Flensburg City Tour

Today we did a city tour around Flensburg, a city chockful of history and buildings of all times! Hope you enjoy "walking" the streets of the city virtually with us! And next time you come to Germany, make a stop!

Laughter and Smiles

One image is worth a thousand words... so here are some images. I have only my second memory card, that is why there are no pictures from Kiel, but they will come. Here some group shots, to share our joy and laughter. Thanks for this great experience!

We just keep cruising along with more and more interesting programs and fun things to do. Today we had a fascinating tour of Flensburg with lots of information about its complicated history with Denmark. We met with the town planner at the town hall and then attended the meeting of the Flensburger Förde RC where we enjoyed a lovely luncheon and gave our presentation. Everyone seemed to enjoy it very much and the song went well. Later we had an informative and fun walk with Willfried Janßen, a retired professor of biology. He showed us around a nature preserve on the edge of the Förde at Holnis. His passion about the environment and the interrelationship of man to nature came through very clearly. We ended the day with a magnificent meal at the Fährhaus Holnis restaurant. We share pictures of our presentation song; RC president Eric Mader and GSE coordinator for the Flensburger Förde RC Franyiska Sievers with the team; a plate of delicious lamb, potatoes and green beans with bacon; and an out-of-sight desert with pudding, rum, fruit, und schlag; and finally a picture of me and my wonderful hosts Ursula and Eric.

I visited a German / Danish school the morning of May 30. It was a pleasure to see children from the ages of 7 to 17 working so hard and with such enthusiasm. The teachers at the school welcomed me with open arms and taught with passion and great talent. At the end of the school day I was given the opportunity to teach students in a physical education class how to play baseball. The students took to the game very well and translated their cricket skills remarkably well. Tomorrow I will visit a Gymnasium in Flensburg and am interested in what I will find next. Tschuss! Myles

We are now in Flensburg, Germany and I crossed the border into Denmark! My host father (Hans Müller) took me there and we walked along the water and stopped for a hot dog. Yes a hot dog with fried onions, raw onions, pickles, mustard and ketchup on a toasted bun. Delicious! Then we had dinner with Hans daughter and grand-daughter. I have been eating so well and not moving to make up for it so that when I was asked what I would like to do I said I'd like to go for a walk. So we walked to a nearby "public forest" and walked along the trails. There were balancing beams all along the trails so you could practice your balance, I saw some stinky black pigs, and Lena (Hans Grand-daughter) had me eat a plant but I don't remember what is was called. Apparently the edge of the plant can make you itchy but if you fold the ends together you can eat it. Lena saw that I thought it was strange so she ate it first and then I did. It had a refreshing herb taste. Interesting.

I'm looking forward to seeing and learning about Flensburg. For now I must sleep. Gute Nacht :)

Danish hot dog in Denmark

Lena and I on the balancing beams

"the plant" I ate

We have arrived in Flensburg to a very warm greeting. Our hosts from left to right: Franziska Sievers, Hans Müller, Wolf-Rüdiger Lietzau, Elke Asmus-Reimer, und Erich Mader. Tonight a quiet evening with our host families and then tomorrow a tour, our presentation, and more activities. Lots of interesting stuff!!

Tuesday was very interesting and great fun. We had tours of alternative energy sites. I don't know a lot about this topic but the Germans seem way ahead of us in this area, if not in the technology at least in how much they are using it. I have always wanted to be up close to one of those big windmills and we were inside the base. Standing at the bottom of a windmill those huge propellers are so impressive as they swing around. We also visited a plant that bottles mineral water and other drinks. The automated production is amazing. Then on to a company that makes road safety equipment - the big flashing lights the warn of upcoming traffic issues. Again, the automation in making the circuit boards was most impressive. Then we had a short walking tour of the center of Husum, led by Husum Rotarian Martin Evers, to do some shopping and see the sights. Our presentation at the RC of Husum went very well. The District Governor, Wolfgang Müller-Michaelis, attended so we got to meet him. He liked our song so much he wants us to perform it at our District Conference. I must admit I had some doubts about the song as we were preparing in the USA, but it seems to go over very well here. People sing with us and you can see on their faces how much they like it. Finally, we went to the home of Bahne Bahnsen, who with his wife is one of the host families, to celebrate the birthdays of Agus and Bahne. We all had to stay up until midnight drinking and eating so we could celebrate on May 30, their actual birthday. It was a great day.