Montreux was so peaceful and gorgeous river walk that appears to go all the way around Lake Geneva which is lined with beautiful little towns. Chris was busy for 2 and a half days at the ESOMAR conference Hotel La Rovenaz was sweet but breakfast was just corn flakes and white bread!
After Montreux we went to Heidleburg for one night and on the way we toured the Nestles chocolate factory and got free samples. They had the most adorable film, made in 1950. I loved it and especially the music in it. In Heidleburg there was a concert being televized in front of a fancy building in a town square. The men were all dressed in nice suits and the ladies all in pastel colored gowns. It was a variety show with fun German music that reminded me of the Lawrence Welk show. The hotel we were in was Ibus. Tiny room and smelled of stale cigarettes and mildew. It was very noisy.
Saturday we went to the Radke's in Pirna by Dresden. These are friends we met in spring of '08 in Prince Edward Island and they have kept in touch with us. When we told them we were going to be in the area and wanted to stop and say hi, they insisted we stay with them. They took us around Dresden and treated us to dinner.
Sunday we took them to church and found it was stake conference (always happens). Sadly, the mission pres talked about missionary work and welcoming visitors. So much better would it have been to talk about the Christ and His gospel, eternal families and the plan of salvation. Such joy in knowing who we are, where we came from and where we're going etc. Also, here they were in blue jeans and Kathrin wearing a cross and not one person greeted them or us, not even a set of elder sitting in front of us. We were just one of the multitude, unnoticed.
After church we took a boat ride down the Elba River, passing beautiful villages and impressive rock formations. We ate at a castle (salad, fried potatoes and schnitzel for Chris). Ferried back across the river, caught a train back to Pirna and said our thank you's and goodbyes/ Radke's were perfect hosts. She served us toast, fruit salad, juice & herb tea for breakfast. They have a darling cat named Felizitas (Faylee for short). We left them with a small gift of a puzzle of Washington lighthouse, Rainier and ferry, Oct. Liahona on temples including the Friberg temple near them and a thank you card.
Next night was in Quedlinburg and we stayed at the Ring hotel Schlossmuhle. It was very castle like outside. Loved the town and I took too many photos. They town was blessed to be untouched by WW11 and has so many tudor homes. I could have stayed there longer. We wandered up to Gosler enjoying beautiful ancient cities in the Hartz mountains. Witches and broomsticks are popular because of beliefs that witches used to live at the tops of these mountains.
Up next Hamlin, home of the Pied Piper, known as the rat catcher here. Delightful place and you can buy rats in all forms - toys, chocolate, bread or marshmallows etc.
We thought about back tracking to see Wernigerode, a favorite of locals but we moved on to Luxemborg. Very small, charming town on a river with a gorgeous castle on the hill where we did a self tour. As we ate, overlooking the river, two beautiful swans gracefully beautified the scene with the castle beyone.
Thurs and Fri nights we were in Brugge Belgium with shops filled with lace and chocolate. We toured churches and museums and toured a chocolate factory. We had a Belgium waffle for lunch - so good! It tasted more like a yeast dough or doughnut than pancake.
Our last night we spent in Koblenz to be close to the airport in Frankfurt. They have an amazing history monument where history swirls round in a carved marvel. (see photo to save 1,000 words)
Frankfurt airport car return was not good. The car was checked in by crooks who said "Oh there's good news and bad new. Bad news is you scratched the car. Good news is you paid with visa and it will pay for it. I asked them to show me the scratch which they couldn't do. They said they only can see it because they've been trained. I took photos and did an all out battle on this bit VISA insurance just paid the $1,000 saying it's too hard to pursue it.
