SLIDESHOW OF PHOTOS FROM MY TRIP

I've made a small slideshow of some of my photos from the trip. If you wave your cursor over a photo as it appears, a caption will pop out for you to read. I've tried to capture some of the highlights from the trip. Please enjoy.

love to travel

this will be my last post while in Europe on this current trip.its time to head home already and my internet access will be cut off for a couple of days. this has been a wonderful trip full of amazing experiences and incredible memories. its going to take me awhile to process it all. as i set out on my return trip home, i am reminded that i love to travel...so i know in my heart that i'll be back. please pray for safety as i travel utilizing planes, trains, and automobiles to make my way across the ocean and safely back home. i will try and post more photos and thoughts about the trip once back in the States.thank you for coming along with me as i travel Europe. Until later...Cheers!

Picturesque Germany

TOURING THE RHEINE:

if youre going to travel to Germany i highly suggest doing it in October (when the trees are changing colors in the crisp autumn air and the local peoples are in celebration and holiday spirits) ...and i also recommend taking a boat ride up the Rheine River. its a relaxing way to enjoy the beauty of the western region of Germany. there are several boats and routes to choose from...but whatever you choose i guarantee it will be worth it. there are medieval castles nestled against the mountainsides amongst wine vineyards and colorful trees. it almost feels surreal as you glide along the water in such a picturesque setting. take the time to also get out at the little towns along the way and enjoy a bratwurst and beer and some local traditional music. youll find yourself wanting to sing along (even if you dont know the language or the lyrics). this was a great way to end my time here in Germany.

Frankfurt am Main

FRANKFURT:

today we toured around the city of Frankfurt. its quite a large city that reminded me somewhat of Glasgow in that there is a river with bridges to walk across and there are modern buildings right next to quite old and beautiful architectural buildings. there are trees everywhere...many that are changing colors with the cooler rainy autumn weather. its quite beautiful...many church steeples and clock towers to see. also there is a square downtown that has some traditional buildings circling a fountain. the perfect picture of what old Germany mustve looked like.

we took the bus into the city from Bad Vilbel and did our touring by foot. we visited an art museum called the Städel (pronouned Schadel) where i got to see some of the German expressionists and impressionists paintings. im still blown away at the amount of amazing art ive been able to see over the last 2 weeks.

we stopped in at a traditional beer stein shop. they sell beer glasses and steins (for tourists) that look like the old German steins used by people of the past. my dad purchased one (it was the souvenir he was looking for all this time). we also popped into a local Gummi bear shop for a tasty treat. Gummi bears come from Germany (originally).

we had our lunch in the city at what they call the Market Place. Its sort of like a "Saturday Market" with a Beer Garden. 2 long rows with various booths set up. some sold fresh produce and others actually cooked your meal right there. you could choose from potato pancakes, bratwurst, schnitzel, onion breads, and many other various traditional German foods and you could wash it down with apple cider or with beer. they serve you on real plates with real silverware and real glasses. so they also provide tables and chairs for you to eat at. the photo is of a traveling bratwurst vendor...seems kind of handy if you need take away.

we enjoyed a day of rainy sunshine and even had the luck of seeing 2 complete rainbows painted in the sky over the river as we walked across one of the bridges. it was a lovely day in Germany.

tomorrow (Friday) we will take a boat trip up the Rhine River to view the castles. it will be our last full day in Germany. and then on Saturday we take the train back to Paris to prepare for our jouney back to the States on Sunday.

what is normal?

SHOPPING:

get this...this is a traveling grocer. i was taking a walk through the small town of Bad Vilbel where im staying here in Germany...and i saw this white van pull up on the side of the street (no signage on the van at all) and the guy gets out and opens the doors and starts selling fruits and veg to some old ladies who walked up to the van. this is a normal thing here that takes place (im told). but people also shop at supermarkets of various sizes and types. it depends on preference. my friend told me that vans like these tend to sell to the older generations...and they have regulars. they will knock on the door of a house (if the person hasnt come out to buy things when the van shows up at its normal time) and if there isnt an answer the man will leave the 10 eggs and head of cabbage on the doorstep (or whatever is the usual purchase of the person). if the person hasnt picked up the goods by the end of the day the neighbors will check to see if everything is okay or not (sort of a neighborhood watch produce program).

ANCESTORS:

im told that here in Germany they dont have a lot of family ancestral records beyond about 30 years ago. in fact, they dont even have gravestones beyond about 30 years old. im told that most records were destroyed during WWII due to profiling (and many were kept by churches back then and the clergy burned the records so they couldnt be found). and as to the graves...they dont bury their dead to "keep" they allow the bodies to rot back into the earth and then after that there is no need for grave markers. so after about 30 years these are gotten rid of also.

im finding out some very interesting things while im here. my dads side of the family is part German and weve wanted to do some ancestral history searching...but we have learned that it is impossible. there are no ancestral heritage places here...and there are no records.