Lindau

After five years, I finally got to go back to Lindau! I couldn't have the family visit without showing them where it all began - the reason I'm studying German at all. Lindau is a small island town on the eastern corner of the Bodensee (aka Lake Konstance) with picturesque views of the mountains rising over the lake. Going back was so interesting: back in the day, Lindau seemed huge and foreign. Now that I speak the language, and now that I've been in Germany for a semester, Lindau is not at all threatening and actually quite small. In the two days we were there, the family and I managed to wander through the entire city twice on foot. We didn't do much besides that, except relax at the Strandbad - a swimming pool that's right on the lake - and have ice cream, followed by dinner, with Helena. Helena is our former exchange student, the one that I came to visit the first time around. The last time we all saw her, her English was shaky at best and my German was nonexistant. This time, communicating was much easier, and she was much more comfortable with the family. We talked about everything, from geography to the time a bird "shit on her head" (something she never would have said the last time we saw her!).

After only one lovely night in Lindau, we took the autobahn back to Freiburg, driving through the Schwarzwald (the Black Forest) and the scenic hills.

The view from our adorable balcony at the hotel (Hotel Reulein). The hotel lost our reservations at first, but found them after some hunting. They also had an awesome breakfast.

Lindau

Crazy painted facadesFamily! Nice bunny ears, Dad. While I was taking this a guy came up and gave me bunny ears, too.

The famous lighthouse and lion

Mom, enjoying the water

The storm clouds, which were ever present but stayed (thankfully) over Austria

Medieval towns were not made for 6 foot tall individuals

...or even 5'10 individuals

Chris being Chris. We had a rule in our house waaay back when that went something like "Chris shall not hurt Mommy." Maybe we still need that rule.

Pat

Blue steel?

At the Strandbad

Pat

Chris

Getting rid of their farmer's tans

Lindau looks just the same as it did 5 years ago. Probably even 50 years ago. The tower in the middle is one of the old medieval towers - there are two that I know of in Lindau.

Helena and me!

The sunset and our drive back to Freiburg. The Schwarzwald is stunning.

Those spots? Those are bugs on our windshield. But the scenery is lovely.