A Walk through History

As some, well, lets be honest, as all of you know, I've been dating this European Dreamboat for a few months

He was on assignment in Munich, then had to go home for what was meant to be a month. It ended up being a lot longer. So, I decided to come visit.

I arrived on a Sunday afternoon. Erik picked me up from the airport and we drove to his house. I was so nervous to meet his parents, but of course, they are the nicest people in the world. I mean, Erik's the nicest guy in the world, so his parents had to be great. So great they did this:

Funny thing is, I didn't even notice it at first. My boyfriend had to point it out. Even then, it didn't click to me that it was odd to be flying an American Flag in The Netherlands. But then I got it. How awesome are they!!

 Now, Erik is like an adult or something, and he has this job where he has to go everyday? I don't really get the whole idea, but thankfully Monday was a holiday so he had the day off. He took me on a walk through the forest near his house. His town has a lot of history from World War 2, and his dad spends a lot of time researching it. His dad created a walk through their forest as a sort of remembrance to what has happened.

The start of the walk

This is a replica of the underground caves people hid Jews it. You can't see them from behind, they just blend in with the landscape.

A pilot crashed in his town and due to the soil conditions his imprint remained in the mud for 10-15 years. This is a replica of that (my boyfriend was the model)

This is a crater from where a plane dropped their bomb cargo

Nazi trenches

Erik in the Nazi trenches

Just lookin' hott.

The whole thing is really cool. I think it's great how much Europeans still remember the war and try to learn from it so history doesn't repeat itself.

Look closely at this picture

Could you be more Dutch?
hehe. Okay back to my story.

So anyway, along with the cool forest, his father also created this monument to commemorate the crew of a bomber that crashed here during the war.

His dad has put a lot of work into this, and has even been invited to dine with the Queen because of it!! So basically, what I'm trying to tell you is, my boyfriends kind of a big deal. Hahahaha.

Anyway, it was a great day. I learned a lot. And really love his town.

Frühlingsfest

I wanted to start this post with, "It's finally spring in Germany" but then I realized, hmm. I think I may have not one, but two post already with this beginning. Then I pause and look outside. It's pouring rain, and yet again, freezing cold.


What is with this weather I ask you! One day it's 80 degrees, the next it's 40! My wardrobe is getting confused!

And now the point of this post.

Frühlingsfest. Ah Frühlingsfest. Known to the locals as "Oktoberfest's little sister", it is in fact, just another excuse for German's to get dressed up in lederhosen and dirndls and drink at inappropriate times of the day.

Now, it's not all about drinking. There are also rides. Like the County Fair. And many places to buy greasy German fast food.

So you're thinking, let me get this straight. First you get drunk, then you eat a giant bratwurst followed by a schnitzl, then you go spin around high up in the air?

My answer for you is yes. That's exactly what you do. Until 8pm. If you have managed to stay conscious until around 8pm, then the real fun begins. (or the real fun for me, considering I don't drink) Everyone gathers together in these giant beer tents where there are many tables packed full of people. They cram as many people as they can into on table, and have about 25% of the amount of servers they require. All of them are very cranky. I wonder why? People squish as close as they can, and needless to say you end up making a lot of friends. The fire captain would not be happy about this.

In addition, they decorate them as if it were going out of style. Tons of color everywhere! When the night gets going, they have DJ's come and play popular music, both American and German. People get crazy. They stand up and on the benches and dance like no one is watching. Now. The problem with mixing alcohol, Germany, height, and dancing is, people fall down a lot. Something like this would never happen in America, because frankly, someone would sue. It sure is funny to watch.

On that note. While I was sipping my alcohol free beverage, the waiter came around and brought more beer to our table. In the process, he set a glass on top of my glass and it chipped. I showed him the shards of glass in my drink. He looked at me and said (in German), "what do you want me to do about it?" and walked away. hmm. I'm proud of the American Legal System. And no, I'm not ashamed to say that.

This festival goes on for about three weeks. It sure is a lot of fun. Sadly, like all good things, it came to an end.

126 more days until Oktoberfest.