Bremen: German Countryside at its finest

Kevin and I just returned from a trip to Bremen, Germany. We wanted to visit our friend, Felix, as well as experience the countryside of Germany. 

It also helps that we were able to get round trip flight tickets for only £10 which is about $15. Thank you Ryanair! Don't worry it was safe...though it was basically like watching one long infomercial while flying through the air. 

Felix picked us up from the airport which was really nice of him.

He introduced us to his friends and they showed us their city at night. It was a seamless blend of an old historic town and a new modern city. We were able to stay with Felix's family which was so nice of them. It was a nice break after running around big European cities all day and staying in hostels. 

The next morning we went to a church called Paulus Gemeinde. The service was all in German but we were able to listen to the service in English via headphones, and a translator. Oh the wonders of technology. It was really awesome to see people worshiping the same God in another language. I love that our God is not limited by borders or languages. His love is for everyone, it doesn't matter where you are from.

That afternoon, Felix's mom gave us a personal tour of Bremen. We went to the Dom St. Petrus and the choir was singing. 

The acoustics were amazing; their voices sent chills up and down my spine.

She brought us to their favorite wurst (sausage) stand. They were warm and went perfectly with the mustard.

She also brought us to the Schnoor which is the old part of the town. The streets were very narrow, sometimes we had to turn sideways to fit through. 

That night, their family made us a typical Bremish dinner. It was roast beef cooked in gravy, German vegetables, the most perfect boiled potatoes, and rotkohl, sweet and spicy red cabbage cooked with apples and onions. I was quite the happy person. We finished the night watching Sherlock Holmes with German subtitles of course.

The next morning, we said good bye to Felix's family. They were so great to us. Kevin and I had the town to explore ourselves. So the German word for citizen is Burger, Kevin and I found this quite amusing. 

We went to Burgerpark which was really beautiful and full of trees.

After this we ate at the Friesenhof for lunch. I got the FriesenJager Schnitzel which was a breaded pork cutlet with salt pork fried potatoes.

Kevin got the Knipp which was a very Bremish dish. It was ground pork with barley served like corn beef hash. We were stuffed and couldn't finish our plates which is rare for both of us. 

We need to walk around to let the food digest and prevent a food coma. This is the Bremenish Windmill.

Then we saw Marktplatz (the main city centre).  

The Roland Statue which has been standing since 1404. He serves to protect the city and he also makes a great place to meet at. Multitasking.

Finally we saw the Town Musicians which comes from a tale from the Brothers Grim.

In the tale, a Donkey, a Dog, a Cat and a Rooster are getting old and are retired from their work on a farm. They realize that they will soon be killed by the farmer and they decide to run away and becomes musicians. What else would these runaway animals be? During the night, they make their way to Bremen and see a cottage with thieves inside.  They hop on eachothers' backs and play music in hopes of getting the thieves approval and perhaps a meal. The music is so "great" that it scares the robbers and they run from the house. The animals rush inside and enjoy a meal together as free animals. Later, one of the robbers return so see what that has taken over their house. The animals act quickly: the Cat scratches the thief's face with her claws, the Dog bites his leg, the Donkey kicks him in the gut and the Rooster crows and chases him out the door. The robber retells his story to his fellow evil doers. He tells them of the witch that scratched him (the Cat), the ogre with the knife (the Dog), the giant who clubbed him (the Donkey) and the finally the dragon who chased him away and screamed from the rooftop (the Rooster). The robbers decide to never return and like good fairy tales, the animals live happily ever after. There is a special manhole in Bremen. If you put coins in it, the four animals make noises for you...or it maybe its their music.

So our time in Bremen was great. I am so glad that Kevin and I decided to travel to a smaller town and experience the German culture. I can't thank Felix and his family enough. This post is dedicated to them- thanks so much for being so hospitable and kind to us!