I must apologise about the lack of photos.  I spent hours trying but have not been able to upload them.  I am blaming the Internet connections I have.  Being over here really makes you appreciate what we have at home.

Monday is a relaxing day and we don’t go too far from home.  A wander around the outside of the Lauffen Castle and then some time at the park with Luis, climbing on things, kicking a football and lazing on the comfortable lounge seats reading filled out the afternoon.  Rudi was working today as it was the last night for the Restaurant which was closing for a two week break but he had still managed to prepare us a big meal.  It seems quite common for things to close down here at this time of year for company holidays.  We had planned to tour the Audi factory which is just down the road but found it was closed.

Tuesday and we are off to the Black Forrest. Rudi, Sabrina, Jens, Margaret and I in the VW Tiguan. It is a long drive as we keep away from the Autobahn taking the scenic route.  A bit of fun as the GPS kept wanting us to go on the Autobahn.  We stopped at Freudenstadt for refreshments.  Half the kids in the town were playing in this fountain which was the size of a small football field with jets of water all over it.  The water played to its own tune but kids and some adults had a lot of fun redirecting or stopping the jets.  Great substitute for a town swimming pool.

We carry on driving down the valley on narrow windy roads heading for Vogtsbauernhof, a Black Forrest open air museum.  We have a picnic that Rudi had prepared under the trees before heading in.  It gave a real feel for the Forrest people and the hardships they endured.  I wonder if in a coule of hundred years time people will wonder about the hardships we endure.  It had real examples of their life with houses they shared with their animals, the saw mills, the wheat and hemp grinding,  the store rooms and much more. Resin extraction, glass and tile making, the floating of logs down the rivers, cuckoo clocks.  It was a very interesting several hours and nearly 6 o’clock before we came out.

Our trip home was via mountain roads  over a couple of ranges.  We stopped for dinner in Mummelsee on top of one of the ranges which was a very scenic spot with its own lake.  After dinner we coasted down to Baden Baden as we drove out in the dark we could see Strasbourg across the border in France.  At Baden Baden we hopped on the Autobahn and headed home arriving around 11:30, a very enjoyable day and a big day of driving for Sabrina.