Ger-mania!!!

(Gif credit: Dave Gomez) Der Akku -s : battery Example: Mein Akku ist leer. (My battery is dead.)

For more information about the word: https://en.langenscheidt.com/german-english/akku

(Photo cred: Mike Von)

When the Nazis came for the communists, I remained silent; I was not a communist.

When the locked up the social democrats, I remained silent; I was not a social democrat.

When they came for the trade unionists, I did not speak out; I was not a trade unionist.

When they came for the Jews, I remained silent; I was not a Jew.

When they came for me, there was no one left to speak out.

(Photo cred: Laura Anderson)

(Photo cred: Arseny Togulev)

Die Quelle,-n : the source

Quelle can be used to mean like a spring (water) source: Wasserquelle

Quelle can be used for an oil source: Ölquelle

Quelle can be used as an synonym for the origin (Ursprung) of something: Quelle des Lebens

Quelle can be used to mean a source for news: die Nachricht stammt aus zuverlässiger Quelle

More about the word: https://en.langenscheidt.com/german-english/quelle

Edenkoben

Edenkoben’s coat of arms

Edenkoben’s existence was first recorded in 769 with the name Zothingowe(n). It

Located in the southern Bundesland of Rhineland-Palantinate, this city is home to 6655 people as of December 31, 2019.

Edenkoben located on a map

Because of its location, it has belonged to different German Bundesländer and countries. After the French Revolution and during the Napoleonic Wars, this city belonged to French Republic and then the First French Empire respectively. This was between the years of 1802 to 1814. The city then fell under the Kingdom of Bavaria’s power in 1818. After the WWII, the city was still Germany but in the French occupied area. Today the city is no longer occupied and belongs to the Bundesland Rhineland-Palantinate. 

Some notable sights:

Villa Ludwigshöhe: During the time when Edenkoben belonged to Bavaria, King Ludwig I built a summer villa here. 

Photo of Villa Ludwigshöhe

Friedensdenkmal - Built between the years of 1893-1899, it was built to commemorate the victory for the Germans in the Franco-Prussian War.

Photo of the Friedensdenkmal

Museum für Weinbau und Stadtgeschichte: The land around the Rhine River is considered to be where the best wine comes from, and Edenkoben is located right beside the river. While here, you can learn more about how wine has shaped this town’s history at this museum for viticulture and city history.

Other recommendation: Being in prime wine land, one should take the opportunity to try the area’s wine! One place that has been in business since 1881 is J.J. Berizzi. The winery used to operate under the name Weingut Nicole Graeber but was taken over in 2019 by Julius and Janina Berizzi. Their top recommendations (as of August 2020) for wine are their:

2019 Scheurebe S

2019 Weißburgunder

2018 Pinot blanc de Noirs

2019 Rosé 1848 trocken

(Photo cred: Peter Jan Rijpkema)

(Photo cred: Alyssa Strohmann)

(photo cred: Zhou Cheng You)

Double whammy today! lächeln - to smile Das Lächeln / Die Lächeln - the smile / the smiles

For more translation, English-German, information: https://en.langenscheidt.com/german-english/laecheln#l%C3%A4cheln

For more grammar information:

https://www.duden.de/rechtschreibung/laecheln

Jena

Jena’s coat of arms

Jena is located in the Bundesland of Thuringia, with a population of 11,343 as of December 31, 2019. It is the second largest city in Thuringia. The first mention of Jena as a city was around 1236 in a document from Hermann von Lobdeburg.

Jena is home to the University of Jena, or the Friedrich-Schiller University of Jena. Opened in 1558, this university has had notable faculty and alumni, such as Carl Zeiss, Johann Gottlieb Fichte, Friedrich Schiller, Gerhart Hauptmann, and Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph Schelling.

Arial view of the university

(Photo source: dreamstime)

A few of part of the campus

(Photo source: dreamstime) 

Some notable sights in Jena include:

Zeiss Planetarium: Opened in 1926, it is the oldest planetarium in the world and uses technology developed by Carl Zeiss (hence the name!).

Zeiss Planetarium (Photo cred: Zeiss)

Schillers Gartenhaus: This is where Friedrich Schiller lived and worked for 10 years.

Schillers Gartenhaus (Photo cred: Robert Spengler)

Das Stadtmauerensemble (the Medieval City Wall): Construction of this wall was completed in 1304. There are two notable structures that make up part of what remains of the wall: the Pulverturm (powder tower) and the Johannistor (St. John’s Gate). The Pulverturm is named such as it is where gunpowder was stored during the 16th century. The Johannistor was rebuilt later using a gothic style, hence the square structure.

Pulverturm (Photo cred: T. Babovic)

Johannistor (Photo from HelloTravel)

Romantikerhaus Jena: Jena was a hot spot during the German Romanticism movement. This city was home to huge influencers of the movement, such as Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph Schelling, Johann Gottlieb Fichte, Ludwig Tieck. This museum is a great place to learn more about the people and the movement.

Romantikerhaus (photo from tripadvisor)

Food recommendation: If you happen to be in Jena and are looking for a bite to eat, perhaps stop by Zur Noll. Some of their recommendations are Kalbsmedallion mit gekräuterten Pfifferlingen dazu gebackene Kartoffelkrapfen (Veal medallions with seasoned girolle mushrooms along with backed pommes dauphines). Check out their menu here: https://zurnoll.de/restaurant/

(Photo: booking.com)

A fun, informational article about Germans and the origins of fashion faux pas of wearing socks with sandals.

Wort des Tages: eigensinnig

English translation: stubborn

(Flag of Berlin from Wikipedia)

Folklore has it that the name Berlin comes from the word Bär, the city’s mascot, but a more likely origin is from the Slavic word for swamp (Birl- or Berl-).

A vibrant, beautiful city that 3.8 million people call home, Berlin is the capital and largest city of Germany. Founded in the 13th century, this city has seen its share of historical events, such as the bombings during WWI, division into east and west, and reunification when the Berlin Wall fell.

Berlin is one of the three cities in Germany with the status of “city-state”.  Berlin is divided up into 12 districts, called Bezirk (singular) in German, and each of those 12 districts are divided further into subdivision.

(Map from mapsland.com)

Some of my personal favorite sights in Berlin are:

the Reichstag, which is the home of the German parliament, der deutsche Bundestag (photo cred: Hoch3Media)

the Berlin Cathedral, Berliner Dom, is a beautiful cathedral on the Spree River (photo cred: Yang yang)

the East Side Gallery, where one can view art painted onto remains of the Berlin Wall, is the longest open air gallery in the world (photo cred: Mark König)

the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church, or Gedächtniskirch, is what remains of the church built between the years of 1891-1895, but sustained damaged during bombings in WWII (photo cred: Reiseuhu)