Day Two: Head Cheese, Gasious Tension and Berliners

6.1.10

It’s the second day of camp. My God, it’s been a hard day. The kids woke up, met in the conference room due to the rain, and then went to breakfast. I have tried headcheese and liverwurst. The first was like a ham flavored gummy bear. The second tasted really good. After breakfast, the kids had free time followed by a lunch of hotdogs and potato wedges. The ketchup is weird but good! It, as with the mustard, doesn’t taste or look like a science experiment. I learned Germans eat hotdogs with roasted onions (much like fried onions), mayo, and pickles! Ew! I’m trying to be open minded about new foods. When else will I get a chance to do so?

I have officially told the big ass hill to fuck off. When you’re walking up the steep hill and the kids are complaining, then you know it’s a big ass hill. I haven’t been drinking enough water so my legs are cramping. Plus we just went hiking in the mountains last weekend. Before that, I spent the entire day walking around Leipzig.

Since it was raining, the kids did indoor activities. First we had team building exercises. The kids did an egg drop followed by a funny activity I’ve never seen before. A flat square of wood is held up by several strings, which each child holds taunt. On the underside of the square there is a hook which catches on one of five blocks of wood. The kids must stack the wooden blocks upon one another. One person gives instructions, which the others must follow. Some kids have to loosen the string while the others must hold them tighter. It took two tries, but they did it!


Then the kids went to the Freizeitzentrum. There were rooms with different activities. We filled bottles with sand, which I lost. They could also play pool or air hockey. I sat talking to Frau M about public and private schools in the US while the girls painted ceramic flowers. I explained that private schools can be competitive. Sometimes they’re harder to get into than colleges. However, just because you can pay doesn’t mean your child will have a spot.


After lunch the kids took turns climbing the rock wall or going through a tunnel maze, which I did. You have to wear hard hats and with good reason! I had to crawl under a wall, climb up into the ceiling then down a narrow tunnel where I thought I’d get stuck.

At snack time (Kaffeepause) the kids celebrated Jonas’ birthday. They told stories, ate candy and sang songs. Then the kids learned how to use a compass. I learned how to operate a compass in girl scouts, but I’ve never really had to use one! I’m the last person they’d want to help them through the woods. Tomorrow they are doing a treasure hunt. I live in the age of GPS, map quest and google earth!


Sometimes I have no idea what’s going on. Only this morning did I start speaking English to the kids. Then I realized what I was doing. I suggested Wednesday be English day. Oh, yes. All English. Some kids have started to speak to me in English but I think neither of us thinks about it when we talk. Jasmin speaks so fast! By the time she gets to the end of her sentence, I forget the beginning!


At the end of the day, we come together in a circle to say what we’ve learned. One of the kids, Willy, and some other boys were confronted by some kids from Berlin. They started flipping birds and called Willy the N-word. It makes me sick to see that. I was with my girls by our cabin when I walked outside and saw the two groups come together. I had no idea what was happening. When I saw the Berliners kicking the soccer ball away, I began to walk over. Before I could get there, the other kids’ teacher had arrived.


Later that night, the kids went to the disco where they had so much fun. I think we all did. The hill and I didn’t have fun on the way back, but it is my mortal enemy. Damn hill. The DJ had a camera and kept taking still photos of me. I think he was infatuated.


I’ve never seen so many ghetto white boys in my life. I found one that was drinking a Coke like it was a 40 and I kept following him around. Finally, I was able to take a picture! It was like being in a gang of over-privileged kids! “I’m from the ‘hood, yo!” What ‘hood? “Uh, the Upper-East Side?”


We were talking about the incident with the Berliners when one of the parents let out a loud, um, fart. Yes, he farted! The funniest thing was that calm little Frau M couldn’t stop laughing, which made me laugh uncontrollably. I hate to say it, but this gassy event broke the tension.