rothenburg

sorry for the delay
getting an internet connection here has been hell
spinal tap comedic really
especially considering how "hi-tech" germany is
i called one 800 number for t-mobile germany
and everytime i said "sprechen zee engleesh?"
they hung up on me
i'm on the computer in the lounge of the dom hotel, augsburg
in the deep south of germany
equivalant to alabama in the U.S.A.
my first show is monday night at the kerosin club
it's sunday morning

our tour vehicle is a black mini mercedes
very sporty spice
we have a navigation system compliments of tapete
it speaks to us
her name is lori and she has a very nice voice
it's almost impossible to get lost with lori
thank god 'cause driving here is a little confusing
our tour benz is macked out
cd player
automatic everything
i think it even has an espresso maker in the back somewhere
G's got a big cushy car seat
compliments of dirk d.
so we're not suffering too much in our tourmobile
this is the way to go i think
i feel sorry for all the bands driving around in their grungy little beat up VWs

we got to augsburg late friday
after our 8 hour introduction to the autobahn
the autobahn is crazy but i like it
lot's of cars driving really slow on the right
then in the left lane you've got all the ones who think they're mario andretti
they'll come up on you in a split second
headlights going berserk
if you don't watch it
i've noticed more black cars here than i've ever seen before
it's all the rage i guess

we had an amazing day yesterday
one of those days you can wait a long time for
and one that i think i'll remember the rest of my life
we visited rothenbug
an almost fully preserved medieval town
cobblestone streets
tall narrow watchtowers
steepled shops and houses
rothenburg's original outer wall is almost fully intact
we followed it all around the outer perimeter
peered out of the little slots where they used to shoot arrows
the view out into the valley below was spectacular
beyond description really
coolest town i've ever seen behind santorini greece
wandered the streets for hours
sunny mid 70s
fresh air
ate outside at a quaint italian bistro around sunset
then caught a bit of the nightwatchmen's tour
a long haired german fellow dressed like a medieval watchman
leads a bunch of tourists round the town at sunset with a lantern
and tells funny tales of olden times
it was a perfect ending to an amazing day

i have to brag on G now
11 hours on the plane
not one fuss
while kids all around us cried and complained
in the car to augsburg friday
8 hours
happy all the way
and yesterday in rothenburg we did an awful lot of walking
he was awesome all day
he's having the best time out of us all
and that's made things even more fun for me
he's also named his new german squirrel "gutentaag"
also requested his own little suitcase for his robots next time we come back

anyway, if you ever get a chance to come to germany
you gotta see rothenburg
trust me
it's spectacular
tour manager J already kicking some major ###
she found this place in her pile of german guide books
i'd be lost in some bavarian pig skinning factoryhaus if left to my own devices

we're heading off to see the famous castle neuschwanstein today
it looks like another beautiful sunny day out there
i'll try and tell you about it tomorrow
i think we've almost got our internet problems figured out
so fingers crossed
i'll be back sooner than later

auf weidershen!!!!!