4/13/01

Frau Huber has the house all decorated for Easter with beautiful painted eggs here and there, ceramic bunnies and ducks, and a basket filled with "real" bunny hay from their very own personal bunny cage. She had these wonderful looking chocolates that were shaped and decorated as fried eggs, bunnies, chickens, ducks, etc. I noticed all the bakeries in the various towns we passed through had these delicacies displayed in their windows and it looked so festive!

More guests have arrived at the Bächle, so the breakfast room is packed. An older couple with their grandson sat at a table next to us. The woman was taking English lessons in preparation for her trip to England this fall. When they were ready to leave the room, they turned and said their "wiedersehen's" to everyone in the room. The grandson ran back into the room, waived at us and said out loud "wieeeedersehen, Y'ALL!" and then ran back out of the room up the stairs. The grandfather looked shocked and uncertain at how I would react to his grandson's little antics, but I looked at him and said "Y'all?? Sehr gut!" Oh, that made him relieved and happy -- he smiled and laughed along with all the other guests. It was just too darn cute!

After a great breakfast we decided to travel to Baden-Baden, via B28 and B3. We could have taken the autobahn, but we weren't in any hurry. Actually we enjoyed traveling through the various little villages and towns, seeing people out and about either bicycling, walking or roller blading. We also passed by several fields filled with flowers, with huge signs that read "pick your own flowers" and many people were.

We arrived in Baden-Baden about 45 mins. later and stopped at the TI Office. Since it was Kurfreitag, all the stores and businesses were closed, except for a few restaurants. However, you would have thought it was business as usual! There were so many people out and about, it was unbelievable! It was a gorgeous day, sun shining, in the high 50's. It was difficult trying to find a place to park even with all the numerous parking lots, but we found our spot! Of course, not until after I drove the wrong way down a one-way street -- and then proceeded to make a U-ey right in front of the Polizei Station! The few officers outside the building just stood there shaking their heads. There also was a street cafe with many people, all staring at me! I'm sure it was obvious that I was blonde, and also a tourist! Whitney just kept making those teenage noises again until I was headed in the right direction.

All in all, Baden-Baden is an extremely easy city to get in and out of, and there are so many things to see and do. I plan to come back when things are open! We did tour the Trinkhalle, a beautiful building where people would stroll during summer evenings and was known as a place "to see or to be seen by others." I figured Whitney and I didn't fit into either category, but we enjoyed walking about the grounds. The inside of the Trinkhalle has been converted to a Tourist Office with lots of souvenirs, and also a fountain so tourists can taste the famous mineral waters that Baden Baden is known for -- however, no matter what language you speak, the same face is made after tasting this hot, salty water -- YUK! We decided to window shop along the pedestrian zone, and it was unbelievable the number of people out doing the same! There were street musicians playing old American tunes from the 40's and 50's, and it just was a magical feeling all around with the charm of the pedestrian zone and all the quaint shops.

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I believe all kids are curious to what a McDonald's would look like overseas, so Whitney was excited when I asked if she would like to dine there. Instantly she turned to me and said "gee, it is soooo clean! I can't believe it! This isn't like in the states!" We ordered our burgers and fries and observed how crowded the place was, but yet very orderly. Also, we noticed the menu had an added sandwich which would never go over in the States, I'm sure: Pork Burger. Not only that, there was a Pork Burger with Cheese, too Whitney just gagged at the thought and couldn't wait to write that on the back of a postcard to a friend!

Our drive to Baden-Baden was such a delightful drive that we decided to go back the same way. In doing so, I was able to stop and show Whitney Sasbachwalden, where David and I stayed the year before last. It looked even more beautiful than I had remembered! Many people were window shopping there also, and if there was one thing we noticed, they enjoy eating ice cream. No matter how cold it is!! We would shudder at the thought of eating ice cream when the temperature outside is less than 65 degrees, but everywhere we went, no matter what the weather, there were people eating ice cream while walking through the town.

There were many Motorrads on the roads, too, most of which rode in groups. Seems like the motorcycle craze is a big hit in Germany also! David would be happy to see this. Harley's, Gold Wings, Ducati's, Suzuki's -- so many bikes everywhere and when they would pass each other, they'd give the universal "wave" that shows the brotherhood of the biker.

Back at our room we decided to hang out and just watch TV while eating sandwiches for dinner. We watched the Deutschland version of "How to be a Millionär!" which was identical to the one here in the States, except the host is not Regis. All the same, the audience seemed to enjoy the host and his humor, whatever it was he was telling them! I actually was able to figure out and answer three of the questions asked, which tickled Whitney -- she couldn't believe I knew the answers since the whole show is in German, and I was thrilled to answer them right myself! We had a great time acting silly. Have you ever had to wash your hair with bar soap? Well, it was an experience for us, but since the stores were all closed the day before and we had run out of shampoo, it was our only alternative. And no conditioner, either. Ouch!

4/14/01

We woke up to snow! A light blanket of white delight, and Whitney was terribly excited considering she has spent most of her almost 16 yrs. living in the Houston area, never seeing snow. How beautiful the valley and hills looked -- Frau Huber said all Christmas season they waited for snow and had none, and now for Easter, they have snow.

Another great breakfast and we were ready to say our goodbyes and head for Triberg. We traveled via B33 from Offenburg. I had to stop and take a picture of the shrine of Mother Mary outside the limits of Bad Peterstal. When we had first arrived and noticed this shrine I mentioned to Whitney my sympathies for Mother Mary, that she was "imprisoned behind bars" -- but I'm sure it is to keep thieves from stealing or damaging her. Whitney thought my sympathy for the shrine was cute and insisted we take a picture of her before we left, especially since she was also covered in snow. Poor Mary!

It rained and drizzled most of the way. The closer we got to Gutach, the more snow flurries we encountered rather than rain. The snow was sticking mainly to the hills and not the streets. We easily found our way to the Hotel Pfaff in downtown Triberg across from the Wasserfalls.

Whitney picked this hotel because she wanted to spend a few nights in a tourist town and wanted to have a balcony that faced the waterfalls. The minute we walked into our room Whitney noticed the hot pink sheets on the bed, and the white down fluffy comforters with pink stars, and also the pink TV.

She jumped into the air, shouting “Cool! Shag-O-Delic Sheets! Austin Powers Shag-O-Delic!” So, for the next two days I had to listen to “yeah, baby” and “cool, baby” as Whitney enjoyed what she dubbed her Austin Powers room.

Actually, the Hotel Pfaff is a wonderful little hotel aside from the fact it is smack in the mainstream of all the tourist activity and across from the falls. The room was adquate in size, and very clean. Our “pink” TV was a SAT-TV so I once again got to every night listen and watch MTV. The balcony was great, even though we couldn’t enjoy more than a few hours on our first night since a cold front and storm came through. Parking was free and across the street from the hotel.

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We viewed the menu and thought it might be a bit more than what we wanted to spend for lunch, so a trip across the street to the café was in order. We had an adequate lunch of schnitzels and wieners. Whitney decided it was time for her beauty nap again as she had taken every day since we arrived. I strolled through the town looking through various shops. I guess no matter what time of year it is, Triberg is always busy. I enjoyed shopping and watching all the tourists go by. I made a phone call to home and headed back to the room to wake Sleeping Beauty.

We decided to visit one of the House of 1000 Clocks, and found some fun things to take pictures of besides finding some great gifts to purchase.

Back in Triberg we once again walked around and semi-toured the waterfalls. We figured that we’d save the entire view of the waterfalls for the next day, since they said it would be open even though it was Easter.

A light dinner was needed, so we decided it couldn’t be too expensive if we ate at the Hotel Pfaff. We were glad we did. My Grecian salad was absolutely delicious, and Whitney had onion soup with a French flair and of all things, an order of pommes frites! Of course, she had gotten the hang of ordering dessert, also, so another heaping ice cream treat was in order. Back in our room we played checkers and watched all the late night activities going on across the street and at the falls.

I don’t think this town ever sleeps! Whitney said “Ma, I’m going to see how long I can last outside on the patio.” Since the cold front came through and it was quite chipper, she put on her coat, double socks and had her C.D. player with headphones on. She sat for a little while, but it didn’t last long. At about 9:30pm, all the churches started ringing their bells in unison, and it lasted for about 30 minutes. It was lovely. We opened our patio door even though it was bitter cold. The sound of all those bells! What a wonderful memory it left for us both. I don’t know why they rang the bells late Saturday night, and it baffled me even more that the bells never rang on Easter morning.

04/15/01

Oster! Easter! Snow, snow, and more snow. I planned on visiting the Zum Sternen in Urach today. I wasn’t too concerned because I am, after all, from the Chicago area and have driven in many a snow and ice storm in my life. The breakfast room at the Hotel Pfaff is just adorably decorated and very warm and cozy.

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The soft boiled eggs were more on the well-done side, but the rest of the breakfast was adequate. We started out up Highway B500 towards Urach but the snow was quite heavy now, and as we passed the Maria church and a few more B&B’s, we were headed up the hills and past the top of the waterfalls. We started sliding a bit, and Whitney was a bit concerned. Rounding a higher corner of the highway, we came to a sudden stop. There were four other vehicles in front of us, all stopped. There was a car sideways in the road, and it couldn’t turn around due to the slickness of the road. The other vehicles then proceded to turn around very carefully, sliding here and there. I decided to abort our trip and turn around. We slid very close to the guardrail, and Whitney’s face turned as white as the snow! My knuckles were tight on the wheel, but I managed to get the car turned around and we headed back down the hill. Disappointed? To say the least - it was our last full day in the area and no other opportunity to visit Urach.

Back at our room, I told Whitney we’d take a drive and try our luck going in the other direction towards Gutach. In that direction it started to rain more than snow, and we were fortunate to find the Vogtsbauernhof open air museum was open. We grabbed our trusty umbrella and headed out towards the site. It started pouring harder which made us laugh at how crazy we were to tour the museum, but I think in any weather it is a worthwhile place to see. I only wished we had warmer clothing! In between visiting the various buildings it started to sleet. The wind was extremely forceful and our umbrella turned inside out! We both squealed, and then started laughing because we had to walk around with this half broken umbrella the rest of the time. The sleet was pelting us hard, too. I can’t wait to visit this neat place again - in better weather!

We visited the gift shops and found more things to purchase (good thing David wasn’t along!) We decided to tour several towns via car, since the weather was poor, and we ooohed and ahhhhed over the beauty of the hills and valleys with the freshly laid snow. On our way back we stopped at one of the other House of 1000 Clocks. Back at our room we warmed up and went over all our purchases, very excited about each and every one of them. We then walked through town and although not all the stores were open, we had a good time. We purchased another umbrella from the dime store in town so we were set for more walks.

After visiting the little shop across the street and getting some more candy and cokes we went back to our room. The waterfalls were closed, something they say is very rare. We watched from our room as many tourists went under the hazard strip to the falls and slid up and down the sidewalks. It was quite entertaining! What people won’t do!! The shopkeepers were busy trying to keep their goods that were displayed outside dry and free from snow. Another nap for Whitney and another walk for Mom. Man, this kid can sleep! I think the last month of school with all her dance team activities must have worn her out. We decided to dine at our hotel this time, one last hurrah. What a great meal! By now I’m sure I must weigh 15 lbs. more than I did before we left, but what the heck, it is vacation. Whitney ordered the breaded and baked trout that had shrimp along with it, and I had veal strips in a cream sauce. We just about licked our plates clean and I was embarrassed when the waitress came with a smaller plate containing the identical meals we had just completed! What a nice gesture, but there was absolutely no room left for more food!

After rolling back to our rooms, we decided it was time for a night of beauty and we did our nails. Since the weather was so bad we just hung out in the room watching TV and reading through the various brochures we had gathered along the way. We also reviewed our digital pictures ooohing and awwwing and discussing our trip.

4/16/01

After breakfast we decided since it was Easter Monday, a holiday in Europe, that we better head for the Frankfurt Sheraton early and try to avoid any Stau’s if possible. Of course, it wasn’t possible. But I think it would have been worse if we left any later. Easter Monday is a day of telling jokes and funny stories, sort of a day of happiness after the somber weekend of Maundy Thursday and Good Friday followed by Easter. The disc jockies on the radio were all telling jokes in between playing songs, but since my German isn’t that great I never got the punch lines.

We turned our car in and the Avis guys were examining the streaks on the hood of the car. They must have been from the sleet, but I don’t know how to say sleet in German so I just smile and tell them what a wonderful vacation we had. That seemed to make them happy, and nothing was said about the streaks.
I know it is expensive to stay at the Sheraton at the airport, but for peace of mind and since our airfare is paid for by frequent flyer miles, I justify staying here. Being the panicky type of person I can be, I feel better off knowing I can basically roll out of bed and be at the gate within minutes. We decide to order club sandwiches at the expensive restaurant there, and then go back to the room to veg out and watch TV and repack everything properly.

4/17/01

Our flight was fine except for our seating assignments were no longer what we had scheduled. They had Whitney sitting behind me, and a nice fellow in the air force sat next to me while a very talkative young army guy sat next to Whitney. All she wanted to do was sleep, but he was intent on discussing how he was going back to the states to pick up his 13 month old son to bring back to Germany since he and his wife were going through a divorce. I sat in my seat smiling as I listened to him talk and talk, knowing that Whitney only wanted to sleep. Both guys teased me about how I was concerned with the fact that I had brought back the extra package of turkey breast lunch meat with me instead of just tossing it. Whitney was concerned also, and kept telling me I should just through it away. The air force guy said “yeah, the last person I know that tried smuggling lunch meat into the states spent at least a month in jail before they let her out” which made Whitney moan even more. It was cute how they teased her. We did, however, have to make a detour to the agriculture line for them to go through our bags. But since turkey isn’t beef or pork, they let us proceed through customs.

David was waiting for our return, and as we drove back to the house I got to listen to the stories about how my other daughter, a senior, had stayed out past curfew one night, had a friend over once without asking him first, and a variety of other criminal activities of breaking parental law. Ahhhh, back to reality and the real world!