Thursday, April 24, 2008

Trier, Germany

I invited my sister-in-law Sarah, my niece Sammie and my nephew Tommy over for dinner last night. Many of you know that Sarah's husband Tom (my brother) is a pilot who flies 747s around the world. This week, Tom is lucky enough to have a four-day layover in a little town called Trier, which is 20 minutes outside of Luxembourg. When I was 11 years old, I visited Europe and stayed with a military family based in Bitburg, Germany -- also 20 minutes from Trier (just in a different direction). I went to Trier on Good Friday, and because of the holiday, it wasn't crowded. I remember seeing the Porta Negra, which is the largest Roman portal still standing.

The Porta Negra

What is so amazing is that I visited Trier and the Porta Negra twenty years ago, and my brother was just there yesterday.

Another thing I remember about Trier is the calamari. The calamari in Trier is not your ordinary calamari that you order as an appetizer from your favorite resturant. This calamari is a jumbo ring and I dipped it in some kind of fry sauce (similar to ketchup & mayo mixed together -- except better). I told Tom that he needs to be on a manhunt for some jumbo deepfried calamari!

Another unforgotten memory was when I went to a little cafe and ordered a banana boat, which is actually a banana split. I missed the part on the menu that said the banana was dipped in alcohol! It was the worst thing I have ever tasted, and from that experience, I learned that I didn't ever want to drink alcohol.

Over the years I have missed Trier. It's really hit home for me since I heard Tom's been there.

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