Just Click Your Heels 3 Times and Home You'll Go...

Thursday was our last touring day in Germany. In Frankfort we started with the Deutsche Bank and listened to two lectures on the structure and history of the bank. We then walked over to the Commerzbank and he answered questions about the current global economic crisis. We ate lunch as we met and after this speaker we met with Elmar TheveBen the talking head for the equivalent for PBS Germany. He was very interesting and he spoke on the topic of Terrorism and Media - New Ethics in Journalism. We then walked back to the hotel and had about 2 hours to shop before we traveled to a dinner party. 2 trams, one train trip, and a taxi ride away we arrived at our hosts house. To be real honest I would like to have missed one of the connections but I was so glad I didn't. The dinner party was very nice, the company great, and a wonderful way to end our trip to Germany. Thank goodness I didn't get that wish. lol Yesterday we traveled home. We ate breakfast together and gave Jurgen our parting gifts. Much to our surprise he wore his new tie with the stars and stripes to the airport. We all cleared security and Jurgen gave very nice parting comments. He said although he enjoys all his groups and you can never compare groups he said he laughed with our group more than any other and as we look back it's no wonder. We had an uneventful trip home and after leaving the hotel at 8:00 a.m (2 a.m. Indiana time) we arrived back in Indiana at 9:00 p.m. A long day but what an experience. It was the trip of a lifetime.

Freiburg and Weimar

Freiberg and Weimer:
We started our day at Geschwister-Scholl Gymnasium - which is the same as a high school in Indiana. It was a public school that had approximately 900 students. We received a tour of the building by Mr. Michael Albrecht, the principal of the school. We sang the song that the miners of Freiberg used to sing on the way out of the mines and we met with advanced English students. The students then divided our group up and took us on a tour of Freiberg and practiced their English on us. They were charming and full of energy and it made us miss our students…who would have thought. Lol We met with the students after the tour and had a question and answer session. Afterwards we had lunch at Freiberg University. We then went to the exhibit “Terra Mineralia” at the university. It was fascinating. It had a variety of minerals and educated us on the many minerals from around the world. The exhibit featured 3,000 of the 9,000 minerals that a singular person had collected. Freiberg University was the first university in the world to offer a mineralogy degree. They possess the largest yellow diamond in the world. The value of the collection was priceless. I must say that on my trip to South Africa I could not imagine the poverty and yesterday I could not imagine that type of wealth. After the exhibit we went on a guided tour of Freiberg with Dr. Pforr. After a short recess we had dinner with professors and students from the university. It was very interesting and we all exchanged ideas about our homes and the former GDR. We wrapped up around 10:00. Most of us then went upstairs and packed for the “big move”

Today we visited Weimar We toured the Palace Museum Weimar. It has one of the largest collections of art in Germany. Most of the art remained intact through many wars and occupations. We also saw the Goethe House and then had lunch at the Mensa House - a part of the university. We then transferred to Salzmannschule in Schnepfenthal. It was an enjoyable afternoon spent with students. We toured the school, watched an English class, and held a question and answer session with the students and teachers. They had the first gymnastics program in Germany. They hold immersive learning with projects instead of a typical teacher lecture/student receives classroom. We then toured the grounds. We then boarded the train for Frankfort. We ate our sack lunch on the train platform. It was a wonderful day with beautiful scenery - the hills, the villages, and the fields. One more day of touring. 9 a.m. - 10 p.m. tomorrow and then home.

Cathy Blitzer….Jurgen says hello!

Monday, September 28th

Today we had a very interesting day in Dresden. It was about a 1 hour bus ride to Dresden from Freiberg. We first met with an advisor to Parliament on Finance and Universities, Dr. Dirk Orlamunder. This was a very animated presentation with almost everyone asking questions. The conversation on education in Saxony prompted many interesting conversations. In brief, students choose somewhere between 4th and 6th grade whether they want to pursue a college track or a trade trac. Although this seems very early to those of us in the United States the Germans seem fine with this concept. The one striking difference in the conversations was that those in the former GDR referred to East Germany and West Germany. Those in the former West Germany referred only to Germany when speaking of their country. It is obvious that although a lot of progress has been made the former East Germans see the country many times as still 2 distinct areas...and in many ways they are correct but the use of words in reference to reunification is certainly different.

We followed this up with a luncheon with the former Minister President of the Free State of Saxony, Professor Dr. Georg Milbrandt. In Germany they use both Professor and Dr. in titles as they are not the same thing as they are in the U.S. He spoke primarily of economic issues facing Germany, especially those in the former Soviet controlled states. He was educated and taught at the university in the former West Germany. After reunification he returned to Saxony as a Minister of Finance. He shared information about the differences in wages before and after reunification and the issues facing the restructuring of their region. He pointed to the existing infrastructure of the West as the difference in the transition for East Germany vs. other Soviet controlled nations. He stressed that although there are many problems facing the former GDR the answer is production and modernization of the economy. He also addressed land reform after the fall of the communist regime.

In the afternoon we visited the STASI Documentation Center. The STASI were the secret police of the former GDR. The number of STASI and contributors numbered more than 60:1. This is the one visit that left me more than a little agitated. There were over 600,000 people identified as spied on by their government and their neighbors. The presentation was more of a report and although they have made great efforts to document these issues I found no remorse from the East at all. In the West it is almost too much remorse for the atrocities of the holocaust...not so much in the East. I guess my cold war upbringing in American public schools kicked in as it seemed to bother me more than the presentations in the West about the Holocaust. I was glad we had an Atlantik-Brucke representative with us...she helped keep the perspective in order.

After this we toured Dresden...the city I wanted to visit very much. Only 26 buildings survived the firebombing during the closing days of WWII. Although many buildings looked as if they had smoke damage almost all of these buildings were built within the last 30 years. The Catholic Church has been rebuilt and has a beautiful interior and that is where the attached picture is from.

Be good...love ya, mean it.

Visited the German Resistance Memorial and attended a talk by Dr. Ekkehard Lausa. We were in the courtyard where Colonel Count Claus von Stauffenberg was executed for his part in Operation Valkyrie. It is amazing how brave the German people of the resistance were because it in most instances resulted in death. To gain access to Hitler would have been very difficult and yet throughout the war various plans were formulated. Operation Valkyrie took place on July 20, 1944. More peole were killed in the war after this date than before so although the war ended approximately one year later if the plan had been successful it would have saved many lives. The bottom line is that you must protect against the rise of totalitarianism and the sacrifice o human rights in the name of naitonal security.

We also visited the federal building again today and this time we received a briefing by one of the top advisors to Germany on the United Nations and Global Issues. The talk focused mainly on the future and responsibility of this organization. Although there are many regional and economic issues that affect Germany they believe that it must be a concerted effort by the United Nations to address Climate Change, Economics Development, and Human Rights. The UN has global membership of 192 countries. Much of the talk focused on the reform of the Security Council.

We visited the Holocaust Museum in Berlin...very sobering. It is almost too overwhelming to watch more presentations on this topic. Each day we receive additional information over the holocaust. Although it is certainly one of the greatest tragedies in Germany I think you would be surprised at how many monuments there are to the holocaust and how often they speak against the issues that led to the Holocaust. It is somewhat surprising...although it was horrific and you would not want to ever repeat such an event...they spend a great deal of time in public and in school teaching about this time period and it molds much of their current policy - especially on immigration - even today. We spoke to an advisor on immigration also. They have many of the same issues that the US faces. What to do with people who do not speak the native language and how to assimilate them into society. I was surprised however when we visited a trade school and they indicated that immigrant students attended the school...these were 3rd generation Turkish people who live in the country. I can't imagine referring to a 3rd generation American as an immigrant. Although I know we do other things that probably seem as odd.

We also visited Check Point Charlie, the Berlin Wall, the Reichstag, the Allied Museum, the Brandenburg Gate, and walked past the US Embassy. We were notified that there is a high alert due to the elections by Al-Quaida. After staying here in Germany for only a week I can say with absolute honesty that although we worry an attack some you come to realize that bowing to a tyrant is the last thing you should do. How can you be in the land that teaches against the likes of Hitler and avoid any activity because of Osama Bin Laden? The answer is...we won't.

Hello...Today we are in Berlin. You guys would have laughed a great deal yesterday had you seen me trying to jump on and off the trains. Oh my goodness. Yesterday we toured Hildeshiem and a number of historical sites. We visited a school here and guess what...? When we went to the library they had the same type of sign-in sheet that Mrs. Lewman had...I took a picture and will upload it later. She was as nice as Mrs. Lewman so it was good. The students were very nice and they made me miss you...don't tell the others. lol Who would have thought that. Their school is very similar but they get to go out to lunch - they have 55 minutes. They do not have sports like we do they have "clubs". They play teams within the school but they don't compete against other schools. They are very serious about there studies because they have to qualify for the university...if they don't score high enough they can not get into the college of their choice. Anyway...the trains yesterday...they said to pack light but I didn't understand they meant pack light because you are going to have to carry everything yourself. We went to Nuremburg on Wednesday and I could check my suitcase at the train station but I had to carry my carry-on bag the whole day...like 20 some pounds. What a hoot. As my husband would say
"you packed it, you carry it!" Oh my. Then we got on the train but it was a 1/2 hour late because of a wreck and then we missed our connecting train and that is a whole nuther story. To say the least it was a long day. Today we went to the Federal Foreign Office and visited with the German-American liason. He has been involved in government for over 40 years. He had dinner with the US Ambassador to Germany last night and then met with me this morning. What a lucky guy. Next we met with a national parliment representative. Elections are this Sunday. The main issues of the election are the economy, immigration issues, taxes (they feel they should be raised), Afghanistan, Social Justice, and Income Disparity (It is too great). Then we went to a trade school. From the 9th grade on you are either in a trade school curriculum or a college prep curriculum. You have to decide by the age of 15. That would be hard. In the trade school they had welding classes/trade classes, culinary, cosmetology, and sewing/tailors. They were mainly disadvantaged youth...they were immigrants. In Germany they still call you an immigrant even though these students were 3rd generation Germans. Many are from Turkey and there is growing resentment of the Turkish population. Then we met with one of the leading business newspapers from Germany - somewhat like the Wall Street Journal. The liberals here are for less government...isn't that funny? They have 6 political parties - 2 large parties and 4 small political parties and they must form a coalition to choose the Chancellor. President O'Bama wouild have had a hard time becoming President under this system. The parties must choose. Then we went to Microsoft Berlin. It was an interesting presentation. Tonight I just went to dinner with my new friends and then back to do homework and blog. I hope you are all being good. We don't have much time for sightseeing but I hope that Saturday night I will be able to go to the "Wall" and the Brandenburg Gate. Tomorrow night we have a formal dinner with the organization that is sponsoring this trip - Atlantik - Brucke. They have been very generous. We have stayed in the best hotels and most meals are provided. Talk to you tomorrow. Love ya, mean it. Erv

Dachau

Today we visited Dachau. As Mr. Omstead shared it was a work camp as opposed to a death camp. It was very sobering. We had a private tour as the camp was closed today to the general public. With only 14 people in the whole camp I think it made it even more sobering. This camp is where Josef Mengale performed his medical experiments. They gave examples of many and it was very gross. I did not realize there were so many colored triangles for different groups. You see the yellow ones for the Jewish people and red for opposition party members but there were many others based on nationality, race, ethnicity, handicapping condition, and sexual orientation. The German people today are very cognizant of their history and Mein Kampf is banned from Germany. Mein Kampf is the book Hitler wrote while in jail in the early 1920s. If you are doing research you can read it at the library but if you are found owning a copy you are arrested. We were at the camp for 3 hours. Some American tourists saw us in the camp and jumped over the fence to get in...I found it ironic that people scaled the fence to get in when so many wanted to scale the fence to get out. It seemed the last place you should climb over a wall to get into. (I know...Ervinish) We then toured Munich in the afternoon and we were taken to many of their important government buildings. We saw the memorials to the people who died under the Nazi regime, we saw Hitler's office, and the area in Munich where the book burnings were...it is now a place of learning with a museum and every year they gather at the same site to read books from the authors whose books were burned. In Hitler's office building there was a memorial in the bottom to memorialize the victims of the holocaust...it is called the Stumbling Steps. I thought this was very interesting. Although a truly horrific part of their history the name says something to all of us...we may stumble in life (and truly very badly) but we should only see them as stumbling steps and as the German people have done...admit the failings of our past while keeping our eyes firmly fixed on the future.

End of Day 1

End of Day 1. Many of you will be glad that we went to Octoberfest. It was nothing like I had imagined. It is really a full fledged festival - somewhat like Mardi Gras does King's Island. The people were dressed in traditional German dress - frauline dresses and the shorts outfit for men. There were amusement park rides, lots of food and of course their favorite beverage. Sorry to disappoint but I did not partake. There are betwen 400,000 - 600,000 people each day and it lasts 3 weeks. We were invited into one of the clubs that hosts an inside get together. There were between 3,000 - 4,000 people. Our tickets so that we could have a seat at a table were 100 Euros - or approximately $130 American. For my Economics students you hear the news shows talk about the economic impact of the Indy 500 or the Super Bowl but this is more than that many people for 3 weeks straight. My students will like this because it is so "Ervinish". We were seated at the opposite side of the room from the exit and upstairs - trust me our fire marshall would not have approved - and I was thinking "so this is how people burn to death in other countries" I know - only me. So the next time you hear people complain about the government just remember that some of the regulation is needed because of market failures. They were making a lot of money and so the more they can pack in the greater the profit. Without government regulations many business owners would pursue a profit - which is what our market economy values - over safety regulations. So the free market is good but it does have some failings. The shops are all closed here on Sunday but you can buy liquor - at home we can go to the shop on Sunday but we can't buy liquor. Totally opposite. The Indiana State Legislature held hearings last week on this very topic. Indiana has what are called "blue laws" and one of them is no sale of alcohol on Sundays. The blue laws were based on religious beliefs but many feel they are outdated. The box stores (Meijer, Walmart, Kroger) are lobbying hard for Indiana to repeal this law. The owners of liquor stores contend this will put them out of business. We will see what happens over the next few months. The image is of the Catholic Church that is next to where I am staying. Regardless of your religious beliefs you have to admit it is a beautiful cathedral.