Bike trip

We made it home safely from vacation on Sunday afternoon. As we had thought might occur due to the high volume of holiday traffic, the autobahn closed when we were less than 2 hours into the trip home due to a high speed accident. We were very thankful we were not part of it; plus we were early and traffic was still light, so the detour did not did not lengthen our overall travel time.

The week has been busy unpacking from vacation and getting things in order again. Fortunately, the weather has cooled down to low 70's and rain, so it makes it easy to stay indoors and do chores.

Saturday warmed up and was sunny, so we went on a daylong bike trip. With the help of a map and signs, we started on the bike trail along a creek that flows through our town and made it to Flörsheim, a town along the Main River. We journeyed along the little river which empties into the Main River and through small towns, stopping to play at the playground, have a picnic lunch, and refresh at a biergarten along the way.

Adeline was a trooper as she did not bike the last 4km out of our 29km round trip journey. It was after our stop in Hattersheim for ice cream, she decided it was time to rest her legs. Our thighs and butts are a little sore, but we had a fantastic summer day enjoying the outdoors.

ErlebnisWald Trappenkamp

The temperatures started to cool a little bit, so we spent Saturday at ErlebnisWald Trappenkamp. The outdoor park is a a nature park which has different areas for children to explore.  The first thing we came upon was tunnels made from bushes. The girls laughed as they ran through the tunnels, peeking their heads out every so often  to make sure Eric and I were still going in the same direction. The next area we explored was the Butterfly garden. The girls were careful searching for butterflies as there were many bees throughout the flowers and herbs. 

Our journey throughout the park led us past some deer and into the forest. In the forest, we found Wichtelwald. Wichtelwald is a path with wooden animals and/or imaginitive props to make Willi's, the little Nome, journey exciting and merry for children as they followed him. There were 11 stations the girls had to find and each one had it's own activity.  Some of the stations were learning about mushrooms, feeling like a bat by hanging upside down in the tree, and spotting numerous forest creatures. They had a fascinating forest experience following Willi.

After finding all of the stations, we then found a path that had replicated a wolves den for the children to crawl through and a beaver's dam for them to climb on. The girls found these fun to explore. We then ventured to the activity area where there was an obstacle course and long zip-line. Eric and the girls had a great time playing on this. After getting worn out, we made tomahawks. This was a craft being done near the large Indian teepee they had set-up. 

Our day ended with a trip to the ice cream store with Nele and Jonas which was a great way to end our vacation.  We would be heading home early Sunday morning as we had a 5 hour drive ahead of us and we knew there would be many construction zones.

Wildpark Eekholt

Thursday we visited Wildpark Eekholt. The park is set-up to display animals in their natural habitat. Click for more information about Wildpark Eekholt Since we were in northern Germany, the animals are all found in the north and their cages are large enclosed natural areas. Essentially, we walked on natural paths through a forest, grassy areas, and along a river to see the animals. The kids had fun searching for the animals in their natural cages as they were not as easy to find like in the zoo. They thought it was funny to hear the wildboar babies squeal and run around. We also saw many European red deer  and a few white deer that are almost extinct.

We watched a live bird flying demonstration. The girls sat in the front row and we sat behind them. They spoke about the birds and then the birds would fly right in front of us, over our heads, or between the rows where we were sitting. The demonstrator was cautious throughout the show as there was also a stork who took flight over the area and was not part of the show. Some of the birds we saw were falcons, hawks, and owls. I did not see one of the owls take flight and as I turned my head to look for it, it was coming right in front of me. The wings ever so quickly scanned across my face. The girls thought it was neat to view the birds so close. The presentation was interesting and amazing to see the bird's full wingspan. 

After the show, the park gave kids the opportunity to feed some of the animals. The girls had fun feeding the deer. The leader gave them corn kernels which was different than the normal food you could purchase, so the animals loved being close to the kids. The one buck had a antler rack that had at least 16 points on it.  

We ended our visit with a trip to the large playground with trampolines, obstacle courses, and  a climbing wall.

Beach Kalifornien

Beach day!  We spent Wednesday at Beach Kalifornien on the Baltic Sea. The weather was awesome for our beach day- partly cloudy, light breeze, and temperatures in the mid 80s. Jonas gave us instructions to park in a field near an area on the beach that would not be in the midst of the tourists and campers. 

We parked the car and ventured towards the promenade. The beach has a large promenade with sand dunes on the water side to separate it from the little towns at the coast. The promenade is very active with bicyclist, rollerbladers, and beach goers as it goes a long distance on the coast. Click for pictures of the Beach and Town  However, upon approaching the sand dunes, I immediately noticed some beach bathers had no clothes on. I informed Eric of this as he was starting to climb the sand dunes with our gear. He then noticed the sign for nude sunbathing. Jonas apparently forgot to mention this part to us. We continued on the promenade farther down from this area to set up our beach stuff when we thought we were in a safe area. We put our towels down, set-up the sun tents and realized there still was some nude sunbathing around us, but not as noticeable as in the marked area. We were here and the girls were already having fun, so we just accepted the German beach culture and  made the most out of our family beach day and would try to be cautious when taking pictures.

Adeline headed for the water, but stopped short when she put her feet in as it was cool. Emmie concentrated on making her first sandcastle. The girls had fun collecting colorful stones and seashells to decorate their sandcastles with. In the late afternoon, the ice cream man on his bike rang his cowbell on the promenade, so Emmie had a chocolate ice cream as her snack. Six hours later and an empty cooler,  we decided it was time to head back to the house.  A fantastic day at the beach was had by everyone!

Vacation Part 2: Week with Dageförde Family

Monday we continued on our vacation to the Kiel area, where we will be spending the week with the Dageförde family. Eric met Jonas when Jonas was working at DCX in MI, then we lived close to Jonas and his wife, Nele, in Esslingen, and have stayed in touch over the years. Nele's parents live close to Kiel, so they invited us up for the week to stay with them as they are also vacationing. The girls found the drive through Hamburg neat, as they could see the port activity with the large cranes unloading the containers from the cargo boats. I think it helped the girls could relate to our container and the coarse it took as I informed them the route our stuff would take.

We arrived at our destination and quickly settled in. Finja, Jonas's 2 year old daughter, had fun playing with the girls toys and wearing their shoes around the house. After a barbecue dinner, we made plans to sail with Jonas's stepfather, Erwin, the next afternoon. Erwin lives close to the marina, so we would meet up with him as the boat was mostly ready and only needed minor preparations before we could sail.

Tuesday afternoon, we sailed around the Kiel harbor. The afternoon was warm and sunny, but had a pleasant breeze for being on the water. We boarded the sailboat and began our afternoon cruise. Cick to see pictures of harbor Eric steered the boat, while Erwin managed the sails. The girls had fun exploring the cabin area. They were amazed to discover the toilet on the sailboat. The girls had fun waving to the people on the big cruise ships and the kids in the harbor just learning to sail. Eric made our ride interesting too, for at times, he had the boat really tilted to one side. By the middle of our tour, the girls had their sea legs and found the experience to be fun. I eventually took them near the front of the boat as we were sailing past the beaches. It was a great afternoon for our family.

Annual Family Gathering

Our visit with the Meier family also coincided with the annual gathering of the entire family on Sunday. This was wonderful as last time we visited, we also attended the gathering and met everyone. Everyone talked about how big Adeline has grown as they last saw her when she was 18 months old, plus how sweet and cute Emmie is. The day started with brunch at a restaurant on a little lake. After brunch, they had little row boats which we could use. Eric oared his ladies around the little lake in the early afternoon. After playing on the  playground, Adeline getting a scraped knee, and then having some ice cream, Eric took Adeline back out in the boat.

In the late afternoon, the entire family went back to the Meier house. They were hosting the cake and coffee portion of the gathering. All of the Aunts made different cakes and tortes, so there was a delicious selection of apple, mandarin orange, and red current (Johannisbeeren) treats to choose from.  We also received fresh honey from one of the cousins as he has his own beehive he cares for.  Spending the sunny summer day with everyone was a nice way to end our visit with the family.

Schloss Bückeburg

Saturday morning we awoke to noises from the little farm which is across the street from the hotel as our balcony door was open due to the warm summer temperature and lack of a/c in the room. The girls thought it was so neat to hear the roosters crowing and watch the sheep walk around and baa from our balcony. Fortunately, the temperature has cooled off for the time and it is now pleasant and enjoyable to be outside.

For breakfast this morning, Jonas took Adeline with him to the bakery to get the fresh baked goods. This is Jonas's task each morning. Adeline was happy to be going on this journey without the parents. After some time, the kids rounded the street corner and had 2 bags filled with warm baked goods, plus each of them had a roll in hand. 

The girls are very excited as we are visiting Schloss Bückeburg. This is a castle that still has a real princess living in it and we are going to tour it. Click here for castle pictures (under schloss) When we arrive at the castle gates, Adeline is quite excited about everything. 

We walk through the gates and across the bridge, observing everything that is going on in the garden area and in the moat. The kids enjoy watching the ducks and fish swim in the water. We then continue our walk to see the entire exterior of the castle. The girls eyes twinkle with excitement when they see the princess's house! They are in constant chatter about it and what it will look like inside. While waiting for the tour to begin, the kids play around in the garden hedges as they have created a maze with their layout.

It is finally time for the tour and we are excited to see how the castle has been decorated.  Click here for interior castle pictures  The tour starts in the chapel. Adeline cannot believe the princess has her own chapel, but thinks this is very neat and sits quietly in the pew, looking at everything. We then journey upstairs to start our tour of the rooms. We only tour the second floor as the family resides on the third floor. The girls loved the ballroom. Adeline liked it for the large crystal chandeliers and knowing this is where concerts and balls take place. Emmie liked looking at the cherubs and horses which were painted on the ceiling.




When our castle tour concludes, we then tour the stable. In addition to visiting the white, black, and speckled horses, the girls like to hear the horses' names, age, and where they were born. The stable also has a small museum consisting of saddles and carriages. The saddles are from different era's and from around the world. The kids have fun trying out the different saddles.

We concluded the afternoon with a light lunch, a walk through the little town, and ice cream for dessert.