Author: Joe Spoelhof

I’d like to dedicate this post to Doner. Doner or a Döner Kebab is a Turkish food that has taken over the city streets of basically every town in France and Germany. This type of kebab is made of meat cooked on a vertical rotisserie. Seasoned stacked meat in the shape of a cone slowly rotates alongside a heating mechanism until the outermost layer is shaved off by an employee and thrown into a pita or to-go box. The type of meat is typically chicken or beef and ingredients such as tomato, lettuce, onions, or occasionally fries are stuffed all together to create a delicious meal.

Doner shops are typically very small storefronts packed with people looking to get some quick, cheap lunch or dinner. Fun fact, the number of Doner shops in Germany reached 16,000 in 2011 while collectively pulling in revenue of around 3.5 billion. Our group, specifically the guys, have taken full advantage of this delicious, cost effective meal. The meat is always seasoned very nice and once you combine that with fries and the famous garlic sauce, it’s a heavenly combination. Plus, Doner meals typically only set you back about 5 euros! It’s always a bit scary to travel abroad and consistently find something to cure your hunger, but our discovery of Doner has solved this issue with ease. As I write this, I’m heavily contemplating making Doner my lunch choice for today.

This morning we departed our hotel in Hockenheim around 8 o’clock for a 9 o’clock visit with Gentex at their German distribution/sales center. Construction on the autobahn delayed our arrival by about an hour, regardless the Gentex employees were very welcoming and eager to show us their site. They began with a presentation noting Gentex’s main products and a description of the work they do specifically in Germany. The building we visited is not used for manufacturing rather acts as a distribution/support center for European automotive manufacturers like Mercedes and Audi. They ship out over 300,000 mirrors a day and receive similar amounts from their counterparts at the headquarters in Zeeland, Michigan. They gave us a demonstration of a few of their products including camera-controlled rear view mirrors and self-dimming Boeing airplane windows. We then continued to walk through their large warehouse where all of the storage and shipping/handling takes place. The facility was very clean and it was clear to see they put emphasis on being ergonomically sound.

Many members of our group, including myself, have ties to this company which made it even more interesting to witness their overseas operations. Zeeland controls the most vital parts of Gentex’s business, however, without sites like the one in Germany, they would not be a near 2 billion dollar company like they are today.

After lunch we hopped back on the road following the Rhine River towards Hockenheim. Scattered throughout this region are beautiful, mountainside castles built during the 12^th and 14^th centuries. The Rhine River was used as a means of transportation for the Romans, and the castles we saw whilst driving provided them watch and protection in a very crucial part of their empire. Some people took this three hour trek towards Hockenheim to catch up on some sleep, however those that stayed awake were rewarded with some breathtaking views of the mountainous terrain that surrounds the Rhine River valley.

Upon arrival in Hockenheim, we checked into the hotel and made our way to Braueri zum Stadtpark for dinner. We enjoyed some German schnitzel served alongside a healthy helping of potatoes. Group dinners have provided a great platform to get to know our peers better and chat about the content of our days.