Life of a Single Married Lady

We traveled a long, long way today, and it's late so this will be a short post! After an early breakfast we started a 9-hour drive to Leipzig. Along the way we stopped at Wartburg Castle, home to lots of Martin Luther history! It even had a special exhibit on Luther, since this is the 500-year anniversary of the Ninety-Five Theses. St. Elizabeth of Hungary lived here for a time, and is memorialized in incredible mosaic form in the castle (again, no pics allowed inside). The surrounding landscape views were surreal. I love me some castles, and this didn't disappoint - the foundation was laid in 1067, the first recorded mention of Wartburg is from 1080, and we saw a room with ceiling timbers dated to the 12th century. Preeeeetty sweet. We didn't have much time inside and would love to go back. Then off to Leipzig! On the way we saw Buchenwald but didn't stop to visit. Our visit to Auschwitz was absolutely worth it, and I wish we could have go...

After a refreshing breakfast on the pastoral hotel patio, we visited the landmark of Ottobeuren: its Abbey. Built in 764, it has been continuously present and operated by Benedictine monks for more than 1250 years. It was burned down and rebuilt twice, but suffered no damage during WW2. Abbot John described the paintings on the walls and ceiling depicting the Creed, and the three organs within the Abbey that together comprise 10,000+ pipes! They also have relics of saints and popes from Cologne and Rome enshrined near the altars. Abbot John actually asked us to sing a little bit to honor our visit :) Then we went for a traditional tourist attraction: Neuschwanstein. The name translates to New Swan Stone castle, referencing the swans present in the nearby town and on the local coat of arms. King Ludwig II designed it in the medieval style, and the theme of the decorations was opera; Ludwig loved opera and especially Wagner. He borrowed heavily to build his castles...

Today we packed up and traveled to Ottobeuren, a lovely Bavarian town famous for its abbey. I took a few pictures of our swanky hotel and then left almost immediately for Kempten, a nearby town where we had our second concert. We saw the Alps as we drove, but I could never get a good picture!! Trust me, they were beautiful. We were joined at the St. Anton church in Kempten by the Cantoni choir and an impressive organist (no orchestra at this performance). The church had incredible acoustics - we could sing half our normal volume and still be too loud! Guess who came to visit?? Radu, Ozana, Marc, and Victor! The Cantoni choir and friends then hosted an absolutely wonderful dinner, complete with traditional dance, homemade dessert, and gifts of beer. It's our favorite evening meal so far :)

Our second day in Freiburg was our first concert day! We spent most of the morning rehearsing at our venue, St. Konrad and Elisabeth Catholic Church. Joining us were the Vocalensemble Breisach and the Junge Kammerphilharmonie. Wil, Grandpa John, and some of the other spouses (they call themselves groupies) had a great time visiting three different museums! After this we were supposed to have free time and then a celebration of our sister city-ness. However, our coach got stuck in a demonstration by people who want to keep green spaces nearby from becoming neighborhood developments - democracy in action. We might have made it back to the square like the other coach, except that we were instructed to back up and hit a cone. This is apparently a matter that involves the police, so we sat around for a while as that happened. In the meantime, I learned that newly married couples here go out for a open-top drive, accompanied by tin cans and a honking bridal party! Eventually we ...

Freiburg, a city that was rebuilt after the WW2 bombings to look just like its old self! We have 2 nights here. Since I don't have a computer on this trip, I'll be posting pictures without very detailed captions. I'll make sure to update them when I return home! We arrived in Freiburg and immediately started a short walking tour of the original city center. Cities in Germany traditionally have town halls for people to congregate and talk about running their town, and Freiburg actually has multiple town halls!  The town halls are located at the end of a street that has some of the oldest buildings in Freiburg, ones that survived the bombing.  Madison is one of Freiburg's sister cities! Their city center is home to a stunning church that was actually built over a time span long enough for styles to change, so there are some interesting inconsistencies in the architecture!  After our tour, the 90-odd members took over a delightf...