Nuremberg Toy Fair Mascot--For Future Reference

 Thank you, David, for finding my camera USB wire! I forgot that I took photographs of this year's Nuremberg Toy Fair mascot to consider for future plush designs--to remind myself how totally cute mixed up patterns and unexpected colors can be.

I'm not usually fond of humanlike dolls but this costume totally caught my attention. If I post these pictures here, there's a much better chance that I'll find them later on : )

The red rocking horse is the official insignia of this fair and has been for as long as I know. The 2012 mascot has the design on her dress as well and here's a less-than-a-minute YOUTUBE video of the rocking horse showing up on the streets of Nuremberg that I have walked--in usually frighteningly cold weather--so many times.

Photos of Furth

the hotel is  in the black forest

after just a few steps, this is what the forsthaus looks like

what has been true of the forsthaus forever is that it's the hotel to go to if you want to see the wild pigs. now they are fenced in a large area, but they didn't used to be fenced in at all when i first started staying here.

today is saturday and this young child and a parent or grandparent brought raw spaghetti for the pigs. 

Babies! i counted four or five. they grunt and snort and run to the fence when dogs show up.

this was made by my friend Leslie. i'm so glad that i have it on this trip. i took it on my short forest walk.

and after the walk, just me in the forsthaus bar with the lights off and a worn copy of a newspaper that i could read.