Thanksgiving in Heidelberg

Since Germany doesn’t recognize the Thanksgiving holiday, this year proved to be a little different yet still very good. Caro and I had great intentions a couple weeks ago of having a big American Thanksgiving dinner at our apartment and inviting friends that helped with the move and putting the place together. Unfortunately our kitchen is still underconstruction so those plans had to be scratched. So we just made plans to hangout and go out to dinner. However, I still wanted to cook at least one thing to remind me of home so I went to my friend Grace’s and used her oven to make pumpkin bars. Finding all the ingredients was a bit of a chore but thankfully another American friend, Abby, had a few things I could borrow that she had gotten at the Army base here. On Thanksgiving day two other great things happened though, we got internet hooked up at our house and Caro called me at about 2:00 and said the oven would be functioning by 4:30. So gears shifted in my head and at that moment I decided that I was still going to attempt a Thanksgiving dinner even if it was just for Caro and I. At first I was a bit nervous cause I hadn’t gotten anything at the store yet but then remember all the stores were open here and everyone was still going about their business like any other day. After stopping at the meat shop for a whole little chicken, picking up potatoes, green beans, a baguette and a gravy mix, I headed home to get preparing. I then was able to talk to my entire family over Skype, which was very exciting. At around 6:00, Caro called from work and suggested we go have some “gluewein” at the Christmas markets with some of her coworkers. So the food was ready to cook but we put it on hold for a little bit and went out. Gluewein is a hot spiced red wine served all over Germany during the christmas season. At the markets it is all over the place and is served in a token glass mug. I enjoyed it but understand how someone could definitely get into some trouble after a couple refills. The markets started on Wednesday and will go all the way up through Christmas Day. There are tons of Christmas décor, many food booths selling specialties: gingerbread heart cookies with loving phrases written in frosting, a sorts of Lebkuchen, Pommes, Wurst, candies, nuts, cookies, reibekuchen (potatoe pancake), and much more, many gluewein booths and booths selling advent calendars and handmade gifts. (The heart cookies and advent calendars brought me back in time to Scobey High School where the foreign language class sold vey similar items. Little did I know that over 12 years later I would be seeing those very traditional things in this Foreign country.) Four market places along the main shopping street are filled with the booths and loads of people. It just so happens, we can step right out onto that street from the front door of our apartment building and join in the festivities. After the gluewein experience, I think we finally sat down to eat Thanksgiving at 11:00 pm. Guess it was around the same time my family and friends were having it as well in the states. I was very proud of my moist little whole chicken, my fork mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, and pumpkin bars. It made the house smell of Thanksgiving and made it so much more homey. Thanksgiving was then complete and was celebrated exactly how I would have wanted it to be away from home. I’m so thankful for my family and friends back home but also for my family and friends here in Heidelberg. I’m thankful for my faith, all the great experiences I am blessed with, and of course, Skype , making it possible for me to see people I miss and love so much :) Happy Thanksgiving from Heidelberg!

Day 7 – Quedlinburg, a new friend, Deutsch Sprechen, and back to Heidelberg

The hostel served its included breakfast only at 8:00 so I got up, packed my things and headed down to the cafeteria. There were about 15 other people in there and I sat at a table with older man. We began to visit, mostly in German of course but he could speak some English. He is a doctor from Aachen (West Germany) and was just traveling around a bit and had some conferences nearby this week. He was very friendly and we decided to walk around the town together. We mostly spoke German but he would explain some of the architecture of the buildings and history to me in English so I could understand better. It was a very enjoyable walk and talk and he was very impressed that I have only been learning German for the last two months. It is such good practice when you are forced to speak it. It’s pretty cool. I must say that despite all that I saw in Fussen, Munich, and Berlin, the time spent in this little town was probably my favorite experience on this trip. I walked the cobble stone streets that winded around the town, through the main Market square and by the castle and church on the hill. I really did feel like I was in one of those little miniature towns that people set up as a display in their homes at Christmas time. Soooo cute. Because it is Sunday, most places in Germany are closed so once again it was pretty quite except for people here and there roaming the streets. At 11:30, I hopped the train to get back to Heidelberg. Definitely ready to get back. Besides the fact that I have been wearing pretty much the same clothes for a week, I also need to chill and process the whirlwind tour of Germany. After 6 hours and 5 trains, I made it to Heidelberg safe and sound. Ich bin sehr muede. Gute Nacht!

Day 6 – From Big City to Small Town

So, were you left in sheer suspense since my last post? Wondering, where in the world is Becky Bowler? I’m sure that was on your mind this whole time :) Well, between the million things running through my head and the guy in the bunk below me attempting to cut down the Amazon forest in his sleep, I didn’t get much rest last night, so I was up bright and early. Still unaware of where I should go next but having a couple ideas, I quickly decided it was time to slow it down a bit and go to a little town a few hours west of Berlin called Quedlinburg. I found it on the Top 25 places in Germany to see, so I thought I would check it out. Before traveling there though, I decided to see one more piece of Germany history about 30 minutes outside of Berlin, in a town called Oranienburg. This was the Sachsenhausen Memorial. Sachsenhausen was a concentration camp built in 1936. Because I got there about ½ hour into opening hours, I was the only person walking the grounds on the start of my tour. I had an audio guide and walked around viewing and listening to all the specifics of each area. I can’t really describe the feelings that went through my body as I listened and imagined what happened there just 60-70 years ago. My breathe was definitely shorter and I had a permanent knot in my throat. Although it was sunny outside, the Camp site was so cold, quiet, and eerie with remnants of its past lingering in the air. I proceeded through and said short prayers periodically for those imprisoned and killed, those carrying out the acts of violence, and the family members of those who lost their lives there. Because I was using this day as a travel day I was only there for about 1 ½ hours but definitely could have stayed longer to read more in the exhibition centers on the tour. But moving on to a lighter and brighter note, after the camp tour, I made my way back to Berlin, grabbed my bag from the hostel and rushed to the train station to catch the train to Quedlinburg, my next stop. I ran up to the platform knowing I was running late and had my finger out ready to press the button to open the door of the train only to watch it pull away in front of my very finger tip. Luckily, there was another one an hour later :) I arrived in Quedlinburg and it was already dark which is part of the reason I was trying to hurry. I found the hostel pretty easy but upon arrival in this very cute town all I have to say is thank God I have spent the last two months learning German. After being in Berlin I sort of forgot that English isn’t the main language here. Everywhere I went here, I stumbled through German while others stumbled through English. Was actually kinda fun. I checked in the hostel and then went to go find a place to socialize. I first stopped at the Brewery but not much going on there so after one beer I asked the waitress where to go and they didn’t have much advice but pointed me to another area of town about a 7 minute walk away. So I headed in that direction and didn’t find much until I walked past a little sports bar and saw two guys bowling on the Wii. So I stepped in and ordered “ein klein bier”. One of the guys was the bartender and the other just a friend. Neither of them spoke very much English so we had fun trying to understand each other. I joined in on the game(s) and due to my expert Wii playing I drank a couple beers on the house. They were only allowed to speak English and I had to speak German. It was also silent a lot of the time :) I asked them what people do here on the weekend and they said it is kind of a ghost town in the evenings. I wasn’t surprised to hear that a being how I had already assumed that was the case after walking around a bit. In the dark, the town looks very cute though. The cobblestone streets, old churches, and timber houses all made this little town feel like I was walking around in a little model town. Super cute! Tomorrow it will be fun to walk around in the light. Because it is in the middle of no where, there was no internet to be found except for one hotel café that was only open specific hours. So now I'm posting Saturday and Sunday now that I am back in Heidelberg.

Day 5 – More Berlin – Lots of history, Berlin from the sky, Weihnachtsmarkts, sore feet, and maybe a little internet TV

After another run in the park this morning, I headed out on the town. Today was a foot work and brain work day. I walked around a lot today and started by going back the Berlin Wall to read more about what went on. I am still in awe that that piece of history really wasn’t that long ago. The fall of the wall was just in 1989! It is so hard to believe the violence, the high security, and the separation that took place in such recent times. I felt pretty naive to the facts and was happy to learn. Then I walked along an outdoor exhibition called the Topography of Terror, where pictures and plaques showed and told of where the Nazi headquarters and violent planning took place in the early 1900s. Even though there are no buildings in that space now it was the actual location and they are currently excavating the basements of some of the buildings and are planning on building a place to hold the exhibition in its place. After much reading, I headed over to the Holocaust Memorial to check out the Jewish Exhibition located below ground. It portrayed the time when the Jews first began to be persecuted and went through a timeline of how it all went down. There were also diary excerpts, postcards, and other writings of some of the Jewish people during that time giving you a feel for some of the thoughts of those going through the experience. At the end of the exhibition there was a room filled with pictures and explanations of the various concentration camps and extermination camps that were built and used to imprison and torture millions of people. Very heart wrenching. After both of those exhibits my mind was a bit overflowing so I decided to go over the Parliament building and walk up through the dome on top to get a good view of Berlin from the sky. You can see the dome on top of the building on the third picture I took in yesterday’s post. After an hour of standing in line and being frisked when walking through the doors, I made it in and rounded my way to the top. The view was great but I must say the Munich view as better :) After leaving the Parliament building I walked through the center of the city where, like Heidelberg, Munich and many other cities, they are setting up for the Wiehnachtmarkts (Christmas Markets). They are street markets associated with the celebration of Christmas mainly the four weeks preceding Christmas Day. They originated in Germany and Austria but are now held in many countries. They take up entire City Squares and have tons of decore and kiosks full of Christmas items. They seem to be pretty extravagant and popular. Fork lifts, trucks and workers spend days setting up for the big events. The Christmas spirit is definitely in the air. Heidelberg is setting up right now too and I will be there when it opens so I will get some pics and tell more about it when the time comes. The last tourist stop today was the Deutsch National History Museum. It was hundreds of years of history and I was really bummed out that I didn’t get to mid 1900 until I had 20 minutes left before it closed. That was the most interesting part to me and I had to whip through it in the end. I will definitely be getting some documentaries now to learn more. My brain is pretty full but very glad I got a good chunk of information to get me started on my German history lessons. After the museum, I grabbed a bite to eat and finally made it back to the hostel. My feet are killing me so I think I may just finally take it easy and watch a little online TV, only after I plan my day tomorrow. Tomorrow is a travel day and I still have yet to decide where I am going to go. So I will leave you hanging in suspense just like I am :)

Day 4- Around Berlin – Wind, Museums, History and Michael Jackson

Here it is!

Holocaust Memorial

The Berlin Wall

With my fanny pack of valuables (yes, I did say fanny pack) and a map, I started my day in Berlin on a jog around one of the parks near my hostel. After my run, a shower and some time planning my day, I walked to the city center to go on a tour of the city. As opposed to Munich’s tour guide, this one was very good. He spoke of the history in great detail and didn’t have to try hard to be entertaining. With the exception of the 30 minute story at the end of the 4 hour tour, sitting in the cold wind on the steps of the Berlin Dome, about ready to pee my pants, the tour was quite enjoyable. It started at the Brandenburg Gate, the entrance to Berlin. This is one of the many cool pieces of architecture Berlin has to offer. In that square called Pariser Platz, the tour guide pointed out many interesting places. You may have wondered why I have Michael Jackson in the title of this post. Well, I thought you might find it as amusing as I did that the tour guide pointed out the hotel window of the Hotel Adlon, the most expensive hotel in Europe, where the Michael Jackson baby dangling incident took place. One of the most important history facts of the day, right? I did a little photo shop on the pic so you could experience the viewing as well. After that little piece of history, we proceeded to the parliament building. This was followed by the Holocaust Memorial, paying respects the many Jews that were killed. I’m not sure that it is ok to say that the memorial was pretty cool. I think many people could see it in all different ways but my emotions were that it was a little eerie and quiet but actually quite peaceful. The Holocaust Memorial picture is the one with all the big gray square stones. There is nothing written on them, it is just many many large stone rectangles of all sizes. I also took one from the middle while walking through that I thought was pretty cool and quite symbolic with the light shining in. After the Memorial we walked over the top of the location of the bunker where Hitler spent his last days and of course the Berlin Wall. I must say it wasn’t much to look at and not what some of you may think should look like. More walking took me passed Museums, Market Squares, Cathedrals, and we finally ended at the Berlin Dome. I must say that my legs are a bit tired but the tour was definitely worthwhile. Berlin has soo much to see. Good thing I have another day or two to check some of the things out in more detail. Until then!

Day 3 - Views of Munich and off to Berlin

This morning was a bit of an indecisive morning. I kind of felt like I had seen most of Munich but thought I would stay another day. I woke up and had my breakfast and then headed out to walk around. Another beautiful sunny fall day. I took the long staircase (300+ stairs) up St Peter’s Cathedral tower to see an incredible view of the city. Besides the staircase being a little clastrophobic it wasn't too bad. I was even able to step out on the the platform. It helped that I was able to stick myself up against the back wall and the balcony was surrounded by bars from top to bottom. Still made my legs a little wobbly though. After that I walked around a bit more and couldn't think of what else to do so thought maybe it is time to move. I picked up my bag at the hostel and decided to just see where the next train on the departure board was going to. It said Salzburg, Austria and I was pretty excited but the train had just left and it hadn't cleared the board yet. So Berlin came next. I hopped to train and 6 hours later made it to Berlin. Upon arrival I checked the internet for a place to stay and got directions to the first hostel reccommended. Not much else going on tonight. Will probably do the walking tour tomorrow and check out a museum or two. Apparently Thursday after 2:00pm they are all free. Good timing I guess.

Day 2 – Around Munich – Sunny Weather, Walking, Beautiful Architechture, Sausage, Spendy watches, and Big Ass Beer!

So this morning I was treated to a little buffet breakfast at the hostel of course the German way with meat, cheese, bread, muesli, hard boiled eggs, and yogurt. I quite enjoy my breakfasts in Germany though. It was included in the price of the stay so it was even better. Then I joined a 3 hour free walking tour around Munich to hear a little history, a few not so entertaining stories, get a feel for the town and chat with a few people. The name Muenchen comes from the Old German word Moonche meaning Monks, after which the city was founded. Then of course we heard about the prevalence and the importance of beer in Barvaria and how the Monks loved their beer. It was soooo hard to capture with my camera all that I saw so that frustrated me a bit but the sights were pretty cool. I saw the Glockenspeil, St. Peter’s Cathedral, the Bier Gartens, the food markets, various other extravagant buildings and the most expensive shopping street in all of Europe, Maximilian Strasse. (Check out the watch photo and notice the price. Remember also that it is priced in Euros) It wouldn’t be Germany if I didn’t finally show you one of the many Meat and Sausage stores, the cheese kiosks, and the beer. After a little jog around one of the parks in the city, I headed to the Hofbrauhaus, the most famous beer hall in the world to reward myself with a 1 liter beer and a pretzel. Guess I am just trying to fit in :) Later I was joined in the hostel bar by a cool newly married couple from Ontario that I had briefly met before I went on the tour. It was fun to have friendly people to visit with for a couple hours. Nice to meet ya Jaimie and Trevor! Enjoy the rest of your Europe tour!

German Knodel

Last night was another nice dinner with the Heindel family. They have been an amazing part of my time here and I am very thankful for their kindness. Gerhard and Anke are Carolin’s parents and her little "big" brother is Janis. Soon I will get a picture posted on here so you can put a face to the names. With them, I get to learn about all sorts of good foods, first hand language advice and other German knowledge straight from the natives :) Last night’s dinner was a German course of Knodel and side salad with Anke's special homemade dressing! Yummy. I think I have talked about Knodel before. It is made with wheat flour, potato and then whatever flavorings you like. I think this one had just parley? Then you boil them in hot water like dumplings and this time we had sautéed mushrooms and gravy to put over top. Toppings are optional and variable. Very delicious. The picture doesn’t do it justice. Actually it doesn't really make it even look appetizing. I guess if I ever want to be a food critic I better hire a photographer. (Sorry Caro, my picture wasn't any better)

Day 1 Around Germany – Neuschwanstein Castle

I hopped the 8:06 train this morning on my way to Hohenschwangau. The weather is a bit gloomy and rainy today but bearable. So it is just me and my backpack on a little excursion around Germany, planning as I go. I arrived in Fussen at about 12:45 and along the way caught my first glimpse of the Alps. Very beautiful! Fussen is a little town in South Germany right on the border of Germany and Austria. I hopped a bus up the hill to Hohenschwangau and got my ticket to tour the Neuschwanstein Castle that is located up on the hillside. It is the most photographed building in Germany and was the inspiration for Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland. Because I am being a little cheap on this trip, I decided that instead of spending ANOTHER few Euros on a little bus I would walk the steep hill up to the castle. It wasn't bad but after completing it in about 20 minutes I was thinking it could have been a lot better if I wasn’t carrying my home on my back. Lets just say I got my workout in for the day and I am now down to one set of clothes after my first day. Ha, I just noticed now that in the picture I am standing next to a big pile of horse pooh. They must have a hard time on the hill too. The tour itself was kind of boring but what I did see was pretty amazing. You really only get to see maybe a 10th of the castle if even. The tour guide made it a bit comical for me at least. I felt like I was on a Halloween tour of a haunted house by the sound of his voice and his slow creepy tone. I was wishing I had someone to join me in the humor. Just picture a guy with a receding hairline, a pointed nose, and circles under his eyes. All he needed was a flashlight to hold under his chin and then it would of really been like Tales from the Crypt. Anyway, after the 30 minute tour, I headed back down to Fussen to catch the train to Munich. I visited with a few nice people from England in my train car so it made it a quick trip. One of them now lives in Munich and gave me a few tips for my visit. I made it here around 8:00 and checked into my hostel for the next couple nights. It is actually a pretty decent one. I am pleasantly surprised. I now sit in the pub downstairs planning what my day may look like tomorrow. Probably take a walking tour around Munich and go from there. Bis Dann!

A ticket around Germany and a walk in the woods

Yesterday I purchased a Germany Rail Pass. I decide to take off next week on a little journey around Germany. I will start in one place (possibly Munich) and have plans to check out a couple other places but no set plans. Berlin is on the list but other than that we will see. Check out the blog if you care to stay up to date. The trip starts Monday and will be at least a week. Yesterday afternoon I met up with Carolin's mother, Anke. We went for a great walk in the woods. Was fun! So beautiful in the fall. No snow yet and the dark red, orange and yellow leaves cover the path through the trees. I spoke German and she spoke English so we could both pratice our foreign languages. I sounded a bit like a little kid I'm sure but it was great practice. By the end of the day though I was definitely very brain dead. We finished the walk and had a coffee. Then picked up Caro from work and headed back into Heidelberg. A great day! The weekend is a bit unplanned at the time. I suppose I will just be planning my journey and throwing a few things in a backpack to-go. On the road again!

My new friend Grace......

Meet my new friend Grace. We met last week at the Halloween party that we both volunteered for. She is from Maryland and she too is unemployed and has some time on her hands. She moved here in July with her boyfriend who is originally from the area. It has been nice to visit and spend a couple afternoons with a fellow American. We are making plans to do some Deutsch language practicing and sightseeing this month so it should be fun. Hee..hee....The picture makes it look like she is sitting on my lap or maybe I just cut and pasted her in the pic. Nice leg shot, Grace. You would think you were a ballet dancer or something!