Here is another Christmas Market photo for you all!  This shot is from the market in Rüdesheim.  If you remember, Tyler, Jason, and I rode our bikes to this lovely little town along the Rhein.  Each Christmas Market creates their own set of mugs to serve the Glühwein (sweet, spiced wine served hot) in.  You pay an extra two euro for the mug when you buy your drink.  Then, you may choose to keep the mug or bring it back in exchange for your euro.  Because I think they are so neat, I decided to keep my mug; plus, they make great (and useful) mementos!

Jason’s and Tyler’s aunt, uncle, and cousins came to visit the weekend before Jason left.  Here are a few photos I took from that Saturday.  This first shot is of the whole Leavitt family as we were walking through the Schlosspark that morning–from left to right: Joseph, Aunt Leigh-Ann, Snickers, Uncle Laird, and Jillian.

We then headed to nearby Rüdesheim, a nice town on the Rhine with a picturesque downtown and rolling hills of vineyards.  Click HERE to see the photos I posted earlier this year when Jason, Tyler, and I rode our bikes from Wiesbaden to Rüdesheim.

And finally, here is a shot of the whole group–minus Joseph and Snickers (and me!).  Following our afternoon in Rüdesheim, we ate dinner at the delicious Eisgrub Brauhaus, or brewery, in Mainz.  The weekend went by quickly as it always does, but we had a great time together!

Last weekend we went on a bike trip to Rüdesheim, which Jason so kindly informed me is to the west of us…needless to say, I am not the geographically savvy one…  It rained all day Friday, through the night, and we woke up to a continuous drizzle Saturday morning.  We were feeling a bit bummed, thinking that we might have to reschedule our trip.  Nonetheless, Tyler came over to our place for some breakfast and coffee, and we waited a bit to see what the weather would do.  To our surprise the rain let up at around noon, and even though it was looking pretty dreary and wet out there we decided to give it a go.
The path that goes along the Rhine to Rüdesheim and beyond is beautiful and serene.  Because of the weather not many people were out that Saturday.  Here are a few photos I took along the way…all taken with our handy point and shoot camera.

The ride there is about 15 miles long, and we arrived a little after three.  Here’s Jason and Tyler walking up the road to the cute hotel we stayed in.  The last shot is a view from around the hotel building.  I still have a few more photos to go through from our ride, so stay tuned!!!

Here are some images we’ve gathered during our first week in Germany. There are lots of beautiful old buildings here full of history. On Saturday Jason, Antje and I walked around downtown Wiesbaden. The second, third and fourth shots are of the beautiful Marktkirche. Antje tells us that this is one of the more modestly ornate churches in Germany. I thought this one was absolutely stunning, so I cannot wait to see some more. My favorite thing about the church is the way the ceiling is painted; it looks like a starry night. The last three shots are from our excursion to Rüdesheim a few days ago. We walked up the hill through the vineyards to Niederwalddenkmal (look it up!). There are many more places for us to explore. We’ll be down in Kandern next week.