Aachen, Germany

Well slap me silly and call me an international traveler! Today we decided to check out Aachen, Germany, and that means traveling though three different countries. I know! Three! Of course, that sounds a little more impressive than it actually is. We are situated on the very edge of Belgium, right beside the thinnest part of the Netherlands, so the entire trip took less an hour and a half. Still, it was a fantastic day, and my first trip into Germany.

I don't care how mature you say you are, I know for a fact that you giggled as soon as you read this sign. Ausfahrt is the German word for Exit. (I'm still giggling.)We followed Tom's advice, and he directed us to the center of Aachen. We were in luck, and they were having a big market in the town square today. Even with the rain, it was very popular with locals and tourists. This is Aachen Rathaus, or City Hall. The pictures don't do it justice, because it was absolutely beautiful. The details were amazing. Figures of emperors and kings that were crowned in Aachen are carved into the front of the building. Here is another view of the square, complete with market. The little street that is between the tan building in the center of the picture and the orange building, is the oldest street in Aachen.

I loved these gargoyles. I thought they were fantastic, but the family voted me out. How cool would one of these looked peeking down from the stairway of the house? The tough part would be choosing which one to get.

This is Charlemagne with scepter, orb and crown. He is the founding father of French and German monarchies, and is known as the "Father of Europe." (That's your mini history lesson, now back to fun.)

This fountain was down one of the alleys. It is very cool to look at, but even more fun once you really check it out. It's movable. All of the joints on the characters can be moved, so you can pose them any way you like. I think the adults enjoyed playing with it even more than the kids!

This is the Aachen Cathedral, also known as the Imperial Cathedral. It's the oldest Cathedral in northern Europe. When Charlemagne died in 814, he was buried in the vault of this cathedral. Here is a close up of the walls of the cathedral. Wow!There were so many great little shops along the little alley ways. This one is called Nobis and sold the most delicious gingerbread cookies. I couldn't resist the little hedgehog. I had to stop in and pick up a few things.

I had to back track a little bit to check out the shop called Oil and Vinegar. Bet you can't guess what they sell. OK, maybe you can. They have lots and lots of very interesting oils and vinegar (duh!) from all over Europe. Some are ready to sell, but lots others are in large bottles in the back, and there are samples out for you to try. Pick the ones you want, and they will pour some into smaller bottles for you to purchase. They had other goodies there, too, like pesto. Yum. Sorry, I was so caught up in the moment that I didn't get any pictures in there. This was a beautiful building that we saw on our way out of town. It appears to be part of an old castle.
You know I wouldn't get out of town without buying some goodies, so here they are. I had to have some oil, vinegar, and pesto. I also couldn't resist the mortar. (I've always wanted one of those. Don't ask why, because I just do!) I bought butter cookies for Brandon, and gingerbread cookies for the rest of us. The little bag has small gingerbread cookies covered with white frosting or dark chocolate frosting. Yum! I had to get a hedgehog, too, but I don't know if I can bring myself to eat him. Well, maybe I can. He smells great! Real German gingerbread isn't like what you get in the states, it thick and chewy and tastes soooo good. It's too bad computers aren't scratch and sniff! I'm off to eat some more cookies. If you hurry over, you might get a bite yourself. Maybe not.