Family Time

Family time is great. It’s like being home. I spent last week in Rheinstetten/Mörsch visiting with my aunts, uncles, cousins and families there. It’s good to sit and visit with Tante Rita, have breakfast with Onkel Joe, see Kerstin and family coming in and out, doing their thing. It’s good to walk over to Anke and Alban’s place and hang out there, playing cards, sitting on the terrace, helping with a cleaning blitz, cooking pretty perfect Königsberger Klopse it turned out with Anke. I went to Patrick’s for lunch one day. Jan and I have had good conversations. Pizza day of course, on Saturday. (“It’s no day for Onkel Werner.”)
Two afternoons I took the streetcar into Karlsruhe and visited with the von Freymann family. I haven’t seen them since they moved from Toronto almost 3 years ago. The kids have grown in many ways and the baby is so sweet. We took a little trip to the Rhein river and walked and played a bit there, throwing stones into the river and playing at the playground. Kirsten took me along in the evening to her choir practice. They’re singing Brahm’s Requiem which is a piece I love. It was fun to sing along. And I’m hoping to have the opportunity to sing at the concert in November, even though I won’t be able to make all of the rehearsals. The soprano section leader I was sitting beside was very impressed with my sight reading. The next day I went back to Karlsruhe because Benedikt had his first day of school. The first day of school in grade 1 is a big thing here. There was a church service first in the afternoon followed by an assembly at the school. Parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, friends were all there with their cameras. The grade 2 class presented a little skit. The new grade 1 classes then went with their teachers to their classrooms and got introductory time there. Kirsten and I chatted with the principal at one point and ended up giving her pointers of how things might go smoother next year. A little presumptious maybe but she had asked what the first day of school is like in Canada. It ended up being a long day but the kids definitely had fun. A yummy dinner of course at the von Freymann house afterwards. And photos in the garden.

I’m also spending a few days in Weinheim with Tante Helga and Onkel Werner. Not a lot of sitting around there, but on the other hand I’m getting more of my journaling done here than in Mörsch.
On Monday we went on a nice hike in the Odenwald and had a delicious lunch at the Gaststätte “ Zum Schardhof: in Hammelbach. I had deer medallions in a creamy mushroom sauce with Spätzle. It was very delicious. Fortunately most of the rain shower happened while we were eating and we stayed pretty dry on our way back through the Odenwald to the car. On Tuesday we wandered around Schriesheim, a neighbouring village and got some gifts and I found the shoes I’m going to wear to Hilary and David’s wedding! Dress from Berlin, bag from Edinburgh, shoes from Shriesheim. It’s nice to hear Tante Helga’s stories and Onkel Werner, well… he’s still Onkel Werner. In the evening Winfried and I went into Heidelberg and got caught up. It was a nice visit and we got back quite late.

I made it back in time for choir practice in Karlsruhe and am now getting ready to move on again to the next destination. I’m making my way back east to Prague from where I fly out.