Munich, Dachau, and the Eagle's Nest

So, this weekend was a whirlwind trip, fabulously planned and driven by George. We left early Friday morning and drove to Dachau with two vehicles, 10 adults, two children, and one dog. There was a lot of time in the van, much of it spent ill from car-sickness or some kind of stomach bug, even more of it spent asleep, but a good portion in some interesting conversations. The whole weekend was immensely enjoyable, so yay George!!

Dachau
First stop on Friday afternoon was the Dachau concentration camp memorial. I have been here once before, two Novembers ago, but the day I came was dark and icy. Much of the memorial was closed, and the silence was eerie. This time, the sun was shining, everything was open, and the whole place abounded with tour groups of various nationalities. We saw the film in English, then walked through the barracks and the museum. Afterwards, we walked around the rest of the camp, which was all new to me. We saw the chapels and memorials, mass graves, and the old and new crematoriums. When I was here last, it was easy to think of the places as the hell-hole it was, full of death and torment, with ice on the ground and snow laying in dirty drifts against the buildings and bare trees. This time, with sunshine and birds singing, seeing the brick building with it's chimney sticking into the sky, and green trees and flowers lining the paths, it's hard to believe that such evil can hide behind such innocuous beauty.


Eagle's Nest
On Saturday, we got up early to drive down to Berchtesgaden (which is ridiculously hard to spell!) to go to the Eagle's Nest. The Eagle's Nest was a gift from the Nazi Party to Hitler for his 50th birthday. Known in German as the Kehlsteinhaus, it sits on a cliff some 6000 feet above the valley floor. To get up to it, we drove up a hill and parked, then took a bus up to just below the house, then took an elevator inside the mountain face up to the chalet. The tunnel through the mountain to the elevator is long and damp, but large enough that cars could drive through it to keep important dignitaries (and Hitler himself) from having to get wet. Apparently, Hitler himself was rarely at the Eagle's Nest due to a fear of heights...
We were there on a cloudy day, which many people found unfortunate. I, however, have been lucky enough to be atop several very high peaks in clear sunshine, and found the clouds a very pleasant change. They gave the whole mountain an ethereal look, especially as the Kehlsteinhaus disappeared into the cloudbank. From the rocks above the house, you could see a cloud wrapping around the promontory, then suddenly cutting off on the side of the cliff and exposing the dizzying view of the towns so far below.

Munich
On Friday night, Jonathan, Joe, Justin and I (all the people in the picture above) went into Munich for a while, but Saturday night was when the whole group went in to the Hofbrauhaus. Let me tell you, that place is an experience. While there are Hofbrauhauses all over Germany, Munich's is the most famous. At the end of September, it becomes the center of the oh-so-popular Oktoberfest. Throughout the rest of the year, however, it still thrives. When we first arrived, we couldn't find any seats anywhere in the vast hall. Tables were crowded together, filled to overflowing with very loud Germans and tourists of all ages and nationalities. It was very hot, very crowded, and very loud. There was a traditional German band, consisting of accordions and brass instruments and Bavarian costume right behind our table, and periodically you would hear clapping and chanting breaking out, which usually meant somewhere, someone in the hall was chugging a liter of beer. (It apparently only comes in liter steins there.) Occasionally whole tables would stand up and start singing, glasses were raised, cheers given. Girls walked around selling giant pretzels and German cookies in their dirndls. The food was all typically German, lots of bread and sausage and cheese and meat. It was definitely an experience to be remembered!

Wordless Wednesday - Burg Eltz

Rhine River Cruise

So, with Brad and Debbie back in the States, the Festaburg is being kept open by the amazing team of George, Rosie, and myself. Most of the soldiers are home on block leave, but there are several who've stayed in garrison for various reasons. So, yesterday, we took a group of soldiers and families on a cruise up the Rhine River. We left the house bright and early on what promised to be a beautiful day, and we drove to Bingen, where we caught our boat.

I've cruised up the Rhine before, from Rudesheim (which is across the river from Bingen) to Cologne, but I think this trip was more fun. We went from Bingen to Koblenz, about a 3 1/2 hour ride. The trip is fascinating, because there are castles everywhere you look. I'm not sure, but I'm guessing this could easily be the most castle-populated region of the world. There really are a ridiculous number. Some are ruins, some restored, some hotels, some museums, some still residences. The first time I went, I remember trying to snap pictures of every one that came along. This time, I was able to sit and enjoy the cool breeze and sunshine, go below to eat some ice cream and enjoy panoramic windows, and just have fun with my friends.
Once we got to Koblenz, we found a little place to eat lunch. I had a little shoe-drama, too. Before we'd gone 10 steps from the van in Bingen, my flip flop broke. And not being a normal flip flop, I couldnt' just push the strap back through, but rather walked barefoot to the boat, where Michelle fortunately had a sewing kit and I made a rough repair to last me to the nearest shoe store. Walking through Koblenz I saw flip flops for €3.95. Unfortunately, you get what you pay for, and they were awful. Yes, they were shoes, but hard plastic with wiry braid and just...owch. Blisters and pain!

We took a train from Koblenz back to Bingen, and then took a ferry across to Rudesheim to walk around some more. What we didn't expect was a massive biker convention to be filling the quaint streets of old town Rudesheim with the smell of hot motor oil and the rumbling of thousands of bike engines. It was packed solid, and nothing like the romantic little town I remember. After leaving, George managed to successfully navigate us back home, despite having no GPS and lots of confusing construction.

Once home, I thoroughly enjoyed washing my poor feet in cold water, putting on comfy clothes, and curling up on the couch with bags of popcorn to watch a movie with Justin before bed. Today, we've all enjoyed a lazy Sunday, full of sunshine and beautiful weather and Mario Kart. Life here is pretty good. :)

"I like you better in person."

That's what Jonathan said to me tonight, as we sat downstairs working out some worship songs for Friday's Bible study, and it struck me as a curious statement. We have been e-mailing back and forth for about a year now, almost every day, short little blurbs about life or curious thoughts or pretty much anything. As time went on, the approaching end of the deployment became a more frequent topic, and the idea that "see you soon" was dwindling from months to weeks to days, "talk to you later" was about to become actual talking rather than typing. Now, "see you soon" means the minutes between hanging up the phone and driving to base to pick guys up. They're finally back. The Festaburg is full again, even with so many gone home on block leave.

This is why we're here - we're here to be family for those who have none to come home to. We're here to be a home away from home, to be friends, to share life. In II Thessalonians 2:8 Paul says, "We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us." We share food, trips, talks, games, projects, walks, music, movies, our stories and our struggles and ourselves. And really, sometimes I think that's exactly what it's about - God shared Himself with us, and we can't share Him with others without sharing ourselves, as well.

Welcome Home

Soldiers have been coming in in groups of all sizes for several weeks now. Most of the brigade is back by now, and I know I already described the ceremonies to you. Really, I think it is one of the most emotional events I've ever witnessed, except perhaps a soldier's memorial. The anticipation as everyone waits, the cheer as the soldiers enter, the building tension as the speeches and prayers are said, the relief as they're finally dismissed and home...it's incredible.

On Thursday night, Brad and I attended a ceremony at 11pm, hoping to see some more friends come in, as they were expected that night; no such luck. So, in the middle of the night, I got back in the car to go back for a 2 am ceremony. Friends who I have been e-mailing for more than a year were expected back, and I couldn't stand to miss their return. I almost missed it!! I went to the back gate, forgetting it closed at midnight, and forgetting it has a counterpart just up the hill that's open 24/7, I drove all the way back around to the front gate.

By the time I got to the Hall of Champions and parked, I could hear the music and the screaming, and I ran around and into the building just in time for the prayer and dismissal. Then it was run into the crowd and search faces until I saw them. I found Jonathan first, and he ran up to me and gave me a kiss on the cheek and a hug, and we found Sean and I got another great hug. We stood around and talked, trying to put 14 months of waiting into words. I can't really describe it. I'm so glad I was there, though - these guys have no one here to come home to, and both said often how glad they were that I was there to see them, even at 2 in the morning. I know I wouldn't have missed it for the world. Welcome Home!!

IBC Singles Conference - Berlin

So, this weekend, Brad was the guest speaker for the IBC (International Baptist Church) convention in Berlin. Two soldiers, Gordon and Justin, came with us on the trip. Singles from all over the world who are now living in Europe were there. We had people from Germany, America, the Ukraine, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Poland, Spain, Italy, Belgium, Kenya, Switzerland, Korea, China, Japan, and I'm sure there were several more that I missed. Almost everyone spoke at least two languages, some more than six - all spoke English. It was really cool to get to interact with such a multi-cultural group, especially since almost all had one major thing in common - a love of Christ. (photo is my small group)

The actual conference was pretty fun. There would be music, and then Brad spoke from the book of Jonah at the sessions, and then we broke out into small groups for discussion, which was then followed by a time of fellowship with the whole group. On Saturday afternoon we were able to explore Berlin a bit, and our group went to see the Reichstag and the Brandenburger Tor, the Holocaust Memorial, and the Sony Center. We managed to get completely soaked running to the train station through pouring rain, but it was really cool. We got Dunkin' Donuts and Starbucks - what a taste of home!

One of the coolest things for me was:
I was walking up to dinner the first night, and as I walked in, a girl at the first table stared at me and beckoned me over. She looked familiar, but I'm in Berlin, 6000 miles from home, how could I possibly know her? It turned out to be Bethany Andrews, the sister of one of my good friends, who went to Northwest and just graduated from Southwestern a couple years ago. Last time I saw her was before coming to Germany last summer, as I was talking to her and her family about raising my support. We had no idea we were on the same continent, much less going to the same conference. She's been teaching English in Spain and came over with the IBC Madrid church. It was great to get to catch up with her and pray with her and just know someone from home.