Round Two of Greven, Germany

No one can keep me away from Western Germany--I LOVE it there. What is not to love about lush green land, stone walls, red roofs, bikers everywhere and small-town pubs? Honestly, if I were to move to Germany then I would have to be in the west...well, I do love Berlin...choices, choices, choices. So I decided to revisit Matthi and the Greulich family for Easter weekend, which was also Matthi's 20th birthday weekend as well. Matthi had spent his 17th birthday at my house in Birmingham in 2008, so it was fun to spend another birthday with him...but this time in Germany. I flew in on a Thursday night, and we dropped my luggage and went straight to the local pub. As always, right when I walked in, I was greeted by Bernd (the owner--pictured in top photo with Matthi and Conni) with "AHHH MAGGIE AUS TENNESSEE! DAS IST MAGGIE AUS TENNESSEE). Oh, to be the center of attention--my grandmother would be so proud! We sat at a table with some of Matthi's friends and hung out until the wee hours of the morning. The next day I experienced a side of Germany that only locals see. It was a fußball tournament between small teams of friends who pair themselves up. The games were in short intervals and they played on a dirt "field"--I have never seen dirtier athletes! All the teams and people know each other so it was more like a social gathering than a competitive tournament, and as always in Germany, alcohol was a key component of the day. The players drank beer between each game and then played again and again. Not only were they getting drunk during the games, but I am pretty sure most of them were hungover from the night before (since I had seen quite a few of them the night before at the pub). It was a hilarious, entertaining, and great experience to say the least. We got ice cream afterward and took it pretty easy that night at Jonas' house, who lives close by Matthi. Saturday was Matthi's birthday and the whole day was full of festivities. We began with a morning brunch with his family and then headed to a local pub around 3pm to watch Bundesliga soccer games. Unfortunately, Matthi's favorite team lost their match; however, Matthi stayed in high spirits. We then made our way to the other pub (with Bernd my favorite pub owner) for another one of Matthi's "stammtisch" gatherings (a meeting between close friends). Like at the other one, I was the sole girl in the group of young, strapping German men. The night was long and as always we did not return until early in the morning. Sunday was, of course, a day of rest, and that is exactly what we did--rested!

The "5th Greulich Child" was sad to leave that Monday. Who knows when I will return "home" again to Greven; hopefully, it will be in my near future.