We survived the German doctor yesterday. Both boys have a bad virus, but my older son, who is wanting to still have his birthday tomorrow wanted to go on to school today and see how he would do. And he did well. They let him come home a little early since he was not allowed to participate in his sports class today, per doctor's orders.
My question yesterday was brought on by my former day's talk of Aachen, when I mentioned that it was the westernmost city in Germany. So today, I thought it would be fun to look at the easternmost city. This city is Görlitz. The city was first in records in 1071. It's name comes from the practices used at the time where they burned the land to clear it.
Over the ages, the town changed hands many times from Bohemia, Prussia, Saxony, to Silesia. At the end of World War II, though, the town was divided when the Polish German borders were refixed along the river that runs through the town. Görlitz became part of the East German country. In 1990, when all of East Germany was reincorporated back into Germany, it became a part of the German state of Saxony.
The size of the town is only a little smaller than our own Kempten, but it is about 1500 feet lower than we are. Today the Polish side and the German side get along well and have joint meetings once a year between each town council. It also has a lovely variety of architecture that remained intact through WW II. A building within the town, the Schönhof, is the oldest example of renaissance architecture in Germany, dated 1526. The town is also dotted with many lovely parks and natural areas and has a very quaint market area. Perhaps we will get a chance to visit.
The words for the day are east: der Osten (oast en), west: der Westen (vest en), south: der Süden (sooo den - trumpet the lips), and north: der Norden (nor den).
The question for the day is "What is the largest industry in Germany?"
Auf Wiedersehen,
Frau Spitzer
