Exploring Germany

So far, in Germany, we've been able to see some fun places. One of the first days we were here Mark got a day off; the main reason for the day off was to see more and learn more about Germany. So, we went with him on a hike in the forest next to Himmerod Abbey. We had a very nice National Forest Ranger give us the tour and he spoke really good English.

It was beautiful to see the forest, which was filled with several different kinds of trees. It was neat to learn that not only here near the Abbey, but throughout Germany they treat their forests much like gardens. They maintain their forests and still have plenty of wood for all their wood burning stoves, construction, manufacturing, etc, by planning out and selecting which trees out of the forest to cut. I thought that was kind of neat. The Abbey was the first one I'd ever been to (Ryan had already been to a few) so it was fun to see what one was like. The large chaple was especially neat to see since it was only the first we'd seen since we'd been to Europe; but it was beautiful! We also were able to have a delicious lunch at the Abbey's resaurant.

We were also able to take a trip down the "Fairy Tale Road." The Grimm Brothers, Jacob and Wilhelm, were born and grew-up in Germany where they collected and retold the stories and fairytales they had heard and found.

This is Hanau, Germany where the Grimm Brothers were born. We went to see the monument the city set up to honor the Grimm Brothers.

This is Steinau, Germany where the Grimm Brothers inherited a nice home and lived since they were about five. It was fun to walk through the village a little and see the different statues that represented the different fairy tales they were known for.

We stopped to take a bite out of the witches cottage from "Hansel and Gretel."
Delicous! I'm surprised it's not all gone already!

Jared found that he fit right in with the seven dwarfs, who were hanging out in the Grimm Brothers' garden. We decided his dwarf name would be "Squinty" because he likes to squint all them time, especially when pictures are being taken or he's smiling really big. That's our sweet little dwarf!

This is us in front of the castle that is said to be where the story of Repunzel came from. We're standing in front of the tower she would've lived in. It was pretty sweet!

We also went to another city to see the castle that is said to be the castle that inspired some of their fairy tales. That was one of the few neat castles we've been able to see in Germany. They have many, but this one isn't too far from where the Grimm Brothers grew up.



We've had a great time seeing Germany so far; it's a country with a lot of history! :)

Speicher and the villages

Thursday, May 2

After several hours of traveling (about 24 I think), driving and flying, we were glad to finally be in Germany and make it to Ryan's parents house in Nattenheim. When we got there Kris had nice warm German pancakes ready for us, which were so good, especially after snacks and air plane food for so long. That day we took some long naps to sleep off the jetlag. But, once we were ready we went to see the base and a bit of Germany. 

The first place we went was a nearby village called Speicher, where we stopped at a ice cream store. This ice cream store was kind of fun because it had menus for you to order from and most the ice cream dishes were shaped like something, like spaghetti and meatballs, a bumble bee, or a duck. It's really cute to see and really good ice cream!

After that we wandered around the village a little to see what a German village was like. All the roads and sidewalks we walked down were made out of cobble stone and the roads were very narrow, even though they were all two-way roads. Luckily these villages usually aren't busy with traffic. Almost every house or apartment window had plants in it, and a lot of the time the plant was an orchid or a couple orchids; they were beautiful and they seem to love the German weather and do really well here. We also noticed that most people have pretty, lace curtains and keep their yards or the area in front of their homes really tidy and clean. Also as we've been in Germany, we've noticed they have a slower pace of life, especially compared to what we're used to in America. Stores close early so people can be home, and there are benches and little gardens or shrines where people in the village can go to have some quiet time to themselves. So, altogether, Speicher and the other villages we were able to see were very beautiful!

We're really enjoying our time in Germany so far and have gotten to see a lot of it's beautiful country sides!! We're especially enjoying spending time seeing Mark and Kris again!