Castles in the Clouds

One thing I like about Facebook is that every day you have an opportunity to view your "memories" of posts you made on this day in previous years. I don't even look at them every day but today popped up and I wondered why I had a memory with Carter. Well, 3 years ago I was visiting him for a long weekend in Germany!

What an adventure. Seeing him and the Heidelberg Castle up on the hill. And exactly 3 years ago today...

We hopped a train with croissants in hand and headed to France for the day. Because we could.

We both said that it seems way longer than 3 years ago. I think this pandemic has warped our sense of time. It's been 2 very long years. And we are super grateful that it was 3 years ago – not 2 – that he was studying abroad for a semester. There's no way that would have worked out for him in 2020 or 2021. 

And we both would have missed out on those amazing French pastries!

Of course, not all memories that popped up today were so sweet. Some were bittersweet.

This was my dad and me 9 years ago today. Knowing he was declining, I decided that as a gift to him, I'd cheer for the Packers for one day. Or the 4 hours we were with him anyway. I guess we knew then that either Hell was freezing over or he was on his last days.

He did last another 6 weeks after that but I never donned the green and gold again. Nor will I. Now that the king of our castle is up in the clouds.

Again, with that pandemic time warp, I've had no sense of how long Dad's been gone. Nine years seems like a lifetime ago. Or yesterday. Depending on the day. And when I see this picture of us together, the clouds are breaking up and raindrops are falling on my cheeks.

I'm reminded how short life can be. Do those things you want to do in case you can't later. Hop on that train or plane. Climb the castle. Go see that friend or loved one. 

You'll be grateful when it pops up in a future "memory."

Prince Charming

Our view last night.

Got to see the famous Heidelberg Castle today. Pretty much what the city is known for. It attracts a million visitors a year. But I'm guessing a lot of them don't get there the same route did.

 Uphill. Like straight uphill. The whole time our calves were screaming, "Can you feel me now?" This business of vacationing in Europe isn't for sissies. Another 12 miles of steps today.

It was a gorgeous day, though. Sunny and mid 60s.

Once we got up top, the view was amazing. You can see all of Heidelberg nestled in the hills surrounding it.

And the castle... so huge! You can capture an image from the distance, but once you're in it, on it and inside it, you just can't get it all.

I did take plenty of pictures I'll share this week. After hiking around, we headed back down the hill and had lunch. Later, we hiked again -- this time on Philosopher's Way.

 Yup. Another tough climb!

Offered fantastic views of the city from the opposite river bank as down town and the castle.

There were gorgeous flowers in bloom up there, too. Ahh spring!

 Plus I found my tree! Why is there an R painted on the tree? I have no idea.

 After our trek back down, we rewarded ourselves with some  very authentic gelato. "Prost!" It's always good to toast a good drink or good ice cream!

Then, just like that,  the sun set on my trip. Am going to bed so I can get up at 530 a.m. and make my way back to America.

Probably gave Carter a dozen goodbye hugs and kisses, but he reminded me I'll see him 20 days. I can handle this now.

I'll share more pictures etc after my uneventful trip home (fingers crossed) and my recovery from jet lag.

Ciao for now!

Zee Castle on Zee Hill

While doing my own traveling in Europe this summer, I was both impressed and amazed at the history – especially castles built centuries before the United States was even established as a country. Now, Mr. World Traveler is experiencing some of that.

Today after school, several of the "foreign" students (that does include him, ha) got to tour the famous Heidelberg Castle. I think it's the most-visited landmark in Germany.

In this file photo you can see what it looks like on a nice sunny day. It snowed in Germany today. Carter said it didn't stick where he was but there were reports of major accumulations further north. So he had a cloudy gloomy day for his visit. Still, props to him for taking some pictures with his phone so he could share them with us.

Its history is impressive. The earliest castle structure was built before 1214 and later expanded into two castles in 1294; however, in 1537, a lightning bolt destroyed the upper castle. The present structures had been expanded by 1650, before damage by later wars and fires. In 1764, another lightning bolt caused a fire which destroyed some rebuilt sections. Some how, a lot of it is still intact.

According to internet sources, which may or may not be correct, the oldest description of Heidelberg from 1465 mentions that the city is "frequented by strangers", but it did not really become a tourist attraction until the beginning of the 19th century. Count Graimberg made the castle a pervasive subject for pictures which became forerunners of the postcard. At the same time, the castle was also found on souvenir cups. Tourism received a big boost when Heidelberg was connected to the railway network in 1840.

 Loves those windows and sculptures!

In the 20th century, Americans spread Heidelberg's reputation outside Europe. Thus, Japanese also often visit the Heidelberg Castle during their trips to Europe. Heidelberg has, at the beginning of the 21st century, more than three million visitors a year and about 1,000,000 overnight stays. Most of the foreign visitors come either from the USA or Japan. The most important attraction, according to surveys by the Geographical Institute of the University of Heidelberg, is the castle with its observation terraces.

And what a view! Glad Carter took this so we could see just how big Heidelberg is. The population is about 160,000 (bigger than Green Bay but smaller than Madison) with a quarter of those being students. Carter also learned before going there that 10% of the population is American. So really, I should feel ease.

Haha. Are you laughing, too? I know. As long as I get a picture now and then or a text, I'll keep breathing.

In the meantime, I'll share what I can so we can all pretend we're studying abroad!

The Castle on the Hill

It's starting to sink in that our baby will be flying the coop next week. A long, long flight over a big, big pond. Nine days for those of you keeping score at home.

Yup in nine days, he'll be saying nein. As in "No, I'm not staying home, Mom."

Today I was thinking about the "to do" list and how we really better get one established and start checking off items sooner rather than later. The thought that we'll have all this time after Christmas isn't reality. We're basically talking a week here and there's holidays involved. Again.

So we should now hit the "things to do the week before you leave" list. Yikes.

And I know. I am not the one traveling. Jim is not the one traveling. But still, we are the double-checkers to be sure the traveler is dotting his i's and crossing his t's. And firmly nudging – not nagging by any means – the traveler to start the dotting and the crossing!

When I was looking up info today and saw this picture of the Heidelberg Castle (a huge tourism draw in the old city he'll be living in for 16 weeks), I was in awe. So amazed by what is there and thrilled by what he'll get to see and do.

Yes, this momma will miss her baby. But oh wow. Look at that castle on the hill. How can I not share in the excitement?

Just gotta get cruising on our list of lists so Prince Charming can be on his merry way. Thank goodness it's the start of another 5-day weekend in the Kingdom of Blue Jay Drive.

Sisters in Scandi-hoovia :: Day 8

Great news.  After decades of genealogy work, I finally found our ancestral home ...

And there's room for all of us to move in -- 226+ rooms...

And the family fishing boat is still there! Skol! (Side note: Major winds all day.  Disregard my Trump hair.)

My sisters and I are ready to move in!  Just need to install an elevator.  Oh, and electricity, to start.

It was pretty cool to tour Lacko Castle. Built just before 1300, it is in amazing condition. (See Rayna taking pictures from the rocks in the foreground!)

Not sure if you can just click on the panoramic view, but the "King's Room" was my favorite. The painted ceilings were like nothing I've ever seen.

Simply amazing! And the three great rooms all had themes painted and featured. The King's Room was a war theme. Pretty obvious when you look closely.

It was definitely an educational tour learning about guys like King Gustav above. Lots of Swedish history that never entered my brain before.  I hope it stays!

The rest of the day was pretty much travel time as we made our way around Sweden's biggest lake -- Vanern -- to our mansion.  Baldernas Herrgard is an 1800s mansion with a hundred acres to roam.

It's on a peninsula of its own so there is ample opportunity for hiking, fishing, boating and swimming.

Did someone say swimming?

Yes, it was after 9 p.m. Yes, the water temperature was akin to the teeth-chattering Great Lakes. Yes, we're crazy Swedes. But... we wanted to say we vent svimming in Sveden ... and prove we can still be adventurous at 49 years and 11.75 months old!

How we doing so far? 

And look... we're even up past 11 p.m. Why? Because it's still daylight.

Literally just snapped this from our deck at 11:10 p.m. Bring on summer solstice! 

Sisters in Scandi-hoovia :: Day 6 (Father's Day)

It's not a Scandi-hoovian myth that too much fresh air makes you tired. It's fact.

In fact, we packed so much into our time outdoors that our morning activities seem like days ago already! Not complaining one bit. It's a good kind of tired.

This morning, Raylene and I went off the beaten path and went for a pre-breakfast walk-run-rock climbing-hill climbing adventure. Yes, it was as tiring as it sounds. (Side note: Don't ever complain when things go down hill. It can be a lot harder going up hill!)

Well, OK. We weren't blazing completely new trails. Just the most difficult one.

There is an old water mill community of perhaps 3 buildings called Rottle. That was at the bottom of a windy hill. With a few steep parts.

Oh look. A bridge! Let's cross it and keep on going.

There were pretty flowers...

And pretty steep hills on that side, too. We somehow ended up by a road. But since we didn't know if it led back to the hotel and we didn't know how to pronounce the name of it either, we turned around and retraced our steps.

 Every single one.

Uff da! We made it!

Little did we know how closely we escaped the rain. Got on the bus and went to the Granna harbor to get on the ferry and didn't catch the sun for man, many hours! Thankfully, our leaders Martin and Anna gave us all rain ponchos. Practical AND stylish. You'll see! And we couldn't complain. They have been waiting something like 7 weeks for rain!

We took the ferry -- large enough to fit the bus! -- over to Visingso Island.

Got to see two castle ruins there. The first one was the site of the very first royal castle in Sweden in the 1100s.

Yes, that's my twin, taking a short cut. Gotta keep my sisters on leashes!

See what I mean by stylish? Check out that thin rail behind me. I think the rain was so bothersome that I forgot to be scared of heights!

Second castle we saw had a bit more to it. It was built in the 1600s. Can't tell, but it's still raining!

We got a break from the rain for a lunch of meatloaf... and potatoes, of course! Then we went on a horse and carriage ride. It was like a covered wagon you might see on hayrides or pumpkin patch tours. We were tucked in with tarps over our legs, too, so we could stay dry. One of our stops was the Kumlaby Church, which is one of the oldest and best preserved medieval churches in Sweden.

 

The church was founded in the middle of the 12th century, so even though I can't read the tombstones, I am sure there are some interesting characters buried there.

 Vikings of some sort, no doubt!

Another neat church we trotted by.

I was on a different wagon than my co-travelers. Here is the wagon ridden by Raylene, Rayna, and her friend Sue.

After the ride, we said goodbye to the horses, hopped on the bus and rode the ferry back to Granna for a few free hours to shop. If you didn't know (and I sure didn't), this is where red-and-white-striped peppermint candy got its origins. I know. I was thinking North Pole, too.

So candy cane-like peppermint sticks are big deal here. When you see the word "polka" it is referring to peppermint. Just a little Swedish language lesson for the day.

In all the shops, we got to peer through windows at handsome young Swedes and watch them make the candy. Very cool.

 These were in Swedish colors!

So many varieties and the only word I recognized was polka!

I didn't get too much candy but discovered I need a bigger carry-on for the trip home. Isn't this guy cute?

Not sure if it's required to kiss him for luck, but I did anyway!

And this one will probably have to go in my checked luggage! For real, I am so an HOME here. Nine out of 10 business -- including gas stations -- have ice cream or gelato or both. HEAVEN.

Speaking of heaven... we took a moment to think of Dad. I brought him with and I am sure he is with us in spirit as we visit his half-homeland (he's half Norwegian, too). In fact, the fact that the sun came out was a good indicator.

And stayed out! What a glorious day!

And a pretty spectacular ending, too! Well, at 10:15 p.m. anyway.