Banbury, Bekonscot, Oxford

We have just spent a couple of busy days with Trish, Clive and the kids.

Day one was a trip to Banbury shops and a drive down the M40 to Bekonscot Model Village. Beconscot has been around for 80 years, and features 1.5 acres of 1:12th scale models. Most importantly for James, it also includes over 10 miles (at 1:12th scale) of fully operational model trains. The railway layout even has its own switch box and control room. James was in heaven!

Day two was a trip by train to Oxford. We walked around the town, soaking up the atmosphere then spent some time around the college campuses. To be honest, I would have liked more time in the university precint, but there is only so much you can expect from the children. By the time we got back to Banbury, they were pretty tired. But 'respect' to them, they were troopers all throughout a very long day.

After Oxford we wrapped up with a quick dinner of fish and chips, then packed up the car and headed for our next stop, which is Wellingborough and its surounds.

On the Road Again

I'm sitting at Stuttgart airport, waiting for our flight to England with mixed feelings. We had a fantastic 5 days with our good friends the Triolo family, so it's very sad to be leaving them behind but exciting to be on the way to England. Sandwiched into Nina's car (which we named Hugh - don't ask), we covered a lot of ground, laughed till we cried and seemed to eat our way across Germany...

So Auf Weidersehen Triolo's!

Next up, visiting relations (Trish, Clive Jazzie and Kyle) in Banbury, near Oxford.

Beuren outdoor museum

Just spent a great morning at the Beuren Freiichtmuseum. Original buildings from all around the region have been relocated and restored to original condition and located so it shows what a historic village would look like.

Think Sovereign Hill with class...

Now, as usual, we are on the hunt for coffee cakes and ice cream ;-P

Pictures to follow.

Schloss Lichtenstein and the bobbahn

On Sunday we took a trip about an hour out of Stuttgart to Schloss (castle) Lichtenstein. We took a picnic lunch and lazed in the sun beforewe went in to look around,which was very idillic. The forest around the castle is very dense and 'European' compared to the bush in Aus.

Lichtenstein translates to 'light stone'. The castle is over 800 years old, originating in the 12th century. It's been knocked down and rebuilt in various times, like most of these old places, but is still in amazing condition. We got to see old suits of armour, beautiful detailed carvings, historic paintings and the most amazing scenery from the castle down to the valley below.

After the castle, we found a nice cafe and knocked back some coffee, cake and ice cream for the kids. The wheat field beside the cafe was to die for,so I managed to cajole James and Lauren into a quick roadside portrait...

The last stop before heading homewas teh Sonnemuhle Bobbahn (toboggan run). There is one in Merimubula very much the same,but this was better because it was longer, faster and also the one we were at, if you know what I mean...

To wrap up the day we had a traditional Schwäbische dinner made of 'maultaschen' (think large ravioli and you're heading in the right direction).Tehy are traditionally made in large batches and froZen, then cooked in various ways. We had them fried up,and also served in a broth. Both delicious.

Teutonic splendor and the GoldGeldBlitzen...

We occupied our Saturday morning with a visit to Esslingen, which is a short drive from Stetten. It's an original walled village with old fashioned German buildings in very good condition. Of course, it also has some very modern shops, so there was something for everyone.

Nina'a friends Amil and Michaela generously offerred to come along, which solved the problem of having one too many people to fit into Nina's car. After some retail therapy we had lunch at an Asian restaurant - ever tried to order Asian food when the descriptions are in German? Very amusing.

We wrapped up the afternoon with an ice cream (ordered very inexpertly by Moi - a source of great amusement) and a stop at the playground. No lederhosen, but you could alomost hearthe oompah band in you head.

Of course we were still getting over the jetlag so a nanna nap was a necessary exercise in the afternoon.






We had big plans to attend the 'GoldGeld' festival in the evening. In essence, GoldGeld (literally translates to Yellow Gold) is a big party in a field on a Sunflower farm, to celebrate the end of the harvest. These festivals are held all over the countryside at this time of year. There was much excitement about the propect of seeing a band perform Queen covers.

Unfortunately, there was less excitement about the rain and thunderstorm that arrived about 20 minutes after we did. At first we tried to tough it out under umbrellas, but the rain just got harder, and standing in a flield under a lightening rod in a storm is less than appealing. So we took our remaining beer and trudged back to the cars, getting more and more soaked. By the time we got back to the cars, we were all so wet that some of us had to strip down to underwear before we could get in the car.
But we made a night of it back the Triolo residence on Kanstrasse,over a bottle of wine and some old CD's.

Jetlagged in Stuttgart

We have just arrived in Stuttgart.

Our great friend Nina collected us from the airport and ferried us to her beautiful home in rural Stetten.We dropped past the bakery to stock up on sweet and savoury pastries, and have just pushed back our chairs with full stomachs.

Many of my favourite memories from our last visit are of eating and drinking around the dining room table. 13 years have passed, but somethings have stayed the same...

Ladies and Gentlemen your flight is now ready for boarding

Well, the bags are largely packed, the tickets are on hand, boarding passes printed, currency exchanges dealt with.

In a few hours we are off the airport, which is the first tangible sign we are on our way, but also the first challenge:

• Eight bags
• Three flights
• Two layovers
  
• 12 boarding passes
• One baggage transfer
• Total travel time - 25 hours, not including transit to teh airport and waiting around before we fly. Add that in and it's 28 or so.
  
• 2 children to keep occupied
• 4 very cramped economy seats

But we'll be right, it will all be over before we know it!

Have a great month while we are away, and we'll be in touch right here, on Odyssey d'Ambry.