She picked me up on Saturday morning and off we went! It's only about an hour drive. We always have fun in the car, talking and laughing. Not to mention, it's a pretty drive, even though it's on hair-pin curves on the side of a mountain part of the way.
Bernkastel is such a lovely place. It's quaint and so German. Half-timbered buildings everywhere. It's along the Mosel River and is a major place for wine. Vineyards surround the entire town on steep hillsides. It's absolutely gorgeous. Plus, we had awesome weather. It started out as partly sunny, but ended up being sunny with beautiful blue skies. The high for the day was 57 degrees. I'm not sure what the temperature ended up being, but it was the nicest day we've had yet.
We ate lunch outside at a little cafe, Cafe Alter Klosterhof. We sat in the sun. It was so warm, I took my jacket off. I enjoyed a bowl of gulaschsuppe-hausgemacht, homemade gulaschsoup. I've had it once before; it's basically like a vegetable soup with beef and a tomato-y sauce. It's really good. I also had a glass of Bernkasteler Kurfurstlag, which was a mild white wine. For dessert we both had a piece of black forest cake. It was all delicious and very enjoyable.
While we were sitting at lunch, Terry commented on how quaint and quiet Bernkastel is. She said, "There aren't babies crying or dogs barking--It's like everyone is on drugs." Haha! She's so funny.
We explored Bernkastel, founded in 1291, and all of the half-timbered buildings, taking lots of photos. Bernkastel has a lot of great little shops too. I made many purchases on Saturday. :) I bought a purse I couldn't resist and two wallets. I also bought two pottery cups, which I think are for drinking wine out of. On the outside of them are grapes and leaves. Very pretty. I also bought a pottery butter dish. It's a round dish with a lid. I love it! I especially love these purchases because they'll always remind me of Germany.
School and such
I'm starting to feel really weird about how far into the semester it's getting. I don't want to leave. The weather is getting nicer, the days are getting longer. I am just having an absolute blast this semester. I love traveling here. I love my students and many of the teachers. I feel like I've probably changed since I've been here and I'm just really nervous to go back home and have to hang out in Muncie all summer. The only thing I'll be glad to go home for is all the people I miss. I am getting so excited for my dad to visit. He gets here the day after I finish student teaching. We get to travel around for six or so days before heading back.
This past week at school I had quite a few students ask me how long I was going to be here or when I would be leaving. They all acted sad and asked if I could stay longer or if I could come back and visit. So sweet. I will miss these students so much. I just really like them.
A few of my students will be gone this week on the senior trip--I'm going to miss them! I'll be glad to see them next week.
Friday
After school on Friday I went to IKEA in Manheim (about an hour and a half from Baumholder) with my teacher and another teacher. We had a great time! IKEA has so much cool furniture and other home goods. AND it's cheap. I ended up buying an apple cutter, two coffee mugs, a one-flower vase, a coffee thermos, and a bed spread (the kind you insert the actual comforter into). I love it all! Plus, the mugs and apple cutter are in my green. "My green" is the bright, limeish green that I already have many kitchen things in. My Gram will enjoy my purchases, I'm sure.
It's been a good weekend and I'm sad to see it over. Tomorrow I'm back in the grind of being at school at 7 a.m. This week will be kind of messed up, too, because students are taking the Terra Nova tests each day. Terra Nova is the DoDDs standardized test, like ISTEP in Indiana.
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