Hafengeburtstag

Harbor Birthday Celebration

Being a port city is what sets Hamburg apart from the other big German cities. This makes the annual Harbor Birthday celebration a pretty big deal to the Hamburgers. Ships from all over the world come to show off, and people from all over Northern Germany crowd in to watch them.

Not knowing what to expect from such an anticipated celebration, we got to the harbor way too early. Nevertheless, the sun was shining and the friendly Germans behind us had lots of questions for us Americans.



There were people EVERYWHERE, and it was 3:00 in the afternoon on  workday.

I kept waiting for Jack Sparrow to hop out, but alas, he never did.

To thank me for supporting the Hafengeburtstag efforts, the pretzel people let me buy this warm, gooey pretzel/mini-loaf of bread to snack on. After all, watching boats go by certainly requires a carb load-up.

Bath, Stonehenge, and Lacock Village

Thanks to the stellar UK rail Reggie and I were able to take full advantage of our week in England by traveling outside of London. Though it was hard to wave good bye to London even for one day, I am ecstatic that we took time out of Big Ben's Casa to explore the lovely city of Bath, as well as Stonehenge and an older-than-you-can-believe village called Lacock.

Two hundred years ago Bath was the ultra-popular Hollywood of Britain. This creamy, one-shade city has more protected historic buildings per capita than any other town in England. This entire city is built from warm-tone limestone called, "Bath stone" and it's stately, Georgian style gives it a high-class, museum feel. Word around the campfire is that the town is often banned from entering the "Britain in Bloom" contest to give other cities a fighting chance.

Bath is famous for it's mineral hot springs. Reggie and I decided to get our sightseeing out of the way before turning to the uber-relaxing spa treatment that these baths always offer.

Though Bath is gorgeous, it gets a 'Needs Improvement' in the creativity department. After awhile, things all start to look the same, as I'm sure you can see.

 "The Original Bath Power Salad." This surprising concoction of aged feta, sprouts, garbanzo beans, nuts, seeds, avocado, and EVOO was beyond scrumptious. I shrieked upon reading it on the menu on the door and Reggie kindly gave in, expecting he would never find something on the menu that would satisfy his hunger pains. Much to his surprise, his organic burger with chipotle mustard and handcut fries did the trick. Phew!

We finished lunch and, like always seems to happen, we had to run to our next reservation. Since we were only thirty minutes from Stonehenge we couldn't pass up the opportunity to check out the crazy rocks. We joined a group of twenty in a narrow bus (to fit on narrow streets, of course) and caught up on some Adele-listening as our group made it's way to Stonehenge.

Archaeologists believe that this iconic, prehistoric monument was erected in 2500 BC. Most recently, theory says that Stonehenge was used as a burial ground from the beginning. This world-famous creation was produced by a group that left no written records, leaving many questions up for debate.

Surrounded only by sheep, country roads, and millions of visitors each year, Stonehenge was a short, "what you see is what you get" kind of experience that we were happy to check off our list.




Back in our cozy (and by cozy I mean shoulder-to-shoulder, cramped as all get out) Mad Max bus, we headed to Lacock Village. A village too cute--and too old--to describe. Our tour guide gave us a great walking tour/comedy show of the village of 194 residents where nothing new has been built for two hundred years. There are four pubs for those 194 residents, which, of course, puts their hobbies into perspective.

The Crooked House was built in 1172. Gulp.

Our tour guide/comedian (in the center with his hands up) was full of stories.

Does this place look familiar? Of course it does, you Harry Potter fans! This house, along with several other of Lacock's buildings and streets, was used for the filming of several of the Harry Potter movies.

This was built to keep the sheep out of the church. Hello?! Sheep discrimination?!

Though there's not much more than one big square to see, Lovable Lacock kept us all occupied for the two hours we where there. A quiet bus ride brought us back to Bath where we soaked in the mineral baths for three heavenly hours before shoving dinner down our throats and catching our train back to London. Hooray for trains and the way they continue to give us the chance to see all the nooks and crannies of this awesome continent.

Where We Come From

Our unit began with the creation and discussion of globes, maps, and the fact that there are people alike and different from us all over the world.

I miss my Tomek-Eastern Elementary family terribly. Much of the courage I use to make sense of our crazy European adventure cones from the confidence I gained being a part of such an awesome group of teachers, parents, and kids. Almost as much as I miss all those terrific Tomek tigers, I miss being a part of an IB school. Working with my fellow first grade teachers to develop super interesting, authentic, and just all around cool IB curriculum was always a challenge that I could never get enough of.

So, when Rachael and I sat down to plan our 'Where We Come From" unit I put my IB foot forward. Together we created a month-long unit that focuses on each country students in our oldest class represent. Passports and suitcases in hand, we traveled to America, Canada, Israel, England, France, Turkey, and back to Germany. And boy, was it ever cute. 

Because many of our students are bi-cultural it was difficult for us to decide how to teach them where they came from. So, we turned to the parents and asked them decide. Some went with their own nationality, some said they cannot choose only one, and some chose where there child was born. The parents of my fellow Michigander are from Istanbul, but their son was raised in Northville (imagine that?!) and so they asked us to teach him that he is from America.

The Seedlings suitcases are now covered with 'symbol stamps' from each country. If it is the day we visit your country, you get to stamp the passport page and say, "Welcome to ...." Then, you get to glue the stamp of your country onto each suitcase. Here we have a Hamburg crest, Canadian maple leaf, and a London double decker bus.

These fun activities along with show 'n tells and heaps of books made for a fun, IB-like unit and I have loved every second of it. We have only one week left of the unit and the only thing I have left to do is figure out how to extend it.  

Barcelona

There are at least a bajillion reasons why I (along with the rest of the world population) have always been drawn to Barcelona. Certainly, it is the relaxed feel of the Spanish culture so many of us are intrigued with that led us to this beachy, Gaudí wonder. But really, now that our long, sunny weekend in Barcelona is over it makes no difference what led the five of us there. What matters is we were there--immersed in tapas, Gaudí, and sunshine--and slowly soaked up all that this one-of-a-kind city has to offer. I'm more cultured, more relaxed, and even slightly more tan as a result of our visit.

Gaudi's magnum opus, La Sagrada Familia. With this stunning example of Catalan avant-garde style Gaudi put Barcelona on the architectural map.

Antoni Gaudí's style is unrivaled when it comes to uniqueness. Barcelona thinks of him as a son and after seeing the architectural gifts he left the grateful Catalonians I understand why. La Sagrada Familia (Church of the Sacred Family) would have been enough to secure Gaudí's celebrity status until the end of time. Though it is the most renowned of his creations and is my personal favorite, La Sagrada Familia is just one of many brilliant feats Gaudí left for us to enjoy.


You can't Google Barcelona without pages of results featuring La Sagrada Familia, all of which scream at you to visit this remarkable church-stat. So, we bought our tickets ahead of time and were there first thing in the morning, armed with coffee and cameras. Making our way to the entrance of the church was a feat in itself-partially because we were walking with our chins in the air in an attempt to take in the giant before us, and partially because the place is swarming with folks just as preoccupied as we were.

Now THAT's a fieldtrip.

Gaudí began his work on Sagrada Familia in 1883. Currently, it stands like a melting sand castle frozen in time. Work to complete his masterpiece continues now, nearly120 years later, and is reliant upon private donations and admission profits (aka slowly). Authorities say it will not be completed until way into the 21st century. Nevertheless, this big beauty supplied the shock factor I was expecting.


Gaudí's designs revolved upon his passion for nature. This passion is displayed in the whimsical/Dr. Seuss/Willy Wonka-esque feel of his work. I'm willing to bet there is not a single straight line in the whole joint! Though many are over one hundred years old, if produced now his creations would be considered modern and bold. Sagrada Familia is no exception; it is unlike any cathedral I have ever seen, and I would be willing to bet 100% of it's visitors would agree.


The exterior of the Church has three facades, and two were currently open to drool over:

And that's just the outside. While the exterior takes your breath away, the interior actually knocks it out of you and takes off running.

Now that's a pretty door.

Just as Gaudi intended, the columns look like trees and the ceiling looks like the canopy of the rainforest.

A visit to this sanctuary isn't complete without a climb to the top. Courtesy of an elevator, we did just that. 

It's true, the love is in the details--especially when you're touring one of Gaudi's creations.

Gaudi left his footprint all over Barcelona. While La Sagrada Familia is his most well-known masterpiece, there's more of his creativity to get lost in throughout the city:

Gaudi's Casa Batllo apartment building

Entrance at Gaudi's Parc Guell

Gaudi's Casa Mila apartment building

There is no question that the Gaudí sites are must-sees. As much as that is true, it is the experiences unique to Spain that make people fall in love with Barcelona.



First: the food

Again and again, we ate like kings in Barcelona. Outstanding tapas, sangria, outstanding tapas, and sangria, were the chart-toppers.

my fav: garbanzo beans with sauteed spinach and onions

patatas bravas were on every tapas menu we encountered.

tomato bread

lobster paella

spicy red pepper filled with a spicy fishy concoction

Second: La Boqueria Market

This market is an oldie and goodie. Since 1200 it has been supplying Barcelonians with gorgeous produce, as-fresh-as-can-be seafood and meat (with heads still attached) and lots of snacks. We opted for fresh-squeezed juice (I opted for two: coconut pineapple and coconut kiwi) and fruit salad...and it made me do a happy dance.

Hi-ya! Don't let her size fool you. She slices with the skills of a samurai.

Third: strolling the Barri Gòtic district

This medieval district is narrow, dark, and perfect for photos, shopping, and drinking coffee. It is also home to the Picasso Museum, an extensive collection that proved that this eccentric mastermind dabbled in just about every medium.

Fourth: the beach

Many of Europe's major cities aren't coastal cities, making the fact that Barcelona is right smack on the Med one thing that sets this great city apart from the competition. After a long day of walking, we stripped our feet and did some chilling on the city beach in the district of Barceloneta. The water was cold, the sand was hot, and the annoying sales people were in full effect, making our beach time more comedic than relaxing, nut still awesome.

I know now why people love Barcelona as much as they do. Not only is it gorgeous, coastal, and sunny but it offers the laid-back experiences that only Mediterranean places can produce. All things considered, the only downside is that you can't bring the tapas home with you.