “dungeon” in German– specifically a cell in a tower or castle). After we climbed the tower, we saw that people went down to the bottom of it, but neither Bill nor I wanted to go down to investigate, because it would mean climbing back up, and we were already getting sore! I figured there would be other people’s photos on the Internet, and I was right about that. Another reason why we skipped the dungeon was because I really needed to pee. There is a free toilet on the backside of the tower. It’s not the cleanest, but it was a most welcome sight after our climb!

*The parking garage had a free toilet, as it’s part of the “Nette Toilette” program.*

Anyway, here are some photos from our climb, which really wasn’t too bad at all. It was a lot less terrifying than the Cathedral Tower in Vilnius was. I am less sore today, too. The tower is about 54 meters high, and offers two open vantage points. There are a couple of enclosed floors where the weapons used to be aimed. You can stop for a rest there on your way up.

When we got to the first outdoor observation area, I was impressed with the view. I looked up at the steep ladders going higher and wondered if I needed to bother with them. Bill and I debated for a couple of minutes, and then I said, “Well, if we don’t go up there, we might regret it. And if we do, then we’ll never have to climb this particular tower again!” So, we went for it, and the view was worth it. At the top, there are signs showing how far away certain landmarks are, that, on a clear day, are easily visible from the tower.

We decided to walk through the lovely castle grounds to make our way back to the car. We stopped for a moment to take in the views and admire the beautiful wildflowers. The park around the tower has rules: Dogs, alcoholic beverages, and grilling is NOT allowed. And if the weather is inclement, the park may have reduced hours or be closed.

On the way out of town, Bill was stopped by some guy who was looking for Western Union services. He said in his best German that we were “Auslanders”. I got a kick out of the sign at a beer bar, which I wouldn’t have minded stopping at, if we’d had the time…

We got back to the car, and I gratefully reached for my purse, which I’d left inside. I badly needed some Carmex for my lips, which were drying out. As we drove out of Friedberg, we passed the church and what appeared to be a minor fender bender. A distressed looking woman was shaking her head while a young female cop wrote a ticket. A young male cop was smiling as he leaned by the window of the vehicle ahead of the distressed woman’s van. It looked like a very minor accident, but the woman was obviously upset, nonetheless.

*Just past where the fender bender took plac*e…

And then, Bill turned left on the main drag, and I finally saw the Elvis Presley traffic lights and an information panel about Elvis! I realized we should have extended our stay by a half hour or so, so I could have gotten some photos. Oh well. Now, we have a reason to return to this very pleasant town, so close to where we live!

Below is a video about Elvis in Friedberg. It’s in German, but you can see the “Elvis Presley Platz”.

The King lives on in Friedberg… and helps save lives.

Hessen, Sundays

We visited Marburg for Bill’s birthday!

I’m sure people who have been reading this blog for awhile might have noticed that Bill and I have sort of fallen out of the habit of enjoying Germany. I think a lot of it has to do with the COVID-19 pandemic. Before the pandemic, we made a point of going out on the weekends, exploring new places and/or trying different restaurants. But then we were locked down for months on end and we got out of the habit. Then I got out of shape and started dealing with some minor health issues.

Sometimes we do remember the old days, though. I was in kind of a bad mood on Saturday, plus we had cloudy, rainy skies. By the time I realized Saturday was getting away from us, it was already afternoon. Bill decided then that he wanted to be sure to go out yesterday, in honor of his 60th birthday. We made plans to have a simple breakfast and get on our way before noon. Our destination was Marburg, a town I’d seen many pretty pictures of on Facebook, and heard about due to the Marburg virus outbreak in 1967. Bill’s co-worker told him his family loves to visit Marburg and visit the castle, which overlooks the city.

Marburg is a little over an hour’s drive north from Wiesbaden, mostly on the Autobahn. It’s not too far from Frankfurt, or Gießen (Giessen), a city that is well-known to a lot of older US Army servicemembers. At one time, there were thousands of Americans living there. Nowadays, I know of Gießen because that’s where most of the veterinarians at our local clinic learned their crafts. Marburg is about 25 kilometers to the north from that town.

As we approached Marburg from the Autobahn, I noticed the imposing Schloss. Bill said that was where we were headed first. Since it was his birthday, I didn’t argue with him. Driving into the city reminded me a bit of the many times we’ve visited Tübingen, another university town in Baden-Württemberg, close to where we used to live when we lived down there. Below are a few photos from our arrival. I was happy to meet the friendly cat who greeted us as we parked.

Marburg has lots of beautiful old Gothic buildings, and a rich history as a place where many of the Brothers Grimm fairy tales were born. Since I was also an English major and, as a child, was a lover of fairy tales, the fact that the Brothers Grimm lived in or near Marburg is also interesting to me. After visiting the castle, I can see where some of their inspiration came from. In fact, the painter Otto Ubbelohde was from Marburg. He was most famous for illustrating Grimm’s Fairy Tales.

The road going up to the castle was quite narrow and winding, and it was kind of a trick to manage it. However, I couldn’t help but notice how beautiful the area is. Some lucky people live in homes on the way up to the Schloss. I suppose the trickiest part is the parking, but they sure do have nice views, especially on days when the weather is as perfect as it was yesterday. For July, it was very pleasant, with light breezes, temperatures in the 70s, and lots of sunshine.

Bill parked the car next to the small Wanderweg near the castle. If we’d wanted to, we could have tried to park at the castle itself. There is a small lot there, and it didn’t appear to be full when we arrived. It was also one of the rare places in Germany where I didn’t see a requirement to pay for parking. This is a handy thing to know for those who are very fit, and very cheap. One can walk to the city from the Schloss, but getting there and back means walking up and down steep stairs. But you can park for free, so there is that… and it will burn lots of calories.

The first order of business for me was to find a toilet. Those, too, are freely available at the castle. Just go into the courtyard, which you can’t miss, and you’ll find WCs. Bear in mind that you have to walk down some narrow steps to reach them. Alternatively, you can visit the museum, which also has toilets that can be reached by elevator. No Klofrau is in sight!

After that personal necessity was taken care of, Bill and I visited the museum. Each ticket was 8 euros to be paid in cash. Credit cards aren’t accepted. For that, visitors get a nice tour of the well-equipped museum, which offers examples of pottery that were used at the castle, discussions on coffee culture (for the rich people, only), and a look at some of the art and treasures that belonged to the castle, which dates from the 11th century. Since 1981, the castle has been used as a museum affiliated with the local university, as well as an event site. We did notice a bride and groom having photos taken there during our visit. There is a restaurant near the grounds, but unfortunately, it was closed yesterday.

Below are some photos from our visit to the castle museum. We spent about 90 minutes there.

*This is an event area that has been used for that purpose since the 16th century.*

On the way out of the museum, we passed through the very simply chapel. A sign asked visitors to stay on the carpet, to avoid damaging the mosaic floor.

Once we passed through the chapel, we walked back out to tour the grounds. Below are some photos from around the castle and gardens.

After we visited the castle, we went to a parking garage near the center of town, parked the Volvo, and went walking around, looking for lunch. We eventually ended up in the Markplatz, which was alive with activity. There were several restaurants there, most of which were full of people enjoying food and drinks in the sun. We ended up at a charming Weinstube called Weinlädele at the top of the hill. Since the terrace was full, we opted to go inside, and spent a very pleasant time enjoying a leisurely lunch.

The food offerings at Weinlädele were somewhat simple, but the menu has an impressive list of wines by the glass. I happily availed myself of the wines, as well as a salad with chicken strips and raspberry vinaigrette. Bill had Maultaschen with Mediterranean vegetables. It really hit the spot.

And then, after lunch, I took some more photos of the very charming Marktplatz. A lot was going on there… and I was enchanted by the sights, smells, and sounds of life happening in Marburg. Bill and I both want to visit again and enjoy the ambiance of this pretty town in Hessen. An added bonus was yet another free WC near the parking garage. After our wine infused lunch, I really needed it before the drive home!

We missed the river scene. Marburg is on the Lahn River, and there’s a really cool looking Biergarten next to it, as well as boats… Again, not unlike Tübingen. We will have to try to come back and see more, now that we’re trying to get our weekend groove back. But I’m glad we were able to go yesterday, at the very least. What a lovely place to spend time on Bill’s birthday! A hearty thanks, once again, to the generosity of the German people for letting us Americans live here and enjoy their beautiful country!

castles, Hessen, Sundays

Bill’s 60th birthday…

We had a really lovely day today in the university town of Marburg. I will write a comprehensive post about it tomorrow, since Bill will be out of town for a business trip, and I’ll need something to do. But I did want to make a comment today about how we spent our Sunday.

Marburg is a beautiful town a little over an hour’s drive from Wiesbaden. I’d been wanting to visit for awhile, because I knew it’s a pretty city, but also because it has an important place in public health. A very nasty virus was named after Marburg, because there was a breakout there in the late 1960s (which also included Frankfurt and the then Yugoslavian city of Belgrade, now in Serbia). Marburg is related to the deadly Ebola virus. I don’t pretend to know a lot about what happened, but I’m sure I’ll learn when I write more in depth about today’s visit.

We had perfect sunny weather with very nice temperatures. That allowed us to see the castle and walk around the old town before we had a delicious lunch at a Weinstube. I got lots of pictures and learned a few new things, but right now, I’m still coming down off the wine. So, for now, I’ll just share a few photos and the promise that I’ll be back tomorrow with a proper post.

I think for now, we need to do a little more celebrating.

Champagne Bucket trips, Eastern Europe

Our day in Cesky Krumlov… part five of our 2023 Czech tour!

Wednesday, October 4, was our one full day in beautiful Cesky Krumlov. We were determined to make the best of it. After a good night’s sleep in the big bed in Room 6, we went down to the big table in the lobby and had the first of two wonderful breakfasts. Bill decided to try the fermented wheat, which was described as an “original” breakfast offering at Monastery Garden. The receptionist who had checked us in the day prior was there for breakfast, and she explained that it’s not difficult to make fermented wheat… but the process is “quite stinky”.

I’ve mentioned before that Bill seems to like things that stink… like exotic cheese and probably even me after a particularly active afternoon. 😉 I have a very sensitive sense of smell, though, so I can’t abide a lot of things he enjoys. I wouldn’t have ordered the fermented wheat anyway, because it had mushrooms in it, and mushrooms are of the devil. I didn’t notice that the dish smelled offensive; it came with poached eggs, and Bill seemed to really enjoy it.

I had Eggs Benedict, which were absolutely fabulous. I especially loved the way the dish was presented, with super sweet cherry tomatoes and greens. It was almost too beautiful to eat.

We also had filtered coffee and fresh squeezed orange juice, which was served to us whipped into a foam. On the menu, it mentioned that the juice could be served with “chili” pepper. I asked about that, since I’d never heard of anyone putting pepper in their juice. The receptionist said that some people like to use it to heat up their metabolisms. I joked that I could use a little of that myself, but I decided not to try pepper in my juice. Bill, who likes things spicy and hot, did put some in his juice. He didn’t complain about it, but I noticed he didn’t add pepper to the juice the next morning! Breakfast was not included in our room rate, but it was well worth what we paid.

While we were eating, we were chatting with the receptionist about the pandemic and how things were in the Czech Republic. I had read that they had been pretty strict there during the worst of the COVID era… which I guess is still ongoing. She said that a lot of Czechs were kind of slack about following the mandates. I would imagine that the way the pandemic was handled in Europe was very different than it was in the United States.

After breakfast, we started to explore and soon found ourselves at the Museum of Torture, which is on the main square. We bought a combination ticket with the Wax Museum, which gave us a couple of activities for our morning. The Museum of Torture was mostly interesting, although parts of it were a little cheesy. Like, for instance, at one part of the museum, there’s an exhibit that shows a woman suspected of being a witch being burned at the stake. They played an endless sound loop of flames and the whimperings of a suffering female. It was a little hokey and probably unrealistic, given how much being burned hurts, at least at first.

I have to admit, I was pretty horrified by how cruel human beings can be to one another as I looked at all of the instruments of torture used to punish people in the medieval era. I also couldn’t help but remember when we visited the superior torture museum in Rothenburg ob den Tauber in Bavaria, Germany. The one thing the museum in Cesky Krumlov has over the museum in Rothenburg is that it’s in a very cool dungeon like building that appears to be very old. The building definitely gave the torture museum some realism. Below are some photos…

Just a little bit hokey…

After we spent some time in the torture museum, we moved on to the wax museum, which was also entertaining. The museum had some interesting replicas of celebrities– many of whom were (or still are) American. The wax museum also provided a narrative of Czech history, although perhaps not as well as the Castle museum did. Still, I think it was worth visiting just to see the wax versions of Mick Jagger and Tina Turner. I have a soft spot for wax museums anyway. My dad’s hometown of Natural Bridge, Virginia had one for many years and one of my distant relatives, Bar Tolley, was immortalized there. 😉 Below are some photos from the wax museum.

By the time we finished touring the two museums, it was late morning. We kept walking around Cesky Krumlov, which basically goes in a circle, and soon found ourselves as a bench offering a nice view of the Vltava River, which flows through both Prague and Cesky Krumlov. We were still sitting there at noon, which happened to be the time and day of the month when local authorities throughout the country test the sirens. I noticed an announcement in Czech and English that it was “only a test”. That’s more than we get in Germany.

*We decided to skip the labyrinth, because neither of us likes to look in the mirror!*

Finally, we worked our way to the castle entrance, where we were able to see the bears that “guard” the moat. I remembered how when we came to Cesky Krumlov in 2008, I saw the bears. I also remembered that there was a guy at the bottom of the castle tower who took our money and advised us to go “slowly”. Now, there’s a big complex at the Castle Tower, and visitors can buy tickets to the museum and the interior of the actual castle. We skipped touring the castle interior, but we did visit and enjoy the museum after we climbed the tower. The tower wasn’t too awful, either. I was able climb it without too much trouble and was rewarded with some very nice photos.

After we visited the castle and its tower, we were ready to eat lunch. Since this post has so many photos in it, I will continue writing about our Wednesday activities in the next post! Suffice to say, looking at these pictures, I feel very fortunate that we had such nice weather. There were plenty of people in Cesky Krumlov during our visit, but it wasn’t extremely crowded. I bet the place is now PACKED in the summer! I think October is a great time to visit this town.

Champagne Bucket trips, Latvia, Regent Seven Seas Cruise Lines

Riga, Latvia… a place I will need to see more of someday…

Monday, June 26th, we had plans to call on Riga, Latvia. Bill had been there a couple of times before, back when we were living in Germany the first time. That would have been in 2008, or thereabouts. Things have changed a bit since then. As for me, I had never been to Latvia, although I had been wanting to go. I was curious about Riga. Bill said it was a beautiful city. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to see very much of it, because of the “free” excursion I chose that day.

Actually, I’m not sorry we went on that excursion, as it was very interesting and we saw some beautiful countryside in Latvia. But, we didn’t have much time to explore Riga, as the excursion took over five hours. It was the longest of all of the ones we experienced last week. Turaida and Sigulda are two castles that are located about an hour outside of Riga.

The plan was to drive to Sigulda Castle and visit the renovated ruins, visit Kropotkin Manor House, see Gutmana Cave, and visit the Turaida Castle and sculpture park. At the end of the tour, we’d have a brief stop at Riga’s Town Hall square for photos, then drive back to the port.

One critical mistake that Bill and I made was not having lunch before we left the ship. The tour began around lunchtime. We weren’t that hungry when we left, and figured there would be a stop for something, given how long the tour was. We were wrong. There was a cafe near the Sigulda Castle ruins, but we didn’t have a lot of time to visit it. One thing we learned on that trip is that Regent will put a plate and silverware icon on trips where there is food involved. That trip didn’t have that particular icon in its description. Actually, now that I’m looking at it, they didn’t use that icon on our Tallinn tour, either, even though that one did include lunch and beer.

Fortunately, at Sigulda Castle, there were also vending machines, so we were able to get some snacks before we went back to Riga. It really was a good thing, because I got very irritable at the end of our visit to Sigulda Castle. Bill… bless him… knows this is an issue of mine. I get “hangry”. I usually try to carry some candy or something with me for emergencies. It usually happens kind of suddenly, and I’m fine once I have something to bring up my blood sugar.

I enjoyed the Turaida and Sigulda trip, in spite of my “hangry-ness”, for a few reasons. Once again, our guide, named the Latvian version of Eva, talked a bit about the Soviet era and the Latvian attitudes about being in the Soviet Union. Here’s a hint. Most people didn’t like that time and wouldn’t go back to it! We also passed Riga’s KGB Museum (the Corner House), which Eva told us was a good thing that came out of a building where there was once a lot of tragedy and sadness. If we ever get back to Riga, I am going to try to go there.

But I also enjoyed our excursion because I liked visiting Latvia’s largest cave… which isn’t so very large. As you will see in my photos, Gutmana Cave is covered with carvings done hundreds of years ago. It’s also got a stream running through it that, legend has it, bestows eternal youth and good health on those who drink or bathe in its waters. I didn’t drink the water… I already had a cold, and have also known the hell of having a stomach bug on a cruise ship. But I did rinse my hands in the cold water.

Below are some photos of our trip through Riga, and Sigulda Castle… You can see some of the art deco buildings that managed to survive the Soviet era.

As for the castles, they were interesting to look at, but we didn’t have that much time for exploring. And, to be honest, by the time we got to the ruins, I was really tired. It’s tiring listening to someone talk, and actively paying attention to what they say. We also did a fair amount of walking, and by the time the tour was ending, I was super hungry and cranky. However, I did enjoy hearing about the legend of Turaida Rose. Click here for more information on that.

Here are some more photos from our excursion, mainly of Gutmana Cave, and a very old country church…

*Famous walking sticks in Segulda. We bought one for Bill’s granddaughter.*

We walked back to the entrance of the huge park and I dug into my purse for the many euro coins I was carrying for this occasion. I got a leaded Coke, some sparkling water, and a package of a Latvian snack product called Long Chips. This snack, which is kind of the Latvian version of Pringles, comes in several flavors. In the vending machine, they only had the cheese and mashed potato varieties. We got one package of each, and after I’d had a few chips, I felt a lot better.

Interestingly enough, I just read that Long Chips are actually a relic of Latvia’s Soviet era, having been first made in 1986. The company that made them, once owned by the Soviet government, was eventually purchased by a private company in 1992, and is now available in 25 countries. They sure were a lifesaver last week!

I enjoyed seeing what little I did of Riga’s town hall, especially since there was a man with a beautiful baritone voice singing there. He was singing arias very well, and when I dropped a couple of euros in his hat, he bowed graciously and thanked me in English. I took a lot of photos and recorded a little of his performance, but mostly I sat on a bench and enjoyed listening to him sing. I found it inspiring.

A lovely singer…

Town Hall doesn’t suck, either.

I also liked that excursion because it included some good shopping, especially at Sigulda. I bought some beautiful silver earrings from a designer there, as well as a wallet for me, and a new leather bound notebook for Bill, and a walking stick for Bill’s granddaughter. Prices were very reasonable. And, I also loved the Latvian folk music playing where I bought my earrings, so I downloaded that, too.

When we got back to the ship that afternoon, I realized that it was karaoke night in the Splendor lounge. I usually love karaoke, although I was a little skeptical of how good it would be on Regent Splendor. SeaDream had karaoke on one of our cruises and it was honestly the worst karaoke show I’d ever attended. But, in spite of that, I sang a few songs and met my friend Meryl and her parents, who have now sadly passed on to the great beyond. Meryl is in the music business. In fact, she and her husband work with a major rock star. She asked me if I was in the music business! So it wasn’t a total loss. Meryl and I are still friends today.

The other thing that gave me pause is that karaoke started very late at night and only ran for about 90 minutes, which didn’t seem long enough. And I was also dealing with the remnants of my cold, and my voice was, frankly, a bit fucked.

In any case, Bill and I got dressed up and went to dinner in the Compass Rose. Unfortunately, dinner was a bit of a disappointment. I decided to have scallops, which were billed as a main course. But my dish only had three scallops on the plate, and it wasn’t really enough to satisfy me, even with the roasted quail starter I had. Dessert, too, was a bit of a disappointment. I had rum cake that was much too sweet, and lacked a promised scoop of Tahitian vanilla ice cream.

Yes, I know I could have and should have complained, and/or ordered more food. But everyone seemed so harried, and I was still feeling kind of crabby after our excursion. So we just beat it out of the dining room and went back to the Splendor Lounge, where Aldo and Dimas were playing music. We were the only ones in there at first, but Ger and Gail soon joined us, having decided to abandon the show in the theater. Bill and I never did make it to a show, so I can’t comment on the quality of the productions on Regent Splendor. But Gail and Ger said they weren’t impressed. During that time, I also learned how to use the “jukebox” in the Splendor Lounge.

After a little while, some teenagers showed up in the bar, obviously wanting to do karaoke. It got very busy, and Gail and Ger very abruptly beat a retreat when the place filled up. We probably should have done the same thing! I did get to sing a song. I chose “When You Say Nothing At All”, by Alison Krauss. To be honest, I think the only reason I chose that song was because I usually do it in the piano bar on SeaDream and I know it pretty well. Unfortunately, due to my cold, my voice wasn’t quite 100 percent, and I botched the high notes.

There were some really good performers, though… people with genuine talent. One guy sang a dead on rendition of “Valerie” by Amy Winehouse. Another guy did a hilarious version of “America” by Neil Diamond. Bill and I stayed for most of it, but left about a half an hour before karaoke ended. It was way past our bedtimes! I don’t think the teens ever did get up to sing. They might have been overwhelmed by the size of the crowd. There were a lot of singers, which is why I think karaoke should have been longer. I also didn’t like that it was run by theater people. It needs a real host. But that’s just my cranky opinion as a karaoke snob. Actually, I think I might prefer a piano bar, which Regent doesn’t have.

I was troubled enough by my own performance that on Monday, I decided to record my version of “When You Say Nothing At All”. It turned out great, if I do say so myself. Or, at least I didn’t mess up the high notes. Being healthy again is a good thing!

I wanted to dedicate this to Bill on Regent Splendor, but I’ll just have to do it on YouTube…

I did also get some photos of the top decks on Regent. Below are some pictures I took. It was the one day we ventured up there… These photos are all from the top of the ship. You can play tennis, mini golf, bocci, or shuffleboard.

*Someday, I hope to come back and do Riga properly.*

One last thing. When we got back to our stateroom on Tuesday night, we found the door standing wide open. No harm was done, but we don’t know how long the door was left open. It seemed like a pretty serious slip in service. We did speak to the steward about it, and it never happened again during our sailing.

booze tourism

Food and wine in Switzerland, Italy, and Liechtenstein… part three

Onward to Italy!

When I originally started planning this trip, I looked at hotels in Modena, Bologna, and Parma. I finally decided on Parma after reading a couple of blog posts written by other people and looking at the lodging available there. Originally, I chose a highly rated B&B in a suburban part of Parma, but then I read some of the reviews and changed my mind. The place was called “beautiful”, but people complained that it was in a boring suburb of Parma. I had some other doubts when I read the owner’s responses to some of the more negative comments she got.

Then I spotted what looked like a very beautiful place in Torrechiara, which is about ten miles from Parma. La Locanda del Borgo is a B&B located on the grounds of Torrechiara Castle, a manor that dates from the 15th century and sits atop a hill. For a very reasonable price, you get a tiny room with a shower and breakfast. Next door to the B&B is a restaurant, and across the cobblestoned passageway, there’s a shop where you can buy Parma ham, Parmesan cheeses, and some very delicious locally produced wines. If you want to, you can sit outside of the shop and enjoy a bottle of wine while you eat slivers of Parma ham and nuggets of Parmesan cheese. This property was significantly less expensive than the other one was, and Bill loved the idea of staying at a castle. So I booked it on Booking.com, and looked forward to our visit.

I see now, from looking at the official Web site, we were in the Bianca Room, which is a “double room” priced at 110 euros per night. I don’t know why I didn’t book a superior room, which was only 20 euros more per night. I usually splurge when I can. Maybe it was unavailable. If we ever stay at La Locanda del Borgo again, I will definitely go for the superior room, because the double room was tiny.

On the way to Italy, we stopped at one of the ubiquitous Autogrills. The one we chose was not one of the better ones, as it had an Italian fast food restaurant called Old Wild West. We should have been smarter and driven a little bit further, but we stopped there for lunch. I was reminded that not all food in Italy is delicious. But that was one of the very few places where our “green passes” were checked. On May 1, the green pass check became obsolete.

We arrived at the castle on April 24th, a Sunday. There were many people there, visiting the castle for the day, which can be toured every day except Mondays. Consequently, parking was a challenge. There are a few public lots at the bottom of the hill, but given how much luggage we had, it would not have been feasible to haul our bags up the hill. Bill actually got quite a workout when he was forced to park down there once because there simply wasn’t any parking near the castle. As it was, the day of our arrival, we had to park around the back of the castle, where lots of people’s cars lined the dirt road. On the positive side, once the castle closed, people cleared out of there and Bill was able to move the car closer.

The views at the castle are absolutely beautiful. We did try to tour the structure on our first arrival, but COVID rules were still in place, and there were too many people were already in the castle when we wanted to go. So, we decided to hit the bottle shop, instead. That turned out to be a great use of our time. The shop owner was blasting fun music from the 70s– think ABBA, the Bee Gees, and Chic. We drank two bottles of beautiful wines… I know, I know… my liver and kidneys are crying uncle just from the memory. But it really was nice wine. I wish we’d bought some to bring home with us. Below are some of the photos I took of the castle before we started drinking…

As you can see, Bill was loving the wine and freedom from work!

Breakfast at the B&B was served from 7:00am until 10:00am. On offer were cream filled cornettos (like Italian croissants), plain cornettos, Parma ham sandwiches, boiled eggs, fresh fruit, cereal, yogurt, coffee, tea, and juice. During our visit, COVID rules were still in place, so we wore masks when we were inside, except for when we were in our room.

At the bottom of the hill, there was another restaurant that wasn’t open during our visit. There was also a little plaza where there was a bar, pizzeria, and shop. Not far away was a grocery store, where Bill found us some snacks. I’d say my favorite part about our stay at the castle was the wine we drank. It was outstanding. I’m going to see if I can order some to come to our house!

Uncategorized

Our pandemic dog rescue story… part four

I have mentioned before that I think Austria is an extremely beautiful country. We haven’t spent enough time there, which is a shame, because it’s a small country that has huge things to offer. I love the scenery there. There are enormous mountains, babbling brooks, Dirndl clad ladies and men in Lederhosen, and lots of great food. I like Austrian food more than German food. Yes, there is a difference.

It seems like Austrian food has a little dash of Italian to it… and it also seems like there’s more variety to it. It’s not just Schnitzel, sausages, Spatzle, potatoes and cabbage. And yes, I know I’m inviting criticism from my few German readers for writing this. But I also know that some of them are reading because they want to know what things look like from an American point of view. Well, I am American, and this is my point of view, even if it’s not entirely accurate. You know what they say about perspectives. I know Germany has a variety of different specialties throughout the land, but for some reason, Austrian food just seems slightly different to me. Not that we had much of a chance to eat it during this whirlwind trip.

I was expecting Bill to stop for lunch. He never did. I don’t know how he hasn’t learned in almost eighteen years of marriage that it’s good to take a break. On the other hand, there weren’t that many appealing stops on the way down to the Slovenian border. We did stop at one place so I could pee. It was pouring down rain, though. I also remember having to pay a toll of 12,50 euros before we could go through Katschburg Pass. Bill was freaking out because the toll was done by machine and it wouldn’t accept his Bar (cash). I told him he should just take his time. People would have to wait. It’s not like they don’t make us wait when they have business to attend to.

Anyway, as we approached the border, we ended up on a narrow mountain road behind some guy who didn’t seem to know which was was up. There were many wrong turn signals, a few weaves and bobs in the road, and slow speeds. The drive over the mountain was very beautiful. The leaves are turning, so the colors were dramatic against the stormy skies. There’s a bunker museum on the mountain road. We saw a lot of signs and had we not had Arran and it hadn’t been raining, it would have made for an interesting stop for Bill. It was built during the Cold War to make sure no one from former Yugoslavia would cross into Austria and raise a ruckus. Again… I would love to visit Kransjka Gora again, so maybe someday we’ll get a chance to visit.

Here are some photos from our drive down from Salzburg.

*Hohenwerfen Castle. Looks like a great stop for kids. They have a falconry and history that includes wizards and witches! About 40 km south of Salzburg.*

We rented an “apartment” for our night in Slovenia. I didn’t realize it was really more of a hotel apartment. We told the proprietor that we’d be there at 2:00pm, since they told us they needed an hour to get to Kranjska Gora. We actually arrived earlier than 2:00, but for some reason, it didn’t occur to me to message them through Booking.com. We just waited for a car. Well… first, Bill went to a tiny grocery store near the apartment and picked up a few essentials. Kranjska Gora is very close to both the Italian and Austrian borders. It must have been interesting to live there when Slovenia was still part of a closed society.

After we picked up a few items, we went back to the suite hotel and met the young lady who showed us our digs for the night. For about 86 euros, we got a little place with a bed, a sitting room, basic kitchen facilities, and a bathroom with a tiny shower. It was very clean and had what we needed, but it wasn’t quite as nice as our place in Salzburg. The floors were tile, which makes for easy cleaning, but chilly quarters. Still, it was just fine for a night and the price was right. Checking out was equally a breeze. All we had to do was dump the trash and leave the keys on the kitchen table. That was perfect for our purposes. The place we stayed was called G&F apartments on Booking.com, but it was in the Hotel Klass building, which is very close to the town center. I prepaid for the room and we had to pay four euros for the tourist tax. There wasn’t a pet fee and Arran was definitely not the only dog there.

Our original plan was to get Noizy at about 8:00pm, as that was when Meg was supposed to arrive with him and two other dogs who got new homes. Another American couple, based at Ramstein, I believe, were coming down to pick up a dog for themselves and transport another to a German family in Bavaria (I think). That other couple turned out to be a godsend. More on that in the next part.

short breaks

Post pandemic trip number two– Germany’s only Glauber’s salt spa

If you are a regular reader of my travel blog, you might know that Bill and I are big fans of Germany’s wonderful spa culture. We’ve gotten so into the spas here that we’ve even done a very unAmerican thing and indulged in the nude! Yes, that’s right… despite being decidedly middle aged and not having the best body images, Bill and I have both embraced being naked in front of other people. I don’t know how Bill feels about it, but personally, I think the nude spas are liberating and healthy, even though it took us years to finally take the plunge, so to speak.

So far, we have visited these spas:

Mineraltherme Böblingen (probably my favorite, because it has clothed and nude areas, was recently renovated, has a great restaurant, and has a lot to do)

SchwabenQuellen in Stuttgart (all nude most of the time)

Friedrichsbad in Baden-Baden (famously all nude, all the time)

Caracalla in Baden-Baden (clothed everywhere but in the sauna/steam room area)

Palais Thermal in Bad Wildbad (nude in most areas)

Kaiser-Friedrich Therme in Wiesbaden (nude all the time)

Rhein-Main Therme in Hofheim (clothed everywhere but in the sauna and steam room area)

And finally, as of Sunday of last week, we visited the Vulkaneifel Therme in Bad Bertrich (clothed everywhere but the sauna and steam room). If you’re interested in my thoughts on and experiences at the other spas, you can easily find my posts about them in this blog. Just do a search or click the spa tags.

Because I love Germany’s decadent Thermes, I would have wanted to visit the Vulkaneifel Therme regardless of whether or not it was “special” in any way. But as I was researching the Eifel area, I came across ads for the Vulkaneifel Therme describing it as Germany’s only “Glauber’s salt” spa. What does that mean? Well, in English, Glauber’s salt is sodium sulfate, somewhat akin to what we call Epsom salt (magnesium sulfate). I used to use Epsom salt a lot when I had a horse. Applied topically in hot water, it’s great for reducing inflammation, soreness, and stiffness in muscles in horses and humans. Both salts are also used as laxatives, although Epsom salt is supposedly a better drying agent than sodium sulfate is. In any case, both salts are useful for soothing muscle pain, and apparently, the Vulkaneifel Therme naturally has sodium sulfate in its water, making it different from the other spas we’ve visited.

Bill and I decided to set off early for Bad Bertrich, since we weren’t wanting to be there when it was especially busy. Bad Bertrich is also not that close to Meerfeld; it’s maybe 35 kilometers away. I had actually considered staying in Bad Bertrich when I was looking for accommodations and, as we found out when we visited on Sunday, there are a number of appealing hotels in the area. However, now that we’ve been to the spa, I can say that I’m kind of glad we stayed in Meerfeld, again because it’s quiet and unique. Bad Bertrich is very much a spa town and it’s a bit touristy, although it’s also pretty.

We arrived at the Therme at about 10:00am and parked in the large garage right across the street from it. Additional parking is located to the side of the spa. The spa’s front door is contactless; it opens as you approach. The first thing to do is fill out the contract tracing information. There’s a station on the first floor, near the elevator, as well as hand sanitizer. Once you fill out the forms, either take the stairs or the elevator to the top floor, where you pay your admission fee. You can purchase entry to just the Therme or the Therme and sauna. Bill and I aren’t big on saunas, so we opted for three hours in the Therme. In retrospect, that was more time than we really needed, since this Therme isn’t very large. If we had eaten at the restaurant and spent at least five euros, we would have been entitled to an extra hour, anyway. The cashier station is also where you can rent towels, robes, and shower shoes if you need them.

The cashier gave us the familiar “wristwatches” that one gets at almost every Therme in Germany. Strap it to your wrist. It’s your ticket for everything in the Therme, from entering and exiting the turnstiles, to locking and unlocking a locker, to paying for food and beverages or anything else that would ordinarily require money.

Next, go into the co-ed locker room. Not to worry… they have individual cubicles where you can get into your bathing suit in private. Once you’ve changed clothes, find an open locker and put your stuff in it. Close the locker door and use your watch to lock it. There are instructions in English on the inside of the locker doors at this spa. Take a quick shower, then you’re ready to go!

We enjoyed the Vulkaneifel Therme, probably because it wasn’t very crowded at all during our visit. It’s not a very big Therme, although it does offer a large soaking hot tub, an exercise pool with jets, and a large central pool with indoor and outdoor access and jets. I noticed that they didn’t turn on the external “waterfall” jets that are usually periodically turned on at Thermes for people wanting to stand under them. I guess that’s to prevent the potential spread of coronavirus. The water in the exercise pool and main pools is kind of lukewarm; both were about the same temperature. Bill and I liked the exercise pool because we had it to ourselves for almost an hour and there are several powerful waterjets in the pool that are great for massaging sore backs, feet, and legs.

There were signs everywhere to remind people to wear masks and be socially distant from one another. Most people were respecting the social distance rules, but it’s hard to wear a mask in a pool environment. I was glad to see people were being sensible about that, too. I noticed people cleaning surfaces while we were there, which was reassuring to see.

After about three hours in the pools, we were pretty wrinkly, but relaxed. We didn’t try the wellness area, so I’m not sure if massages are being offered right now. I doubt they are. Anyway, we have yet to try a massage at a Therme, although we’ve had them at other places. Maybe someday, when the coronavirus is hopefully no longer such a threat, we’ll get an opportunity. We took another shower, used the watches to get our clothes, and since we didn’t buy anything in the Therme, had no need to pay the machine (much like the ones you find in a parking garage) before we put the watches in the turnstile and exited.

We walked around Bad Bertrich looking for a place to have lunch. The town does have several restaurants, but none were especially appealing to me. I wanted to have Italian food and the Italian places didn’t appear to be open at lunchtime. Several places also appeared to be closed, although I did notice that some shops were open, even though it was Sunday. I guess it’s because Bad Bertich is a touristy area. I did take some pictures of the town, which is really attractive and worth consideration for anyone who is looking for a base in the Eifel area.

I took a morning shot of the castle ruins on our way to Bad Bertrich.

Since we were unsuccessful in finding a place that appealed for lunch, we decided to leave Bad Bertrich. That turned out to be a good decision, even though it was after 1:00pm, and I was nervously eyeing the time. Remember, in Germany, a lot of places take an afternoon pause. If you don’t get to a restaurant before 2:00pm, you may be out of luck for lunch.

The GPS in our Volvo directed us to Christophorus, a pizzeria in a little town called Büchel, which was not too far from Bad Bertrich. We got there at about 1:30 or so, and two of the three outdoor tables were occupied. Christophorus is a roadside restaurant and, at first blush, doesn’t appear to be especially interesting. But we had a great lunch there, mainly because besides the good food offered, there was also exceptionally friendly service.

Bill decided to have a Bolognese Pizza, which came in three sizes– mini, mittel, and grande. He ordered the “mittel”, which was more than he could eat. I went with tortellini al forno. It wasn’t exactly low cal, but I was really in the mood for pasta. We each had a hefeweizen. As we were crying “uncle” at the end of the meal, a very pleasant and super friendly masked lady with extremely short hair came over to talk to us. I got the sense that she might have been the proprietor. We started out speaking German, but it turned out she spoke pretty good English, came to Büchel from Giessen (which used to host the U.S. military), and she was genuinely interested in how we were enjoying Germany and our trip. When she realized we are Americans, she shook her head sympathetically and said, “America is not so good right now.” Unfortunately, we agree… and we feel very lucky to get to be in Germany during this time.

Although it wasn’t the fanciest place we’ve ever eaten, I was really glad we stopped there instead of eating at a touristy place in Bad Bertrich or Cochem, which is where we went after lunch. Also, the inside of the restaurant is very nice. I loved the bar area, as well as the booths. It doesn’t look like a particularly special place if you’re just checking it out from the outside, but it really was a good stop. Other than Christophorus and another Italian roadside restaurant, there isn’t a lot to Büchel. But it is on the way to Cochem, which is a nice city with a beautiful castle. That’s where we headed after lunch.

It was mid afternoon by the time we were finished with lunch. I told Bill about Cochem, which I thought would be a good lunch stop if Christophorus Pizzeria didn’t pan out. Since we had nothing else to do, we headed down that way, about 10 kilometers from Büchel. Just as you approach Cochem, there is a place to pull off the road and take pictures in a very scenic spot. You can get a great view of Cochem Castle, as it’s situated by the Mosel River. We missed it on the way into town on Sunday. That was a pity, since the weather was beautiful and sunny, and a lot of people were taking advantage of it. We drove through Cochem, noticing how many people were out and about… it was a bit of a madhouse. However, if you want to take a boat cruise on the Mosel, this is a place to do it. There are also plenty of places to stay and eat, as well as visit the gorgeous castle on the hill.

Because it was so crowded and busy, Bill and I decided not to stop. However, we did make a note of it and perhaps might visit after the high season. It’s not that far from where we live, and it looks like a very nice base for exploring the Mosel area. Here are a few photos from our drive through Cochem.

The next post will be my last in this series. Sunday night was our final night in Meerfeld, and we were due to drive home to Wiesbaden on Monday morning. Stay tuned!

Rhein, Rheinland-Pfalz

A day in Bacharach…

After last week’s trip to Eppstein to see the castle, I thought maybe we might want to go to another castle this week. But Bill had other plans. Elton John is going to be playing a concert tonight in Wiesbaden and since we saw him in Stuttgart and have no desire to sit in Staus from Hell again, we decided to avoid the city. Remembering a lovely day we spent in the Rhein-side hamlet of Bacharach, back in 2014, Bill decided we should visit there again. I was game. Bacharach has the distinction of being the very first German town I ever laid eyes on, back in 1997. It’s an adorable place, even if there’s not a lot to it.

On the edge of town.

We didn’t really do a lot in Bacharach other than wander around, take pictures, eat lunch, and have beer at a Biergarten. We were blessed with wonderful weather– much better than what we had when we visited in 2014. I don’t have much to write… but I do have lots of pictures. Feast your eyes on this cute little historic town, located about an hour away from Wiesbaden. It’s nice to be so close!

If castles are your thing, you could do worse than visiting Bacharach or any of the other cute little towns near it, like St. Goar. There are many castles around the area. I caught these photos on the ways in and out of town.

Lots of pretty vineyards, too. Bacharach’s Schloss is now a youth hostel that sits majestically on a hillside overlooking the town.

You can see the hostel in the background. I stayed in a lot of hostels during my 1997 epic train trip through Europe, but I didn’t stay at Bacharach’s. I think I was intimidated by the climb up the hill. Bacharach’s hostel is in the historic Burg Stahleck Castle, which dates back to the 12th century.

When I stayed in Bacharach, I stayed at the Hans Dettmar B&B. I was excited because the room came with a shower and a WC. My standards have changed a lot since 1997, but so has my budget.

Our first order of business was to find something to eat. Bacharach was busy with tourists today, most of whom were sitting outside. We didn’t necessarily want to eat outside, although on a warmer day, it’s nice to be in the open air. I have to balance wanting to be cool and wanting to stay out of the sun. We ended up having lunch at a garlicky smelling place called Pizzeria Pippo (or Pippo Bistro, depending on what sign you’re reading). Based on the decorations on the walls, I would guess it’s owned by Sicilians.

Cheers!

They had lasagne on the menu that looked tempting, but they weren’t offering it today. I had spaghetti with “Lachs”– salmon and onions. It was okay, though I have had better.

Bill went with the daily special, housemade tagliatelle with tomatoes, herbs, and cream sauce. He seemed to enjoy his dish more than I liked mine.

While we were sitting there, an English speaking group of 7 showed up. They were making special requests. Kudos to the waitress for handling it so well. I think if we go there again, I’ll try a pizza. They have a stone oven and the sizes looked manageable. As it was, I managed about half of my dish, while Bill finished his. We spent 37 euros.

After lunch, we wandered around… toured a church, strolled by the river, and wished we had more time to take a cruise. The breeze coming off of the Rhein was lovely.

Check out those pipes!

This is different. I probably would have kept going to church if we’d had one of these where I used to attend.

Literature lovers will enjoy this…

Another shot of the hostel/castle.

Boat schedule. We’ll have to make a point of coming up and spending more than a couple of hours.

The town itself is super cute. And if you want to buy some wine, you can easily accomplish that.

I would actually love to find a little vacation apartment and come up for a long weekend with the dogs. Bacharach is not that far from Wiesbaden, but it feels like a world away… this is the kind of place we love to visit on weekends. The Black Forest area is chock full of them, but we’re still trying to make discoveries up here in Rheinland.

We stopped at a Biergarten– the Kleines Brauhaus at the Rhein Theater— where we had a memorable afternoon in 2014. We happened to visit on German Father’s Day, and there were many fathers and sons at this Biergarten, getting loaded and singing songs… It was such a special memory for us that we decided to go back.

They had a full house. We had to wait for someone to vacate a table under the carousel canopy. One young lady– looked about seventeen or so– was bravely handling all of the orders. She was remarkably chilled out.

I had a Bacchusweizen Krug. When it arrived, the Germans at the next table looked at me with bemusement. Maybe it’s not very ladylike to order a liter of beer. Maybe it’s not smart, either, since it will get warm if you don’t drink it fast enough. Believe me, I’m up to the task. This beer was a little bitter. I liked Bill’s 1489 Dunkelweizen better.

In the foyer of the theater. I took this same photo in 2014, which you can see on the post I linked at the beginning of this post. I see they’ve added a safety vest.

Someone started up this calliope. Pretty cool!

I do like the Rhein Terrasse. We didn’t make any new friends here this time, like we did in 2014, but it was still a pleasant place to kill an hour or so, before we decided to go home and feed the dogs.

We’re supposed to have similarly beautiful weather tomorrow. Maybe we’ll visit that castle I was thinking about. Or maybe we’ll do something else entirely. I’m just glad we aren’t sitting in traffic.

On the way out…

Sundays

Bratwurst in Bebenhausen…

I very nearly gave in to the urge to stay in and read a book this afternoon. But then Bill said he wanted to go out and do something. I had been wanting to visit Bebenhausen Monastery for awhile, so I suggested we go there. It turned out to be a good day for a visit to this monastery, located in a peaceful valley on the outskirts of Tübingen. The GPS sent us through Herrenberg and Holzgerlingen to get to the kloster, not our usual route to Tübingen. As the gorgeous monastery appeared on the horizon, I gasped in awe. It really is a beautiful place.

It turned out Bill missed the turn for the parking lot, so he drove up a hillside and managed to find a lone parking spot right next to the tower pictured below.

The “Schreibturm”…

We passed this little garden area on the way to lunch.

It was about 1:45pm when we arrived, so we felt it would be prudent to get lunch before exploring Bebenhausen. I have a tendency to get “hangry” and a lot of restaurants take a “pause” after 2:00.

There are several traditional Swabian restaurants in the town. We stopped at the first one we came to, Gasthof Sonne, which is billed as a “laid back gasthaus”. The had the Biergarten open and plenty of people were out there enjoying the warmer weather and hazy sunshine. We took a seat and prepared ourselves for a very typical German lunch. There was a sign outside that read “warm food” all day on Sundays and holidays. But there was also a sign that read that they only serve coffee and cake after 2:30. I’m not sure which one was accurate for today.

Bill looking impish, probably because I told him I’m about to come after his eyebrows with tweezers.

Beer makes everything better.

This restaurant serves very typical Swabian fare. It’s very hearty and tastes good, but it will fill you up. We both opted for sausages.

Bill had the “Linsenteller” (lentil plate) with beer sausages, spaetzle, and lots of lentils. He probably won’t be hungry again for awhile.

I had bratwurst with potato salad and a mixed salad. The salad had a really nice dressing on it. It was kind of like mustard vinaigrette with a twist. I was sad when a little gravy ended up on my new turquoise shirt. I need to start carrying a bib with me.

More people came into the restaurant as we were finishing up. At one point, a party of three asked if they could sit with us. We actually had three chairs open, although one was at the end of the table and my purse was on it. I had forgotten I put it there. Then someone else motioned them over to share their table. A few minutes later, a young couple came in looking for a table and asked if they could sit with us. We welcomed them. They heard us speaking English and apologized in fluent English for not realizing we’re Americans. Actually, I took that as a compliment.

They wondered if we’d understood their request. We said we did. Then they asked where we’re from and we told them. We also told them we live here. I was impressed by their language skills and embarrassed by my lack of language skills. But we probably do okay for Americans… Bill called for the check, which came to about 31 euros. Service was friendly and professional and the food was good. Yeah… after a total of five years living here, I have the German comprehension skills of a toddler. But I’m slowly getting there.

The outside of Gasthof Sonne. I’d go back, even if it does get lukewarm reviews on Google. I noticed at least two other restaurants in this little town, one of which was connected to a small hotel.

We walked back to the monastery and quickly found the entrance, which is situated in a small gift shop that has everything from whisky to cold water for sale. Admission costs five euros per adult. There is also a family ticket available. You walk into the kloster and there’s a “rundweg” that takes you through the monastery. It’s very beautiful and peaceful inside. There are signs explaining what you’re looking at, but almost everything is in German.

Littered with coins!

Graves of abbots.

Dormitory room… or “cell”.

Washroom in the dormitory.

Straw mattress?

This was what I was waiting for. I love walking into European churches.

We finished walking around the monastery, then visited the WC, which is clean and free of charge to use. Then we walked around the grounds. It was a beautiful day to tour the area, which is coming alive with spring.

Lots of fish swim in this fountain.

A good view of the parking lot Bill missed. There’s a larger one further down the road, obviously for buses and overflow. There’s a brief but pleasant walk from the larger lot. Parking is free of charge.

To my shame, this reminded me a lot of Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, Virginia. I spent four summers working there. Of course, Germany for real is way better than fake Germany in Williamsburg.

For another two euros, you can tour the palace kitchen. I recommend taking the trip, especially since there is information in French, English, and Russian. It was the only part of the monastery that had information in languages other than German.

Some old style “modern” appliances.

If we’d wanted to, we could have spent more time strolling around the beautiful grounds.

One last shot before we decided to head home.

We took a different route home, driving through Tübingen instead of Holzgerlingen and Hildrizhausen. Basically, my Mini got a nice tour today. I put the top down and probably annoyed people with my music. It was nice to get out. I’m glad I resisted the urge to stay in and read.

I would highly recommend a visit to Bebenhausen, especially when the weather is so agreeable. It’s a very beautiful place, even if parking is a bit obnoxious. And what better thing to do on a Sunday than go to a place where God is the cornerstone of life?

The Traveling Overeducated Housewife

…the wanderings and ramblings of a boring housewife…

Tag Archives: castles