Heidelberg

Thursday 1 June

I found the local Aldi supermarket just before it closed at 21:00, and grabbed a packet out of the chilled section as the shutter was lowered. It turned out to be flat cakes of potato and onion, which I fried and topped with a cheese slice. Could have been worse.

Friday

Walked to the church along a main but not very busy road, bought maps, and returned along the side of Königstuhl, one of the two mountains.  Not much over 200 m ascent, seemed a lot more, with a very long flight of steps taking me back to the valley at the end.

Paul Needle had posted a link to the Radio 4 daily service, from Diocesan Synod, so I listened to it instead of saying Evening Prayer, and Shared the link, remembering some bags I saw in a bookshop window: Twitter is not Berthold Brecht. Facebook is not Frank Kafka.

Tried Lidl, slightly closer than Aldi. Must remember that neither provides baskets, you need to pick up a trolley before entering or restrict yourself to  a handful. Good practice in resisting ice cream. But I shall have to shop again tomorrow as Whit Monday is a public holiday.

Found a book about Anglican churches in Germany up to 1945 and read the first 60 pages. This confirms my theory that Bishop Bell’s visit to Sweden in 1942 was not solely to confirm some candidates in Gothenburg, but to meet Dietrich Bonhoeffer for what turned out to be the last time, on 1 June.

I thank God for the opportunities of being part of the Diocese in Europe.

Saturday

Thundery showers forecasted at three separate times, so I stayed in the flat. Finished rereading Paradise News by David Lodge.

Sunday

Enjoyed my first Sunday service in Heidelberg, but was surprised that the tune to the second hymn was not Puer nobis nascitur.  Don’t take anything for granted.  Walked back over Königstuhl, a different route from Friday, avoiding the long flights of steps and passing a rural pub.

Monday

Whit Monday is a public holiday in Germany.  The. English Church is one of about 8 congregations taking part in an ecumenical service.  Very large congregation!  I took part in the intercessions, reading a short prayer in English.  Refreshments afterwards.  This reminded me of the international services in Gothenburg.  Afterwards I walked on the Philosophers’ Way, like many others young and old, but went a bit further,  crossing the river at Steinach and returning to Heidelberg by a cycle path alongside a main road.

Tuesday

Tried the biggest of the local supermarkets. That’s more like it!  It had started raining by the time I got home, so I didn’t go walking until the afternoon.  The first stage of Neckarsteig involved climbing up “heaven’s ladder”, a series of flights of rough stone steps.  I tried to do 100 between breathers.  Beautiful view from the terrace at the top. This is one of the two “black” stages, i.e. challenging.  Apart from a short shower in Hauptstrasse, the rain held off until I got off the tram coming home.

Saturday

Stayed home in the morning waiting for a meter-reader and revising an old sermon for tomorrow.  Then did a round walk from Emmetsgrund and was delighted to discover that part of it followed the E1 long distance footpath, of which I walked two weeks’ worth many years ago.  There was even a visitors’ book to write in, so I did.