"In fact, you have become..."

Hello everyone.

I am sorry about the delayed update and that I won't be able to give a very thorough description of my experience in Heidelberg from this past weekend. On the bright side of things, the reason I am so busy is because I am visiting Paris this weekend! I will be traveling with the same two companions from Cologne and Ireland, Peter and Adam. I've received a lot of good advice from friends who have visited there, but I still have much preparation to go!

On Thursday morning, I met at the Darmstadt train station with five of the six other North American students who are working in the city through the RISE program. The ride to Heidelberg took about an hour, and I had a good time catching up with everyone. [To give you a mental picture of Heidelberg (real pictures will follow), Heidelberg is bisected by the east-west flowing Neckar River and is set between hills on the north and south banks. The oldest part of the town is south of the river and Heidelberg Castle stands on the southern hills.]

When we arrived at the Heidelberg Youth Hostel, we checked into our various rooms and enjoyed some coffee and cake as we waited for the official activities to begin. We were welcomed and introduced by the RISE time at a lecture hall the Institute of Zoology at the University of Heidelberg. This took about two and a half hours and was admittedly very boring. I was concerned that the whole weekend would be like that, but luckily it was not. When that had finished, we returned to the hostel for a tasty dinner.

After dinner, we had the option of attending meetings concerning graduate and PhD studies in Germany, but as those didn't apply to everyone, a group of about fifteen of us decided to head to the "Old Town" of Heidelberg. We had been walking around aimlessly for a little while when ten of the fifteen decided to hit the bars for the remainder of the evening. The other five of us decided to check out the castle as the view at dark was said to be breathtaking - I was not disappointed. The castle, which was huge, was basically completely empty except for the five of us, two police officers, and two very romantic couples, so we took our time exploring the grounds and enjoying the view of the city and surrounding area. We even found a way into the walls of the castle! As a side note, it appears that the musical artist Ben Folds had been in town for a concert earlier that night. It's too bad I missed him.

After breakfast the next morning, the RISE participants visited places of industry in the Heidelberg area. I visited a chemical company named BASF, which calls itself "The Chemical Company", and for good reason. The company's facilities in Heidelberg cover dozens of square kilometers, and the yearly revenue for the company is in the hundred of billions of Euros. We were given presentations on the various areas of research the company is pursuing and were given tours of the BASF Visitor's Center, a biotechnology laboratory, and a product fermentation laboratory. While the work BASF that I was shown didn't directly coincide with my possible fields, I still had a very interesting day and learned some things that wouldn't have otherwise. When the tours were finished, the groups of RISE participants returned to the hostel separately and then went out to dinner together. Once again, I was given a feast. After dinner, a similar group to the one from the night before decided once again to experience the night scene of Heidelberg. This time I decided to accompany them, and we visited a few places in the "Old Town" before heading back to the hostel.

On Saturday, the following morning, most of the RISE participants would check out of the hostel. I along with some others, however, had opted to stay for an additional day. Personally, I sought a day to myself in Heidelberg without time frames or a group to limit my exploration. After breakfast we were "debriefed" and all together traveled as a group to the "Old Town" for a formal guided tour of the city. Since the tour only lasted two hours, we were only able to see many of the historical locations briefly, but it was still an interesting experience. We were able to visit the castle once again, and the view was equally beautiful during the day. When the tour had finished shortly after midday, people began to split ways and I set off to to find a Catholic church and to explore on my own. I set off for the wooded hills north of the river, and chanced across an old watch tower and a ruined monastery. After a few hours of aimlessly hiking, I decided to head back to the hostel as it was getting close to evening and I was hungry and exhausted. I found an Italian restaurant close to the hostel and returned to my room for the evening, content to finish To Kill a Mockingbird and prepare for an early morning on Sunday.

The next morning I packed my things, ate some breakfast, and checked out of my room. I visited the Heidelberg Zoo for the first time and returned to the castle once again, this time to check out the Apothecary Museum which was really interesting. After some final exploring of the "Old Town" I headed to the train station and back to Darmstadt, where the crowds of Heinerfest, Darmstadt's biggest street festival, enjoyed the food, drink, fellowship, and fun. I was pretty exhausted by this point (I had basically been walking for a few days straight), and since the Heinerfest would continue the following day, I decided to head home and return on Monday. As it turned out, much of the department where I am working went to Heinerfest on Monday afternoon, and I accepted their invitation for me to join them. Since I was better rested and with company, I had a really nice time. Time and time again my coworkers have been very generous with their inclusion of me in their activities, whether it be with soccer or with celebration. I am certain that part of the reason why my summer has been so pleasant is because of their kindness.

Alright! Things are going to be moving very quickly for the next few weeks. I will be in Paris this weekend, Latvia next weekend (after my work is finished for the summer), and Munich (with Mom and Dad) for the following week. After that, it is really up in the air. I can't wait to see how this goes!

"Can still kick a ball a hundred yards."

I didn't anticipate writing another post today, but playing soccer for a few hours with my colleagues this evening went so well that I feel compelled to tell you about it. While I still made a few clumsy mistakes, I felt a lot more natural on the field this time around, and consequently was able to run around much more while getting significantly less tired than before. I did a much better job playing defense, and also led the team in points with five goals and one assist. You would have really enjoyed watching, Dad.

Among other things, I got an email from my brother today, and he shared with me a comparison of a picture he took when he was in Dublin four years ago (on the right) and a picture I took from last weekend (on the left). It is pretty amazing to see that, without any planning, I ended up standing four years later at exact same street corner and taking a picture from such a similar angle. It will be interesting to see where else our paths cross. I also find it extremely fitting that the bus in my picture has the phrase "Looking out for you." written on its side.

Anyway, I need to get packing for my trip to Heidelberg. It's now only several weeks until I see many of you, and I look forward to catching up.

“The heart is a bloom, shoots up through the stony ground.”

Wow. How do I begin to describe my weekend in Ireland?

Ireland is an amazing place. The people are very nice, the scenery is beautiful, and the culture is enchanting. This weekend was a time of many "firsts" for me. It was the first time I've been to Ireland, the first time I've flown intracontinentally within Europe, the first time I've stayed at a hostel, and among other things, the first time I've been stalked by cows.

My journey began on Friday morning at 1:00AM. My flight from Frankfurt was set to leave at 6:40AM, so the only way to get there with enough time to check in was to take a shuttle from the train station in Darmstadt at 3:00AM that same morning. In order to get to the train station by that time, I needed to make the hour walk across town since no local transportation was running around that time. When I stepped out of my dorm I was shocked at how dark it was and immediately thought, "This is a mistake! What was I thinking?" Much like in Frankfurt I was tempted to turn back, but I had no choice but to go forward, and so I continued, but not without apprehension. I stuck to the major roads and was on high alert the whole time, using all of the strategies learned from my brother and Shotokan instructors. Eventually, I made it to the station and met up with my two travel companions, Peter and Adam, the two I with whom I traveled to Cologne. They live much closer to the train station than myself and only had to walk a few minutes.

We took a train to the Frankfurt (Hahn) airport in plenty of time to check in, and I was actually able to sleep in the waiting room for about an hour. The two hour flight was relatively uneventful, and we arrived in Dublin ahead of schedule. We caught a bus from the airport to the city center, and then from the city center of Dublin to Galway. When we arrived and for the duration of the four hour trip to Galway, the weather was pretty messy (although apparently somewhat typical), but I was still able to enjoy the view of the countryside. Along the way, I had a really lengthy and pleasant conversation with a young lawyer in training from Galway. He is a member of the Lohan (as in the (in)famous actress) extended family and apparently wishes to disown her as she disgraces the family name. Most importantly, Mr. Lohan was a great guy, strong in his faith and well read in the world at large. We talked about everything from the legal system in Ireland to the structure of government in the US to faith and reason to the importance of family to the history of Ireland. It was a really fascinating and enlightening conversation.

In Galway we didn't have much time to explore as our bus to Doolin was leaving shortly and we needed to get a bite to eat. On the ride from Galway to Doolin, as we traveled closer to the western coast of Ireland, the landscape became much more rocky and, in some ways, more stunning. We made to our hostel in Doolin after the bumpy ride which took a few hours. After checking in, we decided to check out the Cliffs of Moher, following a road up the incline for some time until we found a path that took us closer to the water's edge. The view was spectacular. Eventually, we found a way down to the base of the cliffs which we explored for some time. While exploring, we were approached by a young man named Jon who is entering his final year as a drama student at Julliard and is currently here in Europe because of a fellowship with the Oxford School of Drama for the summer. We invited him to explore with our party and decided to continue up the cliffs as much as time and weather would permit. While the rain had ceased for a couple of hours, the wind was quite strong and we wanted to be careful. Eventually we made it to a bend in the cliffs where the scenery was absolutely breathtaking. We decided to stop for a while and take in the view. I cannot emphasize enough how cool it was to sit there in silence for several minutes, hearing only the crash of waves against the cliffs, the sound of the grass blowing in the wind, and the calls of seagulls as they soared above the cliff.

After several minutes, we decided to continue moving up the cliffs but were greatly started as some cows had taken it upon themselves to stalk and intimidate us. Stuck between an angry cow behind a small electric fence on the one side and the massive cliffs to the other, needless to say we vacated the premises as quickly and safely as possible. As we continued up the cliffs, the weather became a lot more inhospitable, but the view was still amazing. After stepping fully into a number of invisible puddles, we decided to head back before it got dark or before the weather got worse. Once again, the weather seemed to improve the lower the elevation. On the way back, we were able to see a number of interesting ruins on the way back to the hostel.

As it turned out, Jon was staying at the same hostel as us, and after we had cleaned up we headed over to McDermott's, an Irish pub in Doolin, for some much needed dinner. While there we met an American couple who really took a liking to us. There food was delicious and there were some musicians playing typical Irish music who really added to the mood. Since Jon and Tash, a person from England that we had met at the hostel, desired to play along with the local Irish, we headed over to O'Connor's, a dimly lit but lively family pub where Jon and Tash would be able to join with the local musicians. It was really nice to see people of all different shapes and ages come together for a night of simple fun and fellowship.

Talking with Mr. Lohan on the bus to Galway and seeing the families and friends interacting at the pubs in Doolin really made me think a lot about myself and my priorities. I do have a lot of really important goals for my life and for the world at large, but I think that in my efforts to achieve those goals I have tended to lose sight of many of the "little things" in life that are actually really important too. The "Mid-week Specials" with my amazing family, the "Movie Nights" with my best of friends, the walks with my "sister" Jackie (I could go on), all greatly shaped me into the person I am today. Writing about this I am honestly brought to tears. I am so thankful for the wonderful life I have had. I am without a doubt one of the luckiest kids on Earth, and I need to remember that from time to time.

After a few hours of listening to music, I headed back with Jon and Tash to the hostel and began to unwind. As I wouldn't be seeing them in the morning, we said goodbye and exchanged email addresses before turning in. In my limited travels I have been fortunate enough to come into contact with some amazing people, and I really hope to be able to see some of them another time. But, I understand realistically that the vast majority of our paths will probably not cross again. I need to be sure to make the most of my encounters and not take anything for granted, even with those I have been fortunate enough to see often.

I woke up early the next morning and ran to the pier that was a few kilometers from the hostel. While the weather was overcast, it wasn't rainy and the temperature was perfect. It felt really good to work out the sluggishness from a long day of travel the day before, and it was really neat to be by myself in the middle of such a strange and beautiful place with the pounding of my feet and the waves across the shore the only sounds in the area. After a moving several minutes at the rocky beach, I returned to the hostel and prepared for my journey back to Dublin via Galway. The weather was much nicer this time around and I was able to get some more shots of the villages and countryside.

When we arrived in Dublin it began to rain, but luckily just as soon as it started it had gone. We found our hostel with no problems and proceeded to make our way along the Liffey River to the Guinness Storehouse. Along the way we also walked through some interesting districts, seeing some of the famous locations such as Christ Church Cathedral. The Guinness Storehouse was interesting, and as part of the tour we were able to enjoy a pint of "The Black Stuff" from the Gravity Bar and soak in the view.

We had worked up a pretty big appetite by this point, so we made our way to Kehoe's Pub. However, it seemed that the owners of the bar catered only to followers of the liquid diet, but they were able to direct us to O'Neill's where we enjoyed generous portions of some delicious food along with some local beverages. After finishing our meal we returned to Kehoe's Pub and, at the request of some family members and the locals, enjoyed a few more pints of Guinness.

While I would have been content to stay at Kehoe's Pub and talk with the locals for the whole evening, we decided to check out Trinity College and as we left, the crowd at Kehoe's Pub was really picking up. Unfortunately, most of the college was closed, so we decided to head to Temple Bar, Dublin's Cultural Quarter and popular night spot, and return to Trinity College the following day. We walked around the busy and wild streets for some time. After a while we were getting pretty tired, so we headed back to the hostel in order to get an early start the next day.

Sunday began with breakfast at the hostel, and then I was off to find a Catholic church which wasn't difficult as there are over two hundred parishes in Dublin alone. Since I would be unable to check out later that morning, I packed my things and headed out. Along the way I was able to see a number of interesting sights. I found a Catholic church in an industrial part of town. Francis Xavier was the patron saint. Since I had about an hour before Mass was to begin, I explored the surrounding area and found a massive stadium apparently where the Gaelic Games are played. I also found Holy Cross College and walked through some pretty cool neighborhoods. At the church, the priest was Jesuit, and I spoke to him after Mass, telling about my connections to the Jesuits. It was really a breath of fresh air to attend Mass in my native language. However, I was troubled that I barely saw any young people, and consequently, the average age of the congregation was probably over sixty-five.

After Mass, I walked though the city to meet up with my companions at Trinity College, checking out Dublin Castle and enjoying the perfect weather along the way. Trinity College was beautiful even with rain clouds coming in. After waiting around for a little while, my companions arrived, and we proceeded to check out the rest of campus including the building which housed the Book of Kells. Unfortunately, photos were not allowed so I was unable to document the inspiring Book of Kells (which is one of the oldest best preserved books in the world) or the Long Room (which housed literally hundreds of thousands of books that would cost as much as my undergraduate education). My favorite part was definitely the Long Room. After touring the building, we took our final pictures of Trinity College and set out to find some lunch. We headed toward the docks where there was a tremendous amount of construction happening. Eventually, as we were running out of time, we settled on eating at a grocery store/cafe in an upscale part of town. We caught a bus to the airport, and our flight from Dublin to Frankfurt passed without incident. My time in Ireland was over.

Waiting for the shuttle from Frankfurt to Darmstadt, I was able to catch the second half of the championship of the European tournament in the airport. Germany lost to Spain 1-0. Spain was clearly the better team. When arrived in Darmstadt the city was still boiling with a mix of joy and despair from the game. There were dozens of police officers about trying to keep order. But, I made it back to my room without difficulty and finished up the night with a Skype conversation with Mom, Dad, and the Decatur Hubbard's.

My trip to Ireland was without a doubt my favorite trip thus far. I have never felt so compelled to return to a place as with Ireland. The people, the landscape, and the culture were absolutely amazing, and I was able to learn a lot about myself and the world around me in my short time there. I really hope to go back one day. Until then, I look forward to heading to Heidelberg tomorrow where I will almost all of the other North American students working in Germany this summer and where I will be able to meet current leaders of German industry. It should be an exciting weekend and an exciting next couple of weeks. Thanks for your patience with all this.

"Zombie Nation."

It turns out that I made it to the city center a full two hours before the start of the match, but the crowd (also here and here) was already building, and not surprisingly there were a lot of security guards and police officers around. Since I had so much time, I decided to explore the city center, but when I returned to the main viewing area, a significant line had built up and no more people were allowed entry. So I found a cafe with a screen and watched the first half there. I randomly ran into my friend Ola from previous posts, and we ended up watching the second half together at another cafe. It was a fun match and I really enjoyed watching the people. In the end...

GERMANY WINS 3-2!

"'Cause all you really need are a few good friends."

While almost all of my days in Germany have been very good, yesterday was unexpectedly and especially great. I was nearing the completion of my first test of the day when all of the sudden the machine I was working with made a loud and sudden "REEEEEER". As I had never heard that noise before, and since was extremely startling/scary, I immediately shut down the test. Apparently the steel specimen I was testing had snapped, so I knew that I had done the right thing in shutting down the test immediately, but I was still worried that I had done something to damage the machine. In the end, after checking things over with my advisor, I had done everything right and nothing was damaged. Actually, this development was very exciting for the overall research for two reasons: one, the important part of the steel specimen was not damaged in the breaking so the molecular characteristics could still be studied; and two, since the goal of this research is to reevaluate, and if necessary improve, the existing European fire code for buildings, the premature failure of this steel brings up a number of issues which will need to be addressed.

Yesterday afternoon I was invited to a celebration by one of the PhD students at the office with whom I get along well. He turned in his PhD dissertation yesterday and also signed a contract for a good job in Darmstadt yesterday, so he and his coworker friends were going out for dinner and drinks that night. We went to Grohe, a place here in town that makes its own beer, apparently the best in all of Hessen, and sat in a courtyard next to the brewery. The weather was very nice, and the food and drink were quite good, but the company was even better. Here, here, here, here, and here are some pictures I took of the group throughout the evening. The young man in the second picture was the one for whom we were celebrating. He has been really nice to me during my time here and I was honored to be invited. I should remember to do likewise.

As an example of how random and interesting things are here, as I was typing this post out in my office, a student stopped by looking for the German with whom I share an office, and we ended up introducing ourselves for a few minutes. Sasha is originally from Uzbekistan but has been living in Germany for the last twelve years and has gained German citizenship. He is studying civil engineering. His great grandfather was a civil engineer, but his grandfather and his parents are teachers, so he has it in his "blood, but far removed." We wished each other luck and parted ways.

And among other things, this evening Germany is playing Turkey in the semifinals of the European Championships. Since Germany has such a large Turkish population, and since this is such an important match, everyone is very excited. I think that I will head down to the city center tonight and catch a little of the spirit.

UPDATE: I can't believe that I forgot to mention that throughout the night I spoke almost exclusively Spanish with two of the people at the celebration. (This never ceases to surprise me.) One was from Bolivia and the other was from Frankfurt, Germany. I must admit that I got a little pleasure knowing that I could speak a language most at the table could not. It was a nice change from the usual situation. Plus, I think I got props from my coworkers for speaking a language other than English. Anyway, I am off to the city center to get dinner and experience the spirit of the match. I hope the weather turns out alright. It looks like it could be pretty nasty.

"We're on top."

Hello everyone.

I had another really good week of work (and life) this past week even without soccer on Wednesday because the stadium was occupied. I believe that we will resume playing again this week, but we'll see. Looking at my calendar it is hard to believe that I am already halfway finished with my period of work here in Germany. Only four weeks of work left and then about two and a half of travel. This weekend I have been trying to finalize my plans for the remaining weeks which are looking to be very busy. In light of the need for preparation (and rest), I decided to forgo making a day trip to a far off location such as Nuremberg, and instead visit a place next to a town that is near Darmstadt: Frankenstein Castle. I would be traveling by myself. Apparently, this castle was the one that inspired Mary Shelley to write her famous novel. Since I wrote a term paper on the book during my junior year of high school, the place has a special significance to me, beyond the usual coolness of a castle in general. Oh, and it is supposedly haunted.

I got an early start on Saturday morning after eating a quick breakfast and gathering my supplies. I took the trolley near my apartment to a bus/train station (not the primary one), and then boarded a bus that would take me to Eberstadt, which is the town I mentioned that is next to Darmstadt. When I arrived in Eberstadt, the final bus that I needed to take in order to get to the castle (which was on top of a mountain) was not going to arrive for another forty minutes, so I thought that I would explore and take some pictures of the surrounding area when I chanced across a road sign stating the direction of Burg Frankenstein. Since I still had a good amount of time, I decided to walk, for as long as time would allow, along a path that seemed to follow the directions given by the sign. It led me over the highway and to the base of the mountain where I was led to believe Frankenstein Castle was located. I arrived at a fork in the road and chanced across a young man who was running in the area, so I asked him if I was on the right path to "Burg Frankenstein". He responded in the affirmative, pointing to one of the paths which went "up, up, and up the mountain", his arms extending higher with each up.

Next, I did something that was probably very rash. I decided to follow this path as far as time and nerve would allow, taking the word of the runner and abandoning the guarantee of the bus system. My thoughts were as follows: "At worst, I will have spent some time exploring beautiful scenery, taking some good pictures, and getting some exercise. I could always go back and wait for a later bus." As it was still mid morning, I didn't have to worry about nightfall catching me off guard. So, I followed the path and was very pleased by the scenery (also here and here). Things seemed to be going extremely well until I was met with my first fork in the road. There would be others farther along. Unwilling to turn back after already having gone so far, I would mark my path through a variety of ways. In all of my years of exploring the forest near my house (yes, I did go there Mom and Dad) or in Rock Springs, I have never done that, but I am glad that I did. There were simply to many forks to remember, especially in a foreign country in an area with which I am completely unfamiliar.

Eventually after over an hour of hiking and climbing, I found stone among the rock and knew that I was getting close. Since it was requested that I take more pictures of myself, here is one of me in front of the stone quarry. Anyway, shortly thereafter I saw the foundations of a stone wall. However, I didn't know if I had made it to Frankenstein Castle or some lord's castle, so I was careful not to look like I was sneaking around and that I was supposed to be there. I entered through the first gate I found. The castle was empty, and the first person I saw was a small boy who looked surprised to see me and was all by himself. One would think that such a famous location would have had more people visiting it even in the late morning. But, since he didn't seem threatened by my presence and as I had already come so far, I went in a little further. Finally, my suspicious were laid to rest when I found a sign welcoming guests to Frankenstein Castle. I made it.

While I am sure that there are castles that are much bigger or more interesting, and even though I have been waiting my whole life to explore a castle, I was not disappointed. Here, here, here, here, and here are some pictures I took of the grounds along the way to the highest accessible tower. As you can see, some of the castle is undergoing repair. The view from the top was absolutely amazing with lots of communities and interesting landscapes within sight. After staying in the tower for some time, I headed back down and explored more of the castle. Here, here, and here are a few more shots of the castle grounds. I ate lunch at the restaurant that was part of the castle, and eventually made it to the roof of the restaurant and took some more pictures of the surrounding area. It turns out to the North that even Frankfurt was in view.

After lunch, I decided to return to the tower and more seriously take in the experience, recording my thoughts and feelings. One of the things that I realized and that really struck me was the fact that I am probably never going to see that wonderful place again, and the same is true for the vast majority of the places I will visit this summer. It was definitely a bittersweet realization. On the one hand, that was it. That would be the only time in my life that I will see these wonderful things. But, it's not like I won't see other wonderful things between then and the end. On the contrary, I will probably see many other great places, some before the end of the summer. And even if I don't for one reason or another, I am thankful to have been able to see these once. There are probably too many wonderful places on Earth to see in a lifetime. I should be content to see as much as I can.

Then I thought that maybe there was something more to be learned. I will never experience the same moment more than once in my life. With every passing moment, I and the world around me are forever changed, and no matter how meticulous one's effort to reconstruct a time or place, one can never return to the way things were. Just as before, I should not regret the moments past. Rather, I should be thankful for what I have already experienced and for what I will experience. I am undoubtedly one of the luckiest kids on Earth.

Meanwhile, a crowd was beginning to build both in the castle and in the tower, and as I had already explored all of the accessible areas of the castle, I decided to head back, taking more pictures of the landscape along the way. I was able to find the trail I took to find the castle and follow my signs and markings all the way back to bus station. Surprisingly, both on the way up and on the way down, I never took an incorrect path. I made it back home safely but exhausted. Even though I had high expectations for visiting Frankenstein Castle, my hopes were exceeded. What a great day.

"...concrete under your feet."

Hello everyone.

Like I mentioned in my previous post, Thursday was my day to visit Frankfurt. Despite somewhat of a late start getting out of my room, I was able to catch the trolley because one individual held the door open for me for several additional seconds as I ran. I should be sure to remember to do likewise.

After that, I made it to the Frankfurt with no difficulty, and when I exited the train station, I was impressed by the skyline (here). Since it was the first landmark I noticed, I first checked out the Commerzbank Tower (here). While it is probably hard to tell from the picture, the multistory indentations in the tower are actually filled with trees and other vegetation. I tried to see if I could get to the top floor for some awesome pictures, but I was denied access. So, I decided to check out the Main Tower (here) which is the second tallest building in Frankfurt behind the Commerzbank Tower. Typically, the top floor is open for viewing, but as the building was experiencing "technical difficulties" I was once again unable to reach the top. While I was a little disappointed, I wasn't really upset because there would be a lot more to see before I went home.

I next went to Römerberg, which is the old city center. The building with the flags in this picture is the Römer. It has been Frankfurt's city hall since 1405. Here is another picture of the same plaza. The main spire of the Dom can be seen in the distance. I walked through most of the old town and saw all of the major landmarks that were there. Here is a picture of the old town with the Alte Nikolaikirche to the right. There was also an Archäologischen Garten, which boasted Roman building foundations dating back over 2000 years. I was very upset when I found a bunch of kids filming parkour on the ruins (here), but they didn't seem to be damaging anything. I also checked out Paulskirche (St. Paul's Church, here), but it seemed to be more governmental than religious.

After eating a quick lunch just in time to escape the rain (here), I headed across the Main River to visit some museums. Here and here are a few pictures I took looking back at the downtown area. The first museum I attended was the Museum of World Cultures. While it was much smaller than I anticipated and only focused on a specific culture in Papua New Guinea along the Sepik River, it was still interesting, and while I was probably not supposed to take any pictures, I did manage to take a few including this one of some of the artifacts used by the tribe.

The Museum for Communication, which I attended next, was probably the highlight of my sightseeing in Frankfurt. It traced the evolution of communication from some of the earliest scratchings on stones (here), to writing in the Middle Ages (here), to Industrial Revolution postal infrastructure, to telephone (here), to television (here), to computers (here). There were a lot of interactive exhibits with lots of levers and things of that nature, so this "Button-Boy" was in heaven. There were also some funny exhibits like this.

After finishing at the Museum for Communication, it was nearing the end of the day, so I headed home pretty tired after two straight days of walking. But, my weekend was far from over as on Saturday I headed to Stuttgart, Germany with two other individuals whom I met through a mutual acquaintance. I had never met them prior to Saturday, but I can say that by the end of the day I felt comfortable telling them pretty much anything. Here is a picture of them on the train near the end of the day. Zhaoyi (on the right) was born in China but moved to Montreal when he was eleven. He is now trilingual (Mandarin, French, and English) and working on his bachelor's in electrical engineering. Chunjie (on the left) is also from China and is currently conducting post-doctoral research here in Darmstadt.

Once again, I have to emphasize how much I enjoy seeing the German countryside (here and here). It is really neat to see the landscape and communities along the railroad. In some cases the scenery is very familiar to home which is exciting, but in others it is completely different which is also exciting. Anyway, the first place we visited in Stuttgart was the Mercedes-Benz Museum (here and here). We had a lot of fun at the museum playing with statues (here), looking at the sweet cars (here), and checking out the fun exhibits (here and here). It was really neat to see the evolution of the automobile and some of the prototypes for things to come. The Mercedes-Benz Museum rocked. Afterward, apparently not having seen enough cars, we decided to check out the Porsche Museum which, while interesting, paled in coolness to the Mercedes-Benz Museum. Anyway, here is a picture of the outside of the complex and here is a picture of part of the main viewing room.

When we had finished with the museums, we headed to the very scenic Schlossgarten (here, here, here, and here). The weather was much nicer at this point in the day as compared to yesterday so there were a number of people out and about. On the opposite side of the Schloss, there was a plaza which was breathtaking. Here, here, here, and here are a few pictures. And, due to popular demand, here is a picture of me. Afterward, we walked through the old city and checked out the shops. Like I said, it was very busy. Here and here are a couple of pictures of a church we also checked out along the way. By this point, it was once again nearing the end of the day, so we started heading back. Here, here, and here are a few pictures I took of the countryside along the way. And to top off the day nicely, it just so happened that we sat next to a Professor of Theology from Marquette University (here) who was lecturing in Germany for a couple of weeks. We talked for about an hour, discussing really exciting things like the definition of the soul, what it means to be human, the political attitudes of Jesus, current events, his family, and my aspirations. Honestly, there is not much in life that pleases me more than constructive dialog, and I really cherish these sort of chance encounters. Eventually, we parted ways and we landed in Darmstadt. Perhaps you'll recognize this landmark?

Anyway, it was a really interesting, fulfilling, and tiring weekend. But, after Mass, running, some good food, laundry, and not much else today, I feel pretty recharged. I am not really sure what my plans for next week are. I may go on another day trip next weekend or perhaps I might try something a little bigger. Either way, the last weekend of June I will be going to Ireland with a few of my friends, and I can't wait. I am really thankful for all of my experiences and look forward to sharing them with you.