My Blog

My blog has become inactive, obviously. As I mentioned last year, one reason is that Germany no longer seems like a foreign land to me. When I started this blog, I intended to compare German culture to American culture, but now German culture has become my culture. It makes me sad sometimes, because I miss that feeling of awe that comes from learning something new. Maybe it's time to move again, but I don't really want to leave—Erlangen is my home now.

I had intended to keep up with this blog just as a way to document our travels in Europe, but I've basically run out of adjectives to describe the different countries we've visited. There are just so many times that I can stand writing "beautiful, marvelous, interesting and stupendous!" Therefore, I will let the photos do the describing, and so I will continue posting photos but on Oscar's blog.

For those of you who may still be checking my blog occasionally, thank you for reading my blog over the years, and now just enjoy the photos on Oscar in Europa.

Summer Adventures

I haven't been posting much in the last year or so for two reasons. First, I'm working more at the university, teaching and editing, so I don't really feel like writing anymore about my life. And second, my life is becoming routine. What used to stand out to me as cultural differences between the US and Germany, now just feels familiar. I think if I moved back to the US, then I could write a blog about the differences again. But for now, Germany is my home and feels comfortable.

That said, I would like to write about our summer adventures, starting with our hiking trip to Berchtesgaden. The plan was for the entire family, including Oscar, to hike to a Hütte in the mountains about 10 kilometers from the Königsee. What is a Hütte? Well, it translates into "hut" but a Hütte in the Alps is more like a youth hostel, with smaller dorm style rooms or large rooms with mattresses for 20 or more. Not only do they have sleeping accommodations but a restaurant that serves beer, wine and schnapps.

Our goal was to reach Kärlingerhaus. According to their website, the route we chose was "keine Schwierigkeiten," meaning "no difficulties" or "easy." It was one of the hardest hikes I have ever done! It was steep and the trails were covered with scree. What should have taken us four hours took us six. We just weren't prepared for this "easy" hike.

We did eventually make it to Kärlingerhaus and enjoyed a great meal with beer. Beer tastes so much better after a long day of climbing. The boys and I slept in a room for four people, but Bob had to sleep in one of the cellar rooms with Oscar. Bob felt sorry for him, so he let Oscar sleep in the lower bunk.

The next day after a big breakfast--by the way, all provisions are transported to the Hütte by helicopter--we decided to hike back the way we came. We had planned on hiking back along another longer but easier route, until we were told that it would take up to 10 hours. So, we decided to go back down the steeper, shorter route. Going down a steep slope is not any easier than climbing, in my opinion. By the time we reached the Königsee, my knees felt as if small fires were burning inside. Oscar also didn't fare well. The pads on his back paws were scraped up. Luckily, Alex and Oscar wear the same size socks and using tape we attached a pair of Alex's extra hiking socks onto Oscar's paws. He made it back without giving up.

We learned two things from this trip: Germans have a different definition of "easy" than Americans do, and dogs also need good hiking boots. Speaking of boots, Philip did the entire hike in skateboarding shoes, because he refused to wear hiking boots. Inside the Kärlingerhaus, we had to leave our boots on shelves near the front door and wear slippers. Among about 50 pairs of hikers stood Philip's beat up skaters. I'd like to add that Philip did not once complain about pain.

I had my own adventure without the family this summer. I went on a two-day horseback riding trip through the Franconian Switzerland. This area around Erlangen is very hilly with limestone cliffs and lots of trails for hikers, bikers and horses. I didn't realize how well horses can climb up and down steep hills! At one point, we were practically galloping up a steep slope.

We spent the night in a stable at a horse ranch in a village that's surrounded by hills, and the next day rode back to Erlangen. Bob, the boys and I have driven and hiked through these hills, but by horseback I saw so much more because we were able to cover more area than by foot.

Finally, our big family trip this year was to the Plitvice Lakes in Croatia and the island Krk, also in Croatia. I wouldn't say that the Plitvice Lakes are as amazing as the Grand Canyon, but it was breathtaking to walk through a beech and spruce forest and peer down into a canyon with a string of turquoise and emerald lakes at the bottom. We were told that we could see all of the major lakes in one day, but we bought a two-day pass and it was worth it. The first day, we went without Oscar--he stayed in the room we rented in a private house--and were able to see most of the lakes and waterfalls. But, we returned the second day with Oscar, took our time, and saw more without the crowds (Plitvice is very popular with German, Italian, and Polish tourists). This time we noticed how the color of the water changes depending on the time of day. Bob, Philip and Alex also rented a row boot and explored a part of Lake Kozjak.

After Plitvice, we drove to the Croatian coast and the island of Krk. We stayed in Baska, which is famous for its two-kilometer long beach. We had planned to do quite a bit of snorkeling and I had hoped to do some kayaking. Unfortunately, the weather didn't always cooperate. The temperature was comfortable but it was often very windy. The boys did learn to boogie board when the surf was up. When the water was calm, we rented pedal boots, pedaled away from shore and snorkeled. The water was very clear, but there wasn't too much to see. We saw more fish and interesting rock and coral formations off the coast of Amalfi, Italy, two years ago.

We did discover a charming town, Vrbnik, on the eastern side of the island. Vrbnik sits on a cliff overlooking the part of the Adriatic that separates the islands from mainland Croatia and is known for its white Zlahtina wines. We ate twice at Restoran Nada, which had great local oysters and seafood.

We had quite a few good and different adventures this summer, but I think I prefer taking one long summer vacation, like we did last year to the US and two years ago to Italy, rather than several short vacations. After all, it's the same whether you're packing for a weekend or for two weeks.

Snowboarding

This year, we went back to Radstadt and Obertauern, Austria, the towns where both boys learned to ski and swim. And now snowboard!

I signed us all up (Bob and me too) for a three-day snowboard class through the Blue Tomato Snowboard School in Obertauern. Needless to say, the boys picked it up faster than Bob and I did. By the end of the first day, Philip could snowboard, and Alex got it right at the beginning of the second day. For Bob, it clicked on the third day. I, on the other hand, got the backside and frontside turns down, but since I couldn't link them together I couldn't carve. Bob took a video of me and I didn't look as bad as I thought, but I still can't call myself a snowboarder.

Fifteen or so years ago, Bob and I tried snowboarding. Since we didn't take lessons, we spent a lot of time rolling in the snow. Back then, the frustration came not from falling but from not understanding how to turn on a board strapped to both feet. This year, my frustration was completely due to a fear of falling and hurting myself. When I was younger, I was afraid of making a fool of myself. Hurting myself didn't frighten me, because I knew I would heal. Now I'm not so sure. When Alex was 2-years-old, I hurt my back picking him up, and I can honestly say that my back has never been the same. During our second class, as I was trying to make a backside turn right after a frontside turn, I fell hard and hit my head (thank goodness for helmets). I had a slight headache, but it was my neck that really hurt. My neck that is connected to my back that has never been the same! Remembering how much my back hurt and how hard it was to walk when I hurt it initially affected me during the entire class on the third day. It's hard to learn and improve when you're afraid.

I promised myself that I would try again next year--maybe by then I'll forget the pain. I'll first try it on my own, because I do now understand how to turn the board, and then decide if I need more lessons. I may need a lesson just to learn how to get on and off the lifts, because I definitely never got that part right.


Of course, we also enjoyed the Austrian Alps and did some hiking with Oscar (see Oscar's blog).

A Nice Place to Visit

This is hard for me to write, because I have mixed feelings. Going home can be very emotional, and this was my first trip back to Chicago in five years. I have to admit, the trip turned out better than I initially anticipated, but it was in many ways stressful.

Adding to the stress was my mother's death in July. Because I hadn't spoken to her often in the last 10 years, I was at first numb. I didn't feel sadness or guilt the way I did when my father died. I felt nothing. But then I had to go to her condo in Chicago and everything changed. Suddenly, I was feeling pain, anger and grief. I went to her place four times during the 17 days we were in Chicago, and each time my feelings deepened.




I was also worried about what my aunts and cousins would say to Larissa, who drove to Chicago from Bozeman with her dog Wolfy, and me. I didn't know how they felt about our estranged relationship with our mother. It turned out that they were very understanding and supportive. At the family reunion that my cousin Christy hosted, everyone was so nice. I was a little timid at first, but it was so nice seeing everyone. This sounds cliche, but I felt so comfortable talking to my family as if we talked everyday. It felt as if we were still as close as we were when we were young and running around Wisconsin Dells. I'm glad my cousin and her husband decided to throw this party.


Bob's sister also threw a party, so we had two family reunions, and we visited many of our friends, but we weren't able to see everyone, not in 17 days. We did manage to find some time to do touristy things,


like Great America (Batman--best roller coaster I've ever ridden),


Michigan to see the boys' cousins,


Adler Planetarium, Shedd Aquarium, Buckingham Fountain,


the Field Museum,


and the Sears (now Willis) Tower with their new Skydecks--glass-enclosed viewing platforms, including transparent floors. Looking through the glass floors made me so nervous that I developed a tension headache. The boys were very cautious about walking out onto the decks too, even Philip who at 2-years-old jumped onto the glass floor at the CN Tower in Toronto.

We enjoyed our trip to Chicago, and I hope to return sooner than five years, especially since the boys really miss their grandparents, but I can't say that I miss living there. We spent a lot of time in the car, not only because of the distances between city and suburbs but because of traffic too. Although it was a fun trip, I was so happy to come home to Erlangen.

My 50th Birthday

Last week, I celebrated turning 50 in Munich. Originally, I wanted to celebrate in Paris, but Paris is 8 hours away by car and too far for me. Then I thought Strasbourg. No, still too far (3 hours). But Munich is less than 2 hours away! (Is avoiding long distance travel a sign of old age?)

We spent two nights at the Holiday Inn-Schwabing. When we first lived in Erlangen, we used to stay there often, and Alex, who was only two the last time we stayed there, still remembered a few things about the hotel. So Holiday Inns may not be as charming as most German hotels, but this one is convenient, has a pool, kids eat free, and dogs are welcome. Perfect!



Our first night, we met our friends S. (from Ukraine via London) and J. (from France via London) at the Hirschgarten Biergarten. It's near their apartment and the boys wanted to skate the Hirschgarten Pool. After skating and drinking beer, we had dinner at Cafe Neuhauser in Munich's Neuhausen neighborhood, hence the appropriate name. The food's Italian and excellent. Alex, our pizza connoiseur, loved his cheese pizza.


On Tuesday, my birthday, we visited the Deutsches Museum, a lot like Chicago's Museum of Science and Industry but without the long lines (I've never been to the mining exhibit in Chicago because of long waits, and in Munich, I've seen the exhibit twice) and cheaper. The rest of the day was spent just walking around Munich. We had lunch at the Viktualienmarkt (top photo), an open-air market in the city center, and later dinner in Schwabing, the neighborhood that's home to our hotel. Schwabing reminded me of some of Chicago's neighborhoods, such as Lakeview, Uptown, Wicker Park. For example, the restaurant, Drugstore, where we had dinner, had a small theater upstairs.

Back in our hotel room, at 11 PM, the time I was born, Bob and the boys sang "Happy Birthday" to me. What could be better on one's 50th?

Potsdam and Berlin

During the Osterferien (Easter break), Bob had to work in Potsdam, and we all went with him. I don't think we would have visited Potsdam if it hadn't been for Bob. After all, Potsdam is about 30 kilometers from Berlin, so why stay in Potsdam when you can stay in Berlin. Wrong attitude.



Our hotel was near the entrance to Park Sanssouci, which means "carefree" in French, a huge park with a collection of rococo palaces built by the Prussian king, Frederick the Great. Since the park was literally our backyard for four days, I took Oscar for walks through the park twice a day, everyday. We didn't visit the interiors of any of the palaces (the boys become belligerent at the mention of a tour), but we climbed the stairs and explored the grounds around Schloss Sanssouci. From the terrace is a view of what look like Roman ruins, but they were actually built by King Frederick. They make for a nice view, and if one can afford to have his own "ruins"...


Since Potsdam is the capital of Brandenburg, they have their own Brandenburg Gate. Not as big as it's well-known cousin, but impressive in its own way.



The boys don't go anywhere without their skateboards these days, so I had to find them a skate park. Luckily, there is one in the Volkspark Potsdam (People's Park of Potsdam). It has a half-pipe and lots of ramps. The boys learned how to do drop-ins. They loved it. We had to pay to use the park--not much, €1.50 for me and €0.50 for each kid--but there's a conservatory, gardens and playgrounds. There's even a memorial to the former GDR, better known as East Germany.


Of course, we drove into Berlin one day. We visited the Natural History Museum of Berlin, which has the world's largest mounted Brachiosaurus skeleton.


We ate currywurst at Konnopke's (with an apostrophe--usually in German they just add the "s" without the apostrophe), which supposedly is where currywurst was invented. I don't know if this is true, but it was the best we've ever eaten.


We stopped at the Berlin Wall Memorial on Bernauer Street. There are several of these memorials throughout the city. This one was not far from the currywurst stand.



Naturally, we had to visit the Reichstag and the Brandenburg gate. And before we returned to Potsdam, we stopped in Kreuzburg for Mexican food. I read an article in the New York Times about Mexican restaurants in Berlin run by Mexicans. We picked one, Santa Maria, and it had the most authentic Mexican we have eaten in Europe. It was so good, we ordered food twice.

We've already decided that the next time we visit Berlin, we'll stay in Potsdam and drive, or take the S-Bahn, into Berlin.

Skiing in Allgäu

This year's ski trip was in Allgäu, Germany, instead of Obertauern, Austria, because we decided to ski over the Fasching Ferien (carnival holidays) instead of the Easter break, when we usually go. Late April is just too late to go skiing, in my opinion, although I'm sure there's still snow in Obertauern. Unfortunately, everything was booked in Obertauern during the Fasching break, which is the traditional time for most Germans to go skiing (some people refer to it as the Ski Ferien), so we decided to go local.


In Allgäu, we stayed in an apartment in Pfronten and skied nearby Breitenberg. Our first day turned out to be a little frightening, because of a thick cloud that settled on the mountain. At first, it wasn't too bad. We could still see the lift through the fog, and so we skied on the trails alongside it. But later in the afternoon, we lost sight of the lift. We could hear it but couldn't see it. That's when I decided to quit. Bob, on the other hand, wanted to continue, but since majority rules and the boys agreed with me, we went swimming instead.


We went to the Kristall Thermal Baths in Schwangau, home of King Ludwig II's famous castle, Neuschwanstein. It's actually in the photo behind the boys, but it blends right into the mountains.


We also crossed the border into Austria and skied Berwang. The boys liked it better because of all the jumps that were set up along the runs. Therefore, we ended up skiing Austria the rest of the trip.


Of course, we had to spend one day touring the area. We made a stop in Schwangau to get a better look at Neuschwanstein.


And near Steingaden to see the rococo Wieskirche, built on the site where a farmer saw his wooden statue of Jesus crying.


We also stopped in Oberammergau, a very touristy town in Bavaria famous for the Passion Play they put on every 10 years. Despite its commercialism, its a charming town with the facades of simple buildings painted to make them look baroque (Lüftlmalerei).

What will it be next year--Obertauern or Allgäu?

I'm Teaching Again

Right after the Christmas break, I started teaching again. I'm working as a free-lance instructor for the Friedrich Alexander University here in Erlangen. My friend, who teaches in the English department, heard that the Sprachenzentrum (Language Center) was looking for someone to teach English classes in the biology department. Since I'm a biologist, she recommended me.

Thus far, I've taught scientific writing to master's degree students in a four-week genetics module. I basically gave a few lectures on writing research papers and then edited the students' papers with them. I was impressed at how serious these students were. They really wanted to improve their writing and they wanted to understand the grammar rules. In Chicago, my students used to ask why papers in biology had to be grammatically correct. "But this is not an English class," was their usual response. My German students actually intimidated me with all their questions, because sometimes I didn't know how to explain the grammar rules.

Tomorrow, I begin my next course--oral presentations in English--in the immunology department. This group is PhD students, so they may be even more intimidating. I hope not.

Happy Winter Solstice

Last Saturday, we celebrated the solstice with bonfires at a Wintersonnwendfeier (winter solstice celebration) at Waldschänke Brückkanal in Feucht, just south of Nürnberg.


The Waldschänke (restaurant) is located in a forest on Brück canal, hence the name, and it was hard to find in the dark. But it was worth it. They had two large fires and one small one for the kids, and they were serving Glühwein, bratwurst, and, of course, beer. It was a nice change from the usual Christmas markets.

Integration Program

For the last two weeks, I have been spending four hours every morning in an orientation course, learning about German history, politics and culture. It was the last module I had to take to complete the integration program, which is required if I want to apply for permanent residency. And I do!

Last year, we renewed our residency here in Deutschland, and it was a hassle--so many papers to submit from Bob's work, the kids' schools, our apartment lease, etc. And we have to do it all over again next summer. So last fall, I decided to find out how to apply for permanent residency. Since 2005, anyone who wants permanent residency has to participate in an integration program to learn the language. Through the program, one can take up to 600 hours of Deutsch classes for only 1 Euro per hour. When I took the placement test, I was told that I could take the last 100 hour module to improve my spoken Deutsch, or take the B1 test directly and then the orientation course. I decided to take the exam, because I couldn't fit 100 hours of class into my schedule.

The Goethe Institute sets up classes for six levels of Deutsch proficiency--A1, A2, B1, B2, C1 and C2. Passing the B1 exam means one has an intermediate level of written and spoken German. I passed the test in July and am now finished with the orientation course. What's next?

I have to ask the Rathaus (City Hall) what comes next, and if I can apply even though Bob hasn't done the program. After all, we are here in Deutschland because of Bob's work. He's the one that may have to get permanent residency first.

Stay tuned...

Garda, Amalfi, Vieste and Ferrara

Since it was too expensive to fly back to Chicago this summer, we decided to go to Italy instead, which was not cheap either. Our first stop was Lake Garda, and thanks to Oscar, we didn't stay directly on the lake. We stayed in the foothills of Monte Baldo in a town called Pai.



I had made several reservations at hotels claiming that they allowed dogs, but they emailed me back saying "small dogs only." At 30 kg (66 pounds), Oscar is not a small dog. I finally found a place called Locanda San Marco that allowed large dogs in the village of Pai di Sopra. It was perfect! We had to walk down to the lake, which meant we had to climb back up, but Pai was quiet, unlike the touristy, crowded lakefront. Pai became lively only in the evening when everyone was outside in the main square eating, drinking and talking. One night they even had live music.



The boys brought their skateboards thinking they would be skating all over Italy. Lake Garda turned out to be the only place flat enough and safe enough for skating.



Because we knew Amalfi and Ferrara would be the cultural parts of our trip, we decide to do something touristy before driving farther south. We went to Gardaland. Gardaland is a large amusement park on the southern end of the lake. I don't usually like amusement parks, but this time I had a great time. Gardaland has a lot of roller coasters and water-based rides, nice on a hot day. And they have a 4D theater, which is just 3D with moving seats, but fun. It was very crowded, and since the waits for most rides were up to an hour, we spent an extra 48 Euros (after spending 113 Euros to get into the park) for express tickets. This meant we could stand in the express lines for only 10 or 15 minutes. Expensive, but worth it; otherwise, we would have ridden only half of the rides we did ride.



After a long day of driving south, past Bologna, Rome and Naples, we arrived on the Amalfi Coast. We rented a house built into the side of the cliffs overlooking the Tyrrhenian Sea. We parked the car in the garage off the street and walked DOWN many steps to our house and even more steps to the sea. It is amazing to me that people actually live here. The streets are narrow and twisting with three way traffic--the normal two way and the Vespas and motorcycles down the middle. There are no sidewalks, so everyone walks along the side of the road. I felt like we were risking our lives every time we left the house. And since it is not flat, we were either walking up- or downhill. (The top photo is a view from one of our balconies and the bottom is the house we rented.)


Our house was located about 500 meters up the hill from Minori and on the road toward Ravello, which overlooks Minori.


While on the Amalfi Coast, we went snorkeling off the rocks below our house,


took the ferry from Minori past Atrani, another coastal town,


to see the cathedral in the town of Amalfi.


While in Ravello, we checked out the pool at the Hotel Caruso.



And we spent time just hanging out on the balconies of our house.


But the best part of our time on the Amalfi was visiting Pompeii and climbing Vesuvius. I was expecting it be educational, but it was fascinating! There are the temples (to Jupiter, above),



the well preserved frescos,


and the snack bars. And so much more.


After Pompeii, we ascended Vesuvius. Our GPS took us up the old road, which apparently happens a lot, and so a tour operator has learned to take advantage of this. At the end of the paved road, if one wants to continue up, one must pay for a ticket on a 4WD bus that will take one up the dirt road. Yes, expensive, but it was fun riding up the winding road on a very bouncy bus. At the end of the dirt road, we walked the rest of the way up to the crater. Vesuvius may not be as impressive as Kilauea--there is no smoke and no smell of sulfur--but it is a volcano the way I always pictured volcanos. And it is active. It erupts every 100 years and the last eruption was in 1944.


From the Amalfi Coast, we drove straight east to the Gargano Peninsula. Here we rented a bungalow just outside of Vieste. On the way to Vieste, we stopped in Monte Sant'Angelo. Supposedly, St. Michael made several appearances here in the 5th Century, and now it is a popular pilgrimage site. Although we were not on a pilgrimage, we found the town very charming and very white.


Unfortunately, after arriving in Vieste, we were a little disappointed with our accommodations. The views were great,


and the pool rivaled Hotel Caruso's in Ravello. But the bungalow was in disrepair and very dusty, probably because of the dirt path that led up to the door--I thought camping in a tent would have been better and cleaner.


On the brighter side, the beach was not far, and the beaches of the Gargano coast are covered in soft, yellow sand, unlike the rocky beaches of Garda and Amalfi.


And the Adriatic Sea is not as tame as the Tyrrhenian. A couple of times we thought we were going to lose the boys.


Obviously, the seafood was great, and some of the restaurants are found in trabucci, wooden structures unique to the area and built for fishing.


Our last stop was Ferrara, and Ferrara is my kind of town--a college town, a medieval college town. It is the Italian version of Erlangen and Madison. There are students and bicycles everywhere. Of course, there is also a castle, Castello Estense, with a moat,


and a labyrinth of narrow streets in the medieval quarter to explore. If we should ever move to Italy....

Oscar also came along on this trip, and a couple of his photos are on his blog.