Fortunately, we drove Molly’s car when we went to Germany. Her car has no such problems with power. Actually, if anything it might have an excess. If you aren’t careful, you can end up with whiplash when you step on the accelerator. Once we got to Germany, we soon found ourselves on the Autobahn, where there is no speed limit. Coming from a family of backseat drivers, it was quite a relief not to have people watching the speedometer to make sure we weren’t exceeding the posted limits. At one point, I actually heard “Come on Dad, you’re only going 82!”. We topped out at 104, I think.

I was interested to see that there are actually quite a few places on the Autobahn where the speed is regulated. As you approach interchanges and exits, in places where the road turns, or going over bridges, the maximum speed is posted appropriately. This seems very reasonable.

One thing that did help, though, was playing dice poker with the family our last night there. Dice poker is also known as Yahtzee. Anyway, we learned the numbers through six and a few more besides. I guess that’s a good start!

The cheesecake was amazing! It was very, very light with a unique tangy zest. And not too sweet, a common problem with cakes. I’ve never had anything quite like it. But I did eat quite a few pieces!

This picture is from downtown Albstadt. Hee hee!

Oh, I have one more anecdote from Germany. On the way to Meersburg, we passed a couple cars that had been involved in an accident. It didn’t look to serious, just a dented bumper. One of the men, though, was out on the street cleaning up the broken bits of car with a push broom. It struck us as interesting that someone would think to clean up the plastic bits after the accident. But it was even more interesting that someone would have a push broom in the car at all. I wonder if that is any insight into the German psyche?

Well, we’re back in England. I’ve got a few more current things I’ve been thinking of posting. Mayhap tomorrow.

We all loved it! The best part, though, was swimming in the outdoor pool when it started snowing. Swimming in the snow was an amazing experience. The kids climbed out of the pool to gather snow to eat while they swam. It was magical!

We stayed for five hours, breaking briefly to fill our bellies. I wish we had more photographs to share, but something about water and cameras just don’t seem to mix. It was remarkable how much more confidently the kids swam after that much time in the water. By the end, River was able to tackle the biggest waves without any trouble and even Tove was swimming without any assistance.

Here is promotional video showing what is like at Badkap. Though we aren’t featured in their footage, it does give a sense of what the facilities are like. Once the new window is open, click on “Schnell” to start watching the best quality video. Unfortunately, we didn’t make it to the sauna with all the kids…

Petra’s parents, Artur and Waltroud, were wonderful hosts and generously made us welcome in their gracious home as part of their family. We all feel so grateful to the Schweitzers for sharing the holidays with us.

I have recently been appreciating the importance of maintaining traditions and I was pleased with the way we were able to integrate some of the German traditions with our own customs.

The kids and I made this wreath with the home ed group in Derby. Petra’s parents used it as part of the advent celebration. We lit all four of the candles on the fourth Sunday and sang songs to the light of the flickering flames.

The tree was very beautiful: spacious branches provided plenty of space to show off the decorations and candles.

We ate an amazing dinner called raclette on Christmas eve. There was a big pot of potatoes and lots and lots of toppings. The toppings were put into little pans that went under the grill in the middle of the table. There is a particular type of cheese that is traditionally melted to drizzle onto the potato. I’m not sure if the cheese gave it’s name to the meal or vice versa, but it was known colloquially in English as “the stinky cheese”.

There was a nice selection of cheese, vegetables, meats and even fruits. In the picture below, River is loading up a tray with little orange sections.

The kids all loved Uncle Stefan. They got him to play hide and seek and generally chased him all over the house. I imagine it helped that his English was very good (he lived in England for a bit), but I think there must be something about uncleness that crosses cultural boundaries.

The candles on the tree were magical. We sang by candlelight as many verses of as many carols as we could manage. Eventually, after we all sang “Silent Night” in English, German, and even phonetic German and the kids finished all the verses of “Children Go Where I Send Thee”, they got to open their presents.

Presents are opened on Christmas eve in Germany. The kids all loved their pajamas! Thanks, Gail!

Normally, Saint Nicholas comes to Germany on December 6, but Santa knew we hadn’t been there for St. Nicholas day and made a special trip to Albstadt. We forgot to bring the kids wonderful handmade stockings, but we were able improvise with some long socks that Molly had packed in her suitcase.

Everyone enjoyed the presents Santa left in their stockings. I should mention that Sage is holding a pretzel along with her candy cane. Santa must have stopped at a bakery on the way, knowing that the Germans make the best pretzels in the world. These ones were shaped like little animals. There was some discussion about whether they were mice or cats, but in the end it didn’t really matter. They were amazing! Especially with a little pat of butter stuck inside!

I was very impressed with the way the kids played together all week. To be sure, it wasn’t always a tea party, but for the most part they were all amazing!

We found these caves on the way to the tower. We searched briefly for fossils in the bits of limestone that had fallen to the ground.

We saw someone setting up a belay to ascend the cliff just around the corner from this cave.

The views from the tower are astounding. This is the vista to the north. Petra’s family home is on the street nearest the trees.

This is the view to the west and basically the same view you can see from the house. That is the town of Albstadt, just north of the downtown area. The town is charming. Molly and I explored a bit while doing a little last minute shopping.

And finally, the view to the south. If you look really, really closely, you might be able to make out the Alps in this picture. They look more like a layer of clouds just above the horizon, but Petra claims that they are really mountains!

We wandered through the streets, finding a playground and a toilet amidst the ancient buildings. We found this waterwheel along the path that led from the lower section of town up to the upper town near the castle. Molly found it was quite easy to turn the wheel while standing at the base. It is so large that it looks as if it should be difficult to spin, but it must be mounted in such a way to minimize friction. I imagine that it’s not currently attached to any machinery, though. I wonder if it could be connected to a generator to charge batteries for the house’s electrical needs?

The old town is very charming and there are loads of shops. Apparently, Meersburg is a popular tourist destination. They must be fair-weather tourists, though, because it seemed mostly abandoned at this time of year.

We found a terrific restaurant, just in the nick of time. After some traditional German fare, we made a brief visit to the castle perched at the top of the town. It’s sandstone walls are quite impressive atop the cliffs.

Then we drove onto the ferry across the lake to Constance. River loved the feel of the wind on her face, even though it was so cold that it was almost unbearable for normal people.

The Christmas market in Constance was quite nice. We drank gluhwein and kids climbed on a statue while the band played carols. Molly wasn’t particularly impressed with the gluhwein. Wikipedia claims that in the old times wine often went bad, but by adding spices and honey it could be made drinkable again. It was warm, though! We managed to do a little shopping before freezing temperatures and blood sugar issues sent us back to the car to head home.

The kids did a lot of singing together. You can hear them singing along to “Deck the Halls” in the video below. They also managed nice renditions of “Twelve Days of Christmas”, “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer”, and “Children Go Where I Send Thee” among others. I love hearing the influence our family chorus.

After procrastinating for quite some time, all the inexpensive airline tickets were gone. We considered taking the train for a while, but eventually decided to drive to Germany. On Friday the 21st, we drove to Folkestone, where the train departs through the tunnel to Calais.

The train was pretty fun! It felt like we were driving into a long space ship. Once parked, an attendant shuts the doors between the train cars and you can walk around. It’s hard to tell that you are in a tunnel under the sea, since there aren’t windows to see the fish and seaweed. Actually, it hardly feels like you are moving at all. It was a nice way to travel.

We spent the night in Reims, France. I was disappointed at how little French I could recall. Spanish words kept leaping from my tongue instead. I think it would eventually come back if I spent enough time listening.

The city was beautifully lit up when we arrived at night. Reims is one of the centers of champagne production and we meant to pick up some bubbly on our way out of town, but we decided against waiting around until the shops opened. This is the Porte de Mars, a Roman triumphal arch dating from the third century.

The French countryside was very beautiful, even more so because there was a heavy coating of frost covering everything.

We met our friends in Tubingen, Germany. I have wonderful memories of the week or so there I spent there in 1994 as part of a semester abroad. It was actually even more charming than I remembered, though these photos don’t do it justice.

We got some treats from a bakery and wandered the streets.

It was great to see our friends again!