Germany April 2011

Well here we are & Irmgard, my childhood best friend is capturing our 1st few moments...

This is the little village of Meimsheim. It was settled in 1577,(yep did my History).

The view to the right is a little family run store. and across the street ( out of view) is the Bakery shop we frequent nearly every morning.

Family gathering,,,left to right is Wilfried (Irmgard's hubby), my mom, my Aunt Uschi & Uncle Karl~heinz and my Aunt Brigitte & Uncle Herman.
Irmgard & I were behind the camera taking photos.

Me, settling into our little apartment. My mom & I were 'roommates' for 2 weeks.

This is a Tavern around the corner from where we were living in Meimsheim.

Mom and I enjoyed our daily walks....and we enjoyed all the old buildings as well as all the flowers & trees in bloom.

Taking a break by the old community water well.

Mom and I doing what we do best...shopping! Notice the 'Starbucks' in the background?

Wow has downtown Heilbronn changed since I last visited 7 years ago.

We took a quick trip to Heidelberg,,,and lo & behold,,,I spotted a "Woolworth" store!

I haven't seen a Woolworth store since I moved from Ft. Riley Kansas in 1969.

Irmgard & I visiting Mr Easter Bunny...and once again...a Starbucks is behind us.

Yep, just like I remembered,,,a Castle on almost every berg...

My favorite meal....Weinerschnitzel and Spetzle...YUMMMY!

Hornle is a popular eatery up on the side of a hill with vineyards surrounding it.

Gary & I ate here the last time we were here. You can sit on the terrace, enjoy good food, good beer & a great view of Brackenheim, Meimsheim & on a clear day you can even see Heilbronn.

And to our delight we came across a "Flomarkt" .... translation...a Flea Market.....and yes we got some terrific must have finds! lol! My mom & I bought Dirndls (German dresses)..Irmgard wanted this Dirndl but it just didn't fit so she settled for a Bavarian skirt.

You never know what silliness will happen at a family gathering,,,but we were full of the 'sillies'...

left to right is Irmgard, myself, Aunt Uschi, my mom, my cousin's wife & Wilfried.

My Uncle Karl~heinz & I are listening to his wife, Aunt Uschi.....

My cousin Andres' (Andy) and his new wife...they just announced that she is expecting a baby.

Here I am taking a break, reading (ok so I am not really reading) my MaryJane's Farm magazine. I am in the village of Brackenheim, which is about 3kilometers from Meimsheim.

Mom walking with Valerie. Val is the granddaughter of Irmgard. We decided to do a little shopping while in Brackenheim.

The apartment on the 2nd floor was where my Opa lived back in the mid 1960's until he passed away. My mom, lil sister, Suzan & I lived there to for several months until we moved to Munich back in 1965.

Thursday's are Farmers Market day in the Stadt Zentrum by the Court House in Heilbronn.

This is the Court House where my parents were married under German law. They were wed later on the American Military Base in Heilbronn.

Behind this house is my Oma Gertrude's house until she passed away in 1962. My mom sold the home and surrounding land and as is with all neighborhoods, several homes were built on and around the original family home. But the home is still there, as is the Apple tree that I loved as a child. I almost didn't recognise the home as it had received a complete face lift and now looks like the one I am standing in front of.

Out for an afternoon to enjoy the beautiful Spring weather, Irmgard, little Val, Wilfried & Denis.

Ok, so when I was about 10 years old, my Opa took me to this little German version of Storyland...and the one place I remembered after all these years was/is the Hansel & Gretel house....so here I am,,,again,,,but a wee bit old than 10 and the first place I wanted to go to was, yep, the Hansel & Gretel house! Oh silly me!

Always remember to look up! Lot's of cool old towers remain un-destroyed from the war or have been re-built and preserved like this one.

Oops! forgot to turn this photo... I am 5'5" tall and as you can see, people 2 hundred years ago where much shorter.

Uncle Herman is my mother's brother, actually Herman & I are only 4 years apart...He was one of those very late in life surprises for my grandparents.

This lovely old church on the hill is surrounded by walking trails and vineyards.

OOPs! once again, I for got to rotate...my bad! Anyhow, this is mom & Herman before we headed off to the airport..... Good-byes are so sad.

Getting ready to exit for the airport in Frankfurt..... and now the journey home begins.

Did I mention we had a layover in Las Vegas? Viva Las Vegas,,,ok, I had no idea there were slot machines in the airport,,,and I actually parted with one whole dollar & guess what? I won a whopping $1.50...wahooo! I am probably the only person on the planet that goes to Las Vegas and only drops $1 in the slot machines & then walks away.... guess I just don't have that gambling blood in me. Or am I just a tight wade! lol!

The end of the trail.....well almost....I dropped mom off in Palm Springs and then I flew to Seattle and then back to Spokane... Mom & I spent 2 days in airport terminals....but that's a whole different story & adventure!

Oh and at this point I had about 3 hours of sleep in 36 hours...I can't believe my eyes were still open! lol! Happy Trails & glad to be home.