Hotel Grunshof, Garni Walldorf

... one must first ask before ordering. This is an important lesson to learn while traveling in Europe. Another important lesson to learn is that not everyone speaks English, and even if they do, many do not appreciate being spoken to in English without first asking politely if they do indeed know the language. “Kre-DEET-car-ten okay?”, I asked. Even that got a confused look and a visit from the manager. I do know that phrase usually works, by the way. We ...

... now cold, windy and rainy...I am sorry for my friends who are now working.

Here starts the Brazil trip!

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... bailout for getting home from the inevitable "scenic" route. I took one of those in Heidelberg. I'm still not really sure how I ended up on the south edge of town at the end of a different bus route than I got on. But with the day pass, you turn around, get back on, and try again at no additional cost. Second time was a charm, I made it back past my starting point and down to the Altstadt.

The walk up to ...

... ourselves a little parking ticket for forgetting to put money in the meter. Luckily we have no idea how to pay it and well we "lost the ticket" so oops!

We got a nice little hotel in Frankenthal which was a little over budget but luckily had a kitchenette in it so it saved us money on food. That night we dined on stir fry and Chris made a great bacon and eggs breakfast in the morning. Worth it!

Then it was off to see my Mum in Mainz! Yay!

So today we are departing Heidelberg. Last night we had our last Heidelberg beer at the Roten Oksen (The Red Ox), which in its day was Mark Twain's favorite bar. I always marvel that places like that survive the centuries- in America, we'd have knocked it down decades ago, put up a condo, and named it The Mark Twain in memoriam.

I liked Heidelberg- it's hard not to, with its stunning castle ruins hanging ...

sorry it has been so long since we have been on and updated. Payton is doing GREAT. had an unhealthy 2 weeks but all better. She had thrush which is so hard to get rid of, then another cold and ear aches. but she is all better. she weighs about 16 to 17 lbs now and is about 23 1/2 to 24 inches long. she is really starting to coo now and its so cute. she is trying to sit up on her own. we almost have a sleep pattern down :) which im super excited abou

... Swabian Germany to Bad Wimpfen, where we spent the night. Now, our guidebook said Bad Wimpfen is "a pretty town." I was mid-sentence talking to Matt, and literally stopped and stared at this fortified city on a hill. Matt turned to his right to see what I was staring at and nearly rear-ended the car in front of us. It's that stunning, with a castle tower jutting into the skyline from the hilltop. And let me repeat: Frommers, Lonely Planet, and Let's Go didn't even mention it. Go ...

... his vocabulary, and is 'reckon'-ing everything. he hasn't got bugger yet, but we're working on it! he learnt a phrase from Alice (Australia) and tried it out on me. it was hilarious when i asked him a question and he responded with 'she'll be right'. LOL
i'm learning more german. I can now order things from people, and everyone's always using please and thankyou (danker shern, bitte shern). i can saz it's exactlz 8 o clock, but onlz that time lol. there's more fun ...

... the Christian faith?" "Daniel," she replied indignantly, "No I did not know that, but always remember that Christmas is a merry and blessed holiday, and if your little ***** of a friend wants to rot in eternal hell fire, well then that's her business, but MY SON WILL NOT BE GOING TO HELL!!!" Okay, I'll admit I'm paraphrasing this conversation just a tiny bit, but nevertheless, she did recommend the Christmas Markets and so we went. Overall, save a taste of spiced ...

... Yes, I have false hopes for a borderless, religionless future where we all hold hands and sing songs together. Or do I? That would be pretty boring, wouldn't it? I also visited the Black Forest. It was cold and amazing. I've attached some pictures I took at night to exemplify how absolutely well this place lives up to it's name. Enjoy! Bye for now people. I'll be back. If you read this and have an opinion, please let me know. Until then, **** all y'all... much love nonetheless though.