The real home!

Oh this weekend was the best. It started off amazing with a dinner party with my host mom, two boys from Mexico, Karen, and Nadine (Karin, my host mom, her granddaughter). The night was wonderful. We had so much food too. By the end of what seemed like a 5 course dinner, I thought I couldnt eat another thing.. but when karin brought out the dessert.. well yeah we ate it. haha.. we had so much fun talking, laughing, eating, learning about everyones life. It was such a mix of people. Im so glad that the common language between us all was English!! After a late night, Karen spent the night (the second sleepover at my host mom's house) and we really enjoyed sleeping in. I was so tired that I slept until 10. YEAH!!! Saturday was SOO much fun.. A weekend in dusseldorf made me feel really German. Everyone decided that we should take a bike ride out to the lake. It was so great!! Four girls, with bright summer outfits, and colorful bags on four bikes riding across Dusseldorf. Even this was a sight for the locals! Karin, Karen, Nadine, and myself all took a day trip to the lake. The best part of the ride was riding through the woods. It was so beautiful and shady, oh yeah and also really windy. The strong wind would blow all the leaves into our path that it made the forest look so beautiful and alive. I sometimes wish my eyes were a camera so I could take a picture at that very moment what I had seen. But at the lake we sunbathed, played in the water, and enjoyed the supurb day. Karen and I also climbed upon this big blue floating device in the middle of the lake where a whole bunch of local kids were playing 'king of the hill' It was pretty fun and crazy being in the middle of it. The wind picked up later in the day and the bike ride back was intense will all the head wind. But how would I know because my bike got a flat going back, and I rode on the back of Nadine's bike. I felt so German. I was being 'pumped' around on the back of a bike. So saturday was so much of an adventure. But Sunday even brought me closer to Germany. This morning my host mom wanted to show me the garden's that German residents can rent. We walked along a few gardents, and it was random that we met this man named, Gunter, a retired elderly man of 72. He was one of the men who owned a Garden we were passin by in. He only spoke German so Karen was our translator. She told him that I was Texan (one of the few words I could understand), and he invited us into his garden. He showed us everying. He had many, many different plants and flowers, oh and a pond with really expensive fish. He had carrots, tomatoes, lettuce, and 10ft tall sunflowers (my favorite flower). It was so beautful, and I think one of the biggest garden's out there. He offered us a drink of this berry-alcoholic drink he had made, and gave it to us in these decorative wine cups, and it tasted AMAZING. It was the kindest thing. He gave me this decorative cup that I had used when tasting his drink. It is soo beautiful. It has little jewels on it and is beautiful decorated. I told him its going to be put on a mantel in my room. We had two more rounds, and then headed to the pub with him to meet his friends. We had a few beers and laughed, even though I dont speak German at all, and I had a real German experience with a pub full of older men playing cards, laughing, and having a beer or two. But it was such an experience. But.. on the way home Karin and I had felt the effects of our morning drinking and chuckled back home. So now Im here with Karen at an internet cafe about to see my family on web cam. I actually spoke to my mom and Drew! Yeah for keeping in contact!