Family

This past weekend was wonderful! On Friday, we left Vaihingen around 2 on the S-bahn and took it past Ludwigsburg to TAMM. Our cousin, Mattias (Matze), works in TAMM and was going to pick us up. We got there really early and I had my first bag of German chips from a convenience store. They were "paprika" chips and really tasty. We hung out there until he pulled up in his new BMW. This car was pretty sweet! A station wagon type, but loaded up with GPS and one of those "button" ignitions where you just press start and the car starts up. He drove us about 40 minutes or so to his hometown, Wustenrot.

We didn't see much of Matze this weekend, as he left for a business trip to Tanzania on Sunday and was really busy packing up, etc.

We were dropped off at the home of Rose and Hilde Foell. Two of the sweetest little old ladies you could ever meet, cousins of my Grandmother on my Mom's side of the family. We hung out with Rose, talking, until Hilde came home. Then we had the Schwabian dish I mentioned before, the noodles stuffed with veggies or meat, in a chicken soup broth (maultaschen). As always, very tasty. Ice cream with raspberry sauce, and then we went to bed. We were both pretty tired.

On Saturday we ate breakfast at 8:30. The usual German breakfast, bread, jam, and bretzeln (pretzels--- but not like how you're thinking). These pretzels are big and doughy, and are best with warm butter. You'll have to visit to understand : ) After breakfast we lazed around for a while and then took a walk to see some California redwoods in the nearby forrest. I'm not sure how the trees got there, but they were very impressive. Rose said that there used to be more of them, but the Nazis cut them down to stop the Americans from advancing. Unfortunately for the Nazi's, the American tanks didn't have too much trouble with the trees.

We went to the grocery store, as Nate mentioned his desire for bratwurst. The brats were not like the brats you buy in the U.S. (Johnsonville, etc). They aren't as meaty and taste more like a hotdog, but better than a hotdog. I think we'll have to try buying brats from the metzgerei to see if we can find them more like home ; ) Lunch was lovely!!! Potato salad, salad, beets, cucumber salad, and brats. These ladies will not take "I'm full" for an answer. I think I ate more food this weekend than I have in a week!!!!

At 3:00, our cousin Christian came by to take us to Schwabisch Hall. This is an old town about a half hour from Wustenrot. We toured an old church, and were lucky enough to hear an organ concert. Out of nowhere this guy just started to play. Sitting in an old church, nearly alone, with this majestic music playing was.... well... really cool! Rose said that of all the times she has been there, the organ has never been played. One interesting thing about the church is that years ago a nearby cemetery was dug up, and the bones were brought into the church. History tells it that over time the people forgot about the bones until a document was found talking about the excavation. They searched and searched, and about thirty years ago finally found them. You can stand inside the church and stare beneath the floor at piles and piles of old bones.

We grabbed some gelatto and took a walk along the river before heading back to Wustenrot... to do what you might ask? Eat again of course!!! This time we headed to Christian's parents's house (Karl and Marianne Foell). The day was warm and breezy, so we sat outside while Karl cooked what I think was marinated pork chops. Wow, were they ever good. After dinner we played "Bucher", which is called Bocci Ball in the U.S. Nate and I had both never played it before, but had a blast learning. Nate beat Christian in the first game, so Marianne had to defend her son's honor by tearing up Nate in the second game. I played Nate in the third game (and lost). Our official total was: USA 2 points, Germany 1 point. ; )

An early morning wake up and breakfast before going to church in Neuhutten, just a few minutes away. So many people (mostly old!) came to say hi, some of which I recognized from my family's trip to Germany about six years ago. Many of them were family, all of which told Rose that the next time we visit, we have to come to their house to eat!!!

The sermon was in German, but the pastor asked the band to sing the last song in English. It was a Chris Tomlin song, Indescribable, and they struggled through the first two verses, and finally just switched back to German : )

After church we went to a local restaurant for lunch. We both had really good food. Mine was pork with a cream sauce and mushrooms (and of course, spaetzle and salad). Nate had a bit of a sampler platter. One of his dishes was pork with marinara sauce and cheese on it. It was different!!!! Kind of like chicken parmigiana.

We then went back to Karl and Marianne's house and played more Bocci Ball and this game called "Genius". I was so thrilled to win the first game and get second in the next game. Then, I called up Nate for a rematch at Bocci Ball and beat him at that. It was a marvelous day for the female side of the Ramquist family. After dinner (sausages on the grill), they drove us to the nearest S-bahn station and we were whisked back home.

It was amazing at how much our German improved just with one weekend there, and we haven't even started lessons. Christian and Rose both speak a little English, so they helped a lot, but we held our own with the German. It certainly made for a lot of laughs!!!!