
But bright and early the next morning we were heading off to Germany . . .
But at this point Vin was determined to make it all work, driving through Belgium and Germany without knowing any of the traffic rules or languages, finally making it to our town and then dashing off into the night and cold rain on a fool's mission to hopefully find someone who spoke English who could help him find wi-fi and email to track down our hosts . . . well shout out to Matty because it turns out Vin randomly ran into a US AIR FORCE guy and his wife who were so willing to help! When he came back to the car, he was grinning like a fool because it had somehow all worked out. Hallelujah.
And when we walked into our little town and into our place, WOW. We were staying in a small village called Bernkastle-Kues on the Mosel River (known for its Reisling-- not my favorite wine but the Bernkastle Doctor brand was fantastic) and our flat was literally on the medieval market square. The building was constructed in 1644 but the owners had done an incredible renovation job that kept the antique charm intact with modern conveniences as well. The apartment was literally next door to the region's largest advent calendar, another historic building where each window represented a different number and scene (we were able to watch the opening ceremonies comfortably from our living room window on the 1st and 2nd of December!). It was all so worth all the trouble and angst it took to get there.