Tag Archives: ice cream

Hofheim

Our plans to visit two cities, two street food fests…and get too much sun!

We finally had beautiful weather again yesterday, so Bill and I were determined to get out and enjoy our Saturday. There were two street food fests going on near us. One was in Hofheim, and the other was in Wiesbaden. Both towns are equally fun to visit, but for different reasons. Wiesbaden is a beautiful, grand, posh city with lots of restaurants and shops. Hofheim is smaller and more intimate. It also has some good restaurants and very easy parking at the Chinon Centre, a shopping mall.

It had been awhile since our last visit to Hofheim, even though it’s very close to where we live. We decided to go there first. The street food fest was going on in a parking area near the Chinon Centre. It was very well attended, as a lot of locals were as sick of the cold and rain as we were. We didn’t stay long, though, because there weren’t enough places to sit, nor was there a lot of shade. While I can see that there actually were places to sit, based on the photos below, there weren’t any when we were ready to eat. I took those shots about a half hour before we decided to partake in the goodies!

We had beer and a couple of offerings from the fest… chicken, beef, and ham and cheese empanadas and a crepe filled with smoked salmon and some kind of creamy mustard sauce. I saw other stuff that looked appealing, but again– not enough places to sit! I also didn’t like the music, which was mostly 90s era dance tunes. I think our local Globus (hypermarket) was doing some kind of world food event, to go with the Saturday market that happens every weekend. Below are some photos.

We decided to move on to Wiesbaden after about 90 minutes or so. That was a good decision, as Wiesbaden also had a nice celebration going on, and there were more venues to accommodate the crowds.

Neither of us were hungry when we got to Wiesbaden, but I thought maybe I could be talked into having ice cream. I don’t often get ice cream in the fancy ice cream parlors of Germany, because they’re such a big production, and usually too much for me. And then we had an awkward non-verbal social interaction at the place where we were considering having ice cream.

I sat down at a table next to an old man with a cane. I noticed his lips kind of twitched, as if he was offended by our presence. He got up and slowly moved to a table behind where Bill would have sat, had we decided to stay. He was then facing me, which made me uncomfortable. I was really put off by the guy, plus I hadn’t really wanted ice cream, anyway. So we moved on, and walked around Wiesbaden a little more, then stopped at the big wine stand in market square. There, we enjoyed too much sun and a couple of local wines.

This is probably the look I had on my face when we left the ice cream place.
And this is me after wine.

Wiesbaden is such a beautiful city. It was nice to visit it again. I believe today is Sunday shopping day for both Hofheim and Wiesbaden, so there will be more festivities today. I don’t know if we’ll go to either place… Personally, I think I’d rather go to the Rhein, if it’s sunny. But I might just as easily stay home and do some reading. I find myself enjoying the reclusive lifestyle more and more these days. At least we got out yesterday, though.

Noyzi won’t mind if we stay in… 😉

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Volvo, Mark Knopfler, and East German adventures… part six

Our second day in Rostock began with a big crowd.  A large bus tour stayed in the hotel and they were all having breakfast at the same time, which made finding a seat challenging.  However, one thing I will say about the Radisson Blu in Rostock is that their breakfast, while chaotic, was pretty plentiful.  Yes, it was mostly buffet, though they would make certain dishes to order if we wanted them.  But the buffet had a whole lot of choices– everything from traditional breakfast foods we eat in the United States, to the more typical German cheeses, cold cuts, breads, and vegetables.

Cool Methodist church which evidently doubles as a library.  You can see the library books through the window.

It started raining pretty hard while we were eating, so we went back to the room and I did some writing.  We later took a walk around the Rostock Klostergarten, then went searching for the Stasi Pre-trial Prison.  We found it, but as I mentioned in a previous post, it’s currently closed.  I got some pictures, anyway, then we walked around the town through gardens and shopping areas.  There’s a lot going on in Rostock.  It’s kind of hard to think of it as a bleak East German port city, known for its prison.  Below are some pictures from our walk.

 Klostergarten, bordered by an impressive wall and wooded area.  They have plays in the garden.  Unfortunately, there wasn’t one going on during our one full day in Rostock. 

 

The yellow signs advertise shows.

A lovely rose garden.

Prime dog walking territory.  We saw more than a few enjoying themselves here.

You can park your dog while you shop at Penny Markt, near the prison museum.

 

The little boy in this picture had a great time jumping in that puddle.  His mom stood by and watched… probably glad he was wearing rain pants.

A maritime museum.  We probably should have had a look at it, but I was too sad the prison museum was closed.

A government building.  They have Stasi records there.  Behind the building is the prison.  Pictures are below.

 
 

This is where people who had been accused of crimes during the East German times were held before trial.  Conditions at the prison, which was built in the 1950s and used until 1989, were brutal.  People were brought there in tight, white vans and interrogated mercilessly until they confessed.  If you look carefully at the pictures, you can see the bars on the windows.  Have a look at this site for more information and interior photos.  If we have a chance to go back to Rostock after the renovations are finished, we will make a point of visiting. 

We stopped by a book store so Bill could pick up a new Moleskine.  While we were in there, I noticed some interesting marketing…  Actually, it’s kind of genius.

Beer, wine, and chocolate for sale!

By lunchtime, the weather had cleared up.  We were going to go to a seafood restaurant Bill found.  Unfortunately, although Google had said our first choice was open, it turned out they’d changed the hours.  The other restaurant was across the street, but there was no handy crosswalk to get to it and jaywalking was out of the question, due to the heavy traffic.  So we had lunch at Ritter Runkel Stuw, a hidden gem I had noticed advertised the day before.  This restaurant is tucked away in an adorable courtyard.  It would be very easy to miss it if you didn’t see the sign on the main shopping drag.

Don’t miss the sign!  My German friend says that Ritter Runkel was a famous DDR (East German) cartoon character.  Stuw is short for “Stube”, which means parlor.  I usually see Stube in connection with wine. 

Bill had fried rotbarsch, with homefries and vegetables.  I think his fish was fried in a cornmeal mix.

I liked the set of armor.

I had fried zander filet, which was a house specialty, and came with herbal butter, fried potatoes, and a few fresh veggies.  It was very good.  I got a kick out of the friendly waiter.  The restaurant appeared to be popular with cruise ship passengers.

A couple of Rostock’s local brews.  They taste just like other brews.

Super cute courtyard.  After the rain stopped, it was a nice day.  We could have hung out outside and enjoyed the weather.

More interesting decor.
 

After we had lunch, we decided to stop by an Eis Cafe and have some ice cream.  Ice cream is a big production in Germany, as you can plainly see!

Bill didn’t want to get one… but he made room.

This place takes dollars!  That’s not a sign one sees often in Germany.

Purple flowers.  I had to take a picture because they were so pretty.

Rostock is surrounded by towers, gates, and fortifications.  This gate is one of the best known in the city.

We made it an early day because Bill wanted to Skype with his daughter, who was heavily pregnant.  She was scheduled to be induced on July 9th, but as Bill was talking to her, he could see she was exhausted.  When he finished his call, he said he wouldn’t be surprised if she had her baby earlier than the 9th.  Bill’s older daughter was born on July 4th, and Bill was born on July 7th.  I thought the odds were good the new baby would share a birthday with another family member.

I ended up watching a program about naturopathic remedies for everything from type two diabetes to foot fungus.  I happen to have a phobia of fungus, so when they showed this on the program, I had to take a picture.  This is exactly what my mean spirited older sisters used to draw in my coloring books when I was a little kid.  They thought it was funny to torment me.  We lived in England, where mushrooms grow huge, and it was fun for them to chase me with them.  I sent my sister a message on Facebook and she laughed about what a “pip” she was back then.  Indeed… my traumatized inner child is laughing with her now.

I had to share this with a friend who thought the idea of my being horrified by shark teeth on mushrooms in coloring books was funny…  I guess it is kind of funny, even thought those pictures still make me want to scream.

 
 

This show aired in the USA from 1986-90.  I wasn’t a fan.  Apparently, they like it in Germany.

 

I also watched Alf in German.  I don’t remember watching Alf when it was on the air.  And we had McDonald’s for dinner, although they gave Bill the wrong order.  I had Chicken McNuggets for the first time since the early 80s, and they didn’t even give me any sauce.  Well… at least there was only one more night on the rock hard bed before we’d finally be heading to Leipzig for the original planned part of our trip!

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Der Schönbuchturm in Herrenberg!

Last weekend, Herrenberg opened Der Schönbuchturm, its long awaited new tower that overlooks the forested areas surrounding the city.  I considered visiting the tower last weekend, but since it was the first day, I figured it might be better to wait a week.  I’m glad we waited.  We had perfect weather this afternoon to see the brand new tower– a miracle of German engineering.  Bill pointed out the tower as we drove down the hill from Jettingen.  I’m surprised I hadn’t noticed it before.  It sticks up from the trees in the distant hills overlooking Herrenberg.

First view of the tower.

Der Schönbuchturm, which reaches a height of 35 meters, is located across from the Schönbuch Naturpark, right next to the Naturfreundehaus am Schönbuch, a self-serve restaurant and Biergarten.  We parked there at about 3:00pm.  There was a fairly decent sized crowd there, but it wasn’t too obnoxious.  We easily found a parking spot and then began the 400 meter mostly uphill hike up to the tower.  I was pretty breathless by the time we reached the new engineering marvel.  Some people were biking up and there were plenty of places for people to lock their bikes.  It costs nothing to visit the tower, which is open until 7:00pm nightly.

At the start of the trail, there’s a sign welcoming visitors and a place to lock bikes.

The trail to the tower is covered in gravel made of small stones.  Part of the trail consists of steps.  I noticed a steep bike trail to the side of the steps, but I don’t think that would be suitable terrain for a stroller or a wheelchair.

A bit closer… I stopped to catch my breath after the short uphill hike.  As you can see, you can stop at two vantage points on the way to the top level.

 

Some interesting stats.  The trail to the tower also has little information points like this one.  Since my German blows, I mostly ignored them.

There are two stairways.  Seems like one should be designated as the “up” stairway and the other as the “down” stairway.  However, both stairways are open to either direction.  Consequently, you may have to stop to let someone pass in the other direction.

These pictures are from the first vantage point.  To be honest, as sturdy as I know the tower is, I was feeling slightly anxious with each new level.  The tower has been designed so that there’s little to obstruct your view.  It can be a bit unnerving.

Wire fencing and “handrails” rather than solid metal…

The above pics are from the top vantage point.

On the way down… phew.  The tower wobbled a bit with the breeze.  It reminded me a little of our visit to Highline 179 in Austria.  I’m not sure I’d want to climb the tower during bad weather!  Today, it was kind of a thrill.  

I think I like this view the best!  

Our visit to the tower only took about a half hour.  It occurred to me as we were enjoying the views that last weekend, we climbed a 35 meter tower that was originally built in the 12th century.  Today, we climbed a 35 meter tower that has only been open for a week!  And both activities were completely free of charge with no one hanging around to enforce the rules!  Gosh, I love Germany!

Last week’s climb was just as high as today’s climb, but today’s was less painful.  Instead of a tight spiral staircase, there’s a much gentler climb.  I noticed a lot of children climbing up, including one adorable little girl with intense blue eyes crawling on her hands and knees!  As nervous as the climb made me, I have to admit the view at the top is breathtaking.  You can see for miles.

Although we could have gone to the Naturfreundehaus for a snack, Bill and I decided to visit La Piazza Gelataria for ice cream.  The outside seating was full of people who had the same idea we did.  I will note that the Naturfreundhaus, while no frills and self-serve, also has a little playground for kids!

The church bells played a hymn we used at our wedding in 2002… “Now Thank We All Our God.”

Bill had a Waldbeere Becher (wild berry cup).  It was strawberry and vanilla ice cream with blueberries, strawberries, currents, and cherries, along with lots of whipped cream.

I had an After Eight Becher, made with After Eight mints.  My mom used to love those things!  It had chocolate ice cream, mint ice cream, mint sauce, and chocolate “streusel”.  We also shared San Pellegrino.  Our total bill was just over 16 euros.  Today was “cheap”!  I don’t think I’ll need dinner, either.

For the first time, I noticed the really cool looking balcony on this building, along with its terrace on the roof.

Fun scene in Herrenberg.  Little kids were enjoying the fountain.  I couldn’t help but muse about how pleasant life in Germany is… for me, anyway.  It’s so nice to be able to sit in a square that looks like it’s out of a fairytale and eat ice cream while children play in the fountain.  

One last shot before we went home.  

I’m pretty happy with how today turned out, especially given how it started off.  Next month, we’re going to Ireland to see Paul Simon in concert.  I bought tickets for the show in February and put them in my usual safe keeping spot.  Somehow in the past four months, the tickets got lost.  This morning, we spent about an hour trying to call Ticketmaster in Ireland to get duplicates made.  For awhile, it looked like we weren’t going to get through to a human being and I was getting pretty pissy.  But we were finally successful.  A lovely Irish lass helped us out and for a six euro fee, I hope to have duplicate concert tickets in my hands for next month’s concert… the second of four we’re planning to attend this year.

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Kelten-fest! Nagold, July 2017

Today, Bill and I decided to go to Nagold and visit the Kelten-fest.  Seems to me Kelten-fest is held every other year, but I could be wrong.  We were here for the one in 2015, but we never managed to get there when it was happening.  Since we are of Celtic origin ourselves, we made a point of going this year.  The fest is held in a large area near the river in Nagold.  One area is host to tents where crafts are made and sold.  Another area is where Highland games are held and musicians play.

In order to take part in the fun, you have to pay an entry fee.  A regular daily ticket is 6 euros, though if you buy the “Festkarte”, it’s 10 euros.  Go after five o’clock, and the price drops to 4 euros.  Kids under age 18 who are with their parents are free.

After we paid and got our blue wristbands, we wandered around and checked out the sights and scenes.  Celtic music played on a sound system as lads and lasses in kilts and other Celtic garb took part in the games, drank beer, ate food, or otherwise cavorted.  I kind of wished we had kilts.  Next time we go to Scotland, we’ll have to get outfitted.

The “kasse”, where you purchase your tickets.  If you go now, you won’t pay full price for today.

Helpful map points, not that it’s easy to get lost.

I was feeling too shy to pull out my good camera at this point, but it finally came out later.  These folks were participating in the Highland Games.  They had several different ones going on…

A pig was roasting nearby.  There were also people smoking salmon on wooden planks.  Those who preferred wurst and sauerkraut were also in luck! 

They were carrying this pole and running through a maze of trees…

And in this area, there were folks tossing poles.  Unfortunately, I didn’t get a chance to watch much of this event.


Across the way, there were craftsmen and women creating and selling their wares.  There were even a few animals.

Chilled out goats and a cow.

Blacksmith, doing it old school style.

Chickens!  There was also a very lazy pig in the next pen, but I didn’t manage to get a shot.

As you can see, lots to see and do and plenty of people dressed the part.

I had to take a couple of wildflower shots, too.  Time to update my Facebook cover.

Bill buys us a couple of black beers made by Hochdorfer, the local brewery.

We got larges.  Be warned, the pfand for these beers is very high…  five euros!  If you get a small beer, it’s only one euro.  Bill gave this guy twenty euros and when we turned in our glasses, we got ten euros back.  

Cool glass, though…

This was a “steak” sandwich.  I think it was pork and it had ketchup on it.  It was pretty good and not too much.  It pays to remember that steak is actually a cut and not necessarily a hunk of beef.

Now this was the culmination of our fun…

Obviously still photos wouldn’t do, so I took a video.  See below.

And a video of the Battle on the Water!

If you have young kids, you might enjoy taking them to Nagold’s playground.  It’s pretty cool.  Literally, it’s cool…  There’s also mini golf and a really awesome public pool that wasn’t too crowded and looked really inviting.  Hmmm… maybe we should go back!

 

After we walked around a bit more, we headed to Der Weinladen and picked up a few bottles of wine for the weekend.  Then we had some ice cream at Panorama.  While we were eating these ice cream sundaes, which were loaded with liqueur, by the way, we ran into a lady who always walks her pug along the same route we do with our dogs.  I felt like a total native as we said hello!  And tomorrow, we’ve been invited to a neighborhood party… our first in three years of living here (and in fact, we were not invited to any parties last time we lived here, either).

These hit the spot!

On the way out of Nagold, we stopped by the Edeka and I ran in to get some tequila and ice cream.  While I was standing in the “schnell line”, which wasn’t actually very “schnell”, I had the chance to check out the cigarette packages.  I noticed that here in Germany, it’s not enough to put warnings on the labels.  And it’s not enough to make the labels huge.  They have to put pictures of people with stomas, cancer, and other cigarette induced maladies on the packages.  I must say, it make me laugh ruefully.  People will still buy their cigarettes.  Seriously, if you live in Germany or have a chance to visit, check out the cigarette packs.  Crazy stuff!

I think Denis Leary says it best about smoking, right?  Although I am not a smoker myself…  Just so you know, this video is probably NSFW.  

 

We had a great time at the Kelten-fest.  I’m glad we went.  I hope we’ll be around for the next one.  Maybe then, we’ll even wear kilts!

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Lunch at Panorama Eiscafe & Pizzeria in Nagold…

I thought I was done blogging for today, but Bill and I got hungry after he purchased a used freezer and we decided to go to Nagold for lunch.  I am always on the lookout for new places to try and every time we visit Nagold, I notice the Panorama Eiscafe & Pizzeria is always packed.  Today, we happened to park right next to the restaurant, so we decided to have lunch there.

Bill checks out the menu.

When we arrived, it was just before 1:00pm.  Most of the tables were free for the taking, although a lot of people were getting ice cream to go.  We sat down at a table and decided what we wanted.  A shy looking girl approached and took our drink order, then came back a few minutes later for our lunch orders.  This restaurant seems to specialize on amazing ice cream creations, but they also have a lot of pizza, salads, soups, and pasta selections.  I settled on Tagliatelle Salmone and Bill had Tagliatelle with mozzarella, basil, cream sauce, and tomatoes.  I talked him into ordering it, because it sounded good to me.

I took this during the calm before the storm.

It was fun people watching while we waited for our food.  Lots of people visit this eiscafe every week and they get their ice cream to go.  There’s a sign that says if you get your ice cream to go, you can’t sit at a table.  So people were getting cones and cups of ice cream and sitting on nearby benches.  Lots of kids were frolicking under the trees, chasing pigeons, and dropping ice cream.  Nagold is a very kid (and dog) friendly town.

When our food arrived, Bill got his dish.  Mine appeared to be baked rigatoni, which was not what I ordered.  The very sweet food runner was quick to pick up the rigatoni (which actually looked fabulous– might have to get that next time) and bring me the Tagliatelle Salmone I ordered.

Bill’s colorful pasta dish…

And mine…. Both of these dishes were priced at less than 10 euros. 

 

I had big plans of getting ice cream today, but as it was, I only managed about half of this pasta dish.  Bill also only got through half of his lunch.  I ended up having beer for dessert, while Bill had an espresso.  I was really sad that I was too full for ice cream.  Some of what I saw people eating was truly magnificent.  Unfortunately, I just can’t eat that much… and I really shouldn’t, given the beer baby that’s been growing for years.

I was very impressed by how pleasant the food runner was.  She smiled at us and spoke some English when it became clear that we aren’t Germans.  She seemed genuinely interested in whether or not we enjoyed our meals.  I found her very charming and it was easy to forget that she accidentally brought me the wrong dish.  I can see why this particular restaurant draws a crowd every weekend.

I still wish I had room for ice cream, but I know it’s better that I skip it…  If you happen to be in or near Nagold, the Panorama Eiscafe and Pizzeria is a nice place for a reasonably priced lunch.  Every time I go to Nagold, I like it more.  I’m shocked that we never discovered it the first time we lived here.  I’m glad we got to come back and enjoy its many charms.

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Dogs, kids, brews, and ice cream in Nagold…

Bill and I gave serious thought to taking the train to Stuttgart this afternoon and catching the Hamburger Fischmarket and Africa Festival.  But we went to both events last year and were wary of big crowds.  I really didn’t feel like taking the train to the big city, nor did Bill feel like driving.  So we decided to go to Nagold for a couple of hours.  Turns out that was a good choice.  Nagold is a nice, laid back little town that offers pretty much all we need, anyway.

It looked they they were either setting up or tearing down a “beach” area.  No one was there today.  It was funny we passed this because earlier, I was talking about wanting to go to the beach.  ETA: My German friend Susanne says it’s the Anker Beach.  Guess we’ll be heading there soon!

Bill gives me a sly look as we wait for our lunch.

We shared a Greek Alsatian pizza.  I’m not usually too hot on these, but I wasn’t very hungry and didn’t want a big meal.  Sharing this was about right for us.

Although there was a kids’ football game we could have watched, I really just wanted to sit by the river and drink some beer.  Because it was so hot and sunny this afternoon, most of the good tables by the river were taken at Longwy, the little bar/cafe/restaurant where we usually go when we want to drink beer on Sunday.  But we did manage to find a spot with some shade and we had a round of beer and split a Greek flammkuechen.  I didn’t want to stick around for too long, though, because we were surrounded by smokers.  Besides, some guy had brought his three sleek, well-trained, water loving, dogs with him.  I wanted to watch them for awhile.  I did, and got some video footage.

The dogs were having a blast!

We walked past a very small festival where a band had been playing the French national anthem, some small kids were singing, and it looked like they were selling food in an attempt to raise funds for a music club.  They even had a bouncy house.

Then we passed the Nagold pool, which was extremely crowded today.  I didn’t see a single bare spot of grass.  As we headed back into the old town, we stopped for gelato.  I had strawberry and peppermint chocolate chip.  Bill had chocolate and walnut.  We stopped and watched the kids playing football, having a lot of fun.  I observed several small kids throwing water balloons at each other, completely and joyfully unsupervised.  It was a very refreshing sight to see these little children having fun with no adult helicoptering nearby.  I was reminded of the good old days in the 70s, when I was a little kid given total freedom to roam the neighborhood all day if I wanted.  I love this about Germany.

Kids playing football…

We could have sat and watched over pizza or pasta.

Ice cream hit the spot.  Strawberry and mint is a good combination!

I really love spending time in Nagold.  It’s a cute little town just minutes from where we live, yet totally different to look at.  I could hang out there all day.

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A lovely spring day in Herrenberg!

The weather was so nice this morning that I told Bill we had to get out.  Since it was about noon when we made the decision to venture out, we decided to go to Herrenberg, which is maybe a ten minute drive from where we live.  Herrenberg is also about ten or fifteen minutes from where we lived during our first tour in the Stuttgart area.  We used to visit Herrenberg often during our first time here, but we don’t go nearly as often since we moved back in 2014.

We decided to walk around the town and look for a place to have lunch.  We poked our heads in Osteria da Gino’s, a traditional pizzeria different from Osteria da Gino’s in Nagold.  Since Herrenberg’s Osteria da Gino’s was full, we walked away from the main square and happened upon a typical German restaurant.  While Bill was studying the menu, I happened to make eye contact with an adorable Asian child who came out of the newly opened Asian place on the other side of the street.  The boy, maybe four years old or so, grinned playfully at me and was very charming.  Since the place was empty and it had been a long time since we last had Asian food, I beckoned Bill into the newly opened restaurant.

The guy running Asia Gourmet Imbiss did not speak any English, so I was forced to use my terrible German skills.  I’m not sure if he quite understood that my German is terrible.  If he did, he paid it no mind.  We managed to successfully order lunch, though.

We were the only ones in the restaurant at 12:30pm.  The friendly proprietor beckoned us to sit and Bill ordered us a couple of Singha beers from Thailand.  Singha is a pleasant pilsner.

Bill checks out the interior of the small dining room.  

I started with some very tasty fried shrimp with sweet red chili sauce.

Bill had a spring roll.  Both appetizers tasted good and were served piping hot.  

 

We had tried to explain that I don’t like mushrooms, but somehow that information got lost in translation.  I ordered Cantonese duck, which was basically crispy duck with peanut sauce.  It wasn’t very spicy, but there were indeed a couple of mushrooms in it.  Fortunately, I only found two and Bill was happy to take them off my hands.

Aside from the mushrooms, this was a very good dish.  The vegetables were fresh and the duck was delicious.  I noticed the restaurant also offers sushi.  It’s been ages since I last had sushi.  We might have to go back for that.

Bill had a spicy chicken dish with vegetables.  The weird expression on Bill’s face is not a reflection of the quality of the food.  He actually really enjoyed his lunch.

 

While we were enjoying lunch, two more parties arrived.  One group appeared to be English speakers who spoke much better German than I can.  Total damage for our lunch was 24,80.  As we paid the check, the proprietor sent us off with a couple of house shots of plum wine.  We’ll have to go back sometime soon.  That was a nice change of pace for us.

A shot of the front of the restaurant.

Herrenberg was alive with people today.

Everybody was enjoying the cafes and outdoor seating.

We walked up to the big church on the hill.  We had visited once when we lived here from 07-09.  I was almost tempted to try a walk to the berg, but I needed to go to the bathroom and didn’t feel like walking uphill.  Maybe when the weather is a little warmer.

The views from the church level were pretty tantalizing.  Someday, when I’m not feeling lazy, I’ll venture higher.

Under the window is a cute little play area for kids.  How progressive!

Inside the church.

One of the bells on display.

We can see the road to Haslach from here…

A view of the countryside.

 

We decided to get some ice cream and headed to the Cafe Gelateria La Piazza, where we used to go all the time during our first tour in the Stuttgart area.  As we walked into the place, I noticed an older couple sitting close to the door.  They recognized me even sooner than I noticed them.  I heard them say, “Jenny?”  At first, I thought they were our current landlords, but as I got closer, they said the magic word “Pfäffingen”.  They had been our neighbors!  I guess I haven’t changed much, because they knew me even though we hadn’t seen each other since 2009.  The wife bears a strong resemblance to our current landlady, which is part of the reason I was initially so confused.  They could be sisters.

Much to my embarrassment, I don’t think they ever told me their names when we were their neighbors, so I didn’t know what they were today.  However, when we lived here the first time, I often used to talk to their daughter, Claudia, who’s about 7 years younger than I am.  She and her husband and young son, Robin, lived in her parents’ house.  It took them a long time to talk to us when we were neighbors, mainly because the parents speak no English and in those days I spoke zero German whatsoever.  Claudia could speak some English, but was not so sure of her skills (which were pretty good, in my opinion).   The ice finally broke when my dog, Flea (RIP), whined when he saw Robin.  He wanted to play with the little boy so badly.  It was very cute and Flea charmed them enough that they decided to talk to us.  After that, we were on friendlier terms.  It took months, though.

Anyway, my German is still terrible, but I can at least form simple sentences now and understand a lot more than I used to.  I managed to tell them we live in Jettingen now and Bill is out of the Army.  They asked about my dogs, Flea and MacGregor, both of whom have gone to the Rainbow Bridge.  I told them we had two different dogs. They told us Claudia and her husband, Holger, have another child, a girl named Julie.  I tried to tell them to say hello to Claudia.  My guess is that they will tell her hello and mention to our old landlord that we’re back in Germany.  The funny thing is, yesterday I told Bill that I had a feeling we were going to eventually run into our previous landlord.  Instead, we ran into our neighbors!

I have an uncanny knack for running into people.  A few years ago, when Bill and I lived in San Antonio, we went out to dinner one night and ran into a guy I worked with at a tiny summer camp in Star Tannery, Virginia.  I hadn’t seen him since 1994.  He and his wife, who had been a counselor in training at the same camp that summer, were out for pizza.  It boggles the mind that we ran into each other.  San Antonio is a big city and there are a lot of restaurants there.  Yet I ran into him and his wife.  Another time  during our year in Texas, Bill and I were eating at a restaurant in San Antonio and we ran into my dentist.

Years prior to moving to Texas, when I was waiting tables in Williamsburg, Virginia, I waited on people from Belfast, Ireland who happened to be next door neighbors to another guy who worked at that same summer camp in Virginia.  This kind of thing happens to me all the time, though.  Twice, I went to Washington, DC to visit the Peace Corps headquarters and ended up running into people I knew when I was a Volunteer in the 90s.  One was a guy who had served in Armenia with me and the other was a Volunteer in Bulgaria who had let me and a friend crash in his apartment in Sofia for a week.  What are the odds we’d be visiting there on the same day?  Crazy coincidence, I’d say.

Bill looks for ice cream.

I went with a chocolate sundae.  

Bill had Eis Cafe.

 

I’m glad we decided to go into the konditorei instead of sitting outside or going to the other Eis cafe that wasn’t so busy.  And I have no doubt that we will run into other people who used to know us.  The world is small.  So those of you who think I’m an annoying blahger better brace yourselves.  😉

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German ice cream…

It’s funny when I type “German ice cream”, I’m reminded of the job I spent four summers doing at Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, Virginia.  I worked in the German Ice Cream shop.  I cashiered, capped strawberries, served soft serve ice cream, and made waffle cones.  The first two years, I wore ugly fake lederhosen, complete with culottes, knee socks (which I never pulled up) and shirts with lederhosen straps sewn to them.  The first year I worked there, the straps were not sewn on and that turned out to be an occupational hazard, since we had an unused frozen yogurt machine that had parts that stuck out on it.  More than once, one of my straps got hooked on that thing.  The second two years, females were outfitted in dirndls.  I liked the dirndls better, since it was easier to use the restroom and I could wear my own shorts under the skirt.  The only thing bad about them was that I am a bit well endowed, so that dress made me look like I was selling something milky besides soft serve ice cream.  My boobs were busting out, if you know what I mean.

All day, I listened to polka music… the same damn six or eight songs over and over again all day and every summer.  The polka music got on my nerves, because one of the songs had a flat note in it.  I seemed to be the only one who noticed it.  It’s been about 16 years since I last visited Busch Gardens, but I think they still play the same music, or so some of my local friends have told me.

This is the music I listened to for four summers…  It was a little like being trapped in a Lawrence Welk style nightmare.

Now that I live in the actual country of Germany again, I get to enjoy real German ice cream.  That was one thing I loved about living here last time because Germans put Americans to shame when it comes to this frozen treat.  Go to any German Eis Cafe and order a sundae and you will get an incredible creation that will blow your mind.

An example of “German Eis” at a cafe…  They get a lot fancier than this.

Hell, go to the store and buy some ice cream.  They come in plastic containers here and you will find all manner of different flavors designed specifically for self-indulgent adults.  Sometimes, you can even find ice cream with booze in it.

Two flavors in our freezer: Black Forest and Triple Chocolate…  Black Forest is my favorite!

 

Look at that!  When was the last time you saw American ice cream in a container that looks all decorative?

 

Yes, this is vanilla ice cream with “Eierlikor”– Egg liqueur.  And yes, egg liqueur is an adult beverage.

A close up of the Triple Chocolate…

 

Now, I don’t eat a lot of ice cream.  Every once in awhile, I get in the mood for a little dessert, but it happens less than once a week.  But when I do want ice cream, it’s nice to have some that isn’t for kids.  When I am in the USA, I can make ice cream.  Here in Germany, I am content to purchase it and give a big present to my ass.

Tomorrow starts my big trip to Virginia, so stay tuned for new hotel reviews… and probably a fair amount of bitching.

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Super cheap eats in Kemnat…

Last night, Bill and I decided to eat dinner in town because he was super tired from his trip to Chad and we didn’t really have much in the apartment by the way of dinner fixings.  It appears that the two main restaurants, Hermes and Krone, were closed last night.  They probably went on vacation, as is very common for restaurant folks to do in Germany during August.  They just close up for two or three weeks and recharge.  Personally, I think that’s a great thing.  I’ve worked in restaurants and they can be pretty horrible if you want to have a life outside of work.  I think it’s very healthy that restaurant owners in Germany take a break.  Ultimately, it’s probably healthier for their patrons, too.

But given that we were in need of food last night, we had to find somewhere to dine.  We ended up at a little hole in the wall bar/bistro obviously owned by Greeks.  There were two rowdy tables of older folks there, holding court, drinking beer, and smoking.  And when we walked in, the proprietor very kindly greeted us as we chose a table toward the back (away from the smoke).

At first, it seemed a little awkward in there… almost like we were crashing a party.  But the regulars were actually very nice and eventually seemed kind of welcoming.  One said “Guten appetit!” on his way to the restroom.  And talk about cheap eats!  Everything on the menu was priced at 5.50.

No frills eats!

This is what we got when we ordered the gyros! 

 

I wasn’t able to eat all of this… and it was a little saltier than I like it.  On the other hand, for 5.50 euros, it was quite a bargain and it was pretty good considering how cheap it was!  We each enjoyed a couple of beers, which were also very reasonably priced.  I can see why the locals like this place so much.  I left there reeking of cigarette smoke, but I’d go back for the atmosphere.  There was a large TV on the wall behind us tuned to action movies with Greek subtitles.

On the way back, we stopped at Netto!, the local mini mart, to pick up some Viennetta.  I took a photo of the mural on the building opposite the store.

 

The mini mart was interesting.  They had a lot of beer, wine, frozen foods, and a small produce section.  One could also purchase hard liquor there.  And there was a lady ahead of us who was apparently determined to pay entirely in small change!

And this very pretty traditional building, that appears to be part of a church…

 

We came back to the apartment with our ice cream treat.  I always get a thrill in Germany when we find Viennetta.  It used to be available in the United States and was marketed by Breyer’s.  Now it’s marketed by Unilever.  One thing Europeans do right is ice cream.

Yum!

Bill is without a rental car right now, so I guess we’ll be holed up in the apartment again today.  Bummer.  But at least we now know where a good local dive is for super cheat eats!

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