Winter in the Ore Mountains - a long story

... and a long story it is indeed. Firstly there are lots of photos in this blog and secondly winters are usually long in the Ore Mountains (Erzgebirge). 
The Ore Mountains, a region in Saxony, Germany (Map) are also called the Christmas Land (Weihnachtsland) because it's snow safe and has pretty little towns and villages that lie in valleys and are surrounded by forests. 

Here is a selection of photos I've taken during my recent visit by my mum in Lauter. Lauter is my home town, which lies in.. can you guess... the Ore Mountains.

12 Feb 2012: 
We are on an after lunch walk through the snowed in surroundings and the town. Morning temperature -18C. Midday temperature -5C. Bearable when wearing 3 layers of clothes and staying in the sun.

Mum:

Lauter town center

14 Feb 2012 (mum's birthday): 
A grey day with only light snow fall. Temperature evening: -1C.  We're of to the Chinese Restaurant in the neighbouring town, Aue... by bus, because taking a taxi when buses are running would be a waste of money (my mum's speech).

15 Feb 2012:
Another dull grey day. Nothing spectacular weather wise. Temperature midday -1C, it's not snowing yet, but very windy.
We're on an explorer tour to the Villa, where my mum, her parents and her two siblings were housed in 1945 after the war.
They had to leave their home in Schweidnitz, which was once Germany but then was given to Poland. They've arrived with only a few suitcases and found "a flat" in this house. It consisted of 3 rooms, each on a different floor... and the toilet was in an outbuilding.
I lived there too... until my 3rd Birthday.. then my mum, my sister and me moved to a more suitable place.... a flat in town with no kid's bedroom, no bathroom and of course no central heating. Bless the town planning department of the GDR!

The Villa is a grand house with lots of land and a private forest. I have fond memories of trying to feed the sheep, climbing down these massive staircases and racing down the path to the barn on my tricycle... which of course was forbidden.

Mum describing how things used to be.

On the way back home.

I'm venturing out on my own towards the forest one last time on my visit to the Christmas Land to capture some more impressions of the snowed in landscape.

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Posted in: Erzgebirge,Germany,Landscape,Landscape Photography,Ore Mountains,Saxony,winter