The Answer is Blowing in the Wind!

Eintracht BS Team Flag. (I think)

This is the view yesterday from my kitchen window.  Not a lot happening, I had a quiet day, but it was very windy and the lilac bushes and flag were on the go without a break from morn til night!   I think the flag is that of the local Eintracht BS Fussball Team.  The answer is blowing in the wind if only I can find it!

I had my feet up most of the day, although did my usual 3 mile return walk to Weststadt for groceries in the morning.   Lunch was simple, a tasty nutty, seedy, wholemeal roll filled with that really smelly cheese, sliced tomato and a dash of mayonnaise.   I watched the World Championship ice skating on Eurosport during the afternoon.  What grace but how exhausting it must be for those tiny girls!   

I can understand many of the commentaries on tv, sometimes I get a whole sentence and can get the gist of what's happening, a picture helps, but it is all spoken too quickly.   It is good to hear the language constantly spoken and is working wonders for my pronunciation.   I will get there eventually and would love to be a bi-lingual old age pensioner.

The Wedding Day with Tea and Scones.

Janet in her greenhouse.

Post Wedding tea

 The Big Day started a little too early for me.  In order to reach the S-Bahn stop at Weserstrasse by 09.30 I had to get up really early to sort things before I left home, and I had to remember to pack everything, including my home made scones and Bisto and Oxo cubes for Janet, these cannot be bought in Germany!   It was an easy journey, hop off the tram onto the bus and I arrived  at Janet's at 10.40, in time to watch the Wedding on Sky TV in English.   What a pretty dress she wore, all lacy top and I liked the plainness of the gown and veil, and such a tiny bouquet. 

After the "Big Ceremony" we sat on the terrace, drank tea, spoke English and enjoyed the sunshine in Janet's garden, with its profusely blooming lilac bush and ruby red tulips.   I arrived home at 18.30, weary from sitting down and watching the box all day!

Thursday I had the Baking of Scones, on Royal Wedding Day we eat them!



 

After.

Before

I am not a cake maker, my only attempt at making a Lemon Merangue pie ended in failure, when I produced what looked like a coagulated mush of thick slimy  custard. It lay on the bottom of a dish and refused to come out.   Cakes seem to know I don't like them, so they gang up on me!  Anyway the scones are not too bad, they taste nice, I have eaten two already and with butter and jam, kindly provided by J in Querum when I visit to watch the Wedding they will taste "Lecker!!

There was a storm in Timmerlah on Wednesday evening, big bangs in the garden and lots of lightning.  It was spectacular to watch over the wide landscape outside my lounge window.  I eventually lowered the "Jaluosien" the louvered blinds outside the windows, and to which I referred in an earlier Blog.   Another good use for the blinds is for  those who hate storms, you can shut out the wild flashes and no rain lashes the  windows.   Off now to watch the Wedding,  I hope you all have a wonderful extra holiday everyone.

"A Mature Woman's Guide to German Train Spotting"

Wednesday morning it rained, the first of my visit, so I consulted the above book and in Chapter 2, "Stuck in on a Wet Morning?"  found a guide to identifying German trains!!  I jest, it was wet, and from the front window of my flat I have a grandstand view of all the passing trains, those from Hannover that serve this local region. 



Car transporter from Volkswagen.

 One photo shows the "ICE" InterCityExpress, the silver grey with a red strip along its length, fast train that serves the long distances between major cities.  A local red double-decker train serves the smaller towns.  I did not take the "ICE" photo, I do not live on the track!   www.seat61.com/ice.htm    Really smart trains!

VW's state of the art car plant is not far from here at Wolfsburg, where there is a visitor centre. I was to visit last year, but the heatwave defeated me, 38c was just too hot to visit a car plant.  I will make a visit later in the year.  Car transporters pass frequently loaded with vehicles.



An "ICE" Train

Yesterday I went to the Birthday Party of a good friend, ate too much wonderful cake of course, but  had a good time with my ears ringing with German conversation.   Today I must shop again, I forgot the milk yesterday and today must bake some scones.  On Friday I visit J & G in Querum for a "Let's Watch the Wedding on Sky TV in English"  whilst at the same time eating English Scones with Cream and Jam.  This will be our Street Party Celebration! 


I Give Greetings to Braunschweig from Bath.

The bombing of Braunschweig.



Domplatz.



After a good walk yesterday morning  to Weststadt and back  for essential food  shopping, mackerel fillets in curry sauce x 2 and four nutty, seedy rolls,  I took the S-Bahn into BS in the afternoon for a bit more shopping and for the 17.00 daily Music and "Andacht" (Devotion) talk in the Dom.  The Domprediger is Dr  Joachim Hempel who is a friend  of  the Bath/Braunschweig Twinning Association and with the Bishop of Bath Abbey.  After the short Devotion, I gave Dr Hempel "Goodwill Wishes" from the Bath Group, of which I am a member. 

The plaque above gives details of the bombing of Braunschweig on the nights of  October 14th/15th 1944.  Most of the city was destroyed and 3000 inhabitants were killed including foreign workers and prisoners of war.  Some historic areas have been rebuilt as "Traditional Islands" little groups of historic buildings that give a feel for how the town must have looked, and are now amid an outcrop of modern constructions.  I like the city, although very modern it is possible to escape into the quiet, half timbered areas and church cloisters and squares.    www.braunschweig.de/english/   Click on the address for information about the city.

There is much music to be heard in these huge churches with their great sloping roofs. I have the programmes for the coming season, so I am in my element.  Haydn's Creation will be performed in the Dom on May 29th and on May 8th is a concert of Organ music by Bach, Reger and Cesar Franck in St Aegidien, a short walk from the Dom.  Wunderschoen!

Norbert's Brief Love Affair and Rasputin Expires in German.



Norbert's brief love affair with Golden Bunny.

 Poor Norbert, on Ostersonntag he met Golden Bunny, a Lindt chocolate friend and it was love and kisses at first sight!  However Golden Bunny has disappeared, gone, melted into thin air without so much of a, "Goodbye Norbert, I will always love you."   Someone ate him, I don't know who, well, actually it was me!

I have discovered a TV station showing English and American films dubbed into German.  Ostersonntag evening I watched "Murial's Wedding" and last night the attempts to kill Rasputin, which took a pint of poison-laced wine and multiple gunshots, played itself out in wonderful German, the gasps, gulps, uggghhhhs and bangs needed no translation.  

Of course, everyone speaks too quickly, but what I grasp is the melody of the language, waiting for the verb at the end of some sentences, and the proper pronunciation.  On Radio the best programmes are Church services, where the priest addresses the congregation in measured terms, slowly and so easy to understand.   Byeeeeee!

A Visit from Friends and a Walk in Timmerlah Woodland.

Easter Sunday was another quiet day, although two new friends visited during the morning, Ulli from the choir I'm about to join and her son, who is a doctor working in a London hospital and who lives in Chalfont St Giles.  He has lived in England for many years and speaks perfect English.  He's on Facebook so we will be able to keep in touch.  The word Facebook has become a verb, to facebook!    We have both been facebooked!!

Ulli and I had a good chat about the choir, the Chorverein "Concordia-Brunsviga" Braunschweig.  The choir consists of a group of older people who, like myself, enjoy singing.  Ulli gave me a CD of a choir concert performance and the choir sounds really good.  They sing some popular songs in English, "Moon River" being one, and sang delightfully.  I'm looking forward to singing again and in German.  I've sung JS Bach's (my boyfriend)  Cantatas in German over the years, so I don't envisage too much of a problem.  English songs will be a doddle!

I do not have a particular faith, but there is a saying,  "Those who sing, pray twice." Singing is a great way to celebrate life, even if you are a bit tone deaf!  To sing is also good for the lungs,  a daily sing up might just add a few years to your life.  Happy days and enjoy the sunshine, it is very hot here.