Berliners are out there!!

It seems like everyone here is on a bike. If they aren't drinking in a cafe, getting a tattoo or piercing something, Berliners are tooling around on their bikes.  And they aren't ninnies about it either.  They'll ride anywhere.  Middle of the sidewalk, on the street, talking on cellphones, drinking beer, putting up posters, shopping. Even taking their pets for a ride.  Yesterday I saw a guy giving a lift to his pug in the basket of his bike as he he was cruising down the street.  He was going fast!!! Another guy was cruising around our neighborhood with 5, count em, 5 parrots and macaws riding on the back of his bike.  Crazy.

The boys and I rented bikes today, it seemed like the right thing to do.  From George from Berlin on a Bike.  He is from Kenya - claimed to be one of Obama's many cousins.  Very kind. He got us set up and sent us out on our way.

So there is an bicycle etiquette so all these people can get along and not get mowed down.  I did not realize this.  You cannot stop in the bicycle lane, you cannot go the opposite way in the bicycle lane, (even though it is wide enough) and when it is a single lane you don't always stay to the right when approaching folks coming from the opposite direction.  I got yelled at three times.  I have to say that I am a big fan of bicycles.  I am not a big fan of cyclists.  They have no patience and are always ready, willing and able to tell you how and why you are doing it wrong and you are messing it up for everyone else.  It is a bike for goodness sake, you shouldn't be traveling at 40 miles an hour on the sidewalk!  When Rich was here - he was almost mowed down and all the guy said was, "TAKE CARE."

Even with all the rules, Blake and I have been impressed by the can do attitude that exists in the city.  It seems like people here are up for anything!  We went to the park today and this is what people had set up for their kids.  A mini surf skimming pool in the middle of the park. Can do!

The other day, Blake and I went to a production of "Hamlet" produced by the Schaubuhne.  This show has been playing since 2008, so needless to say they know it pretty well, but the actors were out there, eating dirt, spraying water, milk and blood all over themselves.  Stuff that actors in the US would really hesitate to do. Not in Berlin.  Want me to eat dirt and then recite the most famous Shakespearian text of all time? No problem!!

Housekeeping in Berlin

So our fridge is dorm-sized so that makes for frequent store runs.  And I thought I went to the grocery store a lot in SS!  Our dish washing area is a bit tricky and there are 4 of us so that makes for a lot of dishes.  I think I washed the dishes 8 times yesterday.  The hot water situation is a bit dicey; it is either scalding hot or freezing cold.  That makes for some interesting showers.  We tried taking baths to even out the temperature but the tub is a bit leaky so that didn't work so well.  And my German does not extend to cleaning materials so I have to resort to what picture is on the bottle to make our little nest clean.  If it smells clean does that mean that it actually is clean?

And we have ants.  Now, we have ants in SS but none of us are sleeping on the floor in SS.  The owner of the apt came by to today to pick up some mail and she brought baking soda to kill them?  If it doesn't work we'll make scones on Friday to celebrate the royal wedding!

BTW if anyone is interested in the American invasion of London for the royal wedding you can catch my sister in law on ABC Channel 7 in Los Angeles.  They did a story of her and baby Leah in London for the wedding. She's at minute 2:06.They've been there for a week soaking up the atmosphere.

http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/video?id=8095513#global

We had a great Easter.  The Easter bunny came and made a visit to our local park so we hunted for little gifties and chocolates.  We had to push aside the beer bottles, trash and other detritus left over from the previous day's grilling extravaganza.  The Germans move their entire living rooms out to the local park and play cards, grill and kick the soccer ball around when it gets warm.  Then they leave half of it behind!

Looking for Easter Bunny's treats

Egg dye works on brown eggs too!

Thanks Cassie!!!

As Blake enters the crunch time for his production, the boys are I are ticking off the remaining items on our to do list.

Renting bikes
Tropical Island
Flea Market
Park with a ship in it
Russian Memorial
Another play?
More beer?

We have had a great time and have lots to bring home with us.  See below.

Gas masks.  Hey! You never know.

Kindness of Strangers

Bec, Timmy and Rich headed out of Berlin today.  Sniff.  We had a fantastic time with the three of them.  Sydney was missed, but it sounds like she was having a great time at home!  We covered a lot in the week they were here.
The most adventurous day was on Thursday when we traveled outside the city to the Spreewald area which is about 60 miles away.  It is a lovely spot where you can canoe and hire punt-like boats to meander around the streams and marsh areas that surround the Spree river.  No traffic, no graffiti, no idea how to get there. Keep in mind that Bec had traveled the entire day and night before.  Was she game???  Of course!!
We arrive at the enormous Berlin Bahnhof at 9:15 in order to buy tickets and get on a train that leaves at 9:35.  Complete confidence that we are going to be able to manage the computerized ticket system in a language that none of us speak?  You bet!! Somehow we all miraculously rendezvous in the DB Bahn ticket office at the same time.  It is 9:20.  Keep in mind this is the day before Good Friday which is a national holiday here,  so everyone is trying to get home for the long 4 day weekend. It's like Grand Central in there.  The lines for the helpful human beings at the kiosks are too long so we head for the ticket machine.  After 5 minutes of trying to type in Lubbenau, an incredibly nice German man who looks like he is heading to the bar right after he is done purchasing his ticket assists us with the machine. He tells us that there is a special fare and all 6 of us can travel to Lubbenau for 28 Euros - round trip.  No way. That is a round trip ticket for a city 60 miles away for only 7 bucks per person.

Thank you kind German man. We miss the 9:35 train but catch the one at 10:00.

We discover once on the train, that the connection to get to Lubbenau is by bus, not another train.  Becca is not thrilled.  Bus is not her favorite mode of transport.  Does she complain?  No way!! We get off the train and discover another kind German man in a red vest who is there to assist idiots like ourselves.  We ask, "The bus to Lubbenau?" -consideration, then,  "I will take you there," he replies.  And he proceeds to walk us to the bus.  We would have never found it on our own.  It is packed, every seat is taken.  He gets us on. 

Thank you kind German man. 

As we board he states that there is another bus, a shuttle bus to get to our final destination.  Becca took 2 planes to get here the day before, today she is taking 2 buses to get to some German swamp.  Any gripping? Nope!! We take the shuttle bus.  We get off and we are in Lubbenau. We ask for info, get a map and make our way into town to grab lunch before we get lost in the swamp.  We arrive at a restaurant right by the water. It's very nice, the boys order schnitzel and sausages.  There is no menu in English and Bec is not in the schnitzel mood - she's schnitzeled out after an entire 24 hours in the country.  So, the nice German waitress recommends a local meal.  People come from miles around to order it. Bec says, "Sure!  I'm game!"  It comes - it is warm pickles and chopped ham in a sour cream sauce.  Really. Not the best local specialty that I've come across. Bec's not a fan of it either.  Any sour words??  No way! Through sharing, nourishment is ingested by all and we are on our way.

So finally we rent the canoes and this is what we get - an hour and a half of happy paddling.

We come back to the boat house and pepper the kind German lady with questions.  "Does she live there?" "What is the German word for wild goats?"  "What are the wooden platforms that we see in the woods?" She gives us her card. We thank her heartily.  21 Euros for a canoe and 2 kayaks for an hour and a half.  $10 per boat.  We cannot believe our luck! We congratulate ourselves and head off. We head into the local tourist office to locate the nearest ice cream.  We come out and the boat lady is running down the street with my passport in hand saying, "American Lady, American Lady!"  I had left it with her as a deposit and I had forgotten to gather it when we had left.  I cannot believe she found me. 

Thank you kind German Lady.

We get the ice cream and we decide to head home.  We catch the 4:11 train.  We have to make a connection and discover that the next train to Berlin is not until 5:30. We rat around, the boys play baseball with a stick and an empty plastic bottle.  Who needs electronics?  We go and wait on the platform and the announcer makes a long stop announcement in German and somewhere in there we hear Berlin.  It is 5:25. A train stops.  We get on.  The doors close.  Something doesn't feel right. "Is the train is going to Berlin?", "No, Leipzig.'' BEEP BEEP BEEP! We leave the station and we are on the wrong train.  A little panic.  The conductor tells us get off in 2 stops and we can make the connection there.  Our panic subsides.  The stop approaches, she comes and stands by us to make sure we get off.

Thank you kind German lady. 

We get off and we are in an empty rundown station.  Not exactly comforting with 3 kids who are getting tired and hungry.  We look at the timetable.  Our platform and time are located and we head up the stairs.  Only 6 minutes until is leaves.  But there is a train sitting on the other track.  Could it be? Let's check.  "Train to Berlin?"  "Ya"  Rush down the stairs with the boys, run up to the other platform, open the door, sit down and the train pulls out of the station. 

Thank you kind German man.  And Rich for asking.

Good times.

The Museum of Things

We went to the Museum of Things last Friday - biding our time before Bec and Famille got here.  It got and Editor's Pic in the "Time Out Guide to Berlin" which has been very helpful. Editor's Pic = Fun.
It was a very German museum.  Neat.  Clean.  A bit eccentric. Very thoughtful.  Well-organized.  It was like being in the attic of a hoarder who was also a germaphobe.
The museum was full of cabinets that were full of things that were organized by some curator's idea.  So for example, one cabinet is full of hair irons that folks used to use to curl their hair, next to cabinet full of hair dryers.  This is next to a cabinet full of those old glass electric insulators that Martin used to collect.  It is fascinating to try and figure out the argument behind each comparison. It was great to see all these things all together in a cabinet too.  They had dozens of old toasters and a great old Zenith TV from the 60's.  Look at this!

How would you like this in your living room?

 This museum was a prop designer's dream!  It really was.  Martin would love all the old style fans and coffee grinders too. Wild.

Another thing that Berlin has are the fun Walk/Don't walk signs.  Cal likes to imitate them whenever we are waiting for a light.

Here are his impressions.

Easter week in Berlin

I went running this morning and I looked up at the trees and all of the sudden there were leaves!  It was like they came out overnight!  Its been a warm sunny week and Rich and Tim are here.  Bec arrives this AM. Goodies have been arriving from home.  All is good!

Cal with an Easter Goodie from Ace, Janet and Emma

 Yesterday we high tailed it to Munster, not the Munster as in the cheese and with the umlaut, but the Munster as in the tiny town that has the Panzer Museum and is 3 1/2 hours away when I really wanted it to be 2 1/2 hours away.  We rented a car, got a GPS named Lilly?  Lisa?  Lina? I can't remember. And she shuttled us to Munster, NOT THE CHEESE.  I still don't really think that she showed us the most direct route.  I've never used a GPS before and the jury is still out.  It can tell you how fast you are going but it should really tell you where the speed cameras are. Hmmm. Thanks a lot Lilly, Lisa, whatever. I saw the flash.  I guess I'll find out what the fine for Germany is.  In France it's 20 euros.  I've already found that out.
The Panzer museum was awesome. Huge tanks.  Huge.  And they put the shells that they fire right next to the tank so you can see how big they are.  Timmy was in heaven.  He was our Panzer docent, telling us the caliber of the Panther vs. the Tiger Panzer shells, how many of each they made, how fast they could go etc.  We still don't know what a self-propelled gun is vs. a regular gun, however.  Anyone??  Here is a pic of the boys in front of a Sherman Tank - the kind Col. J.A. Thompson commanded in Italy. He's a tall man.  I can't imagine that riding around in that tank with 4 other guys was all that comfortable for him.

The day before we went to the TV tower in Alexanderplatz.  The day before we celebrated Timmy's arrival with Angry Chicken and some Science Museum.  More to explore with Bec today!! 

So everything in Berlin is a bit mysterious.  From the outside most buildings either look like architectural competition winners or bomb shelters where heroin addicts and crack heads hang out.  There is very little in between.  So yesterday we decide to go to an indoor putt putt park for a little R&R.  This is what it looked like from the outside.

We wandered around.  No signs.  No friendly people nearby.  Only graffiti. And empty beer bottles.  On a whim I opened the door and voila!  It was like an oasis inside. There was a small cafe, a room where infants and toddlers were playing.  Happy people!  And downstairs there was glow in the dark putt putt golf course.

Fun!!!  18 holes of glow in the dark fun.  Ruled over by an older German man who schooled Declan and Cal on the finer points of putt putt by yelling "YA!" when they made a good shot and "NO!"  when they made a bad shot. Tough to shake him in a basement. Mystery solved.

Another mystery.  The other day we went into a comic book store.  I'm thinking, comic book store + 2 boys = fun!  We walk in and it is the world's most unfriendly comic book store.  Seriously, the guy behind the counter took one look at the boys and thought,"Ugh, kids. I'd rather be cleaning up the nuclear waste at Fukashima." The hairy eye ball followed our every move.  Cal would pick up a book and the guy looked at me as if to say, "If you gave your child a loaded gun, that would be a better parenting choice than letting him look at that comic book.  Look at the cover woman!!!" So we slinked around the store, feeling the heat of his glare, Dec picked up a Calvin and Hobbs book and thumbed through a couple of pages.  He guy clicked his tongue, waved his finger and made him put it down. NO LOOKING AT COMICS IN THE COMIC BOOK STORE!  We left.  Needless to say we didn't buy and of his stinkin comics.

Today we are going to try and solve another mystery.  We are going make our second run at the Museum of Things.  It's a cute little museum about objects in our neighborhood.  Time Out Berlin said that it is cool so we are going to go! We tried to go earlier in the week but I read the hours wrong and it was closed.  Unfortunately, I still cannot read German and even though I've been here for 3 weeks and even though the door was closed, I couldn't seem to figure that out.  There was a serve yourself vending machine near the front and I thought to myself, "The key to that museum must be in there!" There was an Englishman there along with us who was trying to get in as well and he agreed that the key must be in there. So we hunted down the right change, opened the little door in the vending machine and this is what we got:

A eyeglass cleaner
A plastic rain poncho
2 sweets
2 cocktail umbrellas

No key to the museum. 

The English guy got this in his bag:

a measuring tape
2 sweets
a pair of dice
some asprin

No key to the museum

He was pretty bummed because he was going back to England before the museum was open again so I offered to send him a postcard once we had visited.  He gave me his card.  He is a translator. But he couldn't translate that the there was no key in the vending machine. This man is not a good translator.  Nice man. Not a good translator.  So if you ever need anything translated in Bath, England.  Don't look up this guy.

 This is this weeks school essay. Enjoy!     From,Declan

In this essay I will be talking about 5 things that are different in Europe than in the USA. First, I have noticed that they use more wind turbines and solar panels in Europe. The wind turns the huge turbines and electricity is made. Solar panels absorb light and generate electricity. The benefit of using these green energies is no air pollution. Coal and oil power plants cause massive air pollution.

Secondly, in Europe there are more people riding bikes than in the US. Riding your bike every day will help you get lots of exercise. Cars cause lots of air pollution. Riding your bike every day will decrease air pollution. If I were a grown up and had any say on what goes on in the world I would encourage more people in the US to ride their bikes.

The third thing that I noticed is the lack of police. The danger to this is if something does happen it will take a few minutes for them to get there. But again if there is a police officer on every corner you might think they expect something to happen. I prefer there to be more police on the streets. It would make me feel safer.

I have noticed that there are many more parks in Europe than in the US. Playgrounds are scattered all over the place. You can’t walk three blocks without seeing a playground. Near our apartment there is a huge park with a massive field. Also,  there is a cool farm with tons of awesome animals such as; a massive pig, goats, rabbits, guinea pigs, chickens, ducks, and my personal favorite, a donkey!

The last thing I have noticed is that there are dogs everywhere in Europe. Some people bring their dogs on the U Bahn (the German Metro.) There are at least two dogs per block. I just wish people would clean up their dog’s dung. I have almost stepped in it many times. But worst of all, I don’t remember how to say, “Can I pet your dog?” in German.    

Monday was set to be the last and only good day this week so I made sure we spent most of it in the park.  As Declan will report later this post there are tons of parks for kids here.  Every third block brings a good sized area complete with sand and climbing equipment and graffittied trash cans. They are a bit dirty however and one imagines lots of pointy sharp things right under the surface of the sand, but the parents here seem unconcerned.  The wee kids have these great overalls that are made of sort of a water repellant canvas that keeps all the sand, glass and other undesirables out of their shoes and clothing.  We have been lucky so far, we visit these parks and we come home with bucketfuls of sand in their pockets and other places, but no cuts or scrapes.  We watched some rousing games of bocce, walked along the canal and had a great time.

Tuesday was the German Technikmuseum; a museum devoted to explaining technology, why it works and how it has changed society.  So they had a fullsized sailboat barge that they raised from the Spree inside the museum. Have you heard of the saying, “Berlin was built on a barge?”  Well, this ship was why! They explained why it was so successful in helping bring goods to Berlin and why it became outmoded.  Then they had a full-sized steam tugboat to get on and they patiently explained why it could transport goods so cheaply and why it became so popular and then outmoded.  Just one exhibit after another with simple, straightforward explanations of technology, how it developed and then why it changed, with tons of interactive stations.  They had a 10/15 minute long interactive display where you had to navigate your ship into the port of Hamburg which the boys loved. Then there was the 5^th floor – aviation with full sized German WW2 war planes and one of the Douglas C-47 “candy bombers” that flew in supplies for the Berlin airlift. Really fantastic.  This one gets a second look with Timmy. Maybe even a third one the week after.

Today was roasted chicken day.  You haven't had roasted chicken until you've gone to this old school Berlin Bar that only serves beer, potato salad and roasted chicken, Henne. Ignore the jackalope antlers on the wall, glance at the letter from JFK how he was sorry to miss having dinner here but stay for the chicken. I can't imagine what they put on it to make that skin taste so good.

Knut : To stuff or not to stuff

 So there is a controversy brewing in Berlin - to stuff or not to stuff Knut?  Read below for some more info.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/12/world/europe/12berlin.html?_r=1&hp

This has aroused some pretty powerful feelings.  There was a protest outside the zoo the day that we were there.  Complete with signs and buttons although there seemed to be as many reporters as protesters. And it was only about 100 or so people.
  Our friend Veronika said that folks have been calling into the local radio station in tears.  One lady basically said, "First my friend died, then my husband, now Knut.  I just can't take it anymore."  Veronika was laughing at the absurdity of it, as if she had the same relationship with her husband as she did with a polar bear, but I can see it.  People have strong relationships to animals.  Why else should we have zoos in the first place?  Animals in zoos and in our houses are in our care and we provide for them.  We feel responsible and mourn them when they are gone.

The Tufts mascot is the Jumbos and when Jumbo the famous circus elephant died he was stuffed and placed in one of the academic halls.  Local college legend has it that one night there was a terrible fire and Jumbo went up in flames, taking with him all the research that a star biology professor had been accumulating for 10 years prior.  The college lost a building and the professor supposedly went crazy.  Bad things happen when you stuff animals.

I agree with the protesters - don't stuff Knut.  He was not killed on a hunting trip to have hanging on your wall in some lodge somewhere.  He was a star.  The boys agree.  Bury him, put up a plaque and leave a place where people can come and visit.

Thoughts?

Blue Man Group

Backstage at Blue Man Group

So, I’m friends with a Blue Man.  He’s playing one of the lead roles in the Tennessee Williams play I’m directing here.  In fact, the Williams is new territory for him, since he’s been traveling the globe (smeared with slimy blue paint) for six years now.  We rehearse in the afternoon, and he goes blue in the evening.  Unique job, to say the least, and he's a great guy to boot.

Today, he got us free tix, so we took the family.  And it blew the kids’ minds!  Declan loved the offbeat humor, the gags, the theatricality of it all.  Cal loved the drumming, rock music, and the acres of toilet paper that they drop on the audience.  Connan and I appreciated it for its broad commercial appeal – no language, just music and spoofing of modern art.

Blue Declan

 Seumus, our friend in blue, met us after the show and took the kids backstage.  Declan got blue paint on his face and vowed to leave it there for as long as humanly possible.  Cal loosened up once the blue man spoke.  Much fun for all of us!  -  Blake

Legoland

Declan can barely contain his joy.

Legoland Germany.  These two words have been enough to send Declan into kniptions of joyful anticipation for the last 6 mos. And they have been incredibly helpful from a parenting standpoint.  As in, "Don't worry about our long trip to Europe. We'll get to go to Legoland."  Or, "Stop beating on your brother or we won't get to go to Legoland in Germany." Or, "Do you really want to buy that plastic trivet for 25 pounds with your spending money?  Why don't you save it for our trip to Legoland?"  All of this parental guidance paid off yesterday when we finally got to go to the holy land. 

Tattoos for all the boys

Legoland, Germany is like "The Three Little Bears" fairy tale; it's not too big, it's not too small - it is just right.  The park is the perfect size.  It has rides that are just the right speed for ages 3 to 12.  It has tons of playgrounds so when the waiting in line for the ride gets to be too much you can break off with your 5 year old and let him get his ya yas out. There are small roller coasters, medium sized roller coasters and large roller coasters.  The food is your basic amusement park fare, but it's German so somehow it seems exotic.  There is very little gender specificity - boys and girls both like Legos - no princesses here. And the ubiquitous store at the exit is not full of stuffed animals and souvenirs that you'll never look at again once you leave, it is full of LEGOS!

Plus they have Lego mini world where they build cities and soccer stadiums and national monuments entirely out of Legos. Totally cool.

Largest building in the world made out of Legos - The soccer stadium in Munich

Cal in Hamburg - Lego style

Declan in Lego Berlin

We were split about what attraction we loved the most.  Declan liked the 45 minute driving lesson and the mini world.  Cal liked the water flume and the roller coaster.  I liked the pulley ride and pirate ships where you could shoot water cannons at total strangers as they coasted by.  Blake liked the roller coaster and water flume too.  A good time was had by all.  Clear blue sky, 65 degrees, the park wasn't too crowded.  It was all that Declan had anticipated and more.

Driving around Legoland

Checkpoint Charlie

The boys and I went to the Checkpoint Charlie museum yesterday.  Lots of large photographs about people escaping to the west.  Harrowing stories about hot air balloons, homemade submarines, underground tunnels, space carved out between two surfboards atop a car.  Hard to fathom that the wall fell just a little over 20 years ago.  It all seems so distant and strange now.  Still it seems that you cannot tell this particular Berlin story without a little propaganda.  The winning side's propaganda. There is an exhibit describing Picasso's Guernica, posters with insipring words from Gandhi and an entire room dedicated to Ronald Reagan ( they even have a chainsaw that he used on his ranch in CA). Nothing really about Gorbachev.  Nor much about what life in Eastern Germany was really like. It feels very uneven and even a bit kitschy.
And there is unfortunate modern art scattered about the place.  Many artists have tried to capture what the wall meant to the city, or a create an image that reflected the division.  But most images seem to fall short to me.  There is the vague outline of a person, usually in black charcoal, some barbed wire and a bleak sunrise or sunset in the background. Keith Haring, graffiti artist extraordinaire, really got it right.  Hope.  Struggle.  We're all connected. Bright colors.  Someone will probably paint over it tomorrow.

The museum is privately owned and operated and therefore that may be why there is not a scholarly approach to the material.  In addition, the area around Checkpoint Charlie is being revamped and modernized. The actual guard station has been removed and a replica has been put in its place, complete with some guy in a military uniform of questionable origin and an American flag who will take pictures with you and your family in front of sandbags for 2 Euros.  It is a shame to turn it into a tourist trap, but in a Berlin trying to come to terms with its past, maybe a surreal experience is just right.

Berlin was sunny and warm this past weekend.  65 degrees on Saturday and 70 on Sunday.  The warm weather didn’t clean the broken bottles on the streets but it filled  the parks and gave a everyone here a taste of spring.  The crocus are coming out and the bike riders seem to be traveling down the avenues with a bit more speed.  There are tons of bike riders here. They have dedicated paths on the wide streets and travel along at quite a clip.  The boys sometimes need to leap out of their way as the riders pedal and smoke and talk on their mobile phones simultaneously.

There are also tons of dogs that the Germans seem to take everywhere. On the metro, on the bus, into restaurants – everywhere, about half are leashed and the other half (mostly the larger ones) tend to roam free or follow their humans on bikes.  They seem to be well behaved for the most part. No jumping up, no unauthorized sniffing.  Every sighting makes the boys squeal with desire and repeat the mantra, “ Mom, can we have a dooooogggg?”

Blake had a great birthday.  After a AM in the Zoo on Saturday, our friend Veronika had a gathering at her house. Her birthday was the day before so they celebrated together.  Most of the cast from “Summer and Smoke” came along with a couple of Veronika’s friends.  And there were other children for the boys to play with.  Hurrah!  Cal built a fort with Anthony and Declan taught the mostly younger kids the intricacies of “Tiny Wings” (an iphone app).  They were thrilled at having peers around and a couple of play dates may come our way now that we have met.

Sunday was even warmer and we got a sitter so that we could go see the new Wim Wenders movie about Pina Bausch.  Fantastic.  Pina was a German modern dance choreographer who died last year after learning that she had cancer only 5 days before.  Her dance theatre was composed of an international dancers who stayed and worked with her for long stretches of time– some had been dancing with her company for over 25 years.   Imagine working with the same director or boss for 25 years.   It’s coming to the US in April – I imagine it will play only art houses, but it was shot in 3D and if you get a chance to see it its is really quite moving and leaves an impression.

Monday was our first German lesson. The boys and I trekked over to a small German language school and had a tutoring session that lasted about 45 minutes.  We learned how to say our names and “ I have a Knut Backpack” in German.  Cal spilled his tea and almost ruined her computer projector.  Declan liked her dog.  Hopefully she’ll have us back.

 To explain the Knut Backpack, there was a polar bear named Knut who lived in the Berlin Zoo that was world famous  He was rejected by his mother so a Berlin zookeeper raised him and therefore Knut was very friendly towards humans.  He became a celebrity and there were cute Knut pictures everywhere when he was first put on display.  Google “Knut the polar bear” if you want a little taste. Anyways Knut died a week before we got here.  And everyone at the theatre figured that we would be sad about Knut.  We’ve never heard of Knut. We have no attachment to Knut.  We care that other people care, but personally Knut means nothing to us.  “Knut is taking a dirt nap,” we joked.  Even the boys who normally love animals joined in the gallows humor about Knut.  Long live Knut.  But now Cal has a Knut Backpack.  And I admit that it is cute.  And we can say it in German. “ Ich haben eisen Knut ruksak.” So maybe Knut will grow on us now that he is gone.

We’ve been here almost a week. And I still don’t speak a word of German.  Everyone has been incredibly nice about it – even friendly.  And if they aren’t  - I don’t care if they don’t like me.  For some reason we really want the French to like us. “Please like me”, I think, “Because I like France soooo much!”  And they could give two bits about us.  The Germans we don’t care as much, but frankly there is a lot to like.  I really could use my cousin Jenny though who speaks German.  Pack up Rob and the girls and git on over here Jenny!

Declan imitating Zeus with his thunderbolt

Zeus

Cal doing his imitation of Zeus

We went to the Pergamon Museum which has the Elgin Marbles at the British Museum beat by a mile.  Basically a German archeologist unearthed the temple in Pergamon that was built to celebrate the Gods to thank them for the city of Pergamon’s victories in war.  There is a magnificent frieze that has every named God/Goddess battling with Gaia (the earth mother) and her male offspring, which were a race of giants.  The giants have legs that become serpents, clawed hands and wings sprouting out of their backs.  The sculpture is amazing.  Very clear and lyrical.  There is an incredibly informative audio guide that makes the entire room understandable. And it’s close enough to see, yet mounted high enough to maintain the sense of looking at it from below, as anyone from that time would have.  But that’s not all, they also have reassembled piece by piece, an entire 3 story high marketplace entrance to the city of Miletus, the famed gate of Ishtar, AND the processional street from the city of Babylon.  The museum is simply breathtaking. Easy for the boys to take in because of the audio guide describing the Greek Mythology, plus the frieze is very graphic, lions biting the heads of giants and serpents biting Hercules’ arm.  Gory ancient special effects!  Cool!

Open up Gate of Ishtar!

Then we went to the Egypt exhibit and the Neues Museum which was totally destroyed in WW2 and only recently rebuilt and reopened.  Its claim to fame is a stunning statue of Nefertiti – the world first supermodel, lots of great sarcophagi and mummy stuff. But what was truly spectacular was their papyrus collection.  They had a copy of the Egyptian Book of the Dead, which explains the journey a soul takes after death and the mummification process.  Amazing to hear how the requirements for Egyptian Blessedness and a happy afterlife sound remarkably Christian and Jewish and Muslim…