Maria Laach Abbey

10/19/12

We left Cochem & drove about an hour to the Maria Laach Abbey (founded in 1093), which Chris' German tutor highly recommended, & I'm so glad she did.  It is a beautiful church on beautiful grounds.  Pictures were not allowed inside the church.  

The Benedictine monks there do amazing things to keep the place up & running.  For instance, they have a forge & make beautiful things, & they have a garden center to rival Orchard nursery in Lafayette.  The plants are so vibrant & healthy-looking.   Here are some pictures of the succulent area & then some little colorful peppers.  

I especially liked this sculpture of either an angel of Jesus, I'm not sure.  Here it is front & back.  Are those supposed to be wings?  

Here's a nice fountain just inside the courtyard of the church:

I like this one of Jesus carrying the lamb on his shoulders:

The fall colors are coming out, & the trees at the Abbey were so pretty.

We went into the church, the organ was playing & it felt so reverent in there.  This is Dave entering:

The drive from the Abbey to Bad Hamburg was about an hour and a half, so we arrived at Dana & Chris' house in the mid afternoon.  Now, we're waiting for Chris & the kids!  It's so nice to be back with family again.  Dana's making a special German dish for dinner: Spaezle, a kind of pasta, homemade, no less.  Using the noodles, she'll layer caramelized onions, swiss cheese & ham slices & bake it just to warm through & melt the cheese.  A German lasagna, sort of....Smells delicious.  

Looking back on our 10 day jaunt, I'd say we allowed too much time in "cute little German towns."  It's kind of our inside joke, "Oh, another cute little German town," we say to each other as we stroll the streets.  For instance, three days in Cochem was too much.  There just wasn't enough to do, so thank goodness for our Kindles, lovely scenery & several card games!  Relaxing & enjoying the people was part of the fun.  I think one day & one night in the small towns would have been enough.  Bruges was our favorite place we saw in the last 10 days. 

Now to the kids!  They're home!

THOUGHT OF THE DAY:  It's nice to be home again.  Home is where family is......