I got up somewhere between 9 and 10, without an alarm, so there is hope that I won’t sleep the whole vacation away. Coffee and Kreuzworträtsel in a quiet was house, as I was the first of us three that woke up, reminded me of how peaceful Germany is. Not that Idaho isn’t peaceful, because it is. There is just something that is different here, maybe it’s just calming for my soul. Whatever it is, doing crossword puzzles in my father-in-law’s kitchen gives me the same feeling as playing solitaire in my Grandpa’s kitchen when I was a teenager.
In the afternoon I ran to the store to pick up a few things for dinner and restock the fridge a little. It was good to see that Aldi and DM haven’t changed. Then I took care of some things around the house while my wife prepared the Herring we were having for dinner. Also something we haven’t been able to find in America and have missed terribly. I don’t know exactly what she does, but it is some kind of white sauce with onions and some other stuff that she prepares. Then the herring is layed in the sauce and put in the fridge for a few hours.
Once that was done we were able to head out for a late afternoon visit with some friends of ours, who just so happen to be the parents of our son’s best friend. The funny thing when we showed up though, was that they were both suddenly shy. That hadn’t happened since they first met when they were just a little over a year old. It didn’t take long though and they were thick as thieves again and being scolded for playing to rough and slamming doors, thank goodness. I hope that connection never goes cold, you don’t get many opportunities to have life long friends, especially in our situation.
One of the highlights of the whole trip though, was getting to see our friends’ new baby. New is good, she is actually just over a year old. But since we haven’t been here since October of last year, we missed her birth by less than a month. Man oh man is she cute! She looks just like her big sister and has many of the same facial expressions, but her own personality. I had almost forgotten how much fun babies are.
Then, like a miracle, two large plates of Brötchen* were suddenly in front me and I went into sensory overload. Cheese Brötchen, Salami Brötchen, Ham Brötchen, and Schwarzwälderschinken* Brotchen! One of the greatest things on this planet is Schwarzwälderschinken on Brötchen, I can’t believe it took this long to eat some. Then we just sat and talked for a while, just like old times. They say you can never go home again, and that is definitely true for somebody who has moved as much as me, but I sure felt at home there. But as is usually the case, the time for us to go came way too soon.
Back at the house with the usual group though, it was time for the herring my wife had prepared earlier. After that it was off to the living room for a nice evening of Stubbis*, quatschen*, and more at home feeling. Yet another awesome day in the books. Bis morgen.
Glossary:
Brötchen = German bread rolls
Schwarzwälderschinken = Smoked ham, thin sliced
Stubbi = Short, wide bottle of beer
Quatschen = Visiting/talking
Germerican Denglish 