Mr.Zwie-Mueller, Bruchsal, Germany

zwieback


Posted Nov 14, 2011, 12:03 am
Mr.zwieback baught a big bavarian lion toy on the fleamarket and got me as a gift at an other booth to join him.
But Mr.zwieback told me that I'am a famous bear-football national team player and my mission is to look for the rest of my team and to promote bear-football all over the world.
zwieback


Posted Nov 14, 2011, 12:21 am
Now at my new home in Leverkusen Dame Zwie-Drach showed a big tiger to me and made a trip with a little car.
Tomorrow we go to Belgium and The Netherlands.
I am very excited to experience so much new things starting from now.
zwieback


Posted Nov 14, 2011, 11:58 pm
Hi,
today our travel (me. Mr.Zwieback, Dame Zwie-Drach and all the others in the car)  through three countries took place.
It started well, but soon there was a big traffic jam that lasts for 30min/6km.
There we met a nice truck which shows "SAHARA EXPRESS" on its side, we really wanted to join him, but Mr.Zwieback said that is not his destination...
In Maasmechelen (Belgium) then, which is a big fashion outlet, was already Xmas.
There was a winter special decoration with christmas trees and reindeers and other artwork statues.
We also met a TV (television) crew that made a reality show.
On our way back to Aachen and the Netherlands we had to fuel up:
One liter of LPG-autogas was only 49.7cents. Thats 33% less than in Germany !

(to be continued in The Netherlands)
zwieback


Posted Nov 15, 2011, 12:16 am
now we are in Vaals,The Netherlands, only a few meters from the german boarder. Visiting a shopping center to buy coffee and cheese we found that in The Netherlands is xmas already too.
So we had to stop to guard the parking ticket in our car and play with the xmas balls.
zwieback


Posted Nov 21, 2011, 7:36 pm
Hi,
back again I could test the new sofa for the TV-hotel**** today.
It is very comfortable and so says my friend the Bavarian Lion.
The TV-Hotel Knochenberg is advancing very quick, so look at the Forum to go for more information and make a reservation.

I'd like to host a nice TV from abroad for the coming advent.
Have a nice day.
zwieback


Posted Nov 21, 2011, 8:50 pm
I just had a strange encounter.
A reindeer sledge shaped light captured me and brought me to Santa Claus .
He read in a big book and asked me some questions about TVs.
I'm not allowed to tell more.
But I managed to bring along three pics.
An arrow points at me in the first one.

I really don't know how I returned home.

zwieback


Posted Nov 27, 2011, 11:21 pm
Hello again,
today I visited a fleamarket in Poll but it was to late to get some furniture for the TV-Hotel****,
only a few stands were left and already closing.
Back home i tested the Adventskranz which will be illuminated on Sunday the 27th Nov., that is the First Advent.
Thereafter I had a little chat with two friends from a big soft drink company.  They are really funny. But in fakt I do like Pepsi.

zwieback


Posted Nov 27, 2011, 11:54 pm
Hello,
this was another exciting day. First we went to a fleamarket again. Köln-Porz.
This is very big with all kind of stands There were hundreds of little Santa Clauses,
which by the way didn't know the Big One with the reindeer-sledge,
and there was a stand with honey in glasses that look like bears!
again I found no hotel furniture.
But the real event was the rescue of Miss Zwie-Tea from the cage you see on the right.
She is soo cute lavender.... a real sweety!
We took her home and chilled out on the sofa there.

zwieback


Posted Dec 1, 2011, 4:13 pm
Hi fellows,
just a short report of the new arrival of Private and Blue Zwie-Brat.
Things are happening in  The TV-Hottel****.

Finally the Advent has started and we have a huge Calender filled with things to build a panoramic winter scene-
zwieback


Posted Dec 5, 2011, 12:25 pm
Hi,
today I had a very big surprise for the Bavarian Lion !
Private and Blue Zwie-Brat brought us a little Bavarian Lion that proved to be his son !
look at the picture and you see the likeness they bear to have.

It was touching! Miss Zwie-Tea almost cried at this bear meeting too.
Great job Mr. Private
zwieback


Posted Jan 23, 2012, 5:27 pm
Hello,
today our Guest Börnie and I recieved two parcels.
Look at Börnies Travellog for the details.
zwieback


Posted Feb 8, 2012, 11:36 pm
Hi,
today was my last day in Leverkusen.
I am going to Bruchsal in the Kraichgau to fam-united.

To celebrate my trip many TVs gathered to a farewell party.
There were Kikuchan, Cassiopeia, Börnie, the Tweenie Blue Zwie-Brat and the just returned Mr.Zwie-Fox.

Our TV-Hotel**** guests yesterday brought many sweets from their trip through Belgium, the Netherlands and Aachen,
especially pralines from Lindt and Lebkuchen from Lambertz plus a big bag with Haribo Saftbären (juicy jelly baers).
We had so much fun....
I will miss all of that.

Now I am already on  my way in the little parcel box.
Bruchsal here I come.
fam-united


Posted Mar 17, 2012, 1:33 pm
Today I visited my host's school class. Petra likes, when her pupils read a lot. Here we sit on some book, which were put on her desk for some more kids to read.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7048/6987679505_c56805fb31.jpg


Her pupils also worked on book presentations and created a poster for each book.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7181/6987679701_0ac3376270.jpg


Here are more posters of book presentations and a large world map - really interesting for the pupils.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7048/6841557130_f72cecbe7a.jpg


The windows are decorated with some funny clowns.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7191/6987680083_b1286f16c2.jpg
fam-united


Posted Mar 17, 2012, 1:37 pm
Today we met some members of our hosts' family group of their church. We walked from Bruchsal to Unteroewisheim and drink some coffee and eat cake. I think, that the landscape is really lovely.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7208/6841557874_ebc4cba6cb.jpg


The way leads along vineyards to the 221 m high "Eisenhut", a historic significant hill. It was named after Anton Eisenhut, who was executed after participating in the German Peasants' War in 1525. This stele reminds us of Anton Eisenhut.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7209/6987681237_077bd71a85.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7194/6987681381_ec0e4838f1.jpg


Then we walked through this loess hollow-way.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7064/6987681635_6fec659531.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7041/6841558962_b975bf0aac.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7191/6841559682_d6c89a08e7.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7178/6841559862_7cd07f6d75.jpg

fam-united


Posted Mar 17, 2012, 1:39 pm
Then we arrived in Unteroewisheim. After having coffee and cake we took a photo with the church. It was built in 1825. Unteroewisheim is a town in the Kraichgau.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7040/6841560402_aa1d7b090e.jpg
fam-united


Posted Mar 17, 2012, 1:43 pm
Back in Bruchsal we took a sunset photo of the schoolyard and part of the school St. Paulusheim.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7054/6987683875_0df3f4974a.jpg


Bruchsal is located at the edge of Kraichgau to Rhine valley, so partly it is really flat and partly hilly. You see the baroque church St. Peter and the house Santa Maria in the far. We live with our hosts near to both buildings.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7202/6841561338_da4cdaf772.jpg


St. Paulusheim is a private catholic school, founded by padres of the Pallotti order.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7058/6841561604_57f0d011d9.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7049/6987685061_e680b82719.jpg
fam-united


Posted Mar 17, 2012, 1:45 pm
Today we walked to a restaurant and had lunch. On our way back we took some more photos. You can see houses of Bruchsal in the far.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7056/6987685295_a6491355b6.jpg


Here is a building of the fire brigade school.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7206/6841563134_6afc71596f.jpg


You still can see many wayside crosses around Bruchsal.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7205/6841563272_62ce7f1a09.jpg


I really didn't realize before, that we hadn't been in Bruchsal anymore, but now we are back.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7051/6987687201_110de37bf0.jpg
fam-united


Posted Mar 18, 2012, 2:16 pm
Today we drove to Cologne. Petra's husband had to be there for a Trade Fair and Petra met olgamaus.

Here is some information about Cologne (wikipedia):


"Cologne (English pronunciation: /kəˈloʊn/, German: Köln [kœln], Kölsch: Kölle [ˈkœɫə]) is Germany's fourth-largest city (after Berlin, Hamburg and Munich), and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.

Cologne is located on both sides of the Rhine River. The city's famous Cologne Cathedral (Kölner Dom) is the seat of the Catholic Archbishop of Cologne. The University of Cologne (Universität zu Köln) is one of Europe's oldest and largest universities.

Cologne is a major cultural centre of the Rhineland and has a vibrant arts scene. Cologne is home to more than 30 museums and hundreds of galleries. Exhibitions range from local ancient Roman archeological sites to contemporary graphics and sculpture. The Cologne Trade Fair hosts a number of trade shows such as Art Cologne, imm Cologne, Gamescom and the Photokina."



Cologne Cathedral (German: Kölner Dom) is the city's most famous monument and the Cologne residents' most respected landmark. It is a Gothic church, started in 1248, and completed in 1880. In 1996, it was designated a World Heritage site; it houses the Shrine of the Three Kings that supposedly contains the relics of the Three Magi. Residents of Cologne sometimes refer to the cathedral as "the eternal construction site" (Dauerbaustelle).

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7199/6843069770_7d150f3c76.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7183/6989194577_4bcfa5f939.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7206/6843072110_e1c784b881.jpg


Cologne Central Station: On an average day, about 280,000 travellers frequent the station, making it fifth busiest station in Germany.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7191/6989196229_0321341a2c.jpg


Then we walked down to the Rhine.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7202/6989197279_2e0c996982.jpg


We turned around and took a look back to the cathedral.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7178/6843075038_7a59dc0542.jpg


Here's the Hohenzollern Bridge.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7047/6989199383_c5ecf63020.jpg


Great St. Martin Churchis a Romanesque Catholic church. Its foundations (circa 960 AD) rest on remnants of a Roman chapel, built on what was then an island in the Rhine. The church was badly damaged in World War II, with restoration work completed in 1985.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7186/6843077750_1313408c7c.jpg


We then walked around the Imhoff-Chocolate Museum. 

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7191/6989202145_1b67ef7cb3.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7193/6843079222_bb7e4a1cf9.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7058/6989203671_64951c22a0.jpg


We took a look back to the Hohenzollern Bridge, cathedral and Great St. Martin.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7036/6989204999_f6db4c8a26.jpg


The museum is run by the Schokoladenmuseum Köln GmbH. Since March 2006, the Swiss chocolate manufacturer Lindt & Sprüngli has been its partner in producing exhibits. Prior to that the partner was the Cologne chocolate producer Stollwerck, and the museum was formerly known as the Imhoff-Stollwerck-Museum.

On this photo you can see, how high the water was in 1995 and you can see, where we took the photo with the chocolate girl, where we stand for the view back to the churches and bridge. The yellow line shows the way we walked around the museum and the green line the way, where we came from.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7053/6843081780_c5f9246934.jpg


Inside the museum we saw all the machines which are necessary to make delicious chocolate.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7204/6989205773_83a62a8777.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7056/6843082276_bdb3f5cac5.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7205/6843084902_a0141d3df9.jpg


There is a real chocolate fountain! We all got wafers dipped into melted chocolate. Yummy!

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7187/6843082998_f2c5bf814e.jpg


This equestrian statue shows Frederick William III of Prussia. You can see here, who else is on the base of the statue.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7184/6846084166_fa168b4cf1.jpg


The Heumarkt is beside the Alter Markt the biggest place in Cologne historic city.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7045/6992211761_0ebcd398b8.jpg


There are several small breweries in Cologne. This one is located at the Heumarkt.

[img]hhttp://farm8.staticflickr.com/7179/6992214447_f9890d8c6f.jpg[/img]


Another brewery in the small streets of the historic city.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7056/6992215125_8a0518ee53.jpg


It started to rain and we walked back to the cathedral. We entered it and it was so so dark inside, that we had problems to take nice photos. So please excuse the quality.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7054/6846089218_3dc38dc3b3.jpg


So this was the last photo of Cologne and we drove back to Bruchsal again.
fam-united


Posted Apr 6, 2012, 3:10 pm
Today we were invited to celebrate our host uncle's 80th birthday. We celebrated at a Greek Restaurant close to the Rhine. In the early afternoon we went on a walk to have a view on the Rhine. Both, the Rhine and the Neckar flow through Mannheim. Mannheim is a nice city, Petra told me, but she had no time to show more than the Rhine.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7204/6992505551_5b0101e28f.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7201/6992506779_fbbbb30d51.jpg
fam-united


Posted Apr 29, 2012, 3:29 pm
The weather got worse. It rained heavily in the afternoon and we were happy to stay inside the house, but of course we took a look at the wonderful rainbow.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7088/7124438209_b5a9458bb8.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7063/6978355280_76eb3696a7.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7212/6978355538_4ede3ea55b.jpg
fam-united


Posted Apr 29, 2012, 3:43 pm
Finally I found time to read these two pages of two different newspapers of the week. The one is about Bruchsal asparagus. Bruchsal is famous for its asparagus fields and auctions.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7048/6978407668_6927d92e14.jpg



The other newspaper page is about the baroque palace of Bruchsal. I think, you have a good view to many different parts of the main building with the church tower, but still many houses are missing.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7221/6978420830_2b56770eb5.jpg
fam-united


Posted Apr 30, 2012, 5:56 pm
We have typical April weather in Bruchsal. There is sunshine and the next moment there is hail and thunder and rain.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8150/7128657865_3ea613bda9.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8015/6982575482_6d90d0c0b7.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8153/6982575704_5a31070453.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7110/7128665987_5c76b418d4.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7239/6982581236_464e7d2674.jpg
fam-united


Posted May 13, 2012, 4:16 pm
Today evening we saw a nice double rainbow. My host family still has to fight with illness:(

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7227/7188533834_686bb8442e.jpg
fam-united


Posted Jun 22, 2012, 9:52 am
We are on our way to Trier today. My host and her husband invited us and her husband's parents to join them on the trip. Here I enjoy a cup of cappuccino in a motorway restaurant.

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5316/7418568376_a9e883d283.jpg
fam-united


Posted Jun 22, 2012, 10:14 am
When my host's parents in law were young, they lived in Trier-Ehrang. Actually they were born there and grew up there. We saw all the places, which were important for them. This town is a suburb of Trier, which is located in Rhineland-Palatinate. There live about 10 000 people and it is the third largest district of Trier. It has municipal laws since 1346 A.D.

Here we see the church St.Peter of Ehrang.


http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7139/7418568888_792b3cf711.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8163/7418569524_a4e1f11f94.jpg


Then we went to a house, which was built in 1805. Here you can read about it:

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7258/7418570266_901ac57229.jpg

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5272/7418570566_53f8e9af26.jpg
fam-united


Posted Jun 22, 2012, 10:41 am
At lunch time we drove to Burg Ramstein. After eating a tasty meal we went the last metres to Burg Ramstein and took some photos there. The castle is surrounded by wood. The first castle was build 915 A.D., the one, which we see now was built sometime around 1300 A.D. The former tower house was about 25 metres high and had four floors.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7122/7418570992_151d2e1905.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8020/7418572484_234c7439c9.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8145/7418573184_02bbcc07e3.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8162/7418574100_1c54a470eb.jpg
fam-united


Posted Jun 22, 2012, 11:24 am
Because my host's parents in law are older people, we had no chance to have a walk in Trier and see all the sightseeing places really close. Her father in law sits in a wheelchair and her mother in law needs a walker, so it is too difficult for them. Nevertheless we took the chance to take a look at the sightseeing places from a place called Petrisberg. It was a bit difficult to take photos, though, first my host didn't have her own camera, second we had the sun against us and third either I or the landscape was sharp and so we had to zoom in some parts to give you a closer view on some places.

Trier is the oldest city in Germany, founded in or before 16 BC on the banks of the Moselle. Trier lies in a valley between low vine-covered hills of ruddy sandstone in the west of the state of Rhineland-Palatinate, near the border with Luxembourg and within the important Mosel wine region.

The city is the oldest seat of a Christian bishop north of the Alps.

With an approximate population of 105,000 Trier is ranked fourth among the state's largest cities; after Mainz, Ludwigshafen, and Koblenz.

You can take a look at the link. My host says, that she loves Trier and that you should come and see it, if you get a chance to visit this part of Germany.


http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5156/7418574422_7468fbc6ab.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8147/7418576994_c53e906da4.jpg

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5040/7418575108_58b4a6dd52.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8153/7418577498_082c57b446_z.jpg


We will go and see St.Matthias in the late afternoon.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7132/7418575618_8cbc8c7371.jpg


http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5449/7418576276_58d8cee635.jpg

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5332/7418576546_a06d3589cb.jpg

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5156/7418576664_e5534a5ee1.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7132/7418578144_391c9d8eda.jpg


I'm really sorry, but we also had no chance to catch a short view to the most famous Porta Nigra, because you can't see it on the photo above - it is just too small as you can see on the zoomed in photo.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7130/7418578308_2a0df09844.jpg
fam-united


Posted Jun 22, 2012, 1:18 pm
St. Matthias' Abbey is a Benedictine monastery in Trier. Monks have lived in the present St. Matthias' Abbey since late antiquity. The monastery adopted the Rule of St. Benedict in about 977. The abbey was originally named after Saint Eucharius, first Bishop of Trier, whose tomb is in the crypt. The church has been given the status of a basilica minor.


http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7121/7418578714_d8e9e140e0.jpg

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5448/7418579856_c6aca5f0ea.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7117/7418580242_7421993690.jpg


The abbey church, a Romanesque basilica, is a renowned place of pilgrimage because of the tomb of Saint Matthias the Apostle, after whom the abbey is named, located here since the 12th century, and the only burial of an apostle in Germany and north of the Alps.


http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7261/7418580658_686ab84568.jpg


Just above the tomb you see the sleeping statue of St. Matthias.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7109/7418581212_44710ce99e.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7129/7418581760_1b13836a57.jpg
fam-united


Posted Jun 22, 2012, 1:42 pm
Our last stop was Igel, what is hedgehog in English - what a funny name for a town. We stopped here to take a photo of the Igel column, which is UNESCO World Heritage. The column is 23 metres high and was built in 250 A.D. by the brothers Lucius Secundinius Aventinus und Lucius Secundinius Securus. The original column is in a museum in Trier.


http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7268/7418582536_3a663721c7.jpg
fam-united


Posted Jun 22, 2012, 1:54 pm
Today we go out for another day trip. I'm sure, I will enjoy it.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8146/7418765756_79e09228b2.jpg
fam-united


Posted Jun 22, 2012, 2:26 pm
Our first stop was at the Hundertwasser house in Darmstadt, which belongs to the state of Hessen. The house is called "Waldspirale", "forest spiral" in English. It is a residential building complex built in the 1990s. It was designed by Austrian artist Friedensreich Hundertwasser, planned and implemented by architect Heinz M. Springmann, and constructed by the Bauverein Darmstadt company. The building was completed in 2000 after Hundertwasser's death.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8148/7418766766_ac9ce9e24c.jpg


It contains 105 apartments, a parking garage, a kiosk as well as a café and a bar. There are about 1000 windows and no two windows are the same.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7128/7418766994_53e92f676c.jpg


You see the typical elements of Hundertwasser's personal style attract attention: the gilded onion domes, the absence of straight lines and sharp corners, the multicoloured painting of the building in earth tones and the colourful ceramic columns.

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5193/7418768116_ef14e7c552.jpg

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5119/7418768724_be161f3657.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7116/7418769764_cae8cf6140.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8153/7418770316_d97985f9ce.jpg

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5337/7418771170_af435396d0.jpg


The inner courtyard contains a playground for the children of the residents and a small artificial lake.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8155/7418772534_321463e223.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7123/7418773470_98c7c02c11.jpg

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5457/7418774302_7209cfbd08.jpg

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5459/7418775260_d34ec189f7.jpg
fam-united


Posted Jun 22, 2012, 7:06 pm
http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5193/7418776362_b683407f99.jpg

At next we drove to a place called "Mathildenhöhe". We all didn't know anything about this place, so we had to read about it. It's an artists colony and you can see some houses around the park, which were created by them.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7115/7418776764_57a6907204.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8165/7418777194_62c3cecfd6.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8006/7418777478_29772395c9.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8166/7418778538_71d6510c36.jpg


With about 180 metres it is the highest place of Darmstadt.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8025/7418779366_f2a6ecd510.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7116/7418780280_3a0d1a3236.jpg


There is a Russian Chapel built in 1897 and the Hochzeitsturm (wedding tower) built in 1906, which was created by one of those architecture artists, which I mentioned above.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8160/7418781644_6da1930c5e.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8006/7418781992_7bee261906.jpg


We climbed the tower and took some photos from the top floor, but I'm sorry, the photos are blurry. It was just a problem of the sun and the camera was still the small one.

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5032/7418782872_00a39b3e05.jpg


In 1833 they reshaped the garden in style of an English garden and the  plane trees are of this decade.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8026/7418784966_d991b09cbe.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8152/7418785182_1951b29f40.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7248/7418785334_9bc378b881.jpg


http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7271/7418787224_28e872655e.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7113/7418788184_c411364d53.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8017/7418788914_c5c6e3ae66.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7135/7418790192_00db09e779.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8162/7418791162_6ac440d37b.jpg


The artists built their houses in Art Nouveau style between 1899 bis 1914.

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5111/7418789676_2189cab001.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7254/7418792032_a89703d381.jpg

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5315/7418792600_ab70d2ee60.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7138/7418792764_0f0a948660.jpg
fam-united


Posted Jun 22, 2012, 7:51 pm
Finally it was time to drive to Frankfurt a.M., because we had to fetch my host's daughter there, who came with a flight from Athens, Greece. She was there with her class. We had no chance to see any planes, because we arrived to late to go outside on the terrace.

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5344/7418793106_0e819ed682.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8162/7418793642_c6e5808d13.jpg
fam-united


Posted Jun 22, 2012, 8:14 pm
Because my host and her children still had a break from school, they decided to go and have lunch at a restaurant outside of Bruchsal. I asked her to take some photos with me when we walked home again.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7248/7418800916_8a69995b83.jpg


As you can see here Bruchsal belongs to the rural district of Karlsruhe.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7123/7418801774_287f58af2c.jpg


http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5279/7418803168_dc2909dedf.jpg


Here's the backside of the house Santa Maria.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7249/7418806600_7cca8ffa49.jpg


I love this VW-Kaefer (Beetle). Do you know Herbie?

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8018/7418807470_d28acc1dd1.jpg


Here is the front of Santa Maria. We found a sign and took a photo of it, so you can read some information about this house.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7129/7418810558_78ea852a4f.jpg

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5460/7418811302_52f790115f.jpg
fam-united


Posted Jun 23, 2012, 5:49 pm
We were on a trip again today and have seen many halftimbered houses on our way. I hope, you enjoy them. Rainrod is a town in Hessen, so I'm Rainrod is a town in Hessen, so I'm once more in another federal state of Germany. in another federal state of Germany.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7265/7425410846_b134610671.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8153/7425411082_8ee752c6b9.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8162/7425414836_5678180d5d.jpg


We drove to a landscape called Vogelsberg. This was the only place, where we had been able to stop next to the road to take a photo.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7271/7425416434_560af37451.jpg
fam-united


Posted Jun 23, 2012, 6:39 pm
We found some more halftimbered houses in Glauburg.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8009/7425418684_e2300e7297.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8026/7425419784_c99b9ec608.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7274/7425421648_013267cf73.jpg
fam-united


Posted Aug 6, 2012, 8:48 pm
I'm in Bavaria now:) Aschaffenburg. It is a city in northwest Bavaria and belonged to the Archbishopric of Mainz for more than 800 year. The town is located on both sides of the River Main. The second river is the small Aschaff which flows in the western part of the town into the River Main.

Schloss Johannisburg is a castle in Aschaffenburg that was erected between 1605 and 1614 by Georg Ridinger. Until 1803, it was the second residence of the prince bishop of Mainz. It is constructed of red sandstone, the typical building material of the area around Aschaffenburg.

Schloss Johannisburg is one of the most important buildings of the Renaissance period in Germany. At the end of the 18th century, the interior was restructured in the style of classicism.


(Sorry, I had a strange camera, but I wanted to add all photos)

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7279/7425423454_b15bbaf39b.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8161/7425430170_199451fec4.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8161/7425428704_9d1d6082cd.jpg

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5076/7425426032_1435db5510.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8008/7425425822_6f18b56163.jpg
fam-united


Posted Aug 6, 2012, 9:17 pm
Our last stopp today we had in Miltenberg, which also is located in Bavaria.

Worth seeing are the Mildenburg (the local castle), which you can see in the far


http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8151/7425430346_7c65c3956a.jpg


the Hotel Zum Riesen (one of Germany’s oldest inns, if not the oldest) - you can see the "Zum Riesen" on the right side,

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8145/7425432448_a70ce1a558.jpg


the historical Old Town

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5072/7425432686_b078cf5964.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7273/7425436550_b3667fbb27.jpg

the historical marketplace

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7131/7425437478_b3f58bfbb9.jpg


the river Main

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8025/7425406110_c4e8c21d64.jpg

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5457/7425406944_c13b371fd2.jpg

and surely you can find many more interesting places here, but it got late, so we had to drive home again.



The bridge and the tower were built in 1898. The bridge was destroyed in 1945 and rebuilt in 1950.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7252/7425408390_5bd72380f6.jpg


I met many swans on the river Main.

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5340/7425409930_940c2c495b.jpg
fam-united


Posted Sep 4, 2012, 3:53 pm
Today I met my host's pupils. They were on a rallye through the town and my host showed them the ancient tower of the old castle of Bruchsal.

The castle keep is 38 metres high and was built in 1358 - making it the oldest surviving building in the town.


http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8440/7930015900_0b27915471.jpg


In the far you can see buildings, which belong to the baroque palace. The tower belongs to the palace church.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8033/7930011148_b044bfb826.jpg


The high tower belongs to the church close to the market place. We call this church "Stadtkirche", city church.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8029/7930009026_27a69c3dcf.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8319/7930007828_96c2cd7ace.jpg


The roofs to our feet belong to the Buergerzentrum-  the citizen hall. The two towers in the far belong to the baroque church St. Peter, which is close to my host's home. You can also see trees of the citizen park.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8322/7930008206_21ae03d9f5.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8305/7930002658_b44d4628a0.jpg


Here is still the citizen park and the grey building in the far is a catholic grammar school. It seems like an old castle too.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8181/7930002288_348e8822a4.jpg
fam-united


Posted Sep 4, 2012, 5:49 pm
Today we drove to Mannheim, but we only were there on a short visit, so we had no chance to see more than some high buildings and streets.

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5450/7425584836_9b6a5ffc09.jpg

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5111/7425585160_ca55eb45bb.jpg


We were in the fifth floor, rather high in my opion.

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5345/7425585448_2352294bab.jpg


My host's aunt has some nice flowers on her balcony.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8028/7425585706_21bc407232.jpg


Here you see the television tower.

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5279/7425591202_182cda8ae9.jpg
fam-united


Posted Sep 4, 2012, 6:12 pm

In the evening we watched a football match of the EM, UEFA European Football Championship.

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5324/7425594774_58576fb439.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7137/7425595010_18700c164e.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8155/7425595248_9e20cde5e2.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7262/7425595402_50f5946b80.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7254/7425595600_cea5a9da28.jpg
fam-united


Posted Sep 5, 2012, 1:42 pm
During the last weeks, my host sat in front of the computer and wrote many messages to send out IDs and answer questions. Did you hear of Galileo Big Pictures? Of course you did, because I started my career there. Then you know, why she had to do some work here:)

Today she had to bake six quiche lorraine, all of them the size of three usually round cakes, and we had been happy to help her. Her husband celebrates a late 50th birthday party.

One sort of quiche was with cheese, ham and eggs, the other sort was with cheese, salmon, onion and eggs.

At first we had to read the recipe.


http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8180/7931234802_9cd7fdfb3d.jpg


Then Cassiopeia weighed 600gr flour.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8458/7931234326_05941caede.jpg


Fiona added 300gr butter.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8447/7931233820_e0a6ba0399.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8175/7931233438_f990f62da0.jpg


Cassiopeia helped TV-TV to get some salt on a spoon. They needed one and a half teaspoon.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8181/7931233076_175b78869e.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8458/7931232714_0145b5b9ab.jpg


SunnyHH had a lot of fun climbing on my head while I tried to get water on a spoon. I had to add 15 tablespoons of water to the dough.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8030/7931232340_52ea1dd8fd.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8302/7931231996_50fcb68ed4.jpg


Then she had to stir the dough. My host said, that she hadn't been really a help doing it. Who knows why?

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8179/7931231604_95b70799f6.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8306/7931231250_361613db93.jpg


Scotty made the dough on aluminium foil, because it had to rest in the fridge for two hours.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8029/7931230936_fd541ea4f9.jpg


Later Kari had to open 9 eggs for the stuffing.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8304/7931230592_f86b6d950c.jpg


You see SunnyHH had some fun again, while someone mixed the eggs. In the measuring cup we have 3/4 l cream and 3 grains of salt.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8456/7931230170_d57e6a8744.jpg


Someone also added 375gr cheese and 600gr cutted ham.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8456/7931230170_d57e6a8744.jpg


I can tell you, it tasted really good. And for the salmon quiche we just replaced ham with salmon - some said, it was even better.
fam-united


Posted Sep 7, 2012, 6:09 pm
After a while we were so tired of working in the kitchen. We knew, that it was the opening night of the Olympic Games in London, so we sat in front of our hosts' tv and were really fascinated while watching it. Just take a look at a few impressions of this night.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8454/7950339204_be35547d75.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8032/7950338926_9cc634d092.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8316/7950338652_169fea3bfc.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8319/7950338412_52773501df.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8173/7950338162_f85035a64c.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8321/7950337874_34f3c3e9be.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8320/7950337616_d876807f69.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8319/7950337390_28f37f0f53.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8040/7950337150_693f38dc25.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8457/7950336618_3203c1a01c.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8439/7950336304_36aebe37c1.jpg
fam-united


Posted Sep 7, 2012, 6:14 pm
Today we had to warm up the Quiche again before the guests arrived. Doesn't it look yummy?

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8180/7950336046_6f753d5bf6.jpg
fam-united


Posted Jun 2, 2013, 2:19 pm
Wow! We have another sunny day! I really had no chance to see the flowers in the garden behind the house until now, because the weather was that bad. I can't remember, that we had springweather like this before. All flowers are blooming at the same time and the trees got leaves within minutes it seems.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7403/8922666580_81f6745820.jpg
fam-united


Posted Jun 2, 2013, 9:04 pm
Today I'm on a sightseeing trip by car - the weather had been terrible during the last days, but today it is a little bit better.

Here you see one of Bruchsal's oldest streets: Württemberger-Straße.


http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3722/8925818382_604cd847b9.jpg
fam-united


Posted Jun 3, 2013, 4:36 pm
Then we drove to Heidelsheim, which is one of Bruchsal's surburbs. Heidelsheim belongs to Bruchsal since 1974. The river Saalbach also flows through Heidelsheim. The small city was first named in 770 A.D.

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3833/8925201553_e8e818ed3a.jpg
fam-united


Posted Jun 3, 2013, 5:01 pm
We drove to Blaustein on the Autobahn. My hosts' one son lives in this town, which is close to Ulm. Here you see some impressions during our drive, which took about 2 hours one way. You still see thick clouds in the sky.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7409/8925807250_8f50986677.jpg

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3668/8925802424_a63b603d77.jpg
fam-united


Posted Jun 3, 2013, 5:14 pm
It seems, that sightseeing means to look out of windows or driving cars. The weather was too cold and we only had a little time in Blaustein before we had to drive back to Bruchsal again, so here you can see just a view over the roofs.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8267/8925793702_7665fcb249.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7406/8925793304_ca6caf5746.jpg

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3755/8925792940_f9154356e6.jpg
fam-united


Posted Jul 21, 2013, 6:46 pm
Two more hours in the car, then we were in Bruchsal again.

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3779/8926149620_0814bb0e1c.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7297/8926145824_2f6db1186b.jpg

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3713/8925530653_40a278b882.jpg
fam-united


Posted Jul 21, 2013, 7:16 pm
The weather is really nice, if you don't count the heavy clouds, so we decided to go on a drive to two of Bruchsal's suburbs: Untergrombach and Obergrombach. At first we wanted to visit the chapel on Michaelsberg, a small hill which belongs to Untergrombach. It was too crowded there, because there was a wedding.
So we only took a photo of the small hills of Kraichgau.


http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5450/8925525651_42c8a1407e.jpg
fam-united


Posted Jul 21, 2013, 9:15 pm
Today we decided to bake a rhubarb cake. Our host allowed us to do it all alone without her help. So please take a look at the recipe. We explain it step by step:

At first we had to find a place - we are quite a few
:)

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8120/8925650459_25c2fb409a.jpg

Of course we aren't all traveling. Some of us are here as active toyvoyagers, but many of us are guests, who decided to stay here as long as the owners don't find time to get in contact with our host. And of course some of us live here, but we all have one thing in common - we are toyvoyagers.
At next we had to get the eggs. We need six eggs for the cake.


http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2894/8926263186_1c392f9ea5.jpg


It was Sausi Karl's job to beat the eggs.

http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2823/8925649599_791739a839.jpg

http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2837/8926262302_7aeafb0649.jpg


Then one of us - don't know who - added 50g sugar for each egg, so it was 300 g sugar. It's quite a lot, we know.

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5340/8925648755_99037120e0.jpg


Madam Miff added one packet of vanilla sugar to the dough.

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3770/8926261548_8998663879.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7396/8925647869_237cb5fd27.jpg


Of course we had to beat the dough again, but we couldn't handle the camera while beating the dough.
Matcha and Ted added 300g flour and one packet of baking powder.


http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7383/8926260672_da07c34399.jpg

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3678/8926260212_c72498b239.jpg


Then we had to stir the dough again until it was fluffy.

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5341/8925646503_71c81a9212.jpg


Melek helped

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5345/8925646031_19fa977bf5.jpg


and Nathalie

http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2879/8925645579_b3897924c7.jpg


Then Matcha prepared the dish for the dough. We baked without bottom on a foil.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7396/8925645243_84f5a0b420.jpg


Nathalie was still busy stiring the dough.

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5461/8926258054_90e53dfbcb.jpg


And the she filled it in the dish.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7346/8926257628_0006344c9a.jpg


Then we all were sitting there and waiting for the cake to get baken in the oven. Man it was boring at first. But we didn't expect, that half an hour can be such a short time, when so many tvs are together.

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3828/8926257210_04a81c0d7e.jpg

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5448/8926256334_e45a065417.jpg


After this break we had to prepare the rhubarb, because we wanted to fill the cake with rhubarb cream.

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5325/8925642549_64bc3d6b29.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8280/8925642077_7d28b046f1.jpg


Little Dragon helped to skin it.

http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2892/8926254860_9ffd0a4e02.jpg

http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2891/8925641099_55bf42ecab.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8557/8925640615_c12058fe1e.jpg


And Matcha helped to cut it in pieces.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7431/8925640213_0ed27dc6e2.jpg


Billy helped Matcha to stay on the pot during cutting the rhubarb pieces.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7355/8926252924_722dec89c7.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7449/8926252512_ca9e8678ee.jpg

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3834/8925638829_1cffc388c3.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8546/8926251574_0be69c2f2e.jpg


Then we had to prepare some ingrediences for the cream. We needed two packets of vanilly pudding powder, one egg white and one yolk. We had to stir the egg white.

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3809/8926251194_8c89fefb59.jpg


Before adding the stirred egg white, we had to add the pudding powder. We had added a little bit of water to it and shook it until it was smooth. Then we added the pudding powder to the cooked rhubarb. We also added the yolk.

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3716/8926250806_6303221319.jpg


Then Louis the Rat added the stirred egg white and gently folded it in.

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3800/8926250320_b994916c7a.jpg

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5331/8926249780_60c4a38bda.jpg


Finally we cut the cake in two layers and filled the cream on the first and then on the second layer and put the last layer on top of it.

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5460/8926249078_87082c87f3.jpg

http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2849/8926248634_af3da8b85e.jpg

Back