Storks, Biking & Wine: Colmar and Eguisheim

 In the last 48 hours, we have explored the quaint town of Eguisheim, biked about 25 kilometers round-trip to the famous cheese town of Munster, tasted some local Alsace cuisine, slept in a room without air conditioning (it's currently 98 F here), explored the picturesque town of Colmar, been guided on a flat-bottom boat through Little Venice, and splashed in some fountains. If I had three words to describe the Alsace region of France from our experience, I'd say: charming, intriguing & exhausting.

Let's start with the charming. We arrived in Eguisheim yesterday morning around 11am. We parked the car, checked in to the hotel, and took a walk along the outermost circle of the medieval city. Everything about it was out of a storybook. The houses were painted various bright colors, the flower boxes overflowed with every color and type of flower imaginable and storks, the iconic symbol of Alsace, perched atop their carefully constructed nests on the church steeple. As we walked along, a saleslady at a sausage shop offered us some samples. She had every flavor you could imagine - salami with blueberries, fig, cumin, and the list went on! Tourists and locals crowded the cafe, and wine stubes offered a glimpse into the famous wine of Alsace. We found a bakery for lunch and had a sandwich accompanied by a delicious French eclair- not the last of the trip!

Stork nest atop a house

Streets of Equisheim

Cute houses in Eguishem

Chocolate Eclair

Now to the exhausting part. After a quick visit to the tourist shop, we headed to a bike rental near our hotel. We waited about 20 minutes, since many places in France shut down between 12- 1:30pm for a long lunch. We rented some bikes from a lovely French lady and she offered us a map, a recommended route and some fresh water. We started our journey to Munster - about 14 km away from Eguisheim. Maybe it was the heat of the day and a pounding headache or that the entire path was slightly to moderately uphill the entire time, but I was struggling to make it to Munster. Every turn provided a new view of the green valley and a new little town, but never Munster. But we finally made it after about 2.5 hours of biking and a few water breaks. In Munster, we didn't even try the cheese, but we did manage to find some Advil at the pharmacy, two pastries to taste test and ice cream, along with multiple bottles of water. We took a quick rest in the park and headed back to Eguisheim, thinking the ride would take at least another 1.5 hours. After about 45 minutes of downhill cruising, we were back in Eguisheim and got ready for dinner. 

Derek-always ahead!

Water break

The endless vineyards

The road back to Eguisheim

For dinner, we scanned a few menus (most European restaurants have their menus outside) and decided on a lively weinstube with a covered outdoor dining area. We picked the cheapest liter of white wine and both ordered Flammkuchen. Flammkuchen is a local specialty, but with varieties in Germany as well. It is made of a thin flour crust with cream and toppings. Derek ordered his with Munster cheese, so at least we did try some! For dessert, we had to do it. We ordered the creme brulee that the waiter lit on fire. It was a perfect end to dinner. After dinner, we strolled around the town and appreciated the quaintness of Eguisheim at night. 

Dinner

Flammkuchen

Strange photo, but notice the burning creme brulee

This morning (Sunday morning), we opted out of the 8 euro per person buffet breakfast at our hotel - a rip-off if you ask me, and headed to Colmar. Colmar is the largest city of Alsace in the area and is known for Petit Venice (Little Venice), the creator of the Statue of Liberty, and it's old-town cuteness. Along with the rest of Alsace, Colmar has a great mix of German and French architecture and language. Last night, we had a wine menu of many Alsatian French wines, and the name of the wine company was Wolfberger. I even saw a sign for Logelbach on our way out of town (I'm not sure what it was, but this is the first mention of Logel I have seen in Europe!) Since the town lies so close to the German border, it's history includes an intriguing part of World War II. Known as the "Pocket of Colmar", the city was occupied by Germans but liberated by the French and Americans in 24 hours. Nothing of the medieval city today was destroyed- it was all spared in the war and has survived since the Middle Ages. 

We ambled the streets of this lively town and visited the beautiful Little Venice area for breakfast. After some coffee and delicious French pastries, we caught a boat ride and tour through the canal. First in French and then in English, the guide explained that merchants for the city market would bring their goods into the town via the canal and would get taxed depending on the weight, height and how low the boat sat in the water. Then, they would paddle their boats directly to the market to sell and trade. Each house in the town used to be painted a color based on the family's status- green for the butcher, blue for Catholic, etc. The canal was picture perfect, with cafes and houses right on the water. Stairs led down to the canal where women used to wash clothes. 

We had to duck under this bridge

Beautiful painting

Little Venice

Touring the canal

The rest of our visit to Colmar featured a few fountains that I stuck my feet in, many sculptures from the famous Frederic Bartholdi - creator of the Statue of Liberty, and some browsing in wine and trinket stores. All in all, it was a wonderful weekend. There is plenty more to do in Colmar than what we did- museums, churches, etc, but we had a nice, relaxing time and definitely enjoyed ourselves. I'd recommend this area to anyone looking for a relaxing, cultural experience. 

Additional Photos:

Literally everyone was carrying baguettes! This man had two in his backpack!

Bakery for breakfast

Derek in front of the church

A wein stube in Colmar

Of course, Derek ordering a crepe

I really wanted to run through it!

Had to share this photo. 

Soap cakes!

Life in Germany: What have we been up to?

View of Lindenfels Castle

The last two weeks have been crazy but in a wonderfully busy kind of way. We have no major weekend trips planned for the month of August and didn't take any major trips the second half of July, but we are definitely still finding ways to stay busy. We're about half way through our time in Germany and I think I am finally at the point of feeling like this is home. We were driving on the autobahn last weekend and I found myself saying to Derek, "This just feels so normal!"  I sometimes think that January is too soon to return home.

Here's what we've been up to lately:

Planning Trips. In mid September, we will meet my parents in London for one night, followed by a two night stay at the Harlaxton Manor in central England. Then we will spend a few days here in Zwingenberg before exploring Munich and the Austrian Alps via Salzburg.  When I drop off my parents at the Frankfurt airport the following week, I'll be venturing to Amsterdam where I'll meet up with two of my high school friends- and I am so excited! We'll spend the next few days in Zwingenberg and then trek to Munich for the famous Oktoberfest. In fact, Derek and I recently bought our Oktoberfest outfits. I think we should win every Halloween contest for the next few years!

My Dirndl and Derek's Lederhosen

Picnic in the Vineyards. We are trying to do something different once a week than just cooking dinner in the house. So last week we had a picnic in the nearby vineyards. It was a lovely evening to sit and watch the sunset over the countryside. When we arrived to Germany last winter, the vines were merely brown branches. Today they are growing luscious grapes that will be turned to wine in the next year! I love watching the grapes get larger and seeing how the fruit changes weekly.

Picnic in the vineyards!

It'll never get old!

They get larger every week

Festivals and more Festivals! Two weeks ago we spent a weekend in Oberstenfeld where we had a wonderful cookout and attended the Beilstein wine fest on both nights. The festival was held at the base of the Beilstein castle. We tried several different local wines and had, as always, a wonderful time with our German family. Last weekend, Derek and I drove to Erbach for the Erbacher Weissenfest (wheat fest). It was a carnival sort of festival - we found a bier garten and enjoyed a local brew while listening to a German country singer. I got pretty excited when I heard Keith Urban singing through the dj's speakers.

Marius, Caroline, Me and Derek at the wine fest. I missed the "funny face" memo

I am a teacher. Yes, that's right! I am freelancing with an international company and providing English lessons for adults. I have three classes of about 12 students each. For one day a week, I will create lesson plans and try my best to share my knowledge of the English language. I know this is going to be a huge challenge, but one I couldn't pass up. More to come on this soon.

Batman in Mannheim. After the tragic events in Colorado, I was hesitant to go watch the movie in the theatre. But we did, and it was a great movie! There is a cinema in a large city about 30 minutes away that shows English versions of films on Wednesday nights. We headed to Mannheim straight after work and had dinner before watching the movie. Often times I do not know for certain what I am ordering- but I at least recognize some words. This time, I went for the cheapest and very first item on the menu. I ordered Bauernsalze. I was SO disappointed when the waiter brought it to our table. I had literally just seen this in the grocery store two days prior and vowed I would never eat it. But I hadn't remembered the name. It was a meat mixture in a jello-y kind of substance. I like to try everything once, so I did try it. But that was all! 

Hemsbach Fest. On Friday night we took a 15 minute train to the town of Hemsbach for their Kerwe festival. I am told that every town has one - whether a tiny village or a huge city. We enjoyed watching the opening ceremonies - where Hemsbachers were dressed in traditional clothing and drinking beer from a large keg - and found a tent to enjoy some snacks and live music.

Anne, Nadine and I

A night in Lindenfels. On Saturday night we were invited to spend the evening in Lindenfels at one of my friend's houses, Nadine, along with our other friend Anne, and our men. I hang out with both of them at DFSR and they were so kind to treat Derek and I to dinner as a wedding present. And it was such a lovely night! Lindenfels is in the Odenwald, near Derek's work in Reichelsheim, and is surrounded by beautiful countryside. We started the evening by walking about 45 minutes from one little town to another. After a break for some apfelwein at a not-so-ancient tower, we found our way to a little Odenwald pub where Nadine had reserved a table. We all ordered the traditional Schnitzel mit Kochkäse and enjoyed a lively dinner. We then headed to the Lindenfels castle - a beautiful castle perched on a hill- and enjoyed a late night of fest fun within the castle walls.

View from Nadine's holiday house!

Schnitzel with Kochkäse (cheese sauce)

Simba wanted to say hi!

Other thoughts:

• We've been watching the Olympics and even though all commentary is German and we don't understand much, it's nice evening entertainment!
• We started a 10 euro per/month video program similar to Netflix. We put the DVD in the mail one day, and the next day we have a new video! German post is speedy.
• I killed the largest spider of my life last week. With bug spray in one hand and the vacuum cleaner in the other, I won.
• The weather has been very strange lately. but I like it. Today it felt like fall and yesterday like summer. 
• That's all for now, but I'll be back soon.