Watching the Sun

A couple of weeks ago we biked out to the Moorlosen Kirche.  We've done that so many times.  It's only about 12K round trip.  We cross the Lesum river and then go along the Weser for a bit till we get to the church. The road ends there.  You can take the same route back or go through the nature path for a slightly longer trip back home. 

Across the road from the little restaurant next to the church there's a sort of Biergarten where you can sit and look at the water and just relax.  It's dear.

But  I noticed along the way (since they have raised the dikes) that there are a couple of benches set on the top of the dike, looking toward the setting sun.  How nice, I thought.  We could come and see a sunset!  Yes, we can.

So we did.  

We packed some crackers and some home-made tapenade and a couple of glasses and a bit of wine. That was just right.

We didn't get to the bench, but we found a spot on the rocks and settled in and enjoyed the show.  Hope you do, too.

 

Weiberfest, or Birthday Bash Redux

Just like last year (and the year before and the year before), Nicole and Jeremy came from Berlin and Charlotte came up from Frankfurt. No cars involved in this movement since trains are soooo much easier than cars.  The Autobahns are full, and when you plan ahead, the ticket is often less expensive than the gasoline. Love that!

So, a(nother) mini Gator fest.  The girls go to Ute's annual birthday bash (ladies only).  The boys go to find some craft beers to sample.  I think if he could choose, Jeremy would be a brewer instead of a history teacher to pubescents.  He's a beer connoisseur for sure.  Werner's not far behind.

We took a walk after Jeremy and Nicole arrived.  The weather was perfect.

Anyway, my job is providing beds to sleep in and food to eat, mostly breakfast.  Saturday morning - pancakes and sausages and a couple of sides. I have had a lot of experience with pancakes over the years and have found my favorite recipe and it's a winner.  Text me for the secret.

Since we'd stayed up and talked till ungodly hours, there wasn't all that much time left after breakfast to visit the market and buy a bra for Nicole.

What?? Buy a bra?  We forget stuff when we pack.  "Great - the black dress for the party!"  she says.  Not so great - nothing to wear under the lacy top.  ERGO, bra shopping.

Actually that was fun!  I have never bought a bra here, partly because of the sizing.  I'm a 70????  But it seems US sizing has overtaken the market and so now it's 34B or ... whatever.
the guys just stood outside and talked about ... whatever  ...  till we were done.

Then, pick up Charlotte at the station, come back for Kaffee und Kuchen.  Yes, always, Kaffee und Kuchen.  This time, another blueberry tart which disappeared, as in fast.


 The party was fun, a bit different since Ute has such a large circle of friends she can mix the mix each year.  (I am certain I could not do that.....)

I got to check in with women I'd met before, got to meet some new ones, and just enjoy.  Once again, Fiona climbed on the table to give an address to the birthday girl. 

But then I made a boo-boo - I didn't realize the trains to Vegesack (home) switched to a one-hour schedule instead of the 30-minute schedule after midnight.  Sigh. We got to the station and then realized we had a 40-minute wait for the next train. But, you know, circumstances make it fun.  We went to the Marriott and ordered a Spritz and had a quiet rehash of the evening that got us prepared to just go to bed when we finally got home at 1:30 AM.

Me?  I had to shower before bedding to get the cigarette smoke off my skin.

BIG breakfast the next day - homemade biscuits, eggs, spinach tart, bacon.  It was yummy, if I say so myself. And it seems I have found a way to make good biscuits. 

After a walk around the harbor, it was time to say good-bye again.  What a short and sweet and happy visit!!  Love you guys!

Birthday Bash

There was a 75th birthday celebration the other weekend - Monica - René's mother, Werner's first wife.  She planned it all from Curacao and came to Germany from there to celebrate.  She invited friends from around Hamburg, but also from far afield.  One friend came from California!  That's friendship!!

Of course, getting together with friends is the most important, but food is not too far behind.  And since René (with his good friend Olaf) are serious cooks, the menu is a big deal.  And the biggest deal this time was a roast pig.  The whole thing.

And since they were getting ready for 40+ people, it's not just the pig on a stake, but the lamb and the chicken and the baked beans and the salad (but I have to say there was more bread than salad.  René is a meat-and-potatoes man).

 Festivities started at 1:00, the food was ready about 3:00 and there were a few toasts and a few little speeches, but mostly people just ate and talked.

Here we are in our birthday best.

And of course, there's always Kaffee und Kuchen.

The early birds left about 9 PM, but there are still hearty souls among this older crowd, and the last ones found the exit about 2 AM.  (I gave up about 12:30!)

Next morning there was a good bit of clean up to do before preparing breakfast for 8 and before we were done eating (again), some of the out-of-towners dropped by for another short visit before heading home.   

We followed suit and headed home mid-afternoon while the hosts and hostesses did more hosting during the day  --  all the leftovers got eaten (!) and most of the drinks gradually disappeared.  All in all, a happy party.

I don't think there's another biggie birthday bash coming up anytime soon.  Oh that's wrong.  There's one the next weekend.....

Biking from Mahndorf to Fischerhude and Back

The fitness studio we belonged to has closed, and frankly we'd not been there as regularly as in the past because of ... stuff.  But, it was still something that nagged at us to do some regular exercise.  So, the gym is gone and we have weights at home and there's all kinds of things you can do for weight training without a gym, but, you know.....

So we bike,  pretty often, trying to stay in some sort of reasonable shape. And it is oh-so-nice to be outside, in the sunshine, in the fresh air, looking at the peaceful landscape as we pedal along.  We did that last Sunday.

This time it was the train to Mahndorf, a suburb of Bremen, then bike to Fischerhude and back.  Fischerhude is such a sweet and lovely place, full of  shops where local artisans sell their wares, lots of cobblestone streets, charming farmhouses. It's a popular stop for day trips from Bremen, by car or bike.

I am still surprised at how long Bremen is!  We were on the train for about 40 minutes and still in Bremen!  We can bike for 10 minutes from home and be out of Bremen.

Mahndorf is also the end station of the tram from the city center.  It was kinda funny getting off the train and seeing the tram.  And it is still amazing to me - we can go from here all the way to there on a single ticket!  I   L O V E   public transportation (partly because I love driving less and less).

So, off we go.  I'd downloaded an APP that gave us a map to Fischerhude, and we used it a bit, but really, the bikeways are so well marked, you hardly need another guide. The purple line shows the train ride, the green one, the bike ride.

It was a perfect day, and we've had so many this summer.  Warm (or hot!), low humidity, gentle winds.  That was today, too.

It's flat here, often the landscape is not dramatic, but at the same time it is lovely to me.  It's calming.  The sky is expansive, the green is wide.  I just love it.

When we were approaching Fischerhude, there were little offerings from local folks that they placed in front of their homes on the side of the road, as always. But it is the season of pumpkins and sunflowers and zinnias and peppers.  We bought a few decorative squashes.

There are little waterways along the way. This one shows a "cool house" there on the right that keeps whatever cool: sausages, eggs, but not people!

We got home after about 3 hours, put dinner together and put our decorative pumpkins on the table.  We feeling fallish!!