This morning we enjoyed a delightful buffet breakfast at our hotel before meeting up with Jochen Bercker and another student by the name of Magnus Dorsch. Magnus lives in Hamburg, Germany and took the train into Frankfurt to visit with us for the day. Magnus works for an online apparel company headquartered in Hamburg and also took the train into Frankfurt to visit with us. 

The weather was only about 40 degrees Fahrenheit overnight but warmed to a comfortable 65 or so during the day. Many of the shops and restaurants are closed on Sundays but it was sunny and clear and the locals were out enjoying the sunshine along the River Main. 

We stopped for coffee at a local art museum café along the Main River. Continuing our walk along the Main River we reached a neighborhood famous for its apple wines. The old town filled with half-timber houses and meandering narrow streets. Each eating establishment has tables and benches outside on the narrow streets enticing visitors to stop for a beer, apple wine or something to eat. We stopped at a charming old-world restaurant with beer garden where we had pork schnitzel, apple wine, beet salad with trout and chicken salad. Over lunch we caught up on the lives of our former students from the English In Action program at SDSU.  They are thriving!

By mid-afternoon Jochen caught a train home and Magnus took us by Uber to a lovely 55-acre Palm Garden established in 1871 and opened to the public. Many of the plants are arranged in climatized greenhouses including tropical, sub-tropical and desert plants. The gardens include a rose garden, dahlia gardens, ferns, palm gardens, cactus, succulents, a butterfly house with live butterflies, lakes with paddle boats, ponds, children’s play areas and much more. 

For dinner with Magnus, we walked a short distance from our hotel to a delicious Vietnamese restaurant called Sen. From the fresh spring rolls to red curry, everything was wonderful. Magnus staying the night in a local hotel and will head back to Hamburg by train in the morning.