It is berry season in Thüringen! My friend (and future in-law) Kathrin invited Becca and me to go berry picking on a Friday afternoon. Kathrin picked me up at the train station in Apolda and we had the traditional afternoon "tea" of Germany which is coffee and cake (in this case, coffee and fresh blackberries from Kathrin's garden, topped with sweet, creamy yogurt) while we waited for Becca to finish work. Then it was just a short drive to the little town of Blankenheim, and just outside the town, the berry farm.
The farm contained seven different varieties of blueberries, in twenty or so rows that were so long and the bushes so high I couldn't see the end. The harvesting had been going on for several weeks, yet the bushes were still heavy with ripe berries.
It was my first time picking berries. I tasted a berry or two from each bush and when I found a bush that was particularly delicious, I stopped and started picking. Sounds easy, yes? But I was only picking one berry at a time, so my bucket was not filling up as I had hoped. I studied Kathrin's technique. Got it! I climbed in, and got messy - berry juice everywhere, scratches on my arms, and twigs in my hair. In two hours I had almost 4 pounds of the most delicious blueberries I had ever tasted!!!
As sweet as the berries were, nothing was as sweet as spending time with my daughter! Thank you Kathrin!!!
Comments