The girls were on a 4 day weekend (JP got Monday off), so JP & AAs jumped in the car (more like, they packed food, clothes, and the dogs into the van – which took an inordinately longer amount of time than molasses dripping from a tree in January), and drove the 5 hours south to Málaga.
JP got a super great deal (really cheap 1 bedroom), practically right on the beach.
Well, close to the beach
You could open the window, see and hear the waves
Technically this wasn’t actually in Málaga. We were about 30km outside of Málaga, in a tiny seaside town called Caleta de Velez.
Don’t look it up
You’ll blink and miss it.
Did I mention it was windy?
So windy Inqueue moved around, not of her own volition.
JP’s hat has an adjustable string to tie it down, and that got blown off.
Suffice to say, wimbdy!
We at some Italian dinner in a German owned restaurant on the southern coast of Spain.
The equivalent of having kosher Chinese food made by a Mexican being overseen by a Jew who’s never eaten treyf (unkosher food).
Mediocre, but they let us bring the dogs into the restaurant (a crazy thing that could never happen back home, but seems to be a constant all over Europe).
Next we spent nearly an hour combing the beach looking for sea glass.
Green. Blue. Red (or pink). Yellow.
It was a fun game and the girls were happy to explore.
By the time the sun went down, it dropped about 4 degrees (in celcius, that’s a lot), so we trundled back to the apartment, the girls got cleaned, and snuggled together as they passed out.
JP wrote some blog posts, redid the family cards, ordered Ezra a new motorcycle battery, and then passed out!
Hasta la playa!
While back in the Windy City, Elyce and Vered went to Felix’s Bar Mitzvah Party. Not nearly as windy as Spain. 🙂
Afterwards we walked around Hyde Park, took the Metra and “L” trains back home.
Vered saw some interesting items under the train tracks. There has to be a sad child somewhere out there.
Did some “window” shopping downtown, we made it back to an empty house. Mayrav and Ezra went to visit Bubbie and Zadie. That’s another day for us.
Vered and Elyce were flying back home because Vered’s best friend was becoming Bat Mitzvah, and Vered wanted to be there.
The airport in Madrid is HUGE! We thought we arrived with plenty of time, little did we know we would have to go down 4 sets of escalators, take a tram to another section of the terminal we were in and show our passports many, many times. And go to the far end of the terminal. Of course we are at the far end, we are always at the far end.
Wait which passport?? Which line do we go in? The airport staff sent us to a line that was almost non-existent (are we really supposed to be in this line?). Yes, yes we are, it’s a family line. You read that correctly, Spain has separate lines for security purposes just for families. No rushing, no making people behind you angry because you are traveling with children, just a calm line where people care to help.
We are traveling on our German passports since landing in December so it made sense that was to be used. Of course it was, up until we boarded our plane. Holding them in my hand, they sent us out of the boarding group line and to the desk. Not sure why, but it was nothing major they just looked at our US passports, told me to use them and sent us onto the plane. Okay!
We had a rather uneventful flight, which we are not complaining about. Elyce watched 3 movies, Vered watched 4. We watched one or two of them “together” on our own seat back screens. However, Elyce fell asleep and Vered did not. The airplane food was actually edible and was enjoyed.
CTA for the win! Why spend lots of money when you can spend less than $5 to get from O’Hare home? It was a little chilly outside but we brought sunshine back with us. So we were okay, besides we knew our winter jackets were in the house.
Not sure which one of us was happier to get an Ezra hug.
Unfortunately, Ezra had a double ear infection and was feeling blah the first few days we were home. However it meant we got more time with him, since he was not going to work.
Mayrav also flew home today. Vered was very excited to not only have time with both of her older sisters but to go to the climbing gym. What a lucky girl. 🙂
So the 4 of us were home together. (some how I didn’t take a photo)
Back in Spain, JP is now solely responsible for the youngest Jawas!
AAs FTW!
Since it was only about 10 in the morning, they decided to drive into Madrid and find the synagogue, some food, and maybe something culturally interesting.
The airport is a massive complex, and about 45 minutes from downtown, and downtown itself is a massive web of above and below ground roads. Thank goodness for GPS, but still, the city is a large sprawl of new and old, streets that weave in and out of neighborhoods, construction that sometimes appears to be at a standstill, while other times traffic that flows faster than the Niagara falls.
Driving around the city, we couldn’t find parking (it was our first time here), and 1 garage actually told us our minivan was too big. He was very apologetic and helped me reverse out of the alley (only about 20m), and we discovered that the hospital has parking for larger vehicles. Not only that, the garage also has relatively clean bathrooms, so:
PITSTOP!
Next we walked a few blocks and found the Communidad Judia de Madrid (aka the Madrid Jewish Community), and asked some questions about nearby food, sabbath requirements, et al. The security here is pretty tight, and we will have to share passports if we want to come back. Most likely it will have to wait until everyone is back, because finding a hotel or airbnb in the neighborhood for a shabbat isn’t easy or cheap!
Leaving the synagogue, we found a couple of kosher options, including the local kosher store. They had sausages, chicken, wine, soup, candy, meat, etc. We got a little of this and some of that in preparation for Shabbat and upcoming meals.
We next walked around the neighborhood, found a cute little restaurant that was only just opening up. The owner invited us in, and was very sweet as we ordered a simple meal, talked about the global and local politics, and the world at large.
After a lovely little lunch, we returned to the car, drove through Madrid and saw some amazing sculptures and statues, then headed back to our home in Recas.
The house has a trampoline, so the girls unwound for a bit jumping, playing games, and getting used to the house, while JP got setup for working, and comfortable with the house. The dogs got to run around the yard and really get a feel for the space.
He also made pizza dough for the first time ever, and did pretty well. Everyone ate well!
Leaving Dos Rius relatively early (we were out by 0930, which has to be a new record for us), we made our way from Barcelona to Madrid. Our home for the next 3 weeks is going to be a little town south of Madrid, just north of Toledo, called Recas.
Truthfully, it’s going to mostly be JP and the AAs home, as Elyce and Vered will only spend 2 nights total here.
The drive was mostly just long.
One gas station where we stopped, JP saw the unbelievable 5 L virgin olive oil, for 39.95 Euro. That’s about 60% cheaper than anything we’d seen, stateside or in France or Germany. I guess the Spaniards have been selling olives to the Italians for centuries, and there’s a reason it’s so good here!
Overall the drive was uneventful, and we got into our apartment relatively early.
Our host lives in Madrid with her family, but the house we’re renting is where she grew up. Her parents still live in the upstairs apartment, and we’re staying on the first floor. It’s approximately 900m^2 , and there’s a lot of outdoor space (pool – but it’s empty because it’s still winter, trampoline, ping pong table, etc). Indoors it’s 3 bedrooms and 1.5 bathrooms.
The dogs can run around outside, the grounds are fully enclosed, we get a remote control to open the gate and park the car inside the yard (we’re the only ones doing that, as the parents don’t drive).
Getting in, we unloaded, got to work and school, then ran to the grocery and picked up some quick stuff to make dinner.
Later, JP drove out to a nearby town to get gas, because of course this town doesn’t actually have a diesel pump.
While out, he got blocked in by a parade of tractors. Turns out, farmers drove from all over the country-side into Madrid, in their tractors, to protest the government trying to force them to inject something into the cattle to reduce methane.
We’re talking thousands of tractors, from farms all over, driving into the already congested city.
The city is 45KM away.
That’s about 1,5+ hour drive for these guys going 20 KPH.
But they did it, and made their point!
Eventually JP got home, back to work, got everyone to bed, and now we’re ready for sending Vered and Elyce away for a few weeks.
Friday was a standard working day for JP, but he managed to get the girls to clean, he cooked up a few meals for Shabbat, and brought in the sabbath with trampoline jumping, dogs running around, and a Lord of the Rings movie!
Most of the sabbaths, we’ve been able to get to a syngagogue, however there is absolutely nothing within walking distance of Recas. JP and the girls made due with trampolines, dog walks, eating, and more trampoline. And thanks to the Hadar publications, a bit of Torah study was achieved!
After Shabbat, JP somehow convinced both girls to get in the car and drive to Toledo. It’s only about 17 minutes from door-to-door, almost all highway driving, and it’s dark out.
Driving through the countryside, you don’t see much, until the highway bends and then, suddenly, the castle and old city of Toledo shows up. At night, the old city is glowing in a beautiful way, full of history and cautionary tales.
It was also jam packed and clogged.
WTF
It was supposed to be a sleepy night. Quiet and calm. Easy to get in and out.
Just getting into the city took forever (ok, maybe it was only 15 minutes, but it feels like a long time), and we honestly had no clue where we were going.
Right off the highway, though, is a really cool sculpture (Escultura ecuestre de Alfonso VI) that has Hebrew, Spanish
Somehow JP drove in enough circles and hairpin turns up steep, steep hills, only to find the road narrowed so much, we had to pull in the mirrors on both sides to squeeze through.
Honestly, it was probably for the best that Elyce wasn’t with us. This would have sent her into conniptions.
We managed to find a parking spot in a garage at the bottom of the hill, and then we rode an escalator (actually it was several escalators) up to the old city. The view was gorgeous (albeit dark), as you looked out over the northern part of the city.
Inside the old city, there was a lot going on, and we walked from the edge into the center, where there was a massive Carnivale celebration happening. Lots of people dressed up in costumes, it was like Halloween! Some costumes were very clever, others were mildly entertaining, and some were just trite.
We did find our gelato shop, and armed with frozen milk sugar ice, we went back to the central area and watched a great band with lots of dancers, acts, and songs. It was entertaining, but it as also late. After being in Toledo for an hour, we headed back to the car and back home.
All in all, it was a fun adventure.
¡Buenas noches!
Meanwhile back in Chicago, Elyce and Vered enjoyed a slower adventure. We are not sightseeing in a place we have not been. We are home and “relaxing”. Maybe that’s not completely true, but it’s close. Grocery shopping, more grocery shopping a and school work, talking with siblings was most of Friday morning. After lunch we packed an overnight bag and headed to Hyde Park.
This was a planned surprise for all of Vered’s former classmates. Only a handful of people knew we returned earlier. Huge Thank you to MFP (some day I will write her name out completely but does any one outside her family call her by her first name?), Stefanie (I think I spelled it wrong), Julia, Linguini, and the cat/kittens. We had a lovely quiet and relaxing Shabbat dinner.
Saturday morning we got ourselves up and out to celebrate Felix’s Bar Mitzvah. SURPRISE to all of Vered’s friends! None of them knew, not sure Felix knew (Stina and Reed did) either. Thank you to all for keeping it a secret. Vered was so happy to see everyone. Felix did a fabulous job! After Shabbat we got a ride back home. Also very much appreciated and super unnecessary.
Vered, Ezra and I watched a movie. My father would be so proud Ezra got Vered into Bond, James Bond. 🙂
One of the craziest parts of being in Spain, after almost 2 months of being abroad, is being in a country where you understand, and can be understood by, everyone!
Well, at least JP could. With nearly 30 years of Spanish, JP was in his element, and everyone was happy to talk, chat, share news and suggestions. Overall, just a refreshing time
JP got out early with the dogs and saw the steam rising over Dosrius! The town is a cute little place, with plenty of side-streets that all lead back to the main church.
While walking, he found a guy who listens to his radio every morning, chilling, looking over the main “circle/intersection” of Dosrius.
I guess if I’d been working for 2-3 hours and wanted to take a break and watch the sun rise and the town come alive, this would be the place to do it.
We struck out early enough to sit in some fun rush our traffic. Today was our day to visit the Pablo Picasso museum.
If you want a place that gives you his history, the evolution of his art, and the ways in which his artistic mediums changed, this is it.
Almost the entire complex of buildings (it seems like 6 were all stitched together) were dedicated to Picasso and his art. There were some other artists highlighted and listed, yet they weren’t a distraction, more like an enrichment.
Through the entire exhibit you can see why Picasso is a master.
Just incredible!
In the gift shop we even saw the piece that inspired Eema’s needle point.
After our museum tour, we walked through some parts of Barcelona, scoring some tasty strawberry gelato.
We walked through squares that held some old cathedral, and ventured around some artsy, overpriced shops.
And then the rumbly tumbly hangry children needed fooooooooood!
Stopping in the equivalent of a food court, we saw beautiful displays of fish, meats, household goods, baked goods, etc. We bought one of the best baguettes and had them slice it. Then we grabbed a couple wedges of sliced Manchego cheese, and this was an incredible snack for the ride home. The below shots are of some incredible looking, non-kosher sea food. The displays were beautiful!
Back at the house we ate, worked, built a fire, drank some cider, and relaxed. Tomorrow was another early morning and long drive, so let’s go!
Leaving early in the morning, we just wanted to burn rubber and get away from this apartment.
We also wanted a macaron!
Good luck finding patisseries open Sunday morning. JP had mapped a couple in Lyon, but nothing was open.
We did find a Braille memorial. Turns out, there’s a big braille memorial here.
Instead he found something, we stopped and loaded up on sweets, and then left France
Well, we drove
And drove
Stopped for some food in Montpellier and met ET, the Mario Bros, and a tiny, itty, bitty car
Arriving in the town of Dos Rius, we were greeted by our host, a lovely musician and previous occupant of our AirBnB. He grew up in this house, and there was definitely a complete element of people still living here.
DVDs, a library, comfy furniture, a piano (hallelujah), a swimming pool (brrr), and a couple of fire places.
We got comfy and JP almost immediately built a fire.
In the morning, JP took the dogs on a long walk and discovered the remnants of an old fort. He probably should’ve turned back, but it was definitely the road less traveled, and the dogs always love good long walks!
Leaving for the morning, we drove first to a nearby town Mataró, and went right to the beach.
This may be the most tragic part of the trip so far. Though the girls had a great time running around, and sea water, and beach time, Ayelet also lost her camera 😥
Lesson learned, pay attention to your belongings.
From Mataró we drove out to Barcelona to get some lunch. There’s a kosher shop, and we wanted to walk around a bit, so JP found some parking garage, and we did just that: walked around.
There’s a lot of artist shops, kitsch stores, and whatnots.
The food was ok, but the seagulls attacking people for their food in the open-air food court was way more entertaining. Sadly we watched at least one person have their entire meal snatched by the birds.
By the way: birds aren’t real (dot com)
We left Barcelona to get back in time for work and school.
I mean, a real donkey, braying at full blast, in the mountains of France, at 7 in the morning?
No?
Let me tell you, it’s amazing. It is like nothing you’ve ever heard before.
One summer JP lived across the street from a zoo and could hear them feeding the lions in the morning. This had nothing on that.
Holy wow are they loud.
Like Indy-500-practicing-for-carburetion-day loud (this might only be something someone who grew up close enough to the track would understand).
The beautiful mountain top town of Courzieu is so damn beautiful!
We originally were planning to leave on Thursday and hightail it Barcelona on Thursday, but we decided to stay in Lyon for Shabbat (a larger Jewish population here v. in Barcelona). So we booked a weekend in the part of Lyon known as Villeurbanne (Urban village?)
Everyone packed up, JP worked the morning (Fridays are US hours), and at noon we left the mountain top (sad panda face) and drove into town.
It’s about 45 minutes into Lyon, and en route we stopped at Hyper Cacher to stock up.
This was our first kosher stop since Berlin, and it was really nice to load up on wine, some deli meat, and chicken.
Strangely enough, the vegan/vegetarian diet is ok, but once in a while it’s nice to eat a salami!
The meat here is fantastic! They even have a version like peperoni, and something else that’s really, really red. I think some of this actually comes in from Strasbourg, so that’ll be a town we visit another time.
JP made sure to call the bank before we checked out!
At the apartment, we discovered some less-than-pleasant features (bathroom ceiling had a hole in it that was taped over, but falling down), and a lack of amenities (dish soap, sponges, hand towels). Needless to say, we got in, unloaded and unpacked
Elyce is amazing and cleaned a lot of the kitchen to make it usable, then cooked a bunch of food while JP finished the workday. Sadly the girls weren’t quite as helpful as they could’ve been.
For Shabbat we opted to not go to Friday night services, leaving that for Saturday morning.
This shabbat was probably the most sincere, lovable, and incredible Shabbat we’ve had yet!
We managed to get out and to the synagogue relatively early.
Security checked our bags, and then JP stayed downstairs while Elyce and the girls went upstairs.
Davening was heavily in the sephardic tradition, and today was a Bar Mitzvah, so we got to experience it. And this shul was packed!
Unlike our previous synagogue visits, this one was brimming with families, energy, excitement. The rabbi gave a speech, the bar mitzvah boy gave a speech, and then a special rabbi from another synagoge gave another speech. Shame it was all in French and we didn’t understand a lick of anything. But it was still awesome!
After services, there was a lovely kiddush with deli meat, herring, pickles, sandwiches, sushi, tuna thingies, egg thingies, sodas, whiskies, spiked lemonade, and even vodka with redbull. JP poured a drink for a random stranger, talked at length with the rabbi, and helped bring food out for Elyce (who was a bit overwhelmed by this all) and Avital (who was reacting to the sesame in the air).
After leaving the synagogue, we stopped nearby in a large plaza to let the girls run around and let off some steam. The Jawas immediately started growing a group of new friends while playing tag, and though nobody understood each other, it was fun to watch children being children.
About 15 minutes into sitting in the sunlight and recharding our Sabbath batteries, a family of 5 from shul walking by said hello and Shabbat Shalom (friendly greetings on the Sabbath). 2 minutes later, the husband came back and asked if we had lunch plans.
We didn’t
So they invited us back to their home
JP stopped to walk the dogs and feed them while Elyce and the jawas went back with the wife and other children.
Getting back to their apartment, we helped setup an impromptu meal, and spent the rest of the day learning about each other, their lives, children, families, etc.
This was, by far, the most hospitable shabbat we’ve ever had!
Near the end of Shabbat, we all went back to another synagogue where we had afternoon prayers, then a food break (the 3rd meal), and then the evening prayers.
We then went back to our new friends’ home, collected everyone, and then bid each other farewell after exchanging contact information and taking photos. We will absolutely stay in touch and come back! And they are certainly welcome to visit us anytime in Chicago!
Sorry, didn’t ask permission to post the adults faces.
Back at the apartment, we prepped for our departure. We had a long drive and we didn’t want to stay in this apartment any longer than necessary.
Some people have asked, and it feels appropriate to give an update.
How does Elyce feel?
This is a loaded question.
Emotionally, I am spent, excited, intrigued, reluctant, afraid, happy and everything else.
Physically, it is a bit of everything as well.
Looking at me from an outsiders’ perspective, you would think I am 100% recovered (never having dealt with a life-threatening neuro-invasive disease 17 months ago). For context, in September of 2024, I was stricken with West Nile Virus, and developed Meningoencephalitis (it is a serious, often life-threatening inflammation of both the brain parenchyma [functional tissue in the ole noggin] and its protective membranes [aka meninges]). I suffered from super high prolonged fevers, severe headaches, stiff neck, and altered mental status. I spent 6 weeks in a hospital and remember none of it.
The doctors said recovery from West Nile could take between 6-18 months.
17 months later and I am not 100%.
My new normal is not 100% of before.
My balance is still a little off
My vision still has its moments
I get dizzy if I move too fast,
I struggle to recall some words (though it is not clear if this is part of the recovery or perimenopause?),
Lack of focus
Loud noises for any length of time cause my body to shut down. (I know the youngest three children don’t help this).
Am I relying on JP a lot? Yes, I am.
Is that causing stress? Yes it does.
Are we making it work? Yes we are!
We are in a partnership and this is what you do.
Sometimes the jokes and humor may be a little crass…sometimes annoying…sometimes dark. But we are both here to support each other, and though he hates to admit it, he likes making sure I can still ensure I can put up a fight!
So…why did we still decide to travel?
Why not?
The doctors didn’t care (well, maybe the G.I. does). And JP was able to negotiate travel while working (digital global nomad).
But most importantly: we have talked about this for years, and we are finally in a place where it is actually possible.
So we are doing it.
Is it tough being not fully capable? You betcha!
I have not worked out, like truly worked out in a gym, for nearly 17 months. And I am feeling it.
I am stiff and slow moving, but still doing it.
Are the memories we are making worth it?
1,000,000%
I wouldn’t give this up for anything.
We love the small towns we have been staying in.
They are much easier for me to function, taking walks, being able to hear what is happening around me (no more hearing aids [for now]) and working on regaining the parts of my life that were temporarily lost.
We know that it’s a long road to recovery and the fact that I felt I could travel says a lot.
Not every day is great for me (physically or mentally). There are bad days and worse, good days and mad. Yet almost every day I notice something that in the Fall/Winter of 2024/2025, in the throes of my initial hospitalization and immediate recovery, activities I could not do, things that I can do now. This is a reminder of how far we have come.
Every day is a blessing, even if it is hard to see it in the moment.
Weird to say that, but alas, even JPs efforts to secure a visa are basically over. He finally got hold of someone in the local office who said they only grant resident permits inside the country. And to do that, we’d need to provide the children’s birth certificates, translated, and an apostille to verify it, as well as the marriage certificate, and other things. Honestly, this was much harder and more complicated than the visa the consulate in Chicago said to get.
Alas, plan B and/or C…
We packed the car for our first big journey!
Driving to Lyon, France. We thought we’d take the scenic route, skip the toll roads, and see the countrysides. But all that we got for avoiding the toll road was a 2 hour delay on our arrival time, and smellier bathrooms.
Crossing into France was probably the most anti-climactic event.
We crossed a river
That’s it.
Now signs are in a romance language JP can finally grok (mostly).
The stores are all the same, the speeds are still the same, and the euro is still in effect.
Essentially, new country, same patterns.
It was a long day, and we needed to get in early enough to work and do school.
The home we booked for a few days is actually outside of Lyon, in a cute, mountainous, foothills farming region. We stayed at the top of a curvy, goat-path hill, in the town of Courzieu, just west of Lyon by car about 40 minutes. Nothing like arriving while it’s raining, dark, and the car has to make hairpin 170 degree turns, uphill, on unlit roads.
Thankfully we got in, unloaded quickly, and got situated.
Only, the internet was down. The promised high-speed was out, and the owner apologized and offered to reimburse for us purchasing something to use while here.
JP quickly bought an eSim, and we had school and work for a day.
The next morning was absolutely brilliant and sunny and kinda warm. JP got up early enough to take the dogs for an extended walk, and ended up getting off the beaten path, up a high hill, through the forest, to discover a roman aqueduct!
Amazing!
Hidden, it looked like just a hole in the ground, but on closer inspection, you can see the amazing masonry that’s lasted over 2,000 years! Darth was impressed, Inqueue probably was licking a tree
Back to the house, and into town, we grabbed a train to Lyon.
Probably the most unprepared we’ve ever had in a day, we kinda forgot the spare battery, extra water, etc.
But we made it to Lyon.
What a gorgeous, beautiful, fresh, and open city.
The walking was very easy here, with a riverside walkway, we traversed the westside of the city, saw the Thomas Jefferson plaque (who knows, Elyce wanted to take a picture), and then we needed food.
There’s a lot of kosher here, so we got an excellent lunch, and discussing shabbat with the rabbi, he offered us to rent the apartment above the restaurant for shabbat. However we’d have to do something with the dogs, and we weren’t prepared to do that to them.
But it did spark a sense that we should stay in Lyon for shabbat (originally we planned to be in Barcelona). Later that night JP will postpone our Barcelona arrival, and will book a shabbat apartment on the other side of Lyon, near all the synagogues.
The rabbi also recommended getting a phone at a store nearby, so we walked through one of the main pedestrian malls, and it was beautiful to see so many people strolling about, chatting, having fun, eating, running, etc.
JP even stopped a random guy who was riding his own invention, a remote controlled battery operated roller skate!
How neat!
Back on the train, we rushed to make it back for meetings and class work before batteries died.
The following day, before leaving, we loaded the car with snacks the ole fashioned way, tossing clementines down a flight!
We also stopped in town at the bakery to get some sweets for later
Today was kind of open-ended, so we let the children play navigator. We found a dump, a river, a town that made Elyce super nervous about the steep hill we had to climb (yet somehow a tour bus made it through), and then we got into the other towns nearby.
JP wanted to pick up a tool for the car, something called and OBD2. It’s a little doo-hickey (yes, that’s the technical term) that you attach to the car, and can read out any issues, reports, or monitors it may say are wrong. So instead of seeing “Red Engine Light” and reading, “Engine Failure”, JP can now determine that the particulate matter filter is having a dandy day 🙁
Just a block away from the shop we stopped at is a Ferrari dealership. We tried to get in, but it was lunch time, and it seems some folks in Lyon like to have a siesta of their own.
Or, they saw the minivan, and locked the doors….
We returned to Courzieu, did some more grocery shopping (real exciting, we know), and back to work, face masks, and bed!
Tomorrow we head to Lyon for the sabbath, so this is our last night on the top of the mountains!
The rest of the week was pretty low key, but interesting. Elyce managed to participate in a couple of life events (birth of our friends son), and death of friend’s mother. Even from here we have the circle of life, with food in between!
And don’t forget the happy little garbage can that could:
We got some gelato, did some last-minute things in Kitzingen, and had our last Shabbat in Nuremberg.
Wait?
What?
Finally?
Our last???
Well, motzei shabbat (after the sabbath ended), JP contacted the car dealership, and after weeks of haggling, pleading, waiting, and frustration, the car was finally repaired, painted, and approved by the German authorities!
We have a car!
JP and Vered got on a train back to Nuremberg, and JP’s amazing new friend, Mr David Kuperman (you really should come visit him, bring a bottle of whiskey, and protect your ears from him biting).
David picked them up form the train station, and drove them 35 minutes into the wilderness of Germany, and basically left them at the dealership, with the car. The dealership had left the keys in the lockbox, and the car was across the street, basically sitting in a field, waiting for us!
After hugs, kisses, and goodbyes, JP and Vered sat in the car for about 30 minutes trying to figure everything out.
Finally, after not figuring out much, they started driving back to Kitzingen!
As mentioned earlier, in order to own a car in Germany, sure, you could just buy it, but to register it legally and get insurance, you can:
1. Be a citizen with a property and register it to your property (we don’t meet these qualifications) 2. Have a friend who could be #1 for you (we don’t meet these qualifications) 3. Start a company in Germany, follow all the regulatory rules, don’t hire any employees, but purchase assets, namely a car, and register it (we don’t meet these qualifications, either) 4. Use a company called CarTurf, who registers the car, and purchases the insurance, making your life a helluva lot easier (for this we qualify)
The only catch, the paperwork is in the car, and CarTurf is near Köln.
ROADTRIP!!!
We packed for 1 night, and drove to a town south of Köln, to stay on a veritable goat farm!
This place is adorable, out of the way, cheap, lovely host, modern, and absolutely astonishingly perfect.
The host herself studied animal farming, and is running her friend’s parents farm, rehabiilitating it from nothing back into a goat producing powerhouse. They also have some cows and pigs, but the 2 male cows are useless, and the female is “crazy”, so no milk from her.
The goats were also having babies, so we got to see baby goats.
Like, 4 hour old baby goats!!!
So new, they had the umbilical cord still attached!
Whoa!
Undeterred from the long drive, we decided at 9p to drive into the suburbs of Köln and get some dinner at a high-ranked vegan place. What an excellent choice. Food, bathrooms, drinks, everything was spectacular.
The next day we met up with CarTurf, JP gave them the papers, and they took our van and lent us their car, so we went to get breakfast and food at a nearby cafe.
Back at CarTurf, we spent some time going over paperwork, drinking coffee and hot chocolate, and getting ready for the rest of our adventures!
Back to the goat farm to get our stuff, we also made a deal with the host, that after we get the registration dealt with, we’d come back to the farm, and they would change and store our winter tires (an amazing deal, considering shops around Germany charge 100-150/year for this)
Done!
Now let’s get back to Kitzengen because we’re gonna blow this popsicle stand!!!
Shenanigans Crossing Borders 