Sunday April 20-Saturday April 26
France and Lichtenstein
Week 5 of our trip includes a special guest appearance by Paul’s cousin and my friend Jeanna. The three of us stayed in the charming town of Eguisheim, France this week. In the post about week 4, I mentioned that fans of musical theatre would be interested in this week’s post. Eguisheim is the inspiration for the town in the Disney Classic Beauty and the Beast.
This was Jeanna’s first trip to France, so we revisited some of our favorite spots such as Schoenberg, Colmar, and Kayserbserg. We got 23,000+ steps the day we visited Schoenberg, a new record for the trip. We also had some new experiences. Hohlandsbourg Castle was a new stop for us. From the Castle, you have a fantastic view of the Vosges mountains and all the villages in the surrounding area. The museum is very informative. We visit castles often, but I learn something new with each new castle. (Since I am no longer allowed to pick up sticks to use as swords, I have taken to using the parapets of these castles to make proclamations. These proclamations are generally ignored by Kerrie.)
https://www.chateau-hohlandsbourg.com/accueilEN.html
Claude arranged a very special treat for us. Thursday began with a visit to a textile museum in Husseren-Wesserling. Claude, who knows everyone, arranged to have our tour guided by the museum curator before the museum opened for the day. I was so enthralled by the vibrant fabrics and the design process that I forgot to take photos. We then had lunch at Ferme Auberge du TREH. A meal in the French countryside, high in the Vosges mountains, never disappoints.
Another French Weinzapfel cousin, Jean-Luc, is the president of a hiking club in France. Claude knows how much we enjoy the outdoors and hiking, so he arranged for us to meet Jean-Luc to visit the camping chalet managed by his hiking club. The chalet includes rustic sleeping quarters, a full kitchen and showers for hikers to use as the traverse the gorgeous hiking trails in the area. (There are miles of trails through the mountains. They take you from village to village while passing WW1 trenches, dark forests and beautiful mountain views of the valleys below.) For any fellow backpackers out there, you know how precious a shower is after days on the trail We got to ride to the chalet in Jean Luc’s vintage Land Rover Defender 110.
Funny story…There was another man from the camping club there passing out egg cartons filled with eggs. The week before, his wife sent him to the store to get eggs. She said we need 24 packages. So, as any good husband would do, he brought back 24 dozen eggs. She meant 24 chocolate eggs for Easter for the kids and grandkids. Too funny!!
I got a wild hair and decided the three of us needed to head to the country of Liechtenstein. ( It’s fun to say if you use the same accent Sgt. Schultz used in “Hogan’s Heros”! Jeanna and Kerrie may disagree.) Liechtenstein is bordered by Switzerland to the south and the west and Austria on the north and the east. It is only about 62 square miles and is the 6th smallest country in the world. We visited the capital, Vaduz and Vaduz Castle.
Vaduz Castle
And that ends another fantastic week. Thanks to Jeanna for joining us. It was absolutely wonderful to share this time and place with someone we love and to get a hug from someone from home.
New To Do’s
- Hohlandsbourg Castle
- Liechtenstein, another new country for me
My52ToDo.com 