Home again...

I got home from Germany at the end of May and immediately started working on my house leaning towards the likelihood of renting it out rather than selling it. Either way I had a lot of work to do starting with painting the remainder of what I didn’t do the summer before.  So between the scraping, washing, priming and painting, I started going through rooms and the barn and throwing out all the junk that accumulated over 18 years in the same house.  You know… the stuff that you keep, thinking “someday I will find a use for this.”  Between the garbage dumpster and the recycling can and bulk pickups, I had full loads every week for the folks from Sanitation Services.  I gave away a lot of stuff and took several truckloads to the Mission. As I cleaned sorted and packed I moved gradually from one room to the next emptying it and taking stuff to storage.  All that to say, my house is clean as a whistle with freshly painted ceilings and a few touch up jobs.   A lot of memories go with that house, but after all the things that made it a home were out, it was much easier to let go. Big Sigh! Hurricanes, kids, me…a lot of history.  Now on to new exciting adventures.  I leave in a couple of weeks for Okinawa for a 6 month gig, but at least this time I won’t have to fret about my house being empty and no more relying on others to handle things like mail. Jared and Tifany have done a great job for me and even mowed my grass and bought staple groceries pending my return each time, but all in all, this is a big relief.   Replacing my water heater and re-doing to electrical boxes in the house was kind of an unplanned expense, but needed to be done.  Almost a shame to get my house so clean and updated, only to hand the keys over for somebody else to enjoy. Another sigh!  So I guess my next blog entry will be from Okinawa telling all about life on a tropical island.

 

FCK Strasbourg and Heidelberg

 The Fußball game was a blast. I kind of remembered some of the rules for playing soccer, but watching it on this kind of level was exciting and made me care less about the rules than winning! Winning is always good and I definitely prefer it to most of the alternatives, but it was my first time and not only did my local team win, they shut out the opponent who WAS ahead in the rankings! Beer, a big beef bratwurst, and singing the FCK fight song made for a wholly enjoyable experience. Sue and I rode the shuttle bus from the burbs to the the stadium which was built for the FIFA World Cup series in Germany in 2006, seats 50K (was sold out) and is a pretty fancy arena, I can tell ya!

The next morning I woke up pre-dawn and caught the train to the French border city of Strasbourg to meet my good friend Kathy. It’s very cool with an amazing old city and possibly the nicest church I have ever seen. It was the Eglise St. Pierre de la Jeune. The frescoes are still very vibrant some 700 years after they were painted. The architecture dates back to the 11^th century. It was so beautiful that I was compelled to sing a hymn inside. Nobody shushed me so I guess it wasn’t too awful. The Strasbourg Cathedral was an awesome experience as my entry was greeted by a final rehearsal for that evening’s concert of the Baroque stylings of Vivaldi and Bach, complete with a stunning mixed youth choir and orchestra (almost made me cry). MY youth choir in high school was nothing like this. How amazing to see the blend of old and new, with $800 a pair Prada shoe boutiques sidling up next to 12^th century buildings. Very French and very lovely…not that I necessarily equate the two along those lines but it was…both. 

Last weekend I went with my friend Ditmara to Heidelberg. Whenever I see castles I am excited and thrilled, and like a dog that gets excited everytime it’s owner asks in breathy tones, “Who’s a good boy? Who’s a good boy?”, I almost run around in circles as fast as I can with my tongue hanging out. All that to say it never truly gets old. I have had dinner twice in the last couple of weeks in castles and have to pinch myself each time. Heidelberg is almost too good for words but I will give it a try. The huge castle has some towers that are intact and others that have split in two over time. The moat is so deep that standing in it’s bottom (it has no water, FYI) and looking up at the towers fills me with awe at the engineering feat. Some walls reach to the sky without any adjacent walls to support them and their giant glassless windows look like a Dali painting. The Altstadt (old city) is beautiful with several churches and this ancient university… Germany’s oldest seat of

learning founded in 1386. Great food, great company and beautiful weather made the We spent hours walking along the Philosophers Walk along the hills opposite the Neckar River from the old city. Just brilliant.

I am so fortunate and so blessed in my life. None of us deserves blessing, so I feel most privileged to get to do what I do. The work is so rewarding and the fringe benefits are over the top. Today, I overheard somebody talking good about me behind my back, loudly and in public. As if that wasn’t enough, a kid told me “I hope you never leave” and then I drove home the long way through the mountains with my windows down and took a spontaneous walk out across a field. Ah…God is good to me, despite myself!

 

 

Worms

Once in awhile I run into somebody who is just my kind of people.  Because of my lifestyle, those people can appear at random times and occasionally more than once.  Such is the case here. I have other folks around me who are doing things in tandem & having a good time with them, but I am so glad to find that Sue is here with me again.  We were together for Snowmageddon in Washington DC a few years ago.  So the week after I arrive in Germany, SUE arrives & we have a new snowmageddon, shutting down the bases. Now, after 4 weeks of barely getting above freezing:  Easter...& more snow (top left outside my window). 

Two weeks ago we went to the city of Worms, Germany.  It is pronounced Verms, but some people cannot get it right; think they are being set up when they are told to pronounce it “Verms” so they just go ahead & say “Worms”, then chuckle a little as if to say, “these Germans are so cute.”  Americans! Worms is a very old city founded in 14 BC. It’s Cathedral (top right) was begun in the 10^th century & is possibly most famous for being the place where Martin Luther refused to recant his beliefs in front of the Pope/Holy Roman Emperor & was then thoroughly excommunicated. Worms is the site of the oldest Jewish Cemetery in Europe (right) & the Jewish quarter is home to the yeshiva where the venerated Rabbi Rashi studied, to a Synagogue reconstructed after Kristallnacht &to an ancient, functional mikveh (ritual bath).  The crusades & the nazis pretty much decimated the Jewish population & today only a few Jews live there in a city whose name was first Celtic, Borbetomagus, & then Hebrew, Vermayza. Interestingly, the Jewish quarter & the main street, Judenstrasse (Jew Street) are mainly occupied by the Muslim Arab population.  Vandalism & desecration is a problem but the polizei do what they can to protect the ancient artifacts.

I don’t need or have a desire to drive or ride a bus for 6-8 hours for a day in all the big cities in Europe like some folks.  That reminds me of “European Vacation”. To me it is only worth the trip if it takes a couple of hours & I have plenty of time to stay…at least 2 days.  Partly that is because there is so much great stuff within a short distance that I never heard of before!  Places like Idar-Oberstein with it’s two castles on top of the mountain overlooking the valley village & the cathedral built into the side of the mountain (left). Went there for lunch last Sunday after Palmsonntag services at the local church, St. Martin’s, which was built in the 14^th century by Franciscan monks (like Pope Francis, who I call Pope Fransisco, because it is so fun to say). This morning (Easter 2013) I woke up & it was snowing. The church bells were ringing, smoke & steam were billowing out of the chimneys on every rooftop in the valley. I again went to church with my 2 compadres Sue & Sandy at St. Martin’s & then home for a day of rest before embarking on another full work week.  I am going to my first live Bundesliga game with 50 thousand other foosball fans at Fritz-Walter-Stadion to see the 4^th ranked FCK Rotes Teufeln (Kaiserslautern Red Devils Football Club) take on the #3 ranked Koln “Billy Goats”.  I hate to think that is their team name, but it is their mascot – go figure.  Even though I do fly the colors of Bayern Munchen (#1 in Bundesliga) I have been instructed that I cannot wear them here, although the colors are the same, somehow people will know.  If you hear of riots at a German foosball game, then you know it was probably because I wore the wrong team on game day. Then, assuming I survive the game & the after-party, on Saturday I am going to meet my friend Kathy in Strasbourg, France & likely will spend the night.  Looks like a full weekend, but I can handle it. I am getting tired of day after day of freezing temps though. Other photos here are Barbarossa's Castle remains in downtown Kaiserslautern; Easter eggs at the market and an Easter tree festooned with plastic eggs; My house; and My village.

 

Hohenecken, Attendorn, NAHncy

Everytime I go on one of these assignments I am confronted with very different situations.  This time I have not been disappointed with the differentness but I won’t bore anyone with that.  Regardless, I again find myself in Europe, coming out of the fog that is borne of travel and seeing the great opportunity that presents itself. Sorry for the flowery text but I just watched the 1953 movie about Martin Luther in prep for my trip next weekend to the city of Worms (say “Verms”), Germany.  Huge amount of history there but I will tell you about that later.  I am wrapping up my second weekend here in the Kaiserslautern community and have thus far spent the night in a German castle in Attendorn, Germany and wandered around the French town of Nancy.  It’s a lot of fun to say Nancy France with American pronunciation, but I have been schooled that the town is “Nahncy, Frahnce”, which truthfully is almost as much fun to say. I arrived without my snow boots, because I figured it can’t be much longer til spring.  Oh how wrong I can be.  There was about 3-4 inches of fresh snow on the ground when I got here and it all pretty much melted and evaporated within the first week.  Snowing in Attendorn at the castle on my next weekend was kind of a custom request I had fulfilled: a) because I believe in God, and b) because He likes to see me happy.  Then after I got home it was sunny and slightly cool but tolerable, which was convenient because the zipper on my awesome Korean winter jacket busted and I had to have it committed to a shop to be repaired. Then it started snowing again all day and all night dropping several inches of snow making everything look fresh and beautiful.  The roads and highways finally cleared up today and now the temps are dropping, it’s snowing heavily again and supposed to drop to minus 20 tonight.  That’s Celsius which sounds pretty bad…in Fahrenheit it will only be about 6 below zero.  But it’s so freakin beautiful.  I will take a picture from inside my room with the floor to ceiling windows overlooking the valley, the church and the hills beyond and post it on this blog-spot.  ZO, I got my jacket back, I have a couple of friends, and a very quaint restaurant downstairs with a fireplace and an endless tap.  Life is so unfair.
These pictures are (top to bottom to right): The 800 year old castle ruin above my house-Schlossberg Hohenecken; Schnellenberg Castle in Attendorn; my little village of Hohenecken with the hotel, castle and church all visible; the church outside my bedroom window this morning, covered in snow; the menu of the bistro in Nancy France (which nobody could interpret, so we had to point and guess - at least I knew how to avoid escargots); and lastly, the downtown of Nancy France.

Prague memories

I have been aware for some time that I didn’t ever post anything about my trip to Prague with my good friend Shelley.  I think it was because I was passing the torch to my relief person and after coming home, I had stuff to do and time got away from me, blah, blah, blah.  Although this is not even close to real time since my trip was in the spring, maybe the pix will still be impressive and maybe cause somebody to look at them and remember when they were in Praha.  There may be more in Prague to capture the interest of younger people who like to party because it is definitely a partying city, but Shelley and I tried hard to do it all in 36 hours.  I drove to Prague and got a hotel in the old city; moving traffic was almost at a standstill with the throngs pushing into the tight cobblestone streets. Absinthe induced revelry bulged from overcrowded bars and nightclubs and the streets groaned in slow motion.  One-ways streets criss-crossed one another in a random fashion causing the most sane person insane enough to drive in Prague to become easily disoriented.  When we finally found our hotel which was only marked by a small wooden door with an 8X11 logo, I had to drive again around a couple of blocks to access the parking “garage”; a 3 story underground bunker with a car elevator.  I just drove down an alley onto the little courtyard behind the hotel and parked in a white outline not much smaller than the courtyard.  Then I left my keys with some smiling young guy named Michel who said, “Don’t worry…I take good care of car for you.” It sounded better with the accent but some things you just can’t write. I heard a long grinding and crunching sound after I entered the hotel that kind of sounded like my car being chewed up by a salvage yard car compacter.  From my room on the 5^th floor walkup I could see the tiny courtyard and Michel waving up an me with that infernal grin but no car…I just hoped for the best. I am learning that when someplace says “breakfast included”, it could mean anything or not much as in this case.  After learning how to properly say good morning in Czech, “Dobry Den!”, exploring Prague was quite the adventure as we got on the wrong bus driving us out of town the wrong direction. Eventually, we found the right bus but a lot of folks in Prague don’t speak English, or German or anything else that might have been a step in the direction we wanted to go. (Always makes me LOL when I cross the border into another country and suddenly the language changes: the people, the culture, the clothes, the signs, the food, everything changes immediately.)  Anyway, this 2500 year old city in ancient Bohemia, started to wake up Saturday morning and became alive again with a different pulse from the night before.  The day warmed up into the 70’s and the people came out in swarms to enjoy the incredible day. Castles, Palaces, The Charles Bridge with it's interesting and sometimes bizarre scuptures and statues, the Astronomical Clock, the amazing Central Square all were very alive.  After the Sabbath ended, the Jewish Quarter crawled slowly to life where to our puzzlement, people on the streets spoke Hebrew; finally a language we could communicate in. We got to drink Budvar (the supposed originator of Budweiser beer, much to the chagrin of the people at Anheiser-Busch and the joy of the people at the Budvar Brewing Co.), we got to see a zombie flash-mob. So many things to see and do and many of them you just don’t see in America, pretty much ever – the kinds of things that make you feel just – well … good.

Prettige Kerstdagen and Cologne DE

That’s how you say Merry Christmas in Dutch.  Of course as I write this I am no longer in Nederlands but neatly reabsorbed at my home in Florida, paying my yearly property taxes and homeowners insurance among other bills, refilling my fridge, replacing burned out lightbulbs. It’s warm and it hasn’t rained; opposite of the Netherlands, but I definitely enjoyed my time there.  I got my knees X-Rayed and a shot of cortisone in each one and I have an appt with an Orthopod in about a week.  All the things that make this holiday season so joyous and bright. I spent the day Saturday on my last weekend in Europe in Cologne with my new good friend Jania. (We both live in Pensacola and have known each other for some 15 years, but never hung out or socialized in the same circles, and it took Brunssum, Netherlands for us to become good friends!) My knees were aching but since I knew this was possibly my last chance to climb the stairs to the top of the Kölner Dom (Cologne Cathedral) belfry; 509 stone steps of the spiral staircase to a viewing platform about 322 ft above the ground. That’s 509 up and 509 down with each step being about 3 feet wide and several hundred people all doing the same thing. There was that and the Jewish archaeological site which was discovered a couple of years ago a few blocks from the Dom.  It is the oldest known Jewish settlement in Northern Europe.  Yep, they were just digging down to build a new Starbucks and found this whole city, complete with Mikve, Bakery and a Deli.  Okay not the deli but the other stuff is actually in pretty good shape for having been buried a thousand years. The Christmas markets were starting up and there was the smell of Glühwein, chocolate, bakeries, pine and for some reason bayberry aroma was everywhere, too. The bottom picture from inside the Dom is the famous "Adoration of the Magi" triptic by Stefan Lochner created around 1440 AD. By the time the sun started going down I was feeling like an old man, not so much in pain, but my knees were feeling weak (maybe it was the wein or bier, but I think not) so we went back to the house. I sure did enjoy Northern Europe. Next time I plan to be jumping and running.
Prettige Kerstdagen, Frohe Weihnachten, メリークリスマス, Mutlu Noeller, 메리 크리스마스, Joyeux Noël, Veselé Vánoce, Mele Kalikimaka, or however you say MERRY CHRISTMAS where you come from!

Thorn, Netherlands and Valkenburg Christmas Market

It has been 3 weekends now that I have yet to blog about.  Well there are a few reasons for that. One is that I hurt my knee running in the spring, took a month off and started back with aching and soreness again.  Since then both knees have become increasingly sore and a couple of weeks ago actually feeling like they will buckle under my tremendous weight. So I have not gotten around much the last two weeks. Reason two is Amsterdam (right).  This was my second trip there and again I was not impressed: maybe it was the hoards of people, or the driving rain and icy wind, or the lines and fees for anything I wanted to do but I just didn’t like it. The things I did do were unimpressive like the Jewish History Museum which I thought might be a good substitute for the Anne Frank or Corrie Ten Boom House, but was an expensive lesson in basic Jewishness with a lot of pictures of Dutch historical figures who allowed Jews to have minimal rights as if that was a noble gesture. The Sex Museum (not my idea, but better I thought than standing outside in the rain) was the dumbest thing I may have ever seen and I felt a little stupider for the experience (standing outside in the rain would have been more edifying). The cars parked precariously along the canals however did impress me (right). The streets reeked like old bong-water and the openness of the prostitution made me feel pity rather than joy about the progressive nature of Amsterdam. Half of the prostitutes were just gruesome and the other half looked like sex trade victims. I don’t plan to ever go back to Amsterdam; nothing to see here folks unless you want to crawl into a coffeeshop and stay in a stupor for the duration, which be time better spent.  Last weekend I went to some smaller places for some local flavor.  First, the town of Thorn (left) for pancakes at their quite famous Pannenkoekenbakkerij (Pancake Bakery).  Pancakes are like a crepe the size of a pizza and covered with any number of toppings.  I had Salmon, mushroom and spinach, but didnt take a picture since I was hungry and it looked too good to become distracted with getting the perfect photo. The town was created as a monastery then a cloister and then turned over to exclusively women’s rule about 800 years ago where the Abbess (Head Nun) ran the abbey and town.  The whole downtown aka the Old Town is and always has been, whitewashed and the church is 1000 years old. From there I went to the Netherlands American Cemetery in Margraten (left) where 8301 Americans are buried.  I am awestruck as I hear over and over how grateful the Dutch are to America for the liberation from the Nazis and they have markers and reminders everywhere. The cemetery is very reverent and clean and is maintained by the citizens of the local community. Then a late afternoon drive to the Hoensbroek Castle which is about 15 minutes drive from my place here in Brunnsum (left). Nice big old castle with a moat, drawbridge and a café that serves espresso and vlaai (a special Limburgisch fruit pie where the whole pie is baked and the filling is very thick with fruit – heavy but delicious). To finally catch up, the Kerstmarkts (Christmas Markets)began opening on Friday the 16^th.  Here they celebrate Sinterklaas which is the day, December 5, when the big fat man (St. Nicholas) dressed in red arrives to Netherlands by steam boat (stoomboot) and brings toys to all the good children and Swarze Piet (Black Pete – a skinny white guy in black-face, supposedly representing the Moorish tradition but obviously not in a positive light) comes to collect the bad kids, throw them in a burlap bag and take them away to Spain. In recent years Swarze Piet has just become a bunch of guys in black-face who keep the kids amused with antics and candy. But I saw no Swarze Piets last night, only a Sinterklaas and his lovely wife. I topped the day off about 730 pm with some gluweine (hot mulled red wine) and a pannenkoeken met kaas (cheese pancake). I missed the big parade because my compadres didn’t want to stay.  Mental health professionals, all PhDs: one afraid of clowns, one afraid of crowds and one who hates to wait, and me, feeling like a kid loaded with gluweine and giddy to see Sinterklaas and Swarze Piet.  Although I had the car keys, I figured it was better to go home now, than to force them to stay while I am amused and then ride home for 20 minutes with 3 angry womyn.  No, just kidding, they are all great and we had a lovely time. We laughed and laughed and enjoyed the crisp air and the day without rain.  My knees ache a little this morning but I only have to go grocery shopping and iron my shirts for my final two weeks here. Next week, weather permitting, knees permitting and finances permitting I will spend in Cologne, Deutschland.

My Chocolate Renaissance

 

 

Last weekend I went to Brugge or Bruges, Belgium (top) depending on whether you incline toward the Flemish or French spelling, and it is one stunning city.  It’s been called the Venice of the North due to the many canals that run through it, although you hardly need a gondola; maybe a cattle prod to jolt the many tourists.  I imagine it is much more congested in the summer so I am not griping. Brugge itself dates back over 2000 years but despite the Franks, Romans and Vikings, it was never an actual city until roughly 900 years ago.  Original remnants of the city remain but much of it is medeival architecture is still there with buildings dated like 1675 or 1600. Some date back to the 13^th and 14^th century and are still inhabited by either government or private citizens.  Lots to do in Bruges. Other than canal tours, there are Belgian waffles which taste yummy especially when doused with chocolate and coupled with a hot coffee on a cold day (right). Belgian beers are diverse and so far SO-O-O-O good.  They are so proud of their beer that there are signs warning people to BE RESPONSIBLE, DRINK DON’T DRIVE and of course the eco-friendly urging to SAVE WATER, DRINK BEER. I ate a Flemish Beef Stew for lunch today that was so good, I wept in front of all the Flems (Is that what Flemish people are called?) Of course there is plenty of lace and then there is my chocolate renaissance.  I wrote the other day that Hershey’s kisses trump any chocolate I have had, but that was my dark ages.  I have never seen it carved in so many different forms: statues, witches, Santa Claus, unclothed and detailed body parts (right below). Chocolate that hints of strawberry, hazelnut, coconut, you name the flavor. I now know beyond any doubt what Heaven will be like because I have tasted and smelled it in Brugge – I am still talking about the chocolate. I can still smell it hours later, partly due to having dribbled chocolate from my waffle down the front of my jacket and getting it under my nails and all over my face and partly due to being in chocolate factories. But enough about chocolate.  I could definitely have spent several days in this city and it would be worth revisiting. Aside from Bruges, I have a couple of comments again driving in Europe.  Roundabouts are spaced about every 20 feet in and around most towns so it really feels like driving in circles sometimes.  My GPS says “continue straight through the roundabout” but you can’t go straight through a roundabout or “take the second exit” some exits of which are for bike or pedestrians and some are for cars so I have to be profoundly alert. Roundabouts circle in continental Europe to the right so when the GPS says turn left, I have to go right to go left and she gets all confused and tries to recalculate the route.  Bless her heart.  In Netherlands and Belgium, pedestrians, bicycles and wheelchairs always, always have the right of way so those folks don’t even look.  It’s my job to watch for every idiot that can’t tell that I am an American.  (My friend Manny says, “Day ha no cortesy. We no frong here, wha day speck?” He’s Cuban, so at least I think that’s what he said. Mostly I just smile and say “Si.”)  I have almost run down 3 people (2 riders and one in a motorized wheelchair) and they never looked up…just kept cruising right on by. On roadways there is a sidewalk, a narrow one lane for cars and two large bike lanes running in each direction. Imagine my caution when I get into a roundabout with three cars, a wheelchair, 20 pedestrians, and 30 bikes.  But at least they’re biking, even 80 year olds and 3 year olds so that’s good and healthy, I guess. And for my final comment on the day, there are no billboards anywhere…none.  The highways and side roads are steam-cleaned and ironed daily.  They must be because they are perfect, no bumps or potholes.  Autobahns curve gently so you never feel any centripetal force.  And everything’s so pretty. Below are the flags of Belgium (top), EU (left), and Flanders (right).

 

Cathedrals, Chocolate, Lace and Saints

It is pretty cool to live in a part of the world where I can wake up in The Netherlands and be in Germany in a 15 minute drive or in Belgium in about 25 minutes. Last weekend I went with my colleague Manny to Brussels.  The drive took an hour and 20 minutes.  We planned to go to Brugge this morning but it is 30 degrees here and only slightly warmer there, plus it is supposed to rain all day in Brugge.  I can deal with rain and cold but not both at the same time.  It just doesn’t sound fun. Maybe tomorrow. I keep saying to myself, “I have seen enough Medeival cities and cathedrals and castles,” but every time a new one is in my path I am equally awed. I did see a few unique things in Brussels though such as the Mannekin Pis (right) which I have seen copied in many gardens, ponds and pools over the years.  The original is actually smaller than I expected standing maybe 18 inches tall.  You know the statue, the naked little boy peeing.  Apparently, it was first made in 1618 but has been repeatedly stolen and the current statue is from 1965 but I took a picture anyway; me and the other 200 tourists standing on that tiny cobblestone corner.  The city feels compelled to dress him in one of over 2000 different outfits, although there is no way to hide his little wee-wee, the spout of the font. I felt a little voyeuristic, but mob ruled and I joined them. A short walk down to the lower city, the old town, led to the Grote Markt (Dutch) aka the Grand Place (French) aka the Town Square walled on all side by massive and magnificent buildings built in the Gothic, Baroque and Rococco style (left).  Everything here is written in both French and Dutch, actually Flemish, so we can all understand, including street signs and building names. The buildings were all closed by then so I had a 7 Euro ($9) Belgian beer, 2 veggie crepes for 12 Euro ($15) followed by a coffee (reasonably priced) with famous Belgian chocolates and then stood and looked around the square, kind of nodding my head and thinking, “OK… so this is Brussels.” Tintin comics originated here and it is the home of the European Union and Parliament and the home of SHAPE (Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe). Old city with a lot of new construction, many people, beautiful tapestries, chocolate and lace. For my euro, it was worth the trip but somehow not quite as awesome as I expected.  Tintin, I love, although I couldn’t find the Tintin and Snowy Statue or a copy of a book in English. Tapestries were waaay expensive (although I could imagine my castle walls adorned with them, to cover a wall would have proven too costly). Chocolate, in my mouth just tastes like chocolate; I’d be happy with 20 or 30 Hershey’s kisses for 2 bucks. And I am not delicate enough for lace. Although I barely have the patience to make a friendship bracelet, so I am impressed by people who take a week to make a doily. Maybe I have seen one 1400 year old church too many.  I still enjoy them but feel less compelled to take more than 2 or 3 pictures.  Manny (left), however takes about 50 shots of every statue and vestibule from every possible angle and zoom.  I remember when I was like that a year ago.

I did follow-up on Sunday with a day trip to Sittard (below), a small Dutch town about 20 minutes from my house which was quaint with its narrow alleyways, cobblestone streets and houses ranging from the 15th century to last week and, surprise, an ancient Medeival Cathedral of St. Petrus (right). I used to think that being named a saint by the pope was some kind of a big deal but it seems that there is at least one saint from every hamlet and corner in Europe and certainly more than any one human could name. Of course they all have a special kind of magic in the relics, which you practically fall over at every corner, and all the saints have either had visions or done miracles. Not that I am dissing the Saints…I am just saying that there are a lot of them.