It is "siberia" cold here.

I have quickly become a creature of habit. I shop, eat and drink (hot tea). It is so very cold here, that bundling up in all my NH winter gear still does not keep me warm enough to spend much time outdoors. I walk for about 20 minutes then duck into a shop to warm up. Then out again. The daily temps have been consistently in the teens Farenhiet. The streets are cobble stoned, the buildings are almost a thousand years old, the people here are quiet and direct. Americans are not their favorite tourists. In general the locals are not rude, just quiet, non emotional people, you cannot tell from their face or body language what they think. They must be good at keeping secrets.
Steve is working long hours so am left to entertain myself. I went to the Christmas Marketplace shop, it was beautiful. I've seen some of the most intracately Bavarian Cuckoo clocks. I could just stand there and watch the cuckooing, some are like villages at a stand still, then the clock strikes the hour and the entire village moves, each person and animal doing their thing! Most people here speak English and in fact, I feel awkward that I only speak one language. If a person picks up that I don't speak German, they might re-start the conversation in French or Italian. I have found that the younger the person, the more freely and clearly they speak English.
I met a woman named Baerbel, Barbarba is the American version of her name. We had coffee at a bakery near the hotel. She overheard me ordering and spoke right up and said, "do you mind if I join you here, I like to practice my English?" Barbara is very interesting, lives here in Rothenburg and works in a shop. She seemed to know everyone who came and went in the bakery, people stopped by our table and spoke to her and she introduced me to them. Tonight I am having dinner at "the English social club". She belongs to a club that meets for dinner and drinks so that the members can practice conversational English. On Friday she is off from work and taking me out sight seeing by car. We are going to a type of spa that is popular here, but, I think not in the traditional sense of an American day spa. I get the feeling that it is less pampering and more of a common thing to do on one's day of and it translates into roughly $12. She has children the same age as mine & she likes to gab.... so, there you have it, instant friendship