Scroll to the bottom of this page and begin reading the adventures of a group 16 teachers and a leader. 2 of us were Canadian and the rest American in citizenship.
The names of my travel colleagues are: Sue Ayers, William Ballenger, Victoria Reed, Eric Duval, Dana Folds, Jill Gammon, Nate Larsen, Karley Mull, Kathy O'Halloran, Arlin Scharfenberg(me), Tammy Smith, Laura Thompson, Susan Tornatore,Craig Winegarden, Daniel Zeitz, Gayle ???, and our leader Daniel Dunn.
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Saturday July 25
I had not anticipated writing about my trip home, but it was such an unusual day that it has to be included in the adventure. I was up at 5:45 in the morning to finish packing and have a quick breakfast at the hotel before leaving. The bus left at 6:45 to take us to the airport. We had to go back to the hotel to pick up our guides, since we had left them behind. Maybe that should have been a clue about the day we were about to experience.
At the Frankfurt Airport, we had to find the group check-in area before we could check our luggage and get our boarding passes. We finally found the area and then had to wait for our group’s turn. Once we were at the counter, we wanted to check our luggage all the way to our final destination, rather than having to re-check our luggage in Washington D.C. The Lufthansa people could not find our cities of destination very easily and so some of us tried to help them by giving the airport code of the city.
So, it now it was my turn to check my luggage. I gave them what I thought was the code for Winnipeg Airport, which was YWG, and the clerk immediately typed it in and started printing off the luggage tag. He then asked if he should check if it was in fact the code for Winnipeg. I said I thought that might be a good idea. He did a cross-reference and verified that the code was for Winnipeg. Then he handed me my boarding pass and said, “Good luck.”
I thought that was a very unusual salutation for an airport clerk!
It took a full 45 minutes after the printed boarding time before we were let on the plane. After we were seated and the doors were closed, the pilot came on and said we had been delayed because of technical repairs that needed to be done. Then about 2 minutes later, he came back on the intercom and said that we would be delayed another 15 minutes because someone who had checked a bag onto this flight had not made it onto the plane so the ground crew now needed to find that luggage and take it off the plane. So, an hour after the scheduled take-off time, we were finally taxiing down the runway.
We had noticed that there were a lot of children on this flight and a couple of the teachers commented on how this could be an interesting flight. Several minutes after take-off the babies and young children began to cry. One child, especially, began wailing very loud and yelling incomprehensibly. This noise carried on for quite some time, and to make matters worse, began kicking and hitting those around her. Eventually the flight attendants were trying to help this child by offering her something to drink and medication. Eventually we were told that this child is autistic and has not flown very much before. The pilot and flight attendants were working hard at finding a cabin pressure that would not be painful.
An hour into the flight, the noise had subsided and we were being served dinner. Shortly after dinner another commotion was developing. A man was not feeling very well. He did not speak any English or German and another person was asked to do some interpreting. Shortly after an announcement came over the intercom that there was a medical emergency on the plane and anyone who was a doctor, nurse, or paramedic was to meet with the flight attendants at the back of the plane. So, several people went to the back of the plane and then the flight attendants took two ladies up to this man. They tried to communicate through an interpreter and than another announcement was made that if anyone on board had insulin, please notify the flight attendants. This man had diabetes and had not brought any medication along. His blood sugar level was way out of whack.
The two ladies checked on this man periodically and needed to give him a second injection of insulin. At this point, the crisis seemed to subside and we were able to watch movies, nap, visit, etc.
While we were being served a snack, I mentioned to the second in command flight attendant that this was quite a challenging flight. She told me that this morning she was scheduled to fly to Dallas Texas and had made plans for her evening there. Arriving at the airport she had been rescheduled for this flight and she was not enjoying it.
Fast-forward 5 hours and we are now about an hour out of Washington D.C. We are given this information and the weather conditions in D.C. No sooner has this information been given when the crying begins. It seemed as though every child and baby was now weeping loudly. As we begin our descent, the child with autism becomes very agitated and yells loudly, throwing herself and other items around her.
We are now only 5 minutes from landing, and we experience quite severe turbulence. I also notice that there is a lady now beginning to seizure further up the plane. The flight attendants are now out of their seats trying to get this lady out of her seat and on the floor whilst the plane is rocking and rising and sinking dramatically. We touch down on one back wheel, with the plane veering to the side. The pilot lifts us off the ground, readjusts the direction of the plane and sets us back on the ground. As we were de-planing, we noticed that the lady having the seizure was one of the ladies that had helped the diabetic man.
We said our goodbyes and went our separate ways. I was scheduled to fly to Denver and then on to Winnipeg. I noticed that the flight to Denver was already delayed coming into Washington D.C. and I also new that I had a very short window of time to connect to the flight to Winnipeg.
We left D.C. 40 minutes after the scheduled departure and had to fly around several storm cells. As we were began our descent into Denver, a lady two rows back began to weep and wail. It seemed she was terrified of landing, and the pilot’s announcement that there would be turbulence because of the thunderstorms was not helping. Another passenger was holding her hands and talking her through this crisis in her life. We landed and I had 10 minutes to get off the plane, find my gate number, find the gate and get on the plane to Winnipeg. Luckily the gate was in the same terminal, so I made it with enough time to go to the bathroom.
The flight to Winnipeg was uneventful and I landed on time at 10:30 local time, which was 5:30 a.m. Germany time. My family and my mom met me at the airport and it was really good to see them again.
At the Frankfurt Airport, we had to find the group check-in area before we could check our luggage and get our boarding passes. We finally found the area and then had to wait for our group’s turn. Once we were at the counter, we wanted to check our luggage all the way to our final destination, rather than having to re-check our luggage in Washington D.C. The Lufthansa people could not find our cities of destination very easily and so some of us tried to help them by giving the airport code of the city.
So, it now it was my turn to check my luggage. I gave them what I thought was the code for Winnipeg Airport, which was YWG, and the clerk immediately typed it in and started printing off the luggage tag. He then asked if he should check if it was in fact the code for Winnipeg. I said I thought that might be a good idea. He did a cross-reference and verified that the code was for Winnipeg. Then he handed me my boarding pass and said, “Good luck.”
I thought that was a very unusual salutation for an airport clerk!
It took a full 45 minutes after the printed boarding time before we were let on the plane. After we were seated and the doors were closed, the pilot came on and said we had been delayed because of technical repairs that needed to be done. Then about 2 minutes later, he came back on the intercom and said that we would be delayed another 15 minutes because someone who had checked a bag onto this flight had not made it onto the plane so the ground crew now needed to find that luggage and take it off the plane. So, an hour after the scheduled take-off time, we were finally taxiing down the runway.
We had noticed that there were a lot of children on this flight and a couple of the teachers commented on how this could be an interesting flight. Several minutes after take-off the babies and young children began to cry. One child, especially, began wailing very loud and yelling incomprehensibly. This noise carried on for quite some time, and to make matters worse, began kicking and hitting those around her. Eventually the flight attendants were trying to help this child by offering her something to drink and medication. Eventually we were told that this child is autistic and has not flown very much before. The pilot and flight attendants were working hard at finding a cabin pressure that would not be painful.
An hour into the flight, the noise had subsided and we were being served dinner. Shortly after dinner another commotion was developing. A man was not feeling very well. He did not speak any English or German and another person was asked to do some interpreting. Shortly after an announcement came over the intercom that there was a medical emergency on the plane and anyone who was a doctor, nurse, or paramedic was to meet with the flight attendants at the back of the plane. So, several people went to the back of the plane and then the flight attendants took two ladies up to this man. They tried to communicate through an interpreter and than another announcement was made that if anyone on board had insulin, please notify the flight attendants. This man had diabetes and had not brought any medication along. His blood sugar level was way out of whack.
The two ladies checked on this man periodically and needed to give him a second injection of insulin. At this point, the crisis seemed to subside and we were able to watch movies, nap, visit, etc.
While we were being served a snack, I mentioned to the second in command flight attendant that this was quite a challenging flight. She told me that this morning she was scheduled to fly to Dallas Texas and had made plans for her evening there. Arriving at the airport she had been rescheduled for this flight and she was not enjoying it.
Fast-forward 5 hours and we are now about an hour out of Washington D.C. We are given this information and the weather conditions in D.C. No sooner has this information been given when the crying begins. It seemed as though every child and baby was now weeping loudly. As we begin our descent, the child with autism becomes very agitated and yells loudly, throwing herself and other items around her.
We are now only 5 minutes from landing, and we experience quite severe turbulence. I also notice that there is a lady now beginning to seizure further up the plane. The flight attendants are now out of their seats trying to get this lady out of her seat and on the floor whilst the plane is rocking and rising and sinking dramatically. We touch down on one back wheel, with the plane veering to the side. The pilot lifts us off the ground, readjusts the direction of the plane and sets us back on the ground. As we were de-planing, we noticed that the lady having the seizure was one of the ladies that had helped the diabetic man.
We said our goodbyes and went our separate ways. I was scheduled to fly to Denver and then on to Winnipeg. I noticed that the flight to Denver was already delayed coming into Washington D.C. and I also new that I had a very short window of time to connect to the flight to Winnipeg.
We left D.C. 40 minutes after the scheduled departure and had to fly around several storm cells. As we were began our descent into Denver, a lady two rows back began to weep and wail. It seemed she was terrified of landing, and the pilot’s announcement that there would be turbulence because of the thunderstorms was not helping. Another passenger was holding her hands and talking her through this crisis in her life. We landed and I had 10 minutes to get off the plane, find my gate number, find the gate and get on the plane to Winnipeg. Luckily the gate was in the same terminal, so I made it with enough time to go to the bathroom.
The flight to Winnipeg was uneventful and I landed on time at 10:30 local time, which was 5:30 a.m. Germany time. My family and my mom met me at the airport and it was really good to see them again.
Friday, July 24, 2009
Friday, July 24
I cannot believe that the study tour is over. It seems just like yesterday that we arrived in Frankfurt to begin the tour. I have truly enjoyed getting to know the group members.
We began our day by going to a presentation by the Stiftung Lesen (a foundation for the promotion of reading in Germany) in Mainz. It was fascinating to hear how this NGO foundation developed programs to encourage families to read. They have to find money through sponsors to fund the giving of books to families who have just had a baby. They also put together a train suitcase full of books to be sent to children who are in foster care. What was very interesting is that they have developed a lesson plan that goes along with the movie Walküre.
We then had a guided tour of the Gutenberg Museum.
We were shown a printing press that the museum claims to be similar to the press Guttenberg used, however, the curator commented that it was more likely that the press Johannes used was much smaller.
Two of our group members Vicki and Dana are having birthdays today and tomorrow respectively, so they were chosen to use the press to make two posters, which they got to keep. 
We were then taken into the vault and were shown two Bibles and several other manuscripts that Guttenberg did print on his printing press.
It was very interesting to hear how Guttenberg designed and created a punch an cast set to be used over and over again, as well as an inking pad made from dog’s skin. Dog’s skin was used because a dog is the only animal that has non-porous skin which will not soak up the ink.
We were given some free time to explore Mainz so I went around and took some pictures as well as had a Dönner (toasted pita filled with shaved meat, onions, tomatoes and lettuce) for the last time in Europe.
We then boarded the bus and traveled to Bingen where we boarded the Goethe paddle wheeler. We took the paddle wheeler along the Middle Rhine 
and saw several castles and small villages. It was an amazing experience intersecting with medieval history. Seeing the remnants of the castles juxtaposed with the modern vineyards and orchards created an almost magical atmosphere. We do not have any great tangible examples of this kind of history in Canada and I could easily imagine knights and lords riding up and down the mountains to their castles.
At St. Goar we boarded the bus and traveled back to Münster-Sarmsheim where we had supper at Weingut Kruger-Rumpf which is a winery.
We had a very pleasant evening with the owner of the winery explaining how they grew grapes on different soils to produce different tasting wines. We also used this time to express our gratitude to our leader Dan and to our guides, Hanz and Jazmin.
When I reflect on Germany, I think that I do have a much better understanding and appreciation for the history and culture of Germany. For example, it is very uncommon to see anyone flying the German flag except for several government buildings. Displaying patriotic pride is not common. On the other hand, displaying affection is very common. I cannot begin to count the number of times I have seen couples in very passionate embraces on sidewalks, in parks, and in restaurants. Publicly showing affection is very common.
When asking our presenters about historical information, most history begins with World War II. It seems for most people in Germany, it is difficult to think past World War II and comment on the historical impacts prior to that time.
What is very common are the car-free squares and plazas. In each city we visited, we
encountered large areas where vehicles are not allowed and people can either walk or use a bicycle to get around. Cobblestone streets are the norm and businesses open up into these plazas.
Overall, I have found the people of Germany to be extremely accommodating to me as a person who does not speak or understand their language. I was always treated with respect and in a friendly manner. My hope is that we as Canadians are also so accommodating to those who do not speak English in our country.
We began our day by going to a presentation by the Stiftung Lesen (a foundation for the promotion of reading in Germany) in Mainz. It was fascinating to hear how this NGO foundation developed programs to encourage families to read. They have to find money through sponsors to fund the giving of books to families who have just had a baby. They also put together a train suitcase full of books to be sent to children who are in foster care. What was very interesting is that they have developed a lesson plan that goes along with the movie Walküre.
We then had a guided tour of the Gutenberg Museum.
We were shown a printing press that the museum claims to be similar to the press Guttenberg used, however, the curator commented that it was more likely that the press Johannes used was much smaller.
Two of our group members Vicki and Dana are having birthdays today and tomorrow respectively, so they were chosen to use the press to make two posters, which they got to keep. 
We were then taken into the vault and were shown two Bibles and several other manuscripts that Guttenberg did print on his printing press.
It was very interesting to hear how Guttenberg designed and created a punch an cast set to be used over and over again, as well as an inking pad made from dog’s skin. Dog’s skin was used because a dog is the only animal that has non-porous skin which will not soak up the ink.
We were given some free time to explore Mainz so I went around and took some pictures as well as had a Dönner (toasted pita filled with shaved meat, onions, tomatoes and lettuce) for the last time in Europe.
We then boarded the bus and traveled to Bingen where we boarded the Goethe paddle wheeler. We took the paddle wheeler along the Middle Rhine 
and saw several castles and small villages. It was an amazing experience intersecting with medieval history. Seeing the remnants of the castles juxtaposed with the modern vineyards and orchards created an almost magical atmosphere. We do not have any great tangible examples of this kind of history in Canada and I could easily imagine knights and lords riding up and down the mountains to their castles.
At St. Goar we boarded the bus and traveled back to Münster-Sarmsheim where we had supper at Weingut Kruger-Rumpf which is a winery.
We had a very pleasant evening with the owner of the winery explaining how they grew grapes on different soils to produce different tasting wines. We also used this time to express our gratitude to our leader Dan and to our guides, Hanz and Jazmin.When I reflect on Germany, I think that I do have a much better understanding and appreciation for the history and culture of Germany. For example, it is very uncommon to see anyone flying the German flag except for several government buildings. Displaying patriotic pride is not common. On the other hand, displaying affection is very common. I cannot begin to count the number of times I have seen couples in very passionate embraces on sidewalks, in parks, and in restaurants. Publicly showing affection is very common.
When asking our presenters about historical information, most history begins with World War II. It seems for most people in Germany, it is difficult to think past World War II and comment on the historical impacts prior to that time.
What is very common are the car-free squares and plazas. In each city we visited, we
encountered large areas where vehicles are not allowed and people can either walk or use a bicycle to get around. Cobblestone streets are the norm and businesses open up into these plazas.Overall, I have found the people of Germany to be extremely accommodating to me as a person who does not speak or understand their language. I was always treated with respect and in a friendly manner. My hope is that we as Canadians are also so accommodating to those who do not speak English in our country.
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Thursday, July 23
We began the day at the Deutsche Bank and heard two presentations. The first presentation was on the history of the Deutsche Bank and how it categorizes its investors. The second presentation was given by the department that is responsible for funding part of the TOP program. We then saw a few of the art works that the Deutsche Bank purchases and displays.
Lunch was on our own, so I bravely decided I would take the tube to an Earth Cache. This was the second time in two weeks that I was taking the subway by myself without guides or friends pointing the way. At first I got on the wrong one. This became evident when I noticed that I was two stops further away from my destination than I wanted to be. So I waited for a subway going the other way and boarded that one. Within a few minutes I was at my destination and I got off.
I quickly found the museum and embarked on a language translation exercise. The questions had been translated into English on the website, but all the plaques were in German.
So, I tried to make out the scientific information that was necessary to answer the questions. Then, I quickly made my way back to the subway to get back to the hotel for our next event.
We went to the centre of Frankfurt where an accordion player was asked to play “Happy Birthday” for two of our group members who are having birthdays.
We met Hanz who gave us a most interesting tour of the centre area.
He showed us the one wooden building that survived the bombings of World War II. He explained how the buildings were rebuilt after the war to represent the history of Frankfurt.
We also sat in the church where the legislature of Germany decided that Bonn was going to be the capital city instead of Frankfurt. An interesting anecdote was that the mayor of Frankfurt was so confident that Frankfurt would be named the capital that he had pre-taped his official reply to that decision before the government had made its decision.
We also had a look at Goethe’s home. It was very interesting to see the appliances and furniture of the house of an obviously wealthy family. The water pump and the heatting system were very unique. For example, the wood stove was completely closed in on the room side. It took us a while to figure out how one would get wood into the stove. Then we noticed doors on the outside of the wall. We realized that it was set up so servants could stoke the fire without disturbing the people in the rooms.
We traveled to Ökologischer Obsthof am Steinberg, which is an organic fruit farm. We learned that the owner of the orchard has 60 different varieties of apples that are used to make apple wine, apple cider, etc.
We had planned to eat outside in the orchard, but a thunderstorm drove us inside.
Lunch was on our own, so I bravely decided I would take the tube to an Earth Cache. This was the second time in two weeks that I was taking the subway by myself without guides or friends pointing the way. At first I got on the wrong one. This became evident when I noticed that I was two stops further away from my destination than I wanted to be. So I waited for a subway going the other way and boarded that one. Within a few minutes I was at my destination and I got off.
I quickly found the museum and embarked on a language translation exercise. The questions had been translated into English on the website, but all the plaques were in German.
So, I tried to make out the scientific information that was necessary to answer the questions. Then, I quickly made my way back to the subway to get back to the hotel for our next event.
We went to the centre of Frankfurt where an accordion player was asked to play “Happy Birthday” for two of our group members who are having birthdays. 
We met Hanz who gave us a most interesting tour of the centre area. 
He showed us the one wooden building that survived the bombings of World War II. He explained how the buildings were rebuilt after the war to represent the history of Frankfurt. 
We also sat in the church where the legislature of Germany decided that Bonn was going to be the capital city instead of Frankfurt. An interesting anecdote was that the mayor of Frankfurt was so confident that Frankfurt would be named the capital that he had pre-taped his official reply to that decision before the government had made its decision.
We also had a look at Goethe’s home. It was very interesting to see the appliances and furniture of the house of an obviously wealthy family. The water pump and the heatting system were very unique. For example, the wood stove was completely closed in on the room side. It took us a while to figure out how one would get wood into the stove. Then we noticed doors on the outside of the wall. We realized that it was set up so servants could stoke the fire without disturbing the people in the rooms.
We traveled to Ökologischer Obsthof am Steinberg, which is an organic fruit farm. We learned that the owner of the orchard has 60 different varieties of apples that are used to make apple wine, apple cider, etc.
We had planned to eat outside in the orchard, but a thunderstorm drove us inside.
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Wednesday, July 22
We checked out of our hotel after breakfast and put our luggage into storage. A bus picked us up and took us to Wilhelm-Maybach Schule. This is an industrial school for vocational and technical education. We were given a very clear and descriptive explanation of how the school system works in Germany. We were also introduced to the various programs offered at this school. Here students learn how to service vehicles, prepare used vehicles for resale and develop the skills to be technical mechanics for all types of vehicles. Students get to work on Mercedes Benz, Volkswagon, and Porche vehicles in their state-of-the-art workshops.
Students are also taught how to create models of vehicle parts and run tests on these parts to replicate common break-downs and then look at ways correct these deficiencies. 
We also learned that students in this vocational school are paid between 600.00 to 800.00 Euro per month for being at school. After graduation, they have the required paperwork to be employed by various vehicle repair shops.We then went on a short tour of Stuttgart around the centre of the city.
Following this quick excursion, we went to the Robert Bosch Foundation for a lunch put on by one of the major sponsors of the Institut. We learned how the Bosch Foundation strives to fund various educational and cultural programs in Germany and the United States. We were then taken to the Landesinstitut für Schulentwicklung (Institute for School Development) which could loosely be equated with the Department of Education in Manitoba. Dr. Keller explained various trends in the education system in Germany and how the ministry of education in Baden-Württemberg was dealing with these issues. It was fascinating to hear how schools develop a profile which means they develop a specialty in subjects such as history, economics, biology, etc. Students who attend gymnasium must take German, a 1st foreign language and mathematics. Then they must take two other subjects such as history, economics, etc. Students then choose the school they will attend based on the subjects they wish to major in.
Students who take the history route, must spend some time working on a project that requires them to look at primary sources at museums, archives, and libraries. They then complete this project and go through an oral examination where they may be asked to respond to some historical event or passage.
We headed back to the hotel, quickly changed and boarded the train to Frankfurt.
We arrived in Frankfurt and met our two new guides, Jasmine and Cecelia. We checked into the InterCity Hotel in Frankfurt and went out for a late supper and then returned to our hotel room.
It was great to find out that we have free internet at this hotel.
Tuesday, July 21
In the morning we went to the Rathouseplatz (City Hall) and listened to a presentation on how Freiburg decided to become a “green city.” We heard how the city decided that they needed to take some radical changes if they were to meet a proposed 75% reduction in the emission of carbon dioxide. As a result they decided to embark upon a three-pronged plan. First they would address energy savings by encouraging people to build houses that were more energy efficient as well as houses that did not require any heating system which are known as passiv houses. The idea is that the houses are built using triple-glazed windows and more insulation. Then, using architectural designs that encourage heat recovery from the sun, these houses are able to sustain heat almost all year without using a major heating system. Furthermore, homeowners were able to install solar cells as roofs which would produce the needed electricity for that home. Extra energy that is not used by the homeowner, is injected into the main power grid and homeowners are paid money for that extra power.
Secondly, the city worked on renewable energy. Since Germany leads the way in solar cell technology, the city decided to set up large solar energy plants on large buildings such as stadiums, parking garages, apartment buildings, etc. Wind farms and hydro electricity plants were also set up to produce energy and cut down on the dependency on nuclear energy.
The third goal was to focus on efficient technologies such as co-generation. This idea uses some form of fuel to power a generator. The heat of the engine is then used to provide energy for remote locations.
Following this presentation, we went to Vauban which is considered a show-case area for a green area. Formerly this was the area where French troops were stationed during the Cold War. Houses were built with solar cells as roofs; cars were not allowed among the apartment buildings, bikes and walking are the method of transportation. A concept of car sharing is also used where people take out monthly memberships with Car Share and can then use a car for a set amount of time. Access to these cars is through a member card that opens the doors, and a small key pad in the car allows you to enter a code that will then permit you to start the car and drive.
After lunch we went to Ökostation (Centre for heightening environmental awareness) in Freiburg. Here a green classroom consists of a building for instruction and then several gardens, meadows, and ponds are put in place to help teach students about the usefulness of herbs, how to grow a garden, how to make tea out of herbs. It was a fascinating concept.
We had to board a train to get from Freiburg to --- . Then we had 2 minutes to transfer to another train and make it to Stuttgart. We did arrive without losing any one or any luggage. We checked into the InterCity Hotel and went for supper. After supper Astrid took us on a walk around the centre of the city. It was a very enjoyable walk.
Monday July 20
After breakfast at the InterCity Hotel, we divided into two groups to do a school visit. One group went to the Staudinger-Gesamtschule (Composite School) while my group went to Merianschule, an integrated vocational school specializing in biotechnological education. Dr. Hubner was the teacher in the lab and the students were taking bacteria DNA and trying to cut the DNA. It was fascinating to see these students work with equipment that my school wouldn’t even dream of using. Class size for these high-tech labs is about 16 students and one class lasts for 2 hours. Most, if not all, of these students will go on to university.
We also visited an English classroom and observed students as they worked with a text “Rules for Dealing with Germans.” The students were given an opportunity to ask us questions about stereotypes either of Americans or of Germans.
We stopped for lunch and then went to an Abenteuerbaustelle e.V. This is an amazing concept of holding nursery (age 3 – 4) and kindergarten (ages 5 – 6) outdoors, spring, summer, fall, and yes, winter. Classes last for 3.5 hours either in the morning or in the afternoon. The children spend the whole time outdoors, and learn about how to live with nature. When the weather is extremely cold or if it rains, there is a trailer where they can go for refuge. Students learn how to recognize plants, make toys out of wood, and learn how to use tools that are used in nature. It was an amazing concept that I found very interesting.
Dan, Nate, Karly and I climbed up to the look-out tower of Freiburg. It was approximately 1000 feet from the base of the mountain to the top of the tower.
The view was absolutely spectacular.
We met at 7:45 and went to the oldest restaurant in Freiburg. It was very interesting going down into the cellar to see how the basement might have looked back in 1120.
Monday, July 20, 2009
Sunday, July 19
We were permitted to sleep in this morning. I went for a walk around the centre of Freiburg, trying to find a few caches. I was not overly lucky but did find one near a waterfall which was particularly interesting. I also enjoyed looking at the different buildings and stores in the city. I was passing one store when I saw a toy that brought back some excellent memories of my father.
When I was quite young, maybe 6 or 7, my dad thought it would be nice for me to get a replica steam engine for Christmas. I am not entirely sure, but I think that might have been one of the few times that he actually became significantly involved in determining the gifts we children would receive.
Dad was very happy for me that Christmas and delighted in showing me how this steam engine worked. You had to fill the boiler with water, oil the piston, and light a little white brick of fuel on fire. After the water began to boil, it would start moving the piston which was attached to a flywheel. It even had a whistle.
Dad was concerned that I might not fully appreciate the safety required with such a gift and put it away for me when I would be older and responsible. It was not until I had three boys of my own, that I was finally responsible enough to take that steam engine home!
In this particular store window, was the same model of steam engine that I received on that Christmas morning. It was a very special moment for me.
We met back at the hotel at 12:00 and boarded a train for Titesee. This is a town along Titesee Lake which is a very picturesque lake in the Black Forest. The stores along the street were also very interested in selling their wares to any tourist who wanted to part with some of their money. We had lunch at the Romantik Restaurant. We were seated in a room with a beautiful view of the lake.
After lunch, we took a boat ride on the lake. All the boats on this lake were powered with electric engines. Apparently the water is so clean that it is almost drinkable without filtering.
Several group members tagged along as I did two geocaches. At the one cache, we found red currents. Most of the group members had never seen this fruit and were apprehensive about trying it, even after I told them they were perfectly safe berries.
We did some shopping; two members of the group bought cuckoo clocks. We then had black forest cake in the Black Forest. It was a very tasty treat!
The evening ended with a night snack at a outdoor beer garden up on one of the small mountains in the city. The view of the sunset over the mountains was spectacular. On the way back to the hotel, I joined Eric and William for a treat only available at European McDonalds. You order a fried apple pie, which is deep fried as opposed to the baked kind we get in North America, and a caramel sundae. You crumble the pie into the sundae. It was oh so good!!
When I was quite young, maybe 6 or 7, my dad thought it would be nice for me to get a replica steam engine for Christmas. I am not entirely sure, but I think that might have been one of the few times that he actually became significantly involved in determining the gifts we children would receive.
Dad was very happy for me that Christmas and delighted in showing me how this steam engine worked. You had to fill the boiler with water, oil the piston, and light a little white brick of fuel on fire. After the water began to boil, it would start moving the piston which was attached to a flywheel. It even had a whistle.
Dad was concerned that I might not fully appreciate the safety required with such a gift and put it away for me when I would be older and responsible. It was not until I had three boys of my own, that I was finally responsible enough to take that steam engine home!
In this particular store window, was the same model of steam engine that I received on that Christmas morning. It was a very special moment for me.
We met back at the hotel at 12:00 and boarded a train for Titesee. This is a town along Titesee Lake which is a very picturesque lake in the Black Forest. The stores along the street were also very interested in selling their wares to any tourist who wanted to part with some of their money. We had lunch at the Romantik Restaurant. We were seated in a room with a beautiful view of the lake.
After lunch, we took a boat ride on the lake. All the boats on this lake were powered with electric engines. Apparently the water is so clean that it is almost drinkable without filtering.
Several group members tagged along as I did two geocaches. At the one cache, we found red currents. Most of the group members had never seen this fruit and were apprehensive about trying it, even after I told them they were perfectly safe berries.
We did some shopping; two members of the group bought cuckoo clocks. We then had black forest cake in the Black Forest. It was a very tasty treat!
The evening ended with a night snack at a outdoor beer garden up on one of the small mountains in the city. The view of the sunset over the mountains was spectacular. On the way back to the hotel, I joined Eric and William for a treat only available at European McDonalds. You order a fried apple pie, which is deep fried as opposed to the baked kind we get in North America, and a caramel sundae. You crumble the pie into the sundae. It was oh so good!!
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