Rather than go to Budapest as I had planned, I ended up partying with my old exchange student sister, Nina, at Das Fest. The place was totally packed with people and music. I’m sad I missed Budapest but I am very glad that I got to go to Das Fest.
Bahnhof Uelzen
I was lucky enough to get a few minutes at the Bahnhof Uelzen to wander around. The train station had been remodeled a number of years ago by the architect Friedensreich Hundertwasser. The place is an interesting mix of standard German train station and whimsical eclecticism.
Visiting My Old German Host Family
In high school I participated in the German American Partnership Program and went on exchange to Germany. My host family lived in the village of Trebel near the town of Lüchow. The only international claim to fame that the region has is a radioactive materials storage facility. But boy is the area ever beautiful. Several hours of trains from my home base in Karlsruhe got me to a town with a train station near Lüchow. Half an hour in the car put me in Trebel with my old host family.
The little pond outside the living room.
The side of the house near the pond.
The front of the house.
At a little village several kilometers away. A famous prince came from here. There is also one of the few surviving pre-war synagogues in this village.
Up on the hill where a castle once stood a thousand years in the past.
Looking out across the Elbe River.
Looking down into the little village below the castle site.
My old host mom.
My look.
The road to the next village.
On the main road through Trebel.
The local church. It has an absolutely beautiful organ inside.
My old host father.
A teacher from my high school in America that was visiting with the latest group of high school exchange students.
Dinner on the patio.