November

November was a busy month for us here in Nairobi. Not only did we finally buy a 'new' old car, but all of us were traveling at different times. At school there was a St. Martins celebration with a bonfire and an appearance of St. Martin on his horse. I had some Goethe business in Munich plus some down time in Berlin afterwards. Gerard and Sascha met me in Berlin for a few days although Gerard was only en-route to New York for some important meetings. Being in Germany for 10 days was actually a nice break, especially in the pre-Christmas season. The commercialism was a bit overwhelming, but it was wonderful to see some first-class theater performances and to see old friends.

Our 'new' car, a 1999 4wd diesel Mitzubishi Pajera

The Summerfest at school, which was postponed from September for obvious reasons.

Sascha with her friend Lieselotte and Lisa at the St. Martins Fest with their lanterns.

If you look closely you can spot St. Martin on his horse riding by......

Sascha and Maria holding their Breadmen

My Program Curator colleagues from North America at a seminar in Munich. Of course, a few Hefeweizens were an important part of the training....

City Hall in Munich

Out friend Reinhold with Gerard in Berlin. A former MIT postdoc, he now has a research job in Rostock with the Frauenhofer Institute

A cold, damp morning walk in Zehlendorf, Berlin with our friend Helga and her daughter Johanna.

What would a walk in Berlin be without a stop at a museum, here the 'Haus am Waldsee'

At the Swedish Weihnachtsmarkt in Kulturbrauerei, Prenzlauerberg, Berlin.

An ice skating outing with our friend Nils' Kindergruppe (preschool class) and Sascha made a new friend

Sascha and Johanna in the U-Bahn

Dornroeschen (Sleeping Beauty) performed with puppets in Prenzlauerberg with the slight variation that the awakened princess decides to marry her real love, the cook.

Alexander Platz is once again a huge construction site. They are reconstructing the original castle (Der Schloss) that was damaged in WW2 and blown up by the DDR to obliterate any reference to past history.

A ride down Unter den Linden with the Double Decker Bus #100 was a must!

At the Holocaust Memorial.

An afternoon with our friend Isa in a cafe reading books and chatting.