Family Blog

Long time it was quit on Manuel's blog. But now he started a new one "Comprehending the Word ...". It is more a political blog with some facts around the world.

2012 is once again a year when the world goes down. But until then there is still time for some good resolutions this year, as there would be:

• more sport (at least 2 hours per week),
• begin with app development for iPhone and iPad
• say goodbye to Facebook.

Especially the last point would be hard, because Facebook has its advantages. So I don't know if I really will quit it, but there are some points that bother me. Especially that you don't know what happens with your data and that FB takes no (or less) notice of your "privacy".

Happy New Year

Christmas with palm trees - does that work? I don't know but for Carmen it is her first christmas in a foreign country, in Australia. She will spend some days with my sister and her friend and I think she will enjoy some quit days.

We will go in a few minutes to the Stiftskirche (main church in Stuttgart) where Manuel and Philip will sing together with the Hymnus Choir before we will go back home and celebrate the holy night.



Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

This week I received a package from Iran. When I opened it there were two pakets of gaz inside. Gaz is a white kind of nougat and tastes delicious - a kind of early Christmas present. As my friend in Isfahan told me she thought it would take several weeks from Iran to Germany. This was also my experience when I sent a postcard from New York to Iran. It seems that the post from Iran to Germany is much faster as from USA to Iran.

My friend told me also that the Zayandeh Rud (the river through Isfahan) has no water inside. When we were in Isfahan in May the river was dry. Here in Germany it hasn't rained since one month and some rivers like the Rhine have only a quarter of the normal water level.

Since seven weeks Carmen is now as au-pair in Perth, Australia. Last week she was with her host family on an island near Perth. She swam at that beach where a man was killed one week before. And this week again a man, an American diver was killed at Rottnest Island.

Last week we came back from the US and I need some time to arrive in my daily work. What I missed most is the free internet access at each corner (even in the plane you can find WiFi). On the other site I'm happy to have my normal breakfast each day. One of the first thing our daughter wanted was a pretzel when we landed in Stuttgart.

We started our visit in New York which is a very busy (and never sleeping) city. After three days we rented a motorhome and went first to the north (to the Niagara Falls) before we went west to Whitefish Bay near Milwaukee. The first stop at a gas station we were a little surprised - we need nearly double so much gas as expected but the price for it was about half of the price in Germany (about 4$ per galeon).
In Whitefish Bay we had the luck to be part of the family where Manuel had been four years ago. His family was so friendly to us and we learned a lot of the Americans in these days. We had also some political discussions - this is something what I had not expected.

While the weather was warm in Wisconsin the weather in California (where we flew from Milwaukee) was hot (except San Francisco). We spent one day in Lincoln, where we had an excellent Mexican dinner and nice day with Philip's host father from his time at school some years before. We had too less time to visit all the great national parks but some of we saw (and they were really great). Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon were the last big attractions before we went back and spent a (sunny and warm) day in San Francisco.

Our flight back to Stuttgart started in the evening (6:55 PM), so we had some time left for a last trip to a shopping mall in San Bruno. Back at the airport we heared the news about the damages of the storm "Irene" and saw pictures from New York were we have been three weeks before - what a luck we had with the weather.
We were all tired when we reached London Heathrow, but we were more tired when we were back in Gerlingen again. When I went to work this morning it was a strange feeling driving a Smart because the last three weeks I was used to drive a motorhome.
Philip came back this evening. Only Manuel is missing - he will spent one more week in Wisconsin.

Because we had to be back in San Fransico on Saturday morning we decided to go back directly. But before we visited the Sunset Vulcanology Crater. With about 500 miles the Thursday was the longest section because we wanted to leave the Mojave Dessert behind us. We stopped in Tehachapi on the same campground as a few days ago.
For the next campground we looked for one near Santa Cruz and found one at the Sunset State Beach near Watsonville. Manuel wanted to go swimming but the weather was foggy and cold. So we walked only on the beach and saw a lot of seagulls and pelicans sitting there.
Next day we stand up early in the morning (6:00 AM), because we had to bring back our RV till 11:00 PM. We drove about 2400 miles from last week, where we started here.
From the RV rental we took the train into the city of San Francisco and visited chinatown, the cable car, Lombard Street, Fisherman's Wharf, the Painted Ladies, before we looked for a Mexican restaurant. We had luck with  the weather - first it was foggy (which is normal in August), but in the afternoon it was sunny.

On Tuesday we reached Las Vegas, but not without stopping at a shopping mall before. In Las Vegas we found a cheap RV park at Sam's Town and I think it was the same RV park as 20 years before.

In the late afternoon we visited the strip with Cesar's Palace, Paris Las Vegas, The Venetian and all the other big gambler paradises. One the one side it was overwhelming to see the Rialto Bridge, the Eifel Tower or artificial waterfalls in Las Vegas, on the other side it is a big waste of valuable resources. Back to Sam's Town we risked a play at a slot machine and Philip won something (ok, it was only 10 cent).

Next day we visited the Hoover Dam. On the way to it we had to pass a security point where we had all to get out of our RV.

On the way to the Grand Canyon we come in a little sandstorm. The weather was not so good this day and we saw lightnings in the distance. But we had luck and an overwhelming view when we reached the Grand Canyon. There were many people from Germany, but we saw also some people from Tibet and many Asian people.

Last Thursday we arrived late in San Francisco and had first to look for an hotel, because our reservation for it was lost (although we had a confirmation for it). We found another hotel near the airport, where we started the next day to Oakland by public transportation. It was a new experience for us to change two times the train and tram with different kind of payment (in Germany you have to pay normally only once for a ticket).

In Oakland we picked up our next RV which was much older than the first one. From there the first goal was San Francisco and the Golden Gate Bridge. Philip directed me not the fastest but shortest way and so we drove up and down thru streets where you normally would never go with a motorhome.
There was fog above the Golden Gate Bridge which is normal in summer. We followed the highway 1 along the coast till Bodega Bay where we stay overnight.

On Saturday we started with a cold and foggy weather but when we arrived in Lincoln it was sunny and hot. We said hello to Jeff, the host father of Philip four years ago. Philip showed us Lincoln and his high school. And we tried frozen yoghurt which tastes delicious.

Jeff cooked in his great kitchen a wonderful Mexican dinner for us, we had Californian white wine and nice talks in the evening. The next morning we had a good breakfast at a restaurant near the high school, before we said goodbye and started to Yosemite National Park.

Well behaved children are always welcome.
Those under the age of 18 must be supervised by their parents.
This was one of the rules of the first campground we arrived in California.

On Saturday we arrived in Whitefish Bay, but not without a stop at a shopping mall before. We had a warm welcome at the host parents of Manuel (4 years ago he was there as an exchange student). It was the first time, that we saw them - a really great and friendly family with a nice house. For this day we found no hotel room so we parked our motorhome before their house and slept there (except Manuel, he wanted to sleep in his old "home").

On Sunday sailed on the Michigan Lake. It was an ideal weather for that - sunny and windy (15 - 20 knots). We were two boats and had a good view on Milwaukee. After sailing there was a party for and with us with barbecue (the Americans like barbecue) and different kind of beers (there are some breweries in Wisconsin like the Pabst brewery).

On Monday we visited the Art Gallery of Milwaukee. The building itself was constructed like a ship by a Spanish architect. Normally the roof could be opened but there were some problems with the mechanics in the past. But we were lucky - they fixed it and it was the first day after a longer time that they opened it. It looks very majestic - like a starting swan.

In the evening we were invited at Yunkers who stayed two years in Germany. It was fun to saw some movies from Germany like the movie from the "Autobahn". It was a nice evening.

I was very happy that Grobles helped us the next to give back our motorhome in Chicago and to bring us into the heart of the city. We started at the Art Museum, went thru the Millenium Park, walked along the river and enjoyed the view from the John Hankock Tower. And we tried the special pizzas at Pizza Due which are bigger than the normal pizzas.

On Wednesday I played pool which I did at school the last time. And my son and me played gulf which we never did before. We had a good teacher and we had a lot of fun. Afterwards we had a last time barbecue (and kopps) before we left Wisconsin the next day. It were five wonderful days at a wonderful family.

Last Sunday I had the chance to go to a church. The church service is a little bit different from the one in Germany. In Germany you go to church, sit down, listen to the prayer and go home afterwards. Here it is like more a meeting with the service between. You come, talk to other people, listen to the prayer and meet your friend at the end of the service again.

At the informal service where we have been, there was also a band and some singers in front to support the people for the songs and the songs sound better and fresher than here. And also the average age of the people in the church were 10 - 20 years less. Church seems to be more alive than in Germany.

From New York we wanted to go to the Niagara Falls. But before we had to pick up our motorhome and to drive through New York to Wyckoff to pick up Philip. Driving through New York is terrible but with a motorhome it is much more terrible. After hours of stop & go we reached Philip and could start our trip to the North.

Next day (Thursday) we reached the Niagara Falls. There are two falls: the Canadian Niagara Falls and the American Niagara Falls. Both are very impressive. And there are also two cities with this name - one of the American and one of the Canadian Site.

After the Niagara Falls we went near Cleveland (Ohio). On the way to it we stopped at a shopping mall not only for shopping but also we need internet access to look for an campground. You can find here in most restaurants and malls free WiFi.

Next day we want to go a campground near the dunes at Michigan City. The first three campgrounds were all full but we found at least a litte campground at Chesterton. But before we visited the Dunesland National Park at Michigan City. At the beach you could see Chicago on the other site of the lake.