So for those of you who do not know. (Krieg) is the German word for “War” and (Unkraut) is the German word for “Weeds.” If you are not a gardener and land owner then maybe you don’t what it is I’m referring at the moment. Most people understand them to be the “Plants growing in the wrong place.” Occasionally, it is known as the species of plant that can survive in diverse environments outside of its natural habitat and reproduce very quickly. These plants became a part of my friend group this past week. On the last day of working after I got back to my place, I totally forgot something very important. While I was picking the weeds, I was using my coat pocket for temporary storage of the weeds, until I made it to the (UDS) Unkraut Drop Station. I can definitely tell you it was not a fun experience fishing for my keys and finding a huge handful of Unkraut in my jacket pocket. I guess that’s my idea of taking her (Unkraut/Weeds) out on a date, and then showing her my lavish apartment. My Host family was laughing hysterically when I told them about this. My host family said in unison “NIchts entgeht Unkraut.” This translates to “Nothing escapes Weeds.” Even with the Unkraut, this past week was a great experience. I woke up everyday at 8:30 to go help my host family with gardening work, grass feeding or cutting grass, fertilizing grass, putting down cement, moving piles of rocks, watering flowers and plants, and the one thing we most definitely cannot forget the “War with Weeds.” On our work break, we would either go to a nearby restaurant, or we would grill meat and vegetables while sipping on Apfelwein (Apple Wine.) During our breaks we also talked about the political differences between Germany and USA. I do not think I have ever not had a fruitful conversation while having dinner with a German family or friends. This definitely does not exclude other nationalities including, French, Columbian, Iranian, Polish, Russian, Greek, Great Britain, Chinese, Croatia, Singapore, Saudi Arabia and many more that I have dined with since I’ve been in Germany. If I tried remembering all of them, I might put a dent in the over seven thousand living languages in the world today. Anyways, it was all in all a great experience. I got exactly what I asked of my host family. In the feature photo that is all of the workers. Hanna is the lovely lady who is holding the camera. She is the one who referred me to her father Reinhold. I also worked with her a few weeks ago at the Frankfurt International Film Festival. Valerie is the first man from the left. He works for Reinhold my Host family father. Valerie taught me how to properly shovel dirt, rocks or anything heavy. I was having a hard time because I was only using my arms. Reinhold in the first man from the right. He is an absolute legend. He owns all the properties from which we worked during this past week. He taught me how to properly place cement and how to drink Apple wine. Yes, there are a hand-full of ways to drink it. With Water, With Sprüdel Wasser (Water with Bubbles) and with fruit juices. P.s. He grows the apples for his Apple wine, from seed to the bottle. The young man third from the left is Valentine. He and I become great friends. Feel like I’ve known him since the last time I lived in Germany. He told me more about the German school system from the student’s point of view. Music interests, typical german food, Culture, lifestyle. I hope you all enjoyed this adventure. I will be back soon with more. Stay tuned!!!
Auslander 