Wordless Wednesday: Holiday Treats

Wordless Wednesday: Botanical Escape

Wordless Wednesday: Camouflage

Can you see me? Can you see my friend?

The Botanical Garden At The Wilhelma Zoo

This time of year is tough weather wise. Days are more apt to be gray and dreary than they are sun filled, trees are still barren and a few select flowers may have begun to tentatively pop up from the ground. Come March I find myself in desperate need of a pick-me-up and this past weekend I found just that in Stuttgart, Germany (of all places). I spent the day at the Wilhelma Zoo and Botanical Garden and experienced the boost of spring I so desperately needed.

Prickly garden

Now the zoo was nice, much nicer in fact than many zoos I have visited, but it was the arboretums and greenhouses that really make this zoo so special. Located on the outskirts of Stuttgart, and like many European zoos and botanical gardens, and sharing a similar history with Berlin's zoo, this zoo's grounds were originally designed as a private royal retreat for Swabian King Wilhelm I. The buildings and grounds were designed with a Moorish style, which was popular with royal families during the mid 19th Century. The grounds encompass 70 acres, contains original gardens and structures as well as new ones and has numerous glass houses which hold the lush greenhouses and tropical gardens. It is the only zoo and botanical garden in Germany and welcomes over 2.1 million visitors each year.

Visiting in March, the grounds were well manicured but lacked the vivid colors and lush foliage that summer blooms would bring. But all was not lost. By stepping inside one of the many indoor tropical glass houses, I was greeted with the warmth, humidity and lush colors that I was looking for. While I don't have a green thumb--a black thumb is more like it--I've always been a fan of greenhouses of all kinds. Whether it is the greenhouses with budding seedlings found at your local garden shop or elaborate arboretums at botanical gardens, there is something about the earthy smell and steamy humidity that just relaxes my body and my soul. And the steamy and lush glass houses at this botanical garden were no exception.

Strolling through the azaleas

Bloom ready to burst open

We wandered from one glass house to another taking in the greenery and flowers. There was the glass house which while still warm was more arid. This one was home to amazing prickly cacti and hearty aloe plants. More tropical environments contained soaring palm trees and plants more reminiscent of the tropics rather than Germany. There were tiny ponds, moss covered expanses and even a citrus grove complete with lemons and oranges. An entire house filled with blooming azalea bushes reminded me of our old azalea filled neighborhood back in Norfolk. I had forgotten how much the bright pinks and reds filled me with cheer, Then there was the Amazon house, located in the lower "new" glass house. Here we found not only giant snakes and a crocodile but the birds and plants that go along with the environment.

Yes, the color is real

All of this was a wee bit of welcome paradise that was just what I needed to drive away the late winter blues. And judging but the manicured grounds and carefully pruned trees outside of the glass houses, I can only imagine how beautiful the entire grounds must be in the midst of summer. I dare say that they warrant a return trip to Stuttgart.

Lush foliage and steamy temperatures provides a brief respite from the
raw weather outside

If you go:

Wilhelma Zoo & Botanical Garden

Wilhelmaplatz 13

70376 Stuttgart, Germany

+49 711 54020

www.wilhelma.de

16 Euro for adults, 8 Euro children, ages 6 and under are free

Open daily from 08:15; closing times vary throughout the year

Wordless Wednesday: Modern Lights

The Saxon City Of Dresden

Frauen Kirche at night

Our recent road trip through Germany included a stop in the city of Dresden and our visit proved to be one of the most interesting cities we have visited in a long time. I wasn't sure what to expect from this city as we had scheduled a stop here because it was along our route to our next destination. I had failed to really do any research before we arrived so my only knowledge of the place was what I remembered from my high school history classes. But for us, Dresden turned out to be a hidden gem and we left wishing we could have spent more time there. Needless to say, we will be returning.

Located in the Saxony region of eastern Germany near the border with the Czech Republic, Dresden has long been a cultural, educational and political center for Germany. Dresden was first settled in the 12the century, became the seat of the Saxony region in 1485 and quickly became a gathering place for painters, musicians and architects from all over Europe. This confluence of artistic talent influenced the skyline for which Dresden in famous. The 1800s saw an increase in the military presence in the area with over 20,000 military personnel serving in the garrison there at the beginning of World War I.  This combination of art, culture and yes, military brought about the circumstances by which I knew about Dresden; the bombing of the city by the Allied forces.

For three days in February 1945, in a two-fold attack, the Royal Air Force and the United States Army Air Forces dropped 2,431 tons of explosive bombs and close to 1,476 tons of incendiaries on the city of Dresden. While the bombs damaged and destroyed buildings, the incendiaries ignited what was left, essentially burning the largely wooden city, therefore reducing the amount of shelters available for retreating German soldiers and refugees. Years later the number of reported deaths was 25,000 but at the time Nazi propaganda had the number in the 200,000 to 500,000 range. Because the target was not a military installation, women and children accounted for the majority of the causalities. The legitimacy of the bombardment was immediately questioned by war observers. The majority of the city center was destroyed and the heavily inhabited center of the city was all but wiped out while the industrial zones and military installations on the outskirts of the city escaped the bombings relatively untouched. At the time the Allies described the bombings as a legitimate attack on military and industrial targets. Although he was involved in the planning, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill took measures to distance himself from the attack.

The Furstenzug depicting Saxon sovereigns

In the years after World War II the city of Dresden recovered but scars of the war remained. Located in Soviet controlled East Germany, (where current Russian president Vladimir Putin was stationed between 1985 and 1990 as a KGB officer), it once again became an industrial powerhouse and investments were made in improving the infrastructure of the city.  Some historical structures were rebuilt while others were remade in a more "socialist modern" style. Unfortunately, many of the bombed out churches, palaces and cultural buildings were all but razed by the Communists.

Walking around Dresden today you see evidence of the past as well as hope for the future. Many of the city's grand buildings bear the pock marks of bullets and wear the soot and grime of age with pride. Rather then fill them in or erase evidence of the destruction, they are a part of the Dresden landscape.  A walk along the promenade above the Elbe River shows off the city at its best. To me, Dresden feels worn but proud with a sense of hope. Across the broad flood plain of the Elbe sits the more modern and reconstructed part of the city. Closer to the historic city center the grand buildings that house the city's museums, educational and cultural centers. Some buildings show their age while others appear to be in mint condition. Newly constructed hotels fight for space with the restaurants, cafes and trinket shops that are ubiquitous with every tourist center.

Dresden skyline

And the rebirth of the city continues today. The reconstruction of the Frauen Kirche, which anchors one end of the grand Neumarket Square, was only completed in 2005 due in a large part to private donations. On the outside, it is easy to see which parts of the church exterior are original and which parts are reconstructed. On the inside of the church the walls and ceilings the pastel colors resemble beautifully gilded Easter eggs. But the pattern of new stone blocks abutting old is not unique to the cathedral; it can be seen on most of the buildings in central Dresden. The area around Newmarket Square is gradually being rebuilt with many of the buildings being reconstructed as they were originally built. A walk across the square is like walking through time; you start out in a completely rebuilt area that exudes the charm and character of times long past before wandering into the newer "socialist modern" area. The contrast is quite striking but then again so is the entire city of Dresden.

I liked Dresden. A lot. I wish we had more time to explore her secrets but now that we have gotten a taste of what she has to offer we want to return.

Lions & Tigers & Bears, Oh My!

Gorilla in the monkey house

It is repeatedly rated as one of the best zoos in the world and having visited, I can say I whole heartedly agree. First established in 1844, the Berlin Zoo encompasses 84 acres is home to 1,500 different species and close to 20,500 animals. It sits in the middle of a city that has survived occupations, wars, divisions and time itself.  After all of these years it is still going strong and visitors seeking a brief respite from touring the museums, Wall memorials and the general hustle and bustle of the city flock there on a daily basis. We visited on a cold day in the middle of the week and we were not alone as the line to enter queued for several city blocks. (Over 3 million people visited in 2013 alone). But the wait was worth what we experienced once we were inside.

When the Berlin Zoo was first opened, it was the first zoo in Germany, the ninth in Europe and was located on the outskirts of the city limits; today it sits in its center.The first animals were donated by Frederick William IV, the King of Prussia who had a summer retreat complete with peacocks, bears, kangaroos and water buffalo on an island near Potsdam. The first full time director was appointed in 1869 and from then until the end of the century the zoo continued to grow in both size and scope as exotic animal habitats with ornate structures were established. The building of a minaret topped antelope house, and Indian style elephant house, and Egyptian inspired ostrich house and the elephant gate house soon had the Berlin Zoo competing with the venerable London Zoo.

Have you ever seen a goat actually standing on the ground?

The Zoo struggled during World War I but it was during the second world war that the Zoo was essentially destroyed. Bombed in 1941 then again in 1943 and 1944, much of the Zoo's infrastructure was destroyed as was many of the buildings. The Germans established a flak tower on the outskirts of the Zoo to help protect Berlin and particularly the nearby government buildings from Allied bombing raids. They also built a civilian air raid shelter and hospital on the zoo grounds itself to provide a secure storage facility for precious works of art. This flak tower was the last holdout against the invading Red Army. But tragically, of the 1,196 animals and 2,519 birds that called the Zoo home, all but 91 were killed before the war was over. The Zoo was rebuilt after the War with new, more modern buildings and structures replacing those that had been destroyed. The Berlin Blockade, financial and food shortages and a lack of physical manpower resulted in the Zoo's reconstruction being slow going. Once it was rebuilt, however, the Zoo became a recreational destination for West Berliners as the number of species continued to expand. With the reunification of Germany the Zoo worked in close cooperation with the Tierpark Zoo in the former East Berlin with some animals coming west and their two programs complementing each other.

Penguin swimming

When we visited I couldn't help but compare the Berlin Zoo with our own Pairi Daiza Zoo here in Belgium. "Our" zoo is a zoo and botanical garden set in a rural environment with expansive ponds, fields and gardens. The Berlin Zoo, with its skyline filled with skyscrapers, is much more compact but just as impressive. There were animals of every variety, birds and water mammals. The Berlin Zoo has two species of penguins (including the majestic Emperor Penguins) and more importantly to a certain little boy, those penguins swam in the water. No matter how many hours we've stood and watched the penguins at our zoo, they have never so much as dipped their feet in the water. And as our luck would have it, we were able to watch the sea lions being fed. The show wasn't on the caliber of Sea World but Sidney loved watching the sea lions perform with their trainer. And let us not forget the playground. No European family recreation center would be complete without at least one playground and this playground was by far the best one we have ever experienced.

It may have been cold but this zoo is great to visit any time of the year. Plan on making a day of it; we were there when the gates opened and they were shutting them behind us as we left. But the day flew by so if you are in Berlin and need a break from war history, visit the zoo. You won't be disappointed.

The sea lion show

If you go:

Hardenbergplatz 8
10787 Berlin, Germany
+49 (0) 30 254 010
Accessible by U-Bahn & S-Bahn
www.zoo-berlin.de
Open 09.00-19.00, reduced hours during the winter
Adults 13 Euro, children over the age of 5 are 6,50 Euro; family tickets and combination tickets for the
      aquarium are also available

An East German Way Of Life

During our recent trip to Berlin we spent an afternoon visiting the DDR Museum. We initially decided to visit since it promised to be a hands-on and interactive place where touching and exploring the exhibits was encouraged. (This is always especially important when traveling with a curious and energetic little boy who wants to touch everything). The museum was all that but what we found was a combination of sadness and nostalgia and the reality that regardless of what side of the Wall one resided on, families wanted the same things.

The interior of the museum itself is dark and concrete which appropriately sets the tone for what you are about to see. Kitschy is a word that can be used to describe many of the exhibits in the museum (and I say this in the best way). An ubiquitous Trabi was meant to be sat in and "driven" through the streets of East Germany. Every day life is portrayed through the model kitchen, living room and bathroom in the museum. The appliances, furniture and accessories looked remarkably similar to those in my own American grandparents home. The avocado green and gold of the 1970s? Yes, the East Germans lived with that too. And the bathroom? It wasn't American at all and could only be described as functional but it did look awfully similar to many that I encountered in 2012 Albania. (Powder blue). Sidney was especially taken with the rotary telephone. He eagerly sat on the scratchy plaid sofa and dialed and chattered into the phone. He only stared at me in disbelief when I explained to him that that type of telephone was the one I grew up with. The manuel typewriter was another novelty for a boy who is

The novel rotary telephone

growing up in the electronic age. He wanted to know where the screen was and why the keys were so hard to push. Children's toys and books looked very similar to those of the same period in the west. I suppose the biggest difference would be the picture books, which obviously geared for a young audience, were filled with images of stern looking soldiers holding even fiercer looking weapons. The best part of all of these exhibits was that they were meant to be touched, opened and pushed; perfect for little explorers.

But there were obvious differences between life in the west and life in the east. The food that was available for purchase was limited, involved queueing for hours and in the end was pretty unappetizing. Essentially every aspect of life was dictated by Moscow. There were sparsely filled wardrobes displaying the "fashions" of the time. None were fashionable by any stretch of the imagination and even during a time when polyester was all the rage, these man made materials were enough to make my skin crawl. But these fashion options were deemed appropriate by Moscow so that is what was available. There was the vacation display showing happy families cavorting in the buff at the beach, playing tennis or simply lounging. The first thought that entered my mind was that such a display would be deemed pornographic and simply not be allowed in any American museum. Sidney actually spotted the display before I did. He paused, looked at it then turned and told me that all of the people were naked. His only other commentary was that it was silly to play tennis without clothes. That was that. One exhibit focused on women's reproductive health which seemed to be quite advanced for the time and in many senses was ahead of where the U.S. is today.

Gas up your Trabi, grab you atlas and hit
the road through these countries

But the museum displays the darker side of East German life as well. Set between displays of soldiers and Stasi were mock prison cells and interrogation rooms. And the listening posts? They were everywhere but you could experience them from both sides of the table--as the interrogator and as the one being interrogated. This portion of the museum sent chills up my spine and reminded me of how dark and often terrifying East German life was for the ordinary East German citizen. The Party leaders and other high level officials, however, lead a very different life. While those Germans who could afford them drove around in their little German built Trabis, solid and reliable Volvos were the car of choice for the Party elite. The explanation? Locally made cars were simply too poorly made and unreliable for official use. Now that really says something, doesn't it?

And there are so many more things to see and explore here. Overall this museum is compact but every space is dedicated to portraying an aspect of daily life in East Germany. Our visit was interesting, I learned a few new things and it was the perfect place for younger kids to have a hands on exploring experience. And for what is a relatively low price when compared to so many museums, spending an afternoon at the DDR Museum is well worth the time and expense.


If you go:

DDR Museum
Karl-Liebknecht-Str 1
10178 Berlin-Mitte
+ 49 30 847 123 73 - 1
www.ddr-museum.de

Open daily 10.00-20.00, Saturdays until 22.00
Adult 7 Euro, Children 4 Euro
Lockers are available but bring change since they won't make it for you. There is also a restaurant on site. Eat outside overlooking the Cathedral and river if possible.

Germany, This Is Not

Everyone says that Belgium has three distinct personalities. There is the bureaucratic driven Brussels, the sophisticated, Flemish speaking Flanders, then the French speaking Wallonia. I live in Wallonia which is the poorest of the three regions. By all accounts life in this part of Belgium is slower and much more rural than the northern part of the country. The area is filled with historic hamlets and even the cities are small but most standards. Here you are more apt to encounter tractors than you are cars on some roads and I swear that cows outnumber people. French is the language of the region and it is quite possible to spend an entire day without meeting anyone who speaks English. It is also the poorest part of the country and this is evident when you drive on many of the roads. (Of course we spent close to three years living in Albania so it really is all relative). But do you know what? I really like it here.

For us, one of the best parts about being stationed in Europe is our ability to travel. When we lived in Albania we left the country whenever we could. There, travel outside of Albania's borders was a life line. It kept us sane, reminded us about everything Europe had to offer and provided a much needed respite from the day to day hassles. Since we've been in Belgium we've still been on the go but our travels are more apt to be inside of the country rather than out. We've been exploring every nook and cranny of our new home and loving it. But sometimes, it is still good to get farther away.

We spent last week in Germany which is so close, yet in many respects so far, from our home in Belgium. As we drove across the country to Berlin and back again I took in their perfectly paved Autobahn (or the portions that were less than perfect but actively being surfaced). Belgian roads are good in some parts of the country (Flanders) and a slow work in progress in others (Wallonia). Everything seemed so neat and orderly in the cities themselves and there was clearly a buzz that you just can't find in my little corner of the world. There was an efficiency about everything; streets and attractions were labeled, while not overly warm customer service was efficient instead of the typical pursing of the lips and "raspberrying" which is common in Belgium. And when we stood on a U-Bahn platform contemplating which direction we needed to go we were approached asking if we needed assistance. And most of all, everyone we met spoke English (not that this is an important criteria for us but it certainly does make things easier). Menus, signage and conversations were all bi-lingual (if not more). It was all really nice.

And now we are back in Belgium. Things are different here and I'm noticing it more than ever before. When fellow military members find out they are being stationed in Belgium they assume they are prepared because "they were in Germany before". This really isn't the case. It is hard to quantify the differences but things are slower, less organized and simply different here. Everything takes twice as long as it should. But the best advice I was given, and what I tell people who ask, is to accept it for what it is and enjoy it. I know we are. We really do like it here; if fact we just might love it. But then again it is all relative and we are just so glad that we aren't in Albania any more.

Berlin: A City Divided

Remnants of and a reminder of where the Wall once stood

Yesterday my blog post included pictures of the  remaining portions of the Berlin Wall. Intellectually I knew that the wall divided a city in half but until I actually walked through the city I didn't quite understand exactly what this meant. The Wall literally and figuratively divided a city in half. It physically separated families from one another, split neighborhoods and even apartment buildings in two, and cut people off from their very ways of life. And contrary to what I had thought, the wall was not a solid straight line slicing Berlin in two. Rather it was quite the opposite. It zig zagged, twisted and turned through neighborhoods and along streets, taking sharp turns and in some cases dividing actual buildings. The line the Wall followed remains today so visitors can see the actual path it cut. But even without the line as a reminder in many of the neighborhoods along the Wall it is easy to see what was located in the east and what remained in the west.

Wall remnants dividing a neighborhood

The division of Berlin was one of the outcomes of the end of World War II. During post war negotiations, Berlin was divided amongst the four Allied powers of the United States, Great Britain, France and the (then) Soviet Union. Tensions quickly increased between Stalin's Communist bloc and the western allies with living conditions in the Soviet controlled German Democratic Republic becoming increasingly strict. Indoctrination in Marxism-Leninism became compulsory in schools, property and industry were nationalized and residents themselves were coming under increased scrutiny from Soviet secret police. As living conditions became more strict, East Germans increasingly wanted the Soviets to leave but that didn't happen. As a result, East Germans themselves began fleeing to the west. And the Soviet's answer to all of this was to construct a physical barrier that would prevent people from leaving.

In 1961, and seemingly overnight, the Berlin Wall was erected. At midnight of 12 August, the East German police closed their border with the west and by morning roads allowing access to West Berlin had been broken up and destroyed in an attempt to stop the flow of vehicle traffic. (Trains continued to move from the west to the east and back again but they didn't stop at the eastern stations where passengers saw only armed guards as the trains passed by. These stations became known as "ghost stations").

Exploring the rebar remnants 

A total of 124 miles of barbed wire separating East Berlin from the west were quickly erected slightly inside the Eastern line. By late fall the wire had been reinforced with a 12 foot high rebar and concrete wall essentially closing off the east from the west. For extra security a second wall was created with a buffer zone in between that became known as the "death strip". The death strip area allowed guards manning the strategically placed towers an unobstructed view of the entire area. The barrier was essentially impenetrable and the East German police made sure it stayed that way. Guards were ordered to shoot on sight anyone they saw attempting to climb over the Wall. The official number of people who were killed while attempting to scale the Wall between 1961 and 1989 is136 but other statistics have the numbers being higher. The higher numbers take into account bodies found along the Wall, suicides of people who died after failed attempts to cross the barrier and even heart attacks that took place at the official border crossings. Soldiers themselves committed suicide and the first victim is said to be a young woman whose apartment abutted the new Wall. Her back door which faced the west had been boarded up with bricks overnight and she attempted to escape to the west by jumping from a third floor window. The youngest victim was only one and the oldest was 80. Others attempted to dig tunnels under the Wall in order to escape. And in order to prevent the guards themselves from escaping they always worked in pairs and were not allowed to talk to one another lest they become friends. And of course the order to shoot extended to the guards as well.

This week marks the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Wall. With the falling of the wall life once again changed but it didn't instantly revert back to the way life had been before its construction. Remnants of the wall remained, and still remain today, and the scars of the past are ever present. You can see them in dedicated memorials, kitschy tourist traps and redeveloping neighborhoods. To commemorate the anniversary of the Wall's falling, a recent Washington Post article examined the realities of a today's Germany. Although there is no longer a physical barrier separating the east from the west, the country remains divided in so many ways. I read the article while sitting in my Berlin hotel room after spending the day traipsing through the city. With the images and history of a divided Berlin so fresh in my mind the article had a whole different meaning for me. It reminded me that while the Wall went up quickly its  coming down is taking, and will take, generations for people to fully recover from. History is powerful and Berlin is a city where recent history is alive and on full display for all to see. After all, those of us who forget where we came from are destined to repeat the mistakes of the past.

A photograph of a photograph of what was known as "Checkpoint Charlie"
Today it is one of the worst touristy photo gimmicks I've ever seen--
A prime example of a capitalist society

The Wall

I remember sitting in front of our television and watching the fall of the Berlin Wall. I was in high school at the time and I distinctly remember thinking that I was watching history being made and understood that what was happening was significant. Since that day twenty-five years ago I've studied history and have come to understand just how significant that act really was. But walking along the wall in Berlin brought the significance to a whole other level.

I'll write more about the history of the wall in a future post, but in the meantime here are some pictures I took as I walked along the East Side Gallery in Berlin and experienced the power of the Wall for myself. The artwork is more expressive than words could ever be yet my pictures can't capture the feeling of experiencing it in person.

Berlin After Dark

A few scenes of Berlin after dark:

(Mostly) Wordless Wednesday: A Tiny German Street Festival

(Mostly) Wordless Wednesday: Groovy Man!

(Mostly) Wordless Wednesday: Kolner Dom

(Mostly) Wordless Wednesday: Chocolate In The Raw

Chocolate in the raw

Its A Small, Small World

The American interstate system
(in miniature)

During our recent stay in Hamburg, when it was simply too cold to spend an extended amount of time outside, we were desperate for an activity that would get us out of the hotel room while staying warm and allowing Sidney to burn off pent up energy. On a recommendation from ciaobambino.com, one that was enthusiastically seconded by the hotel concierge, we found ourselves at Minatur Wunderland, a truly German gem of a museum/exhibition space that entertains kids of all ages. (If fact, on the blustery Saturday we visited, over half of the visitors were adults-young, old, and in between-without children in tow). So what exactly is Minatur Wunderland? Honestly, we weren't one hundred percent sure ourselves as we bundled up and headed out into the cold. My only desire was that it be warm. Sidney wanted to see trains. Glenn said we were going to see a model railway. But Minatur Wunderland proved to be all this and so much more.

Housed in a renovated 1,300 square meter warehouse on a canal, this museum is a fantasy world for big kids and little kids alike; a place where no detail is too small. The three museum floors bring eight distinct communities and countries to life in miniature form moving from day to night-complete with dawn and dusk- every fifteen minutes. I felt as though we were giants as we wandered from the Swiss Alps to Austria and Germany to Scandinavia and back again taking in the most minute of details. Whether it be trains, buses or airplanes, all modes of transportation were fitted with tiny passengers toting even smaller pieces of luggage. And speaking of airplanes, the Knuffingen Airport includes planes landing and taking off (with sound effects of course), baggage carts and trams whizzing around the tarmac, and a parking garage complete with traffic jams. It was virtually impossible to pull Sidney (and Glenn) away from the airport but the enticement of more trains winding through the Alps, complete with snow capped mountains, hang gliders, and avalanches did the trick. In Scandinavia we saw a cruise ship navigating the fjords and a busy commercial port filled with barges and container ships all floating atop real water. In Germany we saw modern cities complete with lights and traffic jams as well as snow rural hamlets with grazing livestock.

And then we had America. It is always interesting to see what American stereotypes Europeans use to portray my motherland. And the stereotypes were all there. Naturally there was the Florida exhibit complete with palm trees and a space shuttle that launched every few minutes. And what American scene would be complete without throwing in a big of Vegas? Yes, Las Vegas was recreated in miniature form right down to the flashy casinos, Elvis impersonators, scantily clad dancers, and the neon filled Strip. Rounding out the American scene were the red rocks of the American southwest with a winding interstate snaking its way through the cliffs. A close look at the red rocks revealed ancient Hopi settlements, cowboys astride horses, and even a pioneer wagon. Yes, the creators took some historical liberties and blurred the centuries with the depiction of America but it was impressive none the less.

For me, the best part of each montage was finding the hidden bits of whimsy. It actually became a challenge to find them all. On a mountainside slope a woodsman used an axe to chop persistently at a tree until it fell. A naked couple frolicked in a field of sunflowers in another scene while a scuba diver was attacked by a crab in a Scandinavian harbor. Traffic clogged bridges and firefighters rushed to douse the flames in a burning building. Each urban montage seemed to include at least one traffic accident complete with ambulances, police officers, and tow trucks. These are just a few of the details that could be missed if you didn't look carefully. And despite all of the time we spent there, I know we missed numerous other details. The hotel concierge was right when he told us that we could get lost in the museum for hours. (Or as he said, I hope you don't have any appointments for the rest of the day).

Scandinavia, complete with real water

The parking garage and tower of the Knuffingen Airport

Trains meandering through the Swiss Alps

Glenn and I decided that working as an engineer (or in any position for that matter) at Minatur Wunderland would have to be one of the coolest jobs ever. Or how about spending a summer there as an intern? The thought almost makes me want to go back to school. And maybe they will be hiring in the future; scenes depicting Italy, France, Great Britain, and parts of Africa are all being planned. But even if you can't work there, make it a priority to visit if you are ever in the neighborhood. Regardless of your age, I promise you won't be disappointed.