Paris & European Friends: 03/25/15

Jan and I met Mario, who is from Germany, on a dive boat at the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, in 2010. We took an instant liking to him, and chatted frequently on the boat, and finally parted ways after reaching shore... with the usual sentiment to come visit us sometime.

Mario did sign up on my chess website, and we have been playing chess ever since. And, a year after the Australia trip, Mario was turning 21 and wanted to go to Las Vegas to celebrate, So we invited him to stay with us for a while too, since we're not far from Vegas. And he did. And we had a good time, even if some it involved me at my desk, and him on the couch in the living room, making chess moves on a computer! We took Mario up in the mountains, and showed him where our cabin is, some elk, and a natural hot spring that we took a soak in.

So, with this visit, we've now seen Mario on 3 continents! And all from a casual chat aboard a boat in a country that was foreign to all three of us! Small world, indeed.

Somehow I didn't have Mario's address. I had a phone number, but was getting no answer. So we headed toward the center of town, parked, and found a cafe with coffee and Internet. I asked the waitress if she knew of a Mathes Clothing store. Sure thing, a literal stone's throw from the cafe. So we had a cup of coffee outside, about a half block from the store. Then we went into the store and asked about Mario... it's truly a family-run business, and everyone there is family. Mario was at home waiting for us, so we asked his dad if Mario could just come and lead us to the house.

The clothing store is just to the right of the decorated fountain in the square...

Right there...

We couldn't have found it any easier had we known what we were doing!

Once at the family home, I made an immediate friend... well my tablet and I did...

Meet Chelsea. This girl can swipe!

A panorama of Buchen from a place overlooking the city...

One of our traditional 'feet up' photos in front of the Buchen Tower...

At the kitchen table for a late breakfast...
Everybody else was already at work!

Mario and his dad, Peter...
We enjoyed some bountiful meals at that table!

Peter wrote down some of the dishes we had.

Maultaschen, Spatzle, Kartoffelsalat, und Rindsrouladen

All delicious... Karen is a great cook!

Thank you, Karen! Vielen Dank

Tyler serenaded us with some mouth harp....

Mario and Fabio are twins...

We visited this church in a nearby town.

And the family clothing store in Buchen...

The clothing store is multi-generational, family-run business. Mario and his sister, Christina, work at the store, as do Mario's parents. And Mario's grandparents work there every day too... I wish I had as much energy as they do! They even close the store for lunch, so they can all take time to eat together, usually at Peter and Karen's home. They're successful. They're happy. It was a pleasure to meet them all.

Mario's Grandfather above, and Grandmother below, Peter's parents.

Water attraction in their back yard... rather unique... looks great at night....

The oldest restaurant/hotel in Germany...

Miltenberg is a beautiful historic city, established in the 13th century.

And Mario took us to a fabulous bird show in Haßmersheim...

Jan took the photo below... it looks like a watercolor painting... photography imitating art...

Remember, click any photo to see larger high-res version.