A Week of Little Work and Lots of Walking

I could really get used to the way last week went for me! Since I was still on holiday for the first half of the week and only went back to work on Thursday, I had plenty of time to go walking (the weather was good, too), and O.K. and I went for a good hike on Sunday.

After breakfast at the hotel on Monday (12 May), we checked out and were back in Ludwigsburg less than 2 1/2 hours later - Austria really isn't all that far from the South of Germany, especially not when you don't end up in a traffic jam.

In Haldensee, the morning had been chilly at 12C/53F, but my hometown welcomed me at a very pleasant 21C/70F. 

Good-bye views from our hotel room on Monday morning, before...

...and after breakfast.

I unpacked quickly and started the washing machine, and we were ready to go.

For the evening, we had arranged to meet my Mum and my sister for pizza at the Italian restaurant within easy walking distance from my Mum's, but the afternoon was too nice to stay home.

O.K. and I had ice creams first and then walked to the palace grounds to discover how much things had grown and changed since our last visit.

The rhododenron were at their best - and some even already a little past it:

View of some rhododendron and azaleas from the top of Emichsburg, the folly castle in the park

This one is called Giant Laurel, but it really is a variety of rhododendron like the others.

The same area earlier seen from above, now on the ground, with Emichsburg at the back.

Sand art; this year's motto is "variety of species", as captured here in this "sea" scene.

Of course, Charles Darwin has to be there when it's about species! The poor man does look somewhat unhappy, but then again he had some rather sad events in his life, such as the death of his young daughter.

A view of Ludwigsburg palace you have seen several times.

As expected, our evening at La Mona Lisa was nice, and the food as good as always.

O.K. left for his home on Tuesday (13 May) around lunch time, so that both of us had ample time to ease back into daily life and get everything sorted after our time away.

The weather was as beautiful as the day before, and after dealing with my laundry and getting my groceries in, I walked to Benningen.

Wildflowers on a meadow at the outskirts of Benningen

I took the train back as usual, and then went to my Mum's. After helping her switching her winter and summer wardrobes (it involves carrying stuff up and down a metal ladder to and from the attic, something we prefer her not doing on her own), we ate together, and then I went home.

Wednesday (14 May) was the last of my holiday, and I had planned on doing what you may remember being my Mum and my favourite walk together, back in the day when my parents still had their allotment near Steinheim and my Mum was fit enough to walk there from Marbach.

I'd not been to Steinheim since February (click here for the photos from that walk). Of course, now everything was so much greener and luscious, and the birdsong in the woods was wonderful.

My first photo stop on this walk is nearly always this one, looking back towards the way I have come up from Marbach on a lane between vineyards.

The first houses of Steinheim can be seen ahead.

River Murr, as seen from the bridge leading into Steinheim.

The village of Lehrhof, another regular photo stop.

And my favourite bit, "my" grassy path - this time, it was rather overgrown with pleny of flying, buzzing and crawling things about.

Wild garlic lines the steps to the bottom of the valley.

.

Wildflower meadow at the bottom of the valley.

Into the woods, dappled with sunlight.

The short train rides to and from Marbach included, I was out and about for four hours with only a short stop on a bench to eat my sandwich and drink some water.

Back to work on Thursday (15 May)! I went to the office and had so many meetings and calls that the day passed like a whirlwind. In all my work-related inboxes combined, I only had 117 emails to go through - it was obvious that many of my colleagues and clients had not been too hard at work while I was away; in fact, many of them had taken time off around May Day, too.

The day was sunny but VERY windy, and I decided against walking home from either Zuffenhausen or Kornwestheim, and instead spent a quiet evening in.

Friday (16 May) started as cold as 6C/42F after a starry night but went up to 17C/62F in the afternoon.

Working from home was unremarkable, and in the late afternoon, I packed my little red suitcase and went to the train station.

My train to Offenburg was on time (hooray!), and O.K. enjoyed our customary "Weekend Welcome" meal of salad, bread and cheese.

O.K. spent good part of Saturday (17 May) catching up with jobs around his Mum's house and garden while I was doing a bit of light housework at the cottage. Later, O.K.'s sister and her husband as well as O.K. and I gathered on his Mum's patio for coffee and delicious rhubarb cake, made with rhubarb grown on the family allotment.

Quite out of the blue (literally), a bit later some unexpected rain fell, but it was really not more than a fine drizzle and didn't last long. In the meantime, O.K. made a typical May meal for the two of us: roasted green asparagus, slices of cold ham, tomatoes and bread, accompanied by a well chilled dry white.

Afterwards, with the rain having stopped, we untertook an evening walk around the village, with just enough light left to make the lanes still walkable. I enjoyed this particular evening atmosphere very much.

On Sunday (18 May), we decided on a hike we'd done once before (and covered parts of it during other walks): The Durbacher Weinpanorama. The first time was in October 2020, and very different from now - the vineyards were so colourful back then, but this time, the meadows were in bloom, and the various shades of green in the woods were gorgeous.

I believe that this hike deserves its own post, and therefore you'll have to wait another day or two :-)