Germany 2nd Week

I know. You are all waiting to know what has been going on. It's been truly amazing and we are all sincerely sorry for not being able to keep up with the blog. However, when they said GSE was hard work, they weren't kidding.

Our days are filled with incredible learning opportunities and interesting people. Our evenings are filled with long-conversations and new experiences. Typically we are up well past midnight and awake again the next day before 6am. As we are here for only a short time we are trying to get as much out of the experience as possible. This doesn't leave us much time for blogging, email or even quick phone calls.

Emden was truly amazing. As you have seen in the previous posts - it really is working towards a sustainable future. From there we moved to Bruchausen-Vilsen. Once again, we were not disappointed. A very well organized itinerary that saw us each enjoy amazing vocational days, to meeting a German McDonald's frachisee, to an informational and interesting walk thru at the newspaper office to a fabulous learning experience at a world reknown horse-breeding facility, to delightful walk through the cultural center of historical Celle.

My vocational day was spent with Mattiai Construction - a well-known and relatively large construction company in Northern Germany. A great day of touring various projects including a round-about, construction of a new canal and lock system, a bridge project and a new highway construction. It was very interesting to look at the different techniques being applied and to discuss costing and estimating.

And once again, the highlight of the time was the people. Truly wonderful! I think that is what I will take away most from this experience - the opportunity to meet and talk with the local people. To develop friendships, understanding, and to, best of all, plan their future trips to British Columbia.

This morning we are off to Berlin. We are all excited. Berlin has so much to offer and I think these next few days will be beyond expectations. Chat again soon

Moving forward

We have arrived to a new town in Northern Germany, it is late, so will post again in the next day. We will sum up the last few days in Emden and will begin to post our latest adventure. Stay in touch and we will be back here with photos and stories, Good night,

Friesische Freiheit

Here are some photos of our days here in Emden and the area. From the Wadden Sea to Neuharlingerseal, there are many beautiful and interesting places to see in East Frisia. Our Emden coordinator, Remmer Edzards, put together an interesting and exciting itinerary for us.

Our vocational day in Emden

Wow. Today was another great day of learning about Emden's energy industries. We began at a the Stadtwerk biomass facility. Then our Rotarian guide (and captain of our sailing trip yesterday), Wilhelm-Alfred Brüning, showed us his steel manufacturing and design firm. After a delightful mittagessen at Greg and Fred's host home of Dr. Onno Feenders and his wife Krista, we went to tour the E-Ship. The ship is designed around the concept of "flatner rotors." I may be misspelling that, but the general idea is that these rotors spin around creating a negative pressure on one side of the column and positive pressure on the other side, which then is used to provide an energy savings of 30% for the cargo ship. This ship will be used to transport Enercon's windmill components around the world. It was a state of the art ship, but photos are "verboten." Greg or the others may have more to add. I have a feeling we've seen some technology that many people would give their life and limb to see. I am truly amazed at the opportunities we have through this program.

Sky to Sea Cont'd - pics only

oh ya, forgot to mention. This wind turbine we climbed is one turbine in the largest wind farm in the world! Enercon is the Corporation who manufacturs and supplies the wind tubines at 14 million euros a piece this farm is nothing to shake a stick at with 70 turbines!!! This Co. was developed in the garage of a one man and still owned by him and his family!

Sky to Sea

As Fred and Greg have mentioned we are now in Emden - origonally settled in 800!!!

We have been fortunate enough to stay with amzing host families showing us the best parts of this town of only 52 000 residents. Even though this is a small town they deliver some amazing technology, industry, tourism and cluture.

Remmer Edzards is one of our hosts. He is a GM for the local Engery supply company in Emden. He has recenty been a key speaker at the earth summit in Rio De Janeiro - world climate conference. He was commended on Emden being a truly sustainable city.

we've been to the top of a 130 meter wind turbine on the coast two days ago (of which Kim and I climbed all the way down on a ladder!!!!)

Yesterday we walked from the german mainland to the Island of Bultrum through the "Watt Mud". This three hour tour was so interesting as this mud is full of orgamisms and history. Germanys northern sea coastal communities seem to have a reocurring theme of constantly having to maintain shipping channels because this mud fills the waterways and makes the coast impossible to reach. But though 100's of years of practice maintaining waterways is a fine art.

After this was can back and drove to remmers home town (Nueuharlingersiel) on the coat where some buildings still stand from late 1800's then had a wonderful meal at his sisters resturant.

Today we where lucky enough to have one of the rotarians take us on a sail boat tour out of Emden and over across to the Netherlands, where we had a little fun getting interrogated by the friendly police. They enjoyed a nice cup of kaffee with us! We have having the time of our lives seeing wonderful places, learning interesting aspects of germany and their government, history and people! AND I think we are learing some german!! ;)

Bremen - photos for the last post