Friends and Family

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One of the things I love about spending time in Germany is the people, Despite the language barrier, they are such a hospitable bunch, always going out of their way to make me feel welcome here. Ralf's friends and family have always welcomed me with open arms and the more time I get to spend with them, the more I count them among my own friends and family. It's not always easy to keep up with the conversation, and thank goodness for a few that try to speak English with me and for Ralf's conscious efforts at translation, but I never feel excluded. My German is coming along but it is my hope some day to be able to speak more fluently. So far during our trip this time we've had a chance to spend time with some friends. We hosted a barbeque at the bungalow which was great fun. I enjoyed seeing how much Ralf's good friend Friedi and wife Anja's baby has grown. Fabian is just over two years and even after a shy start, he was willing to play ball with me. Each time he would race to the ball to beat me, then he wanted me to pick him up and spin him around. Mom said, he fell asleep in the car on the way home and didn't wake up when she put him in bed. (I felt the same way...it's a lot of work keeping up with a two year old! We also enjoyed a visit with Ralf's brother Jens and special friend Undina. They took us on a tour of their fantastic garden which actually used to belong to Ralf's dad and he has many memories of his time there in his youth.

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Photos

Dinner at the little resturant right near the bungalow
Bauernfruehstueck was on the menu for me. It translates to peasant's breakfast and is eggs and potatoes.

Jamie's prince
Now he just needs kissing Kiddo!

Jens and Undina's garden
Impressive!

Jens and Undina's garden
The area was made up of about 50 adjacent gardens like this, most with small gardening sheds equipped for staying overnight on weekends.. Ralf remembers his parents taking him here on the weekends to get "closer to nature".

Jens and Undina's garden
We sampled the fresh strawberries, currants, cherries, raspberries, and peppermint,

Freidi, Anja and Fabian
He wants the beer from "Papi"

Fire time
a great way to end the evening!