Walks with Benson

I love taking walks in Germany for several reasons. Today is a beautiful day in Bavaria. The sun is shining (and has been for almost a week now!) and the temperatures are is slowly creeping up to t-shirt weather. So, on this very beautiful day, I thought I would share with you the reasons taking walks in this wonderful country are the best!

1. Well, it's BEAUTIFUL! Germans are known for keeping their houses and yards in order, and boy do they do an awesome job. There's no way you can keep up with the Germans. They are ALWAYS sweeping the street, shoveling the snow, and working in their gardens (yards). ALWAYS. You never see much trash on the ground, the countryside is so green, and the villages are all so "cute."

2. Germans LOVE dogs. You would think it's law here to have a dog. It seems like everyone has one and they take really good care of them. So, Benson always gets LOTS of love when going on walks. Also, if I ever wanted to stop in at a shop and I had Benson I could do so (most of the time). Germans take their dogs everywhere.

3. It's safe. I know there is crime everywhere, but Germany sure is on the low end of it. If I wanted to, I could take a walk at 11:00 p.m. and be perfectly safe. It's so peaceful at night, especially out here in the country. You could hear a pen drop.

4. The smells. Germans are good at several things. Two of those things is COOKING and BAKING. Every corner I turn it smells like heaven! Everything is so fresh here. The fruits, the veggies, and the BREAD. My oh my can Germans bake. There are three bakeries in our village, so no shortage there.

5. The trails. They are everywhere. Yesterday Benson and I found a trail near our house that led up to a church with a garden BEERgarden beside it. :)

6. Active people. Germans love to be outdoors and so there are always people riding bikes, walking, running, etc. One thing I have noticed is the activity level of their older adult population. Today I saw an older man, maybe in his early 80s, riding his bike from one village to the next. They are always out walking or doing something. There is also a man (in his late 70s, maybe?) I see almost everyday (regardless of weather) in his wheelchair using his legs to go up and down a hill within the village.

7. Clean, fresh air. The air here seems so much cleaner here. Germans also recycle EVERYTHING and they are protective of their environment, which makes for an excellent walk. You can just feel the freshness in the air. When we first came here, the cars we bought had to have a sticker on the front windsheild indicating if the car was "green enough" to drive through certain parts of the country. In protected areas within the country you can only drive through if you have a "green sticker." I can't imagine NOT recycling now. Every Thursday I take our recycling to the recycling center right outside our village. I would feel so wasteful now if I throw all of that away.

Needless to say, I love it. I love taking walks here and I feel so lucky to be able to do so! Benson loves it too!