I forgot to give leave of my absence: husband and I spent the last week in Hamburg, Germany--actually we spent most of it in a small suburb of Hamburg called Shenefelt.
So, for the sake of family and friends who might be interested, I'll narrate a few pictoral highlights.
Brother, the hero (thanks to Mom!) completed a joint mission to deliver wedding album to O'Hare. Thanks, so much to David & Mom!
I got to play lots of house with adorable nieces!
Oliver and 2nd cousin Tim (age 6) rally to the goal.
Ellen comes out to play; Britta comes out to ref.
Klara watches from the window.
Husband and me at the German reception. His parents arranged this for all the friends and family who couldn't make it halfway around the world for our wedding. I didn't really know what was going on most of the time (ah, Deutsch), but the vibe was good.
Husband and brother-in-law Scott enjoy a celebratory cigar.
It's a tradition to take a walk through the woods between the main course & dessert. Here we are with family friends from Switzerland.
Ellen is always cheerful when she has candy.
The album proves its usefulness.
The day after our reception was spent in downtown Hamburg taking in the sights with the cousins. Here is Husband reminiscing with the mini-train at the train station in Hamburg. If you put a euro in, the train moves. Opa always let him put money in.
The many cranes of Hamburg, city of industry.
Playmobile Pink Princess Castle--I had to capture that image.
The little ones had to stay home on the city day--you can see them in the window.
We heard the bells of St. Michel up close and personal.
St. Michel: the tallest spire in Hamburg, one of seven used by sailors to gauge their proximity to the city.
Life-size playmobile world cup players!
The village square where we had Sunday lunch. It faces the harbour and every weekend there is a farmer's market there.
Schulla (flounder) topped with Bacon--one of Father-in-law's favorites.
On Sunday afternoon the men went to a soccer game. I was treated to a tea party with Mutti and Oma.
Oma made the tablecloth herself.
Oma and Opa's window view.
After the soccer game, the men enjoyed hot grog.
Husband and Oma.
Opa saved all the pictures and mail Husband and his siblings sent across the Atlantic and still keeps them in a drawer. Husband knew just where to look.
Oliver's 6th grade rendition of a punk rocker. Scary or funny?
Childhood drawings.
Husband's parents took us on a day trip to a destination of our choosing. We decided on Luneberg, a small ancient town about 45 minutes outside of Hamburg. It felt the most like Europe.
I would like to live there.
The river.
Said to be one of J.S. Bach's churches, in Luneberg.
When we got back we went to the park with Scott, Britta, and little ones.
I taught her how to do the butterfly.
On our last night we went out for dinner with Oma and Opa. We took the bus to a little Greek restaurant and saw a few family landmarks along the way.
The sweet church where Oma and Opa were married, about 2 blocks from where they live now.
The building where Oma went to school--back then it was a 45 minute walk each way.
Dinner at the best Greek restaurant ever. Oma and Opa are regulars and favorites at a few local restaurants, which guaranteed us excellent service and Ouzo on the house.
There are lots of things I didn't get pictures of--the dense green of Shenefelt--the ordered hedges weighted with lilacs, wisteria, and peonies and spotless yards and narrow streets, the small lake we ran to one morning, and the local Aldi (yes, family, did you know Aldi comes from Germany?).
I didn't get as many pictures of the relatives as I wanted. Not knowing German, I didn't want to freak them out by pointing the camera at them too often. I didn't get pictures of Bandt's and Patricia's house, which is only a few years old and has two maples in the front yard (one for each son). I didn't get pictures of our afternoon tea at Tante Monika's, or Tante Mariana's. I didn't get enough pictures of sweet Britta & Scott, who we were privileged to share home with all week.
And I definitely did not take a picture of our long hours at the Frankfurt airport, where we missed a ridiculously tight connection and of course, a night of sleep, and where, in the midst of a marital scuffle that bordered between fighting and flirting, my glass bottle of Aveda facial freshner went flying out of my hands and crashed at the feet of a 40-ish, paper-grading high school teacher. She was kind; we were apologetic. The terminal exploded with aromatherapy. I must write about it to remember.
Now we're back in our desert house. It was a lovely trip, most of all because of our dear family. But we are glad to be home too. I have a lot of thoughts right now--about Providence and its powerful movements across the globe, about family and the depths of ministry within that network and our callings to it, about how fun it is to go to Europe with my sweet Husband who tirelessly translated for me, and about good ole Bach, and which Fugue to learn next. What was he thinking?
6 comments:
I've enjoyed my time in beautiful Germany. Many there have kept a healthier view of community than we have. Yet, it can also be a dark place where churches, as beautiful as they are on the outside, have little influence in that community.
sum sum, i love the pictures! it looks like it was a fantastic trip.
Summer, it looks like you had a wonderful time! That was a great opportunity. I'm so happy for you. It's also good to have you back safely. :)
Great pictoral journal. Katie and I are hoping to get to Germany next year, but hopefully New Mexico before that.
Mrs. J... that was Leipzig, as I remember, stuck outside the church side door... who'd have thunk that you would come so far from that bus we had to sleep on for a week throughout Reformation land... what was that, ten years ago?
Hey, nice bag!!! You have wonderful taste! How DO you do it? Great pictures, looks like you had a fabulous time. Sometimes when I see you i think i see me. It gets confusing. We are sisters.
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