Singing Again!

I sang in the choir again last night, and it was so good to meet up with friends from last year, and some new ones I've met this year.  We met, not in our usual venue at "Gliesmaroder Thurm Gasthof," (the garden is flooded) but in a room in a very smart residential care home, which looked more like a hotel.  We are preparing for a festival of singing in Thune, a small village just outside Braunschweig.  The two day programme can be seen to the left, but we are singing on Saturday June 15th only.  "Scheunenfest" translates as "Barn Festival," and we will sing on a stage in a  huge half-timbered German barn, with its great overhanging roof, used for  the protection of farmers and animals in inclement weather and heavy snow.   

We are singing a programme of four songs.  The first "Butterfly," is sung in German, but with an English refrain.  We are attempting to sing the second song, ""Kad si bila mala Mare," a Dalmatian song, in Croatian.  The third song entitled "Pavane" is sung in French,  and the fourth, "In Vino Veritas," will be sung in Latin, although I have not yet seen a copy of the music.  We are finding the French song very difficult to pronounce, and all agree that it is so much easier to sing in English and German!

Three out of our four pieces of music.

After the choir practise, a small meeting was held to elect a new chairperson for the choir.  The  present chairman and his wife are moving to Nordrhein-Westfalen to be nearer their children, and they will be sadly missed.   Claus plays the accordion, and last year we went out into the woods and sang German songs to his accordion accompaniment.  We sounded very good, but many of us had to drink beer, the medicinal type of course, in order to improve our voices.

  

Out in the Rain in Braunschweig.

A friend gave me a lift to the shops this morning, which was a great help, as I was able to stock up with the heavy stuff, such as jars of good German sausages and gurken, tins of fish in curry sauce and cartons of milk, that are heavy to carry home.   I like to take a daily 3km walk to and from the local REWE (a bit like Tesco) but I couldn't refuse the offer of help with the bulky stuff.  The photo to the right shows my flat, at the top of the little white house left.  One of the windows is that of my bedroom, and the lounge is the extension almost lost in the greenery left of the gable.   I walk from there along a lovely path through the fields, which evenually brings me to the Weststadt Straßenbahn terminus.  

It is a great pity that the line does not continue into Timmerlah, as it would make life so much easier for all concerned.    If I don´t feel like walking back, I must catch a bus to travel the last 2 miles of the journey along Timmerlahstraße to my home.

Saalestraße tram stop.

An M3  tram runs every ten minutes, and this one can be seen pulling into Saalestraße.   This tram travels maybe 10 miles right across town to the other side of Braunschweig, and together with the M1, M2, M4 and M5 trams, provides an excellent "hop on,hop off" service all around the city.  I buy a monthly seniors' pass, which at £12 per month gives me unlimited travel on trams and buses with the city zone.   

A wet and dreary looking Lion Monument near the Cathedral.

This was first visit into town to attempt some shoe shopping.  I have arrived with a pair of blue shoes that are starting to drop off my feet, so I need to hunt for a sensible pair.  The pair I liked were the most expensive of course, so I delayed buying and will look around for something similar but cheaper.   

I went into the cathedral to pick up a programme of events for June, and noticed that the Bath school children's concert takes place on Thursday 9th June.  More about this nearer the occasion.   The heavens opened several times this afternoon, and after a visit to "Graf" my favourite book shop, and with no umbrella, I caught the tram and bus back to a warm cup of tea with the central heating on!  Where is the summer?

What a difference a day makes, 24 little hours!

Not easy to see, but believe me, it is there.

Over that distant hill can be seen a shadow on the horizon, and that is the "Brocken" in the Harz mountains.  It is the highest peak in the Harz mountain range, and the highest peak in Northern Germany.   It is located near Schierke in Saxon-Anhalt,  between the rivers Weser and Elbe.   Although its altitude of 3,743ft is below alpine dimensions, its microclimate resembles that of  mountains of about 6,600 ft.   Above the treeline snow covers the peak from September to May, and mists and fogs shroud it for up to 300 days a year.  The annual mean temperature is only 2.9c, which is on the chilly side.

The "Brocken" has played may roles in German legends and has been connected with witches and devils.  Johann von Goethe wrote about the legends in his play "Faust."   The "Brocken Spectre" is a common phenomenon on this misty mountain, where a climber´s shadow casts eerie optical effects on the fog and mists.  I won´t be going there on a dark night then!

The tree lined Timmerlahstraße winds it way towards Weststadt.

I have seen this view in all weathers and at all times of the day.  It is particularly lovely on a warm summer evening at sunset, when the cornfields a glowing golden in the yellow light.  The sun shone today, and this afternoon I had tea with friends, and we were able to sit on the terrace and eat tasty German cake with strawberries and other delights! 

Fog to the South, Fog to the West and Mist to the East!

 Fog to the south where the "Brocken" and wind park should be!

It is nice to read on the weather gadgets on my desktop, that the temperature today in the UK is 17c, and here it is only 9c.   It is really damp and so cold here, and I really hope it cheers up soon.  I went to the two English groups today, where we celebrated my return, and drank wine and ate crisps and chocolate and attempted to speak English and German.  It was so good to see eveyone again, and it feels as if I never left last September.   I walked back from Gliesmarode into the city, a walk of about a mile, and I feel much better for some exercise.  The rain had stopped, but it is now pouring down again.

I bought my senior's monthly travel card, so I now have unrestricted use of the trams and buses within the Braunschweig area until this time in June.   I really enjoy travelling on the trams, and it is nice to hear again with the familiar sounds they make as the doors open, or as they screech and clank around corners.   Some of the older,  and not so mother and pushchair friendly trams have been replaced, and the new ones are easier to enter, which is a great help when struggling with a heavy suitcase.   Circular tramways around a large city are a great asset for ease of travel, and  I can now hop on and off at will, and enjoy once again this interesting city.

 Fog to the west where Weststadt and the tower blocks should be!

I'm not sure yet what crop is growing in this field this year.  Last year it was short stemmed wheat, and in 2011 there was a crop of beet.  This looks like silage growing in the waterlogged field, so I shall watch it grow and probably be here when it is harbested.

Fog in the distance to the east, but no wind park to be seen.

The old petrol station is still standing with 9 cents a litre being displayed.  Oh those were the days!  My neighbours vegetable garden is much reduced, with new turf reducing its size.  It has some potatoes growing in the sodden ground, and I can see the tops of some spring onions.  The car that belonged to my neighbour who died last year, is still standing in the garage with weeds growing around its flat tyres.  I felt rather sad when I saw it, and remembered the nice old man and his ginger cat, that would slap me around the ankles if I didn't pay her enough attention.   It is good to be back in my second home.

Back in Timmerlah

Out of the porthole!

 I left sunny Southampton Airport at 2.25pm, and after an easy flight arrived in Hannover in pouring rain, which continued to fall during my taxi ride to Timmerlah.    It is so misty I cannot see "Zephrus," the trusty windmill on top of the hill, from my front window.   The weather is truly horrible, and I have switched on the central heating and the heated towel rail in the bathroom.

I´m now drinking copious amounts of tea, and watching the French Open Tennis from Roland Garros.  Early to bed tonight I think.

Everything is almost Packed! (well I hope so!)

One almost packed suitcase can be seen to the left.  I have the usual jitters this morning (Saturday) which will be even worse on Sunday morning, when I set off at 9am for Southampton Airport.   A friend is giving me a lift to Trowbridge railway station, and the train should arrive at the airport around 11.45am, with plenty of time to spare for a cuppa and sandwich.  The flight to Hannover should leave at 2.15pm, but after a long delay last year, I will wait and see what happens.   I have booked a taxi from Hannover to my doorstep in Timmerlah.

Please follow this blog for my 2013 adventures in my second home of Braunschweig in Lower Saxony.  This year I hope to visit JS Bach's birthplace in Eisenach, and visit several other places where he lived and worked.   Fingers crossed for good weather.   I'm told it is just as cold and horrible in Germany as it is here at the moment.  I return to "Blighty" in late August.   Cheers!