Off to Insel Rügen on the Baltic Coast.

 

 Insel Rügen, the largest island off the Baltic Sea coast in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.

I am staying in the Strand Hotel in Baabe, on the map far right, just inland from Sellin. 

 

I´m travelling with my Timmerlah neighbours, who hire a coach every year for their annual holiday to somewhere interesting.   In previous years I´ve been to Rostock, Heidelberg and Essen und the Ruhr with the group, who have a habit of travelling a few miles, and then stopping to drink Schnapps.  I do not partake, as the stuff knocks me out and sends me to sleep all within 10 minutes!

 

The beautiful pier at Sellin, near our hotel.

 

Each day we will visit somewhere interesting with the coach, so I expect a trip all around the island.  I hope to walk this pier, which looks so attractive.  In the foreground you can see those lovely basket weave deckchairs, so loved by the Germans.  I wish we had them in England, rather than our old deckchairs , that trap your fingers in the woodwork if you are not careful.

 

More news when I return on Sunday July 3rd.
 

Best wishes to all my friends in Little England.  How times have changed for the worst.

 

 

Eating Flesh in the Botanical Gardens.

Pitcher Plants in the flesh eaters plant house in the Botanical Gardens.

 

I'm behind again with the news, but I've been so downhearted at the Brexit vote, and I have not been able to concentrate.  It seems the oldies voted for the past, and 75% of the youngest voted IN for the future.  I feel sad, and my status here has changed.  I came over in May as a citizen of Europe, and I must go home to be a Little Englander, because that is what we will now surely be.   

 

Have we really gone back to the 1930s and the days of social unrest and the stirrings of racial hatred on the streets.   It is such a retrograde step, and has caused the country to divide into two.   How long will this take at sort, years and years and years.  I have no regret about voting IN, but I think a lot of those who voted Out will soon become aware of the mistake they have made.   So back to visas then, and not borderless continental travel.   A great shame, and a big loss for the young people of what was Great Britain.

 

A donation box in the shape of a pitcher plant outside the flesh eaters house.  I like this, what a very original idea.   

A Big German Breakfast in Klein Gleidigen.

 Mrs Cow stands at the entrance to the cafe.

 

I am rather behind with all the news, as at the moment I am somewhat preoccupied with news from the Old British Empire HQ!  Are we going backwards? I certainly hope not, as I will vote IN for racial harmony, and not for years of constitutional chaos.

  

Our wonderful breakfast spread, almost a day´s food in one sitting.

We met in a lovely café for breakfast, which in German is more like our breakfast and lunch rolled in together.  I have learned to enjoy big breakfast, which keep me going sometime until an evening meal.   We enjoyed the German bread rolls, all crisp and seedy, with mixture of sliced meats and cheeses, with fruit to freshen the taste buds. 

The cuckoo clock hanging on the wall, right of centre, cuckooed out the time of day.

The interior was a collector's delight, with assorted cowbells, jugs, pictures, typewriters, and much more adorning the walls, ceilings and shelving.  I particularly liked the cuckoo clock, who popped out from time to time to cuckoo the time of day.   I must buy a cuckoo clock, one which I can silence at night, as they are so amusing to listen to.  The one, pictured bottom right near the red curtain, was hand carved in Bavaria, and was beautifully made.  I want one!

 Buying enormous hunks of German cake at the shop.

 

All the produce was made on the premises, but I avoided buying some, as I need to keep my trousers lose fitting, and come back to the UK weighing less than when I flew out to Hannover.

 

Christmas dinner? 

 

A cosy little corner, where, because of the inclement weather, we could not sit out in the fresh air.

 

It was a shame not to be outside, as sitting underneath yellow a umbrella that enhances the sunlight, is a pleasure in itself.  I hope I can pay another visit to this café before I fly home, and will choose some nice weather in which to invite friends to join me for a rock solid German breakfast.

The German/English Garden party in Wolfenbüttel.

Ladies in hats busy eating cake and drinking wine on the terrace.

 

The DEG, the German/English Association holds a garden party each year, and this year´s was held in a splendid house and garden in Wolfenbüttel, a few miles outside Braunschweig.  I have visited some lovely houses during my visits here, but this one was particularly interesting, being part of a large farm complex.   It is timber framed, and has been painted white.  

 

About thirty of us sat on the terrace wearing summer clothing, and as the weather here of late has been damp and  overcast, many ladies regretted not bringing jackets to wear.   Summer has not arrived in Braunschweig yet this year,  much to our chagrin!

The splendid house belonging to our hosts in Wolfenbüttel.

The entrance led into a large open hallway,  with some very interesting family paintings hanging on the walls. 

 

I had attempted to make a hat for the occasion, but not being a lover of hats, I abandoned it half finished, and left it at home.  I expected to get away with being hatless, but that was not to be, because on my arrival, our hostess insisted that I cover my head, so I chose a little pink number with blue netting on the brim from a big box filled with "Hats for for Hatless."   I must admit I only wore it when the hostess came anywhere near my table, and it spent most of the evening lying hidden underneath a rose bush.

 

Barbara left, and myself wearing the pink floppy hat with a piece of blue netting draped around the rim.

Ladies in hats on the lawn playing some sort of "Knock down the Stick" game.

 

I never discovered the name of this game, although someone mentioned "Knock down Stonehenge" as a possible title.  Most of the ladies wore dresses, an article of clothing I do not possess, and I cannot remember the last time I wore one.  On the cool, damp evening however, those of us in trousers were  pleased we had made the right decision.

 

A lovely evening spent speaking English for a change!

 

 

Waggum Choir's Concert in St Petri Johannes Church, Waggum.

The church tower. 

I cannot find any details about this church online, but it appears to have been built in the mid 1800s on the site of a much older church.

 

The link below is in German, with a translate button, and shows photos of the choir in which I sing every Thursday evening.

 

Waggumer Frauenchor

Translate this page

www.waggumer-frauenchor.de

Der Waggumer Frauenchor - Singen ist ihr Leben ... Wir pflegen den Gesang und die Geselligkeit in harmonischer Gemeinschaft.

 

The soprano section of the choir at last week's concert singing a mixture of German songs, both old and new, and some songs in English, which included "All you have to do is dream" and "He's got the whole world in his hands."

 

The choir consists of around fifty ladies, sopranos and altos, and is led by Herr Schäfer, who not only conducts but plays the piano at the same time.

 

The youth choir, "Barfuss" (Barefoot) who also sang some lovely German songs.

 

I can recommend barefoot singing, it adds a certain feeling of freedom to the voice.  In fact I don't wear shoes or slippers at home, as walking around barefoot is supposed to be good for your "pins."

The alto section of the choir.

 

Waggum Choir hope to visit Bath in June 2017.   Arrangements for a visit are in the early stages at the moment, and a coach company has been contacted with a view to organising the complete trip to Bath, with a stopover somewhere near Dover on the outward journey and,  of course, another on the return journey.  

 

At the moment 45 singers, including myself, have signed up to make the trip, and last Thursday morning Monika, the chairperson, Anne, a singer and myself spoke to the ladies in the Town Hall who are responsible for the twinning arrangements between Braunschweig and Bath.

 

So the ball is rolling, so to speak.  "Sing and the World sings with You!"

 

Tag der Senioren - Seniors´ Day in Braunschweig

Stalls in the "Burgplatz" near the cathedral, giving out information and offering advice to the older residents of Braunschweig.

 

It was a lovely day, unlike last year when the event was held in a heatwave. Together with stalls offering advice, there were also many selling hot drinks, bread and soup, and of course, traditional German Wurst, which always goes down a treat.  I bought myself a nice long sausage with a piece of bread, found a nice seat in the shade and ate it slowly.  I was just about to bite into the last piece, when it fell out of the serviette and rolled along the cobbles.  I was rather annoyed, as the last bite of a sausage is always the tastiest!

Benches and tables for all in the "Place of German Unity" in front of the New Town Hall.

 

The building in the background to the left is part of the cathedral, and to the right is Henry the Lion´s Palace, where he lived with his English wife Matilda, 1156-1189,  who was the daughter of Henry ll of England and Duchess Eleanor of Aquitaine, and the sister of  Richard l of England.  We joke that she was the first member of the Bath/Braunschweig Twinning Association, and both are entombed in the Cathedral.  More information on the link below.

 

Henry the Lion - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_the_Lion

Henry the Lion (German: Heinrich der Löwe; 1129/1131 – 6 August 1195) was a member of the Welf dynasty and Duke of Saxony, as Henry III, from 1142, and ...

The stage in the "Place of German Unity."

 

There are many dance groups, choirs and exercise groups in the city and surrounding area, all aimed at improving the health and fitness of the elderly, and encouraging them to get out and about.   The dance group on the stage is performing exercises to music, and what great music it was.  We in the audience could hardly sit still, and many of us stood up and joined in with the singing and clapped to the music.

 

It was a good day, made even better by the wonderful weather and German Wurst!

 

 

Ötzi, der Mann aus dem Eis.

A model of 5.300 year old Ötzi, as he was found buried in ice, high up in the Alps on the Austrian/Italian border.

 

The exhibition in the State Museum in Braunschweig was extremely interesting and well displayed, doubly so, as the information was in both German and English.  Usually I have to  read all the information in German, and as good as my German is, there are still many technical words I cannot decipher.   Life was easy this time, as I read the German, then glanced over to the English for the words I did not know.

 

Ötzi´s is named after the Ötz Valley in the Alps, where he was found 3.210 metres high up on the Austrian/Italien border.

Ötzi´s axe, complete with wooden handle and bindings were found preserved in the ice.

 

The museum managed to give the impression of objects seen through plastic ice, which was very effective.  The finding of this man, complete with all his weapons and clothing, has helped researchers understand more about the life and times of people from the stone age.

Flint arrow head tips found in the ice.

Ötzi in full splendour in a side room, approached through a curtain for dramatic effect.

 

This life size model of Ötzi, complete with fur leggings, belts and a spear,  is  displayed in a side room.  Approached through a curtain from the outside, you have no idea of what lies ahead, and it came as a shock to come across such a life like figure so suddenly.  It is a wonderful model of an ancient man, complete with tattoos on various parts of his body.  It was made my two Dutch men, who were able to construct his body using his skeleton as a reference.

Tattoos on Ötzi´s body.

 

Ötzi - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ötzi

Ötzi the Iceman while still frozen in the glacier, photographed by Helmut Simon upon the discovery of the body in September 1991

A diagram showing the tattoo marks on Özti´s body.

 

Researchers have found that the tattoos, made by rubbing charcoal onto the skin, and then cutting and rubbing the black dye into the skin, correspond to those points on the body used for acupuncture.   Scientists believe that the tattoos are not for decoration, but perhaps to relieve pain in various parts of the body.

Ötzi fully dressed in the reconstructed clothing found near to the discovery of his body.

 

This model is so interesting, because for the first time, it became possible to cloth a stone age man in exact replicas of his clothing.  Everything is made from natural materials, and the stitch marks, using bone needles was perhaps the most interesting feature of all.

 

This is one of the most interesting exhibitions I have ever visited, and I hope that maybe it can come to the GB later in 2017.  For more detailed information, please read the Wikipedia link.

 

Ötzi - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ötzi

Ötzi the Iceman while still frozen in the glacier, photographed by Helmut Simon upon the discovery of the body in September 1991

Memorial Stolpersteins, set into the Pavements of European Cities.

A "Stolperstein" (stumbling stone) inserted into the pavement near St Andrew´s Church in Braunschweig.

 These small plaques are set into the pavement outside the former home of a Jewish family with two children.    The parents managed to escaped to Britain in the 1928, the children arrived in the UK with the "Kindertransport."

 A Stolperstein meaning literally a  "stumbling stone," is a type of monument created by artist Gunter Demnig,  to commemorate victims of Nazi oppression, including the Holocaust. Stolpersteins are small, cobblestone-sized memorials for individual victims of Nazism – both those who died and survivors – who were consigned by the Nazis to prisons, euthanasia facilities, sterilization clinics, concentration camps and extermination camps, as well as those who responded to persecution by emigrating or committing suicide.

While the vast majority of Stolpersteins commemorate Jewish victims of the Holocaust, others have been placed for Sinti and Romani people,  (also called gypsies), homosexuals, Jehovah´s Witnesses, black people, Christians (both Protestants and Catholics) opposed to the Nazis, and members of the Communist Party and the anti-Nazi Resistance, military deserters, and the physically and mentally disabled. 

The number of cities that have Stolpersteins now extends to several countries and hundreds of cities and towns. As of 11 January 2015^[update], over 50,000 Stolpersteins have been laid in 18 countries in Europe, making the project the world's largest decentralized memorial.

A Stolperstein in Bonn,  a memorial to Ida Arensberg, "Here lived Ida Arensberg, nee Benjamin, 1870 - deported 1942, murdered in Theresienstadt on 8th September 1942"

The Origin of the name.

Before the Holocaust, it was the custom in Germany for non-Jews to say, derisively, on stumbling over a protruding stone, "There must be a Jew buried here."^[ Jewish cemeteries were destroyed throughout Nazi Germany, and gravestones were re-used as building material, to pave sidewalks, with the intention of desecrating the memory of the dead. In a metaphorical sense, the German term Stolperstein can mean "potential problem".

 Gunter Demnig setting three Stolpersteins into the cobbled pavement.

 

Donations from individuals and peace groups supports his work, for which he has received many accolades.

 

A most Wonderful Visit to Berlin.

 My arrival on Thursday afternoon at Berlin´s main station, not a place for the terrified!

 

Built on several floors, with the entrance at ground level, and an upper level for information, and then three floors below with multiply platforms, it is a confusing place for the lost traveller.  I have been there twice before, and each time I´ve found it a confusing experience.

 

Because of weekend track repairs, I had no platform number on my ticket, which always induces in me a sense of terror, as I have to listen carefully for information in German about the platform updates.  Fortunately I found a helpful member of the "Help the Lost Souls" service team, who told me which information board to watch, and eventually I found my train on platform 7,  down in the station dungeons.  Each time I visit Berlin I always say to myself, "Never again," but of course I still go whenever I have the opportunity!

With "The Girls" drinking beer, fruit juices and ice cream in a cafe.

Vicki with Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels.

The Brandenburg Gate.

 

The three of us at outside the Congress Hall.

Outside the Chancellor´s Office.

 

Viewing the Reichstag Building, the meeting place of the German Government.

On board one of the many boats that circle the city for a three hour trip.  It was a great way to see all the interesting sights.

Taking photos of a long section of the Berlin Wall, left in place as a memorial to the past division of the city.

 

The Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church.

We visited this church during a rehearsal of a Bach Cantata, BWV 170, and it was wonderful to listen to the soprano practising her part with the orchestra.  How lucky to be there at that particular time, in the church with so many blue stained glass panels.

Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church - Wikipedia.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaiser_Wilhelm_Memorial_Church

The Protestant Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church (in German: Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtniskirche, but mostly just known as Gedächtniskirche ...

"The Girls" hiding behind a bush (don´t ask me why) outside our hotel, which had good accommodation and all we could eat for breakfast.

The hotel offered good accommodation, and "The Girls" stayed in the posh bit, while I booked a "Berlin Basic" room in what is student accommodation.  It was basic, but then I only slept in it for two nights, and had everything I needed for making copious cups of English tea, a nice shower room, and a good night's sleep.

A great few days spent with good friends.

Off to Berlin for Four Days, all the News when I return next week.

Reichstag Building viewed through the fountains from outside the Chancellor's Office.

 

I am staying one night with my email partner of five years who lives in the city, and then spending two nights in an hotel near the Tiergarten with two English friends, who are here on a City Break.  We hope to have a good time, and we hope it will stop raining.

 

More news next week.

The Brandenburg Gate, what a place to touch the stones of recent history.

Off to Berlin today to the sound of "Berlin Air" with Sir Simon Rattle and the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra.