Settling in Tübingen

We came to Tübingen to get BYU students settled in this program for the month of August. We drove up to the airport in Stuttgart, to the program's office, to the apartments and back to the office twice, and then did it again at the train station. But we were happy to be able to do this for the students--arriving in Europe tired and disoriented is always the best time to have someone you know show up and soften the landing.
 Once they had dropped off their stuff and showered, we took them shopping at Rob's favorite grocery store, drove them to church, took them out to dinner for some regional specialties (we went to the Neckarmüller this time and it was good food and of course has a magnificent view of the river). This is part of the castle in Tübingen. I found out this time that in the kitchen here in the middle of the 19th century, acid was successfully extracted from the nucleus of a cell and called nuklein. They went on to discover that it contained all of the genetic material and double helixed DNA in it and that began the study of genetics. Way to go Tübingen!
 In addition to having a really significant university there, Tübingen is also a great place for students because it is small and manageable in size, and meant for a walking (or biking) student population. Goethe visited Tübingen and Hermann Hesse worked here in a bookshop. This is right on the market square.
 The great renaissance clock tower on the city hall!
 I love this -- the produce market sets up in the lee of the church with this profusion of flowers. I think this would do all BYU students a world of good. Come here for a month and learn how to live and eat and shop like a european. Also how to plant excellent window boxes.
 This is just another view of the same stand, but I turned and looked and the buildings alongside were just as winsome. I love the Tübingen.
 Is it just me or is this place not preposterously beautiful? This time around I found out that fuchsias were named after a resident of Tübingen: Leonhart Fuchs, a physician and botanist of the 16th century. Mrs. Jones from down the street gave me a fuchsia when I was in the fourth grade -- probably my first plant.
And these five get to enjoy it for a full month of language training and advanced German classes. They are so ready and are such good sports. Daniela and Hanna and Tanya take great care of the program participants at events like this opening social and field trips to the Bodensee. They'll have a great experience!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Mohr im Hemd

Image
I finally got up the nerve to try my own Mohr im Hemd. This was the dish that we always ordered if we found it on the menu. It translates as "The Moor and His Shirt" which is so politically incorrect that it isn't easy to find, even though it is a traditional Viennese dish. It is a steamed pudding, like the Christmas dessert I grew up on and it is very moist and very chocolate, though not as sweet as an American dessert. It was successful enough that Rob had me make it twice more in the same weekend. Happily, after learning how to make it, I feel less guilty about eating the stuff. How often does that happen? Here is the recipe I used, as opposed to the top secret family recipe that I don't even have, or the recipe from my Austrian cookbook that asks for 'gratified butter': MA's Mohr im Hemd 3 bread rolls, crusts removed and cubed 1 c milk 3/4 c unsalted butter 1/4 c sugar 8 oz best and darkest chocolate you can find 8 eggs 1/2 c sugar 1/2 c walnuts,
Read more

The Trip Home: A Report Card

Image
Our Itinerary: Stuttgart to Atlanta and Atlanta to Salt Lake. It was a good schedule, flying out at 11:00am and getting in at 9:00pm on the same day (flying back across 8 time zones too, so about 23 hours of travel door to door). German taxi driver: A+. cheerful, knowledgeable, efficient and with candy for the kids Stuttgart airport: C-. inefficient, poorly-designed, and not very helpful; had to show our passports 5 times in 5 different places. took 1 1/2 hours to process us from curb to gate. ugh. Delta: B-. The flight attendants all looked "rid hard & put away wet" and the bare bones service just can't keep up with their [government subsidized] European counterparts with their dewy-skinned attendants, steaming towels, toys for the kids, and gourmet meals instead of astronaut food served in foil pouches. They got us there and did it on time, but it feels more and more like riding on a bus with a lot of rules. German Family With Four Kids Who Sat Next To Us On The
Read more

Blue and Gold Cake Contest

Image
Have we mentioned that Rob is now the Cubmaster? It was something of a shock, but it has been great for getting the boys excited about scouting (and let's face facts: Rob and I are lukewarm at best on a paramilitary, homophobic, psuedo-Hitler Youth organization, so our boys were destined to embrace it wholeheartedly from the start). One of the first arguments that Rob ever won with his parents was over scouting. They had moved into a neighborhood with no other kids his age, and so his eagle project would have been almost entirely solo (with some help from his younger brother). He proposed that instead of getting his eagle, he work towards becoming a Sterling Scholar in foreign languages at OHS. His parents finally agreed, and he did make Sterling Scholar at OHS, and went on to become the statewide foreign language Sterling Scholar. So my husband is one merit badge and an eagle project shy of his eagle, which just so happens (Freudianly?) to be exactly the same as my brother, Mr. T
Read more