A postcard day in southeastern Germany with temps in the middle 70s, they call it “alt Weiber Sommer,” or old woman’s summer here, the last chance to soak in the sun before winter clamps down. We enjoyed a trip up to the Kehlstein Haus, otherwise known as the Eagle’s Nest. Photo is from the drive […]
Weisswurst in Dresden
We stopped in Dresden recently to take in the sights, including the rebuilt Frauenkirche. While there, we came across the Augustiner Brewery restaurant in the shadow of that magnificent church. It was just before noon, and so the right time for a “Weisswurst,” which is a Bavarian sausage made of veal and boiled, served with […]
Hey Bartender!
Jim pours a fresh draft for his guests in the charming country inn “Landhotel Floehatal,” near Seiffen recently.
Erfurt is Germany's Hidden Jewel
Americans don’t visit Erfurt but they should. The city is more than 1250 years old and is jammed with fantastic buildings remaining from the period of building from the late 1400s to the early 1600s, at the height of the German Renaissance. One of those buildings, the 16the century “Breiten Herd” was severely damaged by […]
Visiting Germany's Smallest Brewery
We had a fresh one on September 7 at the Schmitt Brewery in tiny Singen, Thuringia the other day. We visited the village as a daytrip from nearby Erfurt. The Schmitt Brewery was established in 1875 and has been churning out great suds ever since. It makes about 70,000 liters of beer per season. That […]
Goslar Deserves its World Heritage Classification
Goslar in the Harz Mountains is a world-class small city with a wealth of well-preserved half-timbered and stone buildings dating back to the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries. Once the seat of the emperor, the “Kaiserpfalz” still stands today as strong as it did when it was built in 1050. Emperors from Friedrich Barbarossa to […]
Eppingen, Germany is a Half-timbered Town with "Pfiff!"
We spent a couple of nights in Paula’s ancestral town of Eppingen, not far from Heilbronn and Sinsheim in Baden-Wuerttemberg. Eppingen is well-known in this area for its wealth of beautifully-preserved half-timbered houses. Some are huge, such as the “Baummisches Haus,” dating from 1562 and now a lovely small hotel and cellar restaurant with extensive […]
Making Hay While the Sun Shines in Heidiland
We had the good luck to catch several farmers way, way up high on the mountainside above the Walensee in the St. Galen district of Switzerland the other day. The sun was shining and the farmers were rushing to bring in the hay before a storm arrived later that day. Shown are guests Bob and […]