I love German, really do. We arrived in Heimbach (Germany) yesterday in the early evening, about a three hour drive from home, but in a different world. Heimbach translates literally to ‘home rivulet’, there’s a few towns in Germany with that name so you have to check the postal code when inputting the address into a GPS system.
I suppose the name dates from earlier times, because today it’s situated on the northernmost edge of the Ruhr reservoir, which is large enough for a ferry service, about as far from a rivulet as you can get. We’re smack in the middle of the Eifel nature park, in an area with steep, wooded slopes and charming villages in river valleys.
We’re taking the long weekend to relax, do a few walks, work on garden design and holiday planning. Yes, I only get in the mood to plan a holiday when I’m actually on holiday. And garden planning is hard to do when you’re looking at the flower beds that urgently need weeding..
We brought the makings of breakfast with us, so this morning we can enjoy Biscoff paste (for Arne) and Weyns choco (for me). We take our time, Arne finishes up some work, I read a book, until 11 or so. When we set off on foot for a walk around the nearby Heimbach reservoir, it’s tshirt weather, delightful. We deliberately picked an easy, suitable for families kind of walk, so it’s predictably busy with families, but not to the extent that it gets annoying. Plenty of benches around too, that’s handy for our traditional pick nick: sandwiches with ham and cheese, lettuce and tomato, with a dash of mayo safely squished inside.
We plan our next holiday along the way – we think about going cycling, or taking a road trip, but land on a stay-at-home, gardening and cooking with friends kind of thing. Might even buy a barbecue for the occasion! Meanwhile we encounter (hear, rather than see) a lot of small birds, fortunately the Merlin app tells us exactly which ones we’re hearing. I also see and photograph some smaller creatures, using ObsIdentify to find out who’s who. The Timarcha tenebricosa is smaller than its name leads you to believe, and the Pholidoptera griseoaptera is just ridiculously tiny. I mean, what does it eat?
Back at the apartment around two thirty. We take a nap, do another holiday planning session (for the summer, this time) and heat up spaghetti (home made, from the freezer at home) for dinner. Tonight is the second semi-final of the Eurovision song festival, should be entertaining!
Febe writes 