Another country, another keyboard

Wow, just as I was thinking the German keyboard was tough, now I'm having to learn to retype on the French keyboard. I'm sure my WPM is down to 10 or 20! I may at some point decide to leave the typing errors until I return to the states. Wanna see The quick red fox?

The auick red fox ju,ped over the lqwy brozn coz:

We arrived in Paris this noon. The 8:30 am flight required we get up at 4:30 am and apparently none of us slept well, possibly because of the anticipation. The upshot is that we were all tired on arrival and all required naps. Despite that I, for one, am highly excited to be in PARIS! Parisien things we've done today: had lunch in a cafe facing the Seine and Notre Dame; witnessing a collision between a scooter and a car; buying tickets for and riding in a Paris bus; dining in a brasserie, and...; speaking a lot of French! Vraiment! I am amazed how much French is coming back to me. Just ask Gordon!

Bear-lin? Nein, Berlin!

For those of you who know Susan and me well (maybe too well), I couldn't resist the pun. We have reached Berlin and what a thrill it is. It is truly one of the world's major cities in all senses of that term. The streets of Charlottenburg, a major brand name, big name, expensive shopping district, were teeming with Saturday shoppers. There are all manner of people out, too. I heard at least a dozen languages spoken as I prowled the KaDeWe department store.

And what a department store it is! As I recall Herrod's in London or Macy's in New York City, this has them all beat. I don't know if the website communicates its extent, but check it out if you are so inclined.

http://www.kadewe-berlin.de/

Sorry, no eye candy until maybe I return to the US. I'm posting from an Internet cafe in a Dunkin' Donuts (really!) for the duration while in Berlin. Why yes, I'll have another....

Zou saz ÄThe quick brown fox jumped over ....'

No, that's not an error in the subject. At least that's not an error for a touch typist who doesn't check his or her work. These German keyboards are a little different from American ones, with the y and z switched, for instance, and with an additional modifier key on the keyboard that's needed to access the "@" symbol. I'm going to have to learn to tzpe, er, type all over again when I get home....

Over on Facebook Gordon is leaving all the keyboard artifacts in his posts. Apparently it's the new irony to leave that stuff in.

Chocolate -- Soldiers

Chocolate? The Chocolate factory in Delitszch where the Timberwolf HQ was during the last stages of the war. It still operates, too!

Soldiers? We were guests at the noncommisioned officers school not far away. Had a great time with them. They were all fluent in English so we had an entertaining give and take over lunch.

Ein, zwei, drei... Halle (Salle)

A little German seems to attract greater expectations that you can speak more English. Even a little "bitte" (please) can start a whole stream of German, despite one's protestations in English.

We're here in Halle (Salle), site of a great victory for the Allies that you probably haven't heard of. The reason is that the capitulation was negotiated between Gen. Terry Allen and Count von Luckenberg (sp?), a respected citizen of Halle and a World War I hero. While the Count was not in the German military command he convinced the German commander to let him negotiate with the Allies to try and avoid the destruction of the city with the attendant civilian deaths. Needless to say the attempts were a great success.

Today Halle boasts many turn of the century (19th to 20th) buildings, making it in its way more charming than some West Germany cities that chose to deliberately bulldoze their inventory and replace them with contempory buildings, which are now ugly, old 50s era buildings. I certainly am enjoying the colorful, lively, typically European city center of Halle.

Our hotel room has a sheet boasting of Halle's attributes: home of Georg Handel, city center of five towers, 1,200 years old, etc, etc. Last but not least, home of Europe's largest Beatles museum! While I bumped into it during my wanderings I didn't have time to stop inside. Sorry, Rick.

Do not forget the Holocaust

Today was a sober day of remembrance for the Timberwolves. The 104th
Division liberated a concentration camp less known than others but one
that was equally brutal. In April of 1945 the Timberwolves entered
Nordhausen and discovered what other Allied units in other parts of
Germany discovered. In addition the prisoners supplied labor for the
underground manufacturing sites of the infamous V-1 and V-2 weapons of
the Germans. The caverns are immense and awe inspiring in their grisly
way. Google Nordhausen or Mittelbau-Dora for additional details. The
location is placid now amid countryside that reminds one of Western
Pennsylvania. But from 1943 to 1945 it was a place of the worst that
human kind can devise.

Happy Memorial Day from Europe!

If you're Belgian Memorial Day was Sat, 5.24. If you're Dutch it's Sun, 5.25. We were privileged to have celebrated it twice.

I am discovering that much of the Netherlands and Belgium have not yet forgotten the sacrifice of the US on their behalf, and that it not just the generation of WW II but also their children and their children's children. Did you know that Henri-Chapelle American cemetery in the Netherlands has over 7,000 American graves? And do you know that many of those graves have been "adopted" by local Dutch? That means that, at the least, they place bouquets on the graves on Memorial Day. Often the care goes way beyond that token. Likewise, at Margraten American cemetery, with over 8,000 graves, the Belgians do the same.

Yesterday evening we were guests of the village of Chapelle at a Memorial Day show. We arrived at 8 PM while the show was underway. It turned out this was by design. Led to our seats in the front of the community center with the veterans in the lead, the audience of over 800 people appreciatively clapped in rhythm as the vets made their way down the center aisle. Even now it brings tears to my eyes.