Fasnacht in Konstanz, then Susan's

Fasnacht -- What a crazy festival this is! It is a festival to scare away winter spirits and let spring begin. In old days people would dress up and walk through the darkness of night singing and playing their band instruments loudly. They were like a band of fools trying to scare away the cold of winter. Now it is still like a day that fools are in control, and everything gets turned upside down. Some men and women dress in opposite sex clothing, many people dress as fools and clowns, even the school kids dress up. There are some really creative costumes, and there were a lot of llittle pink princesses around! Some people dress all in white (like a snowman) and carry these noise-makers. They randomly run up to people and shout “Ho Narro!” which means ‘hey fool’! whilst clanging on their noisemaker. You are supposed to shout the same thing back, and carry on.

Well, this is an outdoor event, and it is February, so we bundled up in several layers, then costumed up in striped shirts and striped hats. All 4 hats were the same, so that helped us find each other… for the most part, although we encountered more of the striped hats and striped shirts during the evening.

There is a parade, and you can either join in or watch from the sidelines… or both , as we did. We enjoyed the marching bands on the street, and we popped into a bar occasionally to get warm, ‘pour-in and pour-out’ and listen to music. We met a few friends of our hosts during the evening, and I made friends with ‘Fred and Barney’ outside of one bar. They had gone back to their ‘car’ which was complete with a couple 45 gallon drums for wheels and had a large storage trunk (read ‘drinks cooler’) up front, and cup-holders! Something you only see on American cars! It was definitely powered by foot, and I was really surprised to see them quite a distance away an hour or so later. I’m amazed they got through the crowds! Ken and I had a great time with his friend Alex (and his wife) Christianne. We ended up at a Spanish restaurant called ‘la Bodega’ - the food was so tasty; it was a perfect way to end the night.

The next day we enjoyed their company and their baby, then later in the evening we shared a good meal and conversation.

... then Susan’s
Sat. morning we spent a couple hours on the train to get to my friend Susan’s. It was as snowy and cold there too. We walked around outside to visit the rabbits and the chickens, played with the kids, and spent a few moments in the warmth of the greenhouse. The warmth of the wood fires inside their old house drew us back in for cups of tea. Later after the kids were in bed, I had arranged for our friend Dave from New Zealand to call us.

In Oct., after we viewed all my slides from when Susan and I lived in Israel, we decided to send a letter to Dave (New Zealand) and Luiz (Brazil). After all these years, we didn’t know if we would find them. Luiz’s letter came back, but Dave contacted me by email. We decided to have a phone chat to catch up. Because of my broken toe, this was our first visit to Susan’s since then, and it was a real treat to get the three of us together on the phone , and to hear Dave’s voice. After so many years, we barely knew where to begin. A real flash from the past!

It must have snowed all night and well into Sunday. After breakfast we helped the kids build a snow-fort; then had a great snowball fight! We got some good photos too. The time always goes so quickly there, but the train ride home after seems so long.

... and next ...
Now this week I (Wonda) started an intensive French course, so I have classes in the mornings Mon.-Fri ‘til the end of March. Get my brain stirred up, and improve my ability to speak and write well.
Ken has two presentations to promote the MBA Program that he manages. The first is in France, west of Paris this week, then later this month he will present in Calw, Germany.

Stay tuned for more in March…