Month: August 2017

First I want to apologize for the last post I made. The wifi was bad and I didn’t think it was sending.

It’s interesting to think that many of the events of WW II happened here. Continue reading “History and Germany”

Well it’s safe to say that Germany is different from being in the states. One of my favorite differences though, is that they have a great love for bakeries. Back home I would occasionally go to the local bakery of my home town, and it was the only place you could buy fresh breads and doughnuts made the night before. In Germany there are bakeries every where. It’s really nice if your looking for a pastry for breakfast or a sandwich for lunch. It makes me wish they had a few more back in the states.

Another thing I noticed pretty early on was that the people act a bit different. I’m from a pretty small town in Minnesota and I generally will hold door for people and smile at them even if I don’t know them. This is not how Germans do things. At least not in Berlin. I’m not saying they are mean or rude, but they like to mind their own business and expect others to do the same.

Something else that took a bit longer to notice was the amazing transportation system they have in Germany. In most of America we are used to driving almost everywhere ourselves. In Germany there really isn’t a need as long as you have a transport pass. The busses and trains can get you anywhere in the city and they are almost always right in time. It was a very convenient thing to have as a visitor because it wasn’t a problem if I wanted to go anywhere. I could just take a train down to a nearby bakery. Germany is a different place and an amazing experience I’m blessed to have.

Well it’s safe to say that Germany is different from being in the states. One of my favorite differences though, is that they have a great love for bakeries. Back home I would occasionally go to the local bakery of my home town, and it was the only place you could buy fresh breads and doughnuts made the night before. In Germany there are bakeries every where. It’s really nice if your looking for a pastry for breakfast or a sandwich for lunch. It makes me wish they had a few more back in the states.

Another thing I noticed pretty early on was that the people act a bit different. I’m from a pretty small town in Minnesota and I generally will hold door for people and smile at them even if I don’t know them. This is not how Germans do things. At least not in Berlin. I’m not saying they are mean or rude, but they like to mind their own business and expect others to do the same.

Something else that took a bit longer to notice was the amazing transportation system they have in Germany. In most of America we are used to driving almost everywhere ourselves. In Germany there really isn’t a need as long as you have a transport pass. The busses and trains can get you anywhere in the city and they are almost always right in time. It was a very convenient thing to have as a visitor because it wasn’t a problem if I wanted to go anywhere. I could just take a train down to a nearby bakery. Germany is a different place and an amazing experience I’m blessed to have.

Well it’s safe to say that Germany is different from being in the states. One of my favorite differences though, is that they have a great love for bakeries. Back home I would occasionally go to the local bakery of my home town, and it was the only place you could buy fresh breads and doughnuts made the night before. In Germany there are bakeries every where. It’s really nice if your looking for a pastry for breakfast or a sandwich for lunch. It makes me wish they had a few more back in the states.

Another thing I noticed pretty early on was that the people act a bit different. I’m from a pretty small town in Minnesota and I generally will hold door for people and smile at them even if I don’t know them. This is not how Germans do things. At least not in Berlin. I’m not saying they are mean or rude, but they like to mind their own business and expect others to do the same.

Something else that took a bit longer to notice was the amazing transportation system they have in Germany. In most of America we are used to driving almost everywhere ourselves.  In Germany there really isn’t a need as long as you have a transport pass. The busses and trains can get you anywhere in the city and they are almost always right in time. It was a very convenient thing to have as a visitor because it wasn’t a problem if I wanted to go anywhere. I could just take a train down to a nearby bakery. Germany is a different place and an amazing experience I’m blessed to have.

 

With our German class, we visited the Olympic stadium built by Hitler’s regime for the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. Hitler’s goal was to build a great stadium for propaganda purposes, one so great that it would last longer than the Coliseum in Rome. I had the privilege to travel to Rome one weekend with my friend Clay and see the Coliseum in person. The Coliseum was built in the area where the roman emperor Nero had the Domus Aurea built: an artificial lake surrounded by pavilions and gardens. Nero snatched up much of the land after the Great Fire of Rome in order to do this, so when his Domus Aurea was torn down for a pubic amphitheater to be constructed, it was received as a populist movement to return the land to the people. However, the construction was funded by the spoils taken from the Jewish Revolt in 70 AD and built by many of the 100,000 Jews brought back to Rome as slaves. I found this to be an incredible parallel: two monumental complexes built to please and fool the people, in the midst of the persecution of another group. It seems that when we as humans and nations always want to be remembered, even at the expense of someone else.

The third picture is a photo taken in the church that originally held Martin Luther’s 95 theses on its entrance. There was a statue hung from the ceiling displaying what appeared to be Luther taking flight. It seemed like an odd place and position for Luther to be remembered, but I figure on the 500^th anniversary of the Reformation, just about anything goes.

 

If I had to say what impressed me most about Wittenberg, it would be the extent to which Martin Luther is integrated into the character of the city.

Continue reading “Reflections on Wittenberg”

First off, that cathedral is massive. Holy cow. When the professors told us to meet outside the church, I was a little worried we would have trouble finding it, but those fears were put to rest as soon as we stepped out of the train station. It is definitely the tallest church I have ever seen, and I’ve been to Notre Dame. It makes me wish I knew more about the symbolism present and about architecture in general since I couldn’t fully appreciate it. Continue reading “Reflections on Köln”

The great city of Köln Germany! A wonderful town with remains of an old Roman wall, great night life, and a small church that people seem to like to go to for some reason.  Continue reading “The Architecture!”