Not that its that bad, but I was really enjoying the long holidays in this country...now I have a whole three weeks before the next long weekend--what a hardship!
I've also jumped right in to the activities at school, where the grade 5's have a culminating activity as their skill demonstrating summative to the Primary Years Program of the International Baccalaureate Organization...the PYP of the IB. This is a ten week project that requires research, an oral report with a visual aid (poster), a creative group component (play, game, illustrated book, song, puzzle, maquette, diorama or working model) and a written component (ranging in size from 15-35 pages depending on the student and the topic) that will all be displayed in a conference-style day-long exhibition May 8th to which dignitaries and parents and the entire school body have been invited...and remember these are ten year olds! The stress at times this last week has been palpable, but they made it through the orals with compliments and no crises, so that's good.
So you'll forgive me if I've not blogged recently...I'm also busy in my spare time sewing that quilt I wrote about last time...I am really pleased with the progress and will post a picture once I get a few more squares finished...but I don't want to ruin the surprise!
It may be a few days until something blog-worthy happens, so please forgive me if you're missing my usual chattiness and adventures (I'm missing them too)...but will write about food, the weather, friend gatherings and our visits as soon as I can. M is off to the south of France for another series of auditions, so be sure to check in with him, as he'll have something to write about soon.
Sunday, 20 April 2008
Sunday, 13 April 2008
Germany Part 2: wild & domestic
On the second full day of our Germany trip, Max had to work, but Sevie took us to the nature preserve in their community (living in the country has its advantages) so the kids could see the indigenous animals that tend to make it into European folk tales. The drive was brief and the rain held off, but it was cool, so we were glad for the scarves and mitts that came with us.
The place is located within a huge piece of forest with lots of space between display areas, so even though there were other visitors to the park, we didn't feel at all as crowded or pushed along as we did the previous day at the aquarium. The first few viewings weren't spectacular,
but the path we chose took us the wild bird and rodent way. It took us another 20 minutes or so to get to the larger forest animals like the deer, foxes, wolves and storks. The first spectacle came when we saw the wild boars (who came trotting over to us when I offered them some of the deer pellet food we had bought in a mini cereal box at the entry. Here's a picture of "Rufus" willingly accepting handouts. This was a great place with just the right amount of education around ecology, pollution, water use, preserving habitats and so on. Thankfully we had Sevie with us who translated very well if she thought the boys would be interested in the
c
ontent printed on the placcards. I was very impressed that she kept pace so well...her belly didn't slow her down in the least.
We also went by some streams and brooks, and within were some Canadian Otters! *(this is a direct translation from their latin name, at least that's what Sevie thought) who were incredibly playful performing for us by swimming, leaping, having a game of tag and showing us their tricks over and over again. They reminded me of puppies or children cavorting in the river, as they were having that much fun. This picture doesn't do the animal justice, as a still pic can't convey what agility he had and the joy of life he exhibited. Ah to be that carefree!
The next things we saw were typical of a game farm: snuffy the greedy deer almost took my fingers with the crunchy snacks I offered him and his mates (yuck: he'd been grazing in the muddy grass just a few minutes before, so covered our hands in grimy slime) and very stoic looking wolves in an enclosure about the size of a city park. The three of them had lots of logs to climb, rocks to stand upon and area to pace. We could see their route around the perimetre of their enclosure, as the ground had been worn into a hard beaten path. As I said, these were all the animals that ended up in The Brothers Grim type fairy tales and some really have suffered from this poor reputation provided them: over the years, the wolf killing in Germany alone has decimated the population to only dozens of wild animals within the country, a few re-released monitored couples and the rest are in preserves like this one--not really wild at all. Yes, they steal chickens, but they much prefer fowl to child and the last time they ate a Grandma, well...you know what happened to THAT wolf!
At the end of this activity, we were glad for the petting zoo and playground. The boys loved it, as there were plenty of guinea
pigs, peacocks, ducks, lambs, and baby goats around to have a good talk to. One young goat liked the taste of the cardboard box more than the deer crunchies, or better yet, M's leather coat, but they were awfully cute. We entered the park at the same time as a bus from a residence for people with moderate to severe mental challenges, so when we got to the playground, there were about six people there with their aides, and D was really taken with one woman (about 35 I'd say, but with the face and stature of a 12 year old) who was uncommunicative to everyone but the goats. He and she petted the same bunch for some time, and even though they didn't use language they communicated about petting and being gentle to the animals very effectively. He can be so perceptive and sweet sometimes...there's definitely potential in that boy!
It was now much past lunch time, and the boys were grumbling, so we all went back to the house and Sevie and I went grocery shopping for snacks, typical German items that I should return home with and a few things to contribute to breakfast next day. Also, we needed to pack a lunch for our long trip home, since we were going to stop off for a late brunch/early lunch with Sevie's dad, Walter.
The trip to Walter's from Sevie's is about 90 minutes, and quite easy with a GPS...glad we had it since we had set it for fastest route, and at one time it took us down a dirt lane between two farmer's fields (I guess it was the fastest way!). It was a much more fun trip that the main route, for we saw some marvelous black faced sheep that the boys called out to from the car and they responded.
Walter lost his wife (in her late 50's) about two years ago to ALS and he is still dearly missing her. She was a lovely lady who taught Home Economics, participated in charity work, was an artist with paint and fabric (quilting and wall hanging) a whiz in the garden, and loved to cook. I never got to meet her but I think I would have very much liked her since we had so much in common. When we got to the house Walter had laid the table to groaning levels for a very typical German brunch: 4 cheeses, 5 spreads, a dozen buns, kaizers, croissant rolls, seed breads and the like, two or three cold meats, coffee and hot milk for the boys, juice, fruit, mueslix...you name it. He had set the table with the good china and had lit candles for the occassion. We all appreciated the care he took, the choices he offered and the wonderful hospitality he provided. He was very sweet and we had a great time and plan to return very soon to continue our too short visit of catching up with him since our Canada visit. It doesn't hurt that he's an Opera lover and a musician in his own right--lots to talk about!
We had a tour of the house (lovely!) and the gardens (wonderful--a pond full of koi that captivated both me and the boys) and the work still hanging that Elanor had done. Earlier in the trip when Sevie had mentioned regret that her mom wouldn't be around for her granddaughter to be--that we all think our time is unlimited, we got onto discussing her
charity work and generosity. Sevie said that her mom had made a baby quilt for a family friend and wished she had made two, so that there would be something to give Sevie's new baby from her mom. I asked if there was still fabric around, and did she quilt. She laughed and said she didn't have the patience that her mom had and her talent wasn't something she inherited, but that there were cases of fabric still in her dad's house. Tentatively I suggested that I could make the quilt, if there was something she'd like done in the same style as her mom would do...I felt odd asking, but since I had just bought a sewing machine, it would be great to have an important project to work on. Sevie was very enthusiastic, and later that evening, phoned her dad to let him know just exactly which fabric she was referring to and where it was. After lunch, Walter and I went up to the third floor bedroom and pulled down half a dozen boxes to have a look. What a collection! I took only one box that contained the bear fabric but upon 
Walter's insistence, put in the pieces for a partially done quilt so that I could put together something by Elanor first to learn her style and methodology. Here are two pictures of the quilt: one as planned by Elanor in November 1999 and the other my finished version of her work. I hope she'll be glad that one of her UFO's (unfinished objects) has come to (almost) completion. I learned quite a bit from her while doing this, and now I'm fired up to begin the baby quilt for Sevie and little sweat pea...the fabric's laid out, the design is drafted, and my fingers are itchy--now I hope I can get some of this done in between working and cleaning the house for Marie's final week-long visit starting next Friday...!
The place is located within a huge piece of forest with lots of space between display areas, so even though there were other visitors to the park, we didn't feel at all as crowded or pushed along as we did the previous day at the aquarium. The first few viewings weren't spectacular,
but the path we chose took us the wild bird and rodent way. It took us another 20 minutes or so to get to the larger forest animals like the deer, foxes, wolves and storks. The first spectacle came when we saw the wild boars (who came trotting over to us when I offered them some of the deer pellet food we had bought in a mini cereal box at the entry. Here's a picture of "Rufus" willingly accepting handouts. This was a great place with just the right amount of education around ecology, pollution, water use, preserving habitats and so on. Thankfully we had Sevie with us who translated very well if she thought the boys would be interested in thec
ontent printed on the placcards. I was very impressed that she kept pace so well...her belly didn't slow her down in the least.We also went by some streams and brooks, and within were some Canadian Otters! *(this is a direct translation from their latin name, at least that's what Sevie thought) who were incredibly playful performing for us by swimming, leaping, having a game of tag and showing us their tricks over and over again. They reminded me of puppies or children cavorting in the river, as they were having that much fun. This picture doesn't do the animal justice, as a still pic can't convey what agility he had and the joy of life he exhibited. Ah to be that carefree!
The next things we saw were typical of a game farm: snuffy the greedy deer almost took my fingers with the crunchy snacks I offered him and his mates (yuck: he'd been grazing in the muddy grass just a few minutes before, so covered our hands in grimy slime) and very stoic looking wolves in an enclosure about the size of a city park. The three of them had lots of logs to climb, rocks to stand upon and area to pace. We could see their route around the perimetre of their enclosure, as the ground had been worn into a hard beaten path. As I said, these were all the animals that ended up in The Brothers Grim type fairy tales and some really have suffered from this poor reputation provided them: over the years, the wolf killing in Germany alone has decimated the population to only dozens of wild animals within the country, a few re-released monitored couples and the rest are in preserves like this one--not really wild at all. Yes, they steal chickens, but they much prefer fowl to child and the last time they ate a Grandma, well...you know what happened to THAT wolf!
At the end of this activity, we were glad for the petting zoo and playground. The boys loved it, as there were plenty of guinea
pigs, peacocks, ducks, lambs, and baby goats around to have a good talk to. One young goat liked the taste of the cardboard box more than the deer crunchies, or better yet, M's leather coat, but they were awfully cute. We entered the park at the same time as a bus from a residence for people with moderate to severe mental challenges, so when we got to the playground, there were about six people there with their aides, and D was really taken with one woman (about 35 I'd say, but with the face and stature of a 12 year old) who was uncommunicative to everyone but the goats. He and she petted the same bunch for some time, and even though they didn't use language they communicated about petting and being gentle to the animals very effectively. He can be so perceptive and sweet sometimes...there's definitely potential in that boy!It was now much past lunch time, and the boys were grumbling, so we all went back to the house and Sevie and I went grocery shopping for snacks, typical German items that I should return home with and a few things to contribute to breakfast next day. Also, we needed to pack a lunch for our long trip home, since we were going to stop off for a late brunch/early lunch with Sevie's dad, Walter.
The trip to Walter's from Sevie's is about 90 minutes, and quite easy with a GPS...glad we had it since we had set it for fastest route, and at one time it took us down a dirt lane between two farmer's fields (I guess it was the fastest way!). It was a much more fun trip that the main route, for we saw some marvelous black faced sheep that the boys called out to from the car and they responded.
Walter lost his wife (in her late 50's) about two years ago to ALS and he is still dearly missing her. She was a lovely lady who taught Home Economics, participated in charity work, was an artist with paint and fabric (quilting and wall hanging) a whiz in the garden, and loved to cook. I never got to meet her but I think I would have very much liked her since we had so much in common. When we got to the house Walter had laid the table to groaning levels for a very typical German brunch: 4 cheeses, 5 spreads, a dozen buns, kaizers, croissant rolls, seed breads and the like, two or three cold meats, coffee and hot milk for the boys, juice, fruit, mueslix...you name it. He had set the table with the good china and had lit candles for the occassion. We all appreciated the care he took, the choices he offered and the wonderful hospitality he provided. He was very sweet and we had a great time and plan to return very soon to continue our too short visit of catching up with him since our Canada visit. It doesn't hurt that he's an Opera lover and a musician in his own right--lots to talk about!
We had a tour of the house (lovely!) and the gardens (wonderful--a pond full of koi that captivated both me and the boys) and the work still hanging that Elanor had done. Earlier in the trip when Sevie had mentioned regret that her mom wouldn't be around for her granddaughter to be--that we all think our time is unlimited, we got onto discussing her
charity work and generosity. Sevie said that her mom had made a baby quilt for a family friend and wished she had made two, so that there would be something to give Sevie's new baby from her mom. I asked if there was still fabric around, and did she quilt. She laughed and said she didn't have the patience that her mom had and her talent wasn't something she inherited, but that there were cases of fabric still in her dad's house. Tentatively I suggested that I could make the quilt, if there was something she'd like done in the same style as her mom would do...I felt odd asking, but since I had just bought a sewing machine, it would be great to have an important project to work on. Sevie was very enthusiastic, and later that evening, phoned her dad to let him know just exactly which fabric she was referring to and where it was. After lunch, Walter and I went up to the third floor bedroom and pulled down half a dozen boxes to have a look. What a collection! I took only one box that contained the bear fabric but upon 
Walter's insistence, put in the pieces for a partially done quilt so that I could put together something by Elanor first to learn her style and methodology. Here are two pictures of the quilt: one as planned by Elanor in November 1999 and the other my finished version of her work. I hope she'll be glad that one of her UFO's (unfinished objects) has come to (almost) completion. I learned quite a bit from her while doing this, and now I'm fired up to begin the baby quilt for Sevie and little sweat pea...the fabric's laid out, the design is drafted, and my fingers are itchy--now I hope I can get some of this done in between working and cleaning the house for Marie's final week-long visit starting next Friday...!
Sunday, 6 April 2008
Germany, Part 1: Hamburg's fish
Ah, the holidays (two weeks plus 2 days of them) are nearing to a close, and I've been remiss in telling you what has kept us busy since the return trip from Edinburgh. We got ourselves back, cleaned out the suitcases just in time to fill them again and rented a car (Mercedes C class Diesel 180) with GPS then were off like a herd of turtles to the East and North to Hamburg. On the navigation computer the distance was 596 kms and knowing that there aren't speed limits in Germany's autobans, we thought that would be a nice round 6 hours, if considering stops for snacks and stretching.
Well, we didn't count on traffic jams, construction, a vomiting kid or bickering children ("Don't make me stop this car--just try me, I'll do it!"). We were late getting going Saturday morning, so when noon arrived and we were just getting into the car, we knew it would be a long trip...both ways. We arrived at Sevie's and Max's just a little over 8:00 p.m. exhausted and hungry but happy to be there.
Sevie looks just radiant. She's started her "mother leave" which requires that she finish work 6 weeks before the due date, and not return before 2 months is up...this is fully paid by her company and the remainder of the year should she choose to stay off is covered by the government. She and Max had a lovely supper waiting for us when we arrived, and Max is very sweet doing all the cooking and looking after his dear wife and daughter-to-be. We had a great night of catching up and learning all about their eco-conscientious house (roof solar panels and internal vents collect heat for the heat exchanger that warms radiant floors and the water heater for the house...the triple glazed windows let in light without loss of internal temperature...there was lots more but I was getting tired by this time.Both Max and Sevie with her dad came to Canada 18 months ago for a canoe trip to the Algonquin interior so there was lots of reminising and memories to recount. We went to bed late, but got the next day planned which included an aquarium (a new part of the Hamburg Zoo) a trip up St. Michel's (Lutherin) tower and a stroll down the harbourfront for a fish bun and people watching.
The aquarium was a bit costly, but not too bad now knowing all the lovely things we saw when we were there. It was very attractively laid out with tropical plants, temperatures and equatorial fish, lizards, snakes, bugs, slimy and scaly things and a few birds, rodents and the like all in authentic and natural looking habitats. For example, the black python from India was curled up in a Tuk-tuk (three-wheeled bicycle taxi) "parked" outside a shack's veranda...the tarantula was nicely nestled in a glass terrarium that looked exactly like the last Mexican outhouse I visited.Interesting as all this was, it was all just the appetizer for the grand sight we saw in the tanks...here are some spectacular shots taken with Sevie's new camera by Max...I don't think they require words as they're so beautiful.
The best part by far was the three storey tank at the end with two sharks, a grouper and thousand of other fish that were just being fed as we arrived.The kids and adults alike just loved it and I for one could have stayed for a long time looking up into that world.
Lovely.
The snacks were running out so we headed downtown to the harbour for a fishbun. This was an interesting fast food item--nothing like the fish burger some North American burger joints try to pass off as food...this was a real piece of just-caught fish battered or pickled, peppercorn'd or dolloped with curry-mayo stuck between the freshest kaiser roll in the world. I'm not a fish fan (shell fish are my exception) but this was really yummy. The boys had bratworsts but we had the real thing: M's smoked mackarel looked ready to swim away! of course, it came with beer--this in a country where the pop bottles (plastic 350 ml ones) get you 10 cents back but the beer bottles don't. Hm... I've yet to figure that one out!
Now that we had some fuel in our tummies, we headed up the city streets into the area where St. Michel's church is located. It was one of the few tall buildings to survive the air bombs of the second world war, so shows its divinity through an 8 euro trip up the tower complete with pictures of the surrounding areas during that time and after. The boys hoofed it up the stairs, but I kept the pregnant lady company up the elevator. The first picture you see is a view of the inner lake where people can sail boats (real sized and model) and the remarkably modern buildings that make up this city's skyline.
On our way down we stepped into the santuary to say we did (my mom says my kids are now part of the ABC club, which came from a remark I made as a child during traveling with them to other countries, as I was heard to say, "Aw, not Another Bloody Church!"). Not that I'd admit it then, but this one would have shut my mouth as a kid...It was all white with gold trim, art nouveau wood carvings, a circular balcony around three-quarters of it and a choir practicing up there. The light was perfect, the sounds inspiring and the feel very welcome. M lit a candle for his grandpa and we sat and enjoyed the echoing sounds of the choir. Wow.
This was enough for the day, so we headed back to our host's home and enjoyed another great meal cooked by Max. He had some international nannies as a child and a mom who loved to cook, so we were generously served meals of Spanish, Chinese, and Italian cuisines...not a "worst" in the lot of them! Our expansive breakfasts of fresh seedy rolls, salamis and ham, boiled eggs, many cheeses and several spreads made up for that, as this is a typical German beginning to the day...though I think a bowl of bran flakes would have done just fine for me. Here's a picture my youngest took of Max having fun in the kitchen--looks like dinner's ready!
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