Sunday, September 14, 2008 ~ Mannheim

Sunday morning was an early one since we wanted to attend Seth’s ward in Mannheim and that was about 2 hours away. But, we did it.. We were up, fed, ready and out the door by 7:00. The sun was just coming up and the views of Leiwen and the river were very beautiful, so we took a few minutes to get pictures before we headed off to Church.
I can’t tell you much about the ride since I slept most of the way, but I did wake up driving into Manheim. Seth drove us straight there to find out that we were actually a little early or really, just on time. We thought Church started at 9:00 but it really started at 9:30. We had a few minutes before the meetings started to meet several of his former missionary families and some even spoke English for us. I was a bit embarrassed that I couldn‘t speak German to show respect for them, but maybe in the next life???
They were very enjoyable meetings even though I had no idea what was being said. However, it was fun to watch the people. They acknowledged Elder Thomas from the stand and introduced his family to the ward at the beginning of the Sacrament Meeting. The Bishopric member who conducted spoke in English so we could understand his love and respect for Elder Thomas. At the end of the meeting, they again acknowledged Elder Thomas and all that he had done for their ward. He said they hoped that we would come to understand why Elder Thomas loves the German people as he does and hoped that we would enjoy our time there. They were very gracious people and you could tell that they admired “Elder Thomas”. They asked him to close their meetings with prayer. Again, I didn’t understand the words, but I could feel the power of the Spirit.
After church we changed our clothes and headed to the city center of Mannheim. Wow!! It is soooo beautifu!!! You can see that the Germans appreciate their heritage because they have made some of their historical sites amazingly beautiful places to be, with flower beds everywhere with arches and climbing vines covering the walkways. We ate a picnic lunch on a bench across from the Manheim Water tower which was built in 1888 and updated in 1988. The grounds surrounding it were a sight in themselves. We walked the streets that Elder Thomas walked while serving in Mannheim and saw the sites he enjoyed for several months. We headed back to our resort later in the day but still in time for Seth and James to fix us a wonderful dinner of brats and knoedel, which is like a dumpling. It was the first time that we had sat together for a family meal and it was just perfect. After dinner, Seth and James went hiking the trails around our little house and the girls watched a movie and relaxed. Dad went to bed early and took a nice nap. The others have gone on to bed now and I’m just finishing writing this account. It’s now 12:10 AM and we are getting up at 4:00 AM to take off for Paris. Till tomorrow…

Saturday, September 13, 2008 ~ Trier

We were so tired that we didn’t get up on Saturday until almost noon. I think that helped most of us work through our “jet lag”. Seth had left early that morning to scout out some breakfast for us. He came back with cold cereal and milk. Along with our leftovers from the night before, we were all full and ready for another day. Again we loaded up in the van and Seth drove us into Trier, Germany. It is about the size of Idaho Falls but much, much older. In fact, it is the home of the oldest standing structure in Germany, possibly all of Europe. It’s part of a Roman colony built around 10 BC. It’s called Porta Nigra (or the Black Gates). It's part of the wall that surrounded the city and protected it from outsiders. Of course there were city gates place in the wal and this is one of the gates. We got to walk through them and take several pictures.
We spent some time in a local internet cafe, checking our emails, bank accounts and blogs. It was nice to connect to the outside world again for a few moments because we don’t have access to our cell phones or internet connections outside of the cafes. When we found all well with the rest of the world, we headed for the stores.
Seth took us to a resturant and ordered each of us a "donor". You can see how big they are. Not all of us could finish ours, but they were VERY GOOD!! After that
we went to a huge “mall?” where we checked out the stores and ended up in the grocery store getting a few things for the week. How fun, to see new and exciting foods and to have Seth tell us, “It’s really good”.
They don’t bag groceries in Germany so James and Seth would reload the shopping cart as she scanned the items. We took the cart to the van and unloaded it all loosely in the back. Heading home we talked about what we would do the rest of the week.

Elizabeth had explored the possibilities of a river trip up the Rhine and a train ride back down. In the end, we decided on a train ride up and back. It would be a lot less expensive and just as fun.
We unloaded the van, gathered up the dirty clothes, swim suits and towels and ended down at the resort Laundromat and swimming pool. We loaded up 5 washers and then headed to the pool. Elizabeth, James and Alisha went swimming while Seth and I visited and finished the wash. One load washed for almost an hour before finishing and we still had to dry it after that. It was pretty late when we got back to our rooms but we’d had a nice time together again.

Gracie guessed right. I'm Cinderella. Who would have thought it?


You Are Cinderella!

Dignified and hard working. With a gentle and soft-spoken manner you have something many people don't. Patience. Even through the moments of heartbreak you're still able to hold onto all of your hopes and dreams. Bide your time; your dream will come true.

Which Disney Princess Are You?

Friday, September 12, 2008 ~ Frankfurt and Leiwen

Up early the next morning, we enjoyed the Breakfast Buffet offered by the Hotel and then headed out for another fun day. Since James and Elizabeth hadn’t been able to be with us the night before, we headed back out into the city for site-seeing and shopping. Dan and I checked out the Opera House while the others found a bank. We waited on a bench under a canopy of beautiful vines until it started raining. Then we went to the front entrance of the Opera House where Elizabeth was waiting for us. Soon the others came and we headed to a shopping center (Roemer Platz) where the stores surrounded a large outside plaza. There was a large, beautiful building (the Old Emperior’s Throne Room, which is currently a museum) amongst the little shops. Dan and Alisha decided to wait outside on a bench for us while we visited the shops. Each store was specialized, small and intriguing. They were crowded but exciting as we looked for special things. We saw some beautiful dirndls’ in all sizes. Elizabeth found one that she especially liked for her baby girl but then decided not to get it. This was the day to get many of our treasures to take home to family and friends. I bought post cards and a coco cup for Kristin. Seth took us to a Stein shop where I found a stein for Joe. James even bought himself a stein to take home. Seth and I did some more site-seeing while we looked for a shop that sold Marzipan for Ken Meacham. He had done a lot of work running off maps of Germany and highlighting spots he thought we’d enjoy seeing. When I asked him what he’d like me be bring him back, he said, “Nothing.” I told him that his name was already on my list. So, what would he like? He told me, “Just some Marzipan”. The clerk at the Stein shop told us where she thought we could find some, but it wasn’t easy to find that place. However, we saw some great buildings while looking. Finally, we found a street market where there was a candy shop. They carried Marzipan and we bought some for Ken and some for us. Then Seth and I went back to the car and went to pick up the others. It was after 3:00 PM when we finally headed out of town towards our resort in Leiwen, Germany.

The drive reminded me of driving north on I-5 towards Portland. There were a lot of green, rolling hills all around us. Many a hill was topped with gigantic metal windmills spinning three huge prongs in the wind. They were actually very beautiful to watch. Occasionally, a car would whirl passed us and we’d remember we were traveling on the Auto Bon where there is no speed limit. Seth and James alternated driving and both were good at it. I felt save enough to take a little nap on the way.

In the early evening we arrived at our “home for the week” and unloaded our things, making our rooms our own. There was a room for James and Elizabeth, a room for Seth and Alisha and a room for Dan and me. They were tiny but cozy and just right for us. There was a nice living room and kitchen and an outside patio with table and chairs. The first few days it was raining and slightly cold so we didn’t sit outside much but it did add to the atmosphere. After a full day of walking and riding we were all very hungry but there was nothing much open. Finally, we found a little hamburger shack and ordered hamburgers, fries and drinks for everyone. Some of us finished ours that night and others fell asleep before then.