Onion Festival

I missed the Onion Festival I'm Bern this year because it was just too
cold and wet. Nancy at the AWC brought me back an onion wreath (which
is why people go). This is a picture of it. Very old tradition...

Going Mobile

I am testing out the mobile postng system. There is supposed to be a
picture of me with trees behind. I hope this works!

ok. Our computer is sick so I'm doing this from my phone. Sorry, no pictures.
Things are going well. We will offically be moved-in November 1. We will have a matress, 2 chairs, and some empty book-shelves as well as some borrowed household items. Camping is what I'm calling it.
Ciao!

New Apartment

Views of the Outside of the Building:

View from Dining to Living_________View from Living to Dining

Kitchen __________________ Bedroom

The completely renovated 4.5-room apartment, with the original plan, is located on the 1st over floor. New kitchen fitted with Miele appliances (dish washer, washing machine + tumble, Glaskeramikherd). Shared use of the swimming pool (Annual discount for tenants).

Somebody Loves Me!!!!

Today I received a package in the mail from my parents! YAY!!! Warm clothes, Chocolate chips (A BIG BAG), Ziploc bags, Crisco, German Language software, forwarded Mail, and Candy Corn! WOO HOO!!!
Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

I immediately made Chocolate Chip Cookies
I wrapped a few in Sahran and took them to the American Women's Club lunch. When everyone declared how delicious they taste, I was excited to announce that they were made with Crisco and Nestle Toll House Morsels sent from my family. Of course with all of the chocolate available here, it seemed rediculous to them that I would ask for chocolate from the U.S. But it makes perfect sense to me! They are the perfect shape, size, texture, flavor... everything... for making Chocolate Chip Cookies. As I settle-in more I'm sure I will experiment with chopping up a chocolate bar or using vegetable shortning available here. But for now, success is mine... and victory is SWEET!!!!

Day in the Black Forest

Today I went on a day trip to the Black Forest in Germany with a group of women from the Basel American Women's Club. All of the other ladies on the trip have lived in Basel for over 20 years and I have been here for only 6 weeks. They are full of stories, encouragement, and advise.
Glasbläserhof Todtnau im Schwarzwald
Our first stop was to a Glass-Blowing demonstration in Todtnau-Aftersteg. There is a traditional glass-blowing demonstration, a small shop, and a restaurant. This is all situated in an old Black Forest House which is more than 200 years old.

We watched the demonstrations, browsed the shop, then had lunch in the restaurant... the full experience really. If you are interested in Glass blowing in its traditional sense as well as the history, science, and modern industry I strongly encourage you to go to the Corning Museum of Glass.

Todtnau
After lunch, we drove to Todtnau to look at their lovely down-town. It is nestled in the hills of the Black Forest. This is where the Gummy Bears live :-) How cool is that?

View down a side street.















I think this is a church.



















In the summer you can take the ski lift up the mountain and ride the roller-coaster down the hill. I want to came back with Mike and try it out. Looks a little hairy!

Food Issues

You could say I've had a few food related issues lately... Let me tell you a few quick stories before I loose the internet connection AGAIN and throw the computer out the window :0)

Cindy's Diner
Cindy's Diner is a 1950's American Style diner with your typical Burgers, Fries, Coke (Curry Chicken Sandwich). Anyway, I was being cranky, so Mike took me for some comfort food. Uh, no. You can see that I was so excited that I paused to take a photo of the food, but I was in for a suprise... Gomer Pyle style "Sur-prise, sur-prise, sur-prise!" Mind you, the food isn't bad, it's just different. The meat had been seasoned to taste like a very strong "wurst" and I was only able to get through about 3/4 of it. We gobbled up all of the fries and they didn't even charge us extra for the Ketschup!

Apple "Pie"
This might look like an Apple Pie, but trust me, thats about as far as it goes. The filling turned out like apple sauce. Apparently I need to work on the German word for "crisp" so that I can more accurately describe what I'm looking for at the market. There is also a difference between American style vanilla extract (as called for in the recipe) and European style vanilla-bourbon... and I stubbed my toe with the salt. I also need to skip refrigerated dough section at the grocery. Torte crust seems to be tougher than pie crust. The next one will be MUCH better!

Schoggiweggli
My friends, this make all food issues a NON-issue. Mike and I saw a toddler walking down the street yesterday trying to cram the whole thing in her mouth at the same time... and it was a big as her face! Her eyes were sort of glazed over and she had no idea what was going on past the sweet roll. Of course she had a chocolate grin that stretched from ear-to-ear! This makes everything O.K.!!!!! If you want to know how to make them, follow this link.
http://rhid-baked.blogspot.com/2008/04/chocolate-studded-swiss-sweet-buns-from.html
The photo is from my favorite Schoggiweggli stop, Sutter Bakery http://www.sutterbegg.com/.