go, trabi, go!

Unlike my husband, I don't have much interest in cars. I just want my car to get me where I'm going. But I do have a dream car...the East German Trabant.

I fell in love with this little guy when I was a missionary in Berlin, lured by its cute car shape, its dirty looking colors, a body you could rip apart with your hands (Karl did once, too), its loud "putt-putt-putt" engine, its tiny interior, the multi-year waiting list to own one and the fact it can't go over 55 mph. What's not to love!?

A year and a half after the Berlin Wall fell and 6 months after the renuification of Germany produciton on the Trabi stopped. For perhaps obvious reasons.

The city of Berlin is my favorite place ever for many reasons. One of which is how it is a city constantly changing. History continuously makes it's mark on Berlin. And the little Trabants still putting around it are one more mark of history on Berlin.

On this anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall it seems even those bits of Berlin that seem to remain part of it's past are still changing the face of its city...the Trabant is coming back! This time with a little less Communism and a little more class...

via ViaMichelin

mein schwarzwald

After two years and one month in Germany, Karl and I are moving back the the US at the end of them moth.

We had hoped to make our home here, which started out as a temporary 6 month assignment for his job, into a permanent home, but things haven't worked out as we hoped. And now we're returning.

The decision has made us sad because this is so much our Home. This place has affected us in many ways for the better. There is so much we are going to miss about living in Germany. One of which is the view out my window of the Black Forest. Every day we've lived here I've been amazed that I'm so lucky. Often those thoughts come when I look out our bedroom window at the beautiful green forested mountains with its castle ruins.

I've been trying to soak in that view as much as possible this past week since we've learned we're going to be returning to the States at the end of the month. Unfortunately, it's been a rainy and foggy week and there hasn't been much to see out my window...

But I've taken many shots of our view over the past two years, I love it so much. So, in farewell to my beautiful view, here's my little bit of the Black Forest for you to enjoy, too...

...*sigh*....I'm sure going to miss this place.

world rivers and the rhine

Remember our bike ride to France a few weeks ago? Well, I had another motive to head to the Rhine that day. I wanted to participate in the World Rivers project and dip a piece of fabric in the Rhine.

"World Rivers is a global collaboration uniting people through the element of water. Individuals from around the world dip white fabric in selected rivers. The fabric is then sewn together into a magnificent curtain. International participants, like rivers flowing to the ocean, join together to form a larger whole.

"World Rivers reveals a story of water, through the personal experience of many.

"World Rivers reveals civilization's connection to water while documenting our time in history."

That description if from the website which you'll find here with lots more information on the project including lots of photos and comments from other participants from around the world.

I was asked to participate by Lee from Looking for Fiddleheads and she is further asking for anyone and everyone around the world to send her pieces of white fabric (almost any size will do) that has been dipped in a river or lake. She's in the process of sewing together these fabric pieces into a giant curtan, connecting the people and the water together.

I liked making a physical connection to my river...I think we often forget how important our waters are for us. We turn on a facet to retrive the water we use and our travels are by car and train and plane and rarely by water anymore...but participating in this project made me remember how important the Rhine is to Germany.

The Rhine was a major trade and travel route in centuries past. As you travel up the Autobahn that runs parallel to our bit of the Rhine on one side and the Black Forest hills on the other, you notice a lot - A LOT - of ruined castles on the hills that look down on the river, which means that this was a major source of power for those controlling the traffic on the river for a long time.

Not just for trade and travel, but the Rhine has been the center of political disputes as well. For centuries France and Germany has bickered over the true border between their lands...the Germans claimed the French Vosges mountains should be the border between the countries and France claimed the Rhine is the natural dividing line. As a result the French Alsace region just on the other side of the Rhine has gone back and forth between being German and French resulting in a unique joining of culture.

The Rhine is mighty, powerful, beautiful and immensly influential in the history of this part of the world. It's amazing to think how water not only gives us life but also forms our lives and cultures and histories!

You can participate, too!! Click here to see how you can become a part of this international project!

a day worth the sunburn

On Saturday I had another race day!

I spent a sunny day at the horse races enjoying all the hats and horses. This time I wore my own race day hat I got just for the occasion...



Here are some of my favorite photos of the day! (Click on any photo for a larger view.)





All you need to enjoy a day at the races: a hat, some shade, and some bubbly!



First of all: cute parasol! Second: hot dress, mom!



This horse was a beautiful white/grey color...when he was wet with sweat after the race he turned pink!



I got this shot as this jocky was thrown from his horse...



Jockey groupies!

barack and berlin

Last Thursday, July 24th, Barak Obama came to town!



Senator Obama made his tour through Europe last week and made a significant stop in Berlin Thursday. I'm sure everyone has heard all about the visit and the speech he made in front of the Siegessäule. I really wish I had made the trip to Berlin to attend his speech (I did look into to a train ticket, buy they were pretty pricey that week) because I believe it was really a significant moment for the German-American relationship, and a significant moment for Obama, especially if he is elected President.



For decades, Germany has had a very good relationship with the United States. Ever since the end of World War II, the US has had a special place in the heart of Germans. Part of the reason for that is the famous Luftbrücke (Air Bridge) over Berlin. When Russia cut off East Berlin with West Berlin in 1948, known as the Berlin Blockade, the United States flew over the Russian occupied part of the city dropping supplies. Germans who were young at the time especially remember the kindness of the Americans to include candy and chocolate for the children in their supply drops.

The American Presidents who have visited Germany are always the most popular with the Germans. I think sometimes that Germans regard John F. Kennedy as one of their own presidents! In 1963 JFK made a significant speech in front of the Schöneberg town hall in West Berlin where he famously said, "Ich bin ein Berliner." I actually once live in an apartment for a few months just a couple of blocks away from the Schöneberg town hall and the square in front of the building, where there is a daily market, is now called John-F.-Kennedy-platz. And in 1987, Ronald Reagan made his famous speech in front of the Berlin Wall at Brandenburg Gate declaring: "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!" Even Bill Clinton and the first President Bush made visits to Germany early in their Presidences which thrilled the Germans.

That relationship, unfortunately, has been significantly damaged with the current President Bush. Disagreements over the Iraq War, comments from Secretary of Defense Donlad H. Rumsfeld that Europe was "irrelevant," and the simple fact that Bush waited far too long to pay a visit to the country (not until 2005), all but ruined the traditionally friendly relationship between the countries. I can tell you from my own experiences that very often Germans that I meet here will eventually ask me the question "So what you do think of President Bush?" sizing me up as an American by my attitude toward our President and his policies.

But it seems that Barack Obama's visit last week is already doing a lot to help mend our relationship in the common German's mind. For the most part, the Germans were thrilled to welcome him to Berlin. His visit and his speech have already done a lot, I think, to lay a new, more positive foundation in the future German-American relationship.



And I know that there is a lot of criticism over Obama's European tour and his Berlin speech, and I don't pretend to think that this visit will create a canidate with sudden foreign experience nor a worthy JFK-pretender, but, no matter whom I intend to vote for this November, as an American ex-pat in Germany, I'm so glad someone in the States is considering this tense relationship between my two homes.



Missed the speech? Read a full transcript here. And all the photos came from here.

euro 2008

Germany is happy today!

I don't follow sports. I don't care about sports. My husband and I like to go to the occasional live baseball game (especially with my family) but other than that, sports have absolutely no hold on our interest or care.

But when you live in Europe you kind of have to be at least aware of football (and by football, I mean soccer for all you Yankees). My husband and I have noticed that although many many sports are enjoyed on this continent only one is taken seriously. Very, very seriously.

Coming from America as I do I have of course seen sports taken very seriously and enthusiastically. I was in Houston when the Rockets won their basketball championship years ago and watched that city go Rocket-crazy. And this soccer tournament reminds me of that...expect it's not just a city, but the entire nation. No, actually, it's the entire continent. And I really don't think Americans understand the passion that Europeans have for soccer.

So, for those of you not currently living in Europe, the Euro 2008 Football Championship is going on right now. And it's a very big deal.

I had no idea this tournament was coming up...until I started seeing German flags everywhere: hanging off balconies, in shops and restaurants, and every second car on the road has flags waving from it. And not just German flags, but flags for every competing nation.

And I realized the games had started to be played when I noticed big flat-screen TVs hanging in department stores and restaurants showing the games and also when the train conductor got onto the loudspeaker during a trip I made to Karlsruhe telling travelers the current score of some game going on.

And then my husband started watching the tail end of the games so he wouldn't be clueless going into work the next day where everyone was talking about the tournament.

On Sunday we were traveling up to Karlsruhe on an early train which is usually pretty empty but this early Sunday it was packed with exhausted, dejected Hollanders on their way home from begin defeated by Russia at the previous night's game in Basel, Switzerland. As we got off the train, a group of Hollanders in their orange football jerseys and scarfs and hats wondered through the train station and got pity comments from most of the Germans they passed.

But Germany isn't so sad...not yet. Last night they won their place in the final match!

Now, a lot of Germans will stay home and watch these matches on TV, but many will go out to watch the match together. Towns and cities will set up public viewing areas...in fact, last night in Berlin half a million Berliners watched the semi-final game against Turkey in front of the Brandenburg Gate.

And I rode my bike down empty streets out to Bühl's Johannesplatz to catch a bit of the game and act the part of an interested anthropologist to study this cultural aspect of being a European.

Johannesplatz is a central square in the town's old city center surrounded by Italian ice cream cafes, bistros, and restaurants. Every business in the square had a big TV or two or three hanging outside and there were hundreds and hundreds of people there to watching the game.

Some of the hundreds at Johannesplatz last night...



Tooooor!! (Germany scores!)...



Now, the thing about this game is that Germany was playing against Turkey and there is a big Turk population in Germany. After arriving to the square I noticed that most of the Turkey fans were crowded in one third of the square while most of the Germany fans took up the rest. It was interesting to watch the two sides of the square react as first Turkey scored a goal and then Germany scored a goal. And then I went home to Karl to watch Germany win the game with a literal last minute goal.

So today Germany is a happy place and I'm curious how crazy things are going to get this Sunday with the finals!

Turkey is sad...





Germany is happy...





Even Angie is happy! (Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor, at last night's game)...

an all-american date

Last night Karl took me up to the city of Karlsruhe where we saw the new Indiana Jones movie at a theatre that showed it in English (not even German subtitles!) and then we went to eat at a Subway. And guess what we had with our meal?



Free refills! Ice! And root beer!!



And from my excitement you may assume that all three of those things are near impossible to find in Germany! Normally, I pace myself with my drink because you pay for every serving. Normally, ice is never an option. Normally, root beer is completely unknown.

I'm sure I'm not impressing anyone with my bragging but it sure was a treat for me!

another day at the races

Remember how Karl surprised me for our anniversay with tickets last Sauturday to the horse races? Well, a couple of weeks before this surprise, I bought tickets to the horse races, too! Karl had subtley tried to discourage me from getting them, but it didn't work. But no worries...we just got to go the the races AGAIN on Saturday!!

But you're probably tired of my horse photos...so I took photos of the next most important part of going to the races...the hats!!

I don't know why horse-racing requires women to wear big, feathery, gaudy, strange, elaborate hats, but I got some shots of some of them...so enjoy the racing hats!

Even the little ladies wear hats:

This one is a traditional Black Forest hat...the red pom poms mean the girl is single, black pom poms means the girl is married:

It was a very exciting day with some very exciting races! There was another thrilling jumping race that resulted in not one but two jockey's being thrown from their horses and then the favorite horse, who was way ahead the entire race, stumbling on the last jump causing the underdog horse who was listed as having the most outside chance of winning...to win! That was one happy jocky that came off the track! Anyway...I'm going to have to leave you with just one more horse photo (I liked the way this one came out):

9 years and counting...

Karl and I were married on 18 May 1999...9 years ago Sunday!

We had a weekend-long celebration full of surprises for me!

Karl planned a weekend for us and didn't tell me a thing about it. He told me to pack an overnight bag, put me in the car and drove us not too far away to Baden-Baden, checked us into a pretty hotel, and handed me tickets to the horse races!!

So we spent Saturday at the track and had so much fun! I was one of those girls who grew up in love with horses...and I never got over it. I was giddy with excitement every time the horses rushed past us as we stood on the track rail!

It happened to be the first race day of the season and they had this bag-pipe band playing between races:

One of the last races of the day was a jumping race that had a thrilling moment: on the last jump, one of the horses fell, throwing it's jockey who, luckily, rolled clear of the other horses still jumping over the fence. Horse and jockey were unharmed...here's the jockey after the race strolling down the track to collect his rider-less horse:

That night we strolled around the beautiful streets of Baden-Baden and ate an Italian dinner outside along the sidewalk. The next day we drove up the mountains overlooking Baden-Baden and visited the old castle we could just see from our hotel window. We've seen and done a lot in Baden-Baden, but we've never visited the old castle ruin that overlooks the city. And we were actually quite surprised at how big and complete the ruins are!

Most castle ruins around the area are not much more than a few broken walls and an empty tower or two. But the old Baden-Baden ruin is complete enough that you could actually imagine the spacious halls, catch glimpes of disappearing staircases, see where the old fireplaces once kept the stone rooms warm. The ruin was one staircase after another going up towers, into large halls, into dark underground storage...it was huge! And beautiful!

A glimpse of Baden-Baden below the ruins:

It was such a fun weekend...Karl did good! Only proving again that I sure did the right thing in marrying him!