June

Here we are in the last weekend of June! The last few months have really flown by.

We spent the month enjoying the laid-back vibe of the city, drinking Franconian wein and bier, cooking at home, and biking on Main Radweg.

Yesterday we went to Derek’s company party in the afternoon; The factory was open for touring and it was interesting to see the production lines and test equipment that are used during development. (We always think we have an idea of how our spouses workplace actually works!)  What is cool about this facility is that design, testing and manufacturing happen in the same building.  I enjoyed meeting all of his coworkers– so many of them have been welcoming.

Today (Sunday) Derek is taking an all-day first aid class so that he can apply for his Führerschein, german driver’s permit.  There is partial reciprocity for some US states, including MN, so he will not need a road test, but he will take a written test (in english) to show comprehension of the rules of the autobahn–and all roads! I am working on this blog and making fajitas for dinner.

 

A few pics from the month- 

Last weekend we spent a couple of days in the Schwarzwald ‘the Black Forest’. This trip  deserves an entirely separate post. What a landscape!

The Schwarzwald covers about 100 miles in southwestern germany.  We visited an area near Kandal, where the rolling forested hills turn to dramatic elevation.

 

 Lots of biking

The weather has been in the 70s and our month has been full of biking! Derek had been searching for a new bike since we arrived. He decided to buy a fill-in off ebay that he doesn’t mind keeping outside.  In Germany ebay works similar to the classifieds or Craigslist.  You search locally and meet in person to do the exchange.   With his new bike, Hercules, we set off on a 60km ride (<40 miles). We opted to bring my bike when we moved and have loved having it.

 

This is a picture along Main Radweg last month-

 

 

Main Radweg is a paved trail that follows the Main River for 600 km. It passes through all of the cities along the river, including large cities like Mainz, Frankfurt and Bamberg. When the weather is nice, it is common to see groups of bikers with saddle bags going on multi-day rides and staying in the little towns along the river.

 

A ride to the historic town of Karlstadt, 30km north of Würzburg-

 

June 6-9 Heat Wave!
Temps in the 90’s for four days which is uncommon for June in lower Franconia.  Many buildings don’t have air-conditioning and the heat doesn’t stay around for long. We discovered Badensee Erlabrunn “Bathing Lake Erlabrunn” 9-miles away on our bikes.

 

 

Visitors!
We had our first visitors from the US the first weekend of the month!! We loved having company for a couple of days! Our friends were staying with relatives near Munich and made a stop in Würzburg on their roadtrip to Berlin.  We checked out Weindorf, the annual wine festival in Würzburg.  Lots of Franconian wine and traditional german foods!  Our favorites are Silvaner and Müller-Thurgau, two white grapes that grow well in the areas around Würzburg.

 

Just a few notes from our month.  Hope everyone is having a great summer!