The French CAN Win!!!

Today was the awesomeness of four countries in one day. I started at 5:30 am in Denmark and by 10:00 a.m. I was landing in Luxembourg. By 11 ish we were being dropped off at our hotel in Germany, and by 1:00 we were eating paninis in a French cafe preparing to storm the fortress of Bitche. (Yes in fact it is pronounced how it looks, at least in English. The French pronounce it a bit more like beach, but still funny)

The fortress or citadel of Bitche was very interesting. It was the one place in the Franco-Prussian war where the French held out and never actually lost or surrendered. In fact, the rest of the country had been defeated and Bitche held strong. I'm sure those Germans must have thought, "That fortress is a real Bitche." heh heh heh :) They had a marvelous cheesy medieval knights show out in front of the entrance full of staged jousting, swordplay, and in the end love. *sigh* It was really a very interesting adventure.

The greatest part of the day came when we were able to hit a French grocery store on the way home where I picked up a stash of my favorite things including: sirop, Petit Dejeuner biscuits, Coloummiers cheese, pains au chocolat, Lion candy bars, Viche mints, French yogurt, and a baguette. I thought my day was made as I sucked down a yogurt right there in the parking lot. Mmmmm....

This whole day was incredible and due to my fantastic German colleague, Elke. This woman is so gracious and sweet. I only hope that I can be so kind to my guests. And if I'm not, let me know...

Burning Witches and Riding Bikes

I think this is my fourth time here in Denmark, and yet the first time I have taken the number one mode of transportation. That's right, I too now have ridden a bicycle on the streets of Copenhagen. It was quite the adventure of riding a bike that brakes when you back peddle. It took me a while to catch on to that one as I haven't had a bike with back-brakes since I was about 8 or 9 with my Strawberry Shortcake bicycle of awesomeness. I went with my good friend Pia to the local witch burning, and it just made sense to take a bike.

Burning witches? You may ask. Well, yes and no. Apparently it's a 300-year-old tradition where they gather in large groups and light huge bonfires that they throw images of witches onto. I think 300 years ago it was actual witches, but it still makes for a good family outing. It was just like going to see fireworks back in the States where everyone gathered together to have little barbeques and picnics while spreading blankets to reserve their best spots.

After my victorious arrival at the fire spot upon my fantastic blue beach cruiser with one gear and back-brakes we sat down with a group of friends for a bit of dinner and conversation. Although I don't speak a lick of Danish, it was interesting to see how much human interaction is nonverbal. Luckily, these wonderful Danes would take pity on the silly American and occasionally converse with me for a bit in English or at least explain the really funny bits of conversation.

At about 10:00 they lit the bonfire up (with the aid of a few gallons of gasoline). I think my favorite part of the fire were the small children who had stoked the fuel with piles of their homework from the school year that just ended. Smart kids! I wonder if there's a way back in the states to load fireworks with homework to blow it up in order to experience that same sense of release... I'll have to look into that.

All in all the night was a smashing success, although luckily not me smashing into anything on that bicycle. (That contributed to the success). It was such a fun experience. I only hope that my bum will stop hurting from that seat and I can air the smoke out of my luggage. But I truly mark this one up as a simply fantabulous event!