Travel blog
Surprise, surprise. Nobody is sitting on my balcony. Did you notice the glass of wine as well…?
The evening light has been so magnificent lately in Germany, turning the usual grey wall into hues of terracotta, and reminding me again why life is pretty good in Germany.
I won’t be alone on the balcony for long. So I enjoy the solitude while I can. Just kidding – I love both, having friends over and time for myself.
My beer balcony had not been visited for a while. As a matter of fact, the last time I had a friend sitting here was over a month ago.
Imagine my surprise when I stepped on the balcony earlier this week and found this little friend who must have just flown in. Literally, as it left a few marks on the window glass, and landed on my chair. I almost sat down on it at 7:30am. I was still without coffee.
No worries. I did not offer my guest any beer. It was early morning anyway.
The sparrow (German: der Spatz) would not have opened its beak for anything. It would not even let go of its loot (a hairball) despite its trembling.
It flew away after some decent rest.
Spring has come! Actually it has been here for a while, since my hyacinths and daffodils started sprouting in early February and now they are just about to bloom. What a mild winter we’ve had.
My longtime friend Udo contacted me since he was passing through the Frankfurt area and we arranged for a little get-together this past Sunday, which included the notorious “Why don’t you sit on the balcony with me for a photo?” Needless to say, this little tick of mine has attracted quite a few visitors.
I made Krautspudel (a very Franconian dish) for dinner, we caught up with the past few years in which we had little contact, and rekindled our friendship.
with Udo, originally from the Harz region in Germany
Having friends is so important (next to good health, such as sitting on the balcony in fairly cool weather…). This one’s for you, Udo.
“Happiness consists in frequent repetition of pleasure”
– Arthur Schopenhauer –
On Christmas Day, while having a full house with five family visitors here from France and the U.S.A., the door bell rang at about 1:30.
My husband and I just looked at each other and wondered who this could be. Surprise – one of my former students had come with his newly wed wife from Singapore! They had gotten to the end of their European vacation, reserved a room at the Hotel Waldlust in Oberursel, and decided to visit Frau Shipley (as I’m still being called by him since 6th grade).
Jon, my former student, has done this kind of surprise visit before. Once when he lived in London, and another time when he lived in Canada, he stopped by here on a surprise visit.
Oh my, it is wonderful to keep in touch with one’s students over such a long time. This is only feasible through the internet though. These expat kids live and work around the world, not often in the same place for more than a few years. Who’d be able to keep in contact if not through e-mail, Facebook, and the like.
Mariann and Jonathan from Singapore
The beer was just a prop though. None of us felt like having one in the afternoon. But I served them some typical German mulled wine later.
This beer balcony visit has probably been the last one for this season. The weather was very mild at 19°C yesterday. After our initial beer on the balcony, we went to the local pizzeria and we were even glad to have the pizzeria’s door remain open!
Andrea and I have known each other for almost 30 years. My my my, we do go back a long time. Even though they live around the area, we get to see each other only a few times a year.
Cheers to the next 30 years of our friendship!
with Andrea and Uwe Sachs, originally from northern Bavaria, now in the Frankfurt area
My name is Maria Shipley. I live in Oberursel, Germany with my husband, son and daughter. I … Read more
Diese Webseite verwendet Cookies. Wenn Sie auf der Seite weitersurfen, stimmen Sie der Cookie-Nutzung zu. Mehr Informationen
Diese Webseite verwendet so genannte Cookies. Sie dienen dazu, unser Angebot nutzerfreundlicher, effektiver und sicherer zu machen. Cookies sind kleine Textdateien, die auf Ihrem Rechner abgelegt werden und die Ihr Browser speichert. Die meisten der von uns verwendeten Cookies sind so genannte "Session-Cookies". Sie werden nach Ende Ihres Besuchs automatisch gelöscht. Cookies richten auf Ihrem Rechner keinen Schaden an und enthalten keine Viren. Weitere Informationen finden Sie auf der Seite “Datenschutzerklärung”.