Deleted account rno
Guest
Me and Mrs Ronno (Christine) just got back yesterday from a 10 day trip to Germany to see my family. We go at least twice year but this trip was really special for us. We took our three year old Grandson, Charlie with us for what was for all of us, a really excellent adventure. It was Charlie's first time to Germany and his first meeting with my Mum and Dad.
The wee guy is a real star and stays with us for the weekends regularly. However, we were more than a little apprehensive as to how we would get on with him being separated from his Mum and older brother and sister for so long. No worries. Wee Charlie took it all in his stride. He was better than we could ever have dreamed of and he couldn't have behaved or enjoyed himself any better or more.
Charlie hasn't had the easiest start in life. He lost his Dad under tragic circumstances about 18 months ago. My parents were devasted at being unable to come over for the funeral and see my daughter Lynsey and the three kids. My Dad was unable to make the journey over due to ill health and my Mum wouldn't leave Dad on his own. I know how much this hurt them both and being now in their 80's, I feared that they might never get to meet Charlie. Thankfully, the green light from my daughter changed all that and my parents finally got to say hello to their youngest Great-Grandchild. It was really touching when they met him last Friday morning.
I was in two minds how much detail to give about Charlie's background on here but he is such a great kid and a real credit to how my daughter Lynsey has coped on her own that I'm proud to fill you in in some family history.
I hope you don't mind this slighty self indulgent post but I'm a very proud "Opa" indeed
Here are some photos of our magical trip...
Here's Charlie on the Newcastle ferry heading across the North Sea to begin his great adventure.
Charlie loves animals and birds so my brother-in-law Guenter quickly had a new helper in his aviary.
My sister's garden is slightly bigger and better looked after than my own one. The building at the foot of the garden is a Granny flat where my nephew lives. The flag flying for Charlie's arrival was a nice touch.
Keeping Wee Charlie occupied and entertained was fairly easy during the holiday. He loves parks, playing football, mucking around in pools and as mentioned before animals. Here he is at a wee park between my sister's house and where my parents live. It's a five minute walk between the houses. I reckon Charlie could be a GSer in the making...
There is a tile museum in Jockgrim which is on the site formerly occupied by Ludowici who was the main employer the town when my Dad was growing up. Storks now nest in the chimney of the museum and they regularly "fly past" at low heights in the evenings. They're an incredible sight to see. There are a good few storks now resident in the area after disappearing for over twenty odd years.
Here are a couple of photos of Jockgrim's architecture. It's a cracking wee village. Especially the older part of town.
We went to an animal farm at Bretten near Karlsruhe where Charlie was able to wander among the animals and feed them by hand. He chickened out of hand feeding this monkey and threw the carrot at his feet.
It was a brilliant place for kids (of all ages
) to meet animals and learn about handling them. It was 4 Euros to get in. It seems that Germans don't believe in ripping off children.
The next day, we headed into Schwarzwald to visit one of my favourite places: Freudenstadt. Here's Charlie at the street fountains in Markt Platz.
...which, being a typical wee boy, he then had to run through...
I fulfilled a long time ambition by buying my Grandson a pair of lederhosen. Here is Charlie (or Karl-Heinz) in his new atire. He looks the part, eh?
No trip to Schwarzwald could be complete without a bit of Black Forest gateau. Charlie took to the German food without any problems much to the delight of my Old Man...
A great day out was rounded off by a dip in the outdoor pool at Panorama Bad. The temperatures seldom dropped below 30 degrees during our trip.
The following day we headed off to Holiday Park, Hassloch for a really enjoyable day. It had everything for kids of every age, including rides that made my head spin just watching them.
This seemed about my limit of danger...
A trip to Wilhelma Zoo, Stuttgart was next on the agenda. I don't agree with zoos but have got to say that the one at Stuttart is very modern and beautifully maintained. The main reason that I wanted to go was to see their famous monkey Kinder Garten where they care for abandoned young primates.
Here are a few pics from the day.
Here are a couple more shots of Jockgrim that I took.
I quite like this photo but it was a complete fluke. My original intention was simply to take a photo of the Jockgrim sign.
Is this a Bayern Munchen star of the future? He's a got great balance and is all left foot...
My Dad only got out of hospital a few days before we arrived. He'd spent six weeks there recovering from his third hip operation. His mobility isn't great just now but he managed to take Charlie to his AWO Verein (a club with cheap bevvie for auld retired boys) and was proud to show the wee guy off to his mates. I'm not so sure about showing me off though...
Most old guys in Jockgrim drink Schorle (pints of wine and soda). It's lethal to me but my Dad can sink pints of it and take whisky on top without it seemingly effecting him. Mind you, his balance isn't that great even when he's sober. Me, I tend to stick to the bier. Here's my Dad with a pint of Schorle and a re-inforcement at the ready. The Barman at the AWO (behind my Dad in the photo) is Roland Daminger who's dad played international football for Germany.
Charlie is now the youngest Honourary member of the AWO Verein in Jockgrim. I think that their Initiation Ceremony is possibly a bit like the Masons...
Here's a photo of Charlie at Hinderstadtl, Jockgrim where I have so many happy memories of childhood holidays. It was brilliant to be able to take him there for hopefully the start of many happy memories for Charlie.
This is a really special photo for me. It was taken on Sunday morning just before we left for the long drive to Ijmuiden. It's a photo that I always hoped that I'd be able to take but never thought that I would...
Me and Christine really had the holiday of a lifetime thanks to Oor Wee Charlie. When we took him home to his excited Mum and big brother and sister, we were quicky told that Jack and Megan wanted to come next time. This is thanks to how much fun that Charlie had in Germany.
Here is the happy reunion.
Thanks for allowing me to share this with you...
Ronno
The wee guy is a real star and stays with us for the weekends regularly. However, we were more than a little apprehensive as to how we would get on with him being separated from his Mum and older brother and sister for so long. No worries. Wee Charlie took it all in his stride. He was better than we could ever have dreamed of and he couldn't have behaved or enjoyed himself any better or more.
Charlie hasn't had the easiest start in life. He lost his Dad under tragic circumstances about 18 months ago. My parents were devasted at being unable to come over for the funeral and see my daughter Lynsey and the three kids. My Dad was unable to make the journey over due to ill health and my Mum wouldn't leave Dad on his own. I know how much this hurt them both and being now in their 80's, I feared that they might never get to meet Charlie. Thankfully, the green light from my daughter changed all that and my parents finally got to say hello to their youngest Great-Grandchild. It was really touching when they met him last Friday morning.
I was in two minds how much detail to give about Charlie's background on here but he is such a great kid and a real credit to how my daughter Lynsey has coped on her own that I'm proud to fill you in in some family history.
I hope you don't mind this slighty self indulgent post but I'm a very proud "Opa" indeed
Here are some photos of our magical trip...
Here's Charlie on the Newcastle ferry heading across the North Sea to begin his great adventure.
Charlie loves animals and birds so my brother-in-law Guenter quickly had a new helper in his aviary.
My sister's garden is slightly bigger and better looked after than my own one. The building at the foot of the garden is a Granny flat where my nephew lives. The flag flying for Charlie's arrival was a nice touch.
Keeping Wee Charlie occupied and entertained was fairly easy during the holiday. He loves parks, playing football, mucking around in pools and as mentioned before animals. Here he is at a wee park between my sister's house and where my parents live. It's a five minute walk between the houses. I reckon Charlie could be a GSer in the making...
There is a tile museum in Jockgrim which is on the site formerly occupied by Ludowici who was the main employer the town when my Dad was growing up. Storks now nest in the chimney of the museum and they regularly "fly past" at low heights in the evenings. They're an incredible sight to see. There are a good few storks now resident in the area after disappearing for over twenty odd years.
Here are a couple of photos of Jockgrim's architecture. It's a cracking wee village. Especially the older part of town.
We went to an animal farm at Bretten near Karlsruhe where Charlie was able to wander among the animals and feed them by hand. He chickened out of hand feeding this monkey and threw the carrot at his feet.
It was a brilliant place for kids (of all ages
) to meet animals and learn about handling them. It was 4 Euros to get in. It seems that Germans don't believe in ripping off children.
The next day, we headed into Schwarzwald to visit one of my favourite places: Freudenstadt. Here's Charlie at the street fountains in Markt Platz.
...which, being a typical wee boy, he then had to run through...
I fulfilled a long time ambition by buying my Grandson a pair of lederhosen. Here is Charlie (or Karl-Heinz) in his new atire. He looks the part, eh?
No trip to Schwarzwald could be complete without a bit of Black Forest gateau. Charlie took to the German food without any problems much to the delight of my Old Man...
A great day out was rounded off by a dip in the outdoor pool at Panorama Bad. The temperatures seldom dropped below 30 degrees during our trip.
The following day we headed off to Holiday Park, Hassloch for a really enjoyable day. It had everything for kids of every age, including rides that made my head spin just watching them.
This seemed about my limit of danger...
A trip to Wilhelma Zoo, Stuttgart was next on the agenda. I don't agree with zoos but have got to say that the one at Stuttart is very modern and beautifully maintained. The main reason that I wanted to go was to see their famous monkey Kinder Garten where they care for abandoned young primates.
Here are a few pics from the day.
Here are a couple more shots of Jockgrim that I took.
I quite like this photo but it was a complete fluke. My original intention was simply to take a photo of the Jockgrim sign.
Is this a Bayern Munchen star of the future? He's a got great balance and is all left foot...
My Dad only got out of hospital a few days before we arrived. He'd spent six weeks there recovering from his third hip operation. His mobility isn't great just now but he managed to take Charlie to his AWO Verein (a club with cheap bevvie for auld retired boys) and was proud to show the wee guy off to his mates. I'm not so sure about showing me off though...
Most old guys in Jockgrim drink Schorle (pints of wine and soda). It's lethal to me but my Dad can sink pints of it and take whisky on top without it seemingly effecting him. Mind you, his balance isn't that great even when he's sober. Me, I tend to stick to the bier. Here's my Dad with a pint of Schorle and a re-inforcement at the ready. The Barman at the AWO (behind my Dad in the photo) is Roland Daminger who's dad played international football for Germany.
Charlie is now the youngest Honourary member of the AWO Verein in Jockgrim. I think that their Initiation Ceremony is possibly a bit like the Masons...
Here's a photo of Charlie at Hinderstadtl, Jockgrim where I have so many happy memories of childhood holidays. It was brilliant to be able to take him there for hopefully the start of many happy memories for Charlie.
This is a really special photo for me. It was taken on Sunday morning just before we left for the long drive to Ijmuiden. It's a photo that I always hoped that I'd be able to take but never thought that I would...
Me and Christine really had the holiday of a lifetime thanks to Oor Wee Charlie. When we took him home to his excited Mum and big brother and sister, we were quicky told that Jack and Megan wanted to come next time. This is thanks to how much fun that Charlie had in Germany.
Here is the happy reunion.
Thanks for allowing me to share this with you...
Ronno
).
