Saturday, August 24, 2013

The Black Forest Region (Germany)

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After our trip to the US ended, we flew right to Germany to visit my parents and do some sight-seeing in the Black Forest.  We spent four days in the Black Forest in a charming little vacation home.  We went on a boat ride (above), saw a famous Black Forest House (below).  

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Across the street from our vacation home was this charming little chapel.  We arrived on a Sunday and the bells were beautiful.  

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We took a train to the nearest big city (Freiburg) and walked around for a while.  We came upon a beautiful market by the cathedral where they were selling fruits, veggies, olives, spices, beans, meats, cheeses, mushrooms, and even pickles!  We had to stop and buy some berries, and then we went back and got some more because the kids ate them up in less than 5 minutes.  (Fresh berries are not very abundant on our tiny island!  I think that's my son's hand in the pic, gesturing about how much he wants the blackberries.)
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We took a cable car up to one of the highest points in the Black Forest and hiked around the top for a while.  It was pretty cold on the top, but beautiful purple flowers and wild blueberries were growing!  
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We stopped at a quaint little town on our way home from that and saw these guys marching and signing through the town.  It was quite a sight.  I was only able to snap this pic from the car.
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A sobering sight in the city of Freiburg were these metal squares in the sidewalks, pictured below, called Stumbling Stones.  These squares are situated outside of apartment buildings and they contain the names of Jews who were forcibly removed from these apartments during WWII.  If you click on the photo, you can see a larger view.  Their names are pictured, as well as their date of birth, and the date and location of deportation.  The name on the left, Henny, says he was deported to Auschwitz in 1943 and also assassinated that same year.  The name on the right, Rosa Bloch, says she was deported in 1940 but escaped and fled to the USA in 1941!  I would love to know her story.  
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Ending on a happier note, here is a pic of a beautiful waterfall we hiked to (well, it was mostly a flat hike... lol).  This was a beautiful area and was being enjoyed by many.  We always enjoy visiting Germany; it's a beautiful country with so much to offer.
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**This post and photos are property of http://dishingwithdish.blogspot.com/ **

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