Friday, 5 May

After a good night’s sleep, Dolora and I walked over to the supermarket bakery to pick up some breads. Nicole and Frank arrived about 8:30 for a leisurely breakfast of breads, cheeses, jellies and jams. The fresh breads are so much tastier in Germany.

Today promised to be another beautiful day for a hike. We headed to nearby Ronsberg to see the butterflies. The butterflies did not sit still enough for any photos but several species were out among the wild flowers. Our favorite was a small white one with orange tips on it’s wings. There was a working water wheel. Not sure if it was generating electricity or just for show. The five mile loop included a small animal pen with a miniature horse, some goats and various fowl. The horse and goats enjoyed the grass dropped in by Dolora and Nicole. We all enjoyed a little play on the child’s outside exercise equipment.

From there it was down into town and a stop in an outdoor shop. All escaped with no purchases. Lunch was at the Croatia Grill. Salads for the ladies and cheeseburgers for the guys. After lunch it was up the hill past a ski lift to a site called Teufelsküche (Devil’s Kitchen). There were huge conglomerate boulders several times the size of a house, amazing geology, The rest of the trek was downhill to the car.

After a quick stop at the grocery store we all returned to Nicole’s apartment to enjoy a late afternoon coffee. Nicole, Frank, Dolora and I enjoyed our early dinner. A local beer was the beverage of choice, a beer that is not available to me back home. After setting some plans for the morning, Frank and Nicole headed back to his apartment for the night. Dolora and I took the time to relax a bit and enjoy the thunderstorm that rolled in about 7:30. Great timing so far on the weather for this visit.