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Münzesheim, Germany - 3rd December 2010
By: fam-united
This late afternoon we drove to Münzesheim. We thougth, that we could visit the Japanese Garden there - we've already heard a lot about it. But it was already too dark, so we had to stay inside. We were at an occupational therapist with our host's daughter. She had some problems at school with other pupils of her former class bullying her. She now tries to get more self-confidence here. I think, it is a really nice woman and a nice place, too.
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Posted Dec 18, 2010, 11:19 am
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Bruchsal, Germany - 4th December 2010
By: fam-united
It's the fourth of December already. Today we found a lot of snow outside, so we ran to play in it and have a walk. At first we found a trail in the snow in front of the front door.
At first we took a photo of the kindergarden, which is next to the church St. Peter. It has some nice Christmas decorations.
We turned to see to the baroque church St. Peter. It is one of the few buildings of Bruchsal, which survived World WarII. It is closed, so we had no chance to go inside, but maybe we will go there during the Christmas Time.
Next to the church St. Peter is the graveyard of Bruchsal. You have to walk up and down there, so it is rather difficult for older people to walk there.
Here you see the back side of the house Sancta Maria. You will see the front side later. The grey wall on the left side belongs to the new apostolic church. You maybe can imagine, how steep the ways of the graveyard are, when you see, that we look down on Sancta Maria right now and even this house is higher than the entrance we were at first.
There is a nice garden, which belongs to Sancta Maria. Do you see the little church tower on the left? It is the tower of the city church. There is another small small piece of the tower of the church St. Damian and Hugo, when you look well peer at the branches. This church belongs to the palace of Bruchsal.
This is the front side of Sancta Maria. It houses a catholic school for social education and more. There still live some Franciscan nuns.
We only had to walk down this street from Sancta Maria to our current home. You see the working place - nobody is working right now because of the cold weather.
Somehow my host forgot to take pictures of me on the walk. But when we came back, we found some more trails in the snow next to the trail we've seen at first. Who might this have been?
It was so cold, that we didn't want to stay outside any longer, but our host said, that she first has to clean the way in front of the house again. We asked Chuckle to open the door.
He was a bit too small, so he asked Bluto and Scotty to help him, but they still weren't tall enough.
Hypno-Dog came to help them now. He climbed on their heads and Chuckle on his, but you see, they still didn't reach the lock.
Hypno-Dog called for Travelling Tuffy, who then climbed over their heads and sat down on Hypno-Dog's head and Chuckle sat on his head then. It was really heavy already.
Because they still were too small to reach the lock, Domino asked them, if he could help. Of course they let him climb over their heads and Chuckle sat on his head then. You see, that they still had no luck.
Chuckle called for Schnuffi to help them.
And then I came and also Mustang Monkey asked, if he should help Bluto and Scotty to carry all these other toyvoyagers on our heads.
We were really close to the lock now, but then it happened....! Oh God! I hope, nobody got hurt.
Thank God! Nothing bad happened to us toyvoyagers. Now we knew a bit better how to do it. So we were a bit faster in building the toyvoyager tower.
You see we had a different order now and we were building more a pyramid than a tower.
We didn't feel anything of the cold weather now. We really sweat already.
And yes, with Brinda's help Chuckle reached the lock finally.
He turned the key and then....
What we didn't think of was, that we all will fall down - except Chuckle, Scotty and Bluto. But we all were happy, that we had been successful. Maybe we can go on walks without our host every now and then from now on.
P.S. My host read this and she told me to tell you, that she will keep her key at a safe place from now on. You might feel better to know this, but we all still will try - oh, no eehmmm, I think, we won't try it again
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Posted Dec 18, 2010, 2:51 pm
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Bruchsal, Germany - 19th December 2010
By: fam-united
It's that time of year again, when our host goes into her kitchen for hours and bakes and bakes a lot of cookies. This year we asked her, whether we could help her with her work. At first she seemed a bit hectic and not in the mood to let us join, but then we were allowed to watch and even help her baking.
Here you see Moony cutting the vanilla bean.
Paul Penguin adds the almonds.
I try to stir the dough. Wow, this mixer is heavy.
Even little Brinda helps. She gets the dough out of the mixing bowl.
Schnuffi writes the name of the cookie on the aluminium foil: Husarenkrapferl.
For the second cookies we need some almonds again. Hypno-Dog adds them to the dough.
Kari adds the flour
and Traveling Tuffy the sugar.
Domino likes the cocos flakes, they are just as white as he is. We need the flakes for cocos macaroones with marzipan.
Chuckle helps to stir the dough this time.
To put the dough on the baking plate we need someone really strong: Hypno-Dog!
Tuffy is waiting impatiently.
Brinda tries to show them, that she's also really strong.
After the dough for our Husarenkrapferl was in the fridge for about two hours, Paul puts them on the baking plate and does the last step before we put it in the oven.
While the Husarenkrapferl are baking, our host forms the Vanillekipferl.
Some Vanillekipferl are already baken, while some more are waiting for an empty oven.
That's how the finished Vanillekipferl look like.
We all try to help getting the cocosnut macaroones finished. We want to dip them in the melted chocolate.
Don't they look nice?
It's better to not show, how we looked like after the work was done.
Our host prepared another dough for Spitzbuben cookies. We are allowed to help cutting them out. For some of us it is hard work, but for others just as easy as climbing a tree.
Umechan and Paul are really strong. They can roll the dough with the marmor rolling pin.
Then we are able to cut the cookies out again.
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Posted Jan 1, 2011, 4:58 pm
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Bruchsal, Germany - 22nd December 2010
By: fam-united
It's the last school day before Christmas break. We help our host to pack Christmas presents for her pupils: some dices and packs of cards.
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Posted Jan 1, 2011, 5:33 pm
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Bruchsal, Germany - 23rd December 2010
By: fam-united
In the afternoon we have to finish the Husarenkrapferl. We have to powder them with powder sugar and then fill in marmelade in the little holes.
After we baked the Zigeunerschnitten, we have to decorate them and cut them in smaller pieces.
Then we cut out the Buttergebäck. We use many different small forms.
Then we decorate them with colourful sugar pieces and bake them in the oven.
What a mess! We have to clean up, before we can do more baking.
That's much better now
Look, who is back at home!!! What a Christmas surprise! Aaron, the donkey, came back after staying in Singapore for about two years. He told us, that he won't travel again. He is just too large to take him with in a bag, although he is rather small, when he is folded in a package. He had to tell so much about his life, too much to repeat it here. For us he is just a sign, that it is possible to come back home after years.
Aaron joined us in watching how to bake cookies.
It looks a bit messy again. This will be Walnuss-Aprikosen-Taschen (something like walnut-apricots- bags)
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Posted Jan 2, 2011, 5:44 pm
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