Uploaded June 2025 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago

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Monday, May 19th 2025
Took a train from Amsterdam to Duisburg, Germany and then a taxi to acquire a rental car [Sixt]. Drove from Duisburg to Bad Sassendorf via the Autobahn, which was an adventure. First the GPS decided to crap out, so we missed the first major roadway change. Then we weren't familiar with how exits were labeled, nor the use of frontage roads to serve multiple exists, so we missed a second roadway change. Basically, we drove a meandering S pattern to our destination.

Checked into the hotel [turned out to be a spa resort for older individuals] and drove to the Erwitte admin building to meet the local Archivist. Turned out he splits time between two locations and wasn't there, so we explored a bit of Erwitte. Mainly The Kirche St. Laurentius and Schloss Erwitte.

Drove to Soest to explore the medieval town, late lunch at Brauhaus Zwiebeil. Drove back to Bad Sassendorf and explored the local Gradierwerk [Graduation Tour].

Erwitte
erwitte.de/tourismus/stadtportrait/stadtgeschichte
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erwitte

Soest
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soest,_Germany

Bad Sassendorf
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bad_Sassendorf

Tuesday - 20 May 2025
This day was dedicated to Genealogy. Via the Historical Society, I had arranged an invitation to the Bals-Lusebrink, which is farm that has been in the Bals family documented as far back as the 1600s. We expected to meet the family, see parts of the farm and the Chapel, say our goodbyes, and then explore the village of Schmerlecke. We actually ended up spending the entire day/evening with the family, which was amazing. We plan to return soon for another visit and in depth exploration of the surrounding areas.

If you are interested in Bals Ancestary, feel free to visity my research website.
balsancestry.com

Schmerlecke
erwitte.de/tourismus/stadtportrait/ortschaften/schmerlecke

Möhne Reservoir
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M%C3%B6hne_Reservoir

Möhnesee Tower
moehnesee.de/en/neusta-pois/moehnesee-tower