Greetings from Deutschland!

The Wheaton in Germany program is well underway! The group (eight students plus Dr. Shaffer) has been together for the last two and a half weeks, and we've been in Munich for just over a week. In that time, we've packed in so much that several of our host families can't believe we've done so much. One of my new catchphrases is "I can relax in America," to help me remember that being a little tired is totally worth the experience of spending almost two months in Germany.

Fraueninsel

We hit the ground running. We arrived in Munich last Wednesday, and on Thursday we went to the Fraueninsel, an island in the Chiemsee, one of the largest lakes in Germany. There, a nun named Sister Hannah gave us a tour of the Benedictine Abbey Frauenwörth. There have been nuns in this Abbey for 1,230 years without interruption, and the first Abbess known by name was Irmgard, the granddaughter of Charlemagne. (Fraueninsel means "women's island," a result of the Abbey's existence.)

We were enchanted by ducklings on the Fraueninsel.

Friday, we visited the salt mines in Berchtesgaden and then spent the afternoon in Salzburg, known for being the city of Mozart and of The Sound of Music. It was also the center of power of a powerful Archbishop during the Middle Ages. It's a fairytale city, and it was delightful to wander through its streets and skip through the Mirabell Gardens singing "Do a Deer." (Yes, Kate and Anna did do that.) Henry, Allison, Anna and Kate all reached the parapet of the fortress overlooking the city just as all the bells in the city began to toll 6 pm. That was one of the highlights of the trip so far.

Saturday we took the train to Garmisch for what Dr. Shaffer termed "a short Alpine hike." It ended up being approximately 11,5 km and 4 hours long. But although it was longer than expected, and some of us were a bit chagrined to be hiking for so long, the experience and beauty of the Alps was well worth the exertion. We wandered through a narrow gorge through which the Partnach river rushes, and as I heard the water thundering I thought of Revelation 19:6, 

"Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out, 'Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns.'"

view of Garmisch-Partenkirchen

We have done much more since then, visiting a Lutheran church, becoming familiar with the Munich public transit system, taking train trips to Augsburg (to learn about the mighty Fugger family) and Nuremberg, and observing the Corpus Christi procession today in Munich. I think that for most of us it is only just beginning to sink in that we are in Germany. It's an incredible place with incredible people, and spending a summer here learning about German culture and history is going to be fascinating. Equally importantly, throughout the program we will be staying with Christian host families in Munich and Berlin, experiencing daily family life and getting to know German believers is an incredible privilege.

Fronleichnam [Corpus Christi] Procession in Munich

[parenthetical note: I hope to have more photos of the group up soon, once I get access to the photos that Dr. Shaffer's taken.]