December 24, 2005
Holiday Season in Dusseldorf
Nothing like a homebase in Europe to get our fannies out and about!! We loaded up the VW and headed to the Malaga airport in early December to go Dusseldorf, Germany and Amsterdam, Netherlands. Wow! What a great trip! We visited the Brockhaus family (Ute, Michael, Max and Anna lived in Wilmette for 2 years when Anna and Lydia were in preschool) in Dusseldorf and got a great taste of family life in the nation's fashion capitol. Dusseldorf is known for it's style and Christmas markets. We shopped and strolled and shopped and strolled. We had crepes stuffed with chocolate and lamented the agony of weight loss. We bought tons of English language books (not really available in Granada) and a few "little" things to wear! Mark got to several museums and even trekked over to Cologne for some research on their incredible cathedral and some modern art. I wondered if he'd come back smelling more fragrant, but alas no cologne for him! We were impressed with the efficiency, cleanliness, and beauty of Germany. We liked it so much we left for 2 days and went to Amsterdam. (See photos on next blog)
Great dinner with Ute and Michael's friends whom they met in Philadelphia. The restaurant used to be a big theater and the wine glasses were proportionate to the enormous scale of the building. So was my headache the next day! Great dinner with wonderful people!
Anna and Gypsy together. Anna is wonderfully responsible for the care and riding of her horse. Great inspiration for Wynne who wants to be a cowgirl/karaoke star when she grows up!
The picture with Mark and kids was our first day in Dusseldorf when we ventured by train into the city for their Christmas market. Everything was lit up and the spirits were high. The chilly weather and decorations everywhere really got us in the holiday spirit.
We thought this was the cutest truck we ever saw. Space is a hot commodity in Europe and we are constantly impressed by the efficient designs that clearly reflect the need to take up less of it!
The last photo is atop a building in Dusseldorf welcoming people to their neighborhood. We definitely felt welcome in Germany!
Great dinner with Ute and Michael's friends whom they met in Philadelphia. The restaurant used to be a big theater and the wine glasses were proportionate to the enormous scale of the building. So was my headache the next day! Great dinner with wonderful people!
Anna and Gypsy together. Anna is wonderfully responsible for the care and riding of her horse. Great inspiration for Wynne who wants to be a cowgirl/karaoke star when she grows up!
The picture with Mark and kids was our first day in Dusseldorf when we ventured by train into the city for their Christmas market. Everything was lit up and the spirits were high. The chilly weather and decorations everywhere really got us in the holiday spirit.
We thought this was the cutest truck we ever saw. Space is a hot commodity in Europe and we are constantly impressed by the efficient designs that clearly reflect the need to take up less of it!
The last photo is atop a building in Dusseldorf welcoming people to their neighborhood. We definitely felt welcome in Germany!
