Logan's Birthday

Naomi surprised Logan with an Apple iWatch.

          What an amazing day! August 1^st was Logan’s 27^th birthday. His wish was to show us the German Alps.After breakfast and birthday gifts, we were off on our next adventure. We picked up Naomi’s brother Gabe at the train station and drove to the Alps. Daniel, Lidia and their children met us there.

Logan, Naomi and Landon

This is the gondola.

This is the zig-zag trail to the top of the mountain. (Photo credit Stan Weber)

          The mountains were just breathtaking! There was an upper lake that was turquoise. Logan found out later it is 600 feet deep. There was also a lower lake that was not as blue, but still very pretty. We rode up higher on a mountain in a glass gondola. Then we walked on a path to a restaurant, and those who wanted to could climb the zig-zagging path to the top. 

Vanita, Stan and Gabe made it all the way to the top! (Photo credit to Gabriel Scheib)

I was ducking down to show the mountain behind me.

          I went up until I had to climb on a narrow path of rocks. I found myself short of breath in that altitude and my heart was working overtime, so I decided to go back down. 

The cows wandered the mountainsides.

          There were gorgeous views in all directions. Cows wearing clanging cowbells wandered along the mountainside. The air was crisp and clean. It was just a magical experience. I almost had to pinch myself to believe that I was actually there.


 

Photo Credit Vanita Weber.

          We celebrated with a birthday lunch of a variety of German foods in an outdoor restaurant. Then, we walked back to the gondola and rode back down.  We walked a few blocks to a grassy area by the upper lake. In spite of the cold water, people were swimming, kite sailing and sailing in boats. 

          Logan wanted to rent a canoe, so off he and Gabe went to do so. Always thoughtful, Logan also bought a little metal rooster as a keepsake for me. They rowed across the choppy waters to where we were. Linda brought cakes and coffee in honor of Logan’s birthday. We sang “Happy Birthday” to him and enjoyed the delicious cakes. The little cousins ran and played on the grass. 

Logan and Gabriel navigate through rough water in the rowboat.

What a wonderful day! There is more to this day, as we continued on to an old monastery for dinner, but it deserves its own blog.

Alte Pinakothek and Munich

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The Art Museum

Since the forecast was rainy for the morning, we decided to go to the Alte Pinakothek, one of the world’s most important art museums. According to the pamphlet I picked up, the museum was commissioned by King Ludwig I and built by his architect Leo von Klenze from 1826-1836. Over 700 paintings are on display there, and Vanita and I looked at every one of them, including works by Monet, Manet, Rembrandt, Goya, and Van Gogh. Alte Pinakothek refers to the time when the paintings were created, from the 14^th to the 18^th Century. However, the Neue Pinakothek was being remodeled, so we were able to see some work from the 19^th century also, a display of about 90 paintings and sculptures entitled “From Goya to Manet”.

Van Gogh's Sunflowers. When I was a teenager,
I had a copy of this in my bedroom.

I enjoyed having artist and art teacher Vanita by my side to point out various painting techniques and artists. The art that had the hugest effect on me was the work of Rubens. I actually gasped when I walked through the door of the Rubens Room. I stood there with eyes wide and mouth open. The paintings were enormous. My research states Rubens created over 1,400 pieces. Most were commissioned history paintings, depicting mythological or religious scenes, as well as hunting scenes.

            However, we obviously did not know the proper protocol for behavior at a famous art museum. A guard told us we were standing too close to the paintings. Stan soon discovered it is unacceptable to lean against the wall, even if it is the end of a wall with no paintings on it, thanks again to the aforementioned guard. Naomi was told she would have to check her purse (for a small fee, of course), because it was too large. Overall, though, the museum and the works there were just amazing, and we understood their diligence in protecting it all. 

The restaurant was on the ground floor of this building.

           When we left there, we were hungry, so we drove around looking for a promising restaurant. An Italian restaurant caught our eye, and Stan managed to find a parking spot, which is no easy feat in Munich. The food was delicious. We ordered lasagna, tortellini, gnocchi, rigatoni, and fish. We sampled from each other’s plates to experience it all. The waiter spoke German and Italian, so he was relieved Naomi spoke German to help us order. 

          We walked around the neighborhood for a while and looked at a farmer’s market, local shops and a fountain. My favorite shops were the bakeries with a wide variety of breads and pastries. Hans went into a shop to pick out loaves of rye and mixed grain breads. The baker put it in a machine that sliced it right in front of us. Hans said this bakery used to supply the king with bread.

Bikes everywhere!

            In Munich they have bike paths everywhere, and I kept walking in them, because they were right by the sidewalk. I learned to get out of the way quickly. The bikes are abundant, and they go fast! Parents rode bicycles with a single bike seat or pulled little trailers with multiple kids in them. I also saw some with a box in front for the children to sit in.

          We returned to Hans and Linda’s house. Vanita, Linda and I took Landon for a walk in his stroller around the neighborhood. We saw sheep, chickens, ducks, pigs, dogs and cats. Beautiful flower gardens are in every yard, sometimes mixed with zucchini or cucumber plants. Bright yellow sunflowers bloomed at the edge of the fields.

Landon enjoyed walking with Grammy.

Shepherd's Wagon

The neighbors invited us in to watch them feed the sheep.   

           In the background of the fields wind turbines slowly rotated in the breeze. 

The Adventure Continues

            We zipped through the streets of Munich in Linda's little car on the way to Naomi’s sister Lidia’s apartment, where she lives with her husband Daniel and two children. After a quick stop at a store to buy soft pretzels, we arrived at her bright and airy apartment. The table in her kitchen was set with a traditional Bavarian brunch: white sausages, cheese and fruit, along with the big soft pretzels. She said it should be served before noon. Due to our delayed flight, it was after noon in Germany, but we told her it was still morning according to our time. Germany time is seven hours later than Central Time. We enjoyed the Bavarian food and time with her family.

Naomi's Parents' Home in Unterumbach

            We continued on to Hans and Linda’s home. They live in a lovely multi-story duplex with a beautiful front and back yard. Beyond the yard is a wheat field, so we felt right at home. 

Logan and Naomi relax in the swing.

      While the Scheibs would have been glad for us to stay in their home, friends of theirs had offered to let some of us stay in a guesthouse a couple of villages away, about a 10-minute drive. It was an upstairs two-bedroom apartment with light wooden floors and big windows that opened to let in a breeze. Stan, Vanita and I decided to stay in the guest house, while Logan, Naomi and Landon would stay with Hans and Linda.

The Guesthaus in Wyhern

            We showered and rested a little while, then Logan, Naomi, and Naomi’s younger sister Josie picked us up in the van and took us to a little meat shop and bakery. With Naomi’s help in translating, we bought a variety of meats: smoked sausage links, salami, lunch meats that resembled our pickle loaf, and some with mushrooms in it. Logan picked out some cheeses to go with it. We selected a variety of breads and buns also. Although the shop was all in one room, we had to pay for the meats and baked goods separately. Next, we stopped at a grocery store. I put my 50-cent coin into the cart, just like putting a in a quarter at Aldi’s. We bought some more food there. They had Lay’s potato chips, but they were different flavors, like smoked bacon or onion and cheese. Both were good.

            Back at Hans and Linda’s, we carried everything out to the picnic table on the back deck and sampled the delicious buns, meats and cheeses. We admired the roses blooming nearby and relaxed. Logan and Hans led the way in his car to show us another route to our village. We discovered several different ways to get between the two villages in the days to follow. Thank goodness Stan is such a good navigator, because even on day 10, I am not sure I could have found my way. 

The Map of the Nearby Village

       As we drove through the country roads between the villages, we saw several big fields of cabbages. Later, I asked Hans why they grew so much cabbage. He said it was used to make sauerkraut. He said, “We Germans are known for our kraut, you know.”

            When I went to bed that evening, jet lag hit me pretty hard, and I slept deeply for a few hours, then awoke at 12:30, which would have been 7:30 in the morning at home. Vanita couldn’t sleep either. She came into my room, and we talked for a little while. We finally went to sleep after 2 a.m. It rained overnight. I opened my window to a quaint view of the neighbor’s house. I could hardly believe I was in Germany.

The Neighbor's Home.
Notice the red terra-cotta roof.

The Butterfly Bush Outside My Window

                                                          None of the Webers’ phones worked unless on wi-fi, which we could only access at the Scheib house. Mine worked to make calls out, but since theirs did not work, that did not help us much. We resorted to the “old school” method of saying what time we would meet up each morning and go from there. I have to say part of me found it very relaxing to be off electronic devices for a while. We had no television, either, so I was able to immerse myself in the daily experiences without distraction. Off we went to meet up with Logan and Naomi and plan our first day of sightseeing in Germany.