Well, maybe not every Thursday, but since we have this one last full day in Heidelberg at Jan & Greg’s we did a wee bit of laundry. One fabulous thing about merino wool, though, is that it doesn’t need washing as frequently as other materials. So our laundry load is much smaller than it would be if we were washing synthetics.
After we had coffee here at the house, and got the laundry into the dryer, we thought we’d visit the smaller Christmas market near the house. Alas, it must only be open on the same days the farmer’s market at the square is open, as nothing was going on at all. So instead we went to a nice coffee place for brunch and coffee. We are going to attempt to make this a two meal day, which is something I always do at home and much prefer on trips as well.
Getting back to the house we finished up with the laundry. Then it was time to say our farewell to the Haupstraße, Altstadt, and larger Christmas market. Tomorrow we have a morning train so today it’s our last chance to go there.
After a very quick look at the market we went back to the house, figured out our transportation, and got ready to head to Mannheim for one final concert.
Dan checked the weather. No rain. So we didn’t take our umbrellas and by the time the street car reached the train station it was … you guessed it! … raining. Ah well. We had hats and rain can’t dampen our spirits even if it does so to our clothes.
We reached Mannheim easily and walked to our restaurant, waited for Jan & Greg, and then had a nice meal.
Then it was a brief jaunt through the Mannheim Christmas market.
From there we went to the concert hall. We had a bit of time still, so we had drinks and pretzels. After that it was into the hall and a concert with Albrecht Mayer and ZKO (easier than typing their name). What a wonderful concert it was! When he played a Bach encore I confess I cried a bit. I was just so very moved. So now I’ve seen and heard to of my faves: VOCES8 and Albrecht Mayer! Next up will be another fave so stay tuned!
Bravi tutti!
Tomorrow all four of us head to another city. You’ll find out where when I post tomorrow!
Happy December! And where is the time going? This trip is speeding by … kind of like the train we took today.
We woke up far too early today, but we had to catch a streetcar and if we missed the 8:16 we’d have to call a car to get us to the train station. Of course waking too early meant I had way too much time, because I always pack the night before. But so it goes. We did get to say our goodbyes (for now) to Jan and Greg — if I were them I think I’d stay under the warm covers, but it was nice to see them!
It was very cold at the streetcar stop: If I’m remembering correctly it was 28° at that point. But we were well dressed and it was okay for the amount of time we waited.
We got to the Heidelberg train station with no problems, and after getting a coffee and something to eat we went to our track and not too long after got into our car.
This was a regional train which meant there were lots of stops and we couldn’t reserve seats, but neither were a problem In fact everything was going quite smoothly.
Note … I said was!
When we got to Frankfurt we had 1 1/2 hours to wait for our next train.
We wandered a bit (in the freezing train station and just outside so we could say we’d been to Frankfurt), eventually going in to get another bite just to escape the cold. Then we decided to get out of the eating area to verify the track and all. Hmm. Our train wasn’t showing up where I thought it would be. So we went to the information booth.
Um. Oops.
A rather serious young woman said, I thought rather pointedly, “Your tickets were for the airport train station, not this one,” or something similar was told to us by the woman there.
Brief pause so I could wonder if we were going to have to pay a lot to get new tickets (day of tickets can be costly).
“But you can catch that train here at 12:22, track 9.”
Whew!
WHY I bought the tickets beginning from the airport is a bit of a mystery to me, but since things worked out just fine I’ll just let it go. You can bet, though, that I then checked the next trains we will be taking (not today, mind you: this train is our final of the day).
Our train now was an ICE rather than regional, so we were in lovely first class seats that were reserved (next to two couples who never stopped talking, but somehow hearing people talk in another language kind of lulls me to sleep). I had worried that someone might have grabbed them when they were empty at the airport station so I was glad to see them empty.
Both on the first leg and this one there were many places where we saw a lot of frost (or was it light snow?). The entire trip was cloudy and frequently foggy. There were some lovely towns and beautiful mountain scenes. Taking photos from the train is never all that great but …
And then we got to our next destination.
Hello Nürnberg!
Nürnberg is known for its Christmas markets. Finding a hotel that would allow for cancellations, in fact, wasn’t easy as it normally is: they hardly need to offer that due to its popularity. I think they have the oldest Christmas markets in Germany, and I know they get tons of visitors.
We headed to our hotel, starting on the cobbled streets and then realizing that the directions took us on the outskirts so we’d be on surfaces better suited to our roller cases. (But I sure do miss our packs!) Our room is quite nice, I think, because Dan gets an upgrade due to his gold status with United. Good thing he allows me to share the room!
After resting up for a short time and charging our phones so they would last, we headed to the Christmas Market. I had looked on a map and it said a fifteen minute walk was ahead of us, yet we were there in less than five minutes. Strange! But okay then. We walked around, figuring we’d scout out the food spots before deciding what to get. When we got to what I assumed was the end I think we both thought it was nice, but not as big a deal as we expected. Still, it was fun.
Now if you play “Whamageddon” I will be kind here and say do NOT have your sound on when this video plays. Am I nice or what?! But c’mon … just give in. It is December first and I’ve already lost the game! Or maybe not … you can barely hear it. Darn!
We thought we saw a few more things ahead, so we walked on. Some stalls were closed and I said, “Maybe those are the crafts and trinkets and those close at night. Or maybe it’s because it’s Sunday.”
But we walked on some more and … um … well … what we saw five minutes from our hotel was NOT the real, huge, crazy Christmas market! Maybe it’s an expansion? Dunno. But the real thing … well it’s pretty darn huge and the crowds were crazy.
We had the necessary gluhwein. We had the “Drei im Weckla” that I had read was a must have in Nürnberg. We had lebkuchen Dan remembers from his childhood. We bought a few chocolates for when we got back to our room.
We listened for a bit to a choir. I couldn’t imagine singing out in the cold … but then no one wants to hear me anyway! This is Peters Chor.
And we had one more warm drink because we we starting to freeze! Nearing the end of our walk it was about 30° (or -1° if you want to go with Celsius). I started to get pretty darn cold toes and I’m thinking I might buy a pair of socks to double up with my other socks (my shoes are plenty roomy) because cold toes are … you aren’t going to believe this I know … cold toes! And who needs those? (Hm. I’m feeling like a poem is in there somewhere. But maybe not.) My chin was also getting to the point where words were going to be harder to pronounce. But soon we were back at our hotel and that warm air we hit when we went through the door was wonderful!
Our “for the hotel” chocolates were enjoyed, and we both did the iPad stuff we do. We will see what tomorrow brings.
We woke to a windy and cold day: it’s 0° if you are here. (32° if you are in the states.) That’s cold, but the sky is clear so no snow will be seen.
Dan immediately got to work on his super Brussels sprouts. The bread that he made yesterday (and didn’t finish until rather late) looks wonderful. His sweet potatoes went back in the oven. Greg headed out in the freezing cold to pick up breakfast.
More prep work occurred, and eventually Greg and I walked across the street to get some coffee. It was easier than trying to work around all the food prep. Then we sat down for breakfast.
See this photo I’m thinking I sure do need to learn to sit up straight. Hah!
Then it was more food prep. Jan was starting her turkey. Out of vegetables. SO cute! Greg worked on his dressing. Dan finished his Brussels sprouts. And I figured out what I would bring for our next, somewhat short trip tomorrow. (Stay tuned for the destination!)
Oh … and Dan started some laundry. That’s one of the any advantages of staying with family!
No matter how much one plans, the made rush at the end is always there. So it was with this. But it’s not like a concert, right? No one will fire us if we arrive a bit on the late side with all the food!
But, really, we weren’t “late-late” as I might put it, and no matter if we were: we were the first to arrive.
What fun to see Vanessa, Avni, Levin, Maya, and Hannah … and how the kids have grown since we last saw them in the summer of ‘23. Levin gave me a tour of the house, which was so darn sweet, and proudly showed me his English vocabulary books. Hooray for Levin!
After Lydia and Peter arrived we went to see Hannah’s kindergarten’s Christmas tree, then enjoyed gluhwein at their Christmas market, and headed to the Schwetzingen Palace to walk around the grounds. We were last here in 2013 in the heat of summer, so this was quite different!
Then back to the house we went, and let the food prep begin. When Anna, Hendrik, and Lillith arrived we had a toast and started with some tasty bites.
Finally on to so many different selections of food I didn’t even get to them all. The turkey had ended its cooking time on the grill and it was just perfect. Everything from start to finish was amazingly delicious. And I now feel like a stuffed turkey.
Back home I packed up for our next excursion: we catch the streetcar at 8:15 AM or so and I want to be ready!
We ended with a glass of port before bed. Quite the fine day!
Side note: as of today I’ve worn every bit of clothing (not counting my rain jacket since we’ve not hit significant rain yet) I’ve brought, and some I’ve worn quite a bit. I’ve also worn both pair of shoes. It always makes me happy to know nothing should have been left at home..
So … I had napped. And then, apparently, I spaced out enough to not write here. (FYI, I start writing earlier in the day and as I have time I add more.)
When I came out of our room only Dan was here. I knew Greg had left earlier to do some things, and Dan told me Jan was out getting something for lunch. Soon after she returned and we enjoyed some yummy food.
We hung out a bit. Greg came back. And I will be honest here and say now I’m sort of going semi-blank and can’t put down exactly what we did and in what order! But I know I tried to fix my soup to make it better. Didn’t really succeed. I’m not sure what is wrong, but it’s just not right! So it goes.
I know Dan worked on the bread and Greg worked on a few things. Jan prepped for her mashed potatoes. But some of this probably happened at this point and some happened after our excursions out. Maybe. I think.
We hung out more. Jan eventually went out on a walk. After she left I realized I really should do the same or I was going to go stir crazy. Greg opted for a short bike ride, and Dan said he’d meet up with me in a bit.
I headed out in the opposite direction as our normal route. It was nothing tremendously exciting, but I do like seeing the houses here, and I went up a street that took me to a somewhat nice view.
I then headed back down and to the main street to get back to our place, but saw Dan on the corner so we continued walking down the street, past where we usually turn, and rambled a bit.
Eventually we ended up at a sweet coffee shop we had peered into at other times. Dan had an espresso while I had secco, and we shared a treat.
While there I texted Greg and suggested we order pizzas (no way was I thinking anyone should cook more after we spent so much time working on various things we are bringing to our Thanksgiving feast!).
And then home we went. Greg picked up pizzas. We ate. We yakked.
And we headed to bed. And no, I didn’t sleep well. Go figure.
Well, well, well … I finally only woke once last night (well, literally it was morning, around 5:00 AM) and was up for maybe an hour. So hooray for that.
Today was our food prep day which, for Dan, meant stay here and manage the bread. I worked on my soup, Greg worked on a dish, and Jan kept up with the checklist so we didn’t forget anything (we hope!).
Oh … and Jan brought the turkey out of the cooler and said it was still frozen. So what to do? How about put water in the tub and place it there? Yep, that’ll do. And guess what that IS?!
Are you ready?
Can you handle a pattyjoke?
Sure?
Okay ….
It’s a Turkish bath! (And please don’t tell me I need to explain that joke to you. Hah!)
I did wake with a headache that I thought was due to the limoncello we were served (gratis) after dinner last night, but eventually I decided it was actually just one of my (thankfully rare) migraines. Ibuprofen and sleep are the best remedies, so after our breakfast, food prep work (help, my soup is boring!), and a bit of iPad goofing off I went to take a rest.
… the time Patty forgot to add the rest of the day … will add more when I get up! It’s 3:53 AM and I need to try and sleep more.
We began our morning with coffee and breads. I’m so thankful that we are able to do our travels, and extremely grateful that Jan and Greg are willing to house us … and, yes, feed us. For us, though, Thanksgiving will be on Saturday since the Germany gang doesn’t get today off.
We discussed all our tasks for meal preparation. I am making carrot ginger soup and glazed carrots (yes, I know they are both using carrots but they will have different things to sway them in different directions). Dan is doing bread, Brussels sprouts, and sweet potatoes. Greg is doing the turkey, cranberry relish, red cabbage, gravy, and I’m guessing he will also choose the wine. Jan is doing mashed potatoes and making sure we all get things done! (She’s the list keeper for this and I’m glad she’s put that together. It’s a lot of things to keep track of.) Some things are already prepared, some are in process, and some will get done tomorrow or Saturday morning.
After a while Dan suggested we go back to Mannheim since we really didn’t see much of it so while Greg got ready to take what turned out to be a long bike ride Jan, Dan, and I went to catch a street car. The number 5 goes to Mannheim. Um … sort of. It worked the first time we took it. This time it took the longest route possible, it seems. But we did finally get there, and I got to nap a bit (I still am not sleeping well … last night I was up between about 2 and 4 and then again from 5 to 6).
Arriving in Mannheim right near the water tower we went right there and checked out the Christmas market there. We bought our flammenkuchen (terrifically healthy stuff! HAH!) and then had glühwein We wandered by all the stands but, honestly, I wasn’t really interested in all the stuff people sell, and I wondered if people really buy some of the things … but what do I know?! (Don’t answer. Heh.)
After that it was back to the street car and deliberately read the destinations and, sure enough, we were choosing the number 5 to go back to Heidelberg. But … well … wait! At one stop the number changed to a different one and suddenly it veered incorrectly and we weren’t going to get home! So we had to get out and walk to another spot and grab a street car that would actually get us home. I guess I will never understand them … but Greg, when we arrived home, suggested we should have taken the train which would have been faster. Go figure!
Once we got home I decided to make the glazed carrots. The more we make ahead of time the better, I do believe. So after that and after a bit of glühwein we decoded we’d take everyone out to dinner (who wants to make dinner when preparing dinner for another day … RIGHT?!).
Dinner was at an Italian restaurant called Salerno’s, just down the street. And we all ate a lot and it was great fun.
Home meant a bit of cremont and some that incredibly expensive fruit & nut Alsacian treat that I foolishly bought. Okay … maybe not so foolishly since we all really like it! We are thinking it might be baerewecke. Sure fits the description!
Tomorrow is a big cooking day. I’m really hoping I sleep better tonight, but I’m not counting on it, considering the huge meal we ate at Salerno’s!
Anyway, Happy Thanksgiving to all my friends in the not so United States. Enjoy your day!
Today was a rather slow day. We woke and after coffee went to the local market (the outdoor sort) to purchase things for Thanksgiving which, for us, will take place Saturday.
We also picked up a few sweet things for breakfast.
After eating breakfast we went to get some flour so Dan can make bread for Saturday, and Jan picked up the flowers Greg had ordered for the house. (He always has flowers in the house and I just love it!)
After getting back home I eventually started to make my ginger carrot soup, with Jan helping (thanks, Jan!). I got it partially done and now it will sit until closer to our feast day.
I worked on some other things via my iPad and for some reason that caused me to get a headache so it was rest time for me. Greg was out doing errands, and Dan was on a walk. Jan was here at the house doing whatever she was doing and putting up with tired old me!
Upon Greg’s return we all walked down to the Christmas markets.
We had kartoffelpuffer (potato pancake) with applesauce for Dan and me and garlic sauce for Jan and Greg, so we aren’t talking to them any more. (KIDDING!) Oh, and we also had gluhwein. All was yummy.
Walking home … and yes, there are lots of cyclists here, even at night.
Finally back home we went (dropping in to some places for various things on the way). Bread, gluhwein ingredients … important stuff!
For dinner we had cheese, bread, salami, and some wine from our neck ‘o the woods that we had brought here. Then it was dessert. I did a rather stupid thing and bought an Alsacian treat that included nut and fruits but I have no idea what it’s called. I DO know it costs a monumental amount and I foolishly didn’t ask before buying. But so it goes … it’ll last a very long time on this trip, I’m sure. In any case, we had some of that, some jellies, and chocolates we purchased as well.
How much weight will I gain, I wonder?!
And then we all sat in the living room having lovely conversation. Or … um … maybe we were a bit tired for that! Hah! (It’s a crazy wide angle shot, I know, but it’s how I could get the dynamic three in the photo.)
Today was departure day. But before that … time to go to the bakery with Greg and pick up some yummy breakfast treats. We also walked around Riquewihr, because I had yet to see it in the daylight.
Today is also Jan’s birthday. Happy Birthday, Jan!
After we ate and packed up we drove back to the village (Ribeavillé) where we bought wine yesterday, because Greg was picking up a few more bottles of wine. Of course we had to sample the wine he was buying, too.
Then we drove to another village: Orschwiller. I mean … why not, right? Greg and Jan buy wine from a place there, so we did a good amount of tasting there as well, and Dan and I purchased three bottles to enjoy while we are here (we don’t want to bring anything home since we are hoping for carryon only going back), and Greg will have his bottles shipped since our car was plenty full already!
Also on the way home we stopped in Karlsruhe, saw some of the Christmas market, and ate at a place indoors since it was a bit cool for eating outside and the Christmas market didn’t have any indoor seating until later.
Finally it was time to get to Heidelberg. Greg prepared dinner (fondue). Dan and I had the lovely task of setting up fraud alerts because we received emails yesterday that our social security numbers have make it to places we don’t want them to be. Fun.
Then it was a great dinner and celebrating Jan’s birthday.
Adjusting to the time here, are we? Ummmmm … I woke Dan at 8:58 because I think maybe he’d have slept even longer, and I woke up only 30 minutes or so before that. So I guess the answer is that we are slowly adjusting. Having no sun makes it more of a challenge, along with the very short days.
We sat around a bit, and ate some of the persimmon bread Dan made. Greg sent me a video via WhatsApp … it was snowing in Kaiserslautern! No snow here when I looked out the window. Yet.
But then Dan said, “It’s snowing,” and, sure enough, the white stuff was coming down. Not enough to stick, but still, it was pretty.
We finally headed out, looking for the coffee place we went to last time we visited here. Either we’ve forgotten where it is or it no longer exists! Eventually we wound up at a chain bakery spot we’ve been at before. It was fine.
Shortly after that we decided to take the tram to the train station, because we’d been told we might want to see the new area behind it. The train station isn’t exactly lovely.
Trouble was, we couldn’t locate that new area. I guess we are blind! So we walked a very small amount and eventually took the tram back to the Altstadt so we could find lunch. We wound up in a place I had initially made fun of: Frittenwerk. It actually wasn’t bad if you feel like having a thing full of fries, covered in a sauce, with falafels and various other things (or, in Dan’s case, chicken schwarma — and there were other choices as well). And it wasn’t too costly either. But of course I can’t say we ate a truly healthful meal. (Not a great image of my food since I only thought to take a quick pic after I was nearly done!)
At that point we headed back home so we could rest up and get ready for our next adventure: our first concert of the trip!
Taking the tram, we went to Mannheim. Prior to the concert we met up with Greg and Jan, who had come directly from work, and went to dinner. We even did dessert … partly because we didn’t want to get to the venue so early we’d have to stand outside in the cold!
The venue … and quite a line. Actually, two lines, going in from each side.
Finally, it was time … and hello VOCES8! Being a huge fan, I was delighted when Greg had written to say he could get tickets for this concert. It was fabulous. Truly. I didn’t purchase a program, so I’m not sure who the two new faces were: I know Molly Noon has left the group, but Blake Morgan was also missing. I don’t think he’s left, but of course I don’t really know. There was no mention of who was singing (they usually do a song that introduces everyone), so I guess I’ll never know who those two “subs” were. But they all sounded super!
Well, I might have thought I was over jet lag, but my sleeplessness and then, when finally asleep, not waking until 8:00 and only then because Dan’s alarm went off say differently. Ah well! Jet lag is just something one deals with on these trips.
After getting up and showering, and then Dan doing the same, we walked to a small bakery spot and bought some pastries/breads and coffees. (Note to self: one pastry or bread option would be enough and don’t go for the sweet stuff!) We brought those back to the house and enjoyed them there, and then I started to feel the issue I get with too much sugar so I took a 20 minute snooze to recover.
Then it was time to head out … and up. We took the Philosphenweg to the old bridge. It’s a fairly substantial climb, and it’s just lovely.
By the time we got in to the Altstadt it was lunch time and while our intention was to have a smaller meal it didn’t quite work out that way. But it was tasty!
Then back to the house we went. I began this post, and then it was nap time.A SHORT nap, but it was definitely necessary
After a bit of time Dan and I went back to the Altstadt and met up with Melli — someone we had only met online. What a FUN time we had during our short visit. I’m so glad she thought to connect with Dan and set up the meeting! (But darn, I didn’t even get a photo … how crazy is that?!)
From there it was back “home” and dinner, conversation, and fun times with Greg and Jan.
Tomorrow we go to hear a favorite group of mine. Stay tuned!
