Temple and Church in Germany

The main reason we came to Germany was to go to the temple in Freiburg. We went to it a few days ago, and it was pretty neat. Besides the usual super awesome spiritual feeling that you get in the temple, we got baptized in Hungarian. It was pretty neat, but we had no idea what they were saying. The Freiburg temple is assigned to 7 languages, that is pretty amazing. They are: German, Czech, Romanian, Russian, English, Polish, and Hungarian.

The Freiburg Temple, even though you can't see Moroni on top.

 We wandered back to the train after that and took a little detour through this market type square thing. We got bratwursts, a typical German food I guess. It was basically a huge hot dog on a tiny dinner roll. It tasted like that too.

Today we went to church in Germany. Our family has made a kind of commitment to go to church for the full 3 hours every Sunday, whether we understand the language or not. We left an hour early, figuring that would be plenty of time to get to the church on time. Of course, we didn't count on the trams arriving at odd times, or not understanding a single word of German. Due to those two things, we did pretty well arriving at church only 3 minutes late. This has been kind of a repeating thing, we are late to church a lot, it seems.

The church building we went to today, you can see the sign between the pillars a little bit.

After church they had this dinner thing, that they apparently have every week, so of course, we stayed. They served sauerkraut, and if you don't know what that is, I'll describe it. So you know when you carve jack-o-lanterns, and you have to scoop out all the goop? Ya, imagine that goop, but with veggies instead of seeds, and you have sauerkraut. Needless to say, it wasn't my favorite.

Anyway, Germany has been pretty cool so far, even though I spend most of my time doing school it seems like. Our apartment was great, and we even got to play some soccer with the family downstairs.

Freiberg Temple [BY JENNA]

We went to the temple.  It was a small temple.  The visitor's center was closed so Joe and I got to sit in the temple waiting room because daddy, Sam, Seth, and mommy were in the temple.

The Freiberg temple was built for the German people because they couldn't leave to go to another temple.  They kept sending in applications to go to Switzerland to the temple and the government said, "No."  The people would immediately re-apply.  One of the church members had friends in the government.  His friends called him to talk and told him, "Your people need to stop making all of these applications.  Why don't you build a temple in Germany?"  That's how it started.

Here are some pictures.

This is the temple.

This is me in front of the temple.

We spend a day with the Corbridge's

     The title is misleading, but true. Our second cousins came to Washington DC for a day and so we met up with them at the Lincoln Memorial. There was almost no one there because school had started. Then we decided to walk over to the archives. While we were walking we saw the Vietnam war memorial. That is the big black wall with names on it. We kept walking and found ourselves at the World War II memorial. There was a lot of military people there. It had a big fountain and with all the states and countries that fought in the war. We kept walking and got to the Washington Monument. We took some pictures and kept walking. Finally, we got to the National Archives. We went in and went through security, and saw The Declaration of Independence, The Bill of Rights, and the Constitution. It was really cool (even if it was the second time). The Declaration of Independence was so faded you could barely read it. The Constitution was easy to read and cool. There was a typo in Pennsylvania, they spelled it Pensylvania. The Bill of Rights was faded and hard to read, but it was still cool that the piece of paper was over 200 years old. After that we went to the Air and Space Smithsonian. We got something to eat at the food court and then went to see the exhibits. We went to one of them, but it was to busy to have a lot of fun. I thought it would be less busy like the Lincoln Memorial, but it was very busy. After that they had to go so we said good-bye and they left.

Us at the WWII Memorial with Utah 

WWII Memorial

Us at the Air and Space museum

Good bye DC

Washington DC is a great place to spend 4 weeks!  However, I might recommend a month other than August because it was very hot and humid and crowded with lots of other tourists.  As we planned this trip we knew we were not hitting DC at the best time.  We also knew we couldn't be everywhere in the world in September so some places we have to experience in less than perfect conditions.

Usually we spent about 3-4 hours a day doing tourist things.  At that pace we saw a lot, but didn't get to worn out with long days.  We did not have a car, but relied on the metro and bus system and our own feet to get us around.  Our apartment was just 2 blocks from the metro station, which made using the  metro very easy.   It was nice to have an apartment with a kitchen and a  grocery store a block away.    The thing I did miss was a yard.  The only close parks we found had small playground areas but no grass fields and were just not inviting.

We learned a lot about US history and government these past few weeks.  I especially enjoyed the tour of the Capitol building on Monday.  I sometimes complain about our government and politicians, but I am so thankful to live in this free country.   We are going to finish up our time in the US by visiting Philadelphia, Boston and New York.

DC with Cousins!

We spent our final day in DC with cousins!  Rich's cousin (who lives just down the street from us in American Fork) came to DC on business and he brought three of his children with him.  We met them at the Lincoln Memorial in the morning and spent part of the day with them.   We showed them some of our favorite places, such as the monuments, the National Archives, and the Air and Space museum.  It was so fun to see some familiar faces from home and the kids thought it was great to have someone besides siblings to interact with.  It was the perfect way to end our stay in Washington.  So if anyone else wants to meet us somewhere in the world we would love to see you!

Nats!

I'll bet some of you are thinking, "He spelled the title wrong."  And some of you are wondering what I mean by the last statement.  I didn't spell it wrong.  It is the affectionate name the locals have for the home town Washington Nationals baseball team.

While living in Washington DC for a month we tried to keep the boys involved in youth activities at the Church.  Even though we did not officially belong to the congregation they welcomed us warmly and let us be as involved as we wanted.  One week we played basketball.  One week a member of the congregation generously provided tickets for all of the youth to attend a Washington Nationals baseball game!  From the picture you can see that the tickets were awesome.  I doubt he'll ever read this and I already thanked him in person but thanks again Brother Eskelsen!

Joe, Sam, and Seth at the Nats' game.

One thing I noticed was that the "W" in the Washington Nationals' logo looks like the "W" in the Walgreen's logo.  Every time I saw the Washington Nationals logo (which was very often that night at the ballpark) I thought "Walgreens".  What do you think?

 

What a Memorial!

After we visited Arlington a few weeks ago I was disappointed when I learned that the Marine Corps Memorial was nearby and that I hadn't seen it.  You probably recognize the memorial from the very famous photo it is based on taken by Joe Rosenthal during the World War II battle for Iwo Jima.

A few years ago I read the book Flags of Our Fathers and though parts of it were very graphic it told a valuable story of the Marine victory on Iwo Jima, a turning point in World War II, and specifically the story of the raising of the flag on the island.  You can read more about the battle here.

We visited the memorial on a gray, overcast and rainy day.  The rain dampened my spirits and put me in a thoughtful, almost reverent mood.  The mood seemed appropriate for a visit to the memorial.  At the same time I think a bright, sunny day would have been equally appropriate for remembering the sacrifice and accomplishments of the marines memorialized there.  The sculpture is larger than life size (see the person in the bottom right) which seems to add emphasis to the importance of the Marines' sacrifices.

I believe the memorial does justice to the Marines.  I think it is one of my favorites and while it is a bit out of the way I think it is well worth the visit and recommend it to anyone who visits Washington DC.

The awesome US Marine Corps Memorial in Arlington, VA.

If you look closely in the photo you can see the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial in the background.  This memorial seems to fit in with the rest of Washington DC.

Missionaries

I am a priest now, and part of that is going around with the missionaries. Back in Utah we had 2 missionaries for 5 stakes, so I never went with them, I'm not sure I even saw them. But here in DC there is 8 missionaries for 1 ward, so I got a chance to go around with them yesterday.

I had really no idea what a day on a mission was like. I thought it was like in Best Two Years, where they are giving out Book of Mormons all the time. That was not the case. I went with the missionaries, Elder Fisher and Elder Chatman to their first appointment, but nobody answered. We went to 2 or 3 other appointments, but no results. They said that is pretty normal. Meanwhile, they are talking to everyone on the streets, trying to get people to be interested in the Church. We also got cussed out by a Mexican. The whole thing seemed rather discouraging, I am not sure if we/they made any progress the whole time I was with them. 

So while I am not looking forward to a mission as much anymore, I have a better realization of the life of a missionary.

Running in DC

In the 3 weeks we've been in DC Elaine and I have run pretty regularly.  The actual act of running in DC is mentally more difficult.  I have to think about running more here and can't let my mind wander to other subjects and here are a few reasons why.

• The surfaces are uneven.  There are always cars in the narrow streets and so we have to run on the sidewalks which are made in 2-foot square sections (2, 3, or 4 sections across).  Some times the sections are uneven.  Being in the city there are streets very frequently and therefore there are curbs of inconsistent height to navigate.  I have to watch the surface constantly so that I don't roll an ankle.  I'll admit that anywhere I run I have to watch the surface for abnormalities but it feels like I have to watch more closely here.
• There is more traffic.  No matter how early we run there is traffic on the sidewalks: people walking, people biking, and people walking dogs.  We have watch for traffic on the sidewalk.
• The sidewalks are narrow.  Some of the sidewalks are 2 sections across and some times they are 3 sections across.  A sidewalk might have a random planter box or tree or lamppost or street sign by the curb.  Another sidewalk might have bushes or branches hanging over the sidewalk on the "house" side.  Another thing that makes the sidewalks narrower is standing water.   We don't like to run through water and go to great lengths to avoid it especially when we can't see the surface under it.  Add another pedestrian or biker or dogwalker or garbage day and suddenly the sidewalk is narrower.  We have to watch out for variations in the width of the available running space.
• There are lots of red lights.  Being in a city, there are many streets and intersections.  Many intersections are governed by traffic lights and for pedestrians "Walk" and "Don't Walk" signals.  Some times we can time it right with the "Walk" signals.  Other times we have a choice to make:  stop running and wait for the light to change or follow the "Walk" signal in a different direction.  Some times following the "Walk" signal doesn't move us in the direction we want to go.

I don't want this to be a completely negative post.  There are two places (they are actually connected) where we absolutely love running in DC:  Rock Creek Park and the Mall area.  There are paths for biking, walking, and running in both places (and between) and I enjoy being able to let my mind wander a bit while I run instead of concentrating on each step.  Also, I realize now that running in Utah has spoiled me with wide smooth streets and little traffic.

A view of what the sidewalks are like in this DC neighborhood.

Adventures Attending Church

While on this trip we've committed to ourselves to attend all of church every Sunday.  So far we are doing well.  While in DC we've gone to church three times and each time getting there has been a bit of an adventure and each time the services have been great.

The first Sunday was sweltering:  high heat and high humidity.  We weren't exactly sure where we were going when we got off the metro.  Meanwhile we are baking in the heat, managing kids, and trying to figure out where we were compared to where we wanted to go.  We looked around for others wearing "church clothes" that we could follow and we were just far enough off the path that there weren't any others.  Google maps on my phone got us where we needed to be.  Not knowing how long it would take us to get there we had left early enough that we still arrived 15 minutes early.  We didn't stop sweating until an hour after church had started.  The stress of getting there on time dissipated quickly with the warm welcome we received.

The second Sunday we thought we had it figured out and left with what we thought was enough time to make it to church on time.  We missed our first train and had to wait 15 minutes for the next one.  Fortunately we had built in a few extra minutes to our plan and were only a few minutes late when we arrived.  It was a bit of relief that the meeting was also behind schedule and started moments after we sat down.

The third Sunday it was raining, only a drizzle at the apartment but a torrential downpour at the church. We had two single-person umbrellas and Seth and Joe had their rain jackets on.  We made it to church and were soaked through.  My socks are probably still wet.  But again the services were great.

One of the benefits of attending a world-wide church is that the format, content, and feeling is consistent.  The presentation varies slightly locally but we always feel at home.  The fact that it is a world-wide church does not impeded our ability to feel connected anywhere we go.  The people are what gives each congregation its own personality and that feeling of connection.

Road School

Since we don't have a home right now, we are calling our educational experience road school this year.  Sam is signed up for an on-line charter school that starts next week.  The other three kids we decided to not enroll in the on-line schools available.  For one reason or another none of them were a good fit.  Some wanted students to be available in February for testing, some wanted to send us boxes of materials to supplement the on-line portion, and some wanted to charge us boatloads of money.  So we opted to road school our three younger children for the year.

While we do have some specific curriculum,  we are mainly taking advantage of the museums and sights around us.   Let me share a few examples of that from sight seeing this week.

We visited the National Cathedral and the tour guide gave us a great lesson in Gothic Architecture.  It was much more interesting than reading about it in a text book.   After our inside tour, we walked around outside and looked at the various outside Gothic features.  I'm sure we will be able to identity more Gothic cathedrals when we visit Europe.

Outside the National Cathedral

Inside

The south side.  It is being repaired from damage received last summer in an earthquake.

Later in the week we visited Mt. Vernon.  A few days before I gave the kids the assignment to each research a bit about George Washington and write a eulogy that we would read when we visited his tomb.  Near the end of our day at Mt. Vernon we found a shady place to sit near his tomb, and each child took a few minutes to present a eulogy.  They had a few things in common, but each child had also come up with a few unique things to share.   We then had a discussion about things we had learned while at Mt. Vernon.

Seth and Jenna at Washington's tomb

Joe at Mt. Vernon

The kids resting on George Washington's porch after a day with lots of walking

We spent a few hours at the Holocaust museum.  I told the kids that it wasn't going to be the most fun museum they visit, but it was an important one to learn about.  I took Jenna through the childcare’s area while Rich took the boys through the main exhibit.  It was a good introduction to the Holocaust and we will learn more about it later in our trip when we visit Auschwitz.

This coming up week will be US Government week as we visit the US Supreme Court, the Capitol building, and the White House.