Family Visit

My Zeil

This weekend, I traveled by train to visit the Kirsche family in Frankfurt and the Günther Family in Mainz.  I took a bus to the Koblenz Haupbahnhof and then the InterCity (IC) train to the Frankfurt Haupbahnhof.  Once, I got there Michael, and Matty (son, 18) greeted me ironically by the Starbucks.  We then drove 15 minutes to their home, which is right outside the city.  I met Claudia and Mike (son, 23).  Their daughter Sabrina (26) is studying marine biology abroad in Australia; she is coming home in July.  It felt so good 
to be surrounded by family, even though it made me miss my parents and brother A LOT!  We sat around the table and caught up.  This was the first time since arriving in Germany that I spoke German for more than 5 minutes because all my classes are in English, and many exchange students do not speak German.  Even though I struggled to find the right words and use the proper grammar, it was nice to practice and learn new vocabulary. 

After, I went with Mike to the city to meet up with a friend.  They showed me some of the highlights of the city and then we went to Zeil Straβe.  Since the end of the 19^th century, it has been one of the most famous and busiest shopping streets in Germany.  Before WWII, it was also known for its grand buildings, but most of them were destroyed and not rebuilt.  There is an impressive shopping center called My Zeil, and it has the longest escalators in Europe.  Afterwards, we enjoyed some Italian food and went back home for a nap.  We then left to go meet up with some more of Mike’s friends at a cocktail bar.  By speaking a mix of English and German (Denglisch), the communication barrier was minimal. 

The next day, we enjoyed a typical Germany breakfast.  When I came downstairs, the table was set with plates full of food: meat, cheese, rolls, vegetables, pretzels, fruit, and hard-boiled eggs.  It looked like it was right out of the Food Network Magazine.  After breakfast, they drove me to the Günther family in Mainz.  We left to go tour Mainz, which is the located in the federal state of Rhineland-Palatinate.    Mainz was previously a Roman fort city which commanded the west bank of the Roman Empire.  We started in the Altestadt (old city) and toured the Mainz Cathedral or St, Martin’s Cathedral consecrated in 911 by Archbishop Hatto I.  It is primarily Romanesque, but additions in later centuries have resulted in the appearance of various architectural influences seen today. 

Mainz Cathedral

Then we went to a typical German restaurant.  I ordered schnitzel with Gorgonzola cheese and potatoes.  In Mainz, wine is more common to drink with dinner than beer because of all the wineries located nearby on the Rhine.  After a full stomach we continued on with the site seeing and toured St. Stephan Church which was originally built in 990 at the order of Archbishop Willigis.  During WWII, the church was heavily damaged and it was restored between 1968 and 1971.  The 9 Choir windows in the front of the church were created by Marc Chagall.  The luminous blue stained-glass windows depict scenes from the Old Testament demonstrating the commonalities across Christian and Jewish traditions.  After we traveled back to their home to enjoy some Berliner s which are pastries with jam filling and spinckled with powdered sugar; they are very common during the Karneval season. 

The visits with both families were extremely nice.  They welcomed me into their homes and really took care of me; it felt like I have known them for my entire life.  They taught me a lot of German, and a lot about the history and culture of Germany.