Last of April, First of May

April was much drier than average in my area, and in my diary I have recorded rain only four times for the entire month, none of which was substantial. There are large cracks in the soil now, but everything is amazingly green in spite of this lack of water. Maybe vegetation still benefits from February‘s more than average rain.

On Monday (27 April) I worked until 6:00 pm and then went to enjoy the evening light on my standard walk to Benningen.

No shortage of buttercups this year!

Tuesday (28 April) was spent working from home, and in the evening, our team was booked for the pub quiz. 

It was a truly special quiz night for us, not only because we came first: One of our team mates is moving to Hawaii to be with his wife (she‘s native and lives there) for at least a couple of years. Chris has been a regular and valuable team member and friend for many years, and we‘ll miss him. I had prepared a good-bye gift from all of us, and two of us had secretly asked the landlord and quiz master to include a question or two about Hawaii, as a subtle nod to Chris. When those questions came up, he was wondering aloud whether it was a coincidence, and then we told him that it had been our doing.

I worked at the office as usual on Wednesday (29 April) and said good-bye to my colleagues for 2 1/2 weeks - next time they see me I will be married! To celebrate, I‘m inviting them for an after work drink at the hotel bar next door on my first day back.

Sunrise on Wednesday

I went to my Mum‘s after work for a meal and a chat; we‘ll see each other next on my wedding day (and my sister, of course!).

On Thursday (30 April), I finished a few tasks for work in between going for a morning walk with my friend, a back & shoulders massage at the nearby day spa and having coffee with my downstairs neighbour who will look after my few house plants and the mail while I‘m away. I cleaned the flat and packed my suitcase, and at about 6:00 pm left for what was planned as a relaxed train ride to Offenburg with only one change in Stuttgart.

Well… I ended up changing trains FOUR times for the 150 km long trip… that‘s more changes than our standard trip to Yorkshire in the summer!! It was the opposite of relaxed, with the chaotic situation leading to very packed trains and a constant need to check connections on my phone and take quick decisions. In the end, I arrived in Offenburg only about 10 minutes later than scheduled, but rather exhausted.

The navigator app on my phone showed almost an hour‘s delay for my original train.

We were up early the next morning (Friday, 1st of May), and along with many other village band members and other helpers began to set up everything for the May fête which was to start at 10:30 with the Maypole being set up and the actual fête - serving food and drink - at 11:00.

The weather could not have been better, although the wind was a bit nippy at times. Many people came to the Maypole ceremony and the fête; we met some friends and neighbours and were able to sit with them for a bit when O.K. had a break from playing music and before we started our shift at the dishwasher.

We were scheduled to do the dishes from 6:00 pm until ‚open end‘, helping also with clearing and cleaning up as much as possible afterwards, and I had braced myself for being up half the night. Imagine my surprise when most people were leaving by about 8:00 pm; it was of course still daylight and mild enough to sit outside, but O.K. reckoned that many had been out and about already since the morning and possibly been up for much of the night before, when traditionally there are bonfires lit in the fields and allotments to celebrate Walpurgisnacht and welcome in the month of May.

The more helping hands work together on such occasions, the better, and we were back at the cottage already at 10:15 pm - at a time I had expected us just to begin clearing up.

I didn‘t take my mobile with me all day and therefore took no photos, but you can find pictures of previous Maypole setting-ups and the fête on my blog here and here, for instance.

Saturday (2nd of May) was the warmest day of the week at 26 C. O.K. spent all day on various garden jobs around his Mum‘s house. I went on a few errands in the village and during the last couple of hours assisted O.K. mainly by fetching water from the fountain on the square near the cottage, watering his tiny front garden and fetching more water for the jobs he was finishing.

It was getting on to sunset when he finally called it a day, and we enjoyed a refreshing Apėrol Spritz on the balcony, listening to bird song and looking at the evening sky.

It was O.K.‘s birthday on Sunday (3rd of May), and we had a rather relaxed day with enough time for a walk in the afternoon before getting changed and being driven to nearby Ortenberg, where O.K. had booked a table for family and friends at a traditional village restaurant. The meal was good, and it was nice to see the friends we don‘t meet very often. O.K. and I ended his birthday, the day and the week with a nightcap at the cottage, trying out one of the birthday gifts.

Sunny Walks Week

Both during last week and on the weekend I managed good, substantial walks, fully taking advantage of the mostly sunny weather.

On Monday (20.04.2026) it was chilly and windy, but sunny. Work obligations meant I only went for a short-ish walk of about an hour after 7:00 pm, catching the beautiful evening light.

Sunrise on Monday

A mostly cloudy and chilly day followed on Tuesday (21.04.2026), with the grey clouds even shedding a few token drops of rain during my otherwise beautiful walk to Benningen after work.

Wednesday and Thursday (22./23.04.2026) saw me at the office in Weilimdorf. Both days were sunny and warmed up nicely after very cold mornings (not far from frost). I went to my Mum's on the Wednesday and walked home from Zuffenhausen on the Thursday.

The familiar spot is now much greener than last time I walked here.

A badly needed haircut was had on Friday (24.04.2026) morning, and around lunch time I went to see my neighbour whose cat and two rabbits I will be looking after in late May/early June when the family are away. 

Later that afternoon I met my book-swapping friend at a nearby café; we swapped books, had a piece of cake each and opted for cold drinks instead of coffee - it was so nice and warm to sit in the sun outside the café.

By the time O.K. arrived at around 8:30 pm, I had done all my cleaning, shopping and getting things ready for the weekend. 

Saturday (25.04.2026) was the warmest day of the week at around 22C/71F. After breakfast, O.K. and I walked into town for the "Open Day" at Grävenitz Palais, which was interesting and much less crowded than the same event in February 2024.

Inside Grävenitz Palais

From there, we crossed the busy main road to the palace grounds and had a relaxed stroll there.

The deer park was next, and we followed the long straight road from there to the small palace by the lake before returning home for a rest and coffee.

Preparations for an event were underway around the palace by the lake.

In the evening, we were meeting my Mum, sister and a friend at a nearby Italian restaurant, a favourite of ours for such gatherings. The five of us enjoyed the food and drink and of course the conversation and company, and eventually retreated to Mum's for dessert.

The weather was pretty much the same on Sunday (26.04.2026), meaning we were off for another walk. This time, we went to Marbach on foot and returned by train.

We had ice cream in the historic town of Marbach - my first time this year (not counting the occasional ice cream for dessert after a family meal, for instance Easter). Having walked about 16.5 km that day, we needed proper sustenance, and I made Quiche Lorraine for our evening meal before O.K. packed his bags and started on the long drive home.

Just out of the oven :-)

I packed my wedding clothes in a box and my hiking clothes in my rucksack so that he could transport them by car, making it easier for me when  I'll be traveling to him by train this week Thursday.

We really, really need rain; after February was wetter than average, April has been a lot drier than average, according to meteorologists.

Read in 2026 - 12, 13

It's no news to my regular readers that I almost always parallel-read two books, one on my kindle while I'm on my way to and from work etc., and a "real" one (not that ebooks aren't real) at home.

My last parallel-reads were these two:

Faithless

Karin Slaughter

A paperback I bought for 2 euros from the second-hand stall run by the church once a month in the town centre, this one will next go to my book-swapping friend Andrea who then can decide whether she'll donate it back to the church for another round, keep it, throw it away or give it to someone else.

Early on in the book it becomes clear that this is not the first one about medical examiner Sara and her ex-husband, police chief Jeffrey, as well as Jeffrey's partner Lena. The couple literally stumple upon a terrible crime, its investigation bringing to light even more terrible secrets.

It was a gripping story, and if you don't mind gory details, this book is for you. But I DO mind, even though some of the detail was important to the story; also, I found much of the dialogue unnecessarily lengthy. In short (!), the book could have been more to the point, and although especially towards the end the story picks up speed, it could have gained from being better paced.

But that's just my impression; maybe I simply wasn't in the mood for this kind of crime thriller. Karin Slaughter is a very popular author, but I doubt I'll be actively seeking out more of her books. Her website is here.

Murder in the Family

Kurt Berwick

This free ebook from Amazon's Kindle shop was something of a strange read: Most - but not all - of it is in letters, and there is very little actual storytelling.

We meet various members of the Quilter family; the "present" time is 1928, while the events the story is about have taken place in 1900: One family member was shot in his bedroom, with only the family being in the house at the time, and freshly fallen snow clearly shows that nobody entered or left before or after the deed. 

28 years later, one son of the victim has become more and more convinced that he, a teenager back then, must have done it - why, he can't explain - but somehow amnesia must have wiped out the actual event from his memory. To help him see that it can't have been him and gain peace of mind, one of his sisters asks the family doctor for help who in turn engages a crime analyst.

The analyst only has a bundle of letters to examine and still comes to a satisfying conclusion - but only the VERY end of the book reveals the truth.

It was an unusual book but still pleasant to read, although I found it confusing that almost all family members were adressed alternating between two names. For instance, one of the sisters is called Judith but the letters to her start with "Dearest Marie", while Jonathan is also Daniel, and Robert is Henry... Why?!

I could not find out more about Kurt Berwick, other than that he is a contemporary author and has written quite a few books available on Amazon and listed on Goodreads.com.

Beautiful Spring Week

Although we've had mixed weather this week, starting chilly and wet, it became milder from mid-week onwards, and spring has been at its best since Thursday. I took advantage of the good weather and got quite a few walks in.

Monday (13 April) was chilly, wet and grey. My trains were on time, and I was able to start work (from home) at 9:30. Early afternoon I was booked for my quarterly eye check-up, which went as smoothly as can be expected. My last work appointment for the day ended at 6:00 pm, and 15 minutes later I was out for a walk. However, the almost imperceptible drizzle turned into proper rain, and so I cut my walk short and was back after less than an hour.

There was no time for a walk on Tuesday (14 April) between work and the pub, where my team and I were booked for the quiz. Out of the five who had said they'd be there, two cancelled at the last minute, which left just three of us - a very small team with no realistic chance at one of the first three places, especially considering that some of the teams are ten strong (sometimes more). 

Still, we decided to go ahead, also because we thought it unfair towards the publican to cancel our booked table at such short notice. And guess what - when it comes to the sheer number of points, we would have come third, but because three other (larger) teams had the same highest score, they took the three first places. We were justly proud of ourselves, particularly because we'd had a PERFECT score in the 2nd round. (Our quiz is two rounds with 12 questions each.)

My usual day at the office followed on Wednesday (15 April), but unlike most Wednesday, I didn't go to my Mum's after work. Instead, it was the day of our department's event.

Most departments at the company where I work have their annual event before Christmas; often they visit a Christmas market together and then go for a booked meal. But everybody tends to be rather busy in the weeks leading up to Christmas, and therefore we have decided years ago to have an after-work outing some time in the spring.

At about 4:30 pm, our group took local trains to get to Esslingen which is on the opposite side of Stuttgart. Germany's oldest maker of sparkling wine is there; this year, the company (Kessler) have their 200th anniversary. We were booked for a tour of the cellars, followed by a glass of sparkling wine and then a meal at a nearby restaurant.

Back in 2011, with my family and some friends I had been to such a tour, but this time was a bit different; our friendly and knowledgable guide told us more about the company's history and less about the cellars as such. Comparing both tours, I can't say that one was "better" than the other, they just had a different focus but were equally interesting.

Under ten minutes on foot, and we were at the restaurant where we had a very good meal with friendly and efficient service. From there, it was only about another ten minutes back to the train station, and I was home at 10:00 pm.

Thursday (16 April) was sunny and a bit warmer than the week so far. I worked from home, walked for an hour afterwards and then went to my Mum's for a delicious fresh salad.

Sunrise on Thursday

Late afternoon on Thursday

Sunset on Thursday, as seen from my Mum's balcony

O.K. and I spent the weekend separately because of an engagement with the band, which gave me plenty of time after work on Friday (17 April) to do my cleaning and then walk to Benningen in the beautiful early evening sun. Much to my delight, the lane that had been blocked by construction work last time was open again, and I had a very relaxing walk with no need to find alternative paths.

Between Ludwigsburg and Freiberg

On the way to Benningen

Evening light on Friday. The three-coloured lilac has been sending wafts of its scent towards my kitchen.

Cherry tree in front of my other kitchen window.

Saturday (18 April) was the warmest day of the week at 23C/73F. My sister and I had arranged to meet friends from our former group of volunteers for breakfast; it was very nice to sit in the morning sun (not too hot yet) and catch up with them.

In the afternoon, I took a train to Marbach and went for my familiar walk to Steinheim, with a few deliberate variations. I'd not been at the remnants of Blankenstein castle since June 2023, and it was good to see the place is kept clean and cared for.

A familiar view for many of you - looking back towards Marbach, shortly after the start of the walk.

It's actually the view from this bench, where my Mum and I have usually had a brief rest after climbing the hill.

_River Murr in Steinheim

Rapeseed

Blankenstein Castle above Steinheim

View across the valley from the castle ruins

Lehrhof

View from "my" bench

My grassy path

View from another bench where I stopped for a few minutes

On the way back to Marbach

It was beautiful in the woods; still sunny but more tender green leaves on the trees now, while the pretty white star-shaped anemone bloossoms still adorn the ground between the trees and along the path, all enhanced by incessant birdsong.

I really "bathed" in all things spring that afternoon, and almost four hours later was back at the train station in Marbach for the short ride home and something to eat.

A bit of rain (but not as much as would be necessary right now) fell on Sunday (19 April), and it was windy and a lot chillier - no shorts and short sleeves for me today! My sister and I met at our Mum's for coffee and a delicious home-baked apple pie - still a bit warm when we ate it. I didn't go straight home afterwards but took a short loop on the fields before turning in.