Cochem here we come!

It’s funny that the first vacation we decided to take from our new home in the Netherlands was to go back to our home of Germany. We’ve missed our Bavarian home of Schweinfurt terribly so perhaps this was a way to revisit the loveliness of our old life. The Rhine and Mosel river valleys have been one of our favorite places in Germany. It rivals the Garmisch area which also tops our list of must-see scenic places. There is so much to do in both of those places.

We stopped at Spangdahlem for the shopping bazaar and to finally get our money off the Germany Esso gas cards that we've had since our move from Germany. It's the closest German military base that would give us our money back since we can't use it anymore.

At Dan’s new school AFNorth International School, we now enjoy a week of vacation at the end of October instead of federal holiday Mondays and Thanksgiving break. So Dan decided a visit to the Mosel river valley was in order. It is beautiful in the fall with all the turning leaves and very festive with celebrations of Oktoberfest (beer) and Federweisser (new wine). The most fun part by far is visiting the countless fortress ruins along the river. The girls love the outdoor adventuring. We also went to an indoor pool one evening and an amusement park/wild animal park called Freizeitpark Klotten. The rides were so unique because of how old they were-- we've never seen such heavy-duty, old, one-of-a-kind rides before.

We met up with Dan great friend and coworker in Schweinfurt, Joel and his wife Sina in Trier for a day. It has been something like 7 years since our last trip to Trier. It was fun to see again and we really enjoyed hanging out with our friends.

Taking a rest and enjoying the view.

Hugging cuties outside of Burg Eltz

A unique horse ride that bobbed up and down.

Tana's turn on the castle potty.

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The condor landed right next to Loralynn during the bird show.

The Burg Eltz is so pretty inside its walls.

Burg Eltz is fantastic on the outside, too!

The Mosel river!

Bouncing with daddy.

Beautiful eagle wingspan.

Our little family in front of the Burg Eltz

The tasty "new wine" sold in the area and only in the fall.

Loralynn's depiction of carved pumpkins.

Loralynn on the castle potty.

Giant leaves and a lit up castle in the background.

Beautiful. Dan takes such great pictures.

More of the bird show.

Eating on the roof of a restaurant for dinner.

Taking a slide on large burlap mats.

Loralynn ready to explore her next fortress.

Beautiful palace in Trier.

Porta Negro in Trier

Pedestrian zone in Trier

The watches we bought the girls at the Spangdahlem PX.

Checking out local farms

Loralynn’s German Kindergarten at AFNorth International School took a super fun field trip in October to a nearby farm called Erlebnisbauernhof Blomland. Parents and siblings were invited as well so Tana and I drove Loralynn to the site (about 25 minutes from our house in Sittard). When all the kids arrived, everyone went into a shed full of hay behind the picnic house. It was a treasure hunt to find a box hiding somewhere in the hay. Once it was found, they opened it up to reveal a candy for each kid. Playing continued in that area with the slides, a rope swing, and a secret cubby hole.

Then the kids were corralled into another small shed for a lesson on chickens. Once that was through, we all went into the large barn full of animals. Most of our time was spent in this barn holding newborn puppies, plucking dry corn off the cob to feed the chickens, rabbits, pigs, and goats, and riding the horses around the stable. There was even a small pond to hook plastic ducks with fishing poles.

Our lunch was a simple meal of apfel schorle/Fanta, fries, and meat sticks on picnic tables in a covered area. It went smoothly enough and the kids seemed to be refueled.

The tractor provided the last hurrah of the wonderful day. On the back, a sort of sled was attached and kids piled on to be dragged around the fields. It was fun to see the delight on their faces as they went round and round. Even though that ended the formal activities, there was still much fun to be had on the playground. As we drove away, I noticed an additional playground on the opposite side of the farm that we never even went to, but the one we did play on was grand enough!