A Better Day

Last Tuesday was a better day than Sunday. You ask why? Because 'the kids' from The Family visited. I was surprised to see all three. Bro2 had called on Monday to say he needed help with a document he had got from school. We agreed Tuesday at 4.00pm and to no surprise he came at 6.00pm with big Bro and little Sis!

Nice to see them again after a relatively long time. Bro1 is now in a new school focussed on preparing students for work. He needed help with a document telling him to contacts three internet addresses and find a company he could train in for six weeks. It took time to go through the documents and explain all the steps, but in the end he understood what he had to do.

Then it was Bro2's turn. He had received a set of documents from his school/teacher about a class visit to London. It took some time before he understood the texts and realised he could not go.

 First, the family does not have the money to pay for such a trip. Buying food and clothes takes up most of their income. Second, he does not have a passport. Try getting into Brexitland without a passport.

While all this was going on, little Sis was playing with a rebounding ball I bought for her when I was in Bremen. She loved it. Was I happy! She also drew another really nice picture of me. What talent she has and she really picks up German quickly.

They told me they had moved at the end of August. I got the address then talked to their parents and I was invited to visit them yesterday =  Thursday. They have two rooms in what was a hotel. They have their own toilets but have to share a kitchen/washroom will all the other refugees who live there.

They do not have an internet connection, but go to a local library for that. There is also no TV connection. They really do need a flat,  but it is not easy to find an affordable one for five people. Even so, they are happier there, the children are making good progress at school and they are safe. That is the most important thing.

Bad Day

Sunday was a bad day for the SPD. It was the day when people voted in a General Election. The CDU/CSU lost votes and so did the SPD. In fact they got the lowest share of the national vote since 1948. The winners were the FDP, which is a pro-business liberal party, and most of all the AfD.

The AfD was founded in 2013 by some university professors of economics. Then the party was against the EU and economic policy to help the Greek government. It later changed to oppose refugee policy and moved to the political right. 

On Sunday, the AfD got most of its votes from people from the ex-DDR and Bavaria. They will be the third largest party in the new parliament. The newspapers and TV political programmes are full of what that could mean. Watch this space!

I voted in the afternoon, had lunch, did some Spanish homework then got ready to go to a bar/restaurant for a meeting of SPD members to see the election results coming in. It was worse than I expected. Here you can see a photo of members looking at the screen showing the results. Not any smiles to see.

The other photo is of Kevin, the SPD candidate, with Anja, who was one of two members who organised his campaign in my area. They and 'we' all worked hard but with no success. We have a lot of work to do to learn from 'The Bad Day'.

Mauerweg

This means the cycle/walking tracks where the Berlin Wall used to be. You cannot find it/them where all the Wall was, but there is a very cycle friendly track in the south of what was West Berlin. I cycled along it with Imre today.  The journey covered over 40 klm which includes the klms we cycled from his flat in the ex-East Berlin to pick up the Mauerweg and follow it in the ex-West part of the city.

I cycled the 30 minutes you need to get to his place. He was waiting for me with one of his 3 bikes. I commented on that and with a big smile he told me he also had 3 TVs before showing me 2 of the 5 cameras he has. At that point I gave up about the number of things he has! With my mouth closed we set off.

Not far from his place is a canal and on one side there was part of the Berlin Wall. You can see it in this photo. It is rather strange to be cycling along a specially made track where before 1990, you could not have gone. A number of people tried to cross the Wall but with no success. They were shot by border guards. As you cycle along the track you will see memorials to those at the points where they tried to escape and were shot. Here is one in this photo.

We cycled on and suddenly found a pub/restaurant preparing for a 'Bayern' Festival this evening. We decided to have a rest. Imre ordered a 'Wildschwein Wurst' (a wild pig sausage) with mustard and bread. I ordered a local beer. Imre does not drink alcohol but agreed to be photographed with a beer in front of him. Of course, it was mine!

After that break we hit the road again. We cycled through very nice woods and fields. It really is worth seeing and travelling along the rural part of the Mauerweg. Pity that most tourists to Berlin do not do so. The most they do is visit Checkpoint Charlie in the centre of the city.

Later we had a proper break at an Italian restaurant recommended by a local lady. Very tasty and at a reasonable price. I ordered a pasta dish with small pieces of meat and a local mushroom now in season. Mmmmhh very tasty and with a glass of Italian red wine it tasted even better!

We cycled on and noted the change in weather. We headed for the nearest S-Bahn station and the slow return home. Imre made it before the skies opened but I had further to cycle and arrived home very wet. No matter, even the rain could not spoil the interesting journey and discovering a part of Berlin that we had not seen before.

This Week

The week started with a meeting in my local AWO to discuss starting a new course for Seniors about smartphones and tablets. I went along just to listen. I do not have a smart phone but I do have a tablet. The meeting decided to start a new course next months to help seniors to use these devises. Should be interesting. Later I met my Monday Gang for an English session. They were very good and had clearly not forgotten anything.

On Tuesday I went to the AWO again but this time to meet two friends to start a new course for Spanish for Beginners. More conversation and less grammar. They were all happy about that! I then had my Tuesday Gang for a new English course. Very good work by all. Later I met my SPD Seniors, jumped into a number of cars and drove to a local industrial park.

There we visited a company called Ökotopia. It is a Bio company mainly packing tea and coffee produced in an environmentally friendly way. I really enjoyed the tour and learning about many different kinds of tea. We were all pleasantly surprised to receive a cloth shopping bag containing different kinds of tea and of coffee. Here is a photo.

On Wednesday and Thursday I had a number of local appointments including having a haircut. I note that there is now less to cut! Today I went to my Oldie Keep-Fit Session with Kerstin, then to Stefan and the start of  a new Photoshop Gang session. Later Daniel came for an English lesson and asked for help to make a presentation about The Industrial Revolution he has to give in English at his college next Tuesday. We found the material and prepared his presentation.

I also bought some plants to decorate my balcony during autumn. Here is a photo so you can see what I can see each time I look out of my kitchen door!

Cheating

My last post was a week ago. How time flies. I've had a very mixed week with most of it good. In my last post I said I would be going to our local racing track area for a day dedicated to families. My local SPD was also there and set up a table with election information. The election is this Sunday.

I was on duty at 10.00 am and took over a machine that I shall have to describe. It is circular and you can spin it. It has numbers like a clock but at three points it has the words SPD in red. There were lots of things for children such as pens, coloured pencils and lots of lollipops and sweets.

As usual, I cheated to make sure each child took away three prizes from three tries to win. They didn't notice that I slowed down, then stopped, the revolving game as the pointer came to one of the red SPD markers. You cannot believe how happy the kids were and their parents also smiled a lot. A few of them noticed I was cheating, but smiled and said nothing to their children!

Other members answered questions and entered into discussions about SPD policy with members of the public, while I continued to make the kids smile. One was Gregor, who is the Chairperson of our local SPD branch and the other is Kevin who is the SPD candidate for my borough to be elected to Parliament on Sunday. Here is a photo of them.

I mentioned that we were in our local  racecourse for horses. In the afternoon the horses and riders appeared to entertain the children and parents. Here is a photo of the area with just one horse. It was in the warm-up period!  I really enjoyed my time there and still think about the happy faces of the children as they won three prizes!!

From there I cycled to the local Protestant Church.  One of my neighbours sings in the choir and I had promised to go the their concert that afternoon. It was nice to relax in the cool of the hall and enjoy the sounds. The concert was well attended by local people including young families with children. The evening before I went to a local SPD Fest to meet other members and enjoy a barbeque and drinks. Here you can see me with a very nice special lady :-))

Back in Routine

I'm now settled into a weekly routine after my wandering. I have even worked on all my photos and send copies to appropriate people. This morning I had to stay at home to open the door for the gas and water meter readers. This evening I am going to a local SPD Sommerfest. It is in a local Seniorenheim only five minutes from my place. Johanna is going with me.

On Sunday I am going to the local horse racing area to help out at the SPD Information Stand. From there I am going to a street festival outside the local church. Lots of singing, food, drinks and amusements for all the family! I know someone who sings in the choir.

On Monday morning I am going to my usual AWO centre. This time to a new class for 'Oldies' to help them learn about how to use a smartphone. I do not have one but am curious to find out how one works and why millions of people use them. I'm teaching an Oldie group later in the afternoon.

Tuesday is really full. It starts with my Spanish group led by Maria, then I'm teaching another Oldie group before I gallop to join my SPD Oldie Gang for a visit to Birkenwerder. On my return I shall go to a local school where there is a public discussion hosted by the local SPD. The topic is German Culture and Integration. Should be interesting.

On Wednesday evening I am going to a community centre to do a probe in a new Spanish course. On Saturday I am going to a morning concert at the Philharmonie . The theme is music from Spain. My local housing association is sponsoring the event. After that I shall go to a nearby centre  to cast my vote in the General Election.

And so I am back into my routine in Berlin. I shall add some photos I took when in Silsden. Have a nice relaxing weekend, and if you live in Germany don't forget to vote for the SPD :-))

Schibden Hall

During my stay with Alan and Lynne we set off towards Halifax again and ended up at Schibden Hall.


I had never been there before and never heard of it. A truly remarkable house and history of the area. The house was built around 1420 by William Otes. It was later owned by the families Savile and Waterhouse.

The big changes came after 1655 when the house and land became the property of the Lister family until 1926. This family came from Bradford and were wealthy mill owners and cloth merchants. It was expanded to become what can be called a half-timbered manor house surrounded by fields and trees.

Major changes came during 1791 to 1840 when the property was owned by Anne Lister. A gothic tower was added and used as a library. A park was created with a boating lake and so it became the property you can see today.

The last of the Lister family owners was a founder member of the Independent Labour Party. That really surprised me!  He donated the park to Halifax Council in 1926 and so it became a public park. The manor house became a museum in 1934, and passed from private to public ownership.

The local council invested 5.1 million pounds sterling for restoration work in 2007-8. It is clearly a popular place to visit particularly when the sun shines, as it did when we visited. I liked wandering through the rooms and seeing the furniture and decorations in each room.

It really is worth a visit and I am grateful to Alan and Lynne for taking me there. We later went into Halifax and visited a museum showing the importance of the wool industry in the development of the town.  What an interesting day.

Happy Anniversary

I spent most of my last week with Alan and Lynne. My family and regular readers know he is my oldest friend - and he is 3 months older than I am! We met when I was 16 and went to college in Leeds. He was fortunate to meet a remarkable lady called Lynne and the rest is history.

Going to the UK would be unthinkable without staying with them. Fortunately they have a house even big enough for me! Look at the first photo. The bedroom on the right is mine :-))  Yes, it is true. The bed in that room is displayed at the top of my blog with the note that I have gone to Berlin. That room and house are as part of me as my blood!

I took the train to Leeds then onto the local one stopping at Castleford. It is an ex-mining town south of Leeds and has a good rugby team. This time they were not playing at home but had just won the Championship Title for the first time in 91 years. WOW!! Well done Cas! Alan and Lynne are supporters so they were very pleased.

We went into town a few times and they took me to parts of the area I had not seen for years, or not seen before. We spent an interesting day in and around Halifax. I knew it had played an important role in woolen cloth production but I did not know that at one time it dominated the UK market. There is an interesting museum which shows that history.

On one tour we went to a rural area south of Castleford. There is an old hotel/restaurant in a valley which they like. We went there and booked a table. They relaxed and I went for a walk along the valley. I turned a corner and saw this view of the track and fields. I had to take a shot. I find it typical of that area and very relaxing when I look at it.

I returned to find Alan and Lynne about to order. I joined in and enjoyed a fish dish with a cool glass of white wine. It was their 42nd wedding anniversary so I told them they were my guests. After polite protests they agreed. Later we sat in the garden and I took a couple of shots of the happy couple still smiling and happy to be a couple after so many years.

Another Nice Family

On my recent stay in Silsden I had the pleasure to meet nephew Andrew and meet his wife Krystle and her son for the first time. We had earlier communicated per e-mail and telephone. I took the bus over to Ikley and Krystle met me at the station and took me to their nearby house.

There I was met by the sounds of children playing. It was Krystle's son and Andrew's daughter from an earlier partnershaft. They went on playing as I gave their parents a present. Guess what? Yes, a bottle of Gin! We quickly added ice, slices of lemon and tonic water. As you can see from the first photo, Andrew and Krystle enjoying sipping the cool liquid!

Lot's of getting to know you before we set off for an Italian restaurant they both like. Here is a photo of us seated and about to be served. I asked Papa and daughter to snuggle up for a photo and here is the result. I think it is a great pose. Well done both. Certainly one for the album!

After the meal we wandered through the area and they found their favourite ice-cream shop. What a surprise! Here is a photo of three happy people licking ice-cream. Later, Krystle asked me if she could join me on a visit to the family grave and take her son. She said it was part of getting to know the family and finding her roots in a new(ish) country. I agreed.

On my last day, Barbara drove Frances and myself to Ilkley where we met Krystle and her son. We bought red roses to put on the grave and told Krystle more about the family members buried there. They asked questions and it was nice remembering those family members as we answered.

No surprise what we did then. It was my last full day so as usual we all went to Betty's Tea Room. Krystle really liked the atmosphere and 'Traditional Tea with Scones, Butter and Strawberry Jam'. Her son liked it too. We dropped them back home and returned to Silsden where I began to pack my bag for the return flights next day.

Nice Family

When I was 18, I met a young man called Ian Bolton. He was a lively character with an 'eye for the girls'. Later I got to know a girl he was 'courting' (I wonder if people still use this word?). Her name is Dianne. They later married and had three sons.

We kept in touch after I moved out of the area. On my visits to Silsden over many years I have always visited Dianne and second son. His name is Nicholas. He was always my favourite and I threatened to take him with me every time I visited!

He grew up, started a successful career and always kept in touch. Dianne and Ian's marriage broke up and Ian moved away. I did not see him much but kept contact to Dianne and Nick. Ian died at the start of this year. Dianne and Nick gave me details of his last days and the funeral. They also said they wanted to see me on my next visit.

A pleasure to oblige. I did just that on my first weekend. Dianne had been ill but it was nice to see her making a successful recovery. We had some interesting talks and she gave me a copy of Ian's funeral service. Just then the door opened and Nick entered with his wife, Julie. Lots of nice greetings and then they bundled me into their car and off we went to their home.

I had brought them a bottle of gin so we could enjoy a traditional English G&T, which is what we did. They have a daughter, Laura, who studies at Leeds University and was home for the weekend. Son Matthew was working so could not join us. We had a few sips as we sat around and caught up on news. What a happy day. It is always a pleasure to be with the family. The house buzzes with energy and you always feel better when you leave.

I'm going to add a photo of me with Dianne. She will say.'Oh, noooo John', but I know my family and close friends will be more than happy to see her again - if only on a photo.

Surprise Visit

Towards the end of my stay in Silsden I was sitting at my laptop with half an ear listening to TV news. Suddenly there was a knock on the door. I wondered who it could be for it was evening and getting dark. I opened the door to see a stranger smiling at me and saying. "You don't know me, do you?". 

I stared a him and he repeated the question. I answered in the negative just as a familiar face emerged into the light. It was cousin Barbara and she had a very big smile on her face. I invited them in and then I noticed the man was speaking with a strong Liverpool accent. He said he was Michael from the Wirral. 

He is my cousin Jean's eldest son. What happy times I had with her and family in my teenage years. Micheal is my half-cousin but it sounds strange to say it or write it. He has always been called cousin Michael. I got us all a drink and we settled into catching up with lots of news. 

I hadn't seen him for more years than I can remember. I noticed, however, that his humour, way of laughing and speaking had not changed over the years. What a great surprise. Barbara had called him to say I was back in Silsden so Micheal jumped into his car, picked up Barbara and then knocked on the door. 

We exchanged contact details, had another drink then said our goodbyes. He invited me to stay with him and his wife whenever I wanted. I think I shall take up the offer next spring. I can fly straight to Liverpool from Berlin. I don't have to use KLM or Schipol Airport .... Huuuuurrraahhhh!! 

Hothfield Street

Another post for non-Silsdeners!
I decided to include Hothfield Street in posts about my recent holiday in Silsden. It is an area of terraced houses all looking the same. Owners displayed their individuality by flowers, hedges, bushes in the front garden and the colour of curtains behind the windows.

The first photo is of a house at the end of a terraced row. I was born there! In those days it was common for births at home. After the NHS was created women increasingly went into hospital to give birth. You can see other pics of the house in the photos running down the left-hand side of my blog.

In the 'back yard' we had a coal shed next to an outdoor toilet. There was also a small shed with a workbench and tools, mainly for repairing bicycles. In the photo these are gone. The toilet used an old technology called a 'tipple toilet'. It was not a water toilet. In the 1950's, my parents had a bathroom with toilet built in the house. Part of the main bedroom was used for this piece of modernisation!

The second shot is of the 'back street'. I can remember women chatting to each other over the garden walls and hanging out the washing in the yards. A few people had cars parked closely to the walls so other cars could squeeze past. Next to our house is one of two local schools. In my day it was called Silsden Secondary Modern School.

It educated kids like me who had failed the 11 plus exam. Those who passed went to the Grammar School in Keighley. Not far away was Silsden Junior School. All the kids went there including those from local villages. I remember having separate English Grammar and English Literature classes there and enjoying them. It is now a Nursery School.

Here are two shots of the Secondary School, which is now a Junior School. You can see my family house next to the school in one shot.The second shows the front of the school with a small garden. It always seems strange walking around that area with so many dim and distant memories.

Silsden

This post is for non-Silsdeners :-))
Silsden is a small town in a valley through which the River Aire flows. It has a 'mountain' called Nab End northeast of the town. This is the highest point in the area. Silsden sits in the middle of three larger towns.

To the south is Keighley, to the northwest is Skipton and to the northeast is Ilkley located in the next valley through which flows the River Wharfe. Both rivers flow into the River Humber which then joins the North Sea.

Remains indicate that people lived in the area during the Roman period but the area got its name as Sigglesdene from a farmer who settled near the river after the Roan legions had gone. Herr Sigglesdene came from what is now north Germany - Denmark. No surprise for many soldiers in the Roman army were mercenaries from north Germany.

It is believed that Herr Sigglesdene kept sheep, cows and goats in addition to ploughing  the land. Many years later houses were built 1 mile to the north to house workers in the metal industry. With the advent of the Industrial Revolution, weaving mills were built plus houses for mill workers. And so Silsden expanded.

Now most of the mills/industry has gone and it has become a dormitary town sending workers to the larger towns where they work, and then drive home again. The population has increased as has the number of houses. Many new ones are made of stone and look like the older ones.

Here are some shots of the town/area. On my second day I borrowed my nephews bike and set off along the valley bottom. I followed the canal road and took these shots.

The first one shows part of the town from the canal. The second is of the valley in the direction of Keighley. The third is my favourite. I like the colour contrasts and just the peace captured in the shot. The fourth one is of a nice house almost hidden in the valley by trees. And so I cycled on and slowly returned to the centre of Silsden.  

Fish 'n Pie

I've had a busy but interesting weekend with weather  typical for the time of year, but now the sun is trying to break through the clouds. I also had time to work on photos for my blog so lets start with two of my favourite things. Yes, you guessed right - Fish 'n chips and Pork Pies!

In an earlier post I added a photo of a plate of fish 'n chips. Now you can see where it was and who I was with. In the first photo you can see we were at the Wetherby Whaler. It is en-route from Leeds Airport where I landed and my destination called Silsden.

 It used to be called 'Harry Ramsden's Fish 'n Chip Restaurant'. Many of the older generation still call it that! You can see that I was with nephew Warren, sister Frances, cousin Barbara and brother-in-law Geoffrey. Nice memories of the time together and those tasty fish 'n chips.

The next photo is of the front window of my favourite pork pie shop. This product is, I believe, unique to England. You can't find any in Germany and I have never seen any on my travels through the Continent over many years. You can see many products on offer and all made on the premises by the family who own the business in Skipton. This town is about 6 miles north-west of Silsden.

I bought a range of still hot out of the oven pies for us to sample. I also bought a Stand Pie for 7 pounds sterling. You can see this in the hand of my sister with the shop in the background. Opposite the shop is a very old church with a large garden and seats. We sat in the garden and attacked the freshly baked pies. You can see that Frances and Geoff really enjoyed that.

We then had a short walk taking in an Oxfam shop where I bought a biography of Edmund Burke. Some historians call him the father of modern politics. From there we walked on a bit more and I went to a bakers shop before we got into the car for the return journey. It was then that I noticed I had lost my signet ring!

We backtracked and looked everywhere, told the shopkeepers where we had been, and left name and telephone number. I also reported it to the police. So far no trace of it. I feel the loss emotionally and not financially for it was a present from my mother and grandmother. Some people have said they have never known me without that ring on my hand. Alas, no more!

Near Bremen

A week ago I took an early train to Bremen from where I took a local train to Weyhe. Jonas picked me up and took me to a family hotel/restaurant. I stayed there a year ago and was happy to go again. The owners recognised me immediately and showed me to the same room. How's that for service.

I can hear you asking 'Who is Jonas?'. He is Holger and Gabi's son. He has an elder sister called Lena. I told you all about them in my post when I visited them a year ago. Holger picked me up in the evening and we went to their rural family house. Lots of conversation as Holger grilled for us and we sipped some nice red Spanish wine. See photos of the happy couple and the grill area.

Bremen is famous for the products of its large brewery so later I tasted a glass of a brand I did not know. Just the right thing for a warm day and a thirst! We tasted a few as we set off to explore the countryside and cycled into the city. We enjoyed the market on the side of the river Weser and even went to a large store selling bicycles.

Earlier I had noted that about 1 in 2 of the local 'Oldies' were moving around the area on electric bicycles. Far more that you would ever see in Berlin. In the bicycle store I saw a large selection of E-bikes priced from €850 to €4,500. Wow, but I could buy a second-hand small car for that price!

On Sunday we went for a long walk which ended in a local small town which was hosting a 'Dutch Market'. The weather was good so the streets were packed with people wandering from one stall to the next to see what was on offer from the Netherlands.

Later we had a meal back home before watching a special TV programme. This was called 'The Dual'. The leaders of the two largest political parties in Germany were questioned by four TV presenters. I found it interesting but did not learn a lot more about the political leader's views than I knew before.

Earlier we drove to a local sport area. A number of teams were playing football. We found Jonas' team and him sitting in the reserve section slowly waking up! His team won 3:1. Next day Jonas picked me up and drove me to the local station where I caught a train to the main station in Bremen and then to the intercity train to Berlin. A really happy, relaxed time with wonderful hosts.