Hannover

And off we went to Hannover! Here I finally got to visit Clari again. I met Clari in elementary school, and I have counted her among my closest friends for more than 20 years. It was so nice to spend some real time together again!

On the first evening, we just chatted for a while and caught up with each other. The next morning, we spent some time puzzling and then set off for the church day that was taking place simultaneously in Hannover.

We took a little look around the fairgrounds and then went to the Opera Square in the early evening. Bodo Wartke gave a concert there, and we just had to see it. If you don't know Bodo Wartke, you might know Barbara's rhubarb bar. This tongue twister has gone viral on all sorts of social media platforms.

The concert was open air and, fortunately, the weather was great. Even though Bodo Wartke was up there on stage alone with his piano, he was able to entertain a whole crowd of 16,000 people wonderfully.

The atmosphere was fantastic, and we had so much fun, discovering some new favorite songs along the way. Everyone sang, laughed, danced, and enjoyed the moments together.

After the concert, there was a communal evening prayer. With the obligatory candles and a farewell song 'The moon has risen.'

That was a really lovely way to end the day.

The next day, I explored the neighborhood around Lister Square.

This way, I discovered an old Leibniz cookie shop. Unfortunately, it is permanently closed. Still, I learned something new since I didn't know that this company comes from Hannover.

As it often happens at the church day, you end up running into people without having previously made plans or knowing that they would be there.

Thus, I was able to meet spontaneously with my Aunt Irmela and my cousin Hanna.

We spent a lovely morning together and then taken the train south together. They were heading to Kassel and Saarbrücken, while my journey continued to Heidelberg. This city has been on my bucket list for a while, so I finally had some time to go there for a few days.