When Mama Comes to Town

We took off the last ten days while my mother was visiting. Today is her last full day here, and tomorrow, we will take her to the airport to go home again. We did lots of stuff while she was here:

We went to Strasbourg in the Alsace Region of France. 

carousel built in 1900

We visited two concentration camps: Dachau and Flossenburg:

leaving a note on the wall

contemplating the pyramid of ashes

We visited a local chocolate factory and a local castle ruins.

such a cool candy shop!

We went to Rothenburg, Germany, on the Romantic Road.

watching animated figures at the Kathe Wohlfahrt store

And we went to Oktoberfest in Munich!!!

My VERY first German beer. The only beer I've ever liked. 

What we did on spring break...

Charles had a week off from work for spring break, so we took advantage of the time together, hopped a train and went exploring.

We went to Nürnberg, home of the Nazi War Crimes Tribunal. It was a rich history lesson for all of us. 

Here is Courtroom 600, the courtroom where the tribunal took place. It's been remodeled, of course, as it is still in use today as a courtroom. But the general sense of what it looked like was easy to imagine. The defendants sat in the box to the right of the large doorway. There's an elevator in the box for secure entry and exit of prisoners (can you see the door?). I've studied Nazi Germany for almost two decades. Entering this courtroom was emotionally overwhelming to me. I actually cried. I felt embarrassed for crying, but the flood gates were opened and I let loose. The feeling of being there is somber, tremendously moving... I don't know how to word the feeling. Just...go there yourself if you ever get the chance. 

Bay admitted complete boredom here. As you can see, she is less than enthused about sitting here while Tuna and I (Charles, too, to a lesser extent) sat in awe of history. Tuna listened attentively to her audio tour. I listened to a bit of it but was too overwhelmed to continue. 

The city is full of interesting (weird) statues. 

The famous golden fountain (which was never actually a working fountain at all!). Ornate. Pretty. 

I love finding smiles in inanimate objects! We spotted this fella from the top of the castle, through my camera's zoom. 

The girls are sitting on rock at the base of the castle. We got a fascinating tour of the well house, which was guarded securely, because the Germans were concerned with poisoning plots against them. The well was crazy-deep. I don't remember how deep it was. The tour guide lowered lit candles down into the bottom of the (still full of fresh water) well so we could see how far down it went. The other demonstration he conducted was pouring a pitcher of water into the well. It took the water a full five or six seconds to hit the well water! Tuna asked the guide about the oxygen levels in the well, and expressed concern about how the workers survived. It was all chiseled through solid rock by hand. The tour guide was knowledgeable in the oxygen topic and even told Tuna exactly how far down oxygen can typically be found (a little bit further than the well was dug). Later, I asked Tuna how she thought to ask that question. She reminded me of the scene in one of our Little House books when Pa and the neighbor were digging the well and they send a candle down each day to check for oxygen. That was a nice reminder that the way we're learning really works. We do sticky learning. ;)

Along the same lines: We took a break sitting on some monument steps. The monument was this one here:

It's a monument to Wilhelm the First, who was the first emperor of Germany. We needed a rest, and he offered it.

Tuna took off her shoes and gave herself a massage. :)

Bay sprawled out on the monument steps and soaked in the newly-found sunshine (it's springtime!). I had no idea who Wilhelm was, and I asked about him aloud. Bay knew who he was and explained to me the changes in German government throughout history. And she's not even really that "into" history! Sticky learning! Yay!

We really enjoyed ourselves. Not every moment was rich in history or educationally-motivated. We just went to have a great, memorable day together. It was a "bucket list" city for us. We spent a good part of the day shopping, eating (being next door to Italy does have its perks, lemmetellya!), and goofing around. 

It's so cool that I don't have to force-feed information to my daughters, because they absorb real-world experiences like thirsty sponges. 

Now then, I'm off to enjoy the final day of spring break with my family. We're sanding and painting furniture and putting in a garden today. The temperature is supposed to hover around 65F. Enjoy your day!