On the road again!

Hey everyone! I had a great time visiting at Stough this past Sunday. I was able to go and meet some of the children in their classes; they’re cute little sprouts, aren’t they? Also I met so many others after the second service let out. You were all so nice. It felt like a warm afternoon in the sun, like family even. Thank you so much for having me!

Also I spent some time with Pastor Stephen. He let me listen to the music for the program this year and boy is it just great! I just can’t wait for Christmas to get here. When I was listening I just got soooo excited that my branches started quivering!! I didn’t even notice till I saw Stephen looking at me a little strangely. It must have looked kinda funny cause when I asked him what he just smiled.

Well it was really nice to get to relax and take a break from traveling but all things must come to an end. So now it’s back to the road. I know I mentioned South America but I heard something about the civil unrest going on so I figured that I’ll play it safe and head out to Madagascar instead. From what I hear, some of the trees out there are up-side-down. Isn’t that odd! I’ll drop you a line after I get there!

Lake Königssee Recap

Let me tell you, W-O-W! Lake Königssee is absolutely beautiful. I can’t believe that anyone in my family would have ever left here. The whole place is surrounded by mountains and on one side of the lake is a church, St.Bartholomä. You have to ride a boat just to get there!

I met a lot of relatives, mostly distant cousins (I won't bore you with a list of names; let me just say that I couldn’t see a single tree through my forest of relatives). There was also a beautiful ice cave made of glacier water called Eiskapelle. The water was sooooo clean (like Brita’s got nothing on this). To top that, the air felt so good blowing through my branches. I may have to spend my winter here, after Christmas of course. I’m told that it is spectacular when the lake ices over. You can even walk across it to the church! How cool is that!?!

Well anyway, I’m headed back, stateside, to Stough for a visit with the kids next Sunday. I really loved getting to meet some of them when I was there last time so I want to meet the rest too. After that it's off to the Amazon. Well, I’ll be seeing you soon.

Carol Pine

Paris Trip Recap

It's my last day in Paris and it makes me a little sad to leave :( I don't really care for big cities that much but there were so many things to see here I just couldn't help but to love it all, especially the Promenade Plantee. It is an old Viaduct that was used as a railway in the 50's I think, but now it's a planted walkway. It's sooooo pretty! They even have little ponds and arches and all sorts of flowers. I spent several days admiring the Promenade.

Also, another surprise was that the arches under the Promenade were converted into a series of workshops and stores for the arts. Pastor Stephen would love it because they had several shops devoted solely to musical instruments. I found several Fashion Design shops and did some shopping. I found the cutest little skirt. The lady at the store told me that the color complemented my branches (how sweet of her!)

Well now I'm off to the Alps. I have some really old family there in Königssee, Germany. The lake there is supposed to be absolutely beautiful! Also, be sure to order your tickets for the Carolinas' Singing Christmas Tree at Stough, they're going fast and I wouldn't want you to miss out on my performance!

Well, I'm shipping out now. TTYL!