Anticipating Spring

flickr: Andy and Michele Rau

This Saturday I wanted to do nothing else except sit at my desk and apply for jobs. I planned ahead for this the night before by staying in and getting a good nights rest. However, as I woke from my slumber Saturday morning I knew quite instantly I wouldn’t be able to stay indoors past breakfast.

The sun was finally out, and not only was the sun out, there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. Had spring finally arrived? As I opened my window and let the fresh air enter my room I remembered back to the first week I arrived in Germany, and attempted to bike down the path next to the Rhine River. I only made it about 15 minutes before I had to turn back because my feet, hands, and face were freezing, and I was completely miserable. Finally, I would be able to go on that bike ride I had been wanting to take for the past three months.

We rode from Oberkassel, my neighbourhood, to Königswinter a town just a bit south from us. It was quickly apparent that I wasn’t the only one who had been waiting impatiently for the warmer, sunny weather to arrive. The streets of Königswinter were packed with people trying to enjoy every second of this beautiful day. People were walking on the Rhine, people watching from cafes and shopping at the outdoor flea markets.

Flickr: homo_sapiens

From Königswinter we climbed a small mountain where the ruins of the Count of Drachenfels castle remains, named after the slain dragon that lived in the cave near the top of the mountain. Along the way there were many cute little restaurants were you could drink coffee with a beautiful, elevated view of the Rhine. There was also a man selling fresh honey on the side of the path we were climbing. His hives were next to his stall shop and you could see the bees fast at work. I got a good chuckle out of this man who had decorated two of his hives with the faces of George W. Bush and Bin Laden. A bit of irony when you looked at it, these two would now be terrorized by the bees who entered their hives through each of their mouths.

The day was wonderful, and as I arrived back home I could hardly wait for it to be Sunday, so I could again enjoy the start of spring. Unfortunately, it was only a tease, an allusion of the beginning of spring, since Saturday the weather has gone back to being dreary and cold, and the near forecast doesn’t look any better. Oh well, maybe this weekend I can work a bit on my job applications.