The Fall Months

A small town in Germany (Bad Durkheim) throws a big party each September. Around a million people visit the Sausage Fair (Wurstmarkt). Essentially this is a wine festival of immense proportions, with sausage on the side. Bands, music, fairground rides, wine tastings, and firework spectaculars add to the fun and frolics. Held in a tented fairground over two long weekends, this is a hectic-paced party that keeps going through the night and into the early hours. We spent an afternoon there on September 8th, with our friends Edna and Chuck, but didn't take any pictures except for a beautiful garden we saw on the way to the fest.

The following Saturday (9/15) we went to a wine tasting sponsored by a co-worker of Edgar's. Everyone bought a bottle of red wine from a specific region of France and they were bagged to hide the labels and we tasted and rated. At the end, points were tallied and the winner of the favorite won a beautiful decanter. And the winner of the loser got a prize too...but I can't remember what it was! There were about 30 people there. Good food and drink!!

The next day (9/16), we did a picnic with our German neighbors. The weather was perfect...low 80's with a light breeze. We hiked about 4km (one way) with 12 or so adults, 10 kids and one dog (Schotzie, of course). The hike took us through numerous vineyards and portions were at a good uphill grade. I'm surprised the kids made it. We even had one in a hiking stroller!!



About 30 minutes in, we stopped for a rest (under the premise that the kids needed a rest). Out popped the wine bottles and we all had a glass (yes, a real glass...we hike in style here) and some snacks. Then off we continued to our final destination.

The view was gorgeous, overlooking the vineyards and the Rhine river. We ate and drank for about 2 hours. The best part is that Gabby's husband Peter was coming late (he was with his son Johannes at a handball game) so he drove there with 2 more coolers filled with more wine and drinks for the kids. I have no idea how much we drank and ate, but it sure was relaxing. Edgar bought a football and it got tossed around, to the chagrin of Schotzie, who ran back and forth barking, between the tossers.



Edgar set the timer on his camera to get a group shot. It didn't turn out as well as we hoped, but here we are....

Later on that night we went to a local show with Gabby and Peter to see the German version of Stomp. It was MUCH better than the one I saw at home. Less intense noise and just really good use of ordinary objects to make noise. There was only a short dialogue, so we didn't get lost trying to understand!!

This weekend (9/21-9/23) is a big bazaar on the Army Air Field where vendors from numerous countries come and sell their wares. I've heard it's a great time and lots of cool things are available for purchase.

The bazaar was excellent. I came home with a case of wine, cheese, clothing, Polish Pottery and a few Christmas gifts. On Saturday we went hiking to Loreley, about 40 minutes from our house. Edgar saw a castle that he wanted to explore. We drove into the town and then hiked up a pretty good sized hill with a lot of stone steps. The view along the way was gorgeous. That's the Rhine in the background.

The hike only took about 15 minutes but when we got to the top, it turned out that the castle is privately owned and doesn't accept visitors. Bummer!!! So then we just strolled around the town till we found a spot to sit down and have a beer. We took this pic of the castle from the town.

On Sunday, we had a big cookout with over 50 people. The invitees were a diverse group...some German neighbors (who speak only German), some German neighbors (who speak English too), co-workers from Edgar's work, and some friends I've made since we moved here. Everyone contributed a dish to share. Our neighbors brought over a self-cooling keg of beer (we need those in the US!) and I made a huge batch of ribs and brats. The weather was absolutely gorgeous....low 80's and sunny. It was a great party!!

I'm off to the States for a bit, so it will probably be quiet on the blog front for a while. Hope to see as many of you as I can while I'm home!!

Tschuss!!

(That means "See You!")

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While I was back in the US, Edgar participated in the annual grape harvest run by his office. This harvest will actually become bottles of branded wine that his office can sell....and it's pretty good too!!

He also went hiking in the Austrian Alps. Here are some shots of that trip:

A "Roman" Anniversary

Back in the States, it's Labor Day weekend. It's also our third anniversary...on September 4th. Edgar took me to Rome for a long weekend. And when you travel with Edgar, it's a "labor" in itself...the man doesn't slow down one minute!

We flew on Ryan Air, which is like a cheap sister to Southwest or AirTran. There's no assigned seating, and you typically fly in and out of remote airports. You also don't fly at lovely hours either. But, the price is right, so off we flew on Ryan Air from Frankfurt (Hahn...about an hour from our house) to Rome-Ciampino (about 45 minutes from downtown Rome).

We arrived in Rome about 8am on Saturday, September 1st. We immediately headed for the USO office so we could hop on a few tours. Luckily, we got there just in time for the Vatican City tour, which just so happened to be right around the corner from the USO office. We waited in line for about 45 minutes (which, believe me, was not long, considering that the line snaked around many blocks, and we were towards the front).

The tour took us through the Vatican Museum, the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter's. What an overwhelming experience...and we didn't even see it all!! Our tour guide was pretty good, but she had a heavy Italian accent, so sometimes you just couldn't figure out the word she was saying! But all in all, it was very cool to be at the Vatican, and know that perhaps the Pope was in his living quarters right down the hall!

One of the coolest things I saw at the Vatican was a hallway with numerous pieces of artwork that looked like paintings from afar but were actually tapestries. And on the ceiling, the artwork looked like it was 3D but was actually 1D and painted with a technique to look like it had depth. It's hard to put into words how amazing it looked.

After the Vatican, we headed on another tour of two famous Basilica's and one of the largest catacombs, where they used to bury the dead underground. The first church was the Santa Maria Maggiore. For more information about this church, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basilica_di_Santa_Maria_Maggiore. Here's a picture of the inside:

The second church was the San Giovanni Laterano, which has the inscription outside that it is the most famous church in Rome, and in the world. For more information, see http://rome.arounder.com/san_giovanni_in_laterano/index.html. Here is a picture of the inside:



Opposite the Basilica of San Giovanni in Laterano (St. John Lateran), the Holy Stairs are reputed to be those walked up by Christ, preserved at this former Papal palace. The 28 marble stairs carefully preserved in this handsome building are traditionally the steps walked up by Christ on his way to trial before Pontius Pilate. St. Helena, mother of the Emperor Constantine, was a pioneering collector of relics, and the staircase is supposedly among her finds, brought to Rome in c.326 AD. Devout pilgrims still mount the steps on their knees, praying. The rate of progress is very slow and looks suitably punishing. Nowadays the stairs are protected by wood, although there are holes cut through above marks which are supposed to be Jesus's blood (you won't be able to see through these unless you do the kneeling).

The catacombs of Di Domitilla were astounding. Four levels deep, this is the oldest of the catacombs. You enter through a sunken 4th-century church. One of the neatest sights was a 2nd century fresco of the Last Supper. We didn't see any bones, but apparently there are some remaining...just not in the part we toured.

We ended the day with a dinner on one of the Piazza's and then strolled over to the Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps. By the way, something I did not know about Rome until I went there....there are public water fountains scattered everywhere, so one bottle of water in the morning was refilled over and over, keeping us hydrated while we walked what seemed like 20 miles a day!

Our second day in Rome started with the Colliseum. What an amazing architectural feat!! With a little imagination, you could visualize 50,000 Romans cheering for the gladiators...or the lions!

Next to the colliseum was the Constantine Arch, which you can see in the background in the picture below. The Arch was erected to commemorate Constantine I's victory over Maxentius at the Battle of Milvian Bridge on October 28, 312 AD.

Next we toured through The Forum. The Roman Forum (Forum Romanum) was the political and economical centre of Rome during the Republic. It emerged as such in the 7th century BCE and maintained this position well into the Imperial period, when it was reduced to a monumental area. It was mostly abandoned at the end of the 4th century.

After the Forum, we headed to Palatine, disputed to be one the earliest Roman settlements. For more info, see http://sights.seindal.dk/sight/242_Palatine_Hill.html

We then walked through a number of Piazza's, had dinner and did some light shopping.

Our third day in Rome was basically just a huge long walk, sometimes we saw a sight we had already seen. We went into a number of churches, and everyone was amazing. We did see the Pantheon, which is touted as the best preserved building of ancient Rome. We saw quite a few more fountains. Edgar also took the steps to the top of St. Peter's Dome and had someone take a picture of him standing there. This is a feat in itself, as Edgar is not a fan of heights. If you look hard, maybe you'll see the white knuckles?? Some pictures are below:

All in all, a wonderful trip...and an awesome anniversary present. One can only wonder what he will come up with for next year's anniversary!!