Ich bin ein Bedburger.....

Hello my friends....first I must start with an apology...I have not visited many of your blogs for the last week or so because I have been travelling and not able to take time to read and comment...sorry about that....the good news of course is that I am able to bring you a comprehensive report of my travels...hurrah!.....

....we asked the typist to consult the BT HQ diary and see what was coming up for the week...oh, apparently we are off to Germany!...

...the Colonel gave the Eurostar terminal at St Pancras Station a thorough inspection...it met with his approval....for our overseas readers I can tell you that the Eurostar is a big train which goes very fast under the sea all the way to Belgium and France....

...luggage and provisions all secured and we are ready to leave.....

...I have our tickets...I think its best I keep them and don't let ape-child @terriertypist lose them on the tracks or something....

....when we reached Brussels the Colonel was tasked with finding the Deutchse Bahn train to Cologne....that's it in the background...its shiny and super fast....

...we arrived at Koln HauptBahnHof. at dinner time.....that's Cologne Train Station in our language....

...we took a taxi to the town of Bedburg...and settled into our barracks as quickly as possible....I wonder where the typist will be sleeping....maybe the couch.....

....in the morning I made sure my fur was looking its best for our host, the very nice Miss Petra....

...whilst the Colonel conducted one of his wide-ranging inspections....

....we consulted over breakfast...(*delicious buffet)....

...and caught up with world events.....

....we took drill in the courtyard ....attenshun!.....comb that beard soldier!...

....and then we walked around Bedburg.....

...it is amply fortified...we were staying in the Old Quarter....the town has been here since 893!!

....the streets are tiny....and very quiet.....

....the Colonel made sure his quarters were fit for visitors....diplomacy is very important .....

....in the afternoon, the typist insisted I accompanied him on his run around the local lake and up the river....we got lost in the woods...it rained...oh dear.....thank dogness for Google Maps....

...we finally made it back as the lights faded ...to find that the hotel had started to decorate the courtyard for Christmas....

....brrrr....we needed to warm up.....thankyou Sir...*salutes*....

...BOL!...the Colonel and I are are caught on a conference call.....

...er...oh dear...the trail we had followed into the woods was the Werewolf Trail!!.....

YIKES!....we found this on the internet: One of the most bloodcurdling accounts of the capture and trial of a German werewolf, which was also published in England, occurred in 1589.  In Bedburg, not far from Cologne, a certain Peter Stubbes was charged with being a werewolf. It was claimed that for twenty-five years, when he changed into a wolf like beast, he had terrorized the neighbouring villages.  To avoid the fearful torture he would have to have undergone and which was customary in the Middle Ages, he admitted to being a werewolf and to killing and eating at least sixteen men women and children including his own son.    Found guilty on the 31 of October 1589, he was placed on the wheel and the flesh was pulled from his bones in ten places with red-hot pincers. His legs and arms were broken with a wooden club and when pronounced dead, his head was cut off and his body was burned to ashes. His daughter Neell and his mistress, Katherine Tropplin, being accused as his accomplices, got off with lighter sentences; they were burned at the stake, without having to suffer the preliminaries, which Stubbes had endured. 

....Vorsprung Durch Teknik as the Colonel likes to say....

....but these trips are never just fun...we had to work too...the Colonel and I inspected the simultaneous interpreting equipment.....*turns to English channel*....

....we were able to address our hosts and have them understand us...."Hallo wir sind Englisch Terrier und wir kommen in Frieden ...."....

...oh look, its Bedburg from the air.....our hotel was near the Church...it was the very nice Landhaus Danielshof if you ever find your self there...

....but after one final check on the decorations it was time for the Colonel and I to be on our way home...we had a fun-filled week and we believe we made some new friends...

...so, while the Colonel visited the famous cathedral in Cologne....

...the typist and I compared notes and checked tickets....

...and before long we were waving goodbye to Germany....aufweidersehn!....

...on the way home we passed through Aaachen and waved to our pal @schnuffie66....

....Miss Lola was very pleased to see us.....

....so we took her on a nice walk in the country to improve her mood......

...there's no place quite like England....!

Clapton, Private First Class, BT HQ Battalion