The Synangogue of Celle

 

The last stop on my trip was the half-timber town of Celle. Just outside the what would have been the city wall stands a small house that is the oldest synagogue in northern Germany. Built in 1740, the Celle synangogue served its community before being partly destroyed in Kristallnacht. Today, there is a sanctuary inside, but unfortunately no congregation.

To see more pictures from this trip, go to http://picasaweb.google.com/dabraham001/Niedersachsen#

Luneburg

 

I had the opportunity to travel north from Hannover to a salt mining town called Luneburg. The city itself is built on salt deposits and, as a result, many of the buildings sag in very strange ways. The church spire is actually 2m off true. According to the Lonely Planet, the architect was so upset about his leaning tower, he tried to jump off an kill himself. Luckily, there was a hay wagon below that broke his fall. That evening, while laughing off the whole incident at the local brauhaus, he got so drunk, he fell on the cobbled road and broke his neck.

The Make-Up Room

 I snapped this photo of a news anchor getting ready to go live on camera.

FDP Party Convention

 

I was in Hannover to watch the Free Democratic Party's convention (think fiscal conservatism meets social liberalism and you get the FDP) and it was an absolute media circus. Photographed in the center is Dr. Guido Westerwelle, the head of the party and member of parliament. He's one of the most famous politicians in Germany.

One of the most shocking things about this event was that anyone could register and participate for FREE. Not only that, there was almost no security presence anywhere at the event.

What's in a Name?

 

European Parliament Elections are coming in June and candidate posters are found attached to every object in cities all over Germany. I found Mr. Balz to have a particularly unfortunate name.

Switzerland

 

The next day we went to St. Gallen in Switzerland. We found chocolate shops everywhere. But, in a cruel twist of fate, we couldn't buy any because we didn't have any Swiss Francs. I hate the Swiss.

Cheeeeese!

 

We hiked along the "Kaesewanderweg" or Cheese Path and found a great family owned creamery.

Above Bregenz

 

Bregenz has a cable car that takes you to a peak that is part of the lower Alps. When we reached the top, this is what we saw.

Bregenz

 

The boat left us in Bregenz, a tiny town in Austria that more quaint and picturesque than anything Mark Twain could have described in Innocents Abroad.

3 Countries, 2 Days

 

After getting some work done, Danielle and floated across Lake Constance into Austria.

Half-Timbered Houses

 

Our final stop on our trip was to Goettingen, a medieval town in central Germany. I was finally able to see excellent examples of half-timbered houses, a building style popular here which exposes the wood frame of the house. We even ate at a restaurant founded in 1500.

A Great Town

 

More beautiful Weimar...

Two Faces of Germany

 

Weimar was the home of Goethe, Schiller, and the Bauhaus architecture movement. When the Nazis kicked out this school of revolutionary thinkers in order to begin their thousand year reich, they could have never imagined that Bauhaus is now the city's pride and joy. Weimar is an extraordinary city (I liked it as much as Heidelberg and Dresden) and should not be skipped if visiting Germany. What strikes me time and again is the richness of German culture and the horrible destruction it inflicted on itself between 1933 and 1945. Pictured above are Goethe and Schiller holding a sign that reads, "Art needs time, Comrade."

Abraham is an Austrian Last Name

 

Photo of an office supply store in Salzburg, Austria. Founded by Ludwig Abraham (brother of my grandfather Tibor Abraham) in 1950.

Bizarre Germans

 

Two experiences at German spas have acclimated me to the German obsession with being naked. But I never expected to see an advertisement promoting naked pregnancy photos. Let's say you did get the photo taken, where would you put it? On top of the piano?

A Shrine to German Engineering

 

Munich is home to the Deutsches Museum which is a gigantic temple glorifying the German obsession with engineering. There are exhibits dedicated to bridge building, tunnel digging, and (naturally) model trains. Pictured above is a 2-story piston from a diesel driven ship.

Beer

 

From Karlsruhe to Munich to Goettingen, the beer in Germany is fantastic. We even had a chance to visit the world famous Sapten brewery during the trip.

Tour d'Allemagne

I'm heading out on a tour of Germany with the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation tomorrow. I'll try to get updates and photos up on the blog, but it will be tough. Cities: Brussels, Karlsruhe, Munich, Leipzig, Weimar, Goettingen.

Riot in Kreuzberg!

Okay, it wasn't a full blown riot. But according to the Berliner Zeitung, 50 vandals attacked our local Commerzbank. The prominent German financial institution has been in serious trouble lately. The police say the people dispersed before they arrived, but the assailants are being described as "leftists." The reason for the attack is still unknown.

Link to photos:
http://www.berlinonline.de/berliner-zeitung/berlin/polizeireport/121692/index.php?pos=0&popup

Mr. Big

 

Hamburg is renowned for its red light district called the "Reeperbahn." And no self-respecting hotbed for prostitution would be without a condom shop. This one is offering 100 EUR to the man who can fill out the above rubber. Legend has it that only 2 whippersnappers have mounted the challenge.

The Free Hanseatic State of Hamburg

 

This past weekend, we visited our friends Mandi and Daniel in Hamburg. It's a great city that doesn't get much press in the tour books - but we recommend it highly.

Some Facts:
Second largest port in Europe (after Rotterdam)
The port is actually on the Elbe River
Wealthiest city in Germany
Second largest city in Germany
Founding member of the medieval Hanseatic Trading League

Huh?

Der Spiegel had an interview with Uwe Luthahrdt, a former senior member of the far-right NDP party. He left the party when he found members doing Hitler salutes and displaying other Nazi symbols. Here is an excerpt:

SPIEGEL ONLINE: What did you hope to get from the party when you joined?

LUTHARDT: I wanted to do something for Germany, I wasn't interest in a Greater Germany. And suddenly everyone was saying we'll take back Silesia (present day Poland) and then we'll give the communists a thrashing.

Dude! What did you expect? What a moron. By the way, the picture above is an NDP poster that reads, "We're cleaning up!" We'll let you figure out what they're talking about.

BREAKING NEWS: Good Customer Service in Germany

As some of you know, I am obsessed with finding quality customer service in a land where the motto is, "F$%# the customer, they'll buy here anyways."

But Berlin Linien Bus, the long-distance bus company, bucked this trend. At the last minute on Friday, we needed to switch our tickets for our trip to Hamburg because Danielle got sick. Instead of being met with the usual, "Oh, that's impossible" the representative told me, "No problem at all." I was stunned. When I asked her if I would need a new ticket, she said, "No, you can use your old one. I've changed it in the computer." Wow, that's amazing. Good work Berlin Linien Bus! Now I hope the rest of Germany (including you Deutsche Telekom) takes a page out of their play book.

Sad News (from America)

We had to mention the passing of Socks Clinton. RIP.

Angry Berliners

The Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany's largest paper by circulation, found that people in East Berlin were angry more often than anywhere else in Germany. We knew it wasn't our imagination.

Aristocracy at its Best

Angela Merkel appointed a new head for the Economics Ministry last week. His name: Baron Karl-Theodor von und zu Guttenberg. A recent Deutsche-Welle article had this to say: "As heir to an old Franconian fortune, he managed his family's insulation business, but is not known for his command of economic policy." But, "his youthful appeal and speech devoid of a regional Bavarian accent" may improve the CDU/CSU (Merkel's party) standing during September elections. Isn't he cute!

German Regionalism - Part II

 

This is part of an advertisement at our local subway station from the German state of Baden-Württemberg for teachers. We had to post the tagline because of how much it says about German society. It reads, 'Baden-Württemberg - Wir Können Alles. Außer Hochdeutsch." This translates to roughly, "Baden-Württemberg - We can do anything. Except speak proper German."

Hochdeutsch is our version of the Queen's English and is the standard form of German used throughout the country. However, every corner of Germany has a unique dialect. In Berlin, you find Berlinerisch, in Cologne you may hear Kölsch, in the north Platt Deutsch is common, in Baden-Württemberg people are proud to speak Schwäbisch, and the list is almost endless. To a foreigner, understanding these dialects is nearly impossible. However, Danielle has gotten quite good at imitating the one here in Berlin since her co-workers refuse to speak in Hochdeutsch. Don't be surprised if you catch her saying "Yutti" instead of "Gut" (Good).

Berlin Film Festival

Tonight was the final night of Berlinale, Berlin's annual film festival. Dani and I went to a screening of "Letters to the President" about the current Iranian regime. Aside from the obligatory "Death to America! Death to Israel!" chants, the movie was excellent and provided an inside view of a fairly inaccessible country.
Check out http://www.letterstothepresidentmovie.com/ for more info.

After the movie started, a woman ran in and decided to sit right next to me. This would have been fine if a) she didn't breathe heavily for the next 20 minutes or b) had the sense to put on deodorant before leaving the house. God, it was revolting! At the 20 minute mark I turned to her and told her to keep it down (she was shocked, but quieted down). Unfortunately, her reduced noise level didn't make her b.o. magically disappear. Otherwise, it was a fine evening.

The Reader: A Review

"The Reader," a book by German author Bernhard Schlink, is the story of Michael, a fifteen year old boy who has a sexual relationship with Hannah, a woman twice his age. Many years after the affair, the boy find out that the woman was a guard in a Nazi concentration camp. This woman is played by Kate Winslet in the motion picture version of the book and is now nominated for an Academy Award. Dani and I haven't seen the movie.

I decided to read the book because I was interested in seeing how the Holocaust was understood in a best-selling contemporary novel. While I was not pulled into the story being told (the translation was a bit rough), the psychological damage caused to Michael by his relationship is remarkable. However, his transformation into an aloof social misfit seems to be more of a function of his affair at a young age rather Hanna's war crimes. Indeed, Michael is unable to relate to those around him even before Hanna's true identity is revealed. By today's legal standards, Michael is a victim of a sexual crime and, to me, this is what the story is about. Hanna's role in the Holocaust seems almost secondary.

While Schlink expends considerable energy describing the social upheavals of 1968 and Michael's effort to "understand" Germany's shamed past, this story is primarily about sexual abuse. Perhaps my disappointment with the book is rooted in my expectation that I would find an answer to the "Why?" that surrounds the Holocaust, a venture that will always leave a person empty and confused.

German Regionalism - Part I

 

While walking past the central cathedral in Potsdam (just outside Berlin), I noticed the above phrase tagged on the wall of a building. It says, "Preussen Bleibt Schiße (sic)" or, "Prussia will Remain Shitty." While not exactly poetry, the graffiti is an important reminder about how much the different parts of Germany dislike one another. Prior to 1871, there was not an idea of a German people. Instead, Germany was a patchwork of independent states - mainly Prussia, Bavaria, Saxony, and the Hanseatic trading cities. If you want to test this theory out, ask a Berliner (aka "Prussian") what they think of Bavarians. Their answer may bring a smile to your face.

The Second Coming

 

I went to the inauguration party in Berlin on Tuesday. The place was filled with Germans and Americans whooping and hollering for Barack Obama. The only thing missing was a white donkey. I wonder where it was...

Coin Operated Moses

 

Michaelangelo's famous statue Moses sits majestically in the nave of one of the important cathedrals in Rome. When we arrived at the church, though, Moses was seated in darkness. Then we heard a "clank" and suddenly, the nave was illuminated. When we looked to see where the sound came from, we noticed a box - similar to one you would find in a laundromat - that requested a "donation" of 50 cents. Interesting way to raise money.

Mingling With the Locals

 

While we were awe struck by ancient ruins and Renaissance architecture, it was the people of Rome who really made our trip extraordinary. Jon got a haircut right below our hotel. The barber, a gentleman in his early seventies, realized that we didn't speak his language. However, after giving my brother a shave, he proceeded to tell us all about his city's history in Italian using an outdated picture calendar he still had hanging in his shop to illustrate his points.

This was the most dramatic example of the warmth we experienced in Rome. It was definitely the rule, not the exception.

The Eternal City

 

"There are slightly more ruins in Rome than dog poop in its streets," goes the old saying. It is indeed true.

Poop stepping count:
David - 2
Danielle - 1
Jonathan - 1

Rome is fantastic except for the fact that you leave with really low self-esteem because the people are so well dressed. I'm not sure how they pull it off, but everyone (men and women) look like they just walked off the pages of Elle or GQ.

Gaza as Seen in Germany

We've kept the blog apolitical up until now, but the recent events in Israel and the Gaza Strip and the reaction in Germany moved us to write something on our blog.

About 8,500 people rallied in Berlin's Alexanderplatz yesterday to demonstrate against Israel. Many of them were members of the large Turkish and Arab communities here. Others were native Germans. The photo above was taken by Joao Paglione at another protest in the city.

From the outset, we want to say this: Israel does not always do everything right. Like any multi-ethnic and multi-religious democracy, it makes mistakes. However, when people in Europe and other places take to the streets to protest against the Jewish State and in favor of the people in Gaza led by Hamas, they are wrong.

Let us explain why.

Hamas was founded in 1987 with the express intention of destroying Israel and replacing it with an Islamic state (see www.nytimes.com/2006/02/27/international/middleeast/27mideast.html?ex=1298696400&en=25164615c0b5f11c&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss). If you have any doubts about this, go online and look at the Hamas logo. At the top, you will see the entire outline of Israel -including Tel Aviv and other places that are internationally recognized as part of the Jewish State. Hamas, past or present, does not intend to negotiate peace with Israel.

Therefore, when Hamas won parliamentary elections in Gaza in 2006 following the withdrawal of Israeli forces, it meant that the people of Gaza were supporting a platform that vocally called for the annihilation of a UN member state. There has been no pressure by people in Gaza to urge its government to renounce violence or engage in negotiations. Indeed, the US, EU and others still consider Hamas a terrorist organization.

Based on historical experience with Hamas (suicide bombings and rocket attacks), Israel initiated a blockade of the Gaza coastline and sealed its borders. This action was meant to stem the flow of weapons being used by Hamas against Israeli civilians. This action was never completely successful and attacks continue today. The fact that the international community is urging a cease-fire against Hamas is shameful.

The loss of innocent lives is always tragic. Images of destroyed homes and schools pains us all. But let us not quickly forget or deliberately ignore how we got to this point. An offensive against Hamas and its infrastructure is necessary and justified. When considering this conflict, please remember to reflect upon it within its appropriate historical context. And to all those who rallied at Alexanderplatz - you are not helping the cause of peace in the Middle East, you are destroying it.

New Layout

We've decided to freshen up our blog by changing the layout. Everything is the same, only the colors are different. Hope you enjoy.

Notes on the Polish Language

 

The following is a quote by noted philologist Dr. Phillip Blackburn, III:

"Polish rings with the sound of centuries of triumph and defeat. It is at once a language of great sorrow and overwhelming elation. But most importantly, she is an endless string of consonants."

Frozen River

 

Part of the Oder River was frozen 6 feet deep, so we took the opportunity to walk on water. Behind us are ice fisherman. We got the bright idea for our stroll from them.

For more pictures check out our Picasa web page (Slubice, Berlin 2008 and now Berlin 2009).

Poland in 12 Minutes

My brother and I went to Poland this morning. It's only 60 miles east of Berlin. The border town of Frankfurt an der Oder, which, despite a declining population and depressed economy, is way better than crappy Frankfurt am Main. We took a train at 10:00am and by 11:30, we were walking around in another country. Since Poland is now part of the EU, we didn't even get our passports stamped. Bummer.

Frankfurt an der Oder sits on the west side of the Oder River and Slubice is on the east bank. Before 1945, both sides were part of Germany (not owing to Hitler's little romp in 1939) but post war, the Oder River became the eastern border of Germany. Anyways, the Lonely Planet doesn't have much to say about either place except that you can buy cheap cigarettes and vodka.

It's Cold!

 

Oh yeah...it reached 0 Fahrenheit this past Wednesday.

Family Reunion

 

My parents and brother arrived from St. Petersburg (not the one in Florida, Emery) last week to spend time in Berlin. We covered the whole city - from the Karl Marx Allee to KaDeWe. It was fantastic to finally see family after 7 months in a foreign country. The hightlight of the trip was finding the perfect Matjes herring for my dad while my mom and Danielle stood by and rolled their eyes. Nothing like spending QT with the 'rents!

Christmas Fun (Part III)

 

Our friends' Nat and Maja arranged for us to see a Christmas concert at the oldest church in Berlin. The performance was Handel's "Messiah" with a full choir and orchestra. I was sitting so close to the cellist that he could have picked my nose with his bow. Fantastic! The concert was followed by a gathering of the neighborhood outside the church to sing Christmas carrols - many of them in English.

Christmas Fun (Part II)

 

The coolest Christmas Market constructed was the one put up in Alexanderplatz, the center of former East Berlin. The organizers brought in a spectacle of rides and amusements for adults and kids. It was the most crowded place I've been so far in Germany (rivaling the state fair in Dresden this past summer). We went at night and were able to collect a few great shots of the rides.

Christmas Fun (Part 1)

 

The most important part of Christmas in Germany is the Weihnachts Markt or Christmas Market. Many locals do their shopping at these temporary bazaars spread throughout the city. Most importantly, they are open Sundays, which make them a magnet for those suffering from the cabin fever caused by closed businesses during the rest of the year. Some had rides, others had high class goods, and all had tons of food. Pictured above are our friends in Berlin enjoying a wurst (German sausage) in a roll. The sausages are always way longer than the tiny bun and make for interesting eating. We took this picture that the Gedamenmarkt Market in Berlin which is the most "exclusive" since it charges a heft 1 Euro entrance fee (apparently to keep out unsavory characters). By the way, I had no permission from the people photographed above to use their image. I hope I don't get sued.

Back on the Wagon

Okay, I was yelled at by my two disgruntled fans for not posting for a while. It's been nearly a month since my last entry, so my apologies for holiday season laziness...