Hamburg: Our final stop before home

We just took a tour of the Hamburg harbor on a sightseeing boat. It is a lovely day here, after days of humidity and heat. Everyone is out doing last minute sightseeing and shopping or packing (!) their things. It's been a really good trip--and fast. We'll be in Salt Lake City tomorrow evening.

Bis dann

Tschüß

On the Ostsee (Baltic Sea)

Swimming in the Baltic!

View from the South spire of the Kölner Dom --we climbed 533 steps!

Bust of Charlemagne in the Aachen Cathedral Treasury

(It's a reliquary with with cranium inside.)

Yesterday was a long drive from Mechelen in Belgium to Wohlenberg on the Baltic coast: almost ten hours, and despite the air conditioning often warm. Our Driver, Thomas, is great. He manages the German and Belgium highways and street without a problem. This is not easy give the narrowness of the streets, the scarcity of parking for our mini-bus, not to mention the hectic on the Autobahn. En route we stopped at a roadside restaurant than spanned the Autobahn, i.e. it was on a kind of bridge hanging over the road, so that it was accessible from either direction.

We are now on the Baltic Sea coast. We all went swimming today. It was in the mid 90s plus lots of humidity, something Utahns are not used to. It was a great day to relax. Tomorrow we will going to our last destination: Hamburg.

More later.

I dunno

So......we're not in Chemnitz anymore. Chemnitz was a really good experience and really let us get to know the culture better but it is nice to be with the group again. Sunday we went to the Buchenwald concentration camp. It was............ intense. I am so glad we went though. It was amazing in a not happy way. It was interesting to put history into vision and emotion. Today in Aachen was fun. We just hung around town but it was relaxing and fun. It was also interesting to notice the strong differences that still exist between east and west Germany. Overall the trip has been an amazing experience though and I'm excited to see what the last week has in store for us.

Aachen

We spent the day in the city of Aachen, Charlemagne's capital city. We visited the Aachener Dom (Cathedral) and the Treasury, which had parts of Charlemagne's bones usw. The city is beautiful and Germany is amazing-tomorrow we go to Köln, and then on to Belgium.

Our last day in Chemnitz

Frau Junghas and I at lunch

Today everyone tried to squeeze in all the things they wanted to do before leaving Chemnitz. Several of the kids took outings to Berlin, Leipzig and the "Saxon Switzerland." Frau Junghans have our own tradtion: The hosting teacher takes the other out to a nice meal. We went to the "Chmnitzer Hof" next to the Opernhaus (where we earlier toured and attended a performance of "Evita").

Since it was a Saturday for lunch we were virtually alone in the very elegant surroundings. The only other diners where some "ladies who lunch" who seemed to be celebrating or maybe just enjoying an outing on their own.

Frau Junghans and I talked over this year's exchange and both agreed it has been one of the best, particularly the way everyone interacted, both at the school and in the families. We are hopeful that we will be able to continue our 16 year exchange next spring. It all depends on finding 12 families among the students enrolled in German. It is quite a responsibility, but the students who participate can tell you how rewarding it has been for them to really use their language and cultural skills in "real" situations. They have even learned a little of the Saxon dialect, which can be a formidable challenge even for German teachers at times.

After lunch we took a leisurely stroll around the city pond, complete with ducks and swan boats. Above the pond stands a former cloister which dominates it hill. The city of Chemnitz has really change over the years since I first visited in 1996. It is truly worth a visit, having its own charms and pleasures.

Tomorrow we are up early to board our mini-bus for our first stopover. The first part is a sober visit to the Buchenwald concentration camp on the outskirts of the city of Weimar, home of the German poets Goethe and Schiller, as well as the Bauhaus school of architecture of the early 20th century.

The weather has remained perfect, sunny and low 70s with an occasional white cloud passing above. It looks as though the nice weather will continue at least for the next few days of our journey westward.

Sächsiche Schweiz

Went hiking in the Sächsiche Schweiz near the Czech Border today....those Germans sure love their fitness! It was, by no means, a leisurely pace.
Anyhow, leaving tomorrow, first to Buchenwald and Weimar. Buchenwald is sure to be a sobering experience, but a necessary one.
Can't wait to see the rest of Germany!

Endlich Ferien! The Last Day of School

The hallways are quiet, report cards have been distributed, students have gone home,

the classrooms are cleaned and deserted,

teachers have had their last conference:

Summer vacation has begun.