Friday, August 25, 2017

Girls' Day Trip to Kassel

A few months ago, my friend Ruth heard about a temporary art exhibition called Documenta 14 which is held in both Athens, Greece and Kassel, Germany each year.  She posted about it on our book club page, and a few of us made the drive out to Kassel to see the temporary exhibit while it lasts. I can't think of a better way to sum it up than Ruth did, so here are her words, "The main showpiece in Kassel this year is "The Parthenon of Books", which is a full size replica of the temple at the Acropolis in Athens....only this one is made out of 100,000 banned books (over 170 titles banned in countries around the world for one reason or another). The work is the brain child of Argentine artist Marta Minujin, and symbolizes the resistance to all forms of censorship. Not coincidentally, it is at Friedrichsplatz, the same site where Nazis burned 2,000 books in 1933 as part of a campaign of censorship." I just love having nerdy, book-loving friends!

Full size Parthenon of books!

Fantastic company to share the day with.

I tried to resist the urge to take a bunch of pictures of individual books.  But it was hard. We saw many books that we have read, some we have loved, and I may have added to my ever-growing "to read" list while browsing. Each book is in a plastic bag, and then each column is wrapped in plastic.  When the exhibit comes down in a few weeks, the books will be unharmed by the weather and donated to public libraries.

“I hate it that Americans are taught to fear some books and some ideas as though they were diseases.” -Kurt Vonnegut Jr.

“Banning books is just another form of bullying. It's all about fear and an assumption of power. The key is to address the fear and deny the power.”-John Howe

“Having the freedom to read and the freedom to choose is one of the best gifts my parents ever gave me.” -Judy Blume

Okay, I'll step off my librarian soap box and move on. There were other parts of the Documenta 14 exhibit as well.  (Although the Parthenon of books was far and away my favorite.)  I was looking at this building, trying to make the letters form a German word out of habit... nope, "Being Safe is Scary." I like it.

This one is a little hard to see, but in this church's bell tower is a figure of a man standing on top of a ball?? 
 
And when we first walked past this, I thought they were building materials.

On closer inspection, these cylinders were fitted out like the rooms of a house or apartment.  (What can I say, I like the library room the best.)

Then there was this huge thing.  We could see people walking out onto a platform so we lined up to check it out.

Mindy, Val, and I waiting our turn to see what is up.
 
Yup, that's what's up.

By this point, we were ready for some lunch.  Val looked up nearby restaurants and we headed to this Italian place.  I really didn't expect my pizza to be THIS big, but it was delicious. (I made a valiant effort, but no, I didn't eat the whole thing.)

Then it was time to head across town to Bergpark Wilhelmshöhe. The park is 590 acres of manicured nature, water features, ponds, etc.  It was started in 1696 and took 150 years to complete.  It's also a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This photo is of the castle at the base of the park, which is now an art museum. I love the lions and lanterns.

And here is a view of our destination from the castle.

We strolled and talked and enjoyed the Baroque beauty of the park as we gradually worked our way up the hill.

Part of the aqueduct can be seen here through the trees.

"Teufelsbrüke" or Devil's Bridge.  Yeah, I don't think so.  It was at this point that I checked in with Rob and told him I had found Hobbiton and that we need to come back here. Sooooo pretty.

Eventually we made it to the base of the cascading water feature below the Hercules Monument.  As you can see, they are currently making major repairs to this area.  Apparently for 10 minutes on Wednesdays and Sundays they run a HUGE amount of water down this feature and I imagine that is beautiful, but we were there on a Tuesday, so we will just have to imagine that.  We were pretty well worn out at this point, but I was like, "It's not that far! We can totally climb to the top."

Kristie agreed to climb the (543) stairs with me, and it's a good thing she did, because I tried to quit like 4 times and she encouraged me to keep going.  As you can see, I was pretty sweaty and red in the face by the time we made it to the top, where you can just see the castle we began our walk at, but I did make it.  Thanks, Kristie! 

We followed a different route on the way back down so that we could see the Steinhofer Wasserfall. This was also built in the Baroque style and is supposed to blend with the natural environment and suggest feelings of harmony and peace.  Mission accomplished.


The last photo I snapped on our way back to the car was near the Orangerie.  These beautiful little flowers... I don't know that I've ever seen three different colored blooms on one plant before. It was a beautiful day, with friends, books, art, food, waterfalls, flowers.  Pretty much the perfect, kid-free, spiritually recharging day away from home.  

Friday, August 18, 2017

Cochem Castle

Reichsberg Cochem was  first mentioned in documents in the year 1130. It was destroyed by the French in the 1680s and then reconstructed in the 1860s.  I'm not clear on what was original and what was reconstructed, but the castle is very striking atop it's rocky hill.

It is about 2 hours from our house, and this was our first time visiting.  There was a medieval fest going on that day, and I may have mentioned in another post, but medieval fests are really not our favorite thing.  The castle was very crowded, and there were many stalls selling period clothing and trinkets.  There were also food vendors, which we like, but the food wasn't particularly "period" related... we had waffles and currywurst.

The entertainment.
My reaction to troupes like this tends to be wondering what sort of person chooses to live like this?  Traveling around, dressed in period costume, performing medieval tunes, juggling, etc.  It doesn't appeal to me at all.  So, I was amused when Charlotte remarked to me, that she would LOVE to have a stand at festivals selling things that she makes. 

We thought the castle looked a lot like Hogwarts.

I kept looking up to admire the details, like this mosaic mural.

Or these gargoyle rain spouts and turrets.

We did let each of the kids take a turn trying to shoot a warthog target with a toy crossbow.

Very serious business.

Amelie was glad to have a turn, so she even accepted the assistance of the guy running the stand.  (She won't usually let strangers talk to her, let alone help her.)

Big Bears don't need assistance.

The kids (and I) were all amused by this girl walking around with her pet chicken.  All of the kids pet it, and it was the most tame bird I have ever seen.

I love this view over the Mosel River.

And here we are back at our car.  It was a looooong walk up to the castle and back, and we were disappointed to find a parking ticket on our return to our vehicle even though we believed we were legally parked.  Oh well!  All in all, the castle is lovely and picturesque, but won't go down in memory as our favorite day trip.  One of these days I am going to make a post about my top ten favorite castles in Germany.

Jacob is 6!

Jacob is now 6 years old and getting ready to start 1st grade!

For his birthday this year, he wanted to visit Ramba Zamba. (Just like last year.)

I took the kiddos on a Friday, and the place wasn't busy at all.  It was perfect.  They enjoyed bouncing, sliding, eating chicken nuggets, and running around for hours. (And for the first time, I didn't have to help Amelie do anything.)

For his birthday dinner, Jake requested corn on the cob and mashed potatoes.  I added chicken and watermelon to round it out a little bit.  He also wanted to have an ice cream cake, which they carry at the Commissary, so that is what we had for his birthday treat.

And what do you get a 6 year old boy?  A Nerf gun of course!  
Here he is making his "tough" face.  He and Toby set to work immediately making targets to practice shooting at, and he has been playing with it every day since then.  


Jakey has matured a lot in the last year.  He still gets into it with Amelie sometimes, but is beginning to use other strategies for interacting with her as well (trading, taking turns, etc). He is a beginning reader, loves going for bike rides with Dad, and still makes friends everywhere we go. He is signed up for Fall soccer this year, and I think he will have a lot of fun with that. He is still the cuddliest kid and I know he is getting sleepy when he hugs me and wants to hold hands.  On our recent road trip, he left me anonymous love notes a couple of times, and was so adorable when I guessed they were from him.  I love this tender-hearted Bear.

Jake's Birthday Interview

1. What is your favorite color? Green
2. What is your favorite toy? Nerf gun
3. What is your favorite fruit? Watermelon
4. What is your favorite tv show? I don't know, I like all of them
5. What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? Mac and cheese
6. What is your favorite outfit? "I just pick randomly," (I can attest to the truth of this.)
7. What is your favorite game? Ticket to Ride
8. What is your favorite snack? "bunny rabbits (crackers) or Cheetos"
9. What is your favorite animal? Cheetah
10. What is your favorite song? Up & up (Coldplay)
11. What is your favorite book? The Very Hungry Caterpillar
12. Who is your best friend? "That's kind of too hard for me, I have so many friends."
13. What do you want to be when you grow up? Work on a computer
14. What is your favorite thing to do outside? Bike rides with Dad
15. What are you really good at? Basketball, and Soccer, and Baseball
16. What is a food that you hate? Brussels sprouts
17. What do you like to do with Mom or Dad? Cuddles with Mom
18. What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? Froot Loops or Apple Jacks
19. What is your favorite dinner?  Pasta
20. What makes you happy?  Legoland and getting souvenirs


Utah: Provo and Salt Lake City

After our time at Bear Lake we made our way to Rob's parents' home to spend our last days in the US relaxing, visiting friends and family, and walking down memory lane.  The kiddos loved the extra time with Grandma and Grandpa.

One day we took the kids to Provo to visit our alma mater and pick up some new BYU swag at the bookstore. It was a super hot day, but we made it up to the kids with ice cream from the creamery. I am the only person from my family to have gone to BYU (and I believe the first person from my high school,) while Rob is a third generation Cougar.  A lot of stuff had changed around the campus, but other things stay the same... like students stopping and offering to take photos for me.  BYU is a unique place and has a special place in my heart for sure.

Another day we visited Temple Square in Salt Lake City and the Church History Museum.  Jane came with us and we spent some time visiting with Rob's great aunt Elizabeth as well.

I love this guy.

I also planned to get together with some old friends.  We met up at a splash pad so the kids could play while we visited.  I didn't get a picture with everyone, but I was so glad to see some of my dear friends from high school, college, and both of our times in Germany!
 
My little ones were happy to see their friends as well!

I am so thankful for amazing friends that have influenced me for good throughout my life.

This photo looks like an engagement picture!  
But that's okay, because I love my friends!
I was also able to go visit another friend and her brand new baby!  I didn't think to take any pictures because I was just enjoying visiting with her and holding her sweet little one. 

This was an epic trip!  I am so glad that we made it.  We drove over 4,100 miles. We were able to see family, friends, the beach, national parks and monuments, Church history sights, and so much more throughout 11 states!  We shopped, and ate out, and enjoyed the Americana as much as we could, but we are also so happy to be back in Germany for a little while longer. We have a few more European adventures to take before we move back to the US of A for reals.