Golden October Week

Last week was pretty much the way one imagines a "Golden October". We had sunshine most days, and I managed not only to get in a few good walks after work (or sometimes before finishing work for the day, just to make sure to catch some daylight), I also very happily repeated a favourite hike where I'd not been this time of year before.

Monday (28 October) was beautiful with mellow golden light. I interrupted my morning of working from home by a visit to one of the installations in the Stuttgart area run by the US military. A friend of mine is a retired member of the US Army, and he is allowed to bring the occasional visitor, of course except for the restricted areas. But we are allowed to visit the shops, food malls etc., and generally have a look around.

The drive alone was worth taking time out of work! I didn't take pictures from the driving car, or at the installation, but Stuttgart has surprisingly much woodland around it and in between some of its more or less separate districts.

My friend gave me a quick drive-by tour of the installation, showing me the housing area, gym, bowling place and others. It reminded me a lot of what Pattonville used to look like, the all-American town just outside Ludwigsburg that has changed almost beyond recognition since the 1990s, when the vast majority of US military left this area (I wrote about Pattonville here).

We then looked around the shops, and my friend bought the few items he had come for and can not find in German supermarkets. I was back at my desk just before lunch time.

After work, I decided on a walk to Benningen, wrongly assuming that sunset was going to be at around 5:30 pm - only when I was more than halfway there, I realised that the weather app on my phone said 5:08 pm. Still, I had enough daylight left on the fields to safely reach Benningen, from where I took the usual local train back to Ludwigsburg. It was completely dark by the time I was home.

On Tuesday (29 October) I tried to complete one of the errands that had not worked out last Saturday, and was again unsuccessful (the shop being closed in spite of the opening times being stated on their website). I was a bit miffed because of that and cheered myself up by walking back home in a VERY roundabout way, turning it into a 2-hour-walk which greatly improved my mood.

There is nothing really to report on Wednesday (30 October); I went to work at the office and spent a quiet evening at home. No walk, since I had a lot to do and only took a short lunch break, and the sun was setting as I left the building.

I do not "do" Halloween, but Thursday (31 October) was still a day to remember: My late husband would have turned 56 that day. I worked from home and had a friend coming over for our lunch break; we exchange books every now and then. We had a bite to eat together and enjoyed the catching up.

After work, I tried my errand for the third time - this time, I had rung beforehand to ask if they were open, and therefore I finally completed this self-set task. Being in task completing mode, I finished another one before walking home via the ruins of the horse stables I have showed you before, for instance here.

Coming up towards the ruins of the old stable block

View through the gate; the offical path leads right through the ruins.

It was a quiet walk back, and the evening was almost as quiet, with the doorbell being rung by trick or treaters only once. I wasn't prepared for them, since usually nobody comes round the building to my front door which is not visible from the street, and therefore I didn't go downstairs.

Friday (1st of November) was a holiday here in Germany, All Saints. I did everything at a more leisurely pace than usual on a Friday, not having to work, and finished my weekly cleaning well before I left for the station.

November sun in my living room

O.K. and I had agreed that it made sense for me to take an earlier connection than on a usual working Friday, and I arrived in Offenburg 2 1/2 hours before my regular time. It was dark when we reached O.K.'s cottage, making it feel a lot later than it actually was. We enjoyed our customary salad, bread, cheese & wine meal to mark the start of the weekend.

We had to set the alarm for Saturday (2nd of November), because we were going on a day out by bus with the village band. They try to have a day out every year, and I was able to come along once or twice. This time, a visit to a popular brewery in the High Black Forest had been booked for us, complete with a tour of the brewery and lunch.

It's always nice to start the day with coffee and home-made cookies from O.K.'s Mum - this time of year, she usually makes these goose-shaped ones as well as hearts.

Just as our bus was reaching the road leading into the Black Forest, the sun came out, making for a beautiful ride. Up where the brewery is (Rothaus, as seen on my blog before, such as here), everything was under a solid grey lid, and fog was drifting about - never mind, we were going to be indoors anyway.

Lunch was first; it was good but not exactly brilliant. I must say I enjoyed the food more when O.K. and I visited the place on our own when we stayed in the area for holidays. A tour of the brewery followed. Our guide was a feisty lady who obviously knew her stuff. The brewery was closed for the weekend, but we still got an impression of how much must be going on there on working days.

Main building of Rothaus brewery

Guess where this vivid wallpaper, picking up the traditional Black Forest "cuckoo clock" theme, is!

In the ladies' :-D

Note the fog in the background.

The restaurant is one of the oldest buildings on the brewery's site.

Inside the brewery. Of course, we were behind a window.

The tour ends at a beer bar. This wall shows most, but not all, of their range of beers.

The ride back home was in darkness after the first half hour or so. We arrived in the village at 7:00 pm, having the evening to ourselves (which was quite welcome after having been with a group of almost 30 people all day).

My highlight of the entire week was Sunday (3rd of November) - but just like last week, I will describe that in a separate post.

Sunday in the Park(s)

This is the continuation of my previous post, which ended with last Saturday.

As we had already seen on Saturday how terribly busy the palace grounds were, O.K. and I decided to go somewhere else on the Sunday (27 October).

A local train took us into Stuttgart, and another few stops by tram to Höhenpark Killesberg. Killesberg is a part of Stuttgart, and its name has nothing to do with killing - it is most likely derived from the Ancient celtic word "Külle", which meant mount or promontory. It is indeed mainly located on a mount (the "berg" part in the name indicates that), and best known for its extensive and beautiful park.

Getting off the tram and arriving at the top end of the park, we had a good view of the unusually shaped viewing tower. I'd been there many years ago, but not visited the park at all since then - I'd say ten or more years back, most likely with my Mum on a Friday off or something like that.

Click to enlarge - there's the viewing tower!

As children, my sister and I would come here with our parents and grandparents. The park as such was created in 1937, lay dormant through WWII and reopened in July 1949. It was the location for various flower and garden exhibitions throughout the years, and some of the structures built for those shows and exhibitions are still there today.

The park has a lot to offer for families with children; there are playgrounds, animals such as alpacas, goats and sheep in pens, and a small funfair (not sure how permanent that one is, though - it certainly wasn't there in my childhood). For other visitors, there are many beautiful trees to admire (some of them rare), winding paths to explore and sculptures to contemplate. 

Several places offer food and drink, and a little train operates inside the park's boundaries. I was actually looking forward to a ride, but when we reached the station, the queue was so long that we agreed it wasn't that important.

I enjoyed the walk a lot, and of course the tower with its double helix stairs was a highlight. (That tower even has its own wikipedia entry - click here if you're intested.) We stopped at one of the cafés for coffee and cake and then walked back to the tram station at a very leisurely pace, even resting on one of the sunbeds for a while.

View from the tower. We later sat in that café - I can even see at which table.

Another view from the tower...

...and another one...

...one more...

...and the last one, with the small funfair at the bottom of the hill where the tower stands on.

View from the bottom of the tower.

It's very cleverly built, light and airy, making it easy to withstand strong winds because it offers little resistance.

So many paths to explore!

A mysterious little building

After we were back at Stuttgart's main station, we did not take a local train directly from there, but walked until North Station, from where we took the train to Ludwigsburg. I made that walk twice this year, as you may remember; those walks are here and here. 

It was a beautiful day in a park I visit not often enough, in spite of it not being difficult to reach, as well as walking through two other parks between Stuttgart main and north stations.

Week of Work and Walks

October was mostly at its golden best last week, and I grabbed every chance I got for a walk. The weekend offered more opportunities for walking in the mellow light among the beautiful autumn colours.

The trip back from O.K.'s to my place on Monday (21 October) morning was uneventful; the fact that my connection in Stuttgart was cancelled is hardly worth mentioning. I managed to catch another local train which was late, and in the end arrived home 10 minutes earlier than originally planned.

Sunrise over the Black Forest, as seen from the train on Monday morning.

After work, my sister and I met at our Mum's. We had a delicious meal of a firm favourite for nearly every Swabian - Linsen & Spätzle (lentils and spätzle). If you don't know what Spätzle are, click here for my 2011 post about them.

Tuesday (22 October) was a day I had really been looking forward to: For the first time since April, I was back at the Literature Archive in Marbach for work. The archive/museum/library are my favourite clients, and I always enjoy working with the people there, especially on site. 

The day started with me giving a basic lecture in data protection in the morning, followed by a meeting with two others to work together on a specific task, and after a fifteen-minute break, a longer session with a committee that regularly looks into matters of data protection and who I report to.

We finished mid-afternoon, and after I'd had a quick bite to eat, I set off for the walk to Ludwigsburg. The day was mild and dry, with a mix of sun and clouds, and I chose the familiar path along the river for my way home. 

Sorry - the pictures appear in reverse order. I don't know why "it" keeps doing that - I have not changed settings or anything, but I really can't be bothered to move them all around.

Back in Hoheneck, a suburb of Ludwigsburg - another 45 minutes or so until home.

Vineyards on one side of the river

I spotted this bike, painted white and obviously once meant as garden decoration, totally overgrown behind the rickety fence of an abandoned allotment.

Terraced vineyards and orchards, many of them abandoned

"The Rocket" - you've seen it many times before on my blog.

The train into Marbach goes across this bridge over the river Neckar.

Statue of Friedrich Schiller, Marbach's pride, on the square flanked by the archive, museum and library buildings.

View from outside the archive buildings towards Benningen on the other side of the river.

From the same spot, the view towards Ludwigsburg, and "the rocket".

Very few people were about at that time - on weekends, I would not advise anyone to attempt a walk or bike ride on this particular path, as it is very popular and crowded. But on a Tuesday afternoon, I had it mostly to myself. One cyclist, a middle-aged man with long greying hair and a long beard, dressed in rather rustic clothes, trundled by me. He half turned towards me, smiled and said "Des isch die schönschde Jahreszeit" - "This is the most beautiful season"! I could only agree, and he went on.

The entire way from the archive to my home is a bit under 12 km long. My photos do not do the walk justice; the colours were much more luminous, and the whole atmosphere along the calm river was so peaceful. I enjoyed that walk very much - there won't be another one there until some time next spring, I suppose.

It was my usual office day on Wednesday (23 October). After a foggy morning, the sun came out, making me decide on getting off the train in Zuffenhausen on my way home and walking from there. It really helped in balancing a VERY busy day - I had been rushing from one meeting to the next practically all day (which is OK because that's the point of working on site, one gets to go to meetings "in person" instead of just seeing everyone on a computer screen).

Again, pictures in reverse order.

Sunset over Pflugfelden - less than 20 minutes until home.

Not far into the walk, still in Zuffenhausen.

I was back again at the office on Thursday (24 October) for a day with less meetings but still plenty to do; the day passed quickly, and I left in time to meet a friend for an after-work walk around the fields near where we live. I had not seen her since before my September holiday, so the walk was just as much about catching up as it was about exercise.

Friday (25 October) was a beautiful sunny day, but I didn't go for a walk. I worked a bit longer than usual on a Friday, then did my cleaning and washing and got some fresh groceries in for the weekend before I started to get things ready for O.K., who was spending the weekend at my place.

Close-up of the creeper along the drive towards my front door.

He arrived at 9:00 pm, just as the risotto was ready - not cooked from scratch, I have to admit, but I added some fresh ingredients after my own taste, and replaced about half of the required amount of water with white wine. It was a good start of the weekend.

We went into town for a spot of breakfast on Saturday (26 October), but the place we'd had in mind was too busy, and so we settled for one where we'd not been before - and most likely won't go again. It wasn't horrible, just not really good; it was "alright", and maybe we are spoiled brats, but it just wasn't what we'd expected, or wanted.

A leisurely stroll in town followed, with us getting a few bits and bobs here and there. Two of the errands I had come for didn't work out, but neither of them were urgent, and I'll just have to go again another time.

We took our shopping home and rested for about half an hour before setting off again - the day was just too beautiful to stay inside.

Since the palace grounds were overcrowded (people were queuing at all gates!), we decided to walk across the Old and New Cemeteries instead, then on to a quarter of town that's nice for walking, and had coffee there.

Near where we had coffee.

Leafy path on Ludwigsburg's New Cemetery.

By 6:00 pm, we met with my Mum and my sister at an Italian restaurant within easy walking distance for all of us. We enjoyed our meals and went back to my Mum's afterwards for a digestif before going home.

Sunday (27 October) will have its own post, as this one is already becoming very long.