There’s a calm that comes from a river blown breeze. Like a chilled embrace of an unseen watcher, the breeze brings me past the crowds of gawkers and pilgrims, and sets me in the foyer of Cologne’s massive cathedral.
A House of God
Underway, the Kölner Way
When many Americans talk about seeing Europe, the bulk of these people can be divided into two groups: the tour bus or backpacking crowds. Some folks spend their hard-earned dough on a blitz-offensive of Europe like the kind seen in “National Lampoon’s European Vacation,” rushing city to city in an attempt to “experience” Europe in an insanely tight time frame. Rome, Berlin, Paris, London, fly back home. Others try to backpack through Europe, and spend a lot of time in hostels. This is a fine option for younger folks, but not everyone.
But our troupe doesn’t fit into those categories. We are European veterans, having taken our time to see the on- and off-the-beaten-trail sites. And with a baby, and no car, the list of “Crazy things we have done in life” has just gotten longer.
A Change in Perspective
There’s a certain comedy to attending language classes in a tourist zone. First, there’re tourists everywhere. And though I hate to generalize, tourists seem to all follow the same m.o. They all seem to have expensive Canon Digital SLR or Nikon Coolpix cameras. They all seem to push aggressively down the sidewalk heading somewhere…until they stop in the middle of the same sidewalk, and ask each other where they’re going.
Tourists also tend congregate in safe zones: monuments, cathedrals, shopping centers, etc. But fortunately tourists tend not to ride the city bus to the end of the line, and that’s where our troupe found itself earlier this week.
Ziggy Wisdom
I remember an old Ziggy comic, in which round-headed Ziggy sits with his dog on a cliff’s edge admiring the sunset. He remarks to his dog, “He does great work, doesn’t he?” It’s a simple homage to a greater power, and the logic (or belief) behind it can be applied to most anything in life. I remember and come back to that Ziggy wisdom occasionally because of its simplistic depth…an elementary understanding of something complicated, which to me makes perfect sense.
Now in Berlin, I am reenacting that Ziggy moment almost every night. Our view of the horizon has brought unbelieveable sunsets into our life, which make for interesting Futter für die Seele. (Food for the Soul)
Continue reading “Ziggy Wisdom”The Berlin Learning Curve
It’s hard to understand how many little things go into successfully navigating life, until you’re forced to learn them over again. Take the supermarket for example. Over the years, one learns more or less the fair price for an item, where items are likely placed, and how to avoid collisions with other shoppers. It’s just a matter of experience–when one does something for so long, the procedure becomes self-evident.
But when that experience has to be amended to fit into another culture, often we feel like fish in a new flavor of water.
Continue reading “The Berlin Learning Curve”Zu Hause in Berlin
It’s nice to begin to settle–settling is an often underappreciated activity. It’s nice to settle into your favorite chair; it’s nice to settle in to a soft, warm bed before a well-deserved rest; and it’s certainly wonderful to settle into a new home, albeit thousands of miles from your last one.
So far, Schmargendorf has treated us fine with its captivating views and convenient shopping layout. With our ever improving German, we’ve navigated the worlds of finance, electronics, retail, postal services and public transportation with little trouble and few casualties. And today brought my first full day of life in German.
Continue reading “Zu Hause in Berlin”Baby Goes Transatlantic
It may come as no surprise to those learned in the ways of babies, but our 3-month-old is growing. His occasional smiles have turned into regular smiles, and his scattered coos have turned into a sort of talking, and laughing, and whining, and sharing. Small things have become exciting for me–like describing all of the items in a grocery store, or narrating the curious characters who may cross our paths.
But these developmental events will be compounded by an even grander experience for our young one: As of June 2, our family will be residents of Berlin, Germany!