Travelog for: Evie

Today I have started my journey towards Germany. I hope to arrive soon

Hi Mummy,
I arrived in Remscheid today. My host Katja picked me up at the post office in the morning. I had to spend the whole weekend alone in my envelope. I was travelling in such a small envelope, but the mailbox of the house Katja is living in probably was crammed with newspapers on Saturday. So the post man took me back to the post office.

Katja helped me out of my envelope immediately. The sun was shining and we took two photos in front of the city hall. Katja was on her way to her work place in a law firm, so we did not have much time to take more photos.

The city hall was built in 1906, Katja told me. It was nearly destroyed in World War II and was rebuilt in the late 1940s and early 1950s in a more modern style. It's tower is 48 m high.



The heraldic animal of Remscheid is the lion. You can see it on a pillar in front of the city hall.



In the morning the weather was fantastic, when we went home at 6:00 p.m. it was raining. I'm glad we took the photos in the morning.

Bye
Evie

Hi Mummy,
we took a walk in the afternoon, although it is really hot and humid. Katja told us that we should get used to a temperature like they have in Spain.

Spain?!

I don't know what she was talking about ...

We went to the district Hasten, which is one of the oldest districts of the municipal area. You can find many pretty old houses here.



We rested for a while in the shadow.









Here you can see the German Tool Museum.



This Patrician house is also a museum, a museum of local history. It was built in the late 1700s.





Those buildings in the background also belong to the Tool Museum.



You often have dwelling houses and factory buldings close together.





We were on our way back home on the following picture. We had to walk uphilll almost for hours (at least it seemed so to me).





We were almost home than, look at those pretty old houses.



Bye for today
Evie

Hi Mummy,
we went to the public library today.



The library has three levels: Specialised books, DVDs and audio books on the ground floor, novels and poetry on  the first floor and children's books in the basement.







Katja's favourite books!





Outside again the warmth was overwhelming, so we only took a short walk through the city centre back home.

Here you can see the theatre in the background as well as the shopping mall and the tower of the city hall.





Back on the shopping street ...



This is the main entrance of the shopping mall with a fountain in front of it.



From here you can see the green environment of Remscheid.





This is the water tower. From here the inhabitants of the city centre are supplied with drinking water which is pumped from a dam in one of the valleys to the highest point of the city centre.



Bye
Evie

Hi Mummy,
Katja told us that we will travel to Spain tomorrow, to Barcelona.



We'll come home on Thursday in the late evening.

Bye
Evie

Hi Mummy,
we went to the railway station to go to Düsseldorf airport. We'll fly to Barcelona!

When we left the house, we found an envelope on the stairs with cute little mouse UrselHH inside. She arrived just in time to accompany us on our trip to Spain.

At the railway station we climbed out of Katja's bag to get a bit of fresh air.

We are at Duessldorf International Airport now. After the check-in we spent some time having a coffee. Here you can see me with Migui+Gui, the little witch with her cat.



Afterwards we took a walk through the Airport. We also went to the visitor's platform.





When we entered the plane I was happy that we had a window seat. So I'd be able to look out of the window.



We were ready for take-off than.

It was late evening when we had reached Barcelona, went to our hotel by bus and went out to the promenade. We walked to the harbour and had dinner.

Hi Mummy,
today we took a walk along the beach promenade. Our hotel is close to the coastline, so we only had to cross the street to get there.









These high-rasers were built for the Olympic Village of the 1992 Summer Olympics.



This is a fish fixation, created by the architekt Frank Gehry, manifested by a 35 metre x 54 metre fish made of steel lattice. The fish marks the start of the Olympic Port area and is placed at the base of the two landmark towers.





You can find many artworks here at the beaches, this one for example at the beach of  Barceloneta.





This is the tower of an aerial ropeway to Montjuic, a mountain in the municipal area.





We went to Port Vell than, the old harbour.





Here you can see the statue "El Cap de Barcelona" by the American pop artist Roy Lichtenstein.



More of Port Vell ...



We also visited Ramla de Mar, a prolongation of the world famous boulevard Las Ramblas, leading to the Christopher Columbus Monument.





We also walked to the newer part of the harbour. This steel construction is overspanning an intersection to several directions.





We walked to the old town to have lunch in a cava-bar. Cava is the Catalanian Champagne. You eat tapas and drink cava here. Really delicious! I tasted the local cheese with little mouse UrselHH.



We went to the old town, built in medieval times with narrow lanes.



This is the church Santa Maria del Mar, we wanted to have a look inside, but it was closed until afternoon.







In the background you can see one of the historic markets. It is under construction at the moment.



Instead we visited Parc de la Ciutadella, the city's main central park. Originally here was a citadel, after it was torn in 19th century, this park was built here. It contains a pond, a fantastic fountain (which is also under construction at the moment) and the Barcelona Zoo.





This is the fountain.









We went to Montjuic by bus. Here you can find the Olympic arena.





Montjuïc is a broad shallow hill with a relatively flat top overlooking the harbour, to the southeast of the city centre. The top of the hill (height: 173 metres) was the site of several fortifications, the latest of which (the Castell de Montjuïc) remains today. The fortress largely dates from the 17th century, with 18th century additions. We visited the remains of the fortress.





This is the view across the city. Georgeous, isn't it?







From here you are also overlooking the harbour.





We went downhill and reached Placa d'Espanya, one of the central squares of Barcelona.



We went back to the city centre by bus, reaching Placa Catalunya. It was already dark, that's why my photo is not the best one.



On their way to the hotel Katja and her friend had one or two drinks in a nearby beach bar. Tomorrow we will return home, what a pity!

Bye
Evie

Hi Mummy,
we went to Wuppertal today. Katja had to buy a few things at Hornbach, her favourite DIY-store. She had to make a new interior for her large rat cage.

Afterwards we went to the Botanical Garden. Wuppertal is situated, like the name already says, at the river Wupper, along a deep valley with the city centre in the valley itself, large parts on the steep slopes of the valley.

You can find the Botanical Garden on a very high point, overlooking the city centre in the valley. In 1890 it was a school garden first. Later, in 1908 a textile industrialist built his country house here, the "Eller'sche Villa". Later the Elisenturm Elisen Tower) was also built here, which is now the focal point of the garden. Since 1929 it is a municipal garden, open daily.



This is the Elisenturm.



First we entered the tower and enjoyed the fantastic overview.



Here you can see the new greenhouses, they were built in 2006.



We went to the greenhouses than. Here you can see plants from the warmer parts of the world.







We went into the garden than. I saw lots of pretty flowers and interesting trees, also the former country house.





Wow, what a colour!





Here we are sitting in front of a thistle.



These are plants which are growing in moor areas, there are also insect-eating plants among them.



I also saw a plant with vast leafs.



Back home we helped to install the new things to the rat cage. I will show it to you soon.

Bye
Evie

Hi Mummy,
Katja bought a new camera yesterday. Today we took a photo from the roof light. We saw the water tower and the tower of the city hall.



Bye
Evie

Hi Mummy,
we have baked bread today. It was really easy. All you need is

750 g wheat flour
about 400 ml warm water
1 1/2 tablespoons of salt
1 1/2 packages dry yeast
1 tablespoon of olive oil

Baking: 35 - 40 minutes, 220°C



First we mixed flour and yeast, than we added the other ingredients and kneaded the dough for about 5 minutes.



The dough was covered than with a cloth. It had to rise for about 30 minutes.



We shaped two loafs of bread. The loafs of bread had to rise once more for half an hour under a cloth. Than we brushed them with a mixture of water and olive oil. We put rosemary on one loaf of bread.





They were ready for the oven than. The breads had to bake for 35 minutes.
Finished!



Our selfmade bread was really delicious!

Bye
Evie

Hi Mummy,
we took a long walk today. We went to Muengsten Bridge, Germany's highest railway bridge.

We walked along a railway track for a while.





That's looking great!





We walked downhill for a while and reached River Wupper.





Do you know this board game? It's Nine Men's Morris, engraved into a rock.



We crossed River Wupper and walked through a forrest again, uphill and downhill.



Finally we reached Muengsten Bridge.



Muengsten Bridge is made of steel. It is 107 m high and spans the valley of river Wupper, which is marking the border between Remscheid and the neighbour town Solingen.

The bridge is 465 m long and was completed in 1897 A.D.

A leisure park was built underneath the bridge a few years ago. You can relax on the lawns, play in the water and they have playgrounds for the kids. You can cross River Wupper with a ferry here.





I must admit that we went home by bus. We were all tired.

Bye
Evie

Hi Mummy,
we took a walk today in one of the valleys within the municipal area. This valley is situated between the districts city centre, Luettringhausen and Lennep. Katja met her friend Kerstin.







We were walking uphill for some time, as you can see in the next photos.





In the background you can see a TV mast.





Here we are at the nearly highest point of the city area.



We walked along an industrial park.



It was time to go walk back home now. In the background you can see the motorway A1.



We were on our way back than.





We went to our friend Kerstin's house than and had dinner. Afterwards Katja and her friend had a cocktail, a mojito.



Bye
Evie

Hi Mummy,
I have my own handbag now!

Katja knitted one for me, it is a really beautiful pink bag.

Have a look. That thing on the first photo does not look like a bag at all.



Here you can see that Katja is already knitting an i-cord as a shoulder stap.



It's finished!





Bye
Evie