Day 5 1/2-Rothenburg ob de Tauber and visiting a friend

The last stop on our trip was to a town called Rothenburg ob de Tauber in Bavaria. It is a beautiful and well preserved town. Towards the end of WWII US soldiers took a white flag there and told the German army placed to defend it that they had three hours to surrender or the town would be bombed. No one on either side wanted to see it bombed so the German leader in charge surrendered. We were short on time so we only saw a small portion of "old town".

My main motivation was visiting the Kathe Wohlfahrt Christmas store. I like to collect Nativities and found one I loved. (That wouldn't break the bank) :)

On the way home we stopped at my friend Maureen's place outside the military base. Although she's from Utah we met in Mississippi while our husbands were in pilot training. Her husband is an F16 pilot and this is their first assignment. Our friends the Cecils and Sperbers are stationed in Germany at other military bases but the stars didn't align for us to see everyone. 

After that, it was time for me to Ausfart. (Exit) I wish Mike was with me to navigate security and customs, but I survived on my own. Barely. ;) This was a trip of a lifetime for me and I'm incredibly grateful my parents were able to watch our kids so we could make it happen. Hopefully I can follow Mike to another cool place someday.