I have traveled the world and have been to every country from America to Korea, I can tell you positively that the best country in Europe is Germany. I spent four wonderful years there and I have been to Bremerhaven up north on the sea to Frankfurt the capital and Oldenberg, the most beautiful place you can imagine.
The town of Weisenberg:
I lived in Weisenberg for awhile and it is right out of the encyclopedia with its beauty. Weisenberg is the flower capital of Germany and I had fresh flowers all the time. They are so cheap and so beautiful. Imagine going to the florist and trying to choose from yellow roses, pink carnations, yellow tulips and purple daffodils. The color and the beauty are unimaginable. The lawns are all spewed with colors of the rainbows. Huge trees line the streets and the homes are immaculate.
I also learned how to decorate cakes there. I would decorate all kinds of cakes with many types of flowers on them. I taught myself in my free time, that is when I wasn't shopping. I sold all the cakes and I made macrame which I sold to the florist shops. The people were generous, giving and very sociable. We actually considered staying in Germany permanently as the weather, the community and the money were very good there.
The town of Bremerhaven:
Taking a ride to Bremerhaven through the wonderful countryside is breathtaking and then when you arrive at the water ferry to go into Bremerhaven, it is dreamy. Many colors of rocks and cliffs line the passage and everyone goes to the edge to see the water splashing on the sides of the ferry. Just like the movies, as you board your car on the ferry and sail across the water to arrive in the beautiful city of Bremerhaven, you are greeted with many locals waving to you. Of course no trip would be complete without a nice big cup of tea.
Germans just love to drink and be hospitable. When you go to their homes, their buffets are lined with liquors of every kind. It is considered a huge insult if you do not have a drink with them. You must accept their gracious hospitality. They have a wonderful drink called Strawberry Rumtoff. This is 1/3 jar full of fresh strawberries, 1/3 jar of sugar and the rest of course is rum. You place the jar in a dark cabinet to set up for two weeks. Then you pour some of this drink in a glass along with one or two strawberries. It tastes like strawberry punch, until you bite into the strawberry. Then wow, the rum hits you full force. Those were the days that I remember there for sure.
The people are trusting, friendly and very helpful. They don't require any deposits or security, everything is done on trust. I remember once I did not have any money and I wanted to go shopping. A woman in the cafeteria handed me 100 dollars and said, "Enjoy your day." I was shocked at her generosity. There was no mention of pay me back tomorrow or anything. When you go to have anything repaired, they will not ask for a deposit. It is all done on trust.
The town of Oldenberg:
I have to say some of my fondest memories are of Oldenberg. It has cobble stone lined streets, old fashioned store fronts and lots of pizza shops. It is the old world type of city with many shops selling figurines. From buying huge beer steins to very expensive Hummels, it is all there. I had a huge collection of Hummel figurines and they are quite expensive. I had Liadros from Italy also. There are so many shops with people riding bicycles everywhere.
I had a yellow VW and I drove that car to death. The neighbors swore I would blow the engine in the car and indeed I did. It was a fun time and it was wonderful. My son absolutely loved the breads and pastries and I loved the cheeses. The pastry is sweet, but not too sweet. The breads are huge and wonderful and the pizza is eaten with a fork. What's not to like about Germany?
The prices are good also on everything. On Halloween all the shops open up and they give out candy and treat to the many trick or treat children. I wish you could see the countryside and the mountains filled with flowers. I wish you could come with me and see the cobble stone streets and the windows filled with Delph Blue from Holland. I wished you could go shopping with me and pick out some stoneware that had just been hand painted and yes I wish you could have some strawberry Rumtoff also. But, if you are truly wondering where the best country in Europe is, wonder no more my friend?
