Oh the Places You'll go, the People you will meet, and the Memories you will make

So I have been dreading writing this blog. Writing about having to leave a country and people you have grown to care so much for is incredibly hard. The intense emotions that come with departing are tough to grasp and often I found myself torn apart, similar to my recital or leaving college, as it seems so final-especially not knowing the next time I will see these people again, but I think I am getting ahead of myself, so I’ll rewind.

Debriefing: So there were three of us leaving at the same time from Germany, so there was a debriefing for us at Bettina’s house. If any of this is a repeat from my last blog,  entshuldigund.  Friday morning  I got up at my last host families house just like everyday. We were behind because we had all been up a little bit later the night before, especially Talina. We got Talina to school, and she actually said bye easily this time. We went back to the house and ate breakfast, I finished up packing and my last blog, and then we went to pick up Talina, and drive to Bettina’s house. We got there, and before we even got out of the car I saw Hanna, a fellow IFYE from Finland also going through the debriefing. I introduced everyone, and then we took my luggage to Hanna’s and my room. Then lunch then off to Oldenburg for the day with Oystein (IFYE from Norway) and Hanna. Prior to going to Oldenburg, I had to say goodbye to Ines and Talina (Bjarne was sleeping). And this goodbye was hard, I had grown to feel so much at home here in three and half weeks that I just didn’t want to say goodbye. Maybe what makes it more difficult is the not knowing when I would see them all again. It was actually helpful to go to Oldenburg to take my mind off of having to say goodbye.

In Oldenburg we walked to the castle-which is now a museum from early times to current. We only went up to the 1960’s or 70s as we were tired of walking through the whole museum. From there we got a snack, visited a few stores and bought a few final souvenirs, before getting ice cream….and then ran into trouble getting back. So as we were eating ice cream no one was watching time. All the sudden I realized we had like maybe ten minutes to get to the train station. Hanna had yet to finish her ice cream and we were able to get it to go. We raced to the train station but right as we got near we realized we were going to miss our train. Hanna calls her friend, but they don’t have enough seats in the car, so we ended up taking a taxi back to the house. And we were supposed to be the guests of a party, so we were trying to be back on time which didn’t happen. BUT that was okay, because all the other guests were late, and this made for a great story to tell over and over that evening at the dinner party.

Saturday was a lot of discussion and the debriefing portion of the weekend. That evening we each made food from our home countries and ate a meal together with Neele and Till (IFYE Alumni). I made Sloppy Joes, and I did have to alter the recipe a little bit, but it still tastes good. That evening we rode bikes to a friend’s house to see their Startbuck’s mugs collection, and then went back and cleaned. We all split early in order to be able to get up early to go to the fish market the following morning.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We arose bright and early (before 4 am) and drove an hour and a half to go to the fish market in Hamburg. The fish market is definitely a sight to see. It starts at 6 am and ends a few hours later. We got there about 630am, and there were people already leaving-granted these were the people who had stayed out partying all night and then went to the fish market for food and to buy stuff and go home. Regardless, the market was packed. There are vendors just filling bags with stuff, and then selling it for 10 or 15 or 20 euros which is a great deal on fruit, pasta, candy, ect.  About halfway through the market we stopped to get breakfast. Unknowingly I ordered a sandwich with raw meat. The meat is only good for 12 hours and so must be eaten fresh. Believe it or not, but it was not slimy and it actually tasted pretty good-and no I did not get sick! At the end there is also a building where two stages on either side are set up. As one band takes a break, another band plays. It was fun to listen to one band perform, as I knew almost every song since they were classic rock songs! We mainly stayed in the building long enough to warm up from the cool morning air. Around 8am, Bettina took Oystein to the airport and to drop my bags off at the hotel I would stay at overnight. In the meantime, Jens, Hanna, and I walked around the fish market, then through the Elbe Tunnel which goes under the water to the other side. Kinda crazy to think that we were walking under water! But also so cool! After a late morning snack, it was time to say goodbye to my friends as Bettina and Jens had to take Hanna to the airport so she could also go home. I got a train ticket for the entire day and continued to explore Hamburg on my own. I was able to find the Brahms Museum, and the Teleman Museum right next door! (If you don’t recognize the names they are famous musicians who were originally from Germany and from Hamburg area). Anyway I also then went to the St. Michael’s Church before going back to the hotel.

 

FYI-This section next section is in present tense as I wrote it the last night I was in Germany.

So in leaving there are thousands of emotions that a person goes through. I am not even going to try going through a few as they are so different for everyone. For me, coming-there was nervousness and excitement. But leaving….that is something incredibly different. Each goodbye I have said this weekend, has increased the emotional buildup. Every day I either had tears in my eyes or were drawn to tears. Early today, I said my final goodbyes to Bettina, Jens, and Hanna. I am staying in Hamburg overnight as they took Hanna to Bremen for her plane and then Bettina and Jens split to their separate homes. As I walked away this afternoon I took several deep breaths to keep control of myself. I found my way around the city, and gained confidence as I did so. But somewhere along the way, the emotional ups and downs of the weekend started to really hit home. As I made my way back to officially check into the hotel (Bettina had already dropped my bags off at the airport), I was fighting tears constantly. In the train ride, walking in the terminal trying to find the way to go in order to get to my hotel. By the time, I go to ask for directions (which is the best thing to do!) I was fighting tears pretty constant. I felt like I was going to have to start telling people I was okay, just very bittersweet as I prepared to leave. I didn’t even think that I would be able to write anything. I literally was going to put on facebook, “tomorrow I leave Germany, I can’t say much as my emotions are out of control, so while I am excited to see those I love, I also will miss those I love here. Thank you all, and I look forward to seeing you again”. Well maybe that would be enough, I realized this evening coming back for the final time, that I need to write down my story. I need to share what is going on, the struggles I am having and the battling emotions.

As soon as I got my luggage to my room, I headed back to the city as there was supposed to be an organ concert at the St. Michael’s Kirche, and I thought it would be neat to go. Well I was already running late, but this gentleman stopped me along the way and asked me a question-problem-Ich Weiss ein bischen Deustch. I started to tell him I didn’t know what he said, but he didn’t understand that, and finally I remembered “Ich verstehe nicht”-and then it made sense. We talked about why I was there and a little of where he has been in the USA. But here’s the reason this story is included: when he stopped me-I had been crying, full blown crying-this time I was unable to keep my emotions under control. I was talking to myself-I knew that this was okay. It is normal to have crazy emotions after an experience like this, I should know-much of the emotional turmoil I have felt of the push and pull is similar to the emotional pull that my senior recital had on me-but I’ve been able to eat better this time. But here’s the thing-at first I had my sunglasses on, so my eyes were hidden, but I felt that I needed to remove my glasses, so I did and then had to wipe the tears away and explain that I was crying because it is hard. To which, he said yes it is, it is bittersweet to leave (not in so many words-this was probably the first conversation I have fully had without having someone who could translate there for me, and so we figured it out together). At that point, it was like, okay I can be sad, I can be happy randomly, I just need to be, I need to experience the emotions instead of trying to block them. I can only think that God put him there to help me out. In many ways God has been already working to help me with leaving here and returning home over the past few days. He gave me something to do for the Afternoon on Friday, and at times I wish I could have stayed with my host family longer, but others I go-I’m glad we could go to Oldenburg because it helped to distract me a little bit that day. But those are just examples. Some of the emotions I have gone through: nervousness, panic, anxious, happy, joyous, lively, scared, -you named and I’ve probably experience it on this trip. Is that a bad thing? Nope, it opens yourself up to yourself and those around you. I feel as if I am rambling-earlier as I was walking I could organize my thoughts easily and wanted my computer, sadly the computer was in the room where I could not get to it, so if these seems somewhat repetitive-I apologize as I write.

Tonight God also led me to get excited about teaching again. With this experience, I have put all my schoolwork aside so that I could fully enjoy Germany. Up until today, I was not excited for school to begin, but in thinking-I miss my students too. I am excited to go back and start working with the students and getting started on the new songs. I am even suddenly excited to work on drills for Tuesday evening. What this all means is that God is leading me through. Typcially I hate being in a hotel alone, but I am more comfortable than ever. So what’s my secret? Trust. I struggle to trust God, but instead of thinking-I immediately asked for help. And I have held onto that forever. When you travel your fears show up right away. Here in Deutschland I have had to trust very quickly-trust the organization, Bettina, Ines, people you ask for help, and generally its all good. I have been lucky here in Germany for finding what we need. This evening as I went to the church, I learned it was a special modern service by the youth. I thought okay this might be interesting-problem, I can’t understand enough to follow-I did try, and it didn’t work. I felt like that was the wrong place to be, but I had seen a garden. I think that was when I decided to talk with God and praise him for everything. And that seemed to be a good ending to my evening in Hamburg. Flying home the next day, went very smoothly and I was greeted by my family (minus my older sister) at the airport in Wichita. I was incredibly tired, almost to the point that if I had been asked to walk a straight line, I think I would have failed. I mean by now I had been up for almost 30 hours! Regardless, I was thankful for easy travels back home to the USA and to see my family, and later my puppy again.     

Debriefing weekend was a weekend of a lot of goodbyes or as I would prefer to call them “see you laters”.  As easy as the words are to say, the emotions that go with them are not. I will miss my host families and friends that I have made. You are all in my heart and I will carry you with me every day.  I look forward to the day when I can return and visit and to the day that they hopefully come to visit the USA and maybe I can show them around where I live. Thank you all so much for a fantastic experience!

A Change in Plans....

So this week seemed to be a little different-wait haven’t I said that before-like almost every week? Or maybe I’ve always taken it out, lol-regardless this week, plans were made and plans consistently changed throughout the week. In retrospect, it is somewhat entertaining how much plans for the week changed actually, and how quickly plans changed. Some plans slowly changed while others were quite drastic within the length of about five minutes. All in all-this week still turned about to be a good week, because regardless of the plan changes, sickness, trains running amiss, and confusion-every day there was something to smile and laugh about. Of course with having two little kids around-how can a person not find something to laugh or smile at?  That’s like not enjoying a nice cold drink on a hot summer day-just not possible. Anyway, it has surely been an interesting week at the Heinemann’s.

 

Schutzenfest:

If you remember, I attended festivals while I was in S. Germany as well. Well this festival is extremely different than where I had been. In S. Germany-the festivals seem to be so much more about the music, while here the Schutzenfest is to celebrate the achievements of the shooting clubs for that town/area. I played in the band I played in on Friday night. We marched through the town, and then at the tent we played for like two hours! But drinks were free-yay! I don’t have to pay to stay hydrated! I was entertained by the fact that throughout the performance, the other clarinetists were giving me instructions for each song. We only played maybe five of the tunes we practice Friday evening, and so I was sight-reading much of the music. By the end of the day, my normal response became, “k, I  think I got it, but I’m going to follow you”. And it worked pretty well-no one else realized that I had no idea what I was supposed to be doing or when I was supposed to stand or sit while playing! It was fun. By the time we were done, my hands were sore, and my lip was sore, and it was hot-I was ready to be done.

Plans go awry:

·         Montag: Planned to go swimming at the lake-canceled due to sickness

·         Mittwoch: planned to go to Netherlands with two other IFYEs nearby-the train never showed! This was a new experience not having the train appear. As soon as I could I called one of the other IFYEs that I was meeting to explain the situation and ask them to call Ines and ask her to come get me at the bus station. It was frustrating that my train didn’t come, but I didn’t have time to focus on that as I returned my tickets and then stood at the payphone to call Hanna and Ines trying to figure out to use a payphone! I have not used a payphone in so long that I had forgotten how, nevermind being in german. So that was an interesting adventure Wednesday morning. And no worries that my day may have been boring-remember I have two very energetic kids running around-they loved having me home to play with and I loved being there!

Other Events:

Horse Jumping Competition: On Sontag (the only day plans went normal), Ines, Talina (she rode her bike), and I  walked to the horse show, and it turned out to be a longer walk than we originally thought. It took us about a half hour walking-which doing the math of 1 mile to 15 minutes equals about 2 miles each way-talk about a morning workout! We got to the horse show and watched the horses warm up at first and talking about English style riding versus Western. I know nothing about horse shows, although I do love to ride horses. The horse show was a jumping competition, and as such the riders were dressed like jockey’s. They wore special boots, pants, and tops to compete in. In the USA-at rodeos and a few pictures I’ve seen of horse competitions-people are usually in jeans and a western shirt, with boots. I’m sure there are competitions where USA riders dress the same, but I have rarely seen a horse show itself to know so that was neat. I enjoyed watching the various competitors and horses-seeing the different speeds of each horse, the jumping styles of various horses, and trying to determine how experienced the horses were based on how they jumped. It was fun to watch and take pictures.   

“An American Supper”:

On Montag, I cooked an “American Supper”. It consisted of BBQ Pork Sandwiches, Creamed Corn (my family’s recipe), and fried zucchini. Originally I had planned on making potatoes, but due to time constraints and the fact that there is a lot of zucchini from the garden-I chose to make zucchini instead-with input from Kai. This meal is very quick and easy to make, and still one of my favorites. The corn was probably the most interesting as I had to convert measurements, and I was making two separate cream corns-one for me and one for the family (mine was with goat cheese since I can’t eat cow dairy products). I was not sure how the corn would turn out, but it was also good. Before eating we took a picture, and then everyone ate, and everyone enjoyed it.

On Dienstag, I also made chocolate chip cookies. I made the kid recipe of chocolate chip cookies, and I call them the “kid” recipe because this is the first recipe I remember making of cookies, and these cookies are very sugary-but they taste good and the kids loved them! The cookies were pretty much gone by the time I left.

Final Thoughts:

As I prepare to leave the Heinemann’s it is incredibly bittersweet. I have grown used to playing with Talina and Bjarne each day, talking with Ines and Kai and just hanging out. It is not easy to leave a place you have grown accustomed to or have enjoyed being so much. Maybe I should be used to this feeling by now from living and working in various areas-but I don’t think one can ever grow used to having to say goodbye. And so it is tough. But I look forward to staying in contact, and someday I hope to be able to visit again, or maybe someday the Heinemann’s can come and visit me in the USA and I can return the generosity they have shown me. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart for a wonderful time here!

Gehen, Gehen ... Nicht Weg, Gehen

Going, Going…..Not Gone-Going

As we sat at the table after supper last Samstag (27 Juli), Ines and I made a plan for the week. Little did I realize that our plan meant that every day was there not only something going on, but every day we were going somewhere! (minus Sonstag) I mean when you have two little kids around, there is never a dull moment, but going places with little kids is also tiring-but oh so much fun! Probably one of the best things to do is getting to hang out with the kids at various places. Now we also spend time at home playing games, and that is just as fun or entertaining at times-especially if you were to see my room currently-it has become a mixture of my room and a playroom! As I was told this evening-“is your room for a 2-4 year old or a 24/25 year old? I’m not sure I can tell”-well I’m not sure that I can either! Here is a summary of the week: Birthday Party, Labrynth Maize, Swimming, Errands, Party, Hamburg, Errands-walking, practicing clarinet/my room becomes a play room (I couldn’t walk around my room by Friday evening), band practice, and nine pin activities!

So on Sunday-we actually stayed at the house since it was the birthday party for the entire family. (I think I mentioned this before.) The Heinemann’s invited a few families over and to start with we were all around the playground and the slackline. As the day continued, everyone mainly sat around the table talking or out near the playground/slack line. And yes I have tried the slack line and successfully walked across, now the next challenge would be to walk across a slack line placed higher off the ground-maybe I will have to take Kai’s advice and buy my own slack line when I return to the USA. Ha.

Montag-here is when we started going places. In the morning, shortly after breakfast, we packed up the car, drove to Talina’s friend’s house to pick up her friend, and then drove to the corn maze-or as it is called here-Labrynth Maizfeld. I think this may have been one of my favorite days of the week! It took Hannah a little bit to warm up to me, but very quickly, we were going through the maze, the girls trying to scare me, or I them, or me tickling them, or them pushing me, and of course throughout searching for the next station. Of course when I followed the girls, I would ask “rechts oder links?” (right or left?) And then I felt like Scarecrow from Wizard of Oz when Dorothy is standing on the yellow brick road and he points right, left, and then crosses his arms. (And yes I actually did the actions a few times in the corn field). So I may not be the biggest fan of Wizard of Oz, but it seems that you may take a girl out of Kansas, but Kansas travels with her.

Donnerstag-Hamburg with Hanna (another IFYE) and friends. We were shown around Hamburg by one of the girls who goes to school there. We went to the Harbor, walked around the Reeperbahn where we found the “Monument to the Fab Four”-which is for the Beatles, and the street is named “Beatles Platz”. While walking through Hamburg made for a very long day, I did see various sections of Hamburg-a few that would not be seen if I was only being a tourist. And my only summary of the day has been: Hamburg is a city and with that comes everything that makes a city. BUT-there are many cool things about Hamburg as well, including street artists-I even purchased my own piece of art that I watched be made and will bring home to put in my house somewhere!

On Freitag afternoon, I got out my clarinet to play and be warmed up for the band rehearsal that night. I ended up giving a private concert to Talina, Bjarne, and Ines. We took a break for cake, and then Talina decided that I must play some more, while in my room she created a space just to play-only problem-it was very hard to get in and out of my room! That evening I went to  a band rehearsal for the Klosterblatach band. They are performing in a Schutzenfest on Somstag un Montag. It was fun to play with an ensemble, although this ensemble is a smaller ensemble, but to get to play again is always fun for me.

Samstag: Nine Pin-a different kind of bowling-except not really. So I learned what the game Nine Pin is all about. It is very similar to bowling in that you are using a ball and an alley in order to knock down pins-but it is different. The lane has a dip in the center, the ball is much smaller, and the ball should start from one side, roll to the other, and back to the other and hit off center. It is actually kinda fun to play. On Samstag though there was a Nine Pin Session for students on holiday (summer vacation). I am not actually sure how many students there were, but they were all split into five groups. There were several different games that you played ranging from regular, to only odd numbers count, and others. My job varied throughout the day-sometimes it was taking action photos, later it was checking/doing math (which is not my forte, and with lots of students staring over your shoulder waiting for their score it is somewhat nervewracking!), ball retriever, and finally a player. After the competition was done, we played two different games with the jr. high group! I really enjoyed the two games, and hopefully I can bring the one that was new to me back and we can play it while bowling! One of the boys in the group even came up and spoke a little English to me since he is learning English at school! I love it when the younger kids will try and speak English with me to check their knowledge-it’s so fun! At the end of the day, I now know what Nine Pin is, I enjoy it and although I should probably stick to bowling since I can’t break those habits, I think Nine Pin is a great game and one I would enjoy playing again!

*And for all you Dutch Blitz players out there-I finally figured out what game it is in Germany! Remember me writing of learning Wurfel Ligretto? Well there was a card game before dice, and I now have my own game ( a gift from the Heinemann’s) but in looking at the directions I realized this is dutch blitz!!! How cool is that! 

*This week I learned how to make Rouladen and Kartoffeln Knodel! Ines taught me how to make the Rouladen and helped me with the dough for the Knodels, but then both Ines and Kai had to go upstairs and get the kids ready and in bed. So I was left on my own to Finish. I was able to figure out how to shape the Knodel and then get everything else ready for supper-and although I was nervous, everything turned out pretty good and tasted amazing!

Sightseeing, Relaxing, and Spiele mit Kinder (Playing with children) :)

So here in Germany it has grown quite hot and humid. I know the temperature number in Kansas this time of year is usually higher, but when you walk outside and immediately start sweating it does not matter where you are from that to me is considered hot and muggy. But that does not mean I like Germany any less, especially when it takes longer to reach that point in the day than back home. But for those of you who think I escaped the Kansas heat during the summer, I’m not so sure about that.

This past week was jam-packed with activities. If you have not yet figured out, living in Southern Germany and now in Northern Germany and with families of kids at different ages, makes for very different experiences-which is totally awesome! And trust me, it’s just as busy being on a farm or home with kids-there is always something going on. The only difference-I only helped on the farm when needed, but the kids-I’m around them most of the day and I love to play with them, but at the end of the day you are very tired. It reminds me of what I feel like at the end of the day teaching. J

This week, I spent two days at Bettina’s house. Kai was gone on a business trip, and Ihnes and the kids had plans to do different things so it was nice just to go to Bettina’s home. I helped out with lunch and supper on Monday, learned about the Bed and Breakfast Center she runs for the mentally and physically disabled and then on Tuesday we went to the lake. This lake is what I imagine when I think of a lake. It is still not as big as one of our Kansas lakes, but the lake is much bigger than what I have seen before. There were also a lot of people there at the lake-but even more bikes! Wow all the bikes there! And in Oldenburg too! There are more bikes in Oldenburg than people, and it is the city with the most bikes. But I have heard that Holland is even more bikes-I suppose I will have to go and visit there too. I also got interviewed for a local paper in Wusting. That was extremely funny to take pictures for the paper. We took several photos. I was wearing an American Flag Apron (not really an American flag) and looking like I was eating chocolate, of course Later I had to actually bite into the chocolate bar and I was working to keep from laughing while taking the photo. I also got shown around Hude by an IFYE alumni and local to Hude. And of course as is customary-we went for ice cream afterwards. By the way-the firetruck below is the truck that Til (IFYE Alumni) purchased in South Dakota and had shipped back to Germany! And to my Lowry friends-look closely at the name on the firetruck!

Over the next few days we did a lot of work in the garden in the mornings to get ready for the family’s birthday party on Sunday. Imbetween getting ready we also went to a birthday party of one of the girl’s of their friends, played with the kids-found out letting a four year old take pictures with your camera results in a lot of interesting photos! (yes I kept them all), and other randomness. I got out the play dough that I had brought for Talina and Bjarne, and they played with that for about an hour. Talina offered to make me ice cream and then created a game where you pick one color to eat and then you “eat it” and return it. And do it all over again. I also had music on, and Bjarne was having fun dancing to the music-this is also when Talina decided she wanted to take pictures with my camera! I wish I knew how to write more of the fun times I have with the kids-but how do you write some of this down? It just doesn't seem to do justice to the laughter that occurs, so please just know that these I love getting to play with Talina and Bjarne and they will always hold a special place in my heart.

On Friday, I went to Bremen with Hanna-another IFYE nearby. We toured around Bremen, went to St. Petri’s Dome-and went up to the top(or as high as you are allowed to go anyway) of one of the spirals. If you do not like spiral staircases-this is not something you should do, but the view is amazing! We got halfway and we thought we were at the top, but no. The stairs then got smaller, and it was harder to get up to the top, we even had to pass others coming down-now that was tough even for a skinny person like me. But the view from the top is awesome! You can see so much from up there! After the Dome we took the long way to the Schlachte for lunch-and by long way I mean, we may have gotten ourselves a little mixed up in which direction to go……btw all that training of what to do when you aren’t sure of where you are-yeah that went out the window cuz I didn’t follow a single rule-oops! Anyway we got lunch, then headed to the Schnoor-an area of itty bitty streets to shop and found quite a bit, and then headed back to BotcherstraBe to get tea to take home! By now it started to sprinkle, we bought ice cream, and then decided as the rain started to pick up that it was time to head to the train station and go home. Granted by the time we made it there we were quite wet! But regardless it was a great day, and we plan to go Hamburg now with her host sister and friends too!

Wilkommen Heinemann Familie!!! (Week 1)

Hallo from the Heinemann Family! Am Dienstag, 16 Juli, Ich komme aus Crailsheim am Bahnhof zu Delmenhorst und den bei auto zu Stuhr zu Heinemann Family Hause! (On Tuesday July 16, I came from Crailsheim to Delmenhorst and then by car to Sturh to the Heinemann Family’s home.) At the train station I was met by Ihnes and two very shy children: Talina and Bjarne. The children were not shy for very long. As soon as we got home and started playing, they were no longer shy. Talina taught me a new game with the trampoline and a tiger-or “Through the Tiger Back” as I call it. (Talina loves the trampoline and there is hardly a day where she is not on the trampoline playing, and often times I am playing with her!) By that evening I was tired. I remember now why I was always so tired at the end of a school day-regardless of the age, kids take a lot of energy and leave you drained-but yet excited. Oh, and Bjarne loves the sandbox! He played in the sandbox for quite some time on his own. Kai got home for work and came to join in on the fun. Introductions to my second family: Kai, Ihnes, Talina (4), and Bjarne (1 ½). Stuhr is located in Northern Germany in the state of Niedersachsen. We are very close to Delmenhorst and Bremen. Stuhr is a small city of 1000-2000 people living here.

-Normal Day

So ein normal tag im Heinemann Familie  ist: waking up to hearing the children playing upstairs. The children are usually up around 630 am. Some mornings I hear they kids playing other mornings I generally wake up around 730 and we eat breakfast at 830-ish. After breakfast we may run errands, go to the park, play games inside or outside, work in the garden,  or maybe even jumping on the trampoline. Mittag (lunch) is usually eaten around 12noon and is a simple meal of brotchen (rolls), fleisch (meat), und kase (cheese). In the afternoon is playing with the kids some more. Supper then is after Kai returns home in the evening and the family has a bigger meal. Sometimes it is  traditional German food, but generally it is more modern-ish meals. After supper it is time to get the kids ready for bed. Sometimes this includes a bat (bath), and other days it is only brushing teeth, preparing for bed, and reading a book of their choice before saying goodnight. I get to read off and on throughout the week, and sometimes I get to read to either Talina or Bjarne or both. 

 

So this past week, we have done a lot of different things. Like I said typically playing with the kids and errands are the normal aspects of the day. But in addition to this, we have also visited friends or to other areas as well. On Friday evening I went to Bremen with Kai as he had an interview there and then afterwards we met up with a coworker and US correspondent to their workplace. While Kai was in the interview, I walked around the Marktplaz and went into the St. Petri’s Dome Cathedral. Although I could only go through the open section (not into the museum or up the stairs to see the view) it was still phenomenal and overwhelming to see. I don’t know why, but churches always seem to affect me in some way. I took time to sit down and look around at the construction, the statues and the craftsmanship. I also counted the number of organs within the church -5 in total.   After leaving the church I walked around and took photos-a lot of photos! When everyone finally met up, we went to supper at Pauliner’s. Two of the group ordered traditional Southern Germany food, while two of us at Northern Germany food-can you guess which I ordered? If you guessed Northern Germany-you are right! Now that I am in N. Germany I want to eat what they do now. After supper we toured around the Schlachte, Schnool, Marktplaz, and I think that’s it. It was getting dark but we meandered around yet too. It was quite fun to take random photos throughout the evening-especially when I gave my camera away to have photos taken-those are probably some of the funniest photos.

On Saturday we went to a nearby zoo. It was a smaller zoo, and here it is actually called an Animal Park because it is geared for younger kids. As we meandered through the animal exhibits, there were also dioramas of different fables, primarily by the Brother’s Grimm. Some stories like Cinderella or Snow White and Seven Dwarves, were familiar, but there were many other stories that were not so familiar like the Bremen Musicians. Then about half-way through the park, there is this huge playground area with paddleboats, swings, trampolines, ziplining for kids, a jungle gym, a water play area, and more. It was so crazy how much there was there! But it is definitely the highlight of the zoo. As we moved on we paused at the ponies, and Talina decided to feed them leaves from the tree nearby. And finally we came across the sea otters, and it was so cute! They have so many different sounds that they can make as they are talking. I couldn’t stop watching them. And we also got to watch them eat. I won’t share in case you don’t like hearing those stories.

On Sunday, Kai took me to Bremerhaven to the Immigration Center. There is a museum of what it would have been like to immigrate from Germany as far back as the late 1600s when the first immigrants left Germany up through parts of the 1900s on the ships. Throughout the museum you can listen to stories, and history, and records from diaries about people’s experience on the ships and upon entering America. Each person also receives and individual person’s story to follow through the museum. The person I had left Germany in 1939 because her family was Jewish. They were also doctors that when they reached the US-their medical degrees were no longer valid. It was a long and complicated process for her family to come to the US. I learned too, that at Stanten Island you were asked 28 questions, and had 30 seconds to answer each question. We went through a simulation of these questions in order to find out if we would be admitted or not. Luckily we got through. There was also a room where you could research about your own family’s history. Since we have little information about the Funk’s I emailed home for all the information we had for both the Funk’s and the Frantz sides. I was able to track our family back to the first Funk’s, but I was unable to find  out when either the Funks or  the Frantz immigrated as the records from 1860-1900 have been destroyed due to lack of space during that time. But it was still awesome to look up the information and find out more about our history. When I put in my Great Great Grandfather’s name and it came up my response was literally “hey that’s him!” My goal now this next year, is to put a family tree together for my Dad’s side and to make it current, so that we have our history written down as that is very important.   

 

I think I will stop there and start with Monday on the next blog, since that is due to be posted in a few days anyway. Sorry for the late blogs-you know I am no good at posting these on time. A few observations/learning:

·         Dogs can go just about anywhere! Even at the zoo they had a place for the dogs to play a game and cool-off from the heat.

·         So University here for students does not cost the students anything but a few hundred euros to pay for parking and a few other fees. Everything else is covered by the federal government and states.

·         The Waste System here seems a little complex at first hearing about it, but it really isn’t and it is something I think the USA can learn and utilize to eliminate so much trash. They have three trash cans and recycle paper in one; plastics in another, and finally everything else in the final one. And most people have a compost pile. In some areas in the USA you can recycle things, but this seems very efficient and easy for everyone to do.

·         Also-I think I finally understand the school system here! It was confusing and too confusing to try and explain here. So if you are interested, send me an email or a message and I’ll try to explain it, or wait until I get back.  

City Girl at the Farm

Ok so in the past I may have said, “I’m a City Girl, but I’m quickly turning into a country girl,” but ummm….yeah you are not really a country girl until you’ve been on a farm. Well I can officially say I have lived on a farm for a short time and although I have lived in more rural areas the past several years, living on a farm is still incredibly different. Since July 5^th, I started helping in the 4^th barn to get ready for new baby turkeys to arrive the following Tuesday. I only did a few hours of work each day, so it didn’t seem like a lot, but there is plenty of work to do to get a barn ready for new turkeys including cleaning, setting up food bins/cartons, fences, and more. When the turkeys arrived they come in bins. We had to unload them in as much darkness as possible in the middle of the afternoon, and you have to watch your step as they run around under your feet, somewhat of a challenge in dim lighting! Little turkeys look just like baby chicks-and they are loud. When you get so many into one space, and the sound echoes-it is deafening. Ich weisse nicht how I handled the loud sound without getting a headache-but maybe I grew used to it. Throughout the week we would continue to work with the turkeys a little bit at a time, and they grow quite rapidly. By the time I was getting ready to leave, we took down the fences, picked up the cartons for food, and attached the food bins to a hanging device that could be raised as they grew bigger and also the feed was distributed directly into the bins instead of having to be done by hand (which is a lot of work!)

Outside of the turkeys, this week on Mittwoch (Wednesday) I made lunch: BBQ turkey sandwiches (I brought Famous Dave’s BBQ Sauce with me), oven-baked pommes (fries), and mixed vegetables. I also made choco-mallow bars! So yummy, and I think the choco-mallow bars may have been the favorite item from the meal for the family. As is usually the response, they don’t look as good as they sound, until you try one and find them to be delicious. Originally I had not planned on making them here because I didn’t think I would be able to find marshmallows, but Aldi’s had them, and that was great!

Anna and I went to the pool in Satteldorf with the neighbors. Anna’s friends then came for dinner and we made these kartoffel pockets-they turned out interesting to say the least. Dessert was more choco-mallow bars.

Donnerstag (Thursday) came with a trip to Crailsheim to go shopping for a Dirndl!!! Woot I now have my own dirndl! We also went to the market where I got tea from this area, as it is made from flowers and we don’t have that (or at least not that I know of), and German chocolate.

 

This weekend then in Reubach was a Sommer Theatre Festival. I helped on Friday night prepare the sandwiches, and then got to watch the play. That was interesting to watch a play in German. Although it was in High German it was still tough for me to completely understand a lot of what was being said. But I understood the plot right away, and the actors although locals and amateurs, were great because they were not afraid of using facial expression and really analyzed the script as I later learned from one of the actors. On Samstag, I also helped make the what I call “German Hamburgers”-these burgers are made from bratwurst instead of hamburger and had cucumbers instead of pickles on them-but they still tasted great, and after a discussion on Freitag, we determined they needed Schenken (Bacon) on them. And of course to being asked if I thought bacon would be good on the burger my response was the stereotypical American response (or at least in the Midwest)- “Everything is better with Bacon!”.

Sunday was a day of relaxation as Rainer, Ute, Lina, and I went to lunch and then to a lake-Erdlendsee. It is not a big lake like you would think of in Kansas. There is no boating or even jet skis on the lake, but it is secluded from the road, peaceful, and quiet. It is nice to go and chill at the lake, swim a little(although the wasser is serh kalt!), and big difference-you don’t have to pay for parking or for an entrance fee! Who knew! On my last day, we went back to the turkey barn, grilled for lunch, I went swimming with Lina and a neighbor in a nearby see(pronounced “say” and means lake/pond), followed by eating at a neighboring restaurant/festival.  

I am very thankful for the Hollenbach family. I feel very blessed to have been able to spend time with the Hollenbach family and cannot thank them enough for taking me in. I only hope to someday be able to return the favor :)

July 1-8

So as I sat and started writing about this week in preparing to post a blog at the end of the week, I realized-I never posted about last week! I apologize, this blog writing is a lot harder to keep up with than you think it is. This past week, I have learned a little history, seen how hunting dogs are trained here, done laundry, gone to festivals and a castle.

So this past week has been a little different. Some mornings I have to myself, others Anna and I are just chilling, and other days I go for walks through the woods. I don’t mind having the mornings to myself as it gives me a little bit of time on my own to. Mainly to catch up on journaling and to go on walks-which I enjoy here as well. I have really grown accustomed to walking through the woods and seeing the various lighting aspects from the sun’s rays through the trees. After walking or about 11:30am, I go see what I can do to help with lunch. Some days there is a lot for me to help with, other days nothing. Either way is fine. In the afternoons, I am usually helping in the garden, at the turkey gardens, or some days I am hanging out with Anna and Lina. It really just depends on what needs to be done that day. Anna and I also started watching Harry Potter towards the end of the week. We watch in English with German subtitles-which is so nice of her to do for me so I can understand the movie. It also actually is helping me with understanding German as I will hear what they say and read the bottom of the screen in German too. I am still struggling to speak German, in fact it is way too easy to speak in English, but I am trying.

Last Montag we went Wurttenburg, and I got to learn a little bit more about the history of the walled in city. During the 30 year war, the pillars located around the wall were used to house soldiers and the soldiers would stand at very small windows to attack. There were two levels that they would attack from. They also had cannons, and there was one still sitting to view. They would often use wagons to transport supplies and it still amazes me at how the animals made it up the steep slopes whether here or when we were in Israel. There was also two gates leading into the city. The first gate they would allow the enemy to enter in through while the second gate was locked shut. They could then attack from above and surprise their enemies. Very smart.

On Donnerstag we went to the Residenz Castle in Wurzberg! It was a very large castle with 360 rooms (I think). We went on a tour, and I had the choice of going on an English or German tour. I stayed with the family instead of going on the English tour because I didn’t really have time to make a thought out decision-meaning I didn’t know how I would meet up with my family after the tour was done-but I later realized we could have met in the store. Oh well, I enjoyed looking and seeing everything more and can look up more history later. The main ceiling was painted by Michelangelo and it is the biggest painting in the entire world. It shows history of every country. Several rooms were created by only one or two people. One of which was a man named Weber. The reason I remember this is because there is a music composer named Weber (one of my favorite clarinet composers) and I wonder if they were somehow related. They both were living around the same time. Anyway-many parts of the castle were destroyed during WWII-it was destroyed by bombs from the USA. That was a sad portion of pictures to see, but they have been able to reconstruct the rooms and designs of the castle, including the Mirror room-which is only open to tours. We went to the garden which was just beautiful and incredibly large. It was fun to walk around and take cool pictures with Anna.

One of the biggest things I’ve noticed about Germany-you go out and socialize with people every day of the weekend  (or maybe those my age do at least), and I participated in that this weekend. By the end of it, I was tired and questioning how people do this every week! Back home we might go out once over the course of the weekend, but that is usually only every couple weeks even then. Not like here-although I enjoy it here because you are going to festivals and meeting people, listening to music, dancing, singing, and having a great time. In Southern Germany, there are festivals every weekend-they move from town to town. Samstag was probably my favorite festival to go to though so far. Anna, Katja (a friend of ours) and I went to the MusikFesival in Oestheim to see the band, dorfRocker. Anna and Katja are huge fans of the group. It was so much fun. At festivals there are tables and benches that everyone sits at. We got there early enough to find a table, which was filled in with another group of people that we became friends with and hung out with for the remainder of the evening. They were even willing to speak English with me! Actually I later learned, that they thought I was Katja’s cousin and a German until they learned that I could speak very little German. I asked whether I looked or acted like a tourist at all-to which they said no, and in turn asked if I wanted to be a tourist, to which I said of course not! But regardless, it was cool to hear that I looked like I fit in with the people here. The band was very good, although I knew none of the songs (they are all German) I was able to learn and sing with the chorus of the traditional German songs that are sung at the festivals. During which, everyone is standing on the benches or tables, singing and dancing! So different, but so much fun!

Ok-time for some more cultural differences:

·         People here tend to just drop by and visit. Phone calls and plans are unneeded, people are welcome to just stop by. Coffee and cakes are always offered to the guests. I think this is really neat, and so nice that people can just drop by. That would rarely happen in the USA as we are such a go-go-go culture. Germans are somewhat that way as well, but I think the USA is over the top. It also reminds me of the stories you read from the 1700-1800s of women visiting one another to keep themselves busy. Although it is different now as to anyone can visit, it seems as though this tradition as continued in a way.

·         American Pop music is all over the radio in Germany. I think I hear more American songs than German songs. Although it has been nice for me at times to have music that I know (especially when we don’t have wireless so radio is all I have), I feel bad that American music is dominating everything else. There are good German bands and songs (I may not know what they say but they sound good). I think I am also beginning to tire of hearing the same select pop songs from America-it is getting repetitive and old.

·         Laundry-very different than in the USA. Instead of setting the washer to permanent press or regular, it is set to the temperature you want your clothes washed at. Laundry is then typically dried outside on the line or drying rack as much as possible.

·         Energy in Germany is very expensive. Many homes have solar panels on the sides of the house or on the barns in order to save money on electricity.

·         Hard-boiled eggs are only eaten at breakfast.

·         Generally in good weather-Germans seem to eat their meals outside-I want to continue this at home, granted this is not as easy to do in the summer when the heat gets really high.

·         Wandering through the streets of Wurttenburg-Anna, LIna, and I heard some boys say they needed to fix their hair! (btw-their hair looked perfectly styled and hair sprayed) We laughed and laughed at this that the boys cared so much about their hair-this is typically girls.