A few things we won't miss and a few we will

A few things we won't miss about living in Germany:

1.  Stores are closed on Sundays.  There are just times where I haven't planned well enough ahead and it would be really nice on a Sunday to be able to run errands or pick up some ingredients for a meal I forgot the last time I went shopping.  I've learned my lesson and am always sure to have a good supply of ibuprofen on hand in case someone gets sick on a Saturday night or Sunday.

2.  Quiet Sundays.  The unofficial law is that you can't do noisy things on Sundays -- the kids can't be screaming and yelling in the backyard and you can't mow your lawn.  That means if you count on Saturdays to mow your lawn and it rains that day, you have to wait another week to mow your lawn.

3.  Driving in Germany.  I will admit that I still get nervous driving here, particularly in unfamiliar places.  In Germany, the powers that be like to keep traffic moving.  That means you don't see as many traffic lights or stop signs as you do in the U.S.  You see more roundabouts, yield signs and intersections where you have to count on your knowledge of priority to navigate through it.  Your brain has to be much more alert here, and I often arrive home after a drive to a new part of the area feeling exhausted.  You approach an unfamiliar intersection with no traffic lights or stop signs and your eyes scan all around -- Do I have the yellow yolk sign indicating that I have right of way?  If not, did I make note earlier whether or not I am in a "Zone" which means drivers coming from the right get right of way?  Or do I have the sign that means "You have right of way at this--and only this--intersection?"  I've learned when in doubt, just slow down at every intersection.

Driving at night is an issue as well.  German streets are not as well lit as in the U.S. (if they are lit at all).  At every traffic light in our area, there is an additional traffic sign indicating priority.  When I first got here, I was confused.  "I have a green light, but there is a stop sign right next to it.  What do I do?"  When I was taking driving lessons a few years ago, my instructor told me that those signs are for when the traffic lights are out.  "Geez, how often do your lights break down here?" I thought to myself.  The sort-of answer is "Every night."  Traffic lights are shut off late at night.  That means you need to rely on signs instead and familiar streets no longer feel that way. 

4.  Feeling out of touch with what is happening in the U.S. Back in the U.S., between TV news, the newspaper and internet,  David and I kept up fairly well with current events.  Especially since 9/11, when I just happened to turn on the radio right when the station began broadcasting what was happening in NYC and right before the second plane hit, we didn't want to be caught unawares of a developing situation.  Since we've been in Germany, I definitely have a feeling of being out of touch.  We know the big headlines and if I was so inclined, I could do research and be more up to speed on current events, but I find myself often not so inclined.  The news can just be too depressing.  

5.  Picking up the kids at school every afternoon.  This has become a bit less of a chore since Micaela and James got cell phones.  Instead of having to search them out, I can call them and tell them I'm on my way and to meet me at the security booth in the parking lot.  I can also call Micaela after school and remind her to be sure Emilie gets to her piano lesson.  But it's a pain that it takes at least 45 minutes to pick the kids up and then I have to start dinner, sometimes at 6:00 and we don't eat until 7:00.  Considering that Emilie and Becca might need to take a bath, etc. it can mean a later bedtime that I would like.  It can also mean that the kids are very hungry and sneak snacks before dinner, so that we all sit down to eat a meal I worked hard to put together and they're not hungry for some reason.

A few things we'll miss about living in Germany:

1.  Stores are closed on Sundays.  Sundays are peaceful days in Germany.  Plan ahead, get all your errands and shopping done by Saturday, because you can't do it all on Sunday.  Sundays are for relaxing, taking a walk or a bike ride, or doing some sightseeing.  You are in a way forced to relax here on Sundays.

2.  Quiet Sundays.  You are guaranteed to have peace and quiet on Sundays.  You can have people over for a barbecue or sit outside and read a book and you don't have to worry that your neighbor will whip out his lawn mower or leaf blower and ruin your afternoon.

3.  Driving in Germany.  What most Americans know about driving in Germany is that you can drive as fast as you want on the Autobahn.  And that's true, though if you're in an accident, you can be cited for driving faster than you should have been.  What I have noticed in my everyday driving around is that Germans are courteous drivers.  They use their turn signals, which is important in a country that doesn't use traffic lights and stop signs as often as in the U.S.  If you need to change lanes or merge onto the Autobahn, Germans make it easy for you.  My driving instructor had told me, "Germans look at driving as 'We're all in this together.  Let's get where we need to go safely.'"  Except for the drivers going over 120 mph on the Autobahn, I have found that to be true.

4.  Feeling out of touch with what is happening in the U.S.  When you don't have the morning news on every morning for three hours and in the evening for one, and you're not reading the newspaper every day, there's a good chance your stress level will decrease.  I haven't been "worried" about as many things as I might have been had we not moved away from the U.S. for a few years.  Watching news segment after segment about topics like the various flus and the potential for great loss of life, the dangers of letting your kids walk around the neighborhood alone, bizarre murders or accidents, can take a toll. 

5.  Picking up the kids at school every afternoon.  Because all the kids' extra-curricular activities take place at school, I know that once I pick them up and drive home, there is no more driving them around to their lessons, practices, etc.  It's all done for the day.

Moving home: Why the U.S. economy will improve during the next 6 months

U.S. economicsts will have a smile on their faces during the next few months because the Nylund family will need to buy a few things once we move home, namely a house, a car or two, a washer and dryer, a hair dryer or two, 2 or 3 clock radios, several desk and floor lamps, a sofa, a coffee machine, a refrigerator, a freezer, a lawn mower, a TV, a DVD player, toaster oven, etc.

While we were running around like chickens with our heads cut off preparing to move to Germany with only 6 weeks notice, we had the good fortune to strike a deal with an American colleague of David's who, at the same time, was moving from Germany back to the U.S.  We basically traded many household items with her:  hair dryers, toasters, DVD players, clock radios, coffee makers, etc.  We even traded minivans.  Having those things waiting for us in Germany made our transition much easier than it could have been.

We're now trying to sell the things here that we cannot take home, but once we're back in the U.S., we'll be buying more things than we want to think about.  I told David and the kids, "Birthdays and Christmas for the next year will include things like clock radios, desk lamps and hair dryers.  Sorry kids, but nothing fun for a while."  

The good news about all this is that we can buy the latest technology -- more fuel-efficient cars, a more efficient washing machine and refrigerator.  And we'll try to get by with one TV (you can watch so much TV on the computer now, we may only need one actual television set.  In fact with sites like Hulu, I'm not sure we even need a DVR anymore.  And do we go with satellite or just an HD antenna?).  David and the kids are looking forward to getting our first flat screen TV.

We'll just be doing our little bit to help out the U.S. economy.

ISF Sommerfest and Talent Show

Today was the first time we were able to attend ISF's Sommerfest. It's a day to sample foods from around the world, participate in sporting events including a soccer tournament, watch the first matches of the World Cup on a big screen, check out craft and used books/game booths and attend the talent show.

Outside, one of the taxi services that brings kids to and from school every day set up this preschool activity.

Another way you could get to and from school.  Just kidding.  You don't see many limos in Germany.  I chatted a bit with the American fellow trying to make a go at limo service here and told him how there are times we fly home to Frankfurt from somewhere and have a hard time finding a van/taxi that we and all our luggage can fit into.  Even when we arrange ahead of time for a ride and stress how much room we need, a taxi service doesn't always send what they promised to pick us up.  We would all fit in this.

The cafeteria was bustling with activity. There were tables set up with food from the Netherlands,.....

....India,.....

.....Mexico.....

.....and Switzerland among other countries.  Many people were in traditional clothing from their homelands.  One woman I wanted to get a photo of, but didn't dare for various reasons, was covered from head to foot in a flowing black robe and face covering.  Only her eyes were visible.  That was the first time I had seen a woman at school dressed like that.  We have many families at the school where the women are covered head to foot, but their entire faces are left uncovered..

Becca thought the Swedish meatballs, potatoes and cranberry sauce were yummy.

Every kid got an ISF towel. The saying on the towel made me laugh -- The school with the pool! The pool is the characteristic that most readily differentiates ISF from the other big international school in the Frankfurt area -- the pool-less FIS. We're known in English as International School of Frankfurt and the other is Frankfurt International School. So when you talk to people and mention that your kids go to ISF, people say, "Oh, yeah. That's the school with the pool."

Micaela and her friends Chloe and Laura, getting a good seat for the talent show.

James got a drum set for his birthday last summer and began taking lessons at school in September or October.  His teacher informed him last month that he was signed up for the talent show.

When I picked James up from school yesterday after he had done a rehearsal, he was worried.  He was planning on playing drums along with a Green Day song.  But because the drums are so loud, he needed to listen to the song over headphones so that he could hear it well and stay in sync.  The audience would hear both his drums and the recording of the song.  He was concerned because he could not hear the song hardly at all through the headphones and kept getting lost as to where he was. 

I was a bit nervous sitting in the audience today, hoping James could get the tech issues worked out backstage. There were some singing and dancing demonstrations and then the talent show began -- many singers, two rockbands and two solo musicians, including James.

In the end, James was able to make out just enough of the recording of Green Day's 21st Century Breakdown to stay in sync -- except for one part in the middle where he paused for a few seconds, but got back on track. James had great support from his friends who chanted his name as he got set up. And he surprised me. When he practices on his drums at home, he uses his headphones so all I hear is the thumping of the bass drum on the floor and what sounds like someone tapping pencils on a table. To hear him play on an actual drumset was very exciting. You can see for yourself in the video below that Micaela recorded.


The song is on the long side and has two parts. The video in the first part is a bit jumpy but the second part is steadier and the drumming is more interesting.

The cast from the ISF production of Mamma Mia! did a few numbers.  And the winners to the talent show were announced.

James won third place!  Up against fellow students of all ages and with only 9 months of lessons, James placed third.  I was so proud of him and just wished David could have been here to see it.

Last Summer Concerts and Soccer Game

The school year is beginning to wind down and we are experiencing many "lasts."

Yesterday was Emilie's last school concert. Her class sang the Monkee's version of I'm a Believer, which, by the way, was written by Neil Diamond.

James' last school concert was today and unfortunately, I have no photos. I was trying to take a video with Micaela's new digital camera, but couldn't figure out how to zoom. We have no good record of James' class singing Michael Jackson's Black or White, during which a few kids had solos and did some dance moves. But we have no good record of James in the front row waving to me at the beginning of the song and mouthing "Hi, Mom!"; grabbing the mic, crossing the stage and doing the rap section complete with rap gestures; doing the hip-hop running man and wormy; sliding across the stage on his knees at the end; as the curtain was closing, taking it a step too far by grabbing the mic, pointing at the audience and yelling, "Thank you! I love you!"

James' last soccer game took place today as well.

Bouncing the ball off his head

The team hasn't won a game all season, though one team had to forfeit a game.  For many of the games, James' played goalie.  I found watching those games heartbreaking.  We often didn't have a full team on the field and playing goalie under those circumstances is futile.

James' isn't sure yet if he'll play soccer back in the U.S.

This game ended 6-0.

Some more random observations

Go to the Zeil, the main shopping district in Frankfurt, and you'll see one of these fellows: Grillwalkers. They are mobile Bratwurst vendors and have some kind of powerpack strapped on their back and a grill strapped to their chest.

View from the front.

******************************

Our neighbor Björn asked David for a ride to work one morning. They climbed into the minivan and Björn looked at David's travel mug and here's how the conversation went:

B: What's that?
D: My coffee.
B: Your coffee? What kind of cup is that?
D: It's a travel mug. It keeps my coffee warm.
B: Why don't you just drink your coffee when it's hot?
D: Well, you know, I can put the coffee in this cup and then walk around, do stuff, get ready for work, drive into work, and drink my coffee and it's still warm.
B: Dave, when I drink my coffee, I have it in a nice coffee cup and I sit at the table. I eat my breakfast and drink my coffee. I enjoy my breakfast and coffee.  You really walk around with this travel mug all morning? That's hilarious!
D: What can I say? I'm an American.

**********************************

Hornbach is a Home Depot-like home improvement store. There was a Hornbach ad on TV recently that has won many awards. An earnest voice encourages viewers to “make it your project” as a sequence of falling walls, abandoned buildings, bursting pipes, and mold-choked rooms collides with improbable fluffy indoor clouds, floating clocks and a rainbow of paint splashing skyward.  In the middle, for just a second, you see this....

....several seemingly naked men dancing around with balloons.  Hymne, as the ad is entitled, "is winning awards for its seamless, poetic integration of incongruous images promoting the superstore with a poignant story of renewal."

*********************************

Drive through Frankfurt often enough and you'll come across the Beer Bike. Everyone pedals and there is someone manning the steering wheel as the wagon makes its way through traffic. A full keg of beer keg sits right up front.

Hmmm, we're always coming across interesting things that we think could make us a lot of money back in the U.S. I wonder if this would fly.

***********************************

Chances are you'll also come across at some point a childcare wagon. 

This one has rain shields as rain can come up very quickly in Germany.  I saw one such wagon at Christmastime at the Christmas market in Frankfurt where the wagon had a narrow table in the middle with little wells for the kids' sippy cups.

**************************************

I have seen a surprising number of kids on unicycles around town. 

****************************************

Galileo is an educational show that is on in the evenings at 7:00pm.  We have seen episodes where the entire show was devoted to how to make Schnitzel and then which restaurant had the biggest and best tasting one.  Another took 3 differently prices bustier and garter belt sets and put them through rigorous testing to see how they held up. Some shows resemble the American show Mythbusters.

One evening we were all watching a show about the behind-the-scene workings of an indoor waterpark.  There was an interview with the fellow who was responsible for the wave machine, there was a segment about how the water is kept clean and safe, etc.  And then a new segment began with a young fellow asking the question, "Can you cook an egg simply by letting it sit in a hot sauna?"  He opened the sauna door and he and the camera crew entered.  Sitting on benches were three or four naked women.  He said hello to them and the woman said hello back and he proceeded to set an egg down and talk about the temperature of the sauna, etc.  They checked back in with the egg in the sauna later in the show and the naked ladies were still there in full view in the not-so-distant background.

We've been here for almost three years, but I still find myself calling out, "Hello!" when a naked person suddenly appears on screen.  I can't remember whether or not the egg cooked, but I do remember whether or not the people were clothed.

*********************************

This mini billboard appeared last week on one of the streets I take to get to the kids' school. Schweppes is introducing a line of sparkling iced tea with the flavors Green Tea, Black Tea and Rooibos. David and the kids had sparkling iced tea in Brugge, but I didn't.  I can't leave Germany without trying a bottle as I doubt   we'll be seeing this soft drink anytime soon in the U.S.

Moving Home: What is the timing on everything?

Plenty of people have been asking us about the timing of the move home. Here are the facts:

1. David is already back in the U.S. and has started his new job with Lufthansa Cargo and is enjoying it.
2. We've been trying to sell off items we cannot take home, such as German kitchen appliances, a TV, a vacuum cleaner, some of our German armoires, a computer printer. We've already sold our minivan, but we still need to find a good home for Micaela's 5 newts.
3. The kids last day of school is June 25th.
4. Micaela, James and I will attend a Green Day Concert July 1st.
5. Packers come to do a pre-packing July 2nd.
6. David flies back to Germany to help with the final packing.
7. We will fly home to the U.S. sometime around July 11.
8. We all live in a 2-bedroom apartment with some rental furniture until we have bought a house and moved in.
9. Kids start school in Georgia August 9th. They will have a short summer. Depending on whether or not we own a house or know which school district we will be moving into, they may need to switch schools in September/October.
10. We try to wait patiently for our belongings to arrive from Germany. It usually takes 6 weeks.

David just moved yesterday from a hotel into the 2-bedroom apartment. He was waiting for the rental furniture to be delivered in the evening when he got a phone call. The furniture people were running behind and would he like to reschedule? He said no, he would wait. He got a call a half an hour later saying that one of the drivers had a death in the family and that they would have to reschedule. David wrote in his e-mail, "The timing is very suspect. I had to sleep on the floor."

I wrote back railing against the injustices of the world. Poor thing. Then he sent me back an e-mail with the subject line, "I feel better now." Here is what I saw when I opened the e-mail.

For you poor unfortunate souls who are not familiar with the best fastfood restaurant ever, David sent us a picture of his chicken biscuit breakfast from Chik-fil-A.

The kids and I all agreed that he is very cruel to tease us like that.

Knights' Tournament

Each morning I am awakened by the sound of the 6:00am news report on our local Armed Forces Network radio station The Eagle--"Serving America's Best." It's nice to lay back and here the latest news and weather forecast in English. I just haven't gotten a good handle on the metric system when it pertains to temperatures. The disk jockeys play music from the 80s, 90s and 00s without any annoying commercials. The do have advertisements for clubs and activities for troops and their families living in the Wiesbaden area, such as church groups, exercise programs, mental and physical health checkups, activities for kids, etc. Every so often I'll hear a public service announcement reminding people not to discuss military concerns in public as "You never know who is listening to you and you could be putting yourself and others in danger" -- basically a reminder that "Loose lips sink ships." There is also a reminder I hear sometimes telling people not to be discussing that they may have heard when a certain group of soldiers might be coming back from combat, as this is confidential and can end up hurting moral if people get details wrong.

In addition, the disk jockeys make recommendations of things to do in the area and a few days ago, a Knights' Tournament/Medieval Fair-type of festival at a nearby castle town was mentioned. David and I had been years and years ago to an excellent Renaissance Fair in Lancaster, PA and an OK one south of Atlanta. They are always a nice way to spend an afternoon.

We had thought about going to this one last year, but it didn't happen. I was determined to make it happen this year when I heard about the Ritterspiele (Knights Games) the other morning. How fantastic to visit such a fair in a country where they originally took place hundreds of years ago.

Katzenelnbogen means "cat's elbow."

The village of Katzenelnbogen was about an hour's drive away. The kids were not so impressed by its castle built around 1095. They said it was more of a house.

It became immediately apparent as we walked first around the Market Square that this was not your typical Renaissance Fair.  For one thing, our brochure told us we were now in the year 1312, earlier than the Renaissance.  Also, there were no official costumed performers walking around entertaining us, but you saw plenty of people dressed in serious medieval garb. Most of the booths were selling items geared to these people, such as these authentic bows and arrows. At least they looked authentic to my untrained eye. 

Little tender fingers touching big sharp axes.

A knights' emporium

I do not suppose you happen to have a sword for a six-fingered man?

Emilie brought her own sword and I bought Becca this headdress.

The most impressive guy I saw all day. I asked him first if I could take his picture, as I was afraid he might do me bodily harm if I didn't.  It was hot today -- probably in the mid-80s and bright sun.  These people must have been dying.

And from the back

Pedaling a snack

Starting them young. In fact, this place had the feeling of a Medieval Convention, like what you hear about Star Trek conventions.

This fellow was transporting an actual live head in his box.

Emilie trying her hand at the crossbow

Making music with...

....a key fiddle.  At lest that's what I think she said.

Watching the first round of knights' games

Racing to capture a ring first.  There were several female participants.

Where the knights, squires and others spend their nights.

Emilie and Cora

James and Donni -- a hawk

The Highland Games portion of the afternoon.  Tossing a heavy ball and chain.

Emilie practicing

A bagpipe band turned up to inspire the Highlanders

Bex lending a hand

Kilts abounded.  Look carefully and you can see the heavy stone they were tossing up and over the rope.

The Big Man. He was tossing a larger stone than anyone else. Here he's wiping his hands on his buddy's kilt rather than his own. Auf die Plätze.....

...fertig....

....los!

Falconry demonstration

One bird was very naughty and refused to land where he was supposed to.  Here he is on a flag instead of on the glove of the boy in blue.  At the end of the show, he flew to a very distant tree and would not come back.  The man giving the demonstration just left the field assuring us that his bird would come back eventually.  Yikes.

It was time for the main event -- the Knights' Tournament. Check out the drummer's shoes.

Marching in the Knights' flags

Rebecca said, "Hey! I like that girl. She could be my friend!"

Parade of local and foreign dignitaries

Why not a camel, too?

The hostess and a participant in the tournament, Susannah of Katzenelnbogen.

The challengers

Saluting the crowd.  Oh, no!  It turned out one of the challengers was Adelhaid, Susannah's estranged sister.  They were battling for control of Katzenelnbogen!

This knight caught my eye right away with his intensity.  He ended up playing the role of the bully -- snarling at the crowd and intimidating the other knights.

Using a sword to knock down targets.  Only Susannah was successful in spearing an orange at the end of the run.

Trying to calm the tension between the two teams

Meow! or rather Miau!

I wanted to yell "Hübschling!" at my intense champion, as random people yell at the newly handsome Squidward in the German "Two Faces of Squidward" episode (rough translation is hottie). But my children would have never have forgiven me.

Trying to capture as many rings as possible.

It's hard to see in the photos, but these horses were running at a near-full gallop.

Aiming for a squire-held shield

My Hübschling needs to settle down a bit.

Racing to be the first to set a target on fire

Practicing for the joust

Saluting opponents

Go, Hübschling!

Hooray!

At this point, Becca became frightened and began to cry, asking to go home.  The thumping music, intense fighting and scary-looking horses all served to terrify her.  We moved back from the field and I wasn't able to take pictures of the next event -- everyone had a bag of sand (really just bags of hay, but we pretended not to notice when one bag split open) and tried to knock other knights and the ladies off their horses.  The sisters even engaged in some hair pulling.  Miau!

In the end, the Susannah and Adelhaid reconciled and Katzenelnbogen was at peace once more.

All Knights and Ladies galloped through fire to end tournament.

A friendly little dragon

Young squire

Checking outhe the 15th century version of Nike clothing

Sir Emilie and her squire -- a still shaken up Becca.

The fellow on the left sang like a Buddist monk. James thought that was very cool.

And right as we left, it began to rain. Perfect timing, perfect day.