Good morning all, from the far side of the world. I’m completing two weeks’ vacation near Kaiserslautern in Germany, visiting my daughter’s family (grandaughters 6 and4). I’ve been to Heildelberg, Neushcwanstein and a three-country tour through corners of Switzerland, Austria and Leichtenstein. I apologize for any misspellings.
This has been the trip of a lifetime for me, which will make it doubly hard to return to work next week at my tour bus company! The woodcarving I’ve seen here has been somewhat disappointing, due to tourist trap areas selling gew-gaws, but the castles..well, the Castles! The ornate architectural carvings and durability of centuries old wood is fascinating, but what really caught my attention is the iron-work on hinges and latches on castle doors. I’ve been going around with my mouth open (and no cameras were allowed, either) at the beauty of the doors here. Even common household street doors are carved and elaborate. The flower boxes you probably all know about. In Bavaria the flowers drape down in cascades against the white walls, and every village sports red tile roofs. In Heidelberg, one of few places not bombed in WWII, centuries-old buildings have entryways with dished stones from all the feet passing over them. It’s truly awe inspiring. Every world traveler must come home with new impressions of how young a country the USA is. I’ll post some photos when I return the end of August. I’m sampling beer. Not a beer drinker, either, but may now become one. My defining moment here..having morning coffee on a resort balcony with a spectacular view of the Swiss Alps just beyond the reachof my hand. Incredible mountains. Then the lowlands..incredible vineyards, seen from 150mph trains. Ah..I’ll regret going home again! ;-)
-- BarbS, Wenatchee WA
5 comments so far
MsDebbieP
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11928 posts in 646 days
posted 413 days ago
your wonderful words have taken me back to my teen years when I travelled to Europe.
Somewhere in Austria, I think, there was a building with a gold roof…. that was fascinating.
And yes, the iron work….. I had forgotten that until you mentioned it.
I remember coming home from my 6 weeks away…..... it didn’t take long before it was all like a dream. The whole trip seemed like a weekend away.
Looking forward to seeing your photos!!
-- "Functional WoodArt" by Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)
ErikinColorado
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31 posts in 571 days
posted 412 days ago
Barb,
Many years ago I toured that part of Germany..of course back then it was still West Germany. My group and I spent an entire day at Heidelberg Castle and it was awe inspiring and just absolutely wonderful. My dad was stationed with the Army for a short while at K-Town (what Uncle Sam calls Kaiserslautern) and he tells stories of time off taking cruises up and down the Rhine. Enjoy your time!
-- Erik garagewoodworker.blogspot.com
Lip
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129 posts in 536 days
posted 412 days ago
Sounds like so much fun … can’t wait to see the pics!
My mom worked in a doctors office when I was growing up … so she would bring home all the old National Geographic magazines … because even before I could read … I was always amazed by the pictures and wanted to know more. What can I say, I’m an odd bird … Big Bird and children’s books never did anything for me … but you give me a National Geographic and I’d spend days and weeks toting around a dictionary and askin’ her to help me figure out what they were talking about. And that’s what sparked my interest in the Navy … I absolutely loved the idea of getting out there to see all them places most people only read about in books. It’s kind of funny, because my wife would tell me it made me being away a whole hell of a lot easier … knowing I was out there living a dream and seeing all them places I’d been reading about for so many years.
Have a safe trip home!
-- Lip's Dysfuncational Firewood Farm, South Bend, IN
barbs
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88 posts in 571 days
posted 408 days ago
Home from Germany at last. Wonderful trip; beautiful country. Here are a few pictures of woodworking related scenes, and my daughter’s family I visited. My son in law was busy at his job on Ramstein Air Base.
My daughter and granddaughters in the Bavarian Alps with ruins of a 13th century outpost behind us:
Daughter beside a little wine cask in Heidelberg Castle:
A one-piece Bavarian carving, with a four-year-old as size reference:
A common entry door in Garmish (Bavaria)
and a street mime in Heidelberg:
-- BarbS, Wenatchee WA
MsDebbieP
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11928 posts in 646 days
posted 407 days ago
makes me want to go travelling !!!!
what a big “little” cask
-- "Functional WoodArt" by Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)