26 Mar 2011 2nd Time For Fulda

This morning after doing an early session at the temple with Jessica, we went home to rest, but the Paxton's came over and wanted to know what we were doing today. Of course we can never pass up an invitaton to go any where, so we went to a place they had not seen. We were so glad that we did, because the last time we went to Fulda, we only had 2 hours and that is not enough time to really see the place. I was able to get more pictures of one of the oldest chapels in Germany. The Marienkirche was built in 822 AD. It is very Medieval looking. The architecture of the roof reminded me of a witches hat. It is right next to the Dom in Fulda. I took a lot of pictures of that cathedral the last time we were there. I wanted you to know that today I actually had a conversation with a German nun. She could not speak English so I said sprechen Deutsch Bitte. She was so happy. What she said to us was that the church was closed but that it would be open tomorrow for a tour at 2 oclock. She wanted to know if we would still be there. To my surprize I understood everything she said. I told her we would not be there tomorrow but thank you very much. Maybe I'll get the hang of it the more I try to speak it. Understanding and speaking are two totally different animals.

We went to the cutest place to eat but I forgot to take pictures of the walls that were covered in old Hollywood celebrity pictures from the 40's & 50's. We ordered a pizza and some pasta but what came to us was raw bacon with fresh Basil on top. Elder Walters ate my dish and I ate his, fair trade. I am usually up for anything but after chewing the raw bacon for 5 minutes with no progress, I decided me or the bacon had to go. I won that battle. I loved the crust however. Took some pictures of the food and of the Paxton's. Elder Walters took them on a tour of the palace, which is grand, but I just walked around the grounds which I did take pictures of. They are beautiful and will be more in more in blume as the spring approaches. Home in 1 hour and early to bed to be ready for my boys at church. Tschuss

25.03.2011 Temple night and beautiful grounds

Tonight was Temple night for the Senior Missionaries. We always look forward to these occasions. We arrived a bit early so we took the opportunity to look around the temple grounds and see how Spring has finally arrived. They did all of their planting with tulips, jonquels and stiefmutterchens (pansies or as the German's call them-Little stepmothers) I guess because they have the little faces in them. I love Germany in the springtime. Nothing like it. We saw the house where the Temple President and his family live as well as some of the temple apartments. It was a nice walk and the weather was just right. After the temple session we all went to the Stadt Berlin for dinner. Some of the sisters are asking me what to get to eat now. I guess I am known in the mission as the one to ask about good places to eat and what to order. I can always vouch for the fish and the bernaise sauce.

The next morning we went to the temple again as Jessica went for the first time. She was so excited. She will be leaving on her mission in a week. The rest of the day was spent with the Paxton's, the new couple who moved into the apartment next door to us. I will tell you about our journey on the next blog. Tschuss

21.03.2011 Heidelberg for Dr. Appt.

Off of work early today for an appointment in Heidelberg to see the Doctor about Elder Walter's shoulder. Took x-rays and found out that he has no cartilage between the shoulder bone and his arm. No wonder he is in pain all of the time. I guess all the roofing finally took its toll. While we were in Heidelberg we took the opportunity to see a few things that we had not seen before. We walked to the Schloss Schwerzingen and its gardens. It is not all in bloom yet and the water has not been put into the fountains , but I think you can get a good idea of how beautifully these gardens are manicured. It was used as the electors summer residence. Versailles was the model for these gardens. The rooms of this palace were decorated with gold, velvet and silk. There was a theater housed here that was used by world class performers. The gardens themselves were an extension of the living space and so needed to be lavishly decorated in the Rococo style. You will see flowerbeds bordered with box hedges, lots of fountains with Apollo and the Mosque. All around you will see orange trees. There is an expansive area of green trees and grasslands that meander around paths and bridges. I was only able to walk through half of the gardens but it is a beautiful English garden and I am sure heavily used during the hot summer months.

We ate lunch at the Cantina Mexicana right outside the Schloss Gardens and the food was delicious. I had two small tostadas with Spanish rice and Elder Walters had a ground beef enchilada with rice. Took a few pictures of the surrounding areas, including a roofing company called Dachdecker. Elder Walters was excited to a see roofing company in Germany. Beautiful day and we were glad we got to see a little more of Heidelberg.

03-19-2011 Return to Wurzburg Fortress

Today we spent the day with the Senior Missionaries in Wurzburg which is the second time for us. We invited the Paxton's, the new couple from Cedar City, Utah. They moved in next door to us. We had a lot of fun driving up together. This is a beautifully laid out city on the UNESCO sight. Of course this is a must see for anyone coming to Germany. This city was established through the Franconian Douchy in 650 AD. but the city itself was started in 742 AD. Charlemagne consecrated the Cathedral here in 788 AD. After the revolt of the Peasants in 1525, it was conquered by the Sweds in 1631. In 1720-44 the Residence was constructed by the Bishop where he lived for a while until he felt it unsafe and moved to the top of the hill into the Marienburg Fortress. There was a tour scheduled for the Wurzburg Residence at 11:00 AM so that is the first place we went. All of the frescoes were done by Tiepolo from Venice in the 1750's. What is a Fresco you might ask? Good question, a fresco is a painting produced on Fresh lime morter. It is an Italian word meaning fresh. It is done with powdered pigments mixed with water. No binding agent is used only its own hardening of the lime morter. Only those done in this manner are considered true frescos. Now that you know what I am talking about, the ceilings are all covered with Frescos. We were not allowed to take picutres so I had to take a picture of a picture for you. They are outstanding. He is truly an old master of the art. The most famous one is done over the staircase as you walk in. It is called the four continents. Africa, Europe, Asia and America. I hope you can get the feeling for what we saw. Then we were taken into the rooms which started out fairly ordinary, but each room became progressively more elaborate. The Green Salon, the Hall of mirrors and the white guest room and the white oval audience room all in gold trim. A very interesting fact our guide told us was that during the summer, Hollywood used this audience room as a backdrop for the movie "The three Muskateers" with Orlando Blume. He said all the young girls came to visit everyday to get a look at Orlando. It was a busy place for a while. By the way you know it was suppose to be set in France since it was taken from a French Novel by Dumas, but they could only find exactly what they wanted in Germany. It is spectacular. After the tour we walked in the gardens but the flowers are not in bloom yet so it wasn't as beautiful as we saw it last.





























This is St. Mary's chapel with it's beautiful interiors. we walked in and a boys chorus was rehearsing without accompaniment. It was beautiful so we sat and listened until they were finished. The acoustics in the church made it sound even better.























Then came the hard part for me. We hiked into town to the Markplatz for a total of 5 miles all on cobblestone again. We ate lunch at Nordsee Fish Market and it was really good, but nothing beats Harbor Fish in Carlsbad & Oceanside. Bought a few German cookies YUM!













































These are a few of the churches in Wurzburg. The St. Mary's Gothic Style chapel and the Newmunster Church. I understand in Germany you can tell the Protestant Churches by the Rooster on the top. I believe most are Catholic in the Southern part of Germany. You will notice a statue of a mummy like man sitting on the steps of a church. His eyes are open but we could not figure out what this was suppose to represent. Could this be a form of torture? Is it a dead person? Your guess is as good as mine. Whatever, it made a believer out of me.





































We walked up to the Alte Brueke, the Old Main River bridge which goes across the Main River. The wind was blowing so hard so we were glad we brought our coats and scarves. We all stopped and watched a barge going into the lock system until the water level was high enough to go back onto the River. Very interesting. The Bridge itself is beautifully constructed with 12 giant baroque figures of Saints & rulers.





























Back to our car and a drive up to the Marienburg Fortress on the top of the hill. It was about a mile hike just to get up to it, all on cobble stone. It is a mammoth structure, the largest fortification we have seen. The walls were very intimidating. I guess others through the ages thought so too as it has never been stormed and never taken. Inside the fortress is a very high keep that was narrow with a small door inside where prisoners were lowered into the dungeon. Elder Walters leaned over to take a picture but it looks like they put a false bottom in so that small children wouldn't climb on it and fall in. I can't imagine being lowered into that place and staying there for years. We walked all around and found some postcards to send home. Another great day with the Missionaries.