Returning to the House Plants

When we returned from our trip, I found some big changes to a couple of my houseplants.

As you may remember, I have been rooting an avocado pit by suspending it in a glass of water.  Shortly before we left, a tall stalk had sprouted from the pit.  Upon returning, I discovered that the stalk had sprouted leaves.

 Although you can't see it in the photo, the stalk has several tiny leaves along its length.  I am wondering if these will develop into branches.  Next week I am going to put the plant into a pot.  Obviously, within the confines of the apartment it will not reach the size in which it bears fruit.  It perhaps will be an attractive houseplant, although I am not sure if it will get enough direct sunlight.

Before leaving on the trip I cut my poinsettia back.  When I returned it too was sprouting leaves.

The poinsettia will be four years old this autumn.  Each year it has produced red leaves, although the timing is usually off for it to bloom for Christmas.

The Hills Are Alive

Upon our return from Europe, we saw signs here in Mexico City advertising a stage production of "The Sound of Music".  In Spanish the musical is known as "La Novicia Rebelde" (The Rebel Novice).

(image taken from the internet)

The show will have a limited run at the "Centro Cultural Cuauhtémoc" located on the avenue of the same name and easily accessible by Metrobus.  Last Sunday we went to the theatre box office and bought tickets.

I found it odd that the production is in English with subtitles projected on a screen.  Then I found out that it is part of a North American tour that has been visiting numerous U.S. cities since September of last year.  I guess Mexico City is the tour's last stop.

I wonder if the production will adhere to the original Broadway show that premiered in 1959 and which has numerous differences from the 1965 film.  Even though the motion picture version is perhaps the best loved movie musical of all time, many critics accused it as being too saccharine. The Broadway version has a couple of songs that never made it to the film, including one very cynical song, called "No Way to Stop It", in which Captain Von Trapp argues with the Baroness and Max about the imminent Nazi takeover of Austria.  In the stage play, it is the Baroness's political indifference which leads the Captain to break off the engagement with her.

"The Sound of Music" was the very first stage play I ever saw.  Way back when I was in the seventh grade, I saw a performance at Musicarnival, a tent theater in the round in the suburbs of Cleveland.  The show made a big impression on me.  Decades later I saw another road show production at one of the theaters of Playhouse Square in downtown Cleveland.

So, this will be my third time seeing a stage production of the Rogers and Hammerstein hit.  

It's August

The year is flying by, and it's time to turn the page on the calendar to August.  This month's picture on the calendar that I had made with photos from trips to Germany is of the Bishop's Palace (known as the Residenz) in the Bavarian city of Würzburg.

A couple years ago, when I spent a few days in Frankfurt, I was looking for some nearby places that would be good day trips.  Cologne and Heidelberg were obvious choices.  Würzburg, however, is not as well known as a tourist destination.  When I read about the Residenz, a baroque 18th century palace that rivals Versailles, I decided to add that city to my itinerary.

The bishop of Würzburg was also the absolute ruler of that city.  Bishop Johann Phillipp Franz von Schönborn felt that his position required an imposing residence.  Construction was begun in 1720.  The structure was completed in 1744, but the interior was not finished until 1780 (many bishops later). 

Perhaps the most impressive part of this opulent palace is the grand staircase.  The vault above the stairs, a construction masterpiece, is an enormous expanse measuring 59 by 109 feet.  The fresco on the ceiling, the largest in the world, was done by the Venetian painter Giovanni Tiepolo, one of the greatest decorative painters of 18th century Europe. 

You have to shake your head in disbelief that a clergyman should live in such an extravagant place. 

 

Great Since 1291

During this summer's World Cup, the President of Switzerland attended the match between Algeria and the Swiss national team.  He caused a buzz when he arrived wearing a red cap which said, "Switzerland - Great Since 1291".  Obviously, it was a subtle dig at a cap which is popular with a certain segment of the population in the U.S.A.

There was an explosion of interest in the cap, and it must be special-ordered from a Swiss company.  (At a cost of 30 Swiss francs... 37 U.S. dollars... it's rather expensive for a baseball cap.)

(image taken from the internet)

While we were staying with Walter and Helen, she bought me a cap and with a marker added the word "great".

The Journey Home

The night before our departure for Mexico City on a non-stop Lufthansa flight from Frankfurt, I tried to check-in online.  However, I was unable to do so.  The check-in process was stopped dead in its tracks when I was told that my reservation did not match my passport information.  I wanted to kick myself! Stupid me!  When I made the reservation I had not supplied my middle name which appears on the passport.  I have traveled internationally enough to know that the name should exactly match the name on the passport.  I tried calling Lufthansa's toll free numbers in Mexico, in the U.S., and in Germany, but my calls would not go through.  I went down to the reception desk of the hotel.  The fellow there said there would be no problem; just get to the airport a little bit earlier.  In spite of what he said, the worrywart in me kept imagining that I would be denied boarding, that I would be stuck in Germany.

Our flight was supposed to leave at 1:30 PM.  We were up early to have breakfast at the hotel as soon as they began serving at seven.  After breakfast, we went upstairs to get our luggage, checked out, crossed the street to the train station, and bought tickets to go to the airport.  We arrived at the airport at around 9:30.  I hoped that four hours would give me enough time to clear up the situation.

When we entered Terminal 1, I immediately saw a Lufthansa desk that said "Special Assistance".  Not realizing that it was for passengers who needed wheelchair assistance, I went there and explained my problem.  The guy the previous night at hotel reception was right.  It was no big deal.  The lady at the "Special Assistance" desk was very nice.  She printed off our boarding passes and checked our luggage.  I was so relieved.  (I do wonder, however, if the situation would have been more problematic if I had been flying out of the United States.)

We passed through security and passport control fairly quickly.  We still had plenty of time before our departure.  We stopped at a restaurant and had apple strudel and something to drink.  Since my worries turned out to be baseless, I was in a celebratory mood.  I went into a Birkenstock store and bought myself a pair of sandals.

We went to our gate and boarded our Lufthansa jumbo jet.

 For our return we once again had Premium Economy seats.  Although our flight on British Airways was nice, I have to give Lufthansa the edge on comfort.  I think our seats were a little wider and had a bit more legroom.  Once again, we received an amenities bag.  What I really appreciated were the slippers they gave us.  We could take off our shoes and put on the slippers, something that was a big plus on a twelve hour flight.  We were served a meal after takeoff and another one shortly before landing.  The menu sounded more gourmet than it really was, but I think I would have to give the edge to Lufthansa on food also.  Even though it was a longer flight then our trip to London, the time seemed to pass by more quickly.  

I was a bit surprised that our route did not take us on a "Great Circle" trajectory over Greenland as has been the case on other flights from Europe.  We flew straight across the Atlantic, flew over Florida, and then crossed the Gulf of Mexico.  As we approached Mexico City I could see the volcano Popocátpetl.

Every time I fly into Mexico City, I can always see the World Trade Center which is just a short distance from the apartment.  This time was no exception.  The large blue building with the revolving restaurant on top is in the middle of the photo.

After a wonderful trip, we were back home.

On to Germany

On Saturday, July 18th, we said good-bye to Walter and Helen and farewell to Switzerland.  We left in the morning on a train from Aarau to Basel, on the German border.  We had an hour's wait there, and then boarded a train to Frankfurt.

By late afternoon we had arrived in Frankfurt.

We stayed at the same hotel that I stayed at a couple of years ago when I was in Frankfurt.  It's a convenient place just across the street from the train station.  After we were settled into our room, we decided to take a walk to the Old Town for a German dinner.  A couple blocks from the hotel is the Main River, and a walk of about 20 minutes along the riverfront promenade will take you to the Old Town.  However, it took us longer than that because Frankfurt was holding its Gay Pride celebration, and we had to make our way through the crowds.

 

If you look at the background, you can see that the festivities were being held on both banks of the river.

We made our way to the plaza by the city hall in the city's small Old Town.  The Old Town was destroyed in World War II, and a small section was reconstructed the way it was before the war.

Just off the plaza is a restaurant called Schwarzer Stern.  I had eaten there the last time I was in Frankfurt, and I liked the food and the atmosphere.  So we returned for our last dinner of the trip.

I ordered bratwurst with mashed potatoes and sauerkraut, and a delicious apple strudel for dessert.

It rained a bit while we were eating, but fortunately the rain had stopped by the time we were finished.  We took a different route back to the hotel to avoid the crowds at the Pride Festival.  The next day was our flight home to Mexico City.

Farewell Dinner

Our last night in Switzerland I wanted to treat Walter and Helen to dinner as a "thank you" for their wonderful hospitality.  And I invited a friend, Niklaus, to join us.

If you are a long-time reader of this blog, you may remember the story of my genealogical research.  Back in 2010, I wrote a comment in the guestbook of Othmarsingen's website asking for information about my Swiss ancestors.  Niklaus, who at that time was one of the town's councilmen, responded to my query, did some research, and discovered that I had relatives still living in Othmarsingen.  It is thanks to him that I made contact with my Swiss cousins and have had so many wonderful experiences in Switzerland with them.  Every time that I return to Switzerland, I try to get together with him.

Walter and Helen live in Aarau, and Niklaus still lives in Othmarsingen, so Helen suggested that we meet in Lenzburg which is in between the two towns.  She made reservations for us at the garden restaurant of the Hotel Ochsen.  We were worried that it might rain that evening.  In fact, there were a few drops after we were seated, but the rain never materialized.  It was a lovely summer evening, with good food and even better company.