Wine and sunshine

We have had stunning weather. Almost too good to be true. Our hosts tell us that it rained all summer, so maybe we are enjoying the global environmental changes, as Germany gets wetter in the summer and warmer in the Fall. Whatever the cause, we have not yet needed our rain clothes and today, we took advantage again of the sunshine and headed to an outdoor attraction called Freilichtmuseum in Lindlar. Any guesses as to what kind of a museum this was? I will give you a hint. It is about the Bergisch kind of life in the 1800's. Still stumped? As the Germans are always saying, "let me try to translate for you".

Bergisch is the word meaning hill villages. Sina's family lives in the Bergischen Lands. Over the years, people in this part of Germany had a very hard life and developed a particular way of managing their tiny, hilly farms to make a living for their families. The historians are concerned about preserving the memory of life between the 1800's-mid-1900's, so they have re-located houses, barns, workshops and even garden plans from other hill villages and moved them to this hilly location to recreate a Bergisch village museum. The detail of their work is quite impressive. Some homes were moved along with all of the household belongings, furniture, dishes, etc. In some cases, families donate their family home to this project.



Since my childhood summers were spent on a small farm in Indiana, today brought back so may memories. The smell of the chickens and the ground corn reminded me of feeding my grandmother's chickens. I was always afraid of the roosters.

The old outhouse was exactly like the one in my grandmother's garden. The hand pump in the kitchen and large kitchen sideboard all brought back the Hume Farm. And the bathtub and fixtures were exactly like the ones we have in our current house in Redlands. It was a wonderful outdoor museum.

Tonight we prepared an American style bar-b-que for Sina's family and then attended a local handball competition. No rest for the travelers:) We fixed chicken and steak, Waldorf salad and corn-on-the-cob. Note to self; Europeans generally consider corn-on-the-cob animal food. Sina's parents had never tasted it before. They ate it graciously.

The picnic was sunny are warm and we even sat outside around a back-yard fire pit tonight, just like summer.



@graham (this is the German way to send a call out)... Stefan wore his navy blue Cal shirt today and every time I saw him coming, I thought it was you. It was strange to have your height and your shirt with us. Stefan is doing his best to replace you with his jokes and "garbage disposal style" eating.



@natalie..Saw a very cool basket swing for children today, made in the 1800's. Like a papasan chair only woven of soft string and without the cushion or the stand, so children can lay in it, hanging from a swing-set frame. Very comfy for several children.

@melissa.. If we had enjoyed weather like this last year, we may have never left Germany!!

Handball competition notes:
1. Don't forget to take your ear plugs. The intensity of the German fans with their fugazellas can be ear splitting.
2. Half-time music is always from Rocky movies, no matter where you are in the world.
3. Handball players take so many injury time-outs, you start to think they are faking it. (Though the sport makes pro football look like a sissy game) I can't believe I said sissy?!?!
4. Win or lose, a close game is always more fun, even when you don't know the teams or the rules. And doing a dramatic final kick through a line-up of huge guys seems like the right thing to do when there are 5 seconds left.
5. Hamburg beat the local team by 1 point, quite a game.


All is well with the travelers. Must confess, the beer challenge has gone to the way-side. We need to do it in Belgium where there are lots of types of beer. We topped out at about 10. Still enjoying the beers, but can't get much variety.

Wine is a different story, lots of varieties and plenty to enjoy. The Germans enjoy afternoon "Coffee" with cake. The English do "Tea", of course, and we have decide that those of us from Redlands do "Wine and Sunshine".

So, from Carol, enjoying the Wine and Sunshine on the terrace.