White asparagus

We are back in Germany for a few days, and it is “Spargelsaison” (season for white asparagus). We have indulged a few times in this very German delicacy now, today with some baked salmon and boiled potatoes, wonderful.

Manchester again

We came to Manchester again yesterday to attend the wedding of the daughter of a highschool friend of Sheila’s. Last night we attended the colourful and noisy Mendhi, with lots of dancing (and men were invited too!). The wedding itself happens tomorrow very close to Manchester, so today we visited Jessica and her family. Sheila, Jessica and I went to an escape room this morning, we had to solve puzzles to find gold and coal in a Wild West setting. We managed to escape in 58 minutes. Great fun and a first for Sheila and me.

This afternoon we attended a school party for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee with the grandkids, and we even got a bit of sunshine for the occasion. Tonight it is off to our favourite seafood restaurant in the area.

The Wild West gang

Jubilee picnic

Summer in Siegelbach

We had a great time in Paris, and now are back at my parents again for a few days. The weather is hot and sunny, wonderful for enjoying their beautiful garden.

Siegelbach

We came to Siegelbach to visit my parents. My mother was in hospital for a few days, but came back today and is well again. The weather is sunny and hot, like summer. We are enjoying our time visiting and sitting in the garden.

Family visit

We came to Manchester yesterday to visit the kids and grandkids. The weekend is busy with shopping and playing with the grandkids and going out with the whole gang. Fortunately, the weather is quite nice and we can enjoy the nice garden.

London

We flew to London overnight and are now enjoying nice spring weather with Andrea.

 

View from Andrea´s balcony on a nice spring day

Merry Christmas

We are in Germany and get our presents tonight. Despite travel restrictions we managed to get 11 people together and celebrate Christmas Eve. Merry Christmas to all and a blessed new year.

Christmas on Zoom again

We came to Germany to celebrate Christmas with the family. Unfortunately the Omikron variant is making life difficult. The children and grandchildren are not allowed to travel from the UK to Germany as of tomorrow, and travel from the US is also uncertain. We rented an apartment in Siegelbach with 5 bedrooms and a very large dining table, which seems a bit empty now. Fortunately, there should be enough local relatives to fill all the seats at the table, and celebrate on Zoom with the others. Like every year?

Bernice Snook, 1928 – 2021

Sadly, after a very short illness, Sheila´s 93-year-old mother died of cancer on 9th December. She spent the final week of her life in a hospice, where she received kind and gentle care. Both of her brothers, our sister-in-law, and two grandchildren were with Mom when she passed away. Sheila was able to speak to her by phone a couple of hours before she passed, as were our daughters. Mom was too weak to speak, but Sheila´s brother told us that she smiled as we were speaking to her.

Hamburg

Sheila and I spent the last 10 days in Hamburg as I had to undergo some cancer surgery at the Martini Klinik here. It all went well, but I will take a few weeks to recover fully. For the anaesthesia I had to shave my beard, which is growing back nicely. From all we know, the stuff the surgeon took out is fortunately very unlikely to grow back.

The weather has been cold, grey and wet. Today it got quite windy. Both of us look forward to going back to Mallorca tomorrow to enjoy some sunshine.