rheingau und shwarzwald

just returned from a lovely 3-day jaunt to the rhein valley and the black-forest. for the longest time, germany never really featured in my list of "charming" or "must-visit" places. but the last few months have changed that. have only been to the south-west, and that too, mostly, places along the river. almost any village that lies on either side of the rhein is simply gorgeous. around 30 castles & fortresses dot a 70 km stretch of the riverside, and each one is out of a fairy-tale. the valley is the source of a fair amount of german history and folklore, and also plays host to numerous festivals during the year, especially in spring and summer.

yet, more than history, politics or mythology, today, the place is known for its wine. the reisling grape, grown only in this region (though exported everywhere now) is the pride on the rheinlanders. for two people who "know" precious little about wine, the wine-tasting was quite an experience. my knowledge of wine has now widenend beyond its colours :). though i'm certainly not turned-on by it...i mean, ok. so i can learn to appreciate the subtleties of flavour and aroma and blah-blah, but theek hai yaar...i don't get what's SO great about it ki you must have a cellar and store different types from different years etc etc. we know some who do, and i love seeing there eyes light up when they talk about their wine-collection...i just know that my eyes won't light up talking of wine! too bad if that's uncool.

we had only a day in the black-forest. at the cost of sounding repetitive, it's gorgeous :) it definitely merits a longer trip, at a sunnier time...so we can go hiking. and have you ever heard of green garlic? i hadn't, and we had a green garlic soup that was delicious!

and while we were there, s pleasantly surprised me with his knowledge of the german language...very impressive!! each time i wanted to thank the waitress, i ended up saying "merci" instead of "danke"!!!! so there i was, wishing the earth would open up and swallow me each time i made the faux pas, (which means every single time we ordered something to eat/drink), and there was s, charming the waitresses and never failing to get a smile out of them...for not only saying 'danke' but also placing his order in german, changing his mind and asking for something 'ohne' something! this, when i'm the one who learnt the language briefly 15 years ago :)

PS: and i finally tasted "appel strudel"...this is what julie andrews was on about? it's clearly apple-pies for me.