Coming Back to Colmar

Just a week after our trip to Italy, we were happy to host more friends in Wiesbaden.  Our neighbors in Brookings, Dan and Kelly Beinhorn, came over for a week towards the end of October.  Pete had a business trip in Switzerland, so we all jumped in the car for a trip to Biel/Bienne.  The city is bilingual - German and French - right on the border between the 2 regions as the two names of the city imply.  While Pete was busy with meetings, the rest of us took a boat tour on Lake Biel.  The autumnal colors were at their height however, I forgot the camera at the hotel (a blonde moment) so no pictures!

After a night in Biel, we headed back towards Wiesbaden by way of the Alsace region of France.  We had been to Colmar about a year ago and loved it.  This was Dan's first trip to Europe so everything was a new experience for him.  And the beer was certainly a hit!  He has a picture of every beer sampled... just a few are in this blog. 

The weather in Colmar was perfect for late October and colors were awesome.  We drove on the Route de Vin that connects 90 miles of vineyards, villages and fortresses.  During this time of year, the whole area is full of color and their is much wine tasting.  Colmar is one of those cities that is well-preserved and fortunately is not deluged with tourists.  The American and British military were careful not to bomb the half-timbered houses and cobblestone streets.  So, scenes like the one above are around every corner.  Colmar is known for it's favorite son - Fredric Bartholdi - the designer of the Statue of Liberty!  Many mini statues are all over town.  And Pete thinks his relatives originate from this region - or so he's been told.

Wine shops, antique shops, and Alsatian food are everywhere.  Tarte Flambe is similar to the German version called Flammkuchen - a very thin, crispy crust with creme fraische topped with bacon, cheese and sometimes potatoes.  It's one of my all time favorites.

Just north of Colmar are little towns bordering the vineyards.  One we visited was Riquewihr where we entered a wine cave and sampled the region's white wine - Pinot Blanc.  We came back to Wiesbaden via the Black Forest and enjoyed more great meals in our home away from home. 

Thanks for coming to visit us, Dan and Kelly !! 

Kelly and Dan in front of an Alsatian half-timbered house in Colmar.

One of many a bier stub where we sampled...

...bier al fresco!

The local church in Colmar with beautiful October colors.

One of many cozy restaurants in Colmar.

A Blonde Beer for my blonde moment.

A special Autumn blend!

Our crew just before moving on to Riquewihr.

Vineyards along the route de vin.

The beautiful road leading into Riquewihr.

The main street in Riquewihr where our wine cave was located.

Typical hanging signs and a view towards the surrounding vineyards.

A classic scene in the Alsace region of France.

Back home in Wiesbaden in the Marktplatz near sundown.
Tschus!

Truly Tuscany

In mid-October, our friends the Foreman's arrived from Colorado to Wiesbaden.  They had never been to Italy, so we set out for the town of Siena in the heart of Tuscany.  We flew into Bologna with our favorite ghetto discount airline, Ryanair.  (I have figured out the system for getting good seats with no baggage fees - quite a feat for this airline!)  After staying the night in Bologna, we drove towards Siena and saw this vista above of the hilltown of Monteriggioni.  This tiny walled town is no more than a few football fields wide.  But its a great way to start a journey into Tuscany and get amazing views of the countryside.

All throughout this region there are hilltowns like this, fortified against intruders from the Etruscan and Roman period of history.  Many of these towns date back to the 1st Century. Siena is practically unchanged since medieval times.  It's about 40 miles south of Florence, much smaller and easier to explore on foot. The heart of the city is the Piazza del Campo, where the bricks are patterned into nine different sections representing the medieval Government of Nine.  There's also a famous horse race, The Palio, that runs around this Piazza each year.  Each horse represents one of the 17 neighborhoods.  It's run since 1310!  Jockeys ride bareback and underhandedness is common - like drugging the horse and kidnapping the jockeys! 

Of course, there is fabulous food and endless shopping shopping shopping! Leather purses, boots, and shoes are everywhere.  We could only bring so much back, because we brought an extra bag for take-homes.  We all stuffed our one bag limit, then split up the goods into our one extra spare bag (we succumbed to paying the extra baggage fee of 60Euro....bummer.  Thats half a pair of boots right there!)

After a day in Siena, we traveled the countryside to Montepulciano and Montalcino, home of the famous Brunello di Montalcino wine.  Montepulciano is also a hilltown surrounded by cypress trees. Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, a robust red wine, is the town's claim to fame.  This area is south of the Chianti region.  Once again, great food, wine tasting, and shopping is everywhere.  And we did it all !

Montalcino is proud of their wine and the price tag proves it.  The area is covered by vineyards growing the Sangiovese Grosso grapes used in the Brunello wines.  We hiked up to the 14th century fortezza (fort) for some Brunello wine tasting by the glass. After some great tasting, the Foreman's decided to ship some of their favorite vintages back home.  We can only hope they will share with us when we visit them in Boulder (haha).

The next day we spent back in Siena on foot.  We visited St. Catherine of Siena memorial who was instrumental in convincing the French pope to relinquish his papacy to Rome.  And the highlight of Siena was the Duomo which holds sculptures by Michelangelo and Bernini.

On our way back to Bologna, we stopped in one of my favorite hilltowns - San Gimignano.  It's called "Medieval Manhattan" because of all the towers.  At one time there were over 70 towers erected by each family to be used as safe refuge from enemies and partly to bolster egos of each family.  "My tower's bigger than yours!"  Only 15 towers remain.  After the black death of 1348, Florence took over as rulers.  Today San Gimignano is mostly tourist trade and it's known for its hand-painted pottery (because I have 2 lemon pieces).

Our group at the arch leading out of the city of Monteriggioni.

Small shops like this one make up the ambience of Monteriggioni.

A view from high above the Duomo of Siena.

The Piazza del Campo looking towards the government offices and the Torre del Mangia, the famous bell tower of Siena.

Another view of the Piazza with the nine brick sections.  Believe it or not, the Palio race is run around this piazza which is filled with people.

The entrance of the Duomo in Siena.

One of the original Bernini sculptures nearly hidden in a small chapel inside the Duomo.

This sculpture of St. Paul is an original of Michelangelo.

A view from the castle overlooking Siena.  The castle was not impressive but Gary made us go.

Me under an archway of Bougainvillea...OMG!



One of the many narrow streets of Siena. Note the tables on a stairsteps.



A view of Montepulciano on a distant hilltop.

Great photo of Gary and Michelle in Montepulciano.

This was the view from our restaurant in Montepulciano.

The towers of San Gimignano.

Some girls just want to have fun and we did!

A steep walkway up to the center of San Gimignano.

Michelle and me shopping in San Gimignano.

A view from the hilltop town of Montalcino.

Our wine tasting adventure for the fabled Brunello di Montalcino.

Sweet dreams, Siena.  Ciao!

THE Oktoberfest

The gang of expats starting their epic trip to Munich from Frankfurt.

First stop Hofbrauhaus!  Girls rule...

...Boys drool.

The gang outside the one and only Hofbrauhaus in Munich.

As we enter the hallowed grounds of Oktoberfest, we are greeted by Dirndl'd Frauleins.

Our guide for the day, Tobias, was a true Bavarian from Munich.  He claimed his lederhosen was authentic since he got it from his grandfather.  All the rest, he soon pointed out, were fakes.

These so-called "Beer Tents" are enormous wooden barns that take months to erect each year.  Only 7 local Munich breweries are allowed to have a tent.

The Spaten tent cooks up an ox every day of the 2-week long fest.

In just 2 weeks time, 1,183,000 gallons of beer is consumed here!

The famous Lowenbrau lion watches over his tent with a liter mug.

We all took a ride on the famous ferris wheel... BEFORE we started partaking in beer and chicken.

View from atop the ferris wheel.

Fellow Festivarians - Laura, Ed, Tim, Agnes in our 8-seater compartment. 

And Pete, Mary, Sue and Chris on the other side.

Laura shows off her traditional Bavarian Dirndl.

Our destination of course is the famous Hofbrau Oktoberfest Tent.  The wreaths and hanging vines are made of hops.



Our jam-packed table at the Hofbrau tent.  Our fearless leader Tobias in front.



The infamous waitresses who manage to carry up to 12 one-liter mugs at a time.

Our waitress arrives with yet more beer and pretzels.  Toby told us that pretzels get their shape from the way monks prayed - crossing their arms over their heart.

The place was packed - you can see the oompapa band in the left corner.  Mary wanted to get on stage to yodel but was rejected - no dirndl.

Tim bought roses for the women from this lovely flower girl and was admiring her tattoo.

"I think we have the hang of this Oktoberfest thing, Pete"

Mary explains how to drink beer appropriately...

...and then demonstrates this to the entire tent to rousing applause.

Tim found even more fun with this full Frau.

Laura found Waldo at the Pschorr tent outside...

...and Chris found Sue...

The last (and one too many) beers at the Augustiner tent favored by the locals.

From the Marienplatz, we will re-think next year's visit.
Tschus!!