Samstag, August 27, 2005
Feuerwerken (fireworks).
We just went down to the Royal Gardens in the city to watch fireworks. They were GORGEOUS!!! There is this international competition held piece by piece in Hannover during the beginning and end of the summer. Tonight was Argentina's turn... WOW!! They set the fireworks to music, and it is just awesome. My favorite part was a slower song... they had these special fireworks I have never seen before that twinkled forever in the sky! I was so impressed... there are two more fuerwerken dates this fall... then we have to wait until May :(
The royal gardens are a big deal in Hannover. There used to be a castle here until it was destroyed at the end of WWII. Now, maybe some of you military history buffs out there knew this, but tonight the Baumanns taught me that at the end of WWII the allies waged a war on civilian morale. In one night, firebombs *destroyed* the city of Hannover! They didn't drop explosives, just bombs that burned up buildings. People were spared because they were hidden in basements and bomb shelters; the death rate was about 200... but still. I didn't know that 'we' did that... and I was shocked and a little appalled. Ina said she thought the Germans deserved it, and she *is* German, so...
Anyway, there is still a prince in Hannover. Alas, he is in his 40's and apparently married. *sob* AND... the royal lineage in Hannover has close ties to British royalty... that is kind of cool :)
Ina and I were discussing some of the differences between Americans and Germans. One thing I noticed is that Germans are waaaaay more comfortable with nudity. There is a poster at Kathi's kindergarten with all kinds of pictures from this picnic... and all the little boys in the picture are naked... running through sprinklers, down slip'n'slides... all these little penii are hanging out. (I can't remember if the girls were naked, too... I will look on Monday...) I told Ina that that would not fly in the US... can't you see some preschool getting sued!? She said that that is a big joke among Germans... How prude Americans can be. Europeans are shocked by the amount of violence we have in our movies, but how scared we are of s-e-x.
I told her that Americans joke about how comfortable Europeans are with their bodies, and that a particular stereotype is the biiiiiig, hairy European man in the teeny-weeny speedo... According to Ina speedos aren't worn as much anymore, but to my sensitive American eyes they are still worn allllll toooooo often!
So what do you think Americans: being prudes or dealing with fat hairy men in speedoes.
I will keep my clothes on, thank you.*
*Actually, I plan to go to a nude beach--and there are a couple of nude lakes nearby--but still! :)
We just went down to the Royal Gardens in the city to watch fireworks. They were GORGEOUS!!! There is this international competition held piece by piece in Hannover during the beginning and end of the summer. Tonight was Argentina's turn... WOW!! They set the fireworks to music, and it is just awesome. My favorite part was a slower song... they had these special fireworks I have never seen before that twinkled forever in the sky! I was so impressed... there are two more fuerwerken dates this fall... then we have to wait until May :(
The royal gardens are a big deal in Hannover. There used to be a castle here until it was destroyed at the end of WWII. Now, maybe some of you military history buffs out there knew this, but tonight the Baumanns taught me that at the end of WWII the allies waged a war on civilian morale. In one night, firebombs *destroyed* the city of Hannover! They didn't drop explosives, just bombs that burned up buildings. People were spared because they were hidden in basements and bomb shelters; the death rate was about 200... but still. I didn't know that 'we' did that... and I was shocked and a little appalled. Ina said she thought the Germans deserved it, and she *is* German, so...
Anyway, there is still a prince in Hannover. Alas, he is in his 40's and apparently married. *sob* AND... the royal lineage in Hannover has close ties to British royalty... that is kind of cool :)
Ina and I were discussing some of the differences between Americans and Germans. One thing I noticed is that Germans are waaaaay more comfortable with nudity. There is a poster at Kathi's kindergarten with all kinds of pictures from this picnic... and all the little boys in the picture are naked... running through sprinklers, down slip'n'slides... all these little penii are hanging out. (I can't remember if the girls were naked, too... I will look on Monday...) I told Ina that that would not fly in the US... can't you see some preschool getting sued!? She said that that is a big joke among Germans... How prude Americans can be. Europeans are shocked by the amount of violence we have in our movies, but how scared we are of s-e-x.
I told her that Americans joke about how comfortable Europeans are with their bodies, and that a particular stereotype is the biiiiiig, hairy European man in the teeny-weeny speedo... According to Ina speedos aren't worn as much anymore, but to my sensitive American eyes they are still worn allllll toooooo often!
So what do you think Americans: being prudes or dealing with fat hairy men in speedoes.
I will keep my clothes on, thank you.*
*Actually, I plan to go to a nude beach--and there are a couple of nude lakes nearby--but still! :)
# posted by Heather @ 11:05 PM 
