How has it been a month since we landed in Germany?

It's hard to believe that it was exactly one month ago that our plane touched down in Germany. Time flies ridiculously fast.

The ripple effect of that trip continues. I am processing more of it now than I was when I was there. I also can't help but feel a tad jealous of my son, who lives there full time. Then again, he speaks fluent German and me--not so much. Also, I do think that, though the United (United?) States drives me crazier and crazier by the day, there are definitely aspects of life here that I'd miss if I lived in another country. 

A few years ago, Nora's parents gave us a small book about Dresden and a CD compilation called Die 100 Großten Ost-Hits, Volume 1 that contains a hundred big East German pop songs. I have to admit that prior to December 30, 2021, these items remained relatively untouched at our house. I did play a little bit of Ost Hits at one time with mild curiosity (and found much of the music surprisingly better than I expected), and might have flipped through the Dresden book. It's just hard for me to fully engage with something if I don't have any understanding of it, or any context in which to place it. I'm not sure if anyone else out there feels the same. That could be a failing on my part, but I think of it as roughly the same as how I often appreciate a musician/band's albums more if I actually see them perform live.

This disengagement/disinterest all changed when we returned from Radebeul. 

I absolutely shot through that slender volume about Dresden (Colour Image Guide: Dresden). I knew who Augustus the Strong was, could picture the area of the city that was decimated by the Allied firebombing in 1945, and knew many of the landmarks pictured and mentioned in the book. Then I grabbed the Großten Ost-Hits and have made it through Disc One. I may need a separate blog post to describe the music on this compilation, but I'll at least say that now I have a greater appreciation and understanding of musicians like Karat, City, Silly, Puhdys, and Ute Freudenberg. This is not to pat myself too much on the back, as there is absolutely no way I am any way near to being an expert, and since all the lyrics are in German, I don't even understand what they are singing. That said, I get it more now than I did prior to December 30, 2021.

Now I will announce that I started reading a book called Burning Down the Haus, which is about punk rock in East Germany during the late '70s and '80s. I feel compelled to officially announce this because it should force me to read the whole thing so that I can report about it later.

That is all for now.

A few observations about Germany (Part Two)

N's parents enjoy walking and hiking--a lot. Don't get me wrong, I am not complaining at all. If you want to know why Europeans are, generally speaking, in much better physical condition than Americans, look no further than how much and how often they walk. We took a long walk to the communal cemetery the first day we were there, walked all over Dresden the next day, hiked up to the bluff overlooking Radebeul, and hiked well over three miles in Moritzburg on Christmas Day. 

By the way, I will never get over how freakin' cool it was to be at an honest-to-God CASTLE on Christmas Day, and then proceed to hike all over Augustus the Strong's hunting grounds. 

Speaking of hiking, the only bad part was that, at the last minute, I decided to bring a "nicer" winter coat to Germany instead of my utilitarian Dickies coat. The Dickies coat, though somewhat lacking in fashion, would have been more comfortable for all the walking we did. I also wore "nicer" shoes to Christmas dinner which, though they were reasonably okay for hiking, were still less than ideal.

The upshot of all this is that next time--and I sincerely hope there is another trip to Germany in the not-too-distant future--I will know exactly what kinds of clothes and shoes to bring AND leave behind.

Somebody at work asked for my favorite part of the trip. There are so many that it's hard to choose. I suppose for sheer beauty, I will go with Meißen. The architecture, history, and views were all astounding.

The most profound aspect of the trip was living with N and her parents, H. and K. (I hope using only first initials doesn't come off as ridiculous. As I wrote before, I feel they deserve a degree of anonimity here). 

I have yet to mention much about meals. In H. and K.'s home, breakfast is a big deal. Every morning (even when not entertaining guests from the U.S.) they all eat breakfast at the dining room table. It is quite a spread, with bread, croissants, rolls, various jams ("marmalades"), juices, deli meats, meat spreads, fruit, and coffee. (I must say how thrilled we were to learn that the W. family drink as much java as we do--and we drink it like water). Lunch is served at the dining room table at about 2 or 3 PM, and is a grander affair--closer to what we would refer to as dinner/supper in the States. The final meal of the day takes place at about 8 PM--once again at the dining room table--and is lighter fare similar to the breakfast spread. However, the W.'s like to drink beer and/or wine at this later meal. (N.' father H. is particularly fond of Czech beers. I noted his favorites and will try and remember to add them in here later). [Edit: Budvar and Pilsner Urquell].

I am not sure if the W.'s meal pattern represents what most in Germany do or if it is just what they like to do. Whatever the case, I had no complaints.

I will conclude this post and perhaps write another "Germany/Saxony observation" post later.

A few observations about Germany (Part One?)

We returned from Germany on December 30, and I feel that I need to just dump whatever impressions I have now before I forget them, so here are some thoughts I have in no particular order. Many of these will be superficial observations.

Christmas decorations: I like the German approach to Christmas decoration. They are subdued and tasteful. I particularly love the Moravian stars that one sees everywhere in Germany. Germans don't seem to go for the garish and over-the-top decorations that Americans love.

I became obsessed with German toilets and the flushing mechanisms that are built into the wall: one large white rectangular button for "#2" and a smaller white button for "#1." I noticed some variations (in a public restroom in in Meißen, a large oval-shaped button with a smaller oval-shaped button within the large button).

I also enjoyed the similarly shaped light switches. As I mentioned on Facebook, it felt as if I was living in a life-size Playmobil or LEGO house.

Germans don't have screens on their windows. I will need to investigate why this is. (Not that it's a big deal, but I wonder if they are somehow not concerned with insects or birds entering their homes?).

As if this couldn't be more obvious, the German public transportation system leaves the United States in the dust. Our train trip from Coswig to Leipzig (and back) was quite relaxing.

I don't think I'd ever eaten goose in my entire life until leaving for Germany. I ate it twice (including Christmas Day) while in Germany and it was delicious.

Germany takes Covid very seriously. One must present proof of vaccination to enter any public place, so the unvaccinated are essentially shut out of public life, and I am completely fine with that. I am in favor of doing this in the United States, but of course there would be an inevitable shit storm from all the crazies in this country.