Easter Week

[Update - just added a picture from Easter Sunday at the end of this post.]

A short working week (with Good Friday off) does not necessarily mean a less busy week - instead, one tries to squeeze into four days everything one usually does in five. But it was a good week with plenty of sun, one birthday party and two family gatherings.

On Monday, the 3rd of April, I took my usual trains back from O.K. and arrived home on time. The day was filled working, doing a quick trip to Aldi for my groceries, an equally quick trip to a pâtissier in town to buy hand-made chocolate eggs for my nearest and dearest, and the regular meeting with my volunteer group.

It was below freezing during the night and still very cold on Tuesday (April 4), and I was glad to be working from home where my desk is right next to the heating. After work, I went into town to put up the posters and lay out the flyers I had picked up last week (more about that in a separate post).

The magnolia trees in my street were at their best that day, I think.

As a rule, Wednesdays are my office days now, and this one (the 5th of April) was no exception. My boss was on a high and talking non-stop that day, brimming with ideas, and it was quite overwhelming. I was really exhausted afterwards, and when my sister met me at the train station to put up the rest of our posters, she kindly offered to sit down for a coffee or tea first. We did that, and I recovered a little over a piece of delicious cheese cake and a mug of Earl Grey, but I was hardly able to follow a proper conversation. Still, we put up more posters and handed out the rest of our flyers and were quite satisfied with our efforts.

Thursday (April 6) was "Green Thursday" - that is what the day before Good Friday is called in German. It is tradition in most Swabian households to eat Maultaschen on that day, and our Mum makes them herself every year.

Therefore, I went to her place after work. My sister and I did a few jobs for her and then, together with Mum's friend who lives downstairs in the same house (also a widow) sat down for a delicious meal of home-made Maultaschen and spuds salad.

During my lunch break, I had put up the rest of my posters; it had been a busy day, and I was really glad that I tomorrow was a day off.

Sleeping in was very welcome on Good Friday, the 7th of April. I spent the morning quietly with a few household tasks, computer time and a phone call from O.K. before my sister picked me up at 1:00 pm for a walk to Asperg.

The weather was a mix of sun, rain and sun, and we caught a few drops of rain which did not bother us. It was good to be out and about and my first real walk of that week. 

We dropped in for a snack and a shandy at a beer garden/restaurant on the way home, but because it was rather windy and chilly, we chose to sit indoors instead of the beer garden. We were the only guests inside, and could not help but laugh at the horrible music playing in the background - the kind I call Euro trash and that is all electronic beats and bleeping noises and artificially enhanced voices that sound one just like the other. Still, the rest, food and drink were welcome.

Back home, I spent the rest of the day reading, playing the new computer game O.K. had given me for my birthday (Hogwarts Legacy) and later watching TV.

On Saturday (April 8), I took three trains to O.K.'s and arrived at around 1:00 pm with a delay of half an hour. We prepared some of the food for Sunday before setting off on foot to the next village (about 4 km away), where we were invited to a birthday party. It was a big party at the home of one of O.K.'s friends, with plenty to eat and drink and many people to chat to, and we had a good time. The walk back under the bright moon light (it was only two nights since the full moon) was special, and I enjoyed that part at least as much as the party.

It was our turn to host the festive family lunch on Easter Sunday, the 9th of April. We woke up a little before the alarm we had set, and spent good part of the morning in the kitchen. 

At noon, O.K.'s parents, his sister and her husband arrived. The six of us had a pleasant meal, and after a short walk to the cemetery (it was the anniversary of O.K.'s middle sister's death), enjoyed the cream cheese layer cake O.K. had made. It tasted as great as it looked!

When our guests left, we cleared the kitchen and put things back to normal in the living/dining room before going for a walk around the village in the beautiful evening light. The sights and sounds of spring were all around.

Easter Sunday, just before 7:00 pm

Surprisingly, even after the sumptuous lunch and coffee we'd had, by late evening I was hungry again. A few pieces of cheese and a slice of bread were enough, and we drank the rest of the wine from lunch with that, watching some silly TV (Reese Witherspoon's "rom com" phase) - just what we wanted.