A little taste of Germany a couple of Hours from Home

Having lived in Germany when I was young. I have dreamed of going back again. My wife and I visited Germany around 2000. It difficult for us to get back there these days, but we have a local spot we visit from time to time that reacquaints us with some of the German foods and traditions.

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This is downtown Leavenworth near the Cascade Mountains in Eastern Washington. The town has been built to look like a small German town. When we visit we also like to go to a u-pick farm near Wenatchee They have several varieties of Asian fruit, pears, grapes, apricots, peaches, etc. Not all at one time of course. We like to pick a box or two to take home.

cp
 
Having lived in Germany when I was young. I have dreamed of going back again. My wife and I visited Germany around 2000. It difficult for us to get back there these days, but we have a local spot we visit from time to time that reacquaints us with some of the German foods and traditions.

Leavenworth_Washington.jpg


This is downtown Leavenworth near the Cascade Mountains in Eastern Washington. The town has been built to look like a small German town. When we visit we also like to go to a u-pick farm near Wenatchee They have several varieties of Asian fruit, pears, grapes, apricots, peaches, etc. Not all at one time of course. We like to pick a box or two to take home.

cp
I lived in Germany for almost 15 years. In fact, two of my kids were born there. I lived in Heidelberg, Mannheim, Ansbach, Stuttgart, and Nurnberg. Have not been back since 1995.

Here in Miami, FL, there use to be one German restaurant that looked authentic. It closed down a while ago and we have not found anything close enough to want to go.

rtm
 
I lived in Germany for almost 15 years. In fact, two of my kids were born there. I lived in Heidelberg, Mannheim, Ansbach, Stuttgart, and Nurnberg. Have not been back since 1995.

Here in Miami, FL, there use to be one German restaurant that looked authentic. It closed down a while ago and we have not found anything close enough to want to go.

rtm

I was very young when I lived in Germany though I did go to school there. Age 3 - 6. I still have a few memories of that time though mostly snap shots. We lived in a small town called Heitersheim

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heitersheim_roemerkeller-heitersheim.jpg


A view from a balloon of Heitersheim

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Here in Miami, FL, there use to be one German restaurant that looked authentic. It closed down a while ago and we have not found anything close enough to want to go.

rtm

We have a couple of German restaurants nearby, but they are not authentic at all. There used to be one almost 25 miles north of us that was close to authentic, but I believed they are closed now.

cp
 
Are there any good books about Germany that you would recommend.
I read a Time-Life book about Germany and it was written when it was still divided into East and West. I found it quite interesting.

One of my favourite books was made into a movie which was filmed in Germany in Munich. Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory!
I always picture Germany was like those old fairy tales with lots of woods in them - Hansel and Gretel, Goldilocks and the 3 Bears, Little Red Riding Hood.

So kind of an interesting mixture of village rusticness and industrial engineering.
Of course, if I were to go one day I would check out the Frankfurt Book Fair.
 
Are there any good books about Germany that you would recommend.
I read a Time-Life book about Germany and it was written when it was still divided into East and West. I found it quite interesting.

One of my favourite books was made into a movie which was filmed in Germany in Munich. Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory!
I always picture Germany was like those old fairy tales with lots of woods in them - Hansel and Gretel, Goldilocks and the 3 Bears, Little Red Riding Hood.

So kind of an interesting mixture of village rusticness and industrial engineering.
Of course, if I were to go one day I would check out the Frankfurt Book Fair.

I haven't checked out books on Germany in quite some time, so I don't have any current recommendations.

I didn't realize that the movie "Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" was filmed in Germany. That's interesting to know. This was a movie that I watched many times as a kid.

Germany is a real mix of old and modern. I loved visiting Berlin, Munich, Koln and remember driving through a Bavarian mountainous area running into a blinding snow storm.
 
I lived in Germany for almost 15 years. In fact, two of my kids were born there. I lived in Heidelberg, Mannheim, Ansbach, Stuttgart, and Nurnberg. Have not been back since 1995.

Here in Miami, FL, there use to be one German restaurant that looked authentic. It closed down a while ago and we have not found anything close enough to want to go.

rtm

Are there any good books about Germany that you would recommend.
I read a Time-Life book about Germany and it was written when it was still divided into East and West. I found it quite interesting.

One of my favourite books was made into a movie which was filmed in Germany in Munich. Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory!
I always picture Germany was like those old fairy tales with lots of woods in them - Hansel and Gretel, Goldilocks and the 3 Bears, Little Red Riding Hood.

So kind of an interesting mixture of village rusticness and industrial engineering.
Of course, if I were to go one day I would check out the Frankfurt Book Fair.

We were stationed at Rhein Main Air Force Base, close to Frankfurt when I was a young boy. My brother was born in Wiesbaden.

The photos remind me of the cities that surrounded the base.
 
We were stationed at Rhein Main Air Force Base, close to Frankfurt when I was a young boy. My brother was born in Wiesbaden.

The photos remind me of the cities that surrounded the base.
I was in Germany during the most interesting of times; 1980 - 1995. I was there when the wall came down and was on the security team when the US turned over control of Berlin back to Germany. I was also here when terrorists attached the NATO Commander in Heidelberg and US Forces were basically the targets of numerous terrorist attacks throughout the country. It was routine that, before getting in your car in the morning, you had to inspect it to make sure no one placed a IEA in the underneath.
 
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You'll have to tell us about it. I don't remember "money trucks." Is it something you can see anywhere in August or is this event held in a specific city?

cp
Actually, I hit the wrong key. I mean to type "Honey Truck." German's fertilize their fields with the real stuff. With the August heat, that odor can make a grown man cry. These trucks move at about 1 mile a week, so, if you are stuck behind one, it's an experience you will never forget and one that requires several showers to rid yourself of.

I'm a city boy, so not something I was ever exposed to.

Rtm
 
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Actually, I hit the wrong key. I mean to type "Honey Truck." German's fertilize their fields with the real stuff. With the August heat, that odor can make a grown man cry. These trucks move at about 1 mile a week, so, if you are stuck behind one, it's an experience you will never forget and one that requires several showers to rid yourself of.

I'm a city buy, so not something I was ever exposed to.

Rtm

For us country boys were use to it. I just bought a truck load of cow manure. :)

cp
 
I was stationed there from 2003 to 2007 (although deployed from there in '05-'06 to Afghanistan). I was stationed at Coleman Barracks in Mannheim (Saarbrucken to be exact). I ran missions from there to Frankfurt and all over Germany and Belgium. I wasn't mature enough to enjoy it for all the splendor but I did some tourist stuff in Heidelberg, Paris, and Luxembourg. I went to Patton's grave, Heidelberg castle, Le Louvre, Eiffel Tower, etc. I wish I had done more sight seeing.
 
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