A step further back in family history

Our Grandfather was a gypsy!  No, Johanna and Franz weren't making a statement on his nationality (he was German) but rather his disposition.  It blew me away.  I guess that blood skipped the whole next gerneration because all the Lochers I know were the quiet, stay at home, type.  Growing up my siblings and I could never figure out how strong the motivation must have been  to get Dad to pack up his young family and move across the ocean to a place where he knew very few people, did not speak the language and didn't know the customs.  Anyway, Father Locher (and grandfather was always referred to by my Mom) packed up his machinery and animals every few years and moved on to be a lease-holding tenant farmer in a new spot.

Today we visited Neresheim where the family took care of the Count von Thurn und Taxis' fields around the convent of Neresheim from 1908 to 1924.  My Dad was born there in 1912.  His early schooling was probably by the priests of the Benedictine order.  The church was restored in 1999 and is a spectacular example of Baroque architecture.  With many tiers of windows and a white interior, it is an incredible light worhip space with beautifully painted ceiling frescos. Sorry, no phtos allowed inside.

The fields and local hotel and restaurant on the premises are  now in another tenant's hands and we had a delightful lunch. I enjoyed a steamed dumpling with plum filling and vanilla sauce.

On the way back to Stuttgart we stopped in Aalen where Franz and Inge's older daught lives in a beautifully restored house from the early 1900s.  Ian was delighted to converse with an english speaking home owner where he could ask all those questions about living in Germany, taxes, mortgages, etc.

Around Stuttgart

Stuttgart is where I was born.  Specifically, it was on the second floor of the inn 'Neuwirtshaus' in the suburb of Stammheim.  As I write this blog, I am sitting in the upper floor of the hotel Neuwirtshaus in the north-west suburb of Stuttgart.  Now, it is not the same Neuwirtshaus where I was born.  That one burned and was eventually demolished, but the new hotel was built in the same style on the same location.  There actually has been an inn here since the 15th Century.

So today, Ian and I was treated to a city tour by my cousins Franz and Johanna, accompanied by Franz's wife, Inge.  It was supposed to be on the hop-on-hop-off bus, but, thanks to a planned "Friday Future' demonstration downtown, the bus was cancelled for today.  Instead we walked and rode the transit system all around the area.  We saw the Christmas Market, but didn't investigate as we are doing many Christmas markets next week.  Instead we strolled though the palace place, visited a church with gorgeous modern windows, ambled through the market,  took a tram up to the communications tower up on the hill overlooking the city (no pictures as it was raining and foggy), took a geared tram ride back into town, walked through the spectacular modern library and enjoyed dinner at a sports restaurant -- sorry, no TVs and multiple games, this restaurant is beside a soccerfield.  The wearers of Fitbits couldn't decided whether we had walked 9 km or 12 km, but it was lots.  A very good day!

Putting together pieces, November 27, 2019

Although I have only been home for 4 nights since the Mexico trip with Joanna and the kids, I managed to get to some of my regular activities -- specifically, Stained Glass class yesterday morning.

There was no half-finished project to complete, so I stood over my glass area on Tuesday morning and wondered what to do.  There was a container of green glass pieces which beckoned to me and I thought --Christmas Tree.  The tree is my dearest symbol of Christmas and I love decorating our tree with the lovely and the 'memories' ornaments.  The glass certainly would  provide the tree aspect, but I had to think of what could be the decorations.  Aha -- I have a box of single earings, the mates to which have been lost.  Don't ask why I saved them as I didn't plan on wearing mismatched earings, but this was the perfect project.

So at glass class, I assembled the pieces into a tree, my jigsaw experience coming in handy.  It came together quickly with a minimum of grinding necessary.  Then I started on the decorations.  I managed to attach a few earings, but had to finish at home this morning.  I totally melted one silver starfish in trying to attach it to the top of the tree, so a rhinestone from another earing had to serve as topper instead.  One large gold dangly leaf became several pieces of garland.  I managed to attach a sand dollar and the silver filigree 'tassles'.  The result is unique and not meant for anyone but me.

This trip is putting together some pieces of my childhood which I don't remember, so it is much like the tree --putting together the pieces and decorating it with leftover bits.  It promises to be unique too.