Kandern, Marshmellow Cookies, and BFA

So we are in Kandern, probably in the nicest accommodations we’ve had thus far on this adventure, and here I am, getting ready so we can go visit the Black Forest Academy, where my cousins (Alyssa and Trevor) go to school. While this town is small, it is DEFINITELY German. Here is an American’s take on German customs…

First of all, German breakfast is rocking, with all sorts of meats and cheeses and a basket of bread. Now this may not seem awesome to you guys, but to Sarah and I, any free breakfast is like heaven on earth (these are the girls who ate saltine crackers, Nutella and a can of tuna for two straight days). One more thing, I’m gonna call Sarah Miller out on this one. The girl hates coffee, which is fairly common. BUT, being my favorite miser, she hates to waste anything, even the little pot of coffee we each get at breakfast. So the girl pours an entire glass of cream, adds sugar, and then maybe 10 mL of coffee. Repeat until all the entire pot of creamer is gone, and then I get to finish off Sarah’s little pot, black and sweet, which luckily for me (since there is no more cream), is exactly the way I prefer to drink coffee. Rocked, Sarah Miller, rocked.

Another awesome thing about Germany is chocolate. Oh my goodness, this place has got the cocoa bean down to a science. Yesterday, Sarah taught me the science of eating “Dickemann”, which are cookies topped with a dome of marshmallow crème and covered in chocolate. Now the fun of eating these is when you are eating them, well you wait for the other person to take a bite and then smash the marshmallow cookie in their face. What could be better, a cookie with a game! I think Sarah regrets teaching me this, as best evidenced by the picture above.
By the way, on our way into Kandern, we definitely saw a Claus Oldenburg, and we both flipped! He’s the artist that makes the giant cherries, ice cream cone, and hairbrush, all statues- this one happened to be a set of pliers. Heck yeah!

I realize now that half this entry is written about food. Not to mention, Sarah is probably going to kill me when she realizes that I’ve told all of Erskine College this stuff, along with various and sundry persons in NC, SC, and NV. I’m probably setting myself up for revenge, but you know… Thanks for putting up with my incessant singing, habitual coffee drinking, running through pigeons, saying ‘Guten Tag’ to people I don’t know (apparently Germans don’t like that), and pushing you into McDonalds (which we both refuse to eat, no matter how poor we get) just to see your reaction. I don’t think I would spend six weeks mucking around (I mean, studying in) Europe with anyone else.

Heading to Switzerland tomorrow, then up to Berlin to stay with Rebecca Carson.
Love to all,
Sarah Hope