Bredele: "bray-duh-luh"

An important part of the Christmas season in Alsace is baking gobs and gobs of tasty little cookies called "Bredeles." Much like American Christmas cookies, bredeles come in every shape and flavor, and the best recipes are passed down through the generations. I was fortunate enough to have an expert bredele baker show me the tricks of the trade! Madame Rieth, a kind and welcoming woman from church, invited me to spend an afternoon in her kitchen. Over six hours, I experienced much more than learning to make sugary treats: I feasted on a delicious turkey mid-day meal with her children and grandchildren, chuckled at the sarcastic banter between her and Monsieur Rieth (sometimes in French with a thick Alsatian accent and sometimes in Alsatian), and listened attentively to her endless stories of growing up in Alsace during the war. Below is a picture of Mme. Rieth working in her kitchen. (She doesn't like her picture to be taken!)


When I arrived in Strasbourg, Mme. Rieth was immediately very warm and encouraging. Everytime I see her at church or Bible study, she commands me to open my purse and then fills it will walnuts or homemade jams. She always tells me, "We can't have you die of hunger while you are here!" Being far from home, Mme. Rieth's kind gestures always make me feel loved. Even though the bredeles were delicious, the best part of our baking spree was simply getting to know her better!

Passau, Germany

I was disappointed not to meet Inka's sister, Kirsten, during my visit to Hamburg, but thankfully, Kirsten and I were able to find a weekend to meet up in Passau, where she studies law! My train chugged into town on Thursday night and Kirsten met me at the station. Since we didn't already know each other, I was hoping that my photographic memory would kick in and that I would recognize her! No worries: the Fischer kids all look the same! :)

I really enjoyed getting a glimpse of student life in Germany: bumming around campus, attending a law class, eating in the dining hall, and grocery shopping. I'm such a sucker for the "insider's view" - seeing what I'd never see if I were just a tourist! Kirsten also showed me around the historic part of town and the beautiful cathedral. Friday afternoon, we welcomed in the Advent season by listening to Christmas carols and baking traditional Christmas stollen. We weren't convinced that it turned out quite right, but it passed the taste tests. Here are some photos of rainy Passau and Kirsten with the unbaked stolen!





Friday night, I tagged along with Kirsten to her bartending job before a couple of her friends swept me away to an Irish pub. Two of them had spent a year in the US and had all sorts of stories to share about Southern California and rural Arkansas: two very different American experiences!

On Saturday, Kirsten and I took the train to Munich to see their beautiful Christmas market complete with a choir and brass ensemble singing carols from the balcony of the town hall! We sampled a couple of different sausages, spiced wine and candied almonds! Yum!






On Sunday morning, we went to church and out for coffee at a favorite café before I caught my train back to Strasbourg. I really enjoyed getting to know Kirsten - and discovering how much we have in common! I am so thankful for her willingness to host me and show me a little bit of her life in Passau.

Le Marché de Noël

Christmas has arrived in Strasbourg! Lights, decorations, Christmas trees and window displays announce the arrival of the "most wonderful time of the year". It seems like the whole city has been taken over! A mamouth pine tree has even been transplanted to one of the main squares in town and decorated with lights and ornaments.

The biggest addition to the city though has been all of the Christmas markets! Christmas markets are a German tradition that was passed over to Alsace thanks to the shared heritage. Every open square has been filled with tiny cabins offering food, spiced wine, ornaments, crafts, gifts, etc. At night, the markets are especially packed and it can be difficult to make your way through the crowd! During the very first day of the markets, Nadja, Jessica and I headed out to see what they are about! Our favorite part? Free samples!

Oh Switzerland!

When Jessica (our representative from "La Suisse") offered to show us around two of her favorite cities, we didn't hesitate to take her up on it! Thanks to the generosity of Thomas' host mom, we took the car for the weekend and headed for the hills - literally! Since you have to pay to use Switzerland's national highways, we chose stay on the smaller highways all the way to Luzern. We weren't always sure where we were on the map, but the tiny villages were picture perfect and the views were spectacular! I remember thinking : "This is exaclty what I thought Switzerland might look like!" Driving higher and higher into the hills, we stop a few times for pictures and to play in the snow!



We met Jessica and two of her friends in Luzern. They showed us around some of the sights and where to buy chocolate! The sky was beautiful, but the temperatures were cold. In the evening, after and extensive search for an inexpensive place to eat dinner (which does NOT exist in Switzerland), we grabbed some fast food and retired to our youth hostel with some red wine and snacks! Here are some views of Luzern:








Day 2 started off with a breakfast of muesli, yogurt, fruit, toast and coffee : perfection! The short ride to Zurich passed quickly thanks to some singing and backseat dancing. Before we knew it, we had pulled into downtown Zurich and it was time to explore! The day was filled by more beautiful views, a HUGE lake, lots of sunshine, Chinese for lunch and hot chocolate at the train station. At dusk, we pulled out of Zurich and headed north to Germany to cruise down the autobahn! Voilà Zurich:





According to the sign, I'm "überfoxy".




Thomas couldn't find a parking place so he shared one with the super-tiny SmartCar!

Tout le monde à vélo!

One of my favorite things about Strasbourg is how easy it is to get around by bike! With of the bike paths and bike lanes, it is a no-brainer to opt for two wheels instead of four. My life completely changed the day that Mme. Schaeffer, the wife of our pastor, lent me her bike for the semester. I aboslutely love the the freedom of hopping on my bike and whizzing by pedestrians. I have mastered the art of riding with grocery bags and of switching between the road and the bike paths to avoid waiting at lights. I laugh when I see little old grandmothers in dresses and stockings riding their bikes on busy streets and children in carrier seats holding an umbrella over their pedaling parents. The best is riding with my friends through town and pretending we are a biker gang. :) Here are some images of the glorious bike culture in Strasbourg!





Here is a picture of a "VéloPark", or parking lot for bikes! How sweet is that? I think it is about stinkin' time to start replacing suburbia's acres of asphalt with these:


Here is a photo of my little Danish friend, Nadja showing us just how much fun you can have while riding a bike!

J'aime Paris!

What is better than having great friends? Having great friends that live in Paris! Last weekend, I had the opportunity to visit a couple of these great friends in the City of Lights. My first stop was to see the beautiful Georgette, a fellow "mono" (counselor) of Lac du Bois '06, who is spending the year teaching English to 10 yr. olds! Despite not having talked for a while, we picked right back up where we left off. It was so refreshing to have some good conversation...in ENGLISH! I had nearly forgotten what it was like to have a wide selection of descriptive words to explain every little nuance of what I am feeling and experiencing! Here is Georgette and I on the terrasse of her Parisian apartment:


My time with Georgette included late-night catching up, sleeping in (yes!), a delicious lunch in a creperie, a thorough visit of the Pompidou Center (the national museum of moden art), a valiant attempt to attend a French toga party, not finding the toga party and opting for falafel and mint tea instead. Below are some pictures of the Pompidou Center. It is a controversial building in Paris because it goes against all of the "rules" of Parisian architecture. You'll notice in the last picture that all of the structural elements are displayed like works of art! I think it is fabulous and it reminds us not to take ourselves too seriously. Plus, you have an excellent view of the city from the escalator!





Sunday morning, I bid farewell to Georgette and headed into town to visit my dear Charlène on her 19th birthday! En route, I stop by a neighborhood market to take a look: flowers, fruits and vegetables, jewelry, gadgets and gizmos of plenty, (oozits and whatsits galore...sorry, Little Mermaid reference). I especially liked the line to buy cheese that wrapped around the corner of the block! I picked up a pink, potted flower for the Birthday Girl and hopped on the metro.

It was WONDERFUL to see Charlène's smiling face again! I met Charlène during my last stay in France and she came to visit me for 2 weeks in the summer of 2006. Upon arriving at her apartment, we caught up a bit and had a birthday lunch with her brother and dad. Then, the two of us trekked out into the rain to see a fews sights of Paris. We stopped by the Opéra Garnier (the inspiration for the Phantom of the Opera) and to see the Christmas window displays of Les Galeries Lafayettes (like Macy's).



The displays are a highlight of the season for French children, but the last photo might be geared more for the French "papas". Apparently, it is sexy to wear dead forest animals on your head. I'll take note...


No visit to Paris is complete without a good ol' fashioned protest and this weekend was no exception. In the true French spirit, a large number of people marched in the rain to protest the high rent in city. Charlène and I took the apathetic route and decided just to have a hot chocolate with whipped cream in a nearby café. :) We said our goodbyes until Christmas (which I'll be celebrating with her family) and I jumped on the metro back to the train station. On my way, I snapped the following picture of the town hall. St. Louis' former town hall (I think it is the town hall at least) was designed after this building!

How would YOU pronounce this?