Travelog for: Sylphide

6th January is Epiphany or Three Kings Day - that's what my hosts say, of course in German. Their children walk with the starsingers on two days around this day and this year it was the 5th and 6th January, that they walked.
At first they dress as the three kings and the star carrier and some little followers, who carry the bags. The children collect money for poor children all over the world and they receive a lot of sweets too. The adults prepare lunch for them and bring something to drink and eat to them, while they are walking from house to house. They also empty the bag, because these are getting really heavy. I saw some and have been very astonished, especially when we came back to the parish hall and I saw all these full bags, that the kids received at the end of the two days.
All toyvoyagers had been allowed to be with the children, while they sorted out their sweets in the livingroom. They all had a lot of fun. I believe, that this amount of sweets will last until next Christmas - like every year as my host said.

It rang at the door! What's going on? We heard, that a new toyvoyager will come to us soon. It this the new one???
We had to sit on the table in the livingroom until our host  fetched us and showed us a little package. We helped to unwrap it and do you know, who came out of it? It was Hoppity from the USA! Hoppity is a very cute bunny and we all fell in love with her at once.

Today Hoppity felt much better and so our host decided to walk to the baroque church St.Peter, which is next to the cemetery of Bruchsal.
You have a nice view from there.

After we left the cemetery, we walked to the backside of the house Sancta Maria, which was led by Sisters of the order of Franciscans. It is a catholic school for child care workers.

Today Petra wanted to walk somewhere and Ralf drove to the Letzenberg, where is a nice chapel.
The Letzenberg is a place of pilgrimage since 1296 A.D. It is told, that already then there stood a chapel. 1722 A.D. prince-bishop Damian Hugo Philipp, Graf (Count) of Schönborn collected for a chapel, but without success.
In the year 1903 A.D. the chapel was built and consecrated.

When we were there, we had some wonderful views over Malsch and the vineyards, too.
On our way home we watched a wonderful sunset.

At home again we saw the Christmas tree and crib in the livingroom. Our hosts told us, that sometimes they have the Christmas tree up until 2nd February.
The Feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple (also known as Candlemas or Feast of the Purification of the Virgin) celebrates an early episode in the life of Jesus. In the Roman Catholic Church, the Presentation is a feast celebrated on 2 February and is the fourth Joyful Mystery of the Rosary.

In the evening we said goodbye to Little Teddy and Nicki Bear, because both started their travel to the USA. They will stay with different hosts, so I'm sure, that they will be really lonesome in their boxes. I know it from my own travel to Germany.

A new guest arrived today. It is Ollie Marmot, who also is from the USA. We all helped to pull him out of his letter.
Then we had our first date for a group photo.

Bruchsal is a small city with about 27 000 inhabitants, with suburbs about 42 000. It was first named in 976 A.D.

The first place we visited was the Belvedere, which was a former hunting lodge. Now it is a place for summer outside theatre and summer feasts.




Next to the Belvedere is a lovely small park with beautiful trees. The grammar school, that is close by too, uses this park as playground.

This fountain is in the middle of the park.


When you walk out of the park, you have a wonderful view over Bruchsal. Of course we haven't had that wonderful weather.
From left to right you see the towers of the former castle called Bergfried, the tower of the city church "Unsere Liebe Frau" and of the Lutherkirche. The flat roof belongs to the new part of the older peoples' house.


On this photo you see the baroque church St.Peter and the house Sancta Maria, which are both close to the house, where I'm staying right now.


The house next to us with the flat roof and the white big house in the far is the older people's house. The grey house in the far on the left side is a private grammar school called St.Paulusheim.


Then we went to the palace of Bruchsal. It was completely destroyed during the second world war but rebuilt in the 70th.
Here you see a view to the gate Damianstor.


When you just turn around on the place you can see the mainbuilding of the palace on the right side. The left part is the church St. Damian and Hugo, where my hosts are going to service on Sundays. Behind the church you see the tower of the church.


This is the county court of Bruchsal.


Again turning around on the place you see the entrance to the mainbuilding.


We went into the church and I saw the nice crib. Unhappily the photo didn't come out well enough, but I hope, we will go there again and take another one.


In the church you can see some photos of the palace and church before and right after the war. The church was beautiful inside, but now it is only painted in white. Of course the costs would have been much too expensive to make everything as it had been before the war.




Here you see a photo of the palace area.


When we came out of the church, we looked back to the county court on the right and the Damianstor on the left side. Next to the Damianstor you maybe see a red thick tower, this it the tower of the jailhouse.


The  building in my back is the backside of the church. And you see the tower of the church, too.

It's carnival time, they call it the fifth season. Today was the carnival procession through the streets of Bruchsal. My host family met friends and then they stood in front of their house to watch the procession. We toyvoyagers didn't dress up today, but we will try to do it this coming week.
Here are a view impressions of the procession. Petra said, that it was just too much time between the groups, that came along the way.

After Petra came home from school, she asked us, whether we would like to go and see the nice view from top of the small hill called Michaelsberg, which belongs to Untergrombach, a suburb of Bruchsal.

The weather was foggy, so of course I couldn't see the Palatine mountains and very far into the Rhine valley. But at least I saw a part of Bruchsal in the far.


The quarry pond belongs to Untergrombach. Petra liked to swim there, when she was younger.


The houses you see on the right side belong to Untergrombach. It was getting dark rather quickly.


This is the nice chapel called "Michaelskapelle".


It was rather cold there and windy. So we hurried to go back to the car. We took the last photo, while sitting in the car. It is a view to another suburb of Bruchsal, Obergrombach. And you see the Kraichgau hill country. I saw it much better than you do on this photo. It was just too dark already.

Yesterday something scaring happened to me. I didn't think anything bad, just sat together with my toyvoyager friends and talked about our stay here and where we will go next and so.
Suddenly a hand grapped Hoppity and me. I looked at the face and I saw a really young captain Jack Sparrow. Shock!!!!



I needed a while until I was able to open my eyes and to look in that face again. Phew, was I happy to see, that it only was my hosts son, who was dressed up as Jack Sparrow for his school carnival.

The kids took us with them to the carnival procession in Karlsdorf, which is a small town near to Bruchsal. We asked them to take some photos with us, but it didn't work so well. Ok, maybe it was also our fault, because we always tried to jump into the photos.
Nevertheless we can see them here and some other photos with witches, which are very important for carnival in Germany and a music group, which plays Guggenmusik - a music, that you only can listen to but not explain and some more.

Today we had to say GOODBYE to Tenderheart Bear and Sylphide. They will travel to Pandamao in Munich now. We all are a little sad of course, but I think, that some others will go on with their travel soon, too.

Oh yes, I nearly forgot to tell you, that I had been so nervous, that I crawled into the wrong envie!!! Petra had to hold me and put me into the right box.

Goodbye, Sylphide.

It was great to have you here.
Have a nice time with Pandamao now.