Bavaria and Neuschwanstein Castle

The view of the valley from the Castle.

The model for the Disney World Castle.

View of the Marion Bridge from the Castle.

School Visit in Munich, November 11

Visit to Willy-Brandt-Gesamtschule - Grades 5-10

Visit to a 5th Grade Class in Munich.

The weekly schedule is quite different from ours.   No two days are alike.

Visit to Dachau Work Camp, November 11

Sign at the entrance to Dachau.  "Work Makes you Free."

We visited the Dachau work camp.  It was the original model for all of the concentration camps.  Political prisoners, Jews, Gypsies, and other groups considered undesirable by the Nazi's were sent to camps like this one.

View of the reconstructed barracks for prisoners.

Never Again.

A view of the crematorium.

Prague, November 10, 2011

The Astronomical Clock at the old town hall, dating from the late 1400's.  Every hour the doors above the clock open and show the saints and the figures next to the clock move.

Prague, Czech Republic, is an incredibly beautiful city.  We are staying in the Old Town.  It is a great city to walk and wander.  Today we visited Prague Castle.  The Castle grounds include architecture from every period over the last 1200 years.  We also walked across the Charles Bridge and enjoyed the sights.  The weather is cool - low 50's and it gets dark about 4:00 PM.  Prague is six hours ahead of Florida time - so at 3:30 PM in Florida, it is 9:30 PM in Prague and Germany.

The entrance to Prague Castle.

A chapel for St. Wenceslas in St. Vitus's Cathedral.  (As in the Christmas Carol  "Good King Wenceslas."

Inside St. Vitus's Cathedral - part of Prague Castle.

View from the Charles Bridge

A view from the walk down the hill from the Castle.  You can see the Vltava River and part of the vineyard.

Dresden, Germany November 9, 2011

The Frauenkircher was destroyed in WW II and just a pile of rubble until finally rebuilt using the original stones in 2005.  A Statue of Martin Luther is in front of this Lutheran Church.

Dresden is the capitol of the German State of Saxony.  It is located on the Elbe river and thanks to its wealth of art treasures and architecture is often called "Florence of the Elbe."  Dresden's old town was virtually destroyed in 1945 by fire bombing.  35,000 lives were lost.  Dresden is still rebuilding the the destroyed buildings.  Dresden was part of East Germany until reunification.

The Semper Opera House was destroyed in 1945 during the firebombing by Allied Forces, but was rebuilt by the Soviets.

Berlin, November 7, 2011

School Visit in Berlin - Gymnasium (High School)

We had time to talk with a German English teacher and students talked about school in Berlin. We visited classrooms. Students stay in the same room and teachers move until grade 10. Students in grades 11, 12 have a schedule with some classes 3 times a week and some 5. Many students were taking German, English, and another language as well.

Student tour guides, Alma and Sibel.  Their families are from Bosnia and Turkey.  Berlin is a very international city with many immigrants and a large Muslim population, too.

Rotary Club of Berlin - Unter den LInden

Rotary Club with Judy from Texas and Prof. Jo Grobel of the Berlin Clu

Berlin, November 6, 2011

Berlin Holocaust Memorial

Walking between the structures.

Today we toured Berlin.  The Memorial shown here was exceptionally moving.  Gray concrete structures of various heights and an uneven walkway created a feeling of unease as you walked through the memorial.

An original section of the wall.

The remains of the Berlin Wall are evident near Check Point Charlie.  A part of the wall was recreated in the East Side Gallery and artists were invited to paint sections of the wall.

One of the remaining guard towers from the Berlin Wall.

Checkpoint Charlie

East Side Gallery painting on a section of the Berlin Wall.

Children's art work about the Berlin Wall.

Children's art about the Wall at the Check Point Charlie Museum.

Berlin, Prague, and Munich

On November 4, 2011 I begin a new adventure to Berlin, Prague, and Munich.  I'll be traveling with an educational study group from Phi Delta Kappa.