A pair of Prairie Schoolers and a parade of castles

How can it be mid-October already? Did you know there are only 71 days left until Christmas? If anyone has a secret as to how to slow time down, I'd love to know it, wouldn't you? How is everyone's month going so far? We've had so many beautiful sunny days--surprisingly warm for October, too. I know that soon be changing, but for now, I'm enjoying every minute of this lovely autumn weather while it lasts. Our garden has been put to bed for the winter and I'm thinking ahead to Thanksgiving which I'll be hosting this year. It will be a smaller gathering, but there is still so much to do! I've already begun decorating for Thanksgiving in between my usual free time spent reading and stitching. I actually have two new ornaments to share with you today. 

Below are my Christmas ornaments for September and October. I got a bit behind due to our Rhine River cruise so this month I played catch-up. Both just happen to be Prairie Schooler designs--my all-time favorite comfort stitching!

My September and October Prairie Schooler ornaments

I showed you my unfinished September ornament in my last post, but here is the 1995 annual Prairie Schooler all ready to hang on my tree. As I mentioned, he is stitched on 40 ct. vintage country mocha Newcastle with most of the suggested colors. To see any changes I made, you can refer to this post from September.  As with most of my annual PS Santas, I kept the finishing simple with DMC 221 cording and a gingham bow. The ornament is backed with a burgundy and white gingham. This ornament will forever remind me of our trip to Europe last month!

My finish of the 1995 Prairie Schooler annual Santa

 

For October, I chose one of the patterns from Prairie Schooler Book No. 81: "Songs of the Season." "Deck the Halls" is stitched on 40 ct. water green Newcastle. I did make a few color changes, using DMC 221 for the red and 610 for the sack on Santa's back. I also changed the lettering to DMC 3371 from the suggested red and used smyrna stitches for all of the berries as well as the pom-pom on Santa's hat. 

Such a fun finish for October--there was a lot more stitching in this one than I first thought!

And here it is all finished and ready for December decorating. Again, I simply added handmade cording, a gingham bow, and a small silver jingle bell. Love how it turned out!

My finish of "Deck the Halls" from PS Book No. 81 "Songs of the Season"

Giveaway winner... And I can't forget that I offered two PS mini-cards as a giveaway last time. There were ten entries for the cards and the name picked from the hat is...

             Donna King                            

Donna King, you are the winner!

Congratulations, Donna! Please send me your mailing address (my email is in the right sidebar under the "A Bit About Me" section) and I'll get these sent right our to you. As always, keep an eye on this space for future giveaways!

On to the travelogue... That wraps up the stitching portion of this post, but for those of you who are interested, I have Part 2 of my Rhine River cruise today. My favorite part of our cruises (both this one and the Danube River cruise we did five years ago) was simply sitting and watching the world go by as the ship floated through the water. There is a particularly lovely section of the Rhine River that showcases many of the ancient castles known as the Rhine River Gorge and that's where we'll travel today. Sit back, relax, and imagine life in this beautiful part of the world. (All photos are clickable for a better view).

Around every bend of the river, there was another scene right out of a fairy tale!

Maus Castle / Berg Maus, built in the 14th century, has been meticulously restored and is now an aviary for eagles, owls, and falcons

Rheinfels Castle / Burg Rheinfels (with the flag of Germany in the foreground) was the largest fortress along the Middle Rhine Valley. Today it is one of that areas most visited attractions even though much of it is in ruins. There is a hotel and restaurant there--you can even get married on site!

Katz Castle / Burg Katz , perched high up on the hill, was built in the 13th century. It is now privately owned and not open to the public--can you imagine the view they must have?! And the amount of money they must spend on upkeep...

Some of the pretty pastel houses along the Rhine River with Katz Castle looming above.

The Lorelei / Loreley, the 433 foot high slate rock that has become infamous for maritime disasters and legends involving a singing siren combing her golden hair who lured unsuspecting sailors to their deaths.

A charming little village stands next to a castle remnant

Schönburg Castle / Burg Schönburg is one of the oldest castles on the Rhine--first mentioned in the 10th century. It was burned down in 1689 by French soldiers, but restored in the 19th century, and is now run as a hotel and restaurant.

A view of the beautiful vineyards on the hillside near Schönburg Castle.

Pfalzgrafenstein Castle / Burg Pfalzgrafenstein is located on the small island of Falkenau and was built in the 14th century. It served as a toll station and a prison and has never been destroyed through all of those centuries.

Stahleck Castle / Burg Stahleck was built in the 12th century and, despite much destruction through the years from wars, it was always faithfully restored. Today it serves as a youth hostel for the Rhineland-Palatinate Youth Hostel Association. Can you imagine staying in a hostel with that gorgeous view?!

Yet another pretty little town with lush vineyards covering the hillsides.

Ehrenfels Castle / Burg Ehrenfels is a ruined castle from the 12th century. You can hike up to it and enjoy the breathtaking views of the river below.

Did you enjoy that little tour? I have to tell you that the morning we sailed was chilly and windy--many of us were bundled up in our warmest clothes, coats, and blankets as we sat on the ship's deck watching the castles go by! Thankfully, the weather turned warmer that afternoon for our next stop--the town of...

 Rüdesheim, Germany

Rüdesheim is a town of about 10,000 people best known for it's winemaking. Vineyards abound and the Riesling wine made from their grapes is world famous. 

Our first view of the Rüdesheim area. Far off on the hilltop is the imposing Niederwald Monument which we would hike to after we enjoyed lunch on the ship. 

What a pretty hike we had that afternoon--through lush green vineyards overlooking the river. It was quite a workout as our guide (a young man in his 20s!) marched all of us 60 and 70-year-olds up the hill as if someone was chasing us. Whew! Here are some of the highlights of our Rüdesheim hike.

Just a few of the delicate wildflowers we spotted on our hike.

Although the vast majority of the grapes grown in this region are green, I found a few purple ones hanging from the vines.

We hiked up to the monument, but there are also cable cars available.

We made it--we reached the Niederwald Monument! Left to right are my husband, me, my youngest sister, and my brother-in-law--great traveling companions!

Such a lovely view of the vineyards!

The massive Niederwald Monument was built from to 1871 to commemorate the unification of Germany after the Franco-Prussian War. Notice how tiny the people are in comparison to the monument!

We took the cable car down and the views were amazing.

It looks like a postcard, doesn't it?

When we reached the bottom of the hill, we spent a bit of time in the town of Rüdesheim itself, strolling the charming streets, stopping for a cool drink as we rested under a canopy of grape leaves, and simply enjoying the warmth of the sunshine.

Little did we know that that would be the last of the sunshine we'd have for awhile! Our next stop was a rainy, windy, miserable day, but we still enjoyed our visit to...

HEIDELBERG, GERMANY

Oh, how disappointing the weather was when we woke up that morning! Cold and rainy--not exactly what you want as you prepare to walk through the ruins of one of the most historic structures in Germany: Heidelberg Castle. The castle is a huge complex of buildings in various states of ruin. The misty, rainy weather actually made a perfect backdrop for the crumbling buildings on the day we visited. I so wish we could have stayed longer, but when you are on a tour, you are strictly limited by bus and tour guide schedules. There was so much we didn't see, but here are photos of the highlights. (I've included many clickable links if any of you would like to read more about the buildings featured).

The oldest part of the castle complex was built in the 1200's and various buildings were added on for centuries. That is why you see so many different styles of architecture from Gothic to Renaissance as shown above. The beautiful hues in the building material come from the red sandstone which is quarried from the surrounding Neckar Valley.

The Friedrich's Wing immediately catches your eye as you walk into the courtyard. Built in the early 1600's, it holds a romantic chapel on the ground floor which can be used for weddings.

The Ottheinrich Wing features elaborate carvings and statues of political, scientific, mythological, and religious figures. As you can see, the top floors are nothing but a shell--open to the air as a result of fires and a lightning strike. The bottom floor was covered and serves as a museum today. The pinkish color of the facade was so lovely!

There is beauty even in the ruins

In the background, you can see a few of the construction vehicles that are ever present. There is constant repair going on at different places in the castle ruins just to keep them from crumbling all the way to the ground.

A view into the lush green gardens of what was once the moat of the castle.

The Gate/Clock Tower and Ruprecht's Wing (on the right) which is the oldest residential palace still standing in the castle complex. It was built in the early 1400s.

By the time we reached this point in the walking tour, it was really raining as you can see in the photo above. Pictured is the famous Powder Tower (or Exploded Tower) built in the early 16th century that was partially destroyed by the French in a war in the late 17th century. Can you see how thick those walls were? The blown off portion has been resting against the remains of the tower for over 300 years now!

A very misty view from the castle to the Neckar River and the town below

Heidelberg Castle is also known for housing the world's largest wine barrel or as it's known in Germany--the Heidelberg Tun. The first barrel was built in 1591 and held 130,000 liters of wine. It was replaced by one that held 200,000 liters  of wine in 1664, and then the present barrel was constructed in 1751 from 130 oak trees. It can hold 220,000 liters (58,124 gallons) of wine and is so massive that there is even a dance floor on top of it!

The largest wine barrel in the world dwarfs visiting tourists. The photo in the upper right shows the steps leading up to the dance floor on top of the barrel. The statue is of Perkeo, the court jester, who now stands guard over the giant barrel. He was famous for his ability to consume massive amounts of wine.

Unfortunately, the rain was so heavy by the end of our tour, that the hike planned for the afternoon had to be cancelled so we had some free time. We actually enjoyed our down time and had the streets almost to ourselves. We had a relaxing lunch in a German pub, did a bit of shopping (where we purchased two warm fleece shirts to help with the colder than normal temperatures), and enjoyed the views of the castle from the old town.

Looking up from the Altstadt (Old Town) you can get an even better idea of the massive size of the castle complex

The Marktplatz, in the oldest section of Heidelberg, is often used for Christmas markets. On the left is the Town Hall with its beautiful window boxes overflowing with red blooms.

Because of the rain, the streets were nearly empty. I can imagine that, in good weather, they are bustling with shoppers and folks enjoying outdoor meals.

The Old Bridge /Alte Brücke and gate over the Neckar River

The view from the bridge offers a great vista of Heidelberg Castle looming over the town

Goodby rainy Heidelberg! I'm so glad that I packed that bright raincoat at the last minute as it sure came in handy on many occasions.

I'll pause my travelogue here and on my next post we'll journey to France! My first trip there--again, not the greatest weather, but it was certainly an experience that I look forward to sharing with all of you. Thank you so much for all of your kind comments on my previous post--I really appreciate each one so much. I had my cardiologist appointment this morning and, although she thinks I'm okay, she wants to run more tests. So, the saga continues... Hope each of you has a wonderful day with lots of stitching time. I'm heading to my stitching chair as soon as I hit "post."  Bye for now...

Fall feelings and a new travel adventure!

Hello all of my stitching friends! I'm back after 2 1/2 weeks away... pretty much recovered from my jet lag, thankfully. I read that the older you get, the longer it takes to recover from trips across multiple time zones. We arrived home late last Saturday evening and by Friday I was feeling pretty normal again. So, where did we go? Well, I'll fill you in on my little bit of stitching news first and then begin a new travelogue. 

Finally, after finishing this wonderful Prairie Schooler fall design called "Autumn Leaves" way back in 2018, I've framed it! I purchased the frame last year from Franken Frames online, but it's taken me this long to sit down and frame it. I absolutely love this moulding for fall pieces, but, sadly, it has been discontinued. Luckily, I purchased three frames made of this same moulding, so I'll be sharing two more framed pieces in the future. 

"Autumn Leaves" finally framed after six years!

And here is a close-up with a better view of the frame and the stitching...

This charming piece is definitely one of my fall favorites.

If you'd like to read more about this finish, my post from September 30, 2018 has all the details.

I did manage to at least stitch my September ornament for the #12in24ornamentstitchalong which  I host on Instagram. Hopefully, finishing will take place this week! This is the annual Prairie Schooler Santa from 1995. I have to admit that when I first saw this design way back then, it wasn't one of my favorites. But, like everything in life... your tastes change and develop as you age. I thought this was the perfect Santa to represent my September since we traveled to various parts of the world. He is stitched on 40 ct. vintage country mocha Newcastle linen with most of the suggested threads. I did change the stitches in the border from the suggested blue cross stitches to red straight stitches, though. I also used Smyrna stitches for the eyes and the gold colored flowers on Santa's robe.

1995 Prairie Schooler Santa all ready for finishing

Giveaway time... I received two charming Prairie Schooler mini-cards from my friend, Stasi over at Bee-mused and Bee-stitching, as a little thank-you gift after I lent her a chart. Since I already owned both, I asked Stasi if it would be okay to use them in a giveaway and she kindly agreed. So, would you like to stitch these? If so, please follow the guidelines below and I'll announce the winner in my next post.

I'm having a giveaway for these two PS mini-charts. See below for the guidelines:

To be included in the giveaway for the two PS mini-charts shown above:

1) Specifically mention that you would like to win it in your comment 

2) Be a follower of Stitching Dreams (in my blog's sidebar on the right)

3) Make sure to leave your email address in your comment if I don't already have it

4) Tell me where in the world you would like to visit (that you haven't already been to). For me, it's the Canadian Rockies and Lake Louise--I'd love to take a train trip from Vancouver to Banff some day :)  

So... have you figured out where I've been most of September? Well, we took our first real trip since before Covid and it was a big one! We took a river boat cruise down the Rhine River from Amsterdam to Basel and then went on to Lucerne and Lugano in Switzerland, Lake Como, and then flew home after spending a couple of days in Milan, Italy. This was our second river boat cruise--the first one was a Danube cruise way back in 2019. Have you ever stopped to think how the weather can play such an important part in your holiday memories? Well, this trip will go down in history for everything from rain to cold to wind to hail to snow. And on top of that I got some sort of cold/flu for five days. Ugh! But, in between all that "stuff" there were some wonderful sights and memorable moments made with my husband, youngest sister, and brother-in-law. So, it was all worth it!

Since I have so many photos, I'll be breaking up the trip into sections and would love to have you travel along with me as we see the sights of five different countries: The Netherlands, Germany, France, Switzerland, and Italy. Are you ready? Let's get started...

AMSTERDAM, THE NETHERLANDS

We flew into Amsterdam a couple of days before the Rhine River cruise started both to help with jet-lag and to see a bit of this famed city on our own. Thankfully, the weather in Amsterdam (the first two days, anyway) was lovely--blue skies and sunny. It was the perfect walking around and exploring temperature. 

Our first stop was the lovely Vondelpark, the 116 acre largest greenspace in Amsterdam.  It was a good space to just relax and clear our heads after that overnight flight across the Atlantic. Such a pretty spot, but watch out for those bicyclists! We learned very quickly that they rule the roads!

Vondelpark

A relaxing morning spent in Vondelpark

We then went and explored the beautiful streets and canals of Amsterdam... With over 60 miles of canals in the city, there is no lack of beautiful photo opportunities.

Just one of many, many pretty canals

Bikes here, bikes there, bikes and bicyclists everywhere! I'd heard about the number of bicyclists in Amsterdam, but nothing prepared me for the reality! They were everywhere and they think nothing of plowing through crowds at high speeds. We saw two accidents in the short time we were there. Many of the bikes somehow end up in the canals and between 12,000-15,000 are pulled out each year! On one of our tours, we were driven by a huge barge piled high with what looked like scrap metal. Our guide told us it was actually filled with old bicycles that had been pulled from canals!

Most of the bridges connecting the canals had bicycles and baskets of pretty flowers placed in the middle.

The reflection of the lights at night was particularly lovely.

The next day, our destination was one I had been dreaming about going to since I was a young teen--The Anne Frank House. I can't even tell you how many times I've read The Diary of a Young Girl and after this visit, I plan on reading it again.

A small statue of a young girl who left a major impact on the world

The Secret Annex where Anne and seven others hid for over two years is in the back of this building at 263 Prinsengracht

Luckily, my sister had alerted me to the fact that you need to purchase tickets six weeks before the date you plan to visit, so I got up at 4:30 a.m. one late July morning to make sure I got them. They sell out that quickly! I was also able to get tickets for the 30 minute introductory program which was given in English by a young German woman. It was so interesting and the only place where we were able to take photos. 

The top photo shows a timeline of Anne's life from her birth in 1929 to her death at Bergen-Belsen Concentration Camp in 1945. On the bottom left is one of the yellow stars that the Nazis forced the Jewish people to wear. The bottom right is a facsimile of her famous diary (the original is kept inside a glass case in the Anne Frank House) and a piece of the famous chestnut tree which Anne was able to view from the attic of her hiding place. That tree gave her such hope over the years each time it bloomed. The original tree died and fell to the ground in 2010, but saplings were started from it and new trees have been planted all over the world. Here is a list of the cities which now have their very own Anne Frank chestnut trees.

What a sobering experience it was to walk through that hinged bookcase and up into the tiny, dark, cramped rooms of the Secret Annex. The knowledge that Anne and her family survived in hiding for 761 days only to be arrested by the Gestapo in August 1944 and taken to concentration camps to die (only Anne's father survived) was heartbreaking. In one of Anne's diary entries from May 11, 1944, she wrote: “You've known for a long time that my greatest wish is to be a journalist, and later on, a famous writer. We'll have to wait and see if these grand illusions (or delusions!) will ever come true, but up to now I've had no lack of topics. In any case, after the war I'd like to publish a book called The Secret Annex. It remains to be seen whether I'll succeed, but my diary can serve as the basis.”  Oh, Anne... you more than succeeded. What a legacy you've left the world. This was a visit I know I'll always remember... If you would like a tour of The Secret Annex online, I highly recommend this one. There is also a wonderful 14 part series on Anne's life and death on YouTube right here.

On Saturday, we were able to check in to our lovely room on Avalon Waterways "Vista" ship. 

Our home away from home for seven nights

We enjoyed a buffet lunch on board and then headed out for our first excursion... a visit to Zaanse Schans which is like an open-air museum for Dutch life in the 18th and 19th centuries. Windmills and other buildings were relocated to this spot in an effort to preserve them and educate visitors on life in the past. It was a beautiful sunny day, as you can see!

Interestingly, my father's  earliest known ancestor in America came from The Netherlands (settling in New Amsterdam). His town of Wormer, is located only about four miles from Zaanse Schans. He sailed to a new life on the Dutch ship "De Trouw" back in the year 1659 and I love looking at the landscape in this photo and imagining what life must have looked like for him way back then!

 

One of my favorite photos of us in Zaanse Schans

Such a relaxing scene!

While at Zaanse Schans we saw a cheese-making demonstration, wooden shoe making demonstration, and climbed up into a working windmill

On Sunday morning, the Amsterdam canal cruise took place under partly sunny skies.

We were told that many of the canal cruise boats are gradually being replaced with electric models. I'm sure the residents who live along the canals greatly appreciate the noise reduction!

Many houseboats (which sell for huge amounts of money!) are docked along the canals.

The famous crooked "Dancing Houses" of Amsterdam

One pretty scene after another

In the afternoon, we had the choice of doing a bike ride in the countryside or doing a walking tour for some "Bites and Highlights" of the charming Jordaan district. We chose to do the walking tour and feasted on an assortment of cheeses, Stroopwafels (freshly warmed!), and these tasty Poffertjes.

These mini Dutch pancakes, known as Poffertjes, were so tasty. I just may have to try my hand at making some here at home.

 

A final look at one of the beautiful canals

The Amsterdam portion of our trip was over and it was time for our ship to set sail. Overnight our ship cruised to the next stop on our itinerary:

COLOGNE, GERMANY

I can't say this was one of my favorite stops, but that may have had a lot to do with the weather, which turned gray and cool. The fact that so much of the city was destroyed during WWII didn't help either. 95% of the buildings in the old part of the city were damaged and the landscape of the city forever changed.

Pulling into port in Cologne

 

I thought these pastel houses in front of Great St. Martin Church were so pretty. This beautiful Romanesque church was just reopened in 1985 after being badly damaged in WWII.

I know nothing about this sculpted wall--just thought it was interesting. Perhaps they are celebrating Carnival (Kölner Karneval) which is such a big part of life in Cologne each year?

One of the most charming statues (and stories) in the city of Cologne is The Heinzelmännchenbrunnen (or Pixies' Fountain) which depicts a group of hard-working little pixies/gnomes baking bread, sawing wood, and doing all sorts of chores secretly at night so that the citizens of Cologne could relax and take it easy during the day. This all went well until the tailor's wife (at the top of the statue) became determined to see what they looked like that she scattered peas on the steps causing the pixies to all fall down. They became so infuriated that they left the city forever, leaving the residents to do their own chores. You can read about this charming tale right here.

The Heinzelmännchenbrunnen Fountain

Some of the little gnomes hard at work

The tailor's wife (at the very top of the statue) placed peas on the steps causing all the little gnomes to tumble down the stairs and leave the city forever

Of course, the Cologne Cathedral is the iconic sight in this fourth largest German city. In fact, it is Germany's most visited landmark. Construction began on the cathedral in the year 1248, but was stopped in the mid-16th century. Finally in the mid-19th century, construction resumed and was completed in October of 1880.

Even after damage from repeated bombings in WWII, the Cathedral remained standing. Today, it is the third tallest church in the world.

The stunningly carved West Entrance

Just a few of the many stunning art works, stained glass windows, and sculptures inside the Cologne Cathedral

We bravely decided to climb the 533 steps up to the bell tower--and we paid €6 each to do so. Were we brave or simply crazy? Whew--those winding, aged stone steps were exhausting (at least to me!), but we did it! And the views at the top were wonderful.

 

Views from the bell tower

I think that is a good stopping point for today's post! Whew--these posts take me many hours to sort through and edit my photos, look up facts, link to more information on the sights, and then write the actual content. I do hope you enjoyed Part 1 of my Rhine River Cruise travelogue. I always enjoy seeing parts of the world that I might never get to and I hope you do, too! Next time, we will visit two more destinations in Germany and I'll share some of the actual scenes from cruising down the Rhine River.

Don't forget, if you want to enter the giveaway for the PS mini-card charts, please make sure to include your email address in your comment! Sending hugs to those of you who are grieving loved ones or battling health issues right now. And to those of you affected by Hurricane Helene, my heart goes out to you. Thank you to everyone who sent me a message wishing me well in my latest health concerns. The Holter monitor that I wore for 48 hours last month did pick up some irregularities in my heartbeat so I'm heading to the cardiologist in October. Hopefully, it is nothing serious and just something I have to learn to live with.  Here's to a better month for all in October. Bye for now...