Grafenwohr and family

I'm in Grafenwohr at the moment, eating lunch (a döner) in my transit motor pool (TMP) vehicle with the windows down, enjoying the sunshine.

The feel is different here than in Wiesbaden, which of course it should be. Graf is a small town in the country in Bavaria. Although they probably often feel overwhelmed by Americans here, the people are friendlier and more patient than in Wiesbaden. I actually have it on good authority that Wiesbadeners are rude, something the Germans refer to as "high nose", or something like that. I get no sense of that here in Grafenwohr.

The day is beautiful. My three reliable friends are not here, and I'm on travel without my family, so I'm feeling a little bit melancholy and a lot bit anti-social. I have ten minutes until lunch ends, and I'm going to stay away from my building until the very last minute. As I was sitting in the parking lot, a man asked me if I was enjoying the sunshine. Then he called us all, including himself, troglodytes. That feels especially true today. I should be out hiking!

The feel in Grafenwohr is also different from the feel on site in Israel. It's not just the country culture, either. Since we're not traveling to a different country, there seems to be less flexibility and a higher expectation for productivity. I understand that, and can certainly live with it.

But honestly, on a day like this, I should really be out hiking!

...It's the next day, now. I got to come home a day early, and that's a fabulous thing. But I was so blessed this trip, because I made a new friend, and she lives in Wiesbaden! Woo hoo!

Some people I know don't really like coming out to Graf, but I see goodness in it. It's slow and peaceful here. And this week, I had some good Chinese food from the restaurant called The Chinese. No kidding. I actually avoided it for almost a year because of its name. I had a McDonald's burger that actually looked like the picture on the menu. And I got to eat at Restaurant Böhm with my new friend. It's probably the best restaurant in Grafenwohr.

I'm glad to be home, though. This is already the last weekend with Pat and Jesse. How could that time have gone so fast?! We've certainly enjoyed having them here and will be so sad to see them leave. It makes me glad that this job is temporary and that I know its end date. It was hard enough saying goodbye to Jeanette. I didn't hang out with them all very much because I was trying to make sure that David got to maximize his time with them. They got to see a few things. I know one thing. They will surely be missed.

Giant burger at Restaurant Böhm

Florence, and some trouble on the way

All right. I'll keep it as no secret that David's driving can sometimes be, well, a bit erratic. I've noticed it seems to be worse over here. I think driving here is more stressful for him, understandably. Often the kids cheer when they find out I'm driving. I can't exactly say why for sure, but I think it might have something to do with this:

We got out the door decently early to get to Florence. As per our unspoken agreement, David was driving us there and back. About 20 minutes in, Alex tells me he's not feeling very well. It's not an unusual thing to hear from him when David drives. I told him to take deep breaths and look out the front window. About 15 minutes later, he says it again, so we crack the window, hoping he can hang on since the drive is only about an hour and 25 minutes. About 15 minutes after that, he said to me, "Mom, I think I'm going to vom-AAAH." And he proceeds to vomit all over the van floor three times.

Lovely.

As it's happening, I might even be so bold as to say that David's driving got WORSE. Livvy was in the back seat, nearly screaming, "Is that vomit? Oh no! Is that vomit!?" Griffy is gagging, getting ready to do the same. I yell at him and tell him to look away and not to think about it, crawl back to the back seat to soothe Alex and Livvy, and of course to clean the stinky mess up.

But with what?!

Literally the only things I had were baby wipes and diapers. So I use a diaper to get most of it, and wipes to get as much of the stinkiness out as I can. And suddenly I was dreading the drive back!

Afterwards, Alex said, "Oh, man! I feel so much better!"

Good for you, buddy.

Florence was beautiful. It was everything anyone could expect it to be. Once again, the Italians tickled me by counting our children and telling us "Bueno" or "Prego". They were very sweet. And we all climbed up the tower, including me with Lilly on my back, and it was a pretty amazing day. We were, however, quite exhausted by the time we got to the top and back down again. We found literally the nearest place for dinner and got some yummy sandwiches and some Tuscan bean soup. It was good. But what was incredible was the tiramisu. Best tiramisu I've ever had in my life.

The day we went to Florence was our last full day in Italy. I felt mixed emotions about it being time to leave. I was ready to be out of that small but adequate trailer, but I really enjoyed Tuscany and could have seen so much more.

Also, Alex had made a little German friend that week named Dante. He had stopped by the trailer the night before to play with Alex. But Alex was out hunting lizards with David, so he spoke with me instead. Then Alex came in, and they were going to play together, but Dante found out from his sister that his Mom had been looking for him, and he was probably in trouble. Alex had to leave without even saying goodbye, and that kind of made me sad. I had hoped to get his address so they could write each other.

But on the other hand, I was kind of glad we were leaving before I was tired of being there. And we were stopping in Garmisch-Partenkirchen for the night on the way home, which is always a pleasure. AND we were going to pick up my in-laws the day we got back. So I still had so much to look forward to.

All in all, our Italy trip was fantastic. Our family vacation was so memorable to me, and hopefully to David, and possibly to the kids. It could hardly have been better, in spite of the hiccups we had here and there. What else could one expect from a family like ours?

Tuscany is every bit as beautiful as I'd imagined.  Sort of like central CA.

Forget the lens correction.  I like this picture.

Lilly at the top of the tower.  I don't know why I took so few pictures of us up there.

Some incredible details

Tiramisu. Oh my.

A lake and a castle

The town of Sarteano, as seen from its castle

I get tired of staying, then I go pretty hard. (Then I get just plain tired.)

We took a rest day after going to Pisa. It was good for all of us, because it allowed the kids time to play a lot, and it gave me time to play with my GoPro 5 that I had gotten from David for Christmas. I enjoyed that quite a bit.

But by the afternoon of the next day, I was getting cabin fever. The weather had been a little bit rainy, but I decided we should take the time to go to a lake that I had seen on the map, Lake Trasimeno. It was a giant lake, but it was very rainy and very windy, so we literally drove there, snapped a couple of photos, and left. It's okay. I got a nice rainbow shot while we were driving (and shared it in my first post about Italy).

The next day, we had a bit of trouble getting everyone moving, but we decided to visit the castle in the small town where we were staying. The town was called Sarteano, and it was lovely. The castle was impressive. It was very very old. According to one website, the oldest information concerning the castle is dated to 1038, and it refers to a deed of assignment drawn up inside the walls of the central keep. It was basically impregnable, and withstood numerous siege attempts. I understood why as we climbed up to it!

Of course, I had Lilly on my back again, and it was a hot day. The kids mostly seemed to enjoy themselves as we were the only ones we saw walking up to it, and they could do some exploring along the green path and dirt road. It felt so good to get out and do some hiking. It wasn't a far distance, but being outside with the kids and David in the sunshine really felt just right.

We did enjoy the castle so much. The story of Pinocchio originated in Tuscany, so the castle had some Pinocchio pictures hanging. Overall, we enjoyed the thick walls and the cavernous spaces. I enjoyed the view of Sarteano most of all. It was a really great day. When we climbed back down, we stopped at the Pegaso for some gelato. It had been recommended to us by our German "neighbor" at the camp as the best gelato in town. Oh. My. Goodness. We were going to have to go back there again!

So far, Italy was turning out to be a GREAT family vacation.

Lake Trasimeno

Walking up to the castle (notice that David is carrying my purse, since I have the heavy baby.)

The Sarteano Castle

At the entrance

Inside looking out

Pinocchio and bread.  Wasn't quite sure what this was about.

I'm not sure why she gets so tired riding in the backpack

So easy

to make these kids

this happy.  💛

Pisa

The kids were pretty excited about getting to see the Leaning Tower of Pisa because of seeing it on The Little Einsteins. Anyone else love that show? I love that it introduces the kids to classical musical and they don't even know it.

Anyhow, before we had left, I had made an agreement with David that I would drive us there and back, but he would drive during our excursions. Oh by the way, I never mentioned this to him, so I guess I can't really say I made an agreement with him about it. But that is the way it worked out. I had three excursions planned: 1) Pisa 2) Florence 3) A nearby lake. We were also planning to walk to a castle in the town in which we were staying. For a week-long visit, that might not sound like much. It doesn't to me, to be honest. But I've had to tone down and simplify my vacations, first because of David, and now because of the little kids.

So on our third day in Italy, we were heading to Pisa. It was a hot but beautiful day. I'd had no intention of climbing the tower itself. Lilly was on my back, and everyone was still a little bit weary from the travel and from getting how you get when you sleep in a new place. I just wanted to see the buildings and walk around.

I'd researched parking in advance. It's always an issue because I need a space big enough to fit the Caravan. The recommendations online were spot-on. We had about a 15-minute walk to the center from where we parked. I got a little bit turned around once and ended up in a dead end. An older man saw us and pointed us in the right direction, in Italian. He didn't care at all that we didn't speak Italian. He just motioned and exclaimed and made sure we were going the right way. He was helpful and such a delight!

But because of getting turned around, the walk ended up being more like 20 minutes, and for the hot and thirsty kids, it was taking FOREVER (their words).  You can already guess what we did to appease them. Yes. We got drinks and chicken nuggets at McDonald's. (Well there was no Chick Fil A nearby.) That improved their attitudes and allowed me to enjoy a sight I never before had thought I would see.

I really enjoyed my first view of the tower. From our direction, it was creeping out there just in sight, sort of looking mischievous like it was playing peek-a-boo with the other buildings. Everything was incredibly ornate. The buildings were light and bright, not like the Gothic style we see so much in Germany (which I love). It was fascinating.

When we first got there, a couple had been photographing the buildings and taking selfies, but they turned and saw us and asked me if they could take a picture of my kids. How cute! They were dark-skinned of course. My guess would be from India. Of course I let them, and Livvy was my pride and was sweet to them and let the lady lean in to her and smiled for their camera.

It was such a great day. The sunshine was so nice even though it was warm. The sights were awesome. The kids, for the most part, were so good. Lilly seems to like the backpack pretty well. She gets right in it without a fuss at all. I enjoyed myself so much. I hope we made good memories for the kids.

Some amazing details

I'll need this to remind them all that they've been here before.

Italy here we come!

I have to admit that I was exhausted when I got back from Bavaria. And poor David had told me Wednesday night that he was tired and it was cumulative. Makes sense, right? Most people can get through one night of sleep deprivation, but by the time you're on night number four, you kind of start feeling like a zombie.

I didn't get to leave Bavaria until 1500. So I didn't get home until about 2000, by the time it was all said and done. I still needed to pack for the kids and myself, not to mention do laundry after being away for 8 days. I could not figure out the logistics of how best to get us to Italy. My initial plan had been to drive to the Italian border and stop for the night as soon as we got out of Switzerland. I think I would have been awake until 0300 if we had stuck to that plan.

Instead, I got David's buy-in to leave at the kids' bedtime, 2000. So we slept a good night of sleep, took our time to pack and get ready so we wouldn't stress about forgetting anything, and started loading up the van at about 1830. And we drove away at about 2015. Everyone was ready. David played Queen's greatest hits for us and we were jamming down the highway.

About 40 minutes into the drive, David said, "Oh no. Did you bring the passports?" And in true Patty fashion, I said, "No. I thought about them once, but..." "So did I," he said. "Should we go back?"

With only a little bit of deliberation, I decided to go back. I had my own but nobody else's. So our 11-hour drive turned into a 12+ hour drive, and the excitement got sucked right out of us.

My decisions to leave when we did and to go back for the passports proved to be good ones. The drive was quite uneventful. Although we missed seeing the Swiss Alps because it was dark, the road was empty enough to make it worth it. At about 0500, I had David take the wheel for an hour or so. I needed a break for sure! And when we got to the park, they asked me for all six passports. Whew! What a good trip. And the kids were SOOOO good. I couldn't even believe how good they were. What a blessing.

We're on our way right now to Pisa. Yesterday and Saturday we took easy days and enjoyed the playground and the pool at the park. We had our first pizza in Italy already, and David and I had homemade pasta. The pizza was delicious. The pasta wasn't very good, but we'll try a different restaurant next time. The pasta we had was at the restaurant in the park, since it was open on Sunday. We've also been eating some delicious Italian meat and cheese sandwiches for lunch or breakfast. It's been great, so far. And this area is completely beautiful. What a lot to look forward to this week. What a gem we found in this park we're visiting.

Prague with a friend

I can't believe I got to go to Prague!

We decided to rent a car and drive there from Wiesbaden. We looked into taking the train, but the time and cost of it just didn't make sense. The main reason to rent a car was because I didn't want to leave David without the van. The added benefit to that was so that I had something that drove better than the Dodge Grand Caravan, and was also smaller. I made reservations for a parking spot in a garage, and Kathy found us what looked to be a nice Airbnb. Off we went on Friday morning.

First thing was to pick the rental car up by the train station. The reservation had said it would be a Mercedes sedan, but then when I got there, they said it was a Cooper Mini Countryman. Didn't seem to matter to me, I knew that would be a pleasure to drive. So off we went.

Google had told us it would be a five hour drive. We hit a lot (A LOT) of traffic, and it took us 8 hours to get there. I was already prepared for that from experience, so it didn't bother me too much. It was what it was. The German's reputation for the Autobahn is a lie, just so you know. It really only works late at night or in the wee hours of the morning. Driving the Mini was indeed a pleasant experience.

When we got to the parking garage, about which I was somewhat happy because it parked the car automatically and I wouldn't have to worry about that, they told me the Countryman was too tall. Oh, right. That's why I cared what kind of car we got. I had 1.6 meters of height. I just looked it up, and the Countryman is 1.561 meters high. Darnit, they were wrong!

But fortunately, they were very kind and let me use their house phone to talk with the reservationist to get a new location, and we drove there without incident. Man that garage was tight! Without hesitation, Kathy repeated her offer to park the car, and without hesitation, I accepted! (It is good to know one's limits, David always says.) Kathy was the BOMB at parking, and got us into a tight, awkward spot with no problem (mainly by not listening to the alarms, when I would have been stepping out of the car every two centimeters to see where I was--and I'm not exaggerating).

We had a bit of a walk to our Airbnb from the new parking garage, but boy, was the apartment ever in a good location, and just right for two friends!

We checked in and then immediately went back outside to walk around and find dinner. The atmosphere was lovely in that city. I felt welcome, and that was nice for a change. We checked out Charles bridge and went to Prague Castle. I was a little bit disappointed because the cathedral was closed for the day. I was a lot disappointed when I found out the the clock in the square was closed until summer. But Prague was still amazing in spite of all of that! It is a pretty impressive place. I enjoyed the food, the sights, and the weather. Most of all, I enjoyed Kathy's company. It was a great weekend.

Medieval helmets

Prague is a sort of paradox throughout.  Demonstrated in this photo.

Charles Bridge