From Drudgery to Delight

 Biking the Rhine

 Ringhotel Dressen on the Rhine

 German pastries and pretzels

Straumberger Hof Restaurant on the Rhine

From Drudgery to Delight

 Commissary shopping has always been drudgery for me.  Tom and I have fooled the system.  Since Schinnen is one hour away, and Bonn is another hour away, we have a new routine.

This week-end we drove to Bonn after work on Friday.  We booked a room right on the Rhine, Ringhotel Dressen.  It's rather famous:  even Hitler spent the night there.  Also all the German chancellors since WWII.  It's loaded with history, but now since the capitol is in Berlin, the hotel is in our price range.  Yipee.

We walked along the river and found a restaurant called Straumberger Hof.  Fabulous German food.  Spetzle, pork in mushroom sauce, fresh vegetables.  One of those meals where it's a chore to talk because you want to concentrate on your tastebuds doing cartwheels.

The next morning we walked into Bad Godesberg, and ate a pastry from one of the millions of bakeries.  Walked up to Bad Godesberg Castle where Tom remembers as a young boy fresh from Ohio tasting a German cake in this old castle and thinking "hey, I think I'm going to like it here!"  

Then we rented bikes from the hotel for half the day.  Biked into Bonn and enjoyed walking the pedestrian shopping lanes.  Bought fresh berries from the market.  Also the mandatory bratwurst.

Okay, then the ride to the commissary and shopping and home to unload.  

Don't you think that scenario is sooooo much better?  (This was our second time and I hope we never change this routine!)