Swings and roundabouts

A German playground (spielplatz) is a lot like an Aussie one.  There’s a slide, some swings and some of those weird animal shapes on top of big springs that kids sit on and bounce.  However, there is always a sandpit, which I think is a bit different.  Having said that, I could be wrong.  I never had kids in Australia so my knowledge is limited!  But I’ve been to a few Aussie playgrounds on visits home and they either have grass or wood chips (I think they rock) but not sand.  Georgia LOVES the sand.  The kids all take their sand toys and of course only play with the other kids’ stuff.  But they have a really great time.

Georgia and Thomas on the slide

In the sandpit

Today we met our two local Aussie friends (also married to non-Aussies) plus offspring in the big spielplatz in a corner of Bad Homburg’s Kur Park.  This means “spa park”.  It’s a large, beautiful park.  When the leaves change colour in the autumn it is spectacular!  Bad Homburg is famous (apparently – I’d never heard of it) for its champagne luft (air), which supposedly is very good for one’s health and the place abounds in medical facilities.  And the odd spa.  While my favourite babysitters were here (thanks Ma and Pa), my handsome fella and I spent an evening in the Kur Royal (the Royal Spa).  Oh yes.  A very nice date!  My favourite part was called the “hay steam room” (or something like that).  Steam was puffed through hay at our backs and it was all nice and steamy and…well…hay-y.  I had very vivid flashbacks of the many hours we spent as kids, playing in the hayshed on our farm.  I will definitely have to pay the spa another visit.  It’s a little easier to get to than the farm!