Over the past few days Aachen's been experiencing ridiculously beautiful, clear, and warm weather. So, of course, my host family and I had to take advantage of it and go hiking! Luckily, we live almost in the Eifel, a low, woodsy mountain range.
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| Hey look, we're on Route 66! |
The forest we hiked through actually has a pretty dark past. It was the venue of a relentless battle between American and German forces during WWII. The Schlacht im Hürtgenwald was the longest battle fought on German land during the war. There was a placard along the trail, and the fighting that took place in this forest sounded WWI-esque. It's hard to envision such violence happening in what is today a tranquil place. I felt like I was in the Hundred Acre Wood from Winnie the Pooh. I guess it shows how the earth can heal.
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| This is a piece of a tank tread left by American troops. |
There were quite a few people on the trails, which wasn't exactly a surprise... Sunday afternoon, abnormally gorgeous weather, a forest still filled with autumn color. Several hikers had their dogs. Leashes aren't a super big deal, especially since the dogs we encountered were well-behaved, but you have to be careful. They still find unexploded ordnance in places like the Eifel. I'd known that old WWII bombs still existed. Here you hear about it on the news every so often, but it's still kind of crazy for me to think about. In Oregon there's a way higher risk you'll run into a random marijuana plantation or meth house in the woods than old aerial bombs.
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| Picture perfect. |
Then this afternoon, I guess I took another trip down memory lane... just in the opposite direction. For P.E. we had to make up choreography that involved each person dancing with a little athletic ball. My group had a whole backstory for our dance, which was called Der letzte Tanz (The Last Dance). We all dressed up like grannies and started out doing an aerobics workout class (in the style of 90-year-olds) but then-- the music suddenly changed and we could dance like young'uns again!
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| We're the real Great Granny Gang! |
Even putting the language factor aside, there's an unending flow of learning happening during this exchange. Be it history (World Wars to the Bavarian monarchies), choreography, or the strategies of using public transportation, living in Germany has made my little mind grow in so many ways.