Johannes was a few minutes early and we got away on time at
8 AM. We traveled generally west through Germany to Trier. The whole day was in
rural areas and we passed through and beside many small villages. Roads and
streets were winding and often fairly narrow, sometimes making it challenging
to pass opposite direction vehicles. The countryside was very pretty, a mix of
high forested hills separated by agricultural lands in the valley bottoms and on
the smaller rolling hills between the larger ones. Weather was good, mostly
sunny and warm with very little wind.
We visited the villages of Auen, Sien, Hoppstädten, Rhaunen,
Rapperath, and Berglicht, before reaching our hotel in Trier a little after 4
PM, more than an hour ahead of schedule. One of my biggest fears was keeping
close to the schedule with so many stops. However, our stops all went pretty
quickly. Our ancestors left these towns about 250 years ago. We do not expect
to find any trace of them in the cemeteries. The best you can hope for is to
learn whether the family name still exists in these places. After a quick run
through the cemetery and a peek at the church, we are back on our way in short
order.
For lunch we stopped at a grocery store which had a bakery
with pre-made sandwiches. Worked out well. For supper we all gathered in the
hotel lobby at 5 PM and walked a short distance to a place Johannes
recommended. For the second night in a row, schnitzel was a hot item. After
eating we wandered through the walking district. Some returned by 8 PM and others
stayed out a little later at a carnival.
Trier is the oldest city in Germany, built by the Romans in
about 100 AD.
The biggest challenge of the day came when Johannes had to
park the bus. We had to fold the mirrors in and he just squeaked through the entrance
to the parking area. The big challenge for tomorrow will be backing out! The
bigger bus isn’t always an advantage, but it was pretty comfortable today until
we had to park it.
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