Between the end of January and mid-February, our family has three birthdays to celebrate, so we have been quite busy exploring new places. We already talked about Susan’s birthday trip to Brussels, where we ate delicious food and toured the beautiful city full of amazing architecture and sights.
The next trip was for Curtis. We had a two-day surprise for him in Oberhausen, where the first day we went to an aquarium and the second day we went to a Legoland Discovery Center. In Fort Wayne, we went to the zoo often, which has an aquarium exhibit, but since moving to Germany, we have only been to the Frankfurt Zoo once back in September. So it has been awhile since the boys were surrounded by cool and exciting creatures, and the aquarium in Oberhausen is awesome! There are many exhibits and tanks to discover, and under the main tank, there is a shark tunnel where we watched the sharks, eels, and many other fish swim around us. And as for the second day, the boys LOVED the Legoland Discovery Center. In the Discovery Center, there are a couple rides, a very impressive Lego model of places in Germany, a huge indoor playground, and tons of games and activities with Legos. The kids had a blast, and Curtis had a very happy birthday.
The day we drove back from Oberhausen was actually Eric’s birthday, so on the way, we stopped in Cologne (Köln) and visited the Cologne Cathedral, which has always been on Eric’s bucket list to see. The Cathedral is the tallest twin-spired church in the world, the second tallest church in Europe, and the third tallest church in the entire world. It is hard to describe just how massive the Cathedral is, and the architecture and beauty inside and outside are stunning. Eric, Curtis, and Samuel climbed the bell tour and overlooked the city (and experienced the deafening bells as they rang for divine service), and then they went to the church’s treasury and saw many historical artifacts and part of the Roman wall on which the Cathedral rests. After visiting the Cathedral, we ate an all-you-can-eat pancake buffet and tried several different combinations of pancakes and toppings.
Since Eric’s birthday happened during Curtis’ birthday surprise, we decided to have another trip the next week specifically for Eric. One of his dream cities to visit has been Dresden, so we drove across Germany to the capital of Saxony and explored the Dresdner Zwinger, the Theaterplatz, the Schlossplatz, the Kathedrale Sanctissimae Trinitatis, the Fürstenzug, and the Frauenkirche. Eric also stopped by the Dresdner Molkerei Gebrüder Pfund, which was founded in 1880. Dresden is a wonderful city and among our favorite places in Germany! Before heading back to Oberursel, we went to Frankfurt an der Oder to visit one of Susan’s friends and her family. Along the way, we drove through Lübben, where Paul Gerhardt ministered and eventually died. In Frankfurt (Oder), Susan’s friend took us to Wildpark, where the boys got to feed and pet many different animals. It was quite funny when the deer followed us begging for more food! On the way home to Oberursel, we made a quick stop over the bridge from Frankfurt (Oder) to visit Poland, and then we stopped at Leipzig to see the Thomaskirche where Bach was the Kantor. A saxophone choir was playing chamber music as we toured the church, which added to the beauty and atmosphere.
We are very blessed to have the chance to celebrate our family’s birthdays in such exciting and interesting places. We are looking forward to spring and the coming warm weather as we enter the second half of our year in Germany!
Add comment
Comments