A Family Visit to Oberstenfeld

Opa and Derek in the vineyards

Somehow it's already the end of November and I am just now getting this post up! We were very fortunate to have another set of visitors this month, Derek's sister and Grandpa (Rachel and Opa), who we bid farewell to last week. When they arrived on Saturday morning, November 12, we picked them up from the Frankfurt airport and then headed back to our Zwingenberg apartment for a quick nap. That evening, we packed up the Beamer and headed to Oberstenfeld where Opa's father was born and raised. After happy greetings and some kaffee, we watched a handball match before having a family dinner at the Hirsch restaurant.

On Sunday, we took a city tour, in both German and English, of Stuttgart. It was a rainy, cold day, but it was still nice to see the city. Stuttgart was almost completely bombed out during the war, and it was interesting to see the post-war architecture and to hear the reasoning for it's look. Stuttgart is not a quaint German town with half-timbered homes and winding cobbled streets, but more of an economic hub, filled with Porshe and Mercedes museums along with dedicated Fütbol fans. 

That evening we enjoyed another delicious dinner at the Streufert's house and then headed back to Zwingenberg. On Monday, we took the train to Heidelberg in order to pick up the rental car. We met up with Ingrid (German Nestel Cousin) and Kristin (Derek's American Nestel cousin studying in Denmark) and it turned out to be a wonderful day of castle exploring, shopping, and kaffee und kuchen! 

Ingrid, Kristin & Rachel

Rachel, Kristin, Opa, Me & Ingrid

For the rest of the week, Rachel and Opa went on their own adventure through Germany and we met them back in Oberstenfeld on Friday. We all enjoyed a relaxing evening and I got to write my name on the six page family tree! On Saturday we awoke very early for a tour of the Nestel bakery. (You can read that blog here.) That afternoon, Rachel and I went shopping with Uschi at a mall nearby and Derek helped Marius change the car's tires from summer to winter along with stack some firewood and shovel some manure. Good man time. That evening we watched Sophia's handball game and then took a lantern walking tour of the nearby city Großbottwar before having another delicious dinner of lentils with spätzel. On Sunday, we took a short walk in the vineyards and then visited the horse farm of Sophia and explored the countryside. It was a wonderful week with Rachel, Opa and all of our Oberstenfeld family. I think the most special part was for Opa to reconnect with his living cousins and for Rachel to see the church where she was baptized as a baby. As I've said before, we are so fortunate to have family here in Germany; it's made our year abroad even more special and memorable.  Here are some photos of the weekend:

Derek, Rachel and Opa walking through the horse farm

Derek and Opa in the Oberstenfeld vineyards

Derek at the horse farm

Derek's great-grandfather Ernst who came from Germany to the US

Family dinner - from left to right: Uschi, Günter, Sophia, Derek, Courtney, Marius, Rachel, Bud (Opa), Ingrid, Hilde, Wolfgang, Christine, Kristin 

Opa and his cousin's wife, Hilde, looking at family photos

Feeding the pony!

Leftover grapes from the harvest

Oberstenfeld countryside

Beautiful Iceland horses

I love their hair.

Before the lantern tour: Courtney, Rachel, Christine, & Ingrid

Bud talking to the horses.

Derek, Rachel, Uschi and Sophia

These ducks were quite humorous.

Christmas tree farm

Beautiful eyes

Rachel and Uschi cooking

I love this photo: The horse is eating while the ducks are scattered about.

A walk through the forest

More food please! 

A lovely German tradition: Kaffee und Kuchen

Delicious pumpkin soup 

Opa and Marius on the tour of Stuttgart

Fall foliage

Living in Germany: A Tour of Zwingenberg

Our little town of Zwingenberg along the Bergstrasse in Hesse, Germany always surprise me. Every time we go exploring, we find new nook and crannies and intriguing pathways to explore. In addition to being the oldest town on the Bergstrasse, Zwingenberg is known for its vineyards and wine making. So, Derek and I went exploring this past weekend, and here's a peek at our little German home:

The photo below shows signs with a green wine glass. This sign is seen many times throughout the Bergstrasse region. The wine glass directs the way to the famous wine trail that connects Zwingenberg to Heppenheim. 

This tower is on the higher level of Zwingenberg, and dates back to the 1500s. This tower provides an historic and beautiful addition to the city.

Here is a view of Zwingenberg from the church on the hill. 

Cobbled stone streets fill many German towns. This one leads into the vineyards.

Below is our favorite Eis Cafe in Zwingenberg. There are two Eis Cafes in Zwingenberg, but we have actually only tried this one. We walk right up to the window on the left side of the building and order ein kugel!

Here is a road very close to our house, but leads away from Zwingenberg and into another small town. I enjoy taking walks and runs in this area.

In Germany, bike paths can take you anywhere. This sign says that the Zwingenberg train station is .2km away and Darmstadt is 19. Bike paths are readily available, and if there is no path, it is common to just ride on the road.

We shop a Netto- similar to Aldi- almost every other day. 

Here is a local pub with a biergarten in the back. We first tried Schnitzel mit Kochkäse here! It is a short walk from our house.

We visit this Kaffeehaus often - it has high-speed Internet! I'm actually sitting in here with a coffee and pastry as I type this sentence.

Zwingenberg has a nice park in the middle of town that hosts small festivals throughout the year. 

This is the main road of Zwingenberg's old town - it's filled with cute cafes and cobbled streets.

This is the marktplatz (main center) in Zwingenberg. It is home to several restaurants, perfectly shaped trees and a lovely fountain!

In Zwingenberg's old town, half-timbered houses are scattered everywhere. I thought this house was particularly charming!

Same with this house! Flower boxes adorn many of the half-timbered homes in Germany.

This cute garden is perched on the side of the hill near the church. What a view!

Derek is standing outside of the Bürgerbüro and town hall. We go here to pick up yellow garbage sacks for recycling. It is across the street from the Eis Cafe.

Here are some other random photos with captions:

A bike path under the train tracks

There is a tiny market in Zwingenberg Marktplatz every Friday morning. 

Beautiful vineyards close to our house.

"Don't poop here."

Water hole and bird sign near entrance to the Odenwald National Park