The first time I landed at Germany’s Frankfurt Airport and zoomed south on the autobahn to reach charming Heidelberg ….. Well, yes, it was somewhat terrifying to go that fast! That’s where I saw my first Smart Car—I called it doors with an engine. We have them in the US now and I still don’t think I’d drive one on any highway.
Being in Germany, I immediately little in love with the rhythm of life in my first European country. Was I, perhaps, born on the wrong continent?
Growing up with World War II movies … whether the actors were German or not, they failed to convey the lyricalness I found in the language. The Italians sound as if they’re yelling, no matter their decibel or underlying smiles. The Germans always seem as if there is huge laughter behind their words, even when I don’t understand them.
Travel has helped me understand that people define places as much as buildings and landscapes, rivers and terrain. The simplicity and directness of the Germans appealed to me on an intrinsic level. After several trips and rudimentary language skills, I would say to my new friends, “Auf Deutsch,” which meant to speak to me in German. It helped me learn and I could hide from my compatriots. American English is is glaringly rough on my ears after the cadence and exoticness of hearing only Deutsch for days.
Germany is Colorful
I thought about creating a book, “The Colors of Germany,” beginning with photos of all things yellow. Walking down the road to visit the Radioteleskop at Bad Muenstereifel, I snap a photo of the elderly couple walking a hundred yards in front. Her crepe, Sunday blouse, is a shimmering shade of daffodil yellow. I want the image with me not just for the color, but for yet again seeing people in their 70s walking where they could have driven. Germans don’t comprehend why I find that so amazing.
Everywhere here, time is available. Germans, so adept, so willing to live in the present, calm me. I am aware of my breathing smoothing out and the stress pouring from my feet onto land that has been walked on for longer than the United States has existed as a country.
