November Sunday

November Sundays are a tricky affair in Germany. With the whole country coming to a pious standstill on every seventh day of the week it tends to get a bit eery in the cites anyways. But while during summer at least the parks and riverbanks are filled with crowds, a drizzly November Sunday can make you believe you landed a role in one of those post-apocalyptic movies (minus the Emmerichesque fireworks). So it's time to get that social calendar kickin'! No more slacking off at the Isar, no more loitering around the playgrounds. Karl got to go on a little tour of Bavaria today. First stop - Schnitzel! With Anna (left) and one of her Kindergarten friends (Anna's in grade school now, but her friend's still in Kindergarten). Karl enjoyed all the female attention and mistook their mothering smothering ways for something else. He got real macho and started to read his books to them. Which they took graciously and made him feel like a million dollars, even though his two-word-sentences are kinda hard to decode, if you don't know the books.



After the Schnitzels at the inn (formerly country, now posh inn) Karl witnessed a dog in a dress. Not like one of those wintery leather coaty things, a real dress. He was as puzzled as I was and we both started giggling, which the dog's owner didn't really appreciate that much. We hung out at Albert's (Anna's dad) for a while, where we were served hot beverages and cookies and Karl got carried and rolled around, womanhandled, squeezed, kissed and showered with toys to try out. After a few rounds on the designer-chair-turned caroussel Karl started to look all drowsy, so he got to take a long mid-day nap in the car on the various highways and byways to....



....Seeshaupt, home of Opa his wive Maria and Karl's auntie Milena. First we had to go down to the lake though and check on the ducks. There was a whole flock of them floating on the water, but I guess they were kinda cold-stoned, because Karl couldn't even lure them in with all his charms and cookies.



So we hung out at Opa's, where Karl was treated to a first visit to my late mother's childrens' book library, which is quite extensive, since she was a photographer specialized in childrens' advertising, so she needed all those books to keep restless models busy.

Finally we arrived back home again, where a long bath was in order. Because Karl better look spiffy tomorrow, because tomorrow is Mom's birthday! I sure hope he remembers all those songs and poems I made him memorize.