BAVARIA TRIP, PART I
THIS TRIP HAD SO MANY GREAT TIMES THAT I'M SPLITTING IT UP.
FIRST, GRANDMA JEAN AND I FLEW TO MUNICH. WE MET MARK, SARAH, MADDIE, AND HENRY A FEW DAYS LATER.
FIRST WE FLEW TO PHILADELPHIA. WE FOUND SOME SURPRISES AT THE PHILLY AIRPORT.
YUENGLING ON DRAFT!
LOOK WHO WE RAN INTO AT THE AIRPORT. NOT SURE OL BEN FRANKLIN BEHIND ME APPROVES, BUT...
FORTUNATELY, WE COULD USE THE ADMIRALS CLUB IN PHILLY; MADE FOR A MUCH MORE PLEASANT THREE HOUR LAYOVER
WE NEEDED THE GRANDKIDS THERE TO HELP US WITH ALL THE GADGETS IN BUSINESS CLASS
WHAT I FOUND MOST INTERESTING WAS WATCHING OUR PROGRESS DURING THE FLIGHT
SO, WE COULD ORDER OUR MEALS AHEAD. I ORDERED THE RED SNAPPER. WHEN THEY BROUGHT THIS (I STILL DON'T KNOW WHAT IT IS), I COULD HARDLY EAT IT, AND WAS THANKFUL I HAD BROUGHT SNACKS. THIS WAS SOME APPETIZER THING. THAT'S WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU LET REDNECKS UPGRADE...LOL THE SNAPPER WAS A LOT BETTER...
ALMOST THERE! WE WAVED TO THE LONDON MILLERS ON OUR WAY OVER. SO, AFTER ARRIVAL AND GETTING OUR RENTAL CAR, WE HEADED NORTH TOWARD NUREMBERG. WE STOPPED IN WOLNZACH, IN THE HEART OF HALLERTAU, HOME OF WORLD FAMOUS HOPS GROWING AREA.
AND THE HALLERTAU URBAN CHESTNUT BREWERY/GASTHAUS
SINCE WE WERE IN THE AREA, WE TOURED THE HOPS MUSEUM IN WOLNZACH. PRETTY INTERESTING AND WORTH THE SHORT DETOUR OFF THE AUTOBAHN.
AND A PICTURE WITH MY URBAN CHESTNUT SIX-PACK AND THE HOPS PEOPLE OUT FRONT OF THE MUSEUM. FROM WOLNZACH, IT IS A SHORT FOUR OR SO TO NUREMBERG, WHERE WE STAYED THE FIRST NIGHT.
WITH THE HELP OF THE LADY AT THE HOPS MUSEUM, WE FOUND THE GETRANKMARKT WITH LOTS OF CHOICES.
WITH THE HELP OF A GREAT GPS IN OUR RENTAL CAR, AND A GREAT NAVIGATOR, WE FOUND OUR HOTEL. COLORS WERE BEAUTIFUL. WE GOT SETTLED, THEN HEADED DOWNTOWN TO CHECK OUT NUREMBERG.
FIRST STOP, A SMALL TOY STORE IN THE HANDWERKHOF AREA NEAR THE TRAIN STATION. TONS OF ANTIQUE TOYS! WE HAD BEEN THERE FOUR YEARS AGO TOO.
AFTER ALL THAT SHOPPING, WE WERE HUNGRY AND THIRSTY. CONVENIENTLY, VERY NEAR THE TOY STORE WAS A GREAT LITTLE STUBE WITH GREAT BIER AND GREAT BRATURSTE/SAUERKRAUT
BACK AT THE ROOM I HAD TO TRY ONE OF MY HALLERTAU GRÜNHOPFEN BIERS. PRETTY TASTY!
THE NEXT DAY, NADINE AND KAYDEN WERE KIND ENOUGH TO COME DOWN TO NUREMBERG. WE HAD A GREAT DAY LOOKING AT STUFF, AND TOURING THE TOY MUSEUM. AND, OF COURSE, THE REQUISITE PICTURE BY THE GIANT NUTCRACKER IN FRONT OF KATHE WOHLFAHRT'S. MARK WAS ABOUT KAYDEN'S AGE WHEN HE HAD HIS FIRST PICTURE TAKEN BY THE ONE IN ROTHENBURG OB DER TAUBER.
WE THEN DROVE UP TO THE FRANKISCHE SCHWEIZ, AND STAYED AT THE FORELLENHOF GASTHAUS IN POTTENSTEIN. LOVED THIS PLACE. VIEW FROM OUR ROOM BALCONY OVERLOOKED A TROUT POND, AND HAD A VIEW OF THE CASTLE. FOOD THERE IS GREAT, AND YES, TROUT IS FEATURED (FORELLEN = TROUT).
OUR ROOM HAD A SMALL KITCHENETTE. THIS INSTRUMENT OF TORTURE, OR WHATEVER, WAS IN THE UTENSIL DRAWER. I'M STILL TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT IT'S USED FOR, OR MAYBE I DON'T WANT TO KNOW....LOL
OUR ROOM IS THE ONE ON THE RIGHT WITH THE TROUT PAINTED ON THE WALL.
THE TROUT FISHERMAN PONDERING THE POND.
WHERE NADINE AND KAYDEN LIVE NOW. THIS IS THE FAMILY LANDMARK HOUSE. RENOVATED THROUGHOUT, BUT STILL THE SAME STRUCTURE. I'M NOT REALLY SURE HOW OLD IT IS, BUT HAS BEEN IN THE FAMILY A VERY LONG TIME.
AS YOU CAN SEE, THE HOUSE IS NEAR THE CEMETERY, AND CHURCH.
THE CHURCH IS ALSO BEING RENOVATED, AS YOU CAN SEE.
FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO REMEMBER HEINI, THIS IS HIS GRAVE.
THIS IS WHAT'S REMAINING AFTER THE FAMILY GASTHAUS, DANCE HALL, AND HOUSE WERE TORN DOWN. IT IS NOW A PARKING LOT. THANKS TO HEIKE (NADINE'S MOM), AS THEY RETRIEVED A BRICK FOR ME, SHOWN BELOW. YES, I BROUGHT IT HOME IN MY SUITCASE, AND YES, THE TSA OPENED AND INSPECTED MY SUITCASE, BUT IT MADE IT....
SHOWN BELOW ARE PICTURES FROM KRUG-BRAU, IN BREITENLESAU. ALTHOUGH IT WAS DARK, THE VILLAGE LOOKED SMALL (MAYBE 300 PEOPLE?), THE BREWERY IS PRETTY LARGE, AND FOOD THERE IS SUPER! I CAN'T SAY ENOUGH GOOD THINGS ABOUT THIS PLACE. MORE IMPORTANTLY, THE COMPANY WE HAD THAT EVENING WERE THE BEST. THANKS TO NADINE, WE DIDN'T HAVE TO DRIVE (CAN'T THANK HER ENOUGH). AND, WE WERE JOINED BY THE FICHTEL BROTHERS: MANFRED, FRITZ, AND GERALD, ALONG WITH BRIGITTE, GERALD'S WIFE.
GERALD AND BRIGITTE
FRITZ AND MANFRED (MANFRED CLOSER)
NADINE, BRIGITTE, GERALD, AND FRITZ
WE LEARNED A NEW GERMAN WORD THAT NIGHT, "SCHNITT". WE WERE ALL SITTING THERE, NURSING OUR LAST SIP OF BIER. NONE OF US (AT LEAST I, AND I'M SURE THE OTHERS) DIDN'T REALLY WANT THE EVENING TO END. I OFFERED TO SPLIT A BIER WITH ONE OF THEM. THEY SAID NO, WE'D HAVE A"SCHNITT". IT'S SUPPOSED TO BE A HALF BIER, BUT IT'S MORE LIKE TWO THIRDS. AFTER A FEW SCHNITTS, WE FINALLY DID HAVE TO GO. WHAT A GREAT TIME!!!! REMEMBER, ALL OF YOU, WIR HABEN ZWEI GÄSTEZIMMER!!!!!!!!!!!
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