Adventures in Deutschland: Day 27 - Ooooohh We're Half Way There.... (and the Farmer's Market)

Saturday marked the half-way point for our time here in Germany. I would like to say that it has gone fast, but at this point I honestly feel like we've been here longer than just one month. I've enjoyed the slower-paced life where cleaning up "everything" can only take 10 minutes because we have such few belongings and they are gathered into one small room and where tv and cell phones are out of our reach. It's a very quiet life. Of course, I am thankful for our iPod and the internet, without which I might go crazy. Last week I had my first instance of missing my car. It was after a very long, sweaty walk down to the train station.

Saturday also afforded me the chance to wander around the city's Saturday Farmer's Market, which was magnificent. I was particularly excited because I got to go alone while Therese stayed home with Todd :-). It felt so different walking around without the weight of the diaper bag and without being hunched over a stroller. The best part was getting to wander aimlessly through the streets, taking my time looking at items without having someone demanding a treat or to drive her own stroller. The market itself is set up in the Marktplatz right outside of the church. It hosts booths as far as the eye can see filled with fruits and veggies. There were some bakeries, butchers, flower booths, cheese booths, and booths with 20 or so types of olive salads scattered throughout as well. I would come to the end of a row of booths only to find more rows to my right and my left. Amazing. There was a section for little kids with small trampolines to jump on and little paths of different textures (sand, stones, etc.) to walk on along with cookies to eat and water to drink. Further in the market there was another section for older kids with games like throwing a ball to knock over cans and decorating your own cupcake. I even saw a little maze that was raising money for kids in Africa to learn English. It didn't draw as much attention as the German rapper singing about Iran that we saw in Konstanz, but it was still a good effort. Anyhow, the games and activities were not the only items adding to the festive atmosphere of the market. There were also bands playing throughout the day in major areas and single instruments being played (flute, etc.) in more minor parts. People would just stop and listen to the music, cheering them along. My favorite was watching some middle schoolers play the old Pee Wee Herman song and shout "Tequila!" :-).

It was at this farmer's market that I made a huge discovery. When discussing our summer in Germany with Therese's pediatrician, her doctor got really excited because she had lived in Germany for a year a while back. She mentioned (multiple times) how much we would enjoy the bread and fresh preserves, how truly wonderful they are. Until Saturday, I hadn't really seen fresh preserves, only the prepackaged big label types. Now I'm a believer. At a non-descript stand in the middle of the market I decided to buy a jar of blueberry preserves with a home made label. Wow. That's all I can say. I also indulged in a loaf of fresh baked bread (until this point I had really only gotten fresh rolls). We went through an enormous loaf and a half jar of the preserves in a day and a half.